7.4 The eight lower divisions Krishna speaks
भूमिरापोऽनलो वायुः खं मनो बुद्धिरेव च
अहङ्कार इतीयं मे भिन्ना प्रकृतिरष्टधा
bhūmir-āpo ’nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva cha
ahankāra itīyaṁ me bhinnā prakṛitir aṣhṭadhā
Earth, water, fire, air, space, mind, understanding and the sense of self — these are the eight divisions of my lower nature.
Explanation
The lower nature, in eight parts.
- earth, water, fire, air, space
- mind
- understanding
- the sense of self
The striking thing is what got included. Mind, intellect and ego are on the same list as earth and water — classified as material, not as spirit. Whatever you are, chapter 7 says, it is not your thinking.
Word by word
- bhūmiḥ
- earth
- āpaḥ
- water
- analaḥ
- fire
- vāyuḥ
- air
- kham
- space
- manaḥ
- mind
- buddhiḥ
- intellect
- eva
- certainly
- cha
- and
- ahankāraḥ
- ego
- iti
- thus
- iyam
- all these
- me
- my
- bhinnā
- divisions
- prakṛitiḥ
- material energy
- aṣhṭadhā
- eightfold
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