Bhagavad Gita · 13.4 · Yoga through Distinguishing the Field and the Knower of the Field·4 of 35
तत्क्षेत्रं यच्च यादृक् च यद्विकारि यतश्च यत्।स च यो यत्प्रभावश्च तत्समासेन मे श्रृणु ॥
tat kṣhetraṁ yach cha yādṛik cha yad-vikāri yataśh cha
yat sa cha yo yat-prabhāvaśh cha tat samāsena me śhṛiṇu
Sanskrit recitation
The field and the knower · 13.1–13.18 · Teaching
Translation
Hear from Me in brief what the field is, of what nature it is, what its modifications are, whence it is, who He is, and what His powers are.
Meaning
I will tell you, O Arjuna, what the field is, why the body is called the field, what are its modifications or changes in other words what transformations it undergoes, what are its properties, what effects arise in it from what causes, to whom it belongs, whether it is cultivated or whether it grows wild.That field refers to the field mentioned in verse 1.Who He is Who is that knower of the field What are His powers (Prabhavas are powers such as the power of seeing, hearing, etc.) which originate from the limiting adjuncts (such as the eys, the ears, etc.) Do thou hear My speech which describes succinctly the real nature of the field and the knower of the field in all these specific aspects.O Arjuna, I am ite sure that thou wilt clearly comprehend the truth on hearing My speech.The body is the field. The ten senses represent the ten bulls. The bulls work unceasingly day and night through the field of the objects of the senses. The mind is the supervisor. The individual soul is the tenant. The five vital airs (Pranas) are the five labourers. The Primordial Nature is the mistress of the field. This field is Her property. She Herself watches over the field vigilantly. She is endowed with the three alities. Rajas sows the seed Sattva guards it Tamas reaps the harvest
After Swami Sivananda
The field and the knower· 13.1–13.18→
Teachers usually read this idea across several verses together, one shared reflection covers the whole unit.
- 13.1Arjuna said, "I wish to learn about Nature and the Spirit, the field and the knower of the field, knowledge and that which ought to be known, O Kesava."
- 13.2The Blessed Lord said, "O Arjuna, this body is called the field; he who knows it is called the knower of the field by those who know them."
- 13.3Do thou also know Me as the knower of the field in all fields, O Arjuna. Knowledge of both the field and the knower of the field is considered by Me to be the knowledge.
13.4Hear from Me in brief what the field is, of what nature it is, what its modifications are, whence it is, who He is, and what His powers are.
- 13.5Sages have sung in many ways, with various distinctive chants and also with suggestive words indicative of the Absolute, full of reasoning and decisive.
- 13.6The great elements, egoism, intellect, and also the Unmanifested Nature, the ten senses, and one mind, and the five objects of the senses.
- 13.7Desire, hatred, pleasure, pain, the aggregate (body), intelligence, and fortitude—the field has thus been briefly described with its modifications.
- 13.8Humility, unpretentiousness, non-injury, forgiveness, uprightness, service to the teacher, purity, steadfastness, and self-control.
- 13.9Indifference to the objects of the senses and also absence of egoism; perceiving the evil in birth, death, old age, sickness, and pain.
- 13.10Non-attachment, non-identification of the Self with son, wife, home, and the rest, and constant even-mindedness in the face of the attainment of both desirable and undesirable.
- 13.11Unswerving devotion to Me through the Yoga of non-separation, resorting to solitary places, and a distaste for the company of people.
- 13.12Constancy in Self-knowledge, the perception of the end of true knowledge—this is declared to be knowledge, and what is opposed to it is ignorance.
- 13.13I will declare that which is to be known, knowing which one attains immortality; the beginningless Supreme Brahman, which is neither being nor non-being.
- 13.14With hands and feet everywhere, with eyes, heads, and mouths everywhere, with ears everywhere, He exists in the worlds, enveloping all.
- 13.15Shining by the functions of all the senses, yet without being attached to them; unattached, yet supporting all; devoid of qualities, yet the experiencer of them.
- 13.16It is within and without all beings, both the unmoving and the moving; It is subtle and unknowable, and It is near and far away.
- 13.17Undivided yet, It exists as if divided in beings; It is to be known as the supporter of beings; It devours and It generates.
- 13.18That Light of all lights is said to be beyond darkness: knowledge, the knowable, and the goal of knowledge, seated in the hearts of all.
Word-by-word→
- me
- from me
- cha
- and
- tat
- that
- yat
- what
- saḥ
- he
- yaḥ
- who
- yataḥ
- from what
- samāsena
- in summary
- yādṛik
- its nature
- kṣhetram
- field of activities
- yat-vikāri
- how change takes place in it
- śhṛiṇu
- listen
- yat-prabhāvaḥ
- what his powers are
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