Chapter 13: Kshetra Kshetrajna Vibhag Yoga; Material Nature, The Enjoyer, and Consciousness

Shri Jagannath sharanam!

Maa Bhagavad Gita sharanam!

Verse 13.1: Arjuna says, dear Krishna, I wish to know about prakriti (material nature), purusha (enjoyer - soul), kshetra (the field), kshetrajna (knower of the field), jnana (knowledge), and jneya (object of knowledge).

Verse 13.2: Shri Krishna says, dear Arjuna, the body is kshetra (the field) and one who knows this body is called ksetrajna (the knower of the field).

Verse 13.6&7: The five elements (earth, water, fire, air, and ether), ego, intellect, mind, the five sense organs of perception, the five sense organs of action, the five objects of senses (sound, touch, color, taste and smell), desire, hatred, pleasure, pain, the physical body, life symptoms, convictions - in a summary all these are considered to be the kshetra (field of activities) and its interactions. 

Verse 13.8,9,10,11&12: Humility, freedom from hypocrisy, non-violence, tolerance, simplicity, approaching a spiritual teacher, internal and external purity, steadiness of mind, control of body, mind and senses, dispassion towards the objects of senses, absence of self-admiration, pondering again and again on the pain and impermanence of birth, death, old age and disease, absence of ownership for son, wife, home etc., even-mindedness in pleasant and unpleasant events, constant and unalloyed devotion to Me, aspiring to live in solitude, detachment from worldly people, accepting the importance of self-realization, and search for Absolute Truth - all these I declare to be jnana (knowledge/wisdom), and what is contrary to this is ignorance.

Verse 13.21&22: Prakriti (material nature) is said to be the cause of all material cause and effects, whereas purusha (enjoyer - soul) is responsible for the experience of joys and sorrows in the material world. The purusha in association with prakriti experiences the three gunas - three qualities of material nature, i.e. sattva, rajas, and tamas (goodness, passion, and ignorance). It is the attachment with these gunas that is responsible for the birth of the soul in good and bad wombs.

Verse 13.25: Some perceive the Supreme within their heart through meditation and devotion (dhyana & bhakti yoga), others through the cultivation of wisdom (jnana yoga), and still others by working without desire for rewards/fruits (karma yoga). 

Verse 13.28: One who sees the Supersoul and individual soul in all bodies, and who understands that the soul and Supersoul within the destructible bodies are indestructible and eternal, actually sees.

Verse 13.29: One who sees the Supersoul equally present in every living being, uplifts himself to his divine nature of sat-chit-ananda (truth-consciousness-happiness).

Verse 13.30: One who sees that all actions are performed by prakriti (material nature) and the self is non-doer, actually sees.

Verse 13.34: O Arjuna, as the sun illuminates the world, so the one jiva atma (soul) illuminates the kshetra (body) with consciousness.

Maa Bhagavad Gita sharanam!

Shri Hari ॐ sharanam!