समं पश्यन्हि सर्वत्र समवस्थितमीश्वरम् | न हिनस्त्यात्मनात्मानं ततो याति परां गतिम् ||१३-२९||
samaṃ paśyanhi sarvatra samavasthitamīśvaram .
na hinastyātmanātmānaṃ tato yāti parāṃ gatim ||13-29||
Because he who sees the same Lord eally dwelling everywhere does not destroy the Self by the self; he goes to the highest goal.
In simple words
Krishna explains why this vision matters: "The person who sees the same Lord dwelling equally everywhere does not harm themselves through their own actions — and they reach the highest goal."
Word-by-word meanings
समम्eallyपश्यन्seeingहिindeedसर्वत्रeverywhereसमवस्थितम्eally dwellingईश्वरम्the Lordनnotहिनस्तिdestroysआत्मनाby the selfआत्मानम्the Selfततःthenयातिgoesपराम्the highestगतिम्the goal
Contemporary scholarly and practical interpretations for modern seekers.
Swami Sivananda
13.29 समम् eally? पश्यन् seeing? हि indeed? सर्वत्र everywhere? समवस्थितम् eally dwelling? ईश्वरम् the Lord? न not? हिनस्ति destroys? आत्मना by the self? आत्मानम् the Self? ततः then? याति goes? पराम् the highest? गतिम् the goal.Commentary This is the vision of a liberated sage. The Supreme Self abides in all forms. There is nothing apart from It.An ignorant man destroyes the Self by identifying himself with the body and the modifications of the mind and by not seeing the one Self in all beings. He has a blurred vision. His mind is very gross. He cannot think of the subtle Self. He is swayed by the force of ignorance. He mistakes the impure body for the pure Self. He has false knowledge. But the sage has knowledge of the Self or true knowledge and so he beholds the one Self in all beings. An ignorant man is the slayer of his Self. He destroys this body and takes another body and so on. But he who beholds the one Self in all beings does not destroy the Self by the self. Therefore he attains the Supreme Goal? i.e.? he attains release from the round of birth and death. Knowledge of the Self leads to liberation or salvation. Knowledge of the Absolute annihilates the ignorance in toto. If the ignorance is destroyed and false knowledge is also destroyed? all evils are simultaneously destroyed.Those who have realised that unity of the Self in all these diverse forms are never caught in the meshes of birth and death. They attain the state of Turiya (the fourth state beyond waking? dreaming and deep sleep) where form and sound do not exist.The self is everybodys friend and also his enemy as well. The idea first expressed in chapter VI? verses 5 and 6 is repeated here. (Cf.XVIII.20)
Swami Chinmayananda
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.
# BG 13.29
Vedanta does not teach us to flee from the world; rather, it instructs us to revalue this visible creation. Ordinarily, our vision of the world is colored by our cherished thoughts and emotions. It is clear that in such a state, we do not perceive the world as it truly is. To abandon this vision born of ignorance and to behold the universe through the eyes of knowledge means to recognize fullness and bliss, divinity and sanctity, even in this present age's sluggish, melancholy, and sorrowful world. This world, perceived through distorted evidence contrary to the ultimate truth, is what continually torments the perceiving soul.
When the atman, having identified itself with limiting conditions and thus fallen into the sense of individual existence, looks upon creation, it beholds a multitude of forms. Born of delusion, this world sometimes appears to it as dancing and rejoicing, and sometimes as shrieking and roaring. Only by recognizing the ultimate truth underlying one's own nature amidst all these painful transformations can all distractions, meaningless pursuits, and fruitless efforts cease—for the atman perceives the Supreme Lord as equally present everywhere. Through this direct experience of knowledge, the wise person is freed from all suffering and fear. When one recognizes the illusory phantom's supporting pillar, the former fear and sorrow vanish.
One does not destroy oneself through oneself. The Blessed Lord Krishna has already made clear how we become either our own enemy or our own friend. When our lower, ego-centered personality or mind is unwilling to act under the guidance of our higher, wisdom-endowed intellect, then that mind becomes our enemy. If we lose control of a vehicle, it becomes the cause of our destruction rather than serving us. The person who has beheld the Supreme Self pervading everywhere—his mind can never obscure the glory of the Divine with its own dark shadow.
Thus does he attain the Supreme Goal. Through ignorance of the atman and the false knowledge born of it, a veil remains cast upon our pure nature. Because of this ignorance, a person not only fails to know his true nature, but mistakes the body and other non-self conditions, which are entirely different from his essence, as his own nature. Consequently, his conduct becomes improper, and the aim of his life becomes nothing but the pursuit of sensory pleasures. To achieve this goal, he performs such base actions as bring suffering and harm to himself and to society. He cannot perceive the greatness and glory of the Supreme Lord anywhere. But when, equipped with discrimination and dispassion and other spiritual practices, he attains self-knowledge, then ignorance along with all false knowledge is entirely dispelled, and he attains the Supreme Goal.
Because differences are seen in the qualities and actions of all beings, it must be concluded that there are many selves, not one. Refuting this view, the Blessed Lord speaks: