Bhagavad Gita Chapter 10, Verse 6 (BG 10.6) — Meaning, Translation & Commentary

10.6 महर्षयः the great Rishis? सप्त seven? पूर्वे ancient? चत्वारः four? मनवः Manus? तथा also? मद्भावाः possessed of powers like Me? मानसाः from mind? जाताः born? येषाम् from whom? लोके in world? इमाः these? प्रजाः creatures. Commentary In the beginning I was alone and from Me came the mind and from the mind were produced the seven sages (such as Bhrigu? Vasishtha and others)? the ancient four Kumaras (Sanaka? Sanandana? Sanatkumara and Sanatsujata)? as well as the four Manus of the past ages known as Savarnis? all of whom directed their thoughts to Me exclusively and were therefore endowed with divine powers and supreme wisdom.The four Kumaras (chaste? ascetic youths) declined to marry and create offspring. They preferred to remain perpetual celibates and to practise BrahmaVichara or profound meditation on Brahman or the Absolute.They were all created by Me? by mind alone. They were all mindborn sons of Brahma. They were not born from the womb like ordinary mortals. Manavah? men? the present inhabitants of this world? are the sons of Manu. The Manus are the mindborn sons of God. These creatures which consist of the moving and the unmoving beings are born of the seven great sages and the four Manus. The great sages were original teaches of BrahmaVidya or the ancient wisdom of the Upanishads. The Manus were the rulers of men. They framed the code or rules of conduct or the laws of Dharma for the guidance and uplift of humanity.The seven great sages represent the seven planes also. In the macrocosm? Mahat or cosmic Buddhi? Ahamkara or the cosmic egoism and the five Tanmatras or the five rootelements of which the five great elements? viz.? earth? water? fire? air and ether are the gross forms? represent the seven great sages. This gross universe with the moving and the unmoving beings and the subtle inner world have come out of the above seven principles. In mythology or the Puranic terminology these seven principles have been symbolised and give human names. Bhrigu? Marichi? Atri? Pulastya? Pulaha? Kratu and Vasishtha are the seven great sages.In the microcosm? Manas (mind)? Buddhi (intellect)? Chitta (subconsciousness) and Ahamkara (egoism) have been symbolised as the four Manus and given human names. The first group forms the base of the macrocosm. The second group forms the base of the microcosm (individuals). These two groups constitute this vast universe of sentient life.Madbhava with their being in Me? of My nature.

Commentaries

Contemporary scholarly and practical interpretations for modern seekers.

This interpretation draws on a specific tradition and may not represent the view of any single school. For authoritative guidance within a specific tradition, seek a qualified teacher.

Modern

In the second verse of this chapter, there is but a hint at the principle of how the Seven Sages, the four Sanaka and kindred masters, and the fourteen Manus have emanated from the mind of the Supreme. Together, they serve as both the material and instrumental causes of the universe, for it is said here that all the peoples of creation have arisen from them. The Seven Sages, whom the Puranas depict in human form, are in truth—from the perspective of spiritual philosophy—the principle of Mahat (cosmic intelligence), the ego-sense, and the five subtle elements. Their unified expression is what we call the universe. From an individual standpoint, the symbolism of the Seven Sages becomes quite simple to understand. We know that when a mere thought arises in our mind, it possesses no power to disturb us. But when that thought becomes concentrated upon a single object and transforms into desire, then that very desire—now intensified—becomes mighty enough to destroy our peace and equilibrium. These thoughts, when projected outward, give rise to our perception of the five sense-objects and our reactions to them. This stream of thought and its outward projection together become both the instrumental and material causes of the small universe of our own happiness and sorrow, honor and dishonor, effort and attainment. The four ancients (Sanaka and his brothers) and the Manus—Sri Shankaracharya, in his commentary, divides these terms thus: the ancients of former times, and the four Manus. Here it is fitting to offer a spiritual analysis, for which we find support in the second line itself. The Lord declares: all these have manifested from My mind—that is, from My will. The Puranas tell us that at the very beginning of creation, from the mind of Brahma, the Creator, were born four mental sons: Sanatkumara, Sanak, Sanatan, and Sanandan. Within each individual person dwells the creative power, and through the impulse toward creation, the consciousness that expresses itself becomes the architect of individual creation. This creative impulse manifests through four faculties of the inner instrument, and only then does any creative work occur. These four are: resolve (mind), determination (intellect), recollection of prior knowledge (memory), and the sense of doership (ego). Mind, intellect, memory, and ego—these four are indicated by the four mental sons mentioned above. Thus, in a single verse, the causes of both cosmic and individual creation are revealed. For cosmic creation, the principle of Mahat, ego, and the five subtle elements are the causes; whereas individual creation arises from the functions of mind, intellect, memory, and ego. In brief: the Seven Sages are the instrumental and material causes of cosmic creation, while the four mental sons are the instrumental and material causes of individual creation. From the perspective of individual and cosmic existence, understand now the purpose of creation—