Bhagavad Gita 7.4भूमिरापोऽनलो वायुः खं मनो बुद्धिरेव च।अहङ्कार इतीयं मे भिन्ना प्रकृतिरष्टधा ॥
bhūmir-āpo ’nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva
cha ahankāra itīyaṁ me bhinnā prakṛitir aṣhṭadhā
Sanskrit recitation
The divine inside ordinary nature · 7.1–7.14 · Teaching
Translation
Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intellect, and egoism—thus is My Nature divided eightfold.
Hindi translation
।।7.4 -- 7.5।। पृथ्वी, जल, तेज, वायु, आकाश -- ये पञ्चमहाभूत और मन, बुद्धि तथा अहंकार -- यह आठ प्रकारके भेदोंवाली मेरी 'अपरा' प्रकृति है। हे महाबाहो ! इस अपरा प्रकृतिसे भिन्न जीवरूप बनी हुई मेरी 'परा' प्रकृतिको जान, जिसके द्वारा यह जगत् धारण किया जाता है।
Meaning
This eightfold Nature constitutes the inferior Nature or Apara Prakriti. The five gross elements are formed out of the Tanmatras or rootelements through the process of Pancikarana or fivefold mixing. Tanmatras are the subtle rootelements. In this verse, earth, water, etc., represent the subtle or rudimentary elements out of which the five gross elements are formed.Mind stands here for its cause Ahamkara intellect for its cause the Mahat Ahamkara for the Avyaktam or the unmanifested (MulaPrakriti) united with Avidya which is conjoined with all kinds of Vasanas or latent tendencies. As Ahamkara (Iness) is the cause for all the actions of every individual and as Ahamkara is the most vital principle in man on which all the other Tattvas or principles depend, the Avyaktam combined with the Ahamkara is itself called here Ahamkara, just as food which is mixed with poison is itself called poison.
After Swami Sivananda
The divine inside ordinary nature· 7.1–7.14→
Teachers usually read this idea across several verses together, one shared reflection covers the whole unit.
- 7.1The Blessed Lord said, "O Arjuna, hear how you shall, without doubt, know Me fully, with…
- 7.2I will declare to you in full this knowledge combined with realization, after knowing…
- 7.3Among thousands of men, one may perchance strive for perfection; even among those…
7.4Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intellect, and egoism—thus is My Nature divided…
- 7.5O mighty-armed Arjuna, this is the inferior Prakriti; know it as distinct from My higher…
- 7.6Know that these two are the womb of all beings; thus, I am the source and dissolution of…
- 7.7There is nothing higher than Me, O Arjuna. All this is strung on Me, like clusters of gems…
- 7.8I am the flavor in water, O Arjuna; I am the light in the moon and the sun; I am the…
- 7.9I am the sweet fragrance in the earth and the brilliance in the fire, the life in all…
- 7.10Know Me, O Arjuna, as the eternal seed of all beings; I am the intelligence of the…
- 7.11Of the strong, I am the strength devoid of desire and attachment, and in all beings, I am…
- 7.12Whatever beings (and objects) that are pure, active, and inert, know that they proceed…
- 7.13Deluded by these Natures, composed of the three qualities of Nature, all this world does…
- 7.14Verily, this divine illusion of Mine, composed of the three qualities, is difficult to…
Word-by-word→
- me
- my
- cha
- and
- eva
- certainly
- iti
- thus
- iyam
- all these
- kham
- space
- bhinnā
- divisions
- manaḥ
- mind
- āpaḥ
- water
- analaḥ
- fire
- vāyuḥ
- air
- bhūmiḥ
- earth
- buddhiḥ
- intellect
- ahankāraḥ
- ego
- aṣhṭadhā
- eightfold
- prakṛitiḥ
- material energy
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- 10.7He who truly knows these manifold manifestations of My Being and this Yoga-power of Mine,…
- 11.8But you are not able to behold Me with these your own eyes; I give you the divine eye;…
- 18.26An agent who is free from attachment, non-egoistic, endowed with firmness and enthusiasm,…