Awake! Realise yourself! The nature of the soul is eternal.

Sankhya Yoga

Chapter 2, Verse 12

 

na tvevāhaṁ jātu nāsaṁ 

na tvaṁ neme janādhipāḥ 

na caiva na bhaviṣyāmaḥ 

sarve vayamataḥ param

 

There was never a time that I did not exist, nor you, Arjuna, nor these kings  

of men; nor is it true that any of us shall ever cease to exist hereafter.

 

“There was never a time...” This is so beautiful. Here Bhagavan Krishna reveals to Arjuna the quality of the eternity of the soul. He says, “There was never a time when you nor I did not exist. We all existed even before our birth, before we manifested in these bodies. And we will carry on existing even after these bodies disappear. Even though the body dies, the soul is eternal, it will carry on living. So Arjuna, you should not grieve for these relatives or fear their destruction.”

The soul is eternal: one has to come here; one does one’s duty, one’s dharma; and then the body dies. But the soul remains eternal. Before this lifetime here, you were somewhere else in another body; but now you are here in this body. You will continue in this cycle of birth and death until you finally attain the Lord Himself. Krishna is pacifying Arjuna saying, “They all existed before. Even you. Even Me, I always existed. We are just playing this game, this drama. When this body is finished, we will still carry on living afterwards. So why do you grieve for that? Awake! Realise yourself! The nature of the soul is eternal.”

Bhagavad Gita