THE HOLY GITA, CHAPTER 13, VERSE 19, KSHETRA KSHETRAJNA VIBHAGA YOGA OR THE YOGA OF THE DISCRIMINATION OF THE KSHETRA AND THE KSHETRAJNA

THE HOLY GITA

CHAPTER NUMBER 13

VERSE NUMBER 19

KSHETRA KSHETRAJNA VIBHAGA YOGA OR THE YOGA OF THE DISCRIMINATION OF THE KSHETRA AND THE KSHETRAJNA:

TEXT IN TRANSLITERATION:

prakrrtim purusham chai ‘va viddhy anaadhee ubhaav api

vikaaraams cha gunaams chai ‘va viddhi prakrrtisambhavaan

SANSKRIT WORDS AND PHRASES AND THEIR MEANING IN ENGLISH:

Prakrrtim = Prakriti: purusham = Purusha: cha = and: eva = even: viddhi = know: anaadee = beginningless: ubhau = both: api = also: vikaaraan = modifications: cha = even: viddhi = know: prakrrti sambhavaan = born of Prakriti.

TEXT IN ENGLISH:

Know that Prakriti and Purusha are both without beginning, and know also that all modifications and Gunas are born of Prakriti.

COMMENTARY BY SRIMAT SWAMI CHIDBHAVANANDA:

Prakriti and Purusha are not essentially two different entities. The same Reality enjoys two suddha chaitanya or Pure Consciousness, It is ever Itself and there is no modification in It. This Changeless Reality puts on the appearance of changefulness and modifications. The former phase is Purusha and the latter phase, Prakriti.

Prakriti puts on the embodiment of time, space and causation. It is constituted of the three Gunas Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas. Because of its changeful nature, it is called Maya. This substance being an eternal verity, it is termed as having no beginning, and therefore, no end too.

COMMENTARY BY DR.S.RADHAKRISHNAN:

As the Supreme is eternal, so are His prakrtis.

Through the possession of the two prakrtis, nature and soul, Isvara causes the origin, preservation, and dissolution of the universe. The Purusha described in this section is not the multiple Purusha of the Saamkhya but the ksetranja who is one in all fields. The Gita does not look upon Prakriti and Purusha as two independent elements as the Saamkhya does but looks upon them as the inferior and the superior forms of one and the same Supreme.                                                                                                                                                                                           

COMMENTARY BY SRIMAT SWAMI SIVANANDA:

Steps are necessary to reach the top floor of a building. Even so, steps are necessary to reach the summit of the knowledge of the Self. That is the reason why Lord Krishna took Arjuna to the summit of knowledge step by step. He first taught Arjuna the nature of the field, then knowledge, ignorance or non-wisdom, and ultimately the knowable. When a child is to be fed the intelligent mother divides the food into small portions and feeds the child little by little. Even so, Lord Krishna fed His spiritual child Arjuna with the spiritual food little by little.

Lord Krishna says: “O Arjuna! I will give you the same teaching in another form by the description of the Spirit and Nature”

Till now the Lord expounded the knowledge of the field and the Self in accordance with the philosophy of the Upanishads. Now He explains the same knowledge in accordance with the Sankhya philosophy, but without accepting its dual nature in the form of discrimination between the Spirit and Nature.

Vikaras: Modifications from the Mahat-Tattva or intellect down to the physical body; the twenty-four principles of the Sankhyas. The Self within is changeless. All changes take place in Nature, Mulaprakriti (the Primordial Nature, the Unmanifested) becomes modified into Mahat, egoism, mind, the great elements and other minor modifications.

Just as coolness and ice, the day and the night, are inseparable, so also matter and Spirit are inseparable. The three qualities Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas are born of Nature (matter). All actions proceed from the mind, the life-force, the senses, and the physical body.

According to the Sankhya philosophy, Prakriti and Purusha are not only eternal and beginningless but also independent of each other and self-created. According to Vedanta philosophy, Prakriti or Maya originates from Brahman and is, therefore, neither self-created nor independent. Ishvara has Maya under His perfect control. Maya is His causal body. Maya is His illusory power.

Matter and Spirit are the Natures of Ishvara. Know that these two are beginningless. That which has no beginning is Anadi.  As Ishvara is eternal, His two Natures also should be eternal (This is according to the Sankhyas.)

Ishvara possesses these two Natures(superior and inferior) by which He causes the creation, preservation, and destruction of the universe. Therefore He has the Lordship and rules over the universe. The two Natures have no beginning. Therefore they are the cause of Samsara.

The inferior Nature (Apara Prakriti) which consists of the eightfold division of Nature referred to in chapter VII, verse 4, is the Prakriti of chapter XIII, verse 19. The superior Nature (Para Prakriti) referred to in chapter VII, verse 5,  is the Purusha of chapter XIII, verse 19.  Purusha here means ‘Jiva’ (the individual soul).

Even a child smiles and experiences exhilaration, grief, fear, anger, pleasure, and pain. Who taught it? The impressions of the virtuous and vicious actions of this birth cannot be the cause of these. The impressions of the previous birth alone are the cause of these. They (the impressions) must have support. From this we can clearly infer the existence of the individual soul in the previous birth and that the individual soul is beginningless. If you do not accept that the individual soul is beginningless, the two defects of Kritanasa (non-fruition of actions performed) and Akritabhyagama (causeless effect) will creep in. Pleasure and pain which are the fruits of virtuous and vicious actions done previously will pass away without being experienced. This is the defect of Kritanasa. So also, one will have to enjoy pleasure and pain, the fruits of good and bad actions which were not done by him previously. This is the defect of akritabhyagama. In order to get rid of these two defects, we will have to accept that the individual soul is beginningless. The scriptures also emphatically declare that the soul is beginningless.

Comments by the blogger:

Firstly, Sri Bhagavan states Prakriti or Nature and Purusha or Jivathman or individual Soul are without beginning. Srimat Swami Chidbhavananda says, when the Lord says that the Prakriti and Purusha are without beginning, we should take it that there is no end for the Prakriti and Purusha. So they are always there. And another tatva or thought, secondly, is that all modifications and Gunas are born of Prakriti. Sri Mathva says that during the Pralaya or the dissolution of this Universe a small part or portion of the Prakriti or Nature is left by Ishvara untouched. And such portion of the Prakriti or Nature is made up of the Trigunas or the three Gunas, namely, Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas. As for Purusha, all the human beings who share one Purusha or Atman (all the fields or Kshetra have but one knower of the field or Kshetrajna) enjoys this world through the mind and body. Thus at Pralaya the three Gunas are left in a state of equilibrium in Prakrity. Since there is perfect equilibrium among the three Gunas, in Brahma’s Night there is no Creation taking place in Prakrity.

The Lord of Gita says all the three Gunas are born in Prakrity. The three Gunas, Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas, are the reasons for all modifications. But there is no modification in Ishvara. Ishvara ever remains actionless. All the actions take place in the Prakrity alone because of the Three Gunas. Purusha merely enjoys the results of the actions, good or bad, taking place in the embodied through Its dependence on Nature. This is the result of Maya or illusion. Prakriti consists of the Three Gunas and is invested with Maya or Illusion. The dependence (through ignorance)  on Prakrity gives rise to trillions of actions in this world from each of us!

So, this is an action-oriented Universe. There are three Gunas in Prakrity. And when the individual Soul becomes embodied and comes to the earthly plane, Prakrity induces the embodied Purusha or Jivatma to indulge in action through the body and mind. Thus Ishvara is not the promoter of actions in this world and the individual Jivatmas cannot attain the State of Ishvara till Jivatmans are shorn of all actions and modifications! Because there is no action both in Ishvara and Purusha in individual Self.

Prakrity has a mission. Though It binds us to the fruits of our individual actions, good or bad, this is not the ultimate purpose of Prakriti or Nature. Nature fosters us like a human mother. And It makes us go through life by working out our Karma created by us in our former birth (s). We become enslaved to this earthly life through Maya or Illusion of Prakriti or Nature. But this is not the mission of Prakriti. Only when we give up ourselves to Prakriti's Maya or Illusion, we become bound to this earthly life. And we need to come back to this earthly plane repeatedly. But there is an interesting part played by Prakriti. The Purusha in all the human beings, owing to Its action mode, enjoys life on the plane of this earth. And when we, human beings, strive individually to become free of Prakriti, It subjects us to the Test by Fire. Prakriti tries with all Its illusory wealth and variety of sensual pleasures to make us stay entwined to this worldly life. We have to over-exert ourselves and strive and strive to not give way to the Illusory pulls of Prakriti. It is indeed a mighty attempt by Prakriti or Nature to enslave us to Her countless Charms. When we try to become free of Prakriti, Prakriti tries to trip us up and get focused on enjoying the worldly sensual pleasures. We are encouraged and tempted to continue with the earthly life after our innings on this plane of Earth. We have to guard ourselves against the pulls and pleasures of Prakriti. It is not Prakriti alone consisting of The Three Gunas. We are also having the Yoke of the Three Gunas. Through the three Gunas, by appealing to preponderating Guna, whether it is Sattva or Rajas or Tamas, we are encouraged and seduced by Prakriti to continue to have yearnings for the earthly things. Sattva Guna enslaves us to all the Sattvic Actions and the resultant Sattvic Pleasures of Prakriti. Sattva is Light. Rajas is action-oriented. And the Tamas is darkness and indolence. Each and every one of us are made of all the Three Gunas. But in every one of us, one Guna preponderates. If we are preponderatingly Sattvic, we indulge in noble activities and enjoy the Sattvic pleasures of Prakriti. If we are preponderatingly Rajas, we are continually in an activated action mode. We cannot remain without indulging in action even for a nanosecond. And if we are preponderatingly Tamas, then we take up karma or action disproportionate to our capacity and thus remain a failure throughout our sojourn in this worldly life. So, irrespective of what Guna preponderates in us, we continually indulge in action. And every action binds us to Prakriti and we have to come back to the earth repeatedly. But when we are very Sattvic and we exert ourselves to get free of the pulls and pleasures of the Prakriti, and when we become very resolute and indulge in actions without seeking the fruits thereof, then the Pulls of the Maya or Illusion of Prakriti starts to become less and less. And NOW PRAKRITI, HAVING PUT US TO THE TEST BY FIRE, COMES TO OUR SPIRITUAL HELP AND DOES EVERYTHING TO MAKE OUR SPIRITUAL PATH ROSE-STREWN AND FACILITATES AND ENCOURAGES US TO STAY TO THE PATH OF SPIRITUALITY. THOUGH EVERY SEEKER IS, AT FIRST, DISCOURAGED BY PRAKRITI AT THE START OF OUR MEDITATIONAL GOAL, WHEN WE STAY IN THE SPIRITUAL GOAL STEADFAST, THEN THE SAME PRAKRITI COMES TO OUR HELP AND MAKES US TO STAY IN THE SPIRITUAL PATH. THUS WE ARE GIVEN A PUSH TOWARD A LIFE PREPONDERATINGLY SPIRITUAL AND ALL OUR EFFORTS TO SEEK GOD-REALIZATION ARE RECOGNISED BY PRAKRITI. PRAKRITI NOW ENCOURAGES US AND FACILITATES OUR ENDEAVOUR  TO BECOME FREE OF PRAKRITI!