Illustration for Bhagavad Gita chapter 7 verse 5
Chapter 7 · Jnana Vijnana Yoga

The Sustaining Life Force · Higher Than Matter

अपरेयमितस्त्वन्यां प्रकृतिं विद्धि मे पराम् । जीवभूतां महाबाहो ययेदं धार्यते जगत् ॥

apareyam itas tv anyāṁ prakṛtiṁ viddhi me parām jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat

Meaning

"This is My lower nature; but know My other, higher nature, O mighty-armed one — the living being, by which this world is sustained."

Explanation

Beneath the visible elements — earth, mind, ego — there's something subtler still, the living consciousness that actually animates and sustains it all. You are closer to that quiet sustaining force than to the raw material it moves through.

Today's Life Lesson

Beneath today's material concerns, remember there's a living, sustaining force in you that's worth more attention than the surface details.

More verses to reflect on