FolioCorpusBhagavad-gītā

Bhagavad-gītā 13.6-7

महाभूतान्यहङ्कारो बुद्धिरव्यक्तमेव च । इन्द्रियाणि दशैकं च पञ्च चेन्द्रियगोचरा: ॥ ६ ॥ इच्छा द्वेष: सुखं दु:खं सङ्घातश्चेतना धृति: । एतत्क्षेत्रं समासेन सविकारमुदाहृतम् ॥ ७ ॥
mahā-bhūtāny ahaṅkāro
[mahaa-bhootaany ahankaaro]
buddhir avyaktam eva ca
[buddhir avyaktam eva cha]
indriyāṇi daśaikaṁ ca
[indriyaani dashaikam cha]
pañca cendriya-gocarāḥ
[pancha chendriya-gocharaah]
icchā dveṣaḥ sukhaṁ duḥkhaṁ
[ichchaa dveshah sukham duhkham]
saṅghātaś cetanā dhṛtiḥ
[sanghaatash chetanaa dhritih]
etat kṣetraṁ samāsena
[etat kshetram samaasena]
sa-vikāram udāhṛtam
[sa-vikaaram udaahritam]
Word-for-word
mahā - bhūtāni — the great elements ahaṅkāraḥ — false ego buddhiḥ — intelligence avyaktam — the unmanifested eva — certainly ca — also indriyāṇi — the senses daśa - ekam — eleven ca — also pañca — five ca — also indriya - go - carāḥ — the objects of the senses icchā — desire dveṣaḥ — hatred sukham — happiness duḥkham — distress saṅghātaḥ — the aggregate cetanā — living symptoms dhṛtiḥ — conviction etat — all this kṣetram — the field of activities samāsena — in summary sa - vikāram — with interactions udāhṛtam — exemplified .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
mahā-bhūtāny ahaṅkāro
mahā - bhūtāni
the great elements
ahaṅkāraḥ
false ego
buddhir avyaktam eva ca
buddhiḥ
intelligence
avyaktam
the unmanifested
eva
certainly
ca
also
indriyāṇi daśaikaṁ ca
indriyāṇi
the senses
daśa - ekam
eleven
ca
also
pañca cendriya-gocarāḥ
pañca
five
ca
also
indriya - go - carāḥ
the objects of the senses
icchā dveṣaḥ sukhaṁ duḥkhaṁ
icchā
desire
dveṣaḥ
hatred
sukham
happiness
duḥkham
distress
saṅghātaś cetanā dhṛtiḥ
saṅghātaḥ
the aggregate
cetanā
living symptoms
dhṛtiḥ
conviction
etat kṣetraṁ samāsena
etat
all this
kṣetram
the field of activities
samāsena
in summary
sa-vikāram udāhṛtam
sa - vikāram
with interactions
udāhṛtam
exemplified .
Important Words
  • mahā - bhūtāni — the great elements
    Earth, water, fire, air, ether — the five gross constituents from Sāṅkhya analysis. Kṛṣṇa lists them first because they are the most visible. The map starts from the outside and works inward.
  • ahaṅkāraḥ — false ego
    Literally "the I-maker." Note carefully: ahaṅkāra is listed as part of the *field*, not as the knower. The sense of "I am the body" is itself something the soul can witness and disown.
  • buddhiḥ — intelligence
    Higher discriminating faculty — but still material, still part of the field. Even the sharpest intellect is an instrument the soul uses, not the soul itself.
  • avyaktam — the unmanifested
    Pradhāna — primal matter before differentiation. Kṛṣṇa includes it in the field to forestall any view that subtle matter is somehow spiritual. The unmanifest is still material.
  • icchā — desire
    Listed alongside hatred, happiness, distress — desire is a *modification of the field*, not of the soul. This single placement deflates every theology that locates wanting in the ātman.
  • dhṛtiḥ — conviction
    Steadfastness, holding-power. Even one's deepest convictions belong to the field. The knower remains even when conviction is shaken — a teaching of great solace in spiritual crisis.
The five great elements, false ego, intelligence, the unmanifested, the ten senses and the mind, the five sense objects, desire, hatred, happiness, distress, the aggregate, the life symptoms, and convictions – all these are considered, in summary, to be the field of activities and its interactions.
Classical Sanskrit analysis शास्त्रीय विश्लेषण
How Sanskrit scholars read this verse — split, rearranged, grammar-tagged. For the plain English distilled meaning, jump to Plain meaning below.
Auto-generated study layers — original analysis of the public-domain śloka. Review against a published edition for academic work.
Plain meaning (तात्पर्य · Tātparya)
Kṛṣṇa enumerates the field. Five elements, ego, intellect, the unmanifest prakṛti, ten senses, mind, five sense-objects, six psycho-physical states (desire, aversion, pleasure, pain, aggregation, consciousness, fortitude) — twenty-four-plus-six components that, together with their changes, constitute the body-field.
Further notes (विवरण · Vivaraṇa)
The list maps almost exactly onto the classical Sāṅkhya twenty-four tattvas: prakṛti (avyakta), mahat (buddhi), ahaṅkāra, manas, ten indriyas, five tanmātras (here as indriya-gocara), five mahābhūtas. Kṛṣṇa appends the affective and physical 'modifications' (vikāra) that animate the field: desire, hatred, pleasure, pain, bodily cohesion, consciousness, and resolve. This is the most Sāṅkhya-explicit passage in the Gītā and forms the factual base for the rest of the chapter.
Prose order (अन्वय · Anvaya)
महा-भूतानि, अहङ्कारः, बुद्धिः, अव्यक्तम् एव च, दश इन्द्रियाणि, एकं (मनः) च, पञ्च इन्द्रिय-गोचराः च, इच्छा, द्वेषः, सुखं, दुःखं, सङ्घातः, चेतना, धृतिः — एतत् स-विकारं क्षेत्रं समासेन उदाहृतम् ॥
mahā-bhūtāni, ahaṅkāraḥ, buddhiḥ, avyaktam eva ca, daśa indriyāṇi, ekaṃ (manaḥ) ca, pañca indriya-gocarāḥ ca, icchā, dveṣaḥ, sukhaṃ, duḥkhaṃ, saṅghātaḥ, cetanā, dhṛtiḥ — etat sa-vikāraṃ kṣetraṃ samāsena udāhṛtam ||
The great elements, false ego, intellect, and the unmanifest; the ten senses and the one (mind); the five sense-objects; desire, aversion, pleasure, pain, the bodily aggregate, consciousness, and conviction — this, together with its modifications, has been declared in brief to be the field.
Word split (पदच्छेद · Padaccheda)
महा-भूतानि अहङ्कारः बुद्धिः अव्यक्तम् एव च । इन्द्रियाणि दश एकं च पञ्च च इन्द्रिय-गोचराः ॥
mahā-bhūtāni ahaṅkāraḥ buddhiḥ avyaktam eva ca | indriyāṇi daśa ekaṃ ca pañca ca indriya-gocarāḥ ||
इच्छा द्वेषः सुखं दुःखं सङ्घातः चेतना धृतिः । एतत् क्षेत्रं समासेन स-विकारम् उदाहृतम् ॥
icchā dveṣaḥ sukhaṃ duḥkhaṃ saṅghātaḥ cetanā dhṛtiḥ | etat kṣetraṃ samāsena sa-vikāram udāhṛtam ||
Grammar (व्याकरण · Vyākaraṇa)
SanskritIASTGrammarMeaning
महा-भूतानि mahā-bhūtāni महत् (adj.) + भूत (n.) nom.pl. (nominative plural), karmadhāraya cpd. (compound) great elements (earth, water, fire, air, space)
अहङ्कारः ahaṅkāraḥ अहङ्कार (m.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) false ego / I-maker
बुद्धिः buddhiḥ बुद्धि (f.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) intellect / discriminative faculty
अव्यक्तम् avyaktam अ + वि+√अञ्ज् p.p.p. (past passive participle) nom.sg. (nominative singular)n. the unmanifest (prakṛti)
इन्द्रियाणि indriyāṇi इन्द्रिय (n.) nom.pl. (nominative plural) senses
दश daśa num. ind. (indeclinable) ten
एकम् ekam एक (adj.) nom.sg. (nominative singular)n. one (i.e. the mind)
पञ्च pañca num. ind. (indeclinable) five
इन्द्रिय-गोचराः indriya-gocarāḥ इन्द्रिय (n.) + गोचर (m.) nom.pl. (nominative plural), tatpuruṣa cpd. (compound) objects of the senses
इच्छा icchā इच्छा (f.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) desire
द्वेषः dveṣaḥ द्वेष (m.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) aversion
सुखम् sukham सुख (n.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) pleasure
दुःखम् duḥkham दुःख (n.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) pain
सङ्घातः saṅghātaḥ सम्+√हन् p.p.p. (past passive participle)/n. (m.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) the (body's) aggregate
चेतना cetanā चेतना (f.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) consciousness (as vital sign)
धृतिः dhṛtiḥ धृति (f.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) fortitude / steadfastness
एतत् etat एतद् pron. (pronoun) nom.sg. (nominative singular)n. this
क्षेत्रम् kṣetram क्षेत्र (n.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) the field
समासेन samāsena समास (m.) ins.sg. (instrumental singular), adverbial in brief
स-विकारम् sa-vikāram स + विकार (m.) nom.sg. (nominative singular)n., bahuvrīhi cpd. (compound) with its modifications
उदाहृतम् udāhṛtam उद्+आ+√हृ p.p.p. (past passive participle) nom.sg. (nominative singular)n. declared / enumerated
Purport

From all the authoritative statements of the great sages, the Vedic hymns and the aphorisms of the Vedānta-sūtra, the components of this world can be understood as follows. First there are earth, water, fire, air and ether. These are the five great elements ( mahā-bhūta ). Then there are false ego, intelligence and the unmanifested stage of the three modes of nature. Then there are five senses for acquiring knowledge: the eyes, ears, nose, tongue and skin. Then five working senses: voice, legs, hands, anus and genitals. Then, above the senses, there is the mind, which is within and which can be called the sense within. Therefore, including the mind, there are eleven senses altogether. Then there are the five objects of the senses: smell, taste, form, touch and sound. Now the aggregate of these twenty-four elements is called the field of activity. If one makes an analytical study of these twenty-four subjects, then he can very well understand the field of activity. Then there are desire, hatred, happiness and distress, which are interactions, representations of the five great elements in the gross body. The living symptoms, represented by consciousness, and convictions are the manifestation of the subtle body – mind, ego and intelligence. These subtle elements are included within the field of activities. The five great elements are a gross representation of the false ego, which in turn represents the primal stage of false ego technically called the materialistic conception, or tāmasa-buddhi, intelligence in ignorance. This, further, represents the unmanifested stage of the three modes of material nature. The unmanifested modes of material nature are called pradhāna. One who desires to know the twenty-four elements in detail along with their interactions should study the philosophy in more detail. In Bhagavad-gītā, a summary only is given. The body is the representation of all these factors, and there are changes of the body, which are six in number: the body is born, it grows, it stays, it produces by-products, then it begins to decay, and at the last stage it vanishes. Therefore the field is a nonpermanent material thing. However, the kṣetra-jña, the knower of the field, its proprietor, is different.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Bhūrijana Dāsa Gauḍīya
Commentary

The five great elements, false ego, intelligence, the unmanifested, the ten senses and the mind, the five sense objects ‑ these are the 24 elements of Sankhya philosophy which the material world is divided into. Desire, hatred, happiness, distress, the aggregate, the life symptoms and convictions ‑ these are further elements of the field of activities, manifested out of the different reactions of the 24 elements within the body. The 24 elements and its different interactions give birth to these last elements: desire, hatred, etc... (these are qualities of the mind) Srila Prabhupada says in his Purport: " The body is the representation of all these factors, and there are changes of the body, which are six in number: the body is born, it grows, it stays, it produces by‑products, then it begins to decay, and at the last stage it vanishes. Therefore the field is a nonpermanent material thing. However, the ksetra‑jna, the knower of the field, its proprietor, is different." The next verses will describe the process of knowledge more from the point of view of jnana‑yoga then bhakti‑yoga, although there are some elements that are meant for bhakti‑yogis. Some other elements are only meant for jnana‑yogis, but most of the elements are meant for both. What does he get a person who follows the process of knowledge? He will get knowledge of the body, the soul and the Supersoul, by which the ksetrajna will be able to separate himself from the ksetra.

[C. KRSNA'S FURTHER ANSWER TO QUESTION 5: THE PROCESS OF KNOWLEDGE AND LIBERATION ( 13.8‑12) The process by which the knower of the field, the soul, transcends the limitations of his field of activities is called the process of knowledge. This process includes humility and pridelessness, as well as its most important item: accepting the shelter of a bona‑fide spiritual master and practicing unalloyed devotional service under his care. ]

Study Notes — Gauranga Priya Dāsa
Gauranga Priya Dāsa Study
Bhakti-śāstrī Notes, ISKCON Chowpatty (2009)
Theme

The field of activities for the conditioned soul can be compared to a playground in a backyard sur-

rounded by a big fence. The child playing there has freedom to play as he wishes, but he cannot

extend his activities beyond the allotted field. He is limited by the fence. Similarly, the living entity is

limited by the interactions of his body, mind and karma, which constitute his field of activities. An

earthworm, for example, has a very small field of activities. He cannot read, write, jump or run. He

can simply crawl through the dirt, surface when it rains and crawl back into the soil when the rain

stops. A dog has a relatively larger field of activities, and a human being a still larger one. One’s

kṣetra is based on his karma.

A wealthy child will possess many toys to play with in his backyard, but he is still restricted by the

fence. Although he may be proud of the scope of his playground, and even think himself happy

and free, with his swing and toy car and sandbox, he is nevertheless absorbed only in an insignifi-

cant backyard. He knows nothing of life beyond the fence. Similarly, the living entity, according to

the limitations of the body and mind he has received through his karma, cannot see beyond his lim-

ited field of activities.

Every living entity’s kṣetra is arranged by his karma, through the agency of māyā. Kṛṣṇa therefore is

not partial, because as the Supersoul, the knower of all kṣetras, He simply sanctions the awarding

of each living entity’s field of activities.

Texts 13.8-12

This is a continuation of Kṛṣṇa’s explanation of knowledge. Kṛṣṇa has already defined knowledge as

knowing the field and the two knowers of the field. These verses describe the process of obtaining

jñāna. According to Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura, of the twenty items mentioned, seventeen

apply to both the jñānī and the bhakta. The last two, accepting the importance of self-realization

(adyātma-jñāna-nityatvam) and philosophical search for the Absolute Truth (tattva-jñānārtha-

darśanam), are technically only for the jñānī. “Constant and unalloyed devotion to Me” is the sole

Bhagavad Gita Notes

quality specifically for the devotee. All other qualities come to a devotee who exclusively endeavors

for constant, unalloyed devotion.

These twenty items include qualities—such as cleanliness—(which, if developed, are favorable for

spiritual advancement) and elements of the process of advancement such as approaching a bona

fide spiritual master and perceiving the evils of birth, death, disease and old age. Integrated as a

process, these items are the means of acquiring transcendental knoweldge, or an accurate under-

standing of the body, the soul and the Supersoul.

Therefore, taken as a process that carries one to transcendence, these twenty items have nothing

to do with the field of activity and its interactions.

Classical Ācāryas
Śrī Śaṅkarācārya Classical
Translation
13.6 Mahabhutani, the great elements: Those elements which are great owing to their pervasion of all midifications, and which are subtle. As for the gross elements, they will be spoken of by the word indriya-gocarah, objects of the senses. Ahankarah, egoism, which is the source of the great elements and consists of the idea of 'I'. Buddhih, intellect, the source of egoism and consisting of the faculty of judgement; ca, and; its cause, the avyaktam eva, Unmanifest itself, the Undifferentiated, the power of God spoken of in, 'Maya of Mine৷৷.difficult to cross' (7.14). The word eva (itself) is used for singling out Prakrti (Nature). The Prakrti divided eightfold [The undifferentiated (avyakta), mahat, egoism and the five uncompunded subtle elements] is this much alone. The word ca (and) is used for joining the various categories. The dasa, ten; indriyani, organs : The five, organs ear etc., which are called sense-organs since they produce perception, and the (other) five organs-organ of speech, hands, etc.-which are called motor-organs since they accomplish actions. They are ten. Ekam ca, and the one-which is that?-the mind, the eleventh, possessed of the power of thinking etc. (see fn. on p. 173). Ca, and; the panca, five; indriya-gacarah, objects of the senses-such objects as sound etc. The followers of the Sankhya call these which are such the twenty-four categories. Thereafter, the Lord now says that even those alities which the Vaisesikas speak of as the attributes of the sould are certainly the attributes of the field, but not of the Knower of the field:
Śrī Rāmānujācārya Classical
Translation
13.6 - 13.7 The 'great elements, the Ahankara, the Buddhi and the Avyakta' are substances that originate the Ksetra. The 'great elements' are the earth, water, fire, air and ether. The 'Ahankara' here means Bhutadi (primeval element). The 'Buddhi' is called Mahat; the 'Avyakta' is known as the Prakrti. The 'ten senses and the one' and the five objects of senses are principles depending on the Ksetra. The 'five sensorial organs' are ear, skin, eye, tongue and nose. The five motor organs are speech, hands, feet, and the organs of excretion and reproduction. These are the ten senses. The Manas is the additional 'one' moe. The 'objects of the senses' are five - sound, touch, form, taste and smell. Desire, hatred, pleasure and pain, being the transformation of the Ksetra, are said to be the modifications of the Ksetra. Though desire, hatred, pleasure and pain are the alities of the self, yet they originate from the association of the self with the Ksetra. Sri Krsna will state that they are the attributes of the self; 'In the experience of pleasure and pain, the self is said to be the cause' (13.20). The combination of elements serves as the support (Adhrti) of the intelligent self. As such, the word Adhrti means substratum. The combination of material elements has arisen as the substratum for the self to experience pleasure and pain, and for aciring worldly experiences and the final release. The combination of elements is formed by substances commencing from the Prakrti and ending with the earth; it is the basis of senses which are endowed with the modifications of the nature of desire, hatred, pleasure and pain. These form a Sanghata or an association of elements. It serves as the basis of the experience of pleasure and pain by the individual self. This is what is said of the Ksetra. This Ksetra has been explained briefly with its modifications and effects. Now certain alities, the effects of the Ksetra, worthy of being acired as being the means for securing the knowledge of the self, are enumerated.
Śrī Abhinavagupta Classical
Translation
13.6 See Comment under 13.7
Swami Sivananda Classical
Translation
13.6 The great elements, egoism, intellect, and also the Unmanifested Nature, the ten senses and one (mind), and the five objects of the senses.
Commentary

13.6 महाभूतानि the great elements? अहङ्कारः egoism? बुद्धिः intellect? अव्यक्तम् the unmanifested (MulaPrakriti)? एव even? च and? इन्द्रियाणि the senses? दश ten? एकम् one? च and? पञ्च five? च and? इन्द्रियगोचराः objects of the senses.Commentary The field and its modifications are described in this verse. The twentyfour principles of the Sankhya school of philosophy are mentioned here.Great elements Earth? water? fire? air and ether are so called because they pervade all modifications of matter. The elements here referred to are the subtle? not the gross ones.Egoism is the cause of the great elements. It is the selfarrogating principle. Intellect is the cause of egoism. The function of the intellect is determination. Buddhi is the faculty of determination. The cause of the intellect is the Unmanifested (which is the undifferentiated energy of the Lord). (Cf.VII.14 Daivi hyesha gunamayi mama maya duratyaya -- This divine illusion of Mine? caused by the alities? is difficult to cross over.) The above Nature is divided eightfold (Cf.VII.4).The ten senses are the five organs of knowledge (ears? skin? eyes? tongue and nose)? so called because they enable the mind to get knowledge of the external world? and the five organs of action (hands? feet? mouth? anus and the generative organ)? so called because they perform actions.The one This is the mind. This is the eleventh sense whose function is thinking and doubting (Sankalpa and Vikalpa).The five objects of the senses are sound? touch? form (colour)? taste and smell. These are the fivefol pastures of the senses.All the great elements? egoism? intellect? the senses and mind are all absorbed in the Unmanifested at the time of the cosmic dissolution.Mind is Maya. Mind is Avidya (ignorance). Mind is at the root of all activities. It gives strength to desires? fosters fear and builds castles in the air. It confers force on egoism and stimultates,aspirations. Every tendency has its origin in the mind. It augments passions? gives strength to hope and awakens the sense of duality. It increases ignorance and plunges the senses in the ocean of senseobjects. It creates distinctions and differences. It separates? divides and limits. It is a strong wall or an iron barrier that stands between the individual soul and the Absolute. It is this mind that has brought Brahman to the condition of the individual soul. It is the storehouse of error? cravings? doubt? delusion and ignorance. It is an everrevolving wheel that generates thoughts. It is a miraculous thoughtproducing machine. It creates at one moment. It destroys at the next moment.

Swami Gambhīrānanda Classical
Translation
13.6 The great elements, egoism, intellect and the Unmanifest itself; the ten organs and the one, and the five objects of the senses;
Shri Purohit Swami Classical
Translation
13.6 The five great fundamentals (earth, fire, air, water and ether), personality, intellect, the mysterious life force, the ten organs of perception and action, the mind and the five domains of sensation;
Related values & verses
Related values
Tyaga (Renunciation / Letting Go)Karuna (Kindness / Compassion)Ahimsa (Non-violence / Compassion)Arjava (Simplicity / Straightforwardness)Tapas (Austerity / Discipline)Guru Bhakti (Reverence for Teacher)Atma Nigraha (Self-control)Daksya (Resourcefulness / Skill)
Related verses
BG 7.4 BG 14.5 BG 3.42 SB 3.26.11 SB 11.22.10 SB 2.5.25 CC Madhya 20.275 CC Ādi 5.55 CC Madhya 24.79 Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 1.4Kaṭha Upaniṣad 1.3.10
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
The five great elements, false ego, intelligence, the unmanifest, ten senses, mind, five sense-objects, desire, hatred, happiness, distress, the aggregate, life-symptoms, conviction — all these constitute the field.
Practical Applications
  • Memorize the field-components as a contemplation map.
  • Locate where in this list a particular disturbance lives.
  • Use the map to disidentify from elements that aren't the soul.
Reflection Questions
  • Which field-component is most active in my present disturbance?
  • What does locating it as 'field' do?
Analogy

A cartographer drafting a city map labels every district before he describes any street. Kṛṣṇa here is the cartographer of the body: He names the five elements, the senses, the mind, desire, hatred, happiness, distress — the whole catalog of the field. With this map, the soul can finally tell where it is and where it is not.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

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