The Divine supports all without being bound.
Krishna speaks to Arjuna
सर्वेन्द्रियगुणाभासं सर्वेन्द्रियविवर्जितम् |असक्तं सर्वभृच्चैव निर्गुणं गुणभोक्तृ च ||१३-१५||
sarvendriyaguṇābhāsaṃ sarvendriyavivarjitam . asaktaṃ sarvabhṛccaiva nirguṇaṃ guṇabhoktṛ ca ||13-15||
Use this verse for service with detachment.
Meaning
It appears through the functions of all senses, yet is without all senses; unattached yet sustaining all; beyond the gunas yet experiencing the gunas.
Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).
In plain words
The supreme reality supports all experience while remaining unattached and beyond the gunas.
Word-by-word meaning
Tap a word to see its meaning.
Explanation
Krishna describes a paradox: Brahman appears through sensory life but is not limited by senses; sustains all but remains unattached; is beyond qualities yet allows qualities to be experienced.
Read the traditional commentary
Krishna unfolds Brahman through a series of luminous paradoxes that stretch ordinary logic. It illumines the working of every sense, yet possesses no senses of its own; it remains utterly unattached, yet upholds and sustains all things; it is beyond the three gunas (nirguna), yet it experiences them. These apparent contradictions are not confusion but a deliberate teaching method, pointing to a reality that transcends our either/or categories.
The heart of the verse is that the Absolute relates to the world the way light relates to the colours it reveals: light makes every hue visible without itself being coloured. So too the supreme Self enables all perception and action while remaining pristine, untouched, and free.
To grasp this is to understand how we can be intimately present to life — fully engaged, sustaining our responsibilities — while inwardly unstained by it. The Self participates in everything yet is bound by nothing.
In daily life
Learn to support others without losing inner freedom.
A caregiver can serve deeply while remembering they are not the controller of every outcome.
Try this today
Serve one person today without controlling the result.
I support with love and remain inwardly free.Reflect
Where do I support but become attached?
Private — only you can see this
Quick check
What does ‘सर्वेन्द्रियगुणाभासम्’ mean in this verse?
Krishna on transcendence, in other chapters
- Verse 9.4The Divine holds all of existence within it, yet remains free and unconfined by anything it sustains.
- Verse 8.3The imperishable Brahman lives as your own deepest Self, and even action is its creative expression unfolding through you.
- Verse 14.22The free soul neither resists unpleasant states nor chases pleasant ones — it meets all the mind's weather with equal calm.
- Verse 5.20Meet both pleasant and unpleasant with steady composure — true stability comes from resting in what never changes.
Swipe left for 13.16 · The Divine is far to ego but near to awareness.
Questions about Bhagavad Gita 13.15
Who says Bhagavad Gita 13.15, and to whom?
Krishna speaks to Arjuna in verse 13.15, in Chapter 13, Kshetra Kshetrajna Vibhaga Yoga (Kshetra Kshetrajna Vibhaga Yoga).
What does Bhagavad Gita 13.15 mean?
It appears through the functions of all senses, yet is without all senses; unattached yet sustaining all; beyond the gunas yet experiencing the gunas. (Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).)
What is the lesson of Bhagavad Gita 13.15 for daily life?
Learn to support others without losing inner freedom. A caregiver can serve deeply while remembering they are not the controller of every outcome.
What do the Sanskrit words in Bhagavad Gita 13.15 mean?
सर्वेन्द्रियगुणाभासम् — shining through the functions of all the senses; सर्वेन्द्रियविवर्जितम् — yet free of all the senses; असक्तम् — unattached; सर्वभृत् च एव — and yet supporting all; निर्गुणम् — devoid of qualities.
Where does verse 13.15 come in the Bhagavad Gita?
It is verse 15 of 35 in Chapter 13, Kshetra Kshetrajna Vibhaga Yoga. The next verse is 13.16.