Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 13: क्षेत्रक्षेत्रज्ञविभागयोगः
Thirty-four verses. The body as the field and the one who knows it, the twenty qualities the Gita calls ‘knowledge’, the supreme Brahman that is to be known, and the discernment of prakriti and purusha are here.
Tap any verse card to open its page with the word-by-word meaning. Pages are ready for every verse of this chapter.
इदं शरीरं कौन्तेय क्षेत्रमित्यभिधीयते।
एतद्यो वेत्ति तं प्राहुः क्षेत्रज्ञ इति तद्विदः ॥ 1 ॥Meaning of verse 13.1 →2क्षेत्रज्ञं चापि मां विद्धि सर्वक्षेत्रेषु भारत।
क्षेत्रक्षेत्रज्ञयोर्ज्ञानं यत्तज्ज्ञानं मतं मम ॥ 2 ॥Meaning of verse 13.2 →3तत्क्षेत्रं यच्च यादृक्च यद्विकारि यतश्च यत्।
स च यो यत्प्रभावश्च तत्समासेन मे शृणु ॥ 3 ॥Meaning of verse 13.3 →4ऋषिभिर्बहुधा गीतं छन्दोभिर्विविधैः पृथक्।
ब्रह्मसूत्रपदैश्चैव हेतुमद्भिर्विनिश्चितैः ॥ 4 ॥Meaning of verse 13.4 →5महाभूतान्यहङ्कारो बुद्धिरव्यक्तमेव च।
इन्द्रियाणि दशैकं च पञ्च चेन्द्रियगोचराः ॥ 5 ॥Meaning of verse 13.5 →6इच्छा द्वेषः सुखं दुःखं सङ्घातश्चेतना धृतिः।
एतत्क्षेत्रं समासेन सविकारमुदाहृतम् ॥ 6 ॥Meaning of verse 13.6 →7अमानित्वमदम्भित्वमहिंसा क्षान्तिरार्जवम्।
आचार्योपासनं शौचं स्थैर्यमात्मविनिग्रहः ॥ 7 ॥Meaning of verse 13.7 →8इन्द्रियार्थेषु वैराग्यमनहङ्कार एव च।
जन्ममृत्युजराव्याधिदुःखदोषानुदर्शनम् ॥ 8 ॥Meaning of verse 13.8 →9असक्तिरनभिष्वङ्गः पुत्रदारगृहादिषु।
नित्यं च समचित्तत्वमिष्टानिष्टोपपत्तिषु ॥ 9 ॥Meaning of verse 13.9 →10मयि चानन्ययोगेन भक्तिरव्यभिचारिणी।
विविक्तदेशसेवित्वमरतिर्जनसंसदि ॥ 10 ॥Meaning of verse 13.10 →11अध्यात्मज्ञाननित्यत्वं तत्त्वज्ञानार्थदर्शनम्।
एतज्ज्ञानमिति प्रोक्तमज्ञानं यदतोऽन्यथा ॥ 11 ॥Meaning of verse 13.11 →12ज्ञेयं यत्तत्प्रवक्ष्यामि यज्ज्ञात्वामृतमश्नुते।
अनादिमत्परं ब्रह्म न सत्तन्नासदुच्यते ॥ 12 ॥Meaning of verse 13.12 →13सर्वतः पाणिपादं तत्सर्वतोऽक्षिशिरोमुखम्।
सर्वतः श्रुतिमल्लोके सर्वमावृत्य तिष्ठति ॥ 13 ॥Meaning of verse 13.13 →14सर्वेन्द्रियगुणाभासं सर्वेन्द्रियविवर्जितम्।
असक्तं सर्वभृच्चैव निर्गुणं गुणभोक्तृ च ॥ 14 ॥Meaning of verse 13.14 →15बहिरन्तश्च भूतानामचरं चरमेव च।
सूक्ष्मत्वात्तदविज्ञेयं दूरस्थं चान्तिके च तत् ॥ 15 ॥Meaning of verse 13.15 →16अविभक्तं च भूतेषु विभक्तमिव च स्थितम्।
भूतभर्तृ च तज्ज्ञेयं ग्रसिष्णु प्रभविष्णु च ॥ 16 ॥Meaning of verse 13.16 →17ज्योतिषामपि तज्ज्योतिस्तमसः परमुच्यते।
ज्ञानं ज्ञेयं ज्ञानगम्यं हृदि सर्वस्य विष्ठितम् ॥ 17 ॥Meaning of verse 13.17 →18इति क्षेत्रं तथा ज्ञानं ज्ञेयं चोक्तं समासतः।
मद्भक्त एतद्विज्ञाय मद्भावायोपपद्यते ॥ 18 ॥Meaning of verse 13.18 →19प्रकृतिं पुरुषं चैव विद्ध्यनादी उभावपि।
विकारांश्च गुणांश्चैव विद्धि प्रकृतिसम्भवान् ॥ 19 ॥Meaning of verse 13.19 →20कार्यकरणकर्तृत्वे हेतुः प्रकृतिरुच्यते।
पुरुषः सुखदुःखानां भोक्तृत्वे हेतुरुच्यते ॥ 20 ॥Meaning of verse 13.20 →21पुरुषः प्रकृतिस्थो हि भुङ्क्ते प्रकृतिजान्गुणान्।
कारणं गुणसङ्गोऽस्य सदसद्योनिजन्मसु ॥ 21 ॥Meaning of verse 13.21 →22उपद्रष्टानुमन्ता च भर्ता भोक्ता महेश्वरः।
परमात्मेति चाप्युक्तो देहेऽस्मिन्पुरुषः परः ॥ 22 ॥Meaning of verse 13.22 →23य एवं वेत्ति पुरुषं प्रकृतिं च गुणैः सह।
सर्वथा वर्तमानोऽपि न स भूयोऽभिजायते ॥ 23 ॥Meaning of verse 13.23 →24ध्यानेनात्मनि पश्यन्ति केचिदात्मानमात्मना।
अन्ये साङ्ख्येन योगेन कर्मयोगेन चापरे ॥ 24 ॥Meaning of verse 13.24 →25अन्ये त्वेवमजानन्तः श्रुत्वान्येभ्य उपासते।
तेऽपि चातितरन्त्येव मृत्युं श्रुतिपरायणाः ॥ 25 ॥Meaning of verse 13.25 →26यावत्सञ्जायते किञ्चित्सत्त्वं स्थावरजङ्गमम्।
क्षेत्रक्षेत्रज्ञसंयोगात्तद्विद्धि भरतर्षभ ॥ 26 ॥Meaning of verse 13.26 →27समं सर्वेषु भूतेषु तिष्ठन्तं परमेश्वरम्।
विनश्यत्स्वविनश्यन्तं यः पश्यति स पश्यति ॥ 27 ॥Meaning of verse 13.27 →28समं पश्यन्हि सर्वत्र समवस्थितमीश्वरम्।
न हिनस्त्यात्मनात्मानं ततो याति परां गतिम् ॥ 28 ॥Meaning of verse 13.28 →29प्रकृत्यैव च कर्माणि क्रियमाणानि सर्वशः।
यः पश्यति तथात्मानमकर्तारं स पश्यति ॥ 29 ॥Meaning of verse 13.29 →30यदा भूतपृथग्भावमेकस्थमनुपश्यति।
तत एव च विस्तारं ब्रह्म सम्पद्यते तदा ॥ 30 ॥Meaning of verse 13.30 →31अनादित्वान्निर्गुणत्वात्परमात्मायमव्ययः।
शरीरस्थोऽपि कौन्तेय न करोति न लिप्यते ॥ 31 ॥Meaning of verse 13.31 →32यथा सर्वगतं सौक्ष्म्यादाकाशं नोपलिप्यते।
सर्वत्रावस्थितो देहे तथात्मा नोपलिप्यते ॥ 32 ॥Meaning of verse 13.32 →33यथा प्रकाशयत्येकः कृत्स्नं लोकमिमं रविः।
क्षेत्रं क्षेत्री तथा कृत्स्नं प्रकाशयति भारत ॥ 33 ॥Meaning of verse 13.33 →34क्षेत्रक्षेत्रज्ञयोरेवमन्तरं ज्ञानचक्षुषा।
भूतप्रकृतिमोक्षं च ये विदुर्यान्ति ते परम् ॥ 34 ॥Meaning of verse 13.34 →
ॐ तत्सदिति श्रीमद्भगवद्गीतासूपनिषत्सु ब्रह्मविद्यायां योगशास्त्रे श्रीकृष्णार्जुनसंवादे क्षेत्रक्षेत्रज्ञविभागयोगो नाम त्रयोदशोऽध्यायः ॥
About Kṣetra Kṣetrajña Vibhāga Yoga
The last six chapters of the Gita begin with this one. In the previous chapter Krishna had said, ‘I lift my devotees out of the ocean of worldly existence.’ Here he gives the understanding that release requires: this body is the field, the one who knows it is the knower of the field, and to know the difference between the two is knowledge.
The best-known part of the chapter is the list of twenty qualities beginning with humility. The Gita calls humility, non-violence, patience, uprightness and service of the teacher ‘knowledge’, and what is contrary to them ‘ignorance’. Some editions open the chapter with a verse containing Arjuna’s question, ‘prakritim purusham chaiva’. It is not part of the Gita of seven hundred verses, and so on these pages the chapter has thirty-four verses.
How the chapter moves
- Verses 1 and 2: This body is the field, the one who knows it is the knower of the field. I am the knower in all fields.
- Verses 3 and 4: The outline of the teaching to come, told by the sages, the Vedas and the Brahma Sutras.
- Verses 5 and 6: The list of the field. The twenty-four principles, and desire, aversion, pleasure and pain.
- Verses 7 to 11: The twenty qualities of knowledge, from humility to keeping the goal of truth in view.
- Verses 12 to 18: The supreme Brahman to be known. Hands and feet everywhere, without senses, the light of lights, seated in every heart.
- Verses 19 to 23: Prakriti and purusha. Agency belongs to prakriti, experience to purusha, the witness in the body.
- Verses 24 and 25: Meditation, knowledge, action and faithful hearing as ways of seeing the Self.
- Verses 26 to 34: One who sees the supreme Lord equal in all truly sees. The images of space and the sun, and the eye of knowledge.
Who is the knower of the field: three views
The acharyas read ‘kshetrajnam chapi mam viddhi’ (13.2) differently. For Shankara the knower of the field in all bodies is in truth the supreme Lord, free of worldly existence, and samsara comes from ignorance. Sridhara Swami, recalling ‘tat tvam asi’, reads it the same way. For Ramanuja both the field and its knower are the Lord’s body and he is their inner Self, so he can speak of them as ‘I’. Madhva keeps the jiva and the Lord distinct and holds that descriptions such as ‘upadrashta’ (13.22) are of the Lord. Many verses of the chapter Ramanuja reads as describing the pure individual self, where Shankara reads them as describing the supreme Brahman.
These pages do not decide between the readings. Wherever the acharyas part, each position is recorded in its own terms.
About these pages
The text is that of the Gita Press edition. Where there are variant readings, such as ‘karyakarana’ (13.20) and ‘chetana dhritih’ (13.6), the other reading is recorded on that page. On the page for 13.23 we have also noted that ‘sarvatha vartamano ’pi’ is not to be read as a licence for wrongdoing.
In this chapter the ‘For life today’ box links the difference between body and awareness to daily life: care of the body, preparing for old age and illness, the exhaustion of carers, loneliness, and the stigma around illness. The health notes are for general understanding only, and for personal problems a doctor’s advice is what counts.
Sources: several.
ಪಾಠದಲ್ಲಿ ತಪ್ಪೋ ಬೇರೆ ಪಾಠಾಂತರವೋ ಕಂಡಿತೇ? ನಮಗೆ ತಿಳಿಸಿ.
Noticed a mistake or a different reading? Tell us.
ಪ್ರತಿಕ್ರಿಯೆ ಬರೆಯಿರಿ