Bg. 9.10 · Bhagavad-gita As It Is

Devanagari

मयाध्यक्षेण प्रकृति: सूयते सचराचरम् । हेतुनानेन कौन्तेय जगद्विपरिवर्तते ॥ १० ॥

Verse text

mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram hetunānena kaunteya jagad viparivartate

Synonyms

mayā — by Me ; adhyakṣeṇa — by superintendence ; prakṛtiḥ — material nature ; sūyate — manifests ; sa — both ; cara-acaram — the moving and the nonmoving ; hetunā — for the reason ; anena — this ; kaunteya — O son of Kuntī ; jagat — the cosmic manifestation ; viparivartate — is working.

Translation

This material nature, which is one of My energies, is working under My direction, O son of Kuntī, producing all moving and nonmoving beings. Under its rule this manifestation is created and annihilated again and again.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

10. By My direction, prakṛti gives rise to the universe of moving and non-moving entities. By this cause, O son of Kuntī, the universes appears again and again.

Translation (Baladeva Vidyabhusana)

10. By My direction, prakṛti gives rise to the universe of moving and non-moving entities. By this cause, O son of Kuntī, the universes appears again and again.

Purport

It is clearly stated here that the Supreme Lord, although aloof from all the activities of the material world, remains the supreme director. The Supreme Lord is the supreme will and the background of this material manifestation, but the management is being conducted by material nature. Kṛṣṇa also states in Bhagavad-gītā that of all the living entities in different forms and species, “I am the father.” The father gives seeds to the womb of the mother for the child, and similarly the Supreme Lord by His mere glance injects all the living entities into the womb of material nature, and they come out in their different forms and species, according to their last desires and activities. All these living entities, although born under the glance of the Supreme Lord, take their different bodies according to their past deeds and desires. So the Lord is not directly attached to this material creation. He simply glances over material nature; material nature is thus activated, and everything is created immediately. Because He glances over material nature, there is undoubtedly activity on the part of the Supreme Lord, but He has nothing to do with the manifestation of the material world directly. This example is given in the smṛti: when there is a fragrant flower before someone, the fragrance is touched by the smelling power of the person, yet the smelling and the flower are detached from one another. There is a similar connection between the material world and the Supreme Personality of Godhead; actually He has nothing to do with this material world, but He creates by His glance and ordains. In summary, material nature, without the superintendence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, cannot do anything. Yet the Supreme Personality is detached from all material activities.

Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

“I cannot accept that You are indifferent in Your acts such as creation.” By My direction as the efficient cause (nimitta), [Note: The efficient cause (nimitta) is distinguished from the material cause (upādāna), prakṛti. The potter is the efficient cause and the clay is the material cause of the pot.] prakṛti gives rise to this universe of moving and non-moving entities (sūyate). I am only the director. It is like the duties of the kingdom going on under the kings like Ambarīṣa through their ministers. In that situation, the king remains aloof. But just as nothing can be done by the ministers without the king sitting on the throne, so unconscious matter can do nothing without My directorship in the form of My presence and authority. By this cause (hetunā), by My presence, this world is repeatedly created.

Purport (Baladeva Vidyabhusana)

The Lord further expounds this idea. Glanced upon by Me, the Lord of all, the controller of prakṛti, whose every wish is fulfilled, in accordance with the previous karmas of the jīvas (mayā adhyakṣena), prakṛti creates the universe of moving and non-moving beings. By this cause (anena hetunā), by My glance which considers the jīvas’ positions according to previous karmas, this universe appears again and again, O son of Kuntī! The śrutis also say: vikāra-jananīm ajṣām aṣṭa-rūpām ajāṁ dhruvām dhyāyate’dhyāsitā tena tanyate preritā punaḥ sūyate puruṣārthaṁ ca tenaivādhiṣṭhitā jagat One meditates on prakṛti, which produces changes, which is ignorance, of eight forms, unborn and fixed. Ordered, expanded and inspired by the Lord, prakṛti again creates the universe and goals for humans, under His direction alone. Mantrika Upaniṣad 4 Being the doer and being neutral are not contradictory because the Lord rules by proximity only. The smṛti says: yathā sannidhi-mātreṇagandhaḥ kṣobhāya jāyate: it is just like fragrance which causes agitation by closeness. (Viṣṇu Purāṇa 1.2.30) Prakṛti is dependent on My control alone. Without Me, she does not have the power to do anything. In the absence of the authority of the king on his throne, his ministers do not have the power to carry out actions.

Surrender Unto Me

'Maya adhyksa' means "under My eyes". Everything is happening under Krsna's superintendence, yet He is independent of everything. The example of Maharaja Ambarisha illustrates nicely this point. He was residing in Mathura, the capital of his Empire, and his occupation was doing 'puja' all day long. Yet simply by his presence everything was going on nicely in all the Empire. Srila Prabhupada says in his Purport: "Because He glances over material nature, there is undoubtedly activity on the part of the Supreme Lord, but He has nothing to do with the manifestation of the material world directly. This example is given in the smrti: when there is a fragrant flower before someone, the fragrance is touched by the smelling power of the person the smelling and the flower are detached from one another. There is a similar connection between the material world and the Supreme Personality of Godhead; actually He has nothing to do with this material world, but He creates by His glance and ordains. In summary, material nature, without the superintendence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, cannot do anything. Yet the Supreme Personality is detached from all material activities." Krsna is doing everything by His 'acintya sakti'. In Texts 11 and 15, Section C, Krsna is doing this, and is so wonderfully powerful, He is doing it with just a fragment of His energy. Then why people don't surrender to such a powerful personality who is making everything work and yet completely aloof? The answer is in the next Text. [C. NON‑WORSHIPERS AND WORSHIPERS (9. 11‑15) Fools that think Krsna is an ordinary human being who possesses a temporary form, become atheists and are defeated in each of their endeavors. (11‑12). On the other hand, mahatmas who know Krsna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who possesses a transcendental and eternal form. take shelter of His divine nature and perpetually chant His glories, bow down to Him, and serve Him. Actually, all those who take shelter of a conception of the Supreme and worship, such as a ... 1. monist, one who worships himself as one with the Supreme, 2. worshiper of a demigod, one who imagine and worships a demigod's form as supreme, 3. worshiper of the material, universal form...