Chapter 13 — The Yoga of the Field and the Knower of the Field

Om

Salutations to the Supreme Self

The Blessed Lord said

This body, son of Kunti, is called the field;the one who knows it is called the knower of the fieldby those who know the truth of these. ॥१३- १॥

Know Me also as the knower of the fieldin all fields, descendant of Bharata.Knowledge of the field and the knower of the field—that I hold to be knowledge. ॥१३- २॥

What that field is, what it is like,how it changes, and from what each change arises;and who the knower is, and what his powers are—hear this from Me in brief. ॥१३- ३॥

It has been sung by the seers in many ways,severally, in varied sacred hymns,and also in the reasoned and decisive wordsof the aphorisms on Brahman. ॥१३- ४॥

The great elements, the sense of “I,”the intellect, and the unmanifest;the ten senses and the one,and the five domains of the senses; ॥१३- ५॥

desire, aversion, pleasure, pain,the bodily aggregate, consciousness, and resolve—this, in brief, is declared to be the field,together with its transformations. ॥१३- ६॥

Absence of self-importance, absence of pretense,nonviolence, patience, integrity;reverence for the teacher, purity,steadfastness, and self-mastery; ॥१३- ७॥

dispassion toward the objects of the senses,and absence of the sense of “I”;clear perception of the suffering and defectin birth, death, old age, and sickness; ॥१३- ८॥

nonattachment and freedom from clingingto children, spouse, home, and the rest;and constant evenness of mindwhen the desired or undesired occurs; ॥१३- ९॥

unwavering devotion to Methrough a yoga that admits no other;a love of solitary placesand no delight in crowds of people; ॥१३- १०॥

constancy in knowledge of the Self,and insight into the aim of knowledge of truth—this is declared to be knowledge;whatever is contrary to it is ignorance. ॥१३- ११॥

I will declare what is to be known,knowing which one attains immortality:the beginningless Brahman, which has Me as its highest,is said to be neither being nor nonbeing. ॥१३- १२॥

With hands and feet on every side,with eyes, heads, and faces on every side,with ears on every side in the world,it stands enveloping all. ॥१३- १३॥

It shines through the functions of all the senses,yet is devoid of every sense;unattached, yet sustaining all;free from the qualities, yet experiencing the qualities. ॥१३- १४॥

It is outside and within all beings;unmoving, and yet moving.Because of its subtlety, it cannot be known;it is far away, and it is near. ॥१३- १५॥

Undivided among beings,it stands as though divided.That is to be known as the sustainer of beings,their devourer and their source. ॥१३- १६॥

It is the light even of lights,said to be beyond darkness:knowledge, the object of knowledge,and the goal reached through knowledge,seated in the heart of everyone. ॥१३- १७॥

Thus the field, knowledge,and what is to be known have been stated in brief.Knowing this, My devoteebecomes fit for My state of being. ॥१३- १८॥

Know that nature and the conscious beingare both without beginning;and know that transformations and qualitiesarise from nature. ॥१३- १९॥

Nature is said to be the causein the production of actions, instruments, and agency;the conscious being is said to be the causein the experience of pleasure and pain. ॥१३- २०॥

For the conscious being, dwelling in nature,experiences the qualities born of nature.Attachment to those qualities is the causeof its births in fortunate and unfortunate wombs. ॥१३- २१॥

The supreme conscious being within this bodyis also called the witness, the consenter,the sustainer, the experiencer,the Great Lord, and the Supreme Self. ॥१३- २२॥

One who thus knows the conscious beingand nature together with its qualities—however that person may live,that person is not born again. ॥१३- २३॥

Some, through meditation, behold the Selfwithin themselves by the self;others through the yoga of discernment,and still others through the yoga of action. ॥१३- २४॥

Yet others, not knowing in this way,worship after hearing from others.They too cross beyond death,wholly devoted to what they have heard. ॥१३- २५॥

Whatever being comes into existence,whether unmoving or moving,know it to arise from the unionof the field and the knower of the field, best of the Bharatas. ॥१३- २६॥

One who sees the Supreme Lorddwelling equally in all beings,the imperishable within the perishing—that one truly sees. ॥१३- २७॥

For seeing the Lord equally presenteverywhere and in all alike,one does not harm the Self by the selfand so reaches the supreme destination. ॥१३- २८॥

One who sees that all actionsare performed entirely by nature,and that the Self is not the doer—that one truly sees. ॥१३- २९॥

When one sees the separate existence of beingsas grounded in the One,and their expansion proceeding from that alone,then one attains Brahman. ॥१३- ३०॥

Because it is beginningless and free from qualities,this Supreme Self is imperishable.Though dwelling in the body, son of Kunti,it neither acts nor is stained. ॥१३- ३१॥

Just as all-pervading space,because of its subtlety, is not stained,so the Self, present throughout the body,is not stained. ॥१३- ३२॥

Just as the one sunillumines this entire world,so the knower of the field illuminesthe entire field, descendant of Bharata. ॥१३- ३३॥

Those who, with the eye of knowledge,know this distinction between the field and its knower,and know release from the nature of beings—they reach the Supreme. ॥१३- ३४॥

Om Tat Sat. Thus, in the Upanishads of the glorious Bhagavad Gita, in the knowledge of Brahman, in the teaching of yoga, in the dialogue between Sri Krishna and Arjuna, ends the thirteenth chapter, entitled “The Yoga of Distinguishing the Field and the Knower of the Field.” ॥ १३ ॥

Om

Salutation to the Supreme Self

The Blessed Lord said:

This body, Kaunteya, is called the field.Those who know this call the one who knows it the knower of the field. ॥१३- १॥

And know Me as the knower of the field in all fields, Bharata.Knowledge of the field and the knower of the field—that is what I consider knowledge. ॥१३- २॥

What that field is, what it is like, how it changes, and from what it arises;and who the knower is and what his powers are—hear this from Me in brief. ॥१३- ३॥

This has been sung in many ways by the seers,separately in various sacred hymns, and also in the conclusive, reasoned statements of the Brahma Sutras. ॥१३- ४॥

The five great elements, the sense of “I,” the intellect, and the unmanifest;the ten senses and the one mind, and the five objects of the senses; ॥१३- ५॥

desire, hatred, pleasure, pain, the bodily aggregate, consciousness, and resolve—this, in brief, is said to be the field together with its changes. ॥१३- ६॥

Humility, freedom from pretence, nonviolence, patience, honesty;service to a teacher, purity, steadiness, and self-control; ॥१३- ७॥

detachment from the objects of the senses, and freedom from the sense of “I”;clear recognition of the suffering and fault in birth, death, old age, and disease; ॥१३- ८॥

nonattachment and freedom from clinging to children, spouse, home, and the like;and constant evenness of mind when pleasant or unpleasant things occur; ॥१३- ९॥

unfailing devotion to Me through single-minded Yoga;a preference for solitary places and no delight in crowds of people; ॥१३- १०॥

constancy in knowledge of the Self, and insight into the purpose of knowledge of truth—this is declared to be knowledge. Whatever is contrary to this is ignorance. ॥१३- ११॥

I will now explain what is to be known, knowing which one attains immortality:the beginningless Brahman, which has Me as the Supreme, is said to be neither being nor nonbeing. ॥१३- १२॥

It has hands and feet everywhere, eyes, heads, and faces everywhere;it has ears everywhere in the world and remains enveloping everything. ॥१३- १३॥

It appears through the functions of all the senses, yet is free from all the senses;it is unattached, yet supports everything; it is beyond the qualities, yet experiences the qualities. ॥१३- १४॥

It is outside and inside all beings; it is unmoving and also moving.Because it is subtle, it cannot be known; it is far away and also near. ॥१३- १५॥

It is undivided among beings, yet appears to stand divided.It is to be known as the supporter of beings, their devourer, and their source. ॥१३- १६॥

It is the light even of lights and is said to be beyond darkness.It is knowledge, what is to be known, and what is reached through knowledge, dwelling in the heart of everyone. ॥१३- १७॥

Thus the field, knowledge, and what is to be known have been stated in brief.Knowing this, My devotee becomes fit to attain My state. ॥१३- १८॥

Know that nature and the conscious being are both without beginning.And know that all changes and qualities arise from nature. ॥१३- १९॥

Nature is said to be the cause of the body, the senses, and their activity.The conscious being is said to be the cause of the experience of pleasure and pain. ॥१३- २०॥

For the conscious being, dwelling in nature, experiences the qualities born of nature.Attachment to these qualities is the cause of its births in good and bad wombs. ॥१३- २१॥

The supreme conscious being in this body is also called the observer, the consenter,the supporter, the experiencer, the Great Lord, and the Supreme Self. ॥१३- २२॥

Whoever thus knows the conscious being and nature together with the qualities,however that person may live, is not born again. ॥१३- २३॥

Some see the Self within themselves, through the self, by meditation;others see it through the Yoga of Sankhya, and still others through the Yoga of action. ॥१३- २४॥

Yet others, not knowing in this way, hear from others and worship.They too certainly cross beyond death, devoted to what they have heard. ॥१३- २५॥

Whatever being comes into existence, whether unmoving or moving,know that it arises from the union of the field and the knower of the field, best of the Bharatas. ॥१३- २६॥

Whoever sees the Supreme Lord dwelling equally in all beings,imperishable among those that perish—that person truly sees. ॥१३- २७॥

For, seeing the Lord equally present everywhere,one does not harm the Self through the self, and therefore reaches the highest goal. ॥१३- २८॥

Whoever sees that all actions are performed entirely by nature,and that the Self is not the doer—that person truly sees. ॥१३- २९॥

When one sees the separate existence of beings as resting in the One,and sees their expansion from that alone, then one attains Brahman. ॥१३- ३०॥

Because this Supreme Self is beginningless and beyond the qualities, it is imperishable.Though dwelling in the body, Kaunteya, it neither acts nor is stained. ॥१३- ३१॥

Just as all-pervading space, because of its subtlety, is not stained,so the Self, though present everywhere in the body, is not stained. ॥१३- ३२॥

Just as the one sun illuminates this entire world,so the owner of the field illuminates the entire field, Bharata. ॥१३- ३३॥

Those who, with the eye of knowledge, understand this distinction between the field and the knower of the field,and liberation from the nature of beings—they reach the Supreme. ॥१३- ३४॥

Om Tat Sat. Thus, in the Upanishads of the glorious Bhagavad Gita, in the knowledge of Brahman, in the teaching of Yoga,in the dialogue between Sri Krishna and Arjuna, ends the thirteenth chapter, named “The Yoga of the Distinction Between the Field and the Knower of the Field.” ॥ १३ ॥