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Chapter 13 · Nature, the Enjoyer and Consciousness · 35 verses

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Soul & knowledgeChapter 13 · Nature, the Enjoyer and Consciousness
13.313.5

Bhagavad-gītā As It Is · Text 13.4

The body, its knower and the field of knowledge

तत्क्षेत्रं यच्च‍ यादृक्‍च यद्विकारि यतश्च यत् ।

स च यो यत्प्रभावश्च तत्समासेन मे श‍ृणु ॥ ४ ॥

tat kṣetraṁ yac ca yādṛk ca

yad-vikāri yataś ca yat

sa ca yo yat-prabhāvaś ca

tat samāsena me śṛṇu

Translation

Now please hear My brief description of this field of activity and how it is constituted, what its changes are, whence it is produced, who that knower of the field of activities is, and what his influences are.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

What this verse is saying, and where it sits in the story.

The Field and Its Knower

  1. 1The Lord asks us to hear about the field of activity, its makeup, changes and origin, and its knower and his influences.
  2. 2Prabhupāda explains that we must understand the body and distinguish the individual soul from the Supersoul, whose powers differ.
  3. 3Learn directly from the Lord’s description in Bhagavad-gītā, without treating the individual soul as equal to the Supreme Lord.

Where we are

In the story

Chapter 13, Nature, the Enjoyer and Consciousness: the body, its knower and the field of knowledge.

What it teaches

Theme summary

Discern the eternal self from the temporary.

2

Key ideas in this verse

The spiritual concepts this verse connects to.

Key ideas: ātmā, jñāna.

3

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What does BG 13.4 establish in Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport, and how does it connect to soul & knowledge?

Practice

Spend five minutes reflecting on what in you does not change.

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Related verses

Keep going: verses that carry this teaching further.

BG 13.1The body, its knower and the field of knowledgeBG 13.2The body, its knower and the field of knowledgeBG 2.13The self endures bodily changeBG 4.34The humility of real inquiry

Study notes are editorial summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport.

Ask the study guide

Ask about BG 13.4 — get a simple answer linked to related ideas and verses.

Back to step 3The key ideasNext · Step 5 of 7 · 5 minLive the teachingsBring it into your day with a practice and a question, straight from Prabhupāda's purports.