Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada

Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan

Sri Krishna describes that the knower of this is kṣetra-jña, so there are two kṣetra-jña here.

Bg 13.3

kṣetra-jñaṁ cāpi māṁ viddhi
sarva-kṣetreṣu bhārata
kṣetra-kṣetrajñayor jñānaṁ
yat taj jñānaṁ mataṁ mama

Synonyms: 

kṣetra–jñam — the knower of the field; ca — also; api — certainly; mām — Me; viddhi — know; sarva — all; kṣetreṣu — in bodily fields; bhārata — O son of Bharata; kṣetra — the field of activities (the body); kṣetra–jñayoḥ— and the knower of the field; jñānam — knowledge of; yat — that which; tat — that; jñānam — knowledge; matam — opinion; mama — My.

Translation: 

O scion of Bharata, you should understand that I am also the knower in all bodies, and to understand this body and its knower is called knowledge. That is My opinion.

 

kṣetra-jñaṁ cāpi māṁ viddhi, know that I am also the kṣetra-jña but what kind of kṣetra-jña I am? 

sarva-kṣetreṣu bhārata, that I know all the fields. 

kṣetra-kṣetrajñayor jñānaṁ, so this knowledge of Kshetra and kṣetra-jña

yat taj jñānaṁ mataṁ mama, so this in my understanding is knowledge. mataṁ mama, my opinion, in general when it is said my opinion it is to decrease the weight but when Krishna uses the word He being AT it becomes the ultimate reality and His opinion coincides with reality. 

So basically knowledge of matter and spirit is knowledge according to Him. In modern science we just have material knowledge we don’t have so much spiritual knowledge.

In kṣetra-jña there are two kinds we should know soul and Supersoul, knower of all bodies. 

So the complete knowledge is knowledge of matter, soul and Supersoul. 

kṣetra-jñaṁ cāpi māṁ viddhi,

cā, means also which indicated that there are two entities here soul and Supersoul.

SP Purport:

In the Vedic literature, it is stated as follows:

kṣetrāṇi hi śarīrāṇi
bījaṁ cāpi śubhāśubhe
tāni vetti sa yogātmā
tataḥ kṣetra-jña ucyate

 

kṣetrāṇi hi śarīrāṇi, that body is called as Kshetra
bījaṁ cāpi śubhāśubhe, just as in the fields seeds are sown similarly we do activities that are Shubha and Ashubha, they become like the seeds,
tāni vetti sa yogātmā, tāni vetti,  one who knows this that yogātmā is called 

kṣetra-jña
tataḥ kṣetra-jña ucyate, such a person is actual kṣetra-jña.

 

SP Purport: One should not confuse the painter, the painting and the easel. 

This is an approximate example this is not entirely technically precise example, the point is the ultimate doer is the Supreme Lord so He is like the painter, and the easel, the canvas and paper on which painting happens is the material nature, and painting is the living entity is who is having a particular Kshetra. Why this is not accurate example is because it doesn’t have the free will which living entity have. But the point here is to know the ultimate knower and control the Supreme Lord.

 

SP Purport: It is stated in the Vedic language (in the Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 1.12), bhoktā bhogyaṁ preritāraṁ ca matvā/ sarvaṁ proktaṁ tri-vidhaṁ brahmam etat.

 

bhoktā bhogyaṁ preritāraṁ ca matvā, the Jiva, the material nature and Supreme Lord can be referred as Brahman, because two are manifestation of Brahman and one is Brahman Himself.  So SP mentioned that they are not one they are different to understand them as one is wrong. 

Two ways of knowledge

Cit: original consciousness of the soul – part of sat-cit-anand

Citta: consciousness routed in the material world

So soul has original consciousness which is capable of perceiving the spiritual reality also but right now we cannot perceive although Supersoul is seating next to me. So it is like a person watching movie in theatre who is so caught up that although he can look right and left but he do not watch anything else. 

So when a soul’s consciousness is locked in a particular area the soul is having citta only.

In Upanishads there are Two ways of acquiring knowledge

  1. Vyashthi: From individual to Universal

E.g. SP said I you and everyone else is a person so God also must be a person.

  1. 2. Samashthi: From universal to individual

E.g. Thinking about the totality of creation and try to understand the individuals. 

Another way of looking the kṣetra-jña: 

There are 5 Koshas. 

What are Koshas: Objective levels of God’s energy & Subjective levels of individual realization.

e.g. Citizens are objective reality, someone is citizen of India and they know that they are citizen of India, a small infant baby may not know or an animal may not know about their citizenship. 

The word Maya means to be full of. 

  1. Anna-maya: 
  2. Prana-maya
  3. Jnana-maya–Subtle body
  4. Vijnana-maya–atma
  5. Ananda-maya–Bhagavan& bhakti

 

  1. Anna-maya: So anna-maya refers to full of food, that means at this level the conception of life is for eating. Existence is eating. E.g. a small infant as soon as near mother breast it starts shucking milk, that indicates source of nutrition and also source of safety. For a baby everything is food, so they take everything in their mouth. So why is so? Is there any covering around the consciousness? It not a physical covering, all these are subtle. So that means a living entity can be in Anna-maya, so that is one level of consciousness. So it is an objective reality but subjectively some people may or may not be in Anna-maya kosha. 

For animal also are in Anna-maya kosha where everything is basically distinguished with food.

  1. Prana-maya: In Prana-maya kosha they see everything in terms of its relevance to life, so a baby puts something is mouth hot or candle and then starts crying then they understand that I cannot see everything as food but as its survival value, so most animals are in Prana Maya Kosha. Darwin’s theory is fit for animals, survival of fittest for animal everybody wants to live. Srila Prabhupada said even the fittest won’t survive. 

Animal are eating food and they are also afraid. So generally Prana-maya Kosha is in passion. 

  1. Jnana-maya–Subtle body: 

So at the level of Anna-maya, everything is perceived as food and in Prana-maya they understand that I have existence and I have to maintain my existence, this is quite bodily level of consciousness.

In Jnana-maya, one starts becoming a philosopher, one starts become aware of more of ideas and concepts that is one is aware of subtle body at that time, so one starts thinking about one’s thoughts. All conscious being thinks but not all conscious being think about their thinking, we need to think about our thinking, which requires self-awareness, e.g. I am feeling angry now but there is nothing so serious that I should become angry. 

So Jyana maya Koshas and further can be experienced only by human beings, animals cannot experience it so much.

  1. 4. Vijnana-maya

At Vijnana-maya – At Vijnana-maya one starts becoming aware of the atma, one starts becoming aware that beyond the body is soul, and the soul is the basis of consciousness, awareness and all the actions which are happening in the body. 

  1. Ananda-maya – At Ananda-maya one starts becoming conscious of Supreme Lord, then there is Supreme Happiness, happening in relationship to that when one becomes purified.

So these are different levels of consciousness and we have to move to higher level of consciousness and more we rise more we relish deeper stability, security, satisfaction.

End of transcription.