13.21 - Bhagavad Gita - Chapter 13, Verse 21

In Bhagavad Gita 13.21, Sri Krishna unravels the delicate interplay between two fundamental realities: prakriti, or material nature, and purusha, the conscious living entity. He presents a vivid distinction between these two by explaining their respective roles in the worldly drama each of us participates in daily. Prakriti, Krishna says, is responsible for producing the physical body, the senses, and the world of material effects—essentially providing the machinery and the stage on which our life stories unfold.

Prakriti’s power lies in its ability to create the forms and functions that make up our physical experience. The body you inhabit, the sensory tools with which you perceive, and the objects you sense—all are provided by this material nature. Yet, while prakriti initiates and sustains the workings of the physical world, it does not and cannot experience these workings itself. It is like a movie projector providing the images, but not engaging with the story emotionally.

Krishna then introduces purusha, the living entity, as the true enjoyer and experiencer—the bhokta—of the happiness and distress that arise from interacting with prakriti. The soul, seated in the body, is the conscious observer who feels pain and joy, pleasure and suffering. It is the identification of the soul with the body and senses that causes it to experience the varied emotions springing from material contact. The soul’s unique capacity to experience comes from its consciousness, which is fundamentally separate from the unconscious material components provided by prakriti.

The interaction between these two principles is subtle and profound. While the body and senses act according to the natural tendencies and laws of prakriti, the living entity, driven by its desires and aversions, gets entangled in the web of experiences. For instance, two people may undergo the same external event—such as a rainy day—but their experience of it may be completely different: one may rejoice at the smell of rain, while the other may grumble at the inconvenience. The event is prakriti’s contribution; the experience and its emotional flavor arise from purusha’s identification and response to it.

Krishna’s explanation serves as a powerful reminder that while the transformations (vikaras) of prakriti are ongoing and often unavoidable, the soul retains autonomy in how it relates to these changes. The soul’s misidentification with the body, driven by attachment to pleasure and aversion to pain, becomes the cause of its entanglement in cyclic experiences of happiness and sorrow. Yet, at its core, the soul remains the conscious witness, distinct from the machinery of prakriti.

This verse also subtly addresses the question of moral responsibility and the roots of suffering. The circumstances and body bestowed upon a living being are shaped by prakriti, often as a result of past actions (karma). However, the experience of joy or despair depends on how the soul responds to and internalizes those circumstances. In this way, Krishna places the locus of suffering and enjoyment not in the external world but in the internal landscape of the living entity, shaped by its engagement and identification with experience.

The analogy that often clarifies this verse is that of watching a movie. The external scenes, crafted by the film’s director, are similar to the events orchestrated by prakriti. But how the viewer experiences those scenes—whether through laughter, tears, or calm observation—depends entirely on their level of identification with the story. The soul, much like the moviegoer, has the capacity to either immerse itself in the play of prakriti or view it with wise detachment, remembering its separate, eternal nature.

In essence, Bhagavad Gita 13.21 draws a clear boundary between the field of activity and the conscious experiencer. Material nature is the architect of our embodied existence, but the soul is the one who feels the effects. This understanding sets the stage for deeper spiritual inquiry, inviting us to question our identification with fleeting experiences and seek a steadier, more spiritual foundation within ourselves.