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Bhagwad Gita (English) | Chapter 15 | Verse 11

Chapter 15, Verse 11

The Yoga of the Supreme Person

The endeavoring transcendentalist, who is situated in self-realization, can see all this clearly. But those who are not situated in self-realization cannot see what is taking place, though they may try to.

Verse

यतन्तो योगिनश्चैनं पश्यन्त्यात्मन्यवस्थितम्।यतन्तोऽप्यकृतात्मानो नैनं पश्यन्त्यचेतसः।।15.11।।


yatanto yoginaśh chainaṁ paśhyanty ātmany avasthitam
yatanto ‘py akṛitātmāno nainaṁ paśhyanty achetasaḥ

Meaning of each word

yatantaḥ — striving;
yoginaḥ — yogis;
cha — too;
enam — this (the soul);
paśhyanti — see;
ātmani — in the body;
avasthitam — enshrined;
yatantaḥ — strive;
api — even though;
akṛita-ātmānaḥ — those whose minds are not purified;
na — not;
enam — this;
paśhyanti — cognize;
achetasaḥ — unaware

Interpretation

This verse talks about two types of people: those who are truly on the path of spiritual understanding and those who think they are but are not really there yet.

Let’s break it down:
1. **Endeavoring Transcendentalist**: This refers to people who are seriously trying to understand the deeper truths of life and their own existence. They have made an effort to realize their true selves. They don’t just focus on physical practices like yoga for the sake of fitness. Instead, they look for a deeper self-awareness and spiritual insight.

2. **Self-Realization**: Being self-realized means understanding who you really are beyond just your body and mind. It’s about knowing your true nature, which is connected to something bigger, often referred to as the soul or spirit. People who are self-realized can see clearly what is happening around them and understand the changes in life. They are aware of their own inner selves and how they fit into the larger picture of existence.

3. **Unable to See**: On the other hand, there are many people (referred to as 'akṛitātmānaḥ') who may practice yoga, meditate, or go to spiritual classes. However, they are often focused solely on the physical aspects like becoming fit, flexible, or looking good. They may not have the knowledge or awareness to understand the deeper truths that connect everything. These are the individuals who strive but do not truly grasp the spiritual messages or the essence of yoga.

4. **Ignorance of Transmigration**: The verse mentions that those who lack this self-realization cannot see how a living being's life changes from one body to another (this is known as transmigration of the soul). This concept explains that when someone dies, their essence or soul moves on to a different form of life—like how we might change clothes. People who don’t truly engage with spiritual practices don’t see or understand this process, even if they are trying hard to learn.

5. **True Understanding through Bhakti Yoga**: Finally, the verse emphasizes that only those who sincerely dedicate themselves to understanding their relationship with the Supreme (like Krishna in Bhakti Yoga) can see and know these spiritual truths. They are not just doing yoga; they are actively engaged in service and devotion, which helps them comprehend the larger cycles of life and existence.

In simple words, it's about the difference between just trying to be a better person on the outside and actually realizing the deeper truth of who you are inside. The deeper understanding comes from true dedication and self-awareness, not just from physical practices.

Other Verses of Chapter 15
Verse 1
The Blessed Lord said: There is a banyan tree which has its roots upward and its branches down and whose leaves are the Vedic hymns. One who knows this tree is the knower of the Vedas.
Verse 2
The branches of this tree extend downward and upward, nourished by the three modes of material nature. The twigs are the objects of the senses. This tree also has roots going down, and these are bound to the fruitive actions of human society.
Verse 3
Its form is not perceived here as such, nor its end, origin, foundation, or resting place; having cut asunder this firmly rooted peepul tree with the strong axe of non-attachment.
Verse 4
Then, that goal should be sought for, to which, having gone, none returns again. I seek refuge in that Primeval Purusha, from whence streamed forth the ancient activity or energy.
Verse 5
One who is free from illusion, false prestige, and false association, who understands the eternal, who is done with material lust and is freed from the duality of happiness and distress, and who knows how to surrender unto the Supreme Person, attains to that eternal kingdom.
Verse 6
That abode of Mine is not illumined by the sun or moon, nor by electricity. One who reaches it never returns to this material world.
Verse 7
The living entities in this conditioned world are My eternal, fragmental parts. Due to conditioned life, they are struggling very hard with the six senses, which include the mind.
Verse 8
The living entity in the material world carries his different conceptions of life from one body to another as the air carries aromas.
Verse 9
The living entity, thus taking another gross body, obtains a certain type of ear, tongue, and nose and sense of touch, which are grouped about the mind. He thus enjoys a particular set of sense objects.
Verse 10
The foolish cannot understand how a living entity can quit his body, nor can they understand what sort of body he enjoys under the spell of the modes of nature. But one whose eyes are trained in knowledge can see all this.
Verse 12
The splendor of the sun, which dissipates the darkness of this whole world, comes from Me. And the splendor of the moon and the splendor of fire are also from Me.
Verse 13
I enter into each planet, and by My energy they stay in orbit. I become the moon and thereby supply the juice of life to all vegetables.
Verse 14
I am the fire of digestion in every living body, and I am the air of life, outgoing and incoming, by which I digest the four kinds of foodstuff.
Verse 15
I am seated in everyone's heart, and from Me come remembrance, knowledge and forgetfulness. By all the Vedas am I to be known; indeed I am the compiler of Vedanta, and I am the knower of the Vedas.
Verse 16
There are two classes of beings, the fallible and the infallible. In the material world every entity is fallible, and in the spiritual world every entity is called infallible.
Verse 17
Besides these two, there is the greatest living personality, the Lord Himself, who has entered into these worlds and is maintaining them.
Verse 18
Because I am transcendental, beyond both the fallible and the infallible, and because I am the greatest, I am celebrated both in the world and in the Vedas as that Supreme Person.
Verse 19
Whoever knows Me as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, without doubting, is to be understood as the knower of everything, and he therefore engages himself in full devotional service, O son of Bharata.
Verse 20
This is the most confidential part of the Vedic scriptures, O sinless one, and it is disclosed now by Me. Whoever understands this will become wise, and his endeavors will know perfection.
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