A core teaching · reflective in mood · builds on earlier teachings
“The deeper mover is not your ego, and surrender begins there.”
O Arjuna, the Lord abides in the heart of all beings and, by His maya, causes all beings mounted on a body-machine to revolve according to their nature.
The verse in reading order — each Sanskrit word with its meaning beneath. Tap a word to focus on it.
Read literallythe Lord · of all beings · in the heart-place · Arjuna · dwells · causing to revolve · all beings · mounted on a machine · by maya
The divine lives in every being’s heart and moves all beings through maya, as if they were riding a body-machine and turning according to their nature.
Krishna speaks this verse, on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, in the chapter titled "Moksha Sanyasa Yoga" (Liberation through Renunciation).
Verse 61 sits in Chapter 18 of the Bhagavad Gita — Moksha Sanyasa Yoga, "Liberation through Renunciation". The chapter has 78 verses in total.
A man is sure he chose to move to the city, yet he did exactly what his father and grandfather did. Krishna's image of beings mounted on a machine, turned by the Lord within, asks him to see how little of the steering was his.
Did you like this verse?
The Lord sits in every being's heart, Krishna says, turning them by maya as if mounted on a machine.
What this verse means
The divine lives in every being’s heart and moves all beings through maya, as if they were riding a body-machine and turning according to their nature.
Context & commentary
After saying Arjuna’s nature will drive him, he now explains the deeper force behind all movement: the divine within every being, and the veil of maya that makes bodies seem self-directed. This prepares Arjuna to surrender.
What it looks like today
A man is sure he chose to move to the city, yet he did exactly what his father and grandfather did. Krishna's image of beings mounted on a machine, turned by the Lord within, asks him to see how little of the steering was his.
“You are not as in control as you think, and that can be deeply humbling.”
Explore related themes: surrender (23 verses)