Main Points of the Discourse:
- An account of the nature of the Kshetra and Kshetrajna. (1-7)
- The qualities of the Jnani. (8-12)
- The enunciation of that which is to be known, (13-18)
- Distinction between Prakriti and Purusha. (19-35)
Verses 1 to 35
- Arjuna said: Prakriti and Purusha, the Field and the Knower of the Field, knowledge and that which is to be known— all this, Ο Keśava, I desire to learn. (13.1)
- 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. (13.2)
- O Arjuna! Know Me as the kshetrajna (Knower) in all the kshetras (bodies); Knowledge of the kshetra and kshetrajna is real Knowledge, according to My opinion. (13.3)
- Hear briefly from Me what the Field is, what its nature is, what its modifications are, whence it comes, who its Knower is, and what His powers are. (13.4)
- All this has been sung by sages in many and different ways, in various distinctive hymns, and also in well reasoned and convincing passages indicative of Brahman. (13.5)
- The great elements, I-consciousness, understanding, and the unmanifested; the ten senses, the mind, the five objects of the senses; Desire, hatred, pleasure, pain, the aggregate, intelligence, and fortitude— this, briefly stated, is the Field together with its modifications. (13.6-13.7)
- Humbleness; freedom from hypocrisy; non-violence; forgiveness; simplicity; service of the Guru; cleanliness of body and mind; steadfastness; and self-control; dispassion toward the objects of the senses; absence of egotism; keeping in mind the evils of birth, disease, old age, and death; non-attachment; absence of clinging to spouse, children, home, and so on; even-mindedness amidst desired and undesired events in life; constant and exclusive devotion toward Me; an inclination for solitary places and an aversion for mundane society; constancy in spiritual knowledge; and philosophical pursuit of the Absolute Truth—all these I declare to be knowledge, and what is contrary to it, I call ignorance. (13.8-13.12)
- I will now describe that which ought to be known, through the knowing of which one attains Immortality. It is the Supreme Brahman, which is without beginning and is said to be neither being nor non-being. (13.13)
- Its hands and feet are everywhere; Its eyes, heads, and faces are everywhere; Its ears are everywhere; Its existence envelops all. (13.14)
- It shines through the functions of all the senses, and yet It is devoid of senses. It is unattached, and yet It sustains all. It is devoid of gunas, and yet It enjoys them. It is without and within all beings. It is unmoving and also moving. It is incomprehensible because It is subtle. It is far away, and yet It is near. It is indivisible, and yet It is, as it were, divided among beings. That Knowable Brahman is the Sustainer of all beings, and also their Devourer and Generator. The Light even of lights, It is said to be beyond darkness. As knowledge, the object of knowledge, and the goal of knowledge, It is set firm in the hearts of all. (13.15-13.18)
- Thus briefly have been set forth the Field and also knowledge and the object of knowledge. My devotee who understands this becomes worthy of My state. (13.19)
- Know that Prakriti and Purusha are both without beginning; and know, too, that all forms and gunas are born of Prakriti. (13.20)
- Prakriti is said to be the cause of the generation of the body and the organs, and Purusha is said to be the cause of the experience of pleasure and pain. (13.21)
- Purusha, embodied in Prakriti, experiences the gunas born of Prakriti. It is attachment to these gunas that is the cause of His birth in good and evil wombs. (13.22)
- The Supreme Spirit in the body is said to be the one who is the Witness and the Approver, the Supporter and the Enjoyer, and who is the Sovereign Lord and the Highest Self. (13.23)
- He who thus knows Purusha and Prakriti, along with the gunas, is not born again. He will be liberated regardless of his present condition. (13.24)
- Some by meditation perceive the Self in themselves through the mind, some by devotion to knowledge, and some by devotion to work. (13.25)
- And there are yet some who do not know It by these means. They hear of It from others and worship. They too pass beyond death through their devotion to what they have heard. (13.26)
- Whatever is born— whether animate or inanimate— know, Ο Bhārata prince, that it is through union of the Field and the Knower of the Field. (13.27)
- He who sees the Supreme Lord abiding alike in all beings, and not perishing when they perish— verily he alone sees. (13.28)
- Because he sees the Lord present alike everywhere, he does not injure Self by self, and thus he reaches the supreme state. (13.29)
- He who sees that all actions are done only by Prakriti and that the Self is actionless— verily, he alone sees. (13.30)
- When he sees that the manifold nature of beings is centred in the One and that all evolution is from that One alone, he becomes one with Brahman. (13.31)
- Having no beginning and possessing no gunas, this supreme and imperishable Self, Ο son of Kunti, neither acts nor is stained by action even while dwelling in the body. (13.32)
- As the ākāśa that pervades all things is not stained, because of its subtlety, even so the Self dwelling in the body everywhere is not stained. (13.33)
- As the one sun illumines the whole world, so does He who dwells in the body, Ο Bhārata, illumine the whole body. (13.34)
- They who perceive with the eye of wisdom this distinction between the Field and the Knower of the Field, and also the deliverance from Prakriti, the cause of all beings— they attain the Supreme. (13.35)
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