Krishna tells Arjun the difference between the body which he describes as the field and the soul which according to Krishna is the knower of the field. A wise person knows the self and is aware of this goal of knowing. According to Krishna, this is the authentic knowledge. Krishna tells Arjun that a person who has attained this knowledge is ready for God’s state of being. It may be positive or negative, loving, passionate or dull, a person’s disposition always interacts with nature. It is nature, which creates these activities and chaos that makes up the existence. Yet, the Self should be separate from both the nature and the body in terms of positive and negative reactions and feelings. Krishna clarifies it to Arjun that the Self is God despite its embodiment being impacted by both nature and body.

 

Favourite Shlok

यथा प्रकाशयत्येक: कृत्स्नं लोकमिमं रवि: |

क्षेत्रं क्षेत्री तथा कृत्स्नं प्रकाशयति भारत || Shlok – 34

Just as we have the sun which enlightens the whole solar system, it is our soul which enlightens our entire body with consciousness.

Analysis

Krishna here speaks of the three elements of our existence: The field, The Knower and the Object of Knowledge. The field comprises nature and the body, which are the 5 elements and the 10 senses. The Knower according to Krishna is the Self. Since he equates the Self to God, the Knower is also the God. It is within every being even if they fail to perceive it. Only when we detach ourselves from our bodies and become aware of the Self, we are drawn closer to Krishna. Krishna often speaks of ‘Knowledge’.  The knowledge is a person moving from a state of understanding and truly comprehends these concepts will achieve the liberation from the cycle of suffering and re-birth.

About Abhinav Khare: 

Abhinav Khare is the CEO of AsiaNetNews Network and also the host of a daily show named Deep Dive with AK. He has a lifetime collection of books and gadgets and has already pinged more than hundred cities around the globe. 

He is a tech entrepreneur, who is passionate about policy, technology, economy and philosophy from ancient India. He earned an MS Engineering from the ETH Zurich and an MBA Finance from the London Business School.