Eight parts of My nature

bhūmirāpo’analo vāyuḥ khaṃ mano buddhireva caahaṃkāra itīyaṃ me bhinnā prakṛtiraṣṭadhā

Earth, water, fire, air, space, mind, intellect and ego, this is My nature, divided eight ways.

What it means

Krishna lists eight parts of his lower prakriti, his outer nature. Five elements, earth, water, fire, air and space. Then three inner ones. Mind, buddhi or intellect, and ahankara, the sense of I. Notice that even our thoughts and ego belong to nature. All of it comes from Krishna.

The story

Arjuna sees armies, chariots, his own emotions. Krishna says every bit of it, inner and outer, is part of his nature. Nothing Arjuna faces is outside the divine.

In your life

Look at your hand, then notice a thought. Both, Krishna says, are part of nature, both part of the sacred. Today, treat your body and mind with the respect you'd give something holy.