Birth is the consequence of Kama (desire, lust) : Death is the consequence of Kaala (Time, lapse of Time). The God of Desire (Kama) was reduced to ashes by Shiva: the God of Time (Kaala or Yama) was subdued by Shiva. So, one has to surrender to Shiva (God) if one has to escape the consequences of these two frightfully fatal forces. In between Kama and Kaala you take refuge in Rama, then you can escape the rigour. For Rama is the Atma and Atma (self, infinite) has no Kama and is unaffected by Kaala. (AV, p. 132)
Birth and death are related to the body and not to the soul. These are mere imaginations of human mind. In fact, everything in this world is the creation of man’s mind. Life is a dream. How can anything that appears in a dream be true? It is all a mere Bhranti (illusion). So long as you are immersed in illusion, you cannot have the vision of Brahman. The moment you get rid of the illusion, you can have the experience of reality. (SS Jan 04, p. 3)
When man emerges from the womb of his mother; one does not find any garland around his neck. There are no jewels made of pearls nor are there glittering gold ornaments. There are no chains studded with precious stones like emeralds and diamonds. But there is one garland around his neck, Brahma strings together the consequences of his past deeds into a heavy garland and puts it around his neck at the time of his birth. (Telugu Poem) (SSS Vol.39, p. 120)