Chapter 13 · Verse 21 · Ksetra Ksetrajna Vibhaaga Yoga
Bhagavad Gita 13.21
Sanskrit
कार्यकारणकर्तृत्वे हेतुः प्रकृतिरुच्यते।पुरुषः सुखदुःखानां भोक्तृत्वे हेतुरुच्यते।।13.21।।
Transliteration
kārya-kāraṇa-kartṛitve hetuḥ prakṛitir uchyate puruṣhaḥ sukha-duḥkhānāṁ bhoktṛitve hetur uchyate
In plain words
You are carrying something that was never yours to carry—the weight of making life turn out a certain way, the blame when it doesn't, the false belief that your worth depends on what happens next. Krishna says: nature runs its course through causes and effects; your only real job is to feel what you feel, learn what you learn, and act with integrity—then let go of the grip. The peace you're looking for lives on the other side of that release.
Word by Word
Krishna draws the eternal distinction between the two principles of existence: Prakriti, the material energy that orchestrates all effects and causes in the manifest world, and Purusha, the witnessing consciousness that experiences the results of action. This is not a division into separate realities, but a recognition of two aspects of the one existence—the instrument and the instrumenter.
When you understand this division clearly, you stop claiming ownership of circumstances and begin to witness your life with the equanimity of the soul, transforming how you respond to success and failure.
Listen
Bhagavad Gita 13.21 — BG 13.21
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