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In the previous chapter, Shree Krishna explained that by transcending the three
modes of material nature one attains the divine goal. He also revealed that the
best means for going beyond the guṇas is to engage in exclusive devotion. To
engage in such devotion, we must detach the mind from the world and attach it to
God alone. Thus, it is necessary to understand the nature of the world. In this
chapter, Shree Krishna explains this material world in a graphic manner, to help
Arjun develop detachment from it. He compares the material world to an upside
down aśhvatth tree (sacred fig). The embodied soul wanders up and down the
branches of the tree, from lifetime to lifetime, without comprehending from where
it originated, how long it has existed, and how it keeps growing. The roots of the
tree are above, as it has its source in God. The fruitive activities described in
the Vedas are like its leaves. The tree is irrigated by the three modes of
material nature. These modes create sense objects that are like the buds on the
tree. The buds sprout aerial roots that engender further growth of the tree. The
chapter describes this symbolism in detail, to convey the idea of how the embodied
soul suffering in this material world only keeps perpetuating its bondage here, in
ignorance of the nature of this tree of material existence. Shree Krishna explains
that the axe of detachment must be used to cut down the tree. Then, we must search
for the base of the tree, which is the Supreme Lord Himself. Finding the source,
we must surrender to Him in the manner described in this chapter, and then will
attain the divine Abode of God, from where we will not return to the material world
again.
Shree Krishna then describes how the souls in this world are divine, being His
eternal fragmental parts. But bound by material nature, they are struggling with
the six senses including the mind. He explains how the embodied soul, though
divine, savors the material objects of the senses. He also describes how the soul
transmigrates to a new body at the time of death, carrying with it the mind and
senses from the present life. The ignorant neither realize the presence of the
soul in the body, nor when it departs from it upon death. But yogis perceive it
with the eyes of knowledge and by the purity of their mind. In the same way, God
is also present in His creation, but He needs to be perceived with the eyes of
knowledge. Shree Krishna reveals how we can cognize the existence of God in this
world through His glories that shine forth everywhere. The chapter ends with
explanations of the terms: kṣhar, akṣhar, and Puruṣhottam. Kṣhar are the
perishable beings of the material realm. Akṣhar are the liberated beings in the
Abode of God. Puruṣhottam is the Supreme Divine Personality, who is the unchanging
controller and sustainer of the world. He is transcendental to both the perishable
and imperishable beings. He must be worshipped with all our being.