SB 3.3.17
uttarayam dhrtah puror
vamsah sadhv-abhimanyuna
sa vai drauny-astra-samplustah
punar bhagavata dhrtah
Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
The embryo of Puru’s descendant begotten by the great hero Abhimanyu in the womb of Uttara, his wife, was burnt by the weapon of the son of Drona, but later he was again protected by the Lord.
Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
The embryonic body of Pariksit which was in formation after Uttara’s pregnancy by Abhimanyu, the great hero, was burned by the brahmastra of Asvatthama, but a second body was given by the Lord within the womb, and thus the descendant of Puru was saved. This incident is the direct proof that the body and the living entity, the spiritual spark, are different. When the living entity takes shelter in the womb of a woman through the injection of the semen of a man, there is an emulsification of the man’s and woman’s discharges, and thus a body is formed the size of a pea, gradually developing into a complete body. But if the developing embryo is destroyed in some way or other, the living entity has to take shelter in another body or in the womb of another woman. The particular living entity who was selected to be the descendant of Maharaja Puru, or the Pandavas, was not an ordinary living entity, and by the superior will of the Lord he was destined to be the successor to Maharaja Yudhisthira. Therefore, when Asvatthama destroyed the embryo of Maharaja Pariksit, the Lord, by His own internal potency, entered into the womb of Uttara by His plenary portion just to give audience to the would-be Maharaja Pariksit, who was in great danger. By His appearance within the womb, the Lord encouraged the child and gave him complete protection in a new body by His omnipotency. By His power of omnipresence He was present both inside and outside of Uttara and other members of the Pandava family.