We don’t breathe twice in the same body

We frequently misidentify with our body. However, Gita wisdom explains that not only are we not our body, but the thing we call our body is not a steady thing across time.

The Bhagavad-gita (08.04) asserts that the whole material manifestation, of which our body is a part, is characterized by change. Indeed, the only thing constant in this world is change. This change may be subtle, but it is inexorable. So inexorable, in fact, is the body’s change that we don’t breathe twice in the same body – it changes in the infinitesimal period from one breath to the next.

Science too confirms that our body is in constant flux. Old cells are dying, new cells are being born, and the remaining cells are moving through various stages in the journey from creation to destruction. So, from every moment to the next moment, our body is changing.

As our body is our essential vehicle for functioning in this world, processing the reality that it is so unstable can be disorienting. When we eventually digest how changeable and changing our body is, we get the cerebral jolt necessary to decrease our infatuation with it and the pleasures it promises. The resulting detachment can make us more open to exploring life’s spiritual frontier.

The Gita, a time-honored guide for spiritual explorers, reorients us by introducing us to a higher reality: No matter how many things change, one thing never changes – Krishna always loves us. He is always waiting for us in our own hearts. And we can experience his presence by practicing bhakti-yoga. This time-honored process redirects our heart from matter to Krishna, thereby delivering tangible, transformational experiences of spiritual love.

When we use our ephemeral body to access Krishna’s eternal love, we can relish security and serenity even in this ever-changing world.