ŚB 12.5.8
Devanagari
न तत्रात्मा स्वयंज्योतिर्यो व्यक्ताव्यक्तयो: पर: ।
आकाश इव चाधारो ध्रुवोऽनन्तोपमस्तत: ॥ ८ ॥
आकाश इव चाधारो ध्रुवोऽनन्तोपमस्तत: ॥ ८ ॥
Verse text
na tatrātmā svayaṁ-jyotir
yo vyaktāvyaktayoḥ paraḥ
ākāśa iva cādhāro
dhruvo ’nantopamas tataḥ
yo vyaktāvyaktayoḥ paraḥ
ākāśa iva cādhāro
dhruvo ’nantopamas tataḥ
Synonyms
na — not; tatra — there; ātmā — the soul; svayam-jyotiḥ — self-luminous; yaḥ — who; vyakta-avyaktayoḥ — from the manifest and the unmanifest (the gross and subtle bodies); paraḥ — different; ākāśaḥ — the sky; iva — as; ca — and; ādhāraḥ — the basis; dhruvaḥ — fixed; ananta — without end; upamaḥ — or comparison; tataḥ — thus.
Translation
The soul within the body is self-luminous and is separate from the visible gross body and invisible subtle body. It remains as the fixed basis of changing bodily existence, just as the ethereal sky is the unchanging background of material transformation. Therefore the soul is endless and without material comparison.