महात्मानस्तु मां पार्थ दैवीं प्रकृतिमाश्रिताः | भजन्त्यनन्यमनसो ज्ञात्वा भूतादिमव्ययम् ||१३||
mahātmānas tu māṃ pārtha daivīṃ prakṛtim āśritāḥ | bhajanty ananya-manaso jñātvā bhūtādim avyayam || 13 ||
The mahātmās of divine nature worship Me with undivided mind, knowing Me as the immutable origin of all beings.
Word by word (3)
- mahātmānaḥ tu māṃ pārtha daivīṃ prakṛtim āśritāḥ
- — But the mahātmās, O son of Pṛthā, having taken shelter in the divine nature, worship Me · mahātmānaḥ = the great-souled (mahā = great; ātman = soul; mahātman = great soul, the Gita's term for the spiritually elevated; plural nominative — 'the great-souled ones'). tu = but (strong contrastive particle — 'but, in contrast'; the tu marks the pivot from V11-V12's mūḍha portrait to the opposite type). māṃ = Me (accusative). pārtha = O son of Pṛthā (pṛthā = Kuntī; Pṛthā-putra = son of Pṛthā = Arjuna; pārtha = vocative). daivīṃ prakṛtim āśritāḥ = having taken shelter in the divine nature (daivī = divine, relating to the devas; prakṛti = nature, creative matrix; daivī prakṛti = the divine nature — the positive prakṛti counterpart to V12's rākṣasī-āsurī mohinī prakṛti; āśritāḥ = having taken shelter in, plural nominative). V13's first half introduces the mahātmā as the precise opposite of V11-V12's mūḍha: the same possessive verb āśrita (having taken shelter in) from V12's rākṣasī prakṛti is now applied to daivī prakṛti. The structural contrast: mūḍha = śritāḥ rākṣasīm āsurīṃ mohinīṃ prakṛtim (V12); mahātmā = daivīṃ prakṛtim āśritāḥ (V13). Same human beings, different prakṛti orientation — and thus completely different orientation toward the divine.
- bhajanti ananya-manasaḥ jñātvā bhūtādim avyayam
- — They worship with undivided mind, knowing Me as the imperishable origin of all beings · bhajanti = they worship, they serve (√bhaj = to worship, to serve devotedly, to share; bhajanti = third person plural present — 'they worship'; the root of bhakti = devotion). ananya-manasaḥ = with undivided mind (ananya = not-other, not-divided, undivided; manas = mind; ananya-manas = one whose mind is not directed at another — 'undivided, single-pointed'). jñātvā = having known (gerund of √jñā = to know — 'having known, knowing'). bhūtādim = as the origin of beings (bhūta = beings; ādi = origin, beginning, source — bhūtādi = the origin/source of beings). avyayam = imperishable (a = not; vyaya = expenditure, decay; avyaya = imperishable, not subject to decay — same avyaya as V9.2's description of Ch.9's teaching). V13's second half: the mahātmās worship (bhajanti) with undivided mind (ananya-manasaḥ), knowing (jñātvā) the Supreme as the imperishable origin of all beings (bhūtādim avyayam). The two qualities of the mahātmā's devotion: (1) ananya-manas (undivided mind — no other object of attention) and (2) jñātvā bhūtādim avyayam (knowing the Supreme as the source and imperishable ground of all beings — the recognition of V9.4-V9.10's cosmological teaching as the basis for worship). For the mahātmā, devotion (bhajanti) is grounded in recognition (jñātvā): they do not worship blindly but worship with the understanding that the Supreme is the imperishable origin of all. This jñāna-grounded bhakti is the integration of knowledge and devotion that the Gita consistently points toward.
- mahātmā — great-souled (as the Gita's term for the fully realized devotee-knower)
- — V13's mahātmā (great-souled) is the Gita's highest human designation — combining daivī prakṛti, ananya-manas (undivided mind), and jñāna of the divine origin · Mahātmā appears several times in the Gita at its highest human-type descriptions: V7.19 (bahūnāṃ janmanām ante jñānavān māṃ prapadyate — at the end of many births, the jñānavān surrenders to Me; sa mahātmā sudurlabhaḥ = that mahātmā is very rare); V8.15 (mahātmānaḥ saṃsiddhiṃ paramāṃ gatāḥ — great-souled ones reaching highest perfection); V9.13 (mahātmānas tu... daivīṃ prakṛtim āśritāḥ = great-souled ones taking shelter in divine nature). The Gita's mahātmā is not a title of rank or honor but a description of one who has expanded their ātman (soul-identification) to the mahat (great) — beyond the narrow individual self to the cosmic Self. The mahātmā's three characteristics in V13: (1) daivīṃ prakṛtim āśritāḥ — residing in the divine nature (not the asuric); (2) ananya-manasaḥ — mind undivided toward the Supreme; (3) jñātvā bhūtādim avyayam — knowing the Supreme as the imperishable origin. Together these describe a being in whom the Gita's jñāna (knowing the divine ground) and bhakti (undivided devotion) are fully integrated. V13's mahātmā is the living demonstration that the guhyatama teaching (V9.1) has been received and lived.
V13 is the pivot from V11-V12's mūḍha portrait to the opposite: the mahātmānaḥ (great-souled), taking shelter in the divine nature (daivīṃ prakṛtim āśritāḥ), worship (bhajanti) with undivided mind (ananya-manasaḥ), knowing the Supreme as the imperishable origin of all beings (jñātvā bhūtādim avyayam). The contrast: mūḍha = rākṣasī-āsurī mohinī prakṛti (V12); mahātmā = daivī prakṛti (V13). Mūḍha = triple mogha (V12); mahātmā = bhajanti ananya-manasaḥ (V13). The tu (but) signals the complete reversal.
A modern analogy
The mahātmā is not the spiritual expert who has accumulated credentials — it is the person whose aspiration (āśā), action (karma), and knowledge (jñāna) are all oriented toward the infinite ground of existence. In modern terms: a scientist who pursues knowledge toward the mystery at its edges rather than away from it; an entrepreneur who serves a genuine human need without accumulating for its own sake; a caregiver whose giving comes from recognition of the divine in each person. The mahātmā is the person in whom the three faculties (aspiration/action/knowledge) are genuinely oriented toward the ultimate rather than the mogha-targets of the mūḍha.
What it does NOT mean
V13's mahātmā (great-souled) is not a title earned through external achievement or belonging to a special lineage. The mahātmā's definition is internal: daivī prakṛti (divine nature), ananya-manas (undivided mind toward the Supreme), and jñāna of the divine origin. Anyone can cultivate these — they are not reserved for saints or monks. V13's mahātmā is the Gita's description of what Ch.9's teaching, when lived, produces.
Take with you
- V13's daivī prakṛti (divine nature) as an aspiration: the mahātmā is NOT born with a special divine nature — they have taken shelter in it (āśritāḥ = having taken refuge). The daivī prakṛti is a refuge one can take shelter in through the practices described in V14, through the orientation of aspiration/action/knowledge toward the divine ground. V13 is an invitation: take shelter in the daivī prakṛti — today.
- V13's ananya-manasaḥ (undivided mind) as a practice quality: the mahātmā's devotion is ananya (not-other) — not divided between the divine and the finite, not hedging. This is the quality of complete attention. V13's practice: once a day, for at least 5 minutes, be completely present with the divine — no other agenda, no background noise of other goals. This is ananya-manas in practice.
- V13's jñātvā bhūtādim avyayam (knowing the Supreme as imperishable origin) as an integrated knowing-devotion: the mahātmā doesn't just feel devotion emotionally OR know the divine intellectually — they KNOW (jñātvā) and WORSHIP (bhajanti) simultaneously. V13's model: let the intellectual knowing of the divine's nature (from Ch.9's V4-V10 teaching) deepen your devotion (bhajanti), and let your devotion deepen your knowing. These are not separate.
V9.13 is the Gita's most concise portrait of the fully integrated spiritual type — the mahātmā who combines daivī prakṛti (the divine creative orientation), ananya-manas (undivided devotion), and jñāna of the divine origin into a single lived reality. Structurally, V13 is the precise opposite of V11-V12: - V12's rākṣasī-āsurī mohinī prakṛti → V13's daivī prakṛti (same structure: āśritāḥ in both) - V12's triple mogha (vain hope/act/knowledge) → V13's bhajanti ananya-manasaḥ (undivided worship) - V11's ignorance of paraṃ bhāvam → V13's jñātvā bhūtādim avyayam (knowing the divine origin) The ananya-manas (undivided mind) connects directly to V8.14's ananya-cetāḥ (single-pointed consciousness), V9.22's ananya-bhakti (undivided devotion), and V7.17's ananya-bhāk (not devoted to another). The ananya quality — the mind/devotion not divided toward any other object — is the Gita's consistent description of the highest devotional-meditative state. The jñātvā bhūtādim avyayam (knowing the Supreme as the imperishable origin of all beings) integrates the cosmological teaching of V9.4-V9.10 with devotional practice: the mahātmā worships WITH the understanding that the Supreme is the origin (bhūtādi = the beginning of all beings) and the imperishable ground (avyayam = not subject to decay). This is jñāna-grounded bhakti — not blind faith but recognition-grounded devotion.
Advaita lens
Shankaracharya: daivīṃ prakṛtim āśritāḥ = dwelling in the sāttvic nature (V14.6-V14.9's sattva-guṇa, which illumines and is free from bondage); ananya-manasaḥ = mind not directed at anything other than Brahman; jñātvā bhūtādim avyayam = recognizing Brahman as the akṣara (imperishable, V8.3), the origin of all being. The mahātmā for Advaita is the jīvanmukta (liberated while alive) who combines recognition of non-duality with the bhakti-form of relating to the same non-dual reality as the beloved divine.
Bhakti lens
For bhakti traditions, V13 is the portrait of the fully realized devotee: daivī prakṛti (the divine nature) = born of divine love; ananya-manas = the single-pointed devotion that gives everything to the divine; jñātvā = the recognition that makes devotion intelligent rather than blind. V13's mahātmā is the bhakti tradition's ideal: pure love (ananya-manas bhajanti) combined with clear seeing (jñātvā bhūtādim avyayam).
Karma-Yoga lens
V13's mahātmā in the karma yoga reading: the one whose actions (karma) are fully oriented toward the divine origin (jñātvā bhūtādim) with undivided intention (ananya-manas). This is the karma yogi at their highest — not just acting without attachment to results but acting with full recognition of the divine ground and full devotion to the divine. V13 is the karma yoga's teleological completion.
Modern parallels
V13's integration of jñātvā (knowing) and bhajanti (devotion) parallels the modern psychological concept of 'intrinsic motivation' — acting from genuine inner recognition and love rather than from external reward. The mahātmā's ananya-manas (undivided attention) parallels Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's 'flow state' — complete absorption in the activity without self-consciousness. V13 describes the contemplative equivalent of flow: complete absorption in the divine with recognition of its imperishable nature.
Practice
V13 mahātmā meditation: sit with V13's text. Read it slowly. Then sit with the three qualities: (1) daivī prakṛti — feel yourself taking shelter in the divine orientation; (2) ananya-manas — let the mind become undivided, releasing all other concerns; (3) jñātvā bhūtādim avyayam — hold the recognition: 'The imperishable origin of all beings is present here, now.' From this holding: bhajanti — let worship arise naturally from recognition. Sit with whatever form of worship (gratitude, love, reverence, silence) emerges.
Public-domain translations (2) compare all →
But the great-souled ones, O son of Pritha, possessed of the Divine Prakriti, knowing Me to be the origin of beings and immutable, worship Me with a single mind. [4]
But My Mahatmas, those of noble soul Who tread the path celestial, worship Me With hearts unwandering,--knowing Me the Source, Th' Eternal Source, of Life. [7]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
Fools in human form disregard Me, not knowing My supreme nature as the great Lord of all beings.
At the end of many births, the wise takes refuge in Me — 'Vāsudeva is all.' That great soul is exceedingly rare.
For those who worship Me with undivided thought, always steadfast — I carry what they lack and guard what they have.
I am your student. My mind is bewildered about what is right. Teach me.
Peaceful, fearless, vowed to brahmacharya, mind on Krishna — yoked in practice, with the Supreme as the final goal.
With mind attached, practising yoga, taking refuge in Me — hear how you shall know Me fully, without doubt.