Mandukya Karika, verse 4.7-8

Text

न भवत्यमृतं मर्त्यं न मर्त्यममृतं तथा ।
प्रकृतेरन्यथाभावो न कथंचिद्भविष्यति ॥ ७ ॥

na bhavatyamṛtaṃ martyaṃ na martyamamṛtaṃ tathā |
prakṛteranyathābhāvo na kathaṃcidbhaviṣyati || 7 ||

7. The immortal cannot become mortal, nor can the mortal ever become immortal. For, it is never possible for a thing to change its nature.


स्वभावेनामृतो यस्य धर्मो गच्छति मर्त्यताम् ।
कृतकेनामृतस् तस्य कथंस्थास्यति निश्चलः ॥ ८ ॥

svabhāvenāmṛto yasya dharmo gacchati martyatām |
kṛtakenāmṛtas tasya kathaṃsthāsyati niścalaḥ || 8 ||

8. How can he, who believes that the naturally immortal entity becomes mortal, maintain that the immortal, after passing through birth, retains its changeless nature?

Shankara Bhashya (commentary)

These verses have already been explained. They are repeated here in order to justify our view that the disputants mentioned above only contradict each other.