The body is a city; the Self is the resident witness.
Krishna speaks to Arjuna
सर्वकर्माणि मनसा संन्यस्यास्ते सुखं वशी |नवद्वारे पुरे देही नैव कुर्वन्न कारयन् ||५-१३||
sarvakarmāṇi manasā saṃnyasyāste sukhaṃ vaśī . navadvāre pure dehī naiva kurvanna kārayan ||5-13||
Use this verse for body-awareness meditation.
Meaning
The self-controlled embodied one mentally renounces all actions and dwells happily in the nine-gated city, neither acting nor causing action.
Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).
In plain words
Inner renunciation happens in the mind, even while the body lives.
Word-by-word meaning
Tap a word to see its meaning.
Explanation
The nine-gated city refers to the body with its openings. Krishna teaches that the wise person lives in the body without egoic ownership. They mentally renounce doership and remain inwardly free. This verse is a strong meditation for body-awareness and detachment from identity built only on physical life.
Read the traditional commentary
Krishna gives a vivid metaphor for the body: nava-dvare pure, the city of nine gates (the eyes, ears, nostrils, mouth, and the two lower openings). Within this city dwells the dehi, the embodied Self. The self-controlled one (vashi), having mentally renounced (manasa sannyasya) all sense of doership, rests there happily — neither acting nor causing the body and senses to act.
The renunciation here is purely inward and mental. The body continues its functions; the senses continue their work. What is renounced is the false identification 'I am the one doing all this.'
The Self is the resident, not the machinery of the city. When you cease to claim the body's activity as your own essential nature, a serene happiness arises within. You become the peaceful dweller, watching the city operate of its own accord.
In daily life
Care for the body, but do not reduce yourself to it.
A person can experience aging or illness with more dignity by remembering they are not only the body.
Try this today
Sit quietly and observe the body as a nine-gated city.
I live in the body as a free witness.Reflect
Do I live as the body alone or as the witness within it?
Private — only you can see this
Quick check
What does ‘वशी’ mean in this verse?
Krishna on body, in other chapters
- Verse 8.4The Lord of all sacrifice dwells within your own body, so every offering reaches the Divine seated in your heart.
- Verse 13.2Your body and mind are the field you observe, not the 'you' that does the observing.
- Verse 15.14The very fire that digests your food and keeps you alive is the Divine dwelling within you.
- Verse 17.6The Divine dwells within your body, so honour it as a temple — punishing yourself is not piety but a kind of self-violence.
Swipe left for 5.14 · Understand nature without becoming arrogant or hopeless.
Questions about Bhagavad Gita 5.13
Who says Bhagavad Gita 5.13, and to whom?
Krishna speaks to Arjuna in verse 5.13, in Chapter 5, Karma Sannyas Yoga (Karma Sannyas Yoga).
What does Bhagavad Gita 5.13 mean?
The self-controlled embodied one mentally renounces all actions and dwells happily in the nine-gated city, neither acting nor causing action. (Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).)
What is the lesson of Bhagavad Gita 5.13 for daily life?
Care for the body, but do not reduce yourself to it. A person can experience aging or illness with more dignity by remembering they are not only the body.
What do the Sanskrit words in Bhagavad Gita 5.13 mean?
सर्वकर्माणि — all actions; मनसा संन्यस्य — mentally renouncing; आस्ते सुखम् — rests happily; वशी — the self-controlled one; नवद्वारे पुरे — in the city of nine gates.
Where does verse 5.13 come in the Bhagavad Gita?
It is verse 13 of 29 in Chapter 5, Karma Sannyas Yoga. The next verse is 5.14.