Bhagavad Gita · Akshara Brahma YogaChapter 8, Shloka 4 (8.4)
Original Sanskrit · श्रीभगवान्
अधिभूतं क्षरो भावः पुरुषश्चाधिदैवतम्
अधियज्ञोऽहमेवात्र देहे देहभृतां वर
॥ 8.4 ॥
adhibhūtaṃ kṣaro bhāvaḥ puruṣaścādhidaivatam
adhiyajño'hamevātra dehe dehabhṛtāṃ vara
Translation
"O best of the embodied, perishable existence is the adhibhuta; the Purusha is the adhidaiva; and in this body, I myself am the adhiyajna."
Interpretation
Shankaracharya.
- Adhibhuta: prāṇi-jātam adhikṛtya bhavati … kṣaraḥ … yat kiñcit janimat vastu — that which concerns the multitude of beings, the perishable — anything that is born.
- Adhidaiva: puruṣaḥ … ādityāntargato hiraṇyagarbhaḥ sarva-prāṇi-karaṇānām anugrāhakaḥ (corpus: हिण्यगर्भः — a scribal error) — Hiranyagarbha, dwelling within the Aditya (sun), who blesses the senses of all beings.
- Adhiyajna: sarva-yajñābhimāninī viṣṇv-ākhyā devatā, "yajño vai viṣṇuḥ" iti śruteḥ — the deity who presides over all yajnas, Vishnu; sa hi viṣṇuḥ aham eva — that Vishnu is I myself; yajño hi deha-nirvartyatvena deha-samavāyī — yajna is performed by means of the body, hence "in this body".
Acharya Ramanuja — for the seeker of prosperity.
- Adhibhuta: vilakṣaṇāḥ sāśrayāḥ śabda-sparśa-rūpa-rasa-gandhāḥ aiśvaryārthibhiḥ prāpyāḥ — exceptional sound, touch, form, taste and smell, together with their bearers — what the seeker of prosperity aims to obtain.
- Adhidaiva: indra-prajāpati-prabhṛti-kṛtsna-daivatopari vartamānaḥ … bhoktā puruṣaḥ — the enjoying Purusha who stands above all the deities such as Indra and Prajapati; that state of being an enjoyer is the goal of the seeker of prosperity.
- Adhiyajna: aham eva … yajñaiḥ ārādhyatayā vartamānaḥ, atrendrādau mama deha-bhūte ātmatayā avasthitaḥ — it is I who am worshipped through the yajnas, and who dwell as the self in Indra and the others (who are my body); this is trayāṇām adhikāriṇām anusandheyam — to be contemplated by all three kinds of aspirants.
The difference: "Atra dehe" — Shankara: in the body of the yajamana (the one performing the yajna, since yajna is done with the body); Ramanuja: the indweller in the deities (who are the Lord's body).
AI-assisted draft translation — under review.