श्रीभगवानुवाच |
इदं शरीरं कौन्तेय क्षेत्रमित्यभिधीयते |
एतद्यो वेत्ति तं प्राहु: क्षेत्रज्ञ इति तद्विद: || 2||
śhrī-bhagavān uvācha
idaṁ śharīraṁ kaunteya kṣhetram ity abhidhīyate
etad yo vetti taṁ prāhuḥ kṣhetra-jña iti tad-vidaḥ
śhrī-bhagavān uvācha—the Supreme Divine Lord said; idam—this; śharīram—body; kaunteya—Arjun, the son of Kunti; kṣhetram—the field of activities; iti—thus; abhidhīyate—is termed as; etat—this; yaḥ—one who; vetti—knows; tam—that person; prāhuḥ—is called; kṣhetra-jñaḥ—the knower of the field; iti—thus; tat-vidaḥ—those who discern the truth
Translation:
The Lord said: This body, Ο son of Kunti, is called the Field, and he who knows it is called the Knower of the Field by those who describe them.
Commentary:
‘Kshetram‘ means field. The field is necessary for growing corn and other things to sustain the beings of the world. So also the body is necessary for the growth of the seed of knowledge in the heart of man. All ‘sadhana’, ‘tapas’, thinking and meditation – all this is to be done with the body. So the body, the ‘kshetra’, is the field for the growth of the, seed of ‘Dharma’ as well as ‘Jnana’. Therefore it is called ‘kshetra’.
The body being inert (Jada’) does not know itself; There is a consciousness within with power to cognise the body. This consciousness power is known as ‘kshetrajna.’ He is ‘Pratyagatma’. He is the witness of the combined elements of the body, senses and the mind. He is changeless, pure, intelligence, deathless, separate from the five sheaths (Panchakosas). What is inert cannot know itself. The wall does not know that it is a wall, nor does a pot know that it is a pot. It is intelligence that has the power of cognition. That Intelligence is the Knower of the body. He knows. He (‘kshetrajna‘) is pure Intelligence.
The knower of the field is certainly different from the field. So the knower of the body should certainly be distinct from the body. Though Intelligence is in the body, yet it remains free and perfect, witnessing the modifications of the body and mind during all the three states of wakefulness ‘Jagrat’, dream ‘Svapna’ and sleep ‘Sushupti’.
Question: What is Kshetra?
Answer: This body, this vehicle (Upadhi) is the Kshetra.
Question: Who is the kshetrajna?
Answer: Pure Intelligence (Pratyagatma) is the knower of the field.
Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 13 🔻 (35 Verses)
