13.15 Without senses, and sensing Krishna speaks
सर्वेन्द्रियगुणाभासं सर्वेन्द्रियविवर्जितम्
असक्तं सर्वभृच्चैव निर्गुणं गुणभोक्तृ च
sarvendriya-guṇābhāsaṁ sarvendriya-vivarjitam
asaktaṁ sarva-bhṛich chaiva nirguṇaṁ guṇa-bhoktṛi cha
It appears through the qualities of all the senses and yet is without any sense; unattached, and yet the support of everything; without the strands of nature, and yet the enjoyer of them.
Explanation
Sensing without senses, supporting without attachment.
It appears through the qualities of all the senses and has none; it is unattached and is the support of everything; it is without the strands and is the enjoyer of them.
Three contradictions in one verse. The construction is not sloppiness — each pair denies the mechanism and affirms the function, which is the only way this chapter can talk about what it is talking about.
Word by word
- sarva
- all
- indriya
- senses
- guṇa
- sense-objects
- ābhāsam
- the perciever
- sarva
- all
- indriya
- senses
- vivarjitam
- devoid of
- asaktam
- unattached
- sarva-bhṛit
- the sustainer of all
- cha
- yet
- eva
- indeed
- nirguṇam
- beyond the three modes of material nature
- guṇa-bhoktṛi
- the enjoyer of the three modes of material nature
- cha
- although
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