Bhagavad Gita · Purushottama YogaChapter 15, Shloka 16 (15.16)
Original Sanskrit · श्रीभगवान्
द्वाविमौ पुरुषौ लोके क्षरश्चाक्षर एव च
क्षरः सर्वाणि भूतानि कूटस्थोऽक्षर उच्यते
॥ 15.16 ॥
dvāvimau puruṣau loke kṣaraścākṣara eva ca
kṣaraḥ sarvāṇi bhūtāni kūṭastho'kṣara ucyate
Translation
"There are two Purushas in the world — the kshara (perishable) and the akshara (imperishable). All beings are the perishable; the unchanging (kutastha) is called the imperishable."
Interpretation
Shankaracharya. kṣarati iti kṣaraḥ vināśī; akshara = bhagavataḥ māyāśaktiḥ kṣarākhyasya puruṣasya utpattibījam — the Lord's power of maya, the seed of the perishable; kūṭaḥ māyā vañcanā.
Acharya Ramanuja. Kshara = the bound jiva (acitsaṃsṛṣṭa), akshara = acitsaṃsargaviyuktaḥ svena rūpeṇa avasthito muktātmā — the Self freed from association with prakriti.
Shridhara Swami. A different reading: kshara = sarvāṇi bhūtāni brahmādisthāvarāntāni śarīrāṇi — all bodies (because the undiscerning take the body itself to be the Purusha); akshara = kūṭaḥ śilārāśiḥ parvata iva dehesu naśyatsv api nirvikāratayā tiṣṭhatīti kūṭasthaś cetano bhoktā — like a mountain, the conscious enjoyer (the jiva) who remains unchanged even as bodies perish.
Madhusudana Saraswati. With Shankara: akshara = bhagavato māyāśaktiḥ — the seed of the perishable.
Madhvacharya. kshara = bhūtāni brahmādīni (all jivas, Brahma and the rest); akshara = kūṭasthā prakṛtiḥ — the unchanging prakriti (in the form of the Lakshmi-principle, in his tradition).
AI-assisted draft translation — under review.