Shloka 18
प्रविशन्ति द्विजश्रेष्ठा: क्षेत्रज्ञ निर्गुणात्मकम् । सर्वावासं वासुदेवं क्षेत्रज्ञं विद्धि तत््वतः,तदनन्तर तीनों गुणोंसे मुक्त हो वे श्रेष्ठ द्विज अनायास ही निर्गुणस्वरूप क्षेत्रज्ञ परमात्मामें प्रवेश कर जाते हैं। तुम सबके निवासस्थान भगवान् वासुदेवको ही क्षेत्रज्ञ समझो
praviśanti dvijaśreṣṭhāḥ kṣetrajña nirguṇātmakam | sarvāvāsaṃ vāsudevaṃ kṣetrajñaṃ viddhi tattvataḥ ||
Nārada said: “O best of the twice-born, those who become freed from the three guṇas enter, without strain, the attributeless Supreme Self—the Knower of the Field. Know in truth that Vāsudeva, the universal abode and dwelling-place of all beings, is that very Kṣetrajña.”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
Freedom from the three guṇas culminates in realization/entry into the attributeless Kṣetrajña (the witnessing Self). The verse identifies this ultimate Knower with Vāsudeva, teaching a unity of self-knowledge (jñāna) and the Supreme Lord as the indwelling reality of all.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on liberation and right understanding, Nārada addresses the ‘best of the twice-born’ and explains the destination of those who transcend guṇas: they enter the nirguṇa Kṣetrajña. He then directs the listener to recognize Vāsudeva as that Kṣetrajña, the universal abode.