īśhvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛid-deśhe ‘rjuna tiṣhṭhati
bhrāmayan sarva-bhūtāni yantrārūḍhāni māyayā
īśhvaraḥ — the Supreme Lord;
sarva-bhūtānām — in all living being;
hṛit-deśhe — in the hearts;
arjuna — Arjun;
tiṣhṭhati — dwells;
bhrāmayan — causing to wander;
sarva-bhūtāni — all living beings;
yantra ārūḍhani — seated on a machine;
māyayā — made of the material energy
In this verse, Krishna, who is speaking to Arjuna, tells him that God is present in everyone’s heart. Think of your heart as a special place where God resides. Just like a director oversees a movie, God is guiding every person in their lives.
When we go through life, we make choices and decisions, but these choices are not entirely ours alone. It's like being passengers in a car that is driven by a driver. In this case, the driver is the Supreme Lord, and we are the ones being guided through our experiences.
Now, this doesn't mean we don’t have free will or that we can’t make our own decisions. Imagine you are in a house and you can choose what to do inside: watch TV, cook, read, or even go out. You have freedom within that space, but the house itself is built according to certain rules (like gravity helps you stand). Similarly, in our lives, we make choices with the freedom we have within the framework set by God.
Krishna emphasizes that when we change bodies, it’s like changing cars, but we often forget who we were before. For instance, if someone gets a new car, they might forget about their old one. However, God, who is in everyone's heart, remembers everything about us—our past actions, our present state, and our future potential. He is like a patient witness, keeping track of all that we do.
Each person is placed in a body that aligns with their past actions and desires, just like getting into a car that fits your needs. Not everyone drives the same type of car; some might have fast sports cars while others have family vans. This is similar to how different people might have very different life experiences based on their actions and desires from past lives.
Ultimately, we are not completely independent. It’s important to understand that God is in charge of everything and that we’re operating under His supervision, like puppets on strings. When we recognize this, the best course of action for us is to surrender to this divine guidance. When we let go of our illusion of complete independence and trust in God’s plans, we can find peace and fulfillment. This is the profound lesson Krishna is sharing with Arjuna.