Chapter 13, Verse 5
ऋषिभिर्बहुधा गीतं छन्दोभिर्विविधैः पृथक् | ब्रह्मसूत्रपदैश्चैव हेतुमद्भिर्विनिश्चितैः ||१३-५||
ṛṣibhirbahudhā gītaṃ chandobhirvividhaiḥ pṛthak . brahmasūtrapadaiścaiva hetumadbhirviniścitaiḥ ||13-5||
Meaning
13.5 Sages have sung in many ways, in various distinctive chants and also in the suggestive words indicative of the Absolute, full of reasoning and decisive.
Word-by-Word Meaning
Explanation & Commentary
Krishna grounds his teaching in a venerable lineage. The truth of the field and its knower has been celebrated by the rishis in countless hymns, in the diverse metres (chandas) of the Vedas, and articulated in the reasoned aphorisms about Brahman — the brahma-sutra-padas. He emphasises that these utterances are hetumadbhih (logically reasoned) and viniscitaih (firmly established), not idle speculation.
This verse honours both revelation and reason. Spiritual knowledge in the Indian tradition is not asserted dogmatically; it is sung by inspired seers, refined through debate, and settled by careful inference. By appealing to this rich heritage, Krishna assures Arjuna that what he is about to hear is corroborated across the wisdom of ages. For us, it is a reminder that authentic insight stands the test of both intuition and clear thinking, and that we walk a path many awakened ones have already mapped.
💡 Key Takeaway
Trustworthy spiritual truth is confirmed by both inspired vision and careful reasoning across the ages.
Related Verses
क्षेत्रज्ञं चापि मां विद्धि सर्वक्षेत्रेषु भारत | क्षेत्रक्षेत्रज्ञयोर्ज्ञानं यत्तज्ज्ञानं मतं मम ||१३-३||
kṣetrajñaṃ cāpi māṃ viddhi sarvakṣetreṣu bhārata . kṣetrakṣetrajñayorjñānaṃ yattajjñānaṃ mataṃ mama ||13-3||
13.3 Do thou also know Me as the knower of the field in all fields, O Arjuna. Knowledge of both the field and the knower of the field is considered by Me to be ï1the ï1 knowledge.
तत्क्षेत्रं यच्च यादृक्च यद्विकारि यतश्च यत् | स च यो यत्प्रभावश्च तत्समासेन मे शृणु ||१३-४||
tatkṣetraṃ yacca yādṛkca yadvikāri yataśca yat . sa ca yo yatprabhāvaśca tatsamāsena me śṛṇu ||13-4||
13.4 What the field is and of what nature, what are its modifications and whence it is and also who He is and what His powers are hear all that from Me in brief.
अमानित्वमदम्भित्वमहिंसा क्षान्तिरार्जवम् | आचार्योपासनं शौचं स्थैर्यमात्मविनिग्रहः ||१३-८||
amānitvamadambhitvamahiṃsā kṣāntirārjavam . ācāryopāsanaṃ śaucaṃ sthairyamātmavinigrahaḥ ||13-8||
13.8 Humility, unpretentiousness, non-injury, forgiveness, uprightness, service of the teacher, purity, steadfastness, self-control.