Shloka 23
ध्यानयोगवर्णनम्
Description of the Path of Meditation
आत्मा क्षेत्रज्ञ इत्युक्त: संयुक्त: प्राकृतैर्गुणै: तैरेव तु विनिर्मुक्त: परमात्मेत्युदाहृत:,आत्मा जब प्राकृत गुणोंसे युक्त होता है, तब उसे क्षेत्रज्ञ कहते हैं और उन्हीं गुणोंसे जब वह मुक्त हो जाता है, तब परमात्मा कहलाता है
ātmā kṣetrajña ity uktaḥ saṃyuktaḥ prākṛtair guṇaiḥ | tair eva tu vinirmuktaḥ paramātmety udāhṛtaḥ ||
భరద్వాజుడు పలికెను—ఆత్మ ప్రకృతిజ గుణాలతో సంయుక్తమైనప్పుడు ‘క్షేత్రజ్ఞ’ అని చెప్పబడుతుంది; అదే ఆత్మ ఆ గుణాల నుండే విముక్తమైతే ‘పరమాత్మ’ అని ప్రకటించబడుతుంది.
भरद्वाज उवाच
Educational Q&A
The same conscious Self is termed kṣetrajña when it is associated with Prakṛti’s guṇas (the modes that shape embodied experience). When it is completely free from identification with those guṇas, it is spoken of as Paramātman—indicating liberation and the highest standpoint of consciousness.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on peace and liberation, the sage Bharadvāja explains a doctrinal distinction: bondage is the Self’s association with material qualities, while freedom is the Self’s release from them, culminating in the designation ‘Supreme Self’.