Bhagavad Gita 13.23
Spoken by Krishna ☆ Key verse · Verse 23 of 34
उपद्रष्टानुमन्ता च भर्ता भोक्ता महेश्वरः / परमात्मेति चाप्य् उक्तो देहेऽस्मिन् पुरुषः परः
upadraṣṭānumantā ca bhartā bhoktā maheśvaraḥ / paramātmeti cāpy ukto dehe'smin puruṣaḥ paraḥ
Witness, permitter, supporter, experiencer, Great Lord, Highest Self — the supreme Puruṣa in this body!
Word by word (4)
- upadraṣṭā
- — the witness who stands near (upa = near + draṣṭṛ = seer) — the pure observing awareness that witnesses all activity in the body-field without participating · Upadraṣṭā = the one who sees from nearby proximity, the intimate witness. Not a distant observer but the closest possible — the awareness that is more intimate to you than your own thoughts. This is the Sākṣī teaching: the Self is the witness of ALL events (thought, emotion, sensation) in the kṣetra. The witness does not create events; it simply sees. This is the resolution of guṇa-saṅga: the witness is never a participant in the guṇas' activity.
- anumantā ca
- — and the permitter/sanctioner (anumantṛ = one who gives permission, anumati = consent) — the Puruṣa that 'permits' all phenomena to arise in its field · Anumantā = the one who says yes, who allows. Every perception, action, and event in the body-field occurs with the implicit 'permission' of the witnessing puruṣa. This is not active permission like a decision-maker; rather, the presence of the witness is what makes all phenomena possible (like the sun's presence enables all seeing without the sun deciding what to illuminate). The concept grounds free will: ultimately, the Paramātmā is the anumantā — the karma yogī acts knowing the real anumantā is within.
- bhartā bhoktā maheśvaraḥ
- — the supporter (bhartā = bearer, sustainer), the experiencer (bhoktā = enjoyer), the Great Lord (maha + īśvara = the great controller) · Bhartā = sustainer, the ground that upholds all (connects to bhūta-bhartr of V17). Bhoktā = experiencer — in its highest sense, Brahman 'enjoys' its own creation as cosmic lila. Maheśvara = the great ruler/Lord: the same Puruṣa who witnesses is also the cosmic controller. This elevates the sākṣī from passive spectator to the active Lord of all creation. The three names together: sustains (bhartā) + experiences (bhoktā) + controls (maheśvara).
- paramātmā iti ca api uktaḥ dehe asmin puruṣaḥ paraḥ
- — and also called paramātmā (the Supreme Self) — this supreme Puruṣa (puruṣaḥ paraḥ) is in this body (dehe asmin) · Paramātmā = param (highest) + ātmā (Self) = the Supreme Self that is both the individual kṣetrajña and the universal ground. 'Dehe asmin' — in THIS body (not in some cosmic realm, not accessible only after death). The Puruṣa who is upadraṣṭā + anumantā + bhartā + bhoktā + maheśvara + paramātmā is HERE, in this very body, as the light of your own awareness. This is the most direct pointing in the entire Gita.
The Supreme Spirit dwelling in this body is also called the witness, the permitter, the sustainer, the experiencer, the great Lord, the Supreme Self.
A modern analogy
The king (maheśvara) sits in his palace (the body) as: the witness of all court proceedings (upadraṣṭā), the one who permits all orders to proceed (anumantā), the sustainer of the kingdom's wellbeing (bhartā), the enjoyer of the kingdom's beauty (bhoktā). The courtiers (thoughts, senses, organs) bustle about — the king watches, permits, supports, enjoys. Yet the king is not swept away by any particular court drama. That king is paramātmā — living in you, as you.
What it does NOT mean
Bhoktā (experiencer) here might seem to contradict the Advaita view of Brahman as nirguṇa (beyond experience). Śaṃkara resolves this: the Supreme Self appears as bhoktā through the limiting adjuncts of the body-mind (upādhi); in its own nature (svarūpa), it is pure witness. The verse uses the conventional language of lived experience to point toward the transcendent witness.
Public-domain translations (4) compare all →
And the Supreme Purusha in this body is also called the Looker-on, the Permitter, the Supporter, the Experiencer, the Great Lord, and the Highest Self. [4]
[Arnold full chapter text; verse names the supreme Purusha in this body as Witness, Permitter, Supporter, Experiencer, Great Lord, Highest Self] [7]
The Supreme Spirit in this body is called the Spectator, the Permitter, the Supporter, the Enjoyer, the Great Lord, and also the Supreme Self. [9]
The Supreme Purusha in this body is spoken of as the Witness, the Permitter, the Supporter, the Experiencer, the Great Lord, and also as the Highest Self. [13]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
Inner control → outer action without attachment = karma-yoga. That person genuinely excels.
A blind king asks what happened on the battlefield — and the Gita begins.
You grieve for those who should not be grieved for — and call it wisdom.
That which pervades everything cannot be destroyed — nothing and no one has the power to end it.
The soul does not slay, and cannot be slain — both the slayer and the slain have mistaken the soul for the body.
Unborn. Undying. Ancient. Eternal. Not slain when the body is slain — this is what you are.
Verse 23 of 34 · back to Chapter 13