Bhagavad Gita Chapter 15 Purushottama Yoga
- Dr.Madhavi Srivastava
- Sep 14
- 7 min read
How Can We Rise Above the Inverted Banyan Tree oF Material Life?
अथ पञ्चदशोऽध्यायः पुरुषोत्तमयोगः
यं ब्रह्मा वरुणेन्द्र रुद्र मरुत: स्तुन्वन्ति दिव्यैस्तवै:
वेदै: साङ्ग पदक्रमोपनिशदै: गायन्ति यं सामगा: I
ध्यानावस्थित तत्गतेन मनसा पश्यन्ति यं योगिनो
यस्यान्तं न विदु: सुरा सुरगणा देवाय तस्मै नम: II
Brahma, Varuna, Indra, and the tempestuous throngs of the skies, with hallowed hymns and exalted acclaims, His infinite splendour lies.
The Vedas do resound, the Sāma doth through Pada glide, And whispers from the Upanishads, where truth and spirit bide.
In tranquil hush, the sages glimpse His visage deep within their core, in samadhi’s quiet sea, where tempests cease to roar.
The deities and fiends do seek, yet find not His fated close; To Him, the Sovereign of all that doth exist, I do humbly bend my heart and mind in reverence. (This is not a translation of the above Shloka, try to make a rhyme)
Chapter 15 of the Bhagavad Gita, entitled "Purushottama Yoga", is a deep philosophical text that reveals the fundamental principles of existence, the soul, and the Supreme Being. Utilising the evocative metaphor of an inverted banyan tree, Lord Krishna elucidates the intricate nature of the material realm and the entanglements that tether the soul to the cycle of birth and death. This chapter eloquently differentiates between the perishable (kṣhara), the imperishable (akṣhara), and the Supreme Person (Purushottama), who surpasses both. In under 20 succinct verses, it presents a comprehensive philosophy of detachment, divine enlightenment, and the journey to liberation. In this blog, we’ll explore each verse, providing its meaning, translation, and insights to help us understand how this sacred teaching can elevate our lives today.
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 15 Purushottama Yoga
Explore the timeless wisdom of Bhagavad Gita Chapter 15, 'Purushottama Yoga,' and discover the path beyond material life to the Supreme Divine Self.
श्रीभगवानुवाच –ऊर्ध्वमूलमधःशाखमश्वत्थं प्राहुरव्ययम्।छन्दांसि यस्य पर्णानि यस्तं वेद स वेदवित्॥ १५-१॥
The Blessed Lord said: There is a banyan tree described as imperishable, with its roots upward and its branches spreading downward. Its leaves are the Vedic hymns. One who truly understands this tree is a knower of the Vedas.
The banyan tree here is symbolic of samsara, the material existence.
Its roots above represent the Supreme Reality, the origin of all.
Its branches, depicted below, represent the manifest world, spreading into all aspects of creation.
The leaves are the Vedic hymns—they represent knowledge, which sustains this world.
Only the one who sees this tree as it genuinely is understands the eternal truths of the Vedas.
This verse sets the philosophical stage for the rest of Purushottama Yoga, in which Krishna reveals the nature of the Supreme Person and how to rise above the entanglements of this inverted tree of material life.
अधश्चोर्ध्वं प्रसृतास्तस्य शाखागुणप्रवृद्धा विषयप्रवालाः।अधश्च मूलान्यनुसंततानिकर्मानुबन्धीनि मनुष्यलोके॥ १५-२॥ The branches of this tree extend both downward and upward, and are nourished by the three modes of material nature. The twigs are the sense objects. The tree also has roots that extend downward, binding the soul to actions in the human world.
The branches represent the endless activities, desires, and thoughts spreading throughout material life.
Upward and downward: These branches reach into higher realms (heavenly worlds) and lower ones (hellish or base experiences).
Guna-pravṛddhā: The three gunas (sattva, rajas, tamas) feed and sustain this tree, giving it form and growth.
The twigs (pravalāḥ) are the sense objects—sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell—that attract and bind us.
Roots growing downward symbolise the more profound attachment to karma (action), which binds the soul to repeated birth and death in the human world (manuṣya-loke).
This verse continues the metaphor of the inverted tree of material existence, describing how deeply entangled souls become through desire, sensory engagement, and the accumulation of karma.
न रूपमस्येह तथोपलभ्यतेनान्तो न चादिर्न च सम्प्रतिष्ठा। अश्वत्थमेनं सुविरूढमूलंअसङ्गशस्त्रेण दृढेन छित्त्वा॥ १५.३॥ ततः पदं तत्परिमार्गितव्यंयस्मिन्गता न निवर्तन्ति भूयः। तमेव चाद्यं पुरुषं प्रपद्येयतः प्रवृत्तिः प्रसृता पुराणी॥ १५.४॥
Verse 3:The proper form of this cosmic tree (samsara) cannot be perceived in this world. Its origin, end, or foundation cannot be grasped. But with the firm weapon of detachment, one must cut down this deeply rooted Ashvattha tree.
Verse 4:Then, one must diligently seek that Supreme Abode from which, having gone there, one never returns. Surrender to that original, eternal Person (Purusha) from whom the ancient process of creation has emanated.
The material world is like a vast tree—enticing, ever-spreading, but ultimately illusory and impermanent. Its true nature can't be seen with the worldly eye.
The roots of desire and attachment tightly bind the soul in the bondage of karma and rebirth.
To liberate oneself, one must wield the sword of non-attachment (asanga-shastra) with determination (dṛḍhena), cutting through ignorance, desires, and ego.
Once detached, the seeker must aspire to reach the Supreme Goal—that eternal realm (the Supreme Abode) from where no soul returns to the cycle of birth and death.
There, one surrenders to the Adi Purusha, the eternal source from whom this ancient creation has emerged.
These verses guide the seeker to rise above the entanglements of the material world and return to the eternal source through the power of detachment and surrender.
निर्मानमोहा जितसङ्गदोषाअध्यात्मनित्या विनिवृत्तकामाः। द्वन्द्वैर्विमुक्ताः सुखदुःखसंज्ञैःगच्छन्त्यमूढाः पदमव्ययं तत्॥ १५.५॥
Those who are free from pride and illusion, who have conquered the faults of attachment, who are ever steadfast in spiritual knowledge, who have renounced selfish desires, and who are liberated from the dualities of pleasure and pain—such undeluded souls attain that eternal, imperishable state.
This verse describes the qualities of a soul prepared for liberation—the kind of person who reaches the Supreme Eternal Abode (पदमव्ययम्):
निर्मानमोहाः – Free from pride and delusion, having let go of ego and false identity.
जितसङ्गदोषाः – Having conquered the flaws born of attachment (likes, dislikes, possessiveness).
अध्यात्मनित्याः – Always established in spiritual wisdom and awareness of the Self (Atman).
विनिवृत्तकामाः – Free from worldly desires and cravings; desires no longer drive them.
द्वन्द्वैर्विमुक्ताः – Free from the dualities (such as pleasure and pain, success and failure), which disturb the mind.
अमूढाः – Undeluded, with a clear understanding of reality.
पदमव्ययं गच्छन्ति – Such seekers attain the imperishable abode, the Supreme Goal, which is beyond birth and death.
By transcending ego, desires, and dualities, and by anchoring in actual spiritual knowledge, the wise attain the Supreme, eternal state beyond return.
न तद्भासयते सूर्यो न शशाङ्को न पावकः। यद्गत्वा न निवर्तन्ते तद्धाम परमं मम॥ १५.६॥
That supreme abode of Mine is neither illuminated by the sun, nor the moon, nor by fire. Having reached it, souls never return—it is My highest eternal realm.
"न तद्भासयते सूर्यो..." – In the spiritual world, the radiance of the sun, the moon, or fire is not required. It is self-luminous, filled with the eternal light of the Supreme Consciousness.
This abode (धाम) is the eternal spiritual realm beyond time, space, and duality.
"यद्गत्वा न निवर्तन्ते..." – Once a soul reaches this Supreme Abode, they never return to the cycle of birth and death.
"तद्धाम परमं मम" – Lord Krishna declares that this is His Supreme Abode, beyond material existence, where pure, liberated souls dwell in eternal bliss.
Those who reach the Supreme Lord’s eternal, self-effulgent abode never return to the darkness of material existence.
ममैवांशो जीवलोके जीवभूतः सनातनः। मनःषष्ठानीन्द्रियाणि प्रकृतिस्थानि कर्षति॥ १५.७॥
The living entities in this material world are My eternal fragmental parts. However, due to their association with the material nature, they struggle with the six senses, including the mind.
"ममैवांशः" – Lord Krishna says that every individual soul (jiva) is a part and parcel of Him, like a spark from a fire—divine in essence but not equal in entirety.
"सनातनः" – These souls are eternal; they were not created at birth and do not end with death.
"जीवलोके" – In the world of conditioned existence, souls take bodies and live out karmic destinies.
"कर्षति" – The soul struggles or is dragged by the pull of material nature, through the six senses (five sense organs + the mind).
These senses, when influenced by prakriti (material nature), cause the soul to remain entangled in the cycle of desire, action, and reaction.
Though divine and eternal, the soul struggles in the material world due to its entanglement with the senses and the mind.
शरीरं यदवाप्नोति यच्चाप्युत्क्रामतीश्वरः। गृहीत्वैतानि संयाति वायुर्गंधानिवाशयात्॥ १५.८॥
When the embodied soul takes on a new body or leaves the old one, it carries with it the mind and senses, just as the wind carries fragrances from their source.
"ईश्वरः" here refers to the individual soul (jiva)—the master of its body.
As the soul enters a body (अवाप्नोति) or departs from it (उत्क्रामति), it carries with it subtle elements like the mind, intellect, and senses.
This process is compared to air (वायुः) carrying scents—unseen but potent.
The desires and karmic impressions carried by the soul determine the nature of its next birth.
Just as air carries scent from one place to another, the soul carries its subtle impressions as it moves from one body to the next.
श्रोत्रं चक्षुः स्पर्शनं च रसनं घ्राणमेव च। अधिष्ठाय मनश्चायं विषयानुपसेवते॥ १५.९॥
Taking shelter in the mind, the living entity uses the ears, eyes, skin, tongue, and nose to enjoy the sense objects of the world.
The living being (jiva), having entered a new physical body, operates through the five sense organs—hearing (ears), seeing (eyes), touch (skin), taste (tongue), and smell (nose).
All these senses are coordinated through the mind, which acts as the controller and interpreter of sensory input.
Through this setup, the soul interacts with and enjoys the world, depending on the karma and desires carried from previous lives.
This verse emphasises that sense enjoyment is not random, but a systematic interaction of body, mind, and subtle impressions.
Seated in the mind, the soul experiences the world through the five senses, enjoying life according to its karmic destiny.
उत्क्रामन्तं स्थितं वाऽपि भुञ्जानं वा गुणान्वितम्। विमूढा नानुपश्यन्ति पश्यन्ति ज्ञानचक्षुषः॥ १५.१०॥
The ignorant cannot perceive how the soul departs from the body, remains within it, or enjoys under the influence of the modes of nature. But those whose vision is illuminated by knowledge can see it.
उत्क्रामन्तं – When the soul leaves the body (at death),
स्थितं वा – or remains within (during life),
भुञ्जानं वा गुणान्वितम् – or enjoys experiences through contact with the three gunas (sattva, rajas, tamas),
विमूढाः – the deluded, spiritually ignorant people,
न अनुपश्यन्ति – do not perceive this reality.
पश्यन्ति ज्ञानचक्षुषः – But those with the eye of knowledge (the enlightened ones) see the truth.
This verse reminds us that spiritual insight, not mere intellectualism, is required to perceive the subtle truths of life, death, and the soul’s journey.
The ignorant cannot perceive the soul’s journey, but the wise—blessed with spiritual vision—see its presence, departure, and experience.
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