KATHOPNISHAD CHAPTER 5 SHLOKA -6

                                                           हन्त त इदं प्रवक्ष्यामि 

                                                            गुह्यं ब्रह्म सनातनम् । 

                                                           यथा च मरणं प्राप्य 

                                                            आत्मा भवति गौतम ॥ ६

                                                   HAST  TA  PRAVKSHAMI

                                       GUHYAM  BRAMHMA SANATANAM |

                                           YATHA CH MARANAM PRAPYA

                                                ATMA BHAVATI GAUTAM  ||6

WELL O GAUTAMA,I WILL EXPLAIN THE MYSTERIOUS AND ANCIENT BRAHAM 

                                AND WHAT HAPPENS TO SOUL-ATMAN  AFTER DEATH  ||6

  The question Nachiket wanted Yamaraj to answer was 'what happens to the soul after the death of physical body ' and now after the discourse Yamarj is ready to answer it . In this Shloka he is telling his student, whom he had tested  and confirmed that he is ready to receive the Knowledge. He is stating that in this Shloka. He is referring to the soul or Atman as 'Mysterious ' and SANATAN -old or everlasting. These two qualifications tell us that the Atman is not easy to understand  and it is indestructible. But many a times the confusion arises as we use ATMAN and SELF  and SOUL - English translation of the Sanskrit word -interchangeably. Then there is JIVA or also called JIVATMA and that adds to the confusion in understanding. This has been clarified to some extent in past . But just to state it again there is no true translation of ATMAN or SELF in English. When due to ignorance the SELF is confined to a physical body, it is called JIVA  and since it is related to ATMAN we sometimes call it JIVATMA. So now Yamaraj is going to tell us as what happens when  the physical body dies.