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BG 7.4 — 7.4 Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intellect and egoism thus is My Nature divided eightfold.
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भूमिरापोऽनलो वायुः खं मनो बुद्धिरेव च |
अहंकार इतीयं मे भिन्ना प्रकृतिरष्टधा ||७-४||

bhūmirāpo.analo vāyuḥ khaṃ mano buddhireva ca . ahaṃkāra itīyaṃ me bhinnā prakṛtiraṣṭadhā ||7-4||


7.4 Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intellect and egoism thus is My Nature divided eightfold.

Word-by-word meanings

7.4 भूमिः earth? आपः water? अनलः fire? वायुः air? खम् ether? मनः mind? बुद्धिः intellect? एव even? च and? अहङ्कारः egoism? इति thus? इयम् this? मे My? भिन्ना divided? प्रकृतिः Nature? अष्टधा eightfold.Commentary 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

Commentaries

Non-dualism. The individual self and Brahman are one. The world is appearance (maya). Liberation through knowledge.

Sri Shankaracharya

7.4 Iyam, this; prakrtih, Prakrti, [Prakrti here does not mean the Pradhana of the Sankhyas.] the divine power called Maya; me, of Mine, as described; bhinna, is divided; astadha, eight-forl; iti, thus: bhumih, earth-not the gross earth but the subtle element called earth, this being understood from the statement, 'Prakrti (of Mine) is divided eight-fold'. Similarly, the subtle elements alone are referred to even by the words water etc. Apah, water; analah, fire; vayuh, air; kham, space; manah, mind. By 'mind' is meant its source, egoism. By buddhih, intellect, is meant the principle called mahat [Mahat means Hiranyagarbha, or Cosmic Intelligence.] which is the source of egoism. By ahankarah, egoism, is meant the Unmanifest, associated [Associated, i.e. of the nature of.] with (Cosmic) ignorance. As food mixed with position is called poison, similarly the Unmainfest, which is the primordial Cause, is called egoism since it is imbued with the impressions resulting from egoism; and egoism is the impelling force (of all). It is indeed seen in the world that egoism is the impelling cause behind all endeavour.

(Showing excerpt)

Swami Gambirananda

7.4 This Prakrti of Mine is divided eight-fold thus: earth, water, fire, air, space, mind, intellect and also egoism.

This interpretation draws on the Advaita tradition and may not represent the view of any single school. For authoritative guidance within a specific tradition, seek a qualified teacher.

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