Arjuna says:
O Kṛṣṇa, I desire to learn about the Self and about material nature,
about the Field and its Knower, about knowledge and the goal of
knowledge.
śrī arjuna uvāca
prakṛtiṁ puruṣaṁ caiva kṣetraṁ kṣetrajñam eva ca |
etad veditum icchāmi jñānaṁ jñeyaṁ ca keśava ||
13.2
Lord Kṛṣṇa says:
This body, O Arjuna, is called the Field (kṣetra). One who has knowledge
of this is called the ‘Knower of the Field’ (Kṣetrajña), by the
enlightened ones.
śrī Bhagavān uvāca
idaṁ śarīraṁ kaunteya kṣetram ityabhidhīyate |
etad yo vetti taṁ prāhuḥ kṣetrajñā iti tad vidaḥ ||
13.3
And you should also understand that I am the Knower in all the Fields
(as well as the inner Self), O Arjuna. In My view, this knowledge of the
Field and (both) its Knowers is the highest knowledge.
Now, learn briefly from Me about the Field, what its nature is, what
changes it undergoes, and which one of these comes from the other; also
learn about the Knower of the Field and what His influence is.
tat kṣetraṁ yacca yādr̥k ca yad vikāri yataśca yat |
sa ca yo yat prabhāvaśca tat samāsena me śr̥ṇu ||
13.5
This knowledge has been sung about by the sages in different ways,
through various distinctive hymns of the Vedas. It has also been
expressed through conclusive arguments in the Brahma-sūtras.
The principle elements, the ego, the intellect, the unmanifested, the
ten senses, the five objects of the senses;
mahā-bhūtāny-ahaṅkāro buddhir-avyaktam eva ca |
indriyāṇi daśaikaṁ ca pañca cendriya gocarāḥ ||
13.7
Attraction, aversion, pleasure and pain, the different faculties of the
body, consciousness and one’s resolve, is briefly what composes the
Field, and the various transformations it undergoes.
Having constant dedication to the path of Self-realisation and the goal
of Truth – all of this should be considered ‘knowledge’ and everything
else is ignorance.
VERSES 13-19: THE OBJECT OF KNOWLEDGE: THE SUPERSOUL
13.13
I shall now explain what one must strive to know. Once this is realised,
one attains immortality. That object of knowledge is beginning-less, it
is Brahman which is dependent on Me; it is said to be neither existing
nor non-existing.
It illumines the senses while remaining unconnected with the sense
organs; It is detached and yet supports all; It is free from the guṇas
and yet it experiences the guṇas.
It is inside and outside all beings; It is moving yet unmoving; It is so
subtle that no one can comprehend It; It is far away, and yet so very
near.
bahir-antaśca bhūtānām acaraṁ caram eva ca |
sūkṣmatvāt tad avijñeyaṁ dūrasthaṁ cāntike ca tat ||
13.17
It is one and yet appears divided among living beings. That which must
be known is the sustainer of all living beings. It devours them and
brings them back into existence.
avibhaktaṁ ca bhūteṣu vibhaktaṁ iva ca sthitaṁ |
bhūtabhartr̥ ca tajjñeyaṁ grasiṣṇu prabhaviṣṇu ca ||
13.18
It is the light of all lights, beyond all darkness. It is knowledge
itself, the object of knowledge and it can be attained through
knowledge; It is present in the hearts of all beings.
In this way I have briefly explained the Field, knowledge and the object
of knowledge. Upon realising this, My devotee attains that supreme
relationship with Me.
Know that both material nature and the Self are without beginning, and
all the transformations and guṇas arise from this material nature.
prakṛtiṁ puruṣaṁ caiva viddhy anādī ubhāv api |
vikārāṁś ca guṇāṁś caiva viddhi prakṛti-sambhavān ||
13.21
Nature is said to be the cause of all material causes and effects. The
embodied soul, however, is said to be the cause of the various pleasures
and pain experienced.
The Self which is situated in material nature experiences the effects of
the different guṇas that arise from it. Entanglement to these guṇas is
the cause of higher and lower births.
But within the body, supreme to the Self, there is another One that is
called the Witness, the One who grants permission, the Supporter, the
Enjoyer, the Great Lord, the Supersoul.
Then there are those who do not follow any of these paths, but having
heard teachings from others, they devote themselves to the Supreme and
they too pass beyond death.
O Arjuna, this Supreme Self is without beginning and is unchanging.
Though It is in the body, It is free from the guṇas; It neither acts nor
is It stained by action.
anāditvān nirguṇatvāt paramātmāyam avyayaḥ |
śarīrastho’pi kaunteya na karoti na lipyate ||
13.33
As all-pervading space is never affected by anything because of its
subtle nature, so too the Self dwelling in the body is not tainted by
the body.
Those with the eye of wisdom, who can perceive the difference between
the Field and the Knowers of the Field, and how beings can be liberated
from material nature — they attain the Supreme.
kṣetra kṣetrajñayor-evam antaraṁ jñāna-cakṣuṣā |
bhūta prakṛti-mokṣaṁ ca ye vidur-yānti te param ||