Bhagavad Gita Chapter 13 Verse 1 — Ksetra Ksetrajna Vibhaga Yoga
Sanskrit
अर्जुन उवाच | प्रकृतिं पुरुषं चैव क्षेत्रं क्षेत्रज्ञमेव च | एतद्वेदितुमिच्छामि ज्ञानं ज्ञेयं च केशव ||१३-१||
Transliteration
arjuna uvāca . prakṛtiṃ puruṣaṃ caiva kṣetraṃ kṣetrajñameva ca . etadveditumicchāmi jñānaṃ jñeyaṃ ca keśava ||13-1||
Hindi Meaning
।।13.1।। अर्जुन ने कहा -- हे केशव ! मैं, प्रकृति और पुरुष, क्षेत्र और क्षेत्रज्ञ तथा ज्ञान और ज्ञेय को जानना चाहता हूँ।।
English Meaning
Arjuna said: O Keshava, I wish to understand what is Prakriti (nature), Purusha (the enjoyer), and the field and the knower of the field, and what are knowledge and the object of knowledge.
Commentary
Arjuna was inquisitive about prakṛti (nature), puruṣa (the enjoyer), kṣetra (the field), kṣetra-jña (its knower), and knowledge and the object of knowledge. When he inquired about all these, Kṛṣṇa said that this body is called the field and that one who knows this body is called the knower of the field. This body is the field of activity for the conditioned soul. The conditioned soul is entrapped in material existence, and he attempts to lord it over material nature. And so, according to his capacity to dominate material nature, he gets a field of activity. That field of activity is the body. And what is the body? The body is made of senses. The conditioned soul wants to enjoy sense gratification, and, according to his capacity to enjoy sense gratification, he is offered a body, or field of activity. Therefore the body is called kṣetra, or the field of activity for the conditioned soul. Now, the person, who should not identify himself with the body, is called kṣetra-jña, the knower of the field. It is not very difficult to understand the difference between the field and its knower, the body and the knower of the body. Any person can consider that from childhood to old age he undergoes so many changes of body and yet is still one person, remaining. Thus there is a difference between the knower of the field of activities and the actual field of activities. A living conditioned soul can thus understand that he is different from the body. It is described in the beginning – dehino ’smin – that the living entity is within the body and that the body is changing from childhood to boyhood and from boyhood to youth and from youth to old age, and the person who owns the body knows that the body is changing. The owner is distinctly kṣetra-jña. Sometimes we think, “I am happy,” “I am a man,” “I am a woman,” “I am a dog,” “I am a cat.” These are the bodily designations of the knower. But the knower is different from the body. Although we may use many articles – our clothes, etc. – we know that we are different from the things used. Similarly, we also understand by a little contemplation that we are different from the body. I or you or anyone else who owns the body is called kṣetra-jña, the knower of the field of activities, and the body is called kṣetra, the field of activities itself. In the first six chapters of Bhagavad-gītā the knower of the body (the living entity) and the position by which he can understand the Supreme Lord are described. In the middle six chapters of the Bhagavad-gītā the Supreme Personality of Godhead and the relationship between the individual soul and the Supersoul in regard to devotional service are described. The superior position of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and the subordinate position of the individual soul are definitely defined in these chapters. The living entities are subordinate under all circumstances, but in their forgetfulness they are suffering. When enlightened by pious activities, they approach the Supreme Lord in different capacities – as the distressed, those in want of money, the inquisitive, and those in search of knowledge. That is also described. Now, starting with the Thirteenth Chapter, how the living entity comes into contact with material nature and how he is delivered by the Supreme Lord through the different methods of fruitive activities, cultivation of knowledge, and the discharge of devotional service are explained. Although the living entity is completely different from the material body, he somehow becomes related. This also is explained.
Hinglish Commentary
Arjuna ko prakṛti (nature), puruṣa (enjoyer), kṣetra (field), kṣetra-jña (knower of the field), aur gyaan ke baare mein jaanne ki curiosity thi. Jab usne in sab cheezon ke baare mein poocha, tab Kṛṣṇa ne bataya ki yeh sharir kṣetra hai, aur jo is sharir ko jaanta hai, woh kṣetra-jña hai. Yeh sharir conditioned soul ke liye activity ka kṣetra hai. Jo conditioned soul hai, woh material existence mein phas gaya hai aur woh material nature par raj karne ki koshish karta hai. Isliye, uski capacity ke hisaab se, usse ek activity ka kṣetra milta hai, jo ki yeh sharir hai. Aur yeh sharir kya hai? Yeh senses se bana hai. Conditioned soul sense gratification ka anand lena chahta hai, aur uski capacity ke hisaab se, usse ek sharir ya kṣetra diya jata hai. Isliye, sharir ko kṣetra kaha jata hai, yaani conditioned soul ka activity ka kṣetra. Ab, jo vyakti apne aap ko sharir se nahi jodta, usse kṣetra-jña kaha jata hai, yaani field ka knower. Yeh samajhna mushkil nahi hai ki kṣetra aur kṣetra-jña mein kya farak hai, yaani sharir aur sharir ka jaankar. Har koi yeh samajh sakta hai ki bachpan se lekar budhape tak, woh kitne changes se guzar raha hai, lekin woh ek hi vyakti hai. Is tarah, activities ke kṣetra ka jaankar aur actual kṣetra mein farak hai. Ek living conditioned soul yeh samajh sakta hai ki woh sharir se alag hai. Shuruaat mein yeh bataya gaya hai – dehino ’smin – ki living entity sharir ke andar hai aur sharir bachpan se ladke, ladke se jawani, aur jawani se budhape tak badalta hai, aur jo sharir ka maalik hai, woh jaanta hai ki sharir badal raha hai. Maalik ko distinctly kṣetra-jña kaha jata hai. Kabhi-kabhi hum sochte hain, “Main khush hoon,” “Main aadmi hoon,” “Main aurat hoon,” “Main kutta hoon,” “Main billi hoon.” Yeh sab bodily designations hain jo jaankar ko milti hain. Lekin jaankar sharir se alag hai. Hum bahut saari cheezen use karte hain – jaise kapde, etc. – lekin hum jaante hain ki hum un cheezon se alag hain. Waise hi, thodi contemplation se hum samajh lete hain ki hum sharir se alag hain. Main, tum, ya koi aur jo sharir ka maalik hai, usse kṣetra-jña kaha jata hai, aur sharir ko kṣetra kaha jata hai. Bhagavad-gītā ke pehle chhe chapters mein sharir ka jaankar (living entity) aur uski position jo use Supreme Lord ko samajhne mein madad karti hai, yeh bataya gaya hai. Beech ke chhe chapters mein Supreme Personality of Godhead aur individual soul aur Supersoul ke beech ka sambandh devotional service ke context mein samjhaya gaya hai. Supreme Personality of Godhead ki superior position aur individual soul ki subordinate position in chapters mein clearly defined hai. Living entities har situation mein subordinate hain, lekin apni bhool bhulaiya mein woh dukh utha rahe hain. Jab woh pious activities se enlightened hote hain, tab woh Supreme Lord ki taraf alag-alag capacities mein jaate hain – jaise distressed, paise ki talash mein, inquisitive, aur knowledge ki talash mein. Yeh bhi bataya gaya hai. Ab, Thirteenth Chapter se shuru karke, kaise living entity material nature se judta hai aur kaise Supreme Lord usse fruitive activities, gyaan ki cultivation, aur devotional service ke alag-alag methods se mukti dete hain, yeh samjhaya gaya hai. Halankeh living entity material body se bilkul alag hai, phir bhi woh kisi tarah se jud jaata hai. Yeh bhi explain kiya gaya hai.
Chinmaya Commentary
गीता की अनेक पाण्डुलिपियों में यह श्लोक नहीं मिलता है जबकि कुछ अन्य हस्तलिपियों में यह अर्जुन की जिज्ञासा के रूप में दिया हुआ है।प्रकृति और पुरुष भारतीय सांख्य दर्शन के प्रणेता कपिल मुनि जी ने जड़ और चेतन तत्त्वों का निर्देश क्रमश प्रकृति और पुरुष इन दो शब्दों से किया है। इन दोनों के संयोग से ही उस सृष्टि का निर्माण हुआ है इन्हें अर्जुन जानना चाहता है।क्षेत्र और क्षेत्रज्ञ इन दो शब्दों का अर्थ इस अध्याय की प्रस्तावना में स्पष्ट किया गया है।ज्ञान और ज्ञेय इस अध्याय में ज्ञान शब्द से तात्पर्य उस शुद्धान्तकरण से हैं जिसके द्वारा ही आत्मतत्त्व का अनुभव किया जा सकता है। यह आत्मा ही ज्ञेय अर्थात् जानने योग्य वस्तु है।अर्जुन की इस जिज्ञासा के उत्तर को जानना सभी साधकों को लाभदायक होगा।