Verse 13.20

प्रकृतिं पुरुषं चैव विद्ध्यनादी उभावपि।विकारांश्च गुणांश्चैव विद्धि प्रकृतिसंभवान्।।13.20।।

prakṛitiṁ puruṣhaṁ chaiva viddhy anādī ubhāv api vikārānśh cha guṇānśh chaiva viddhi prakṛiti-sambhavān

Meaning

Know that matter and the spirit are both, like, *ancient*, no start date, fam. And all the changes and vibes? They're totally born from matter.

Commentary

Yo, so like, the Gita's sayin' that matter and the spirit are both, like, *ancient*. No start date, fam. And all the changes and vibes? They're totally born from matter. It's like, building a skyscraper, you gotta take it step by step, right? Krishna's teaching Arjuna the same way, starting with the basics and building up to the ultimate truth. It's like feeding a baby, you gotta give 'em small bites, not a whole plate of food at once. Krishna's dropping knowledge on Arjuna bit by bit. He's explaining the same stuff in different ways, using the Sankhya philosophy, but without getting too hung up on the whole matter vs. spirit debate. Changes? That's all matter, fam. The self within? That's unchanging. Think of it like ice and coolness, or day and night—they're inseparable, just like matter and spirit. The three gunas (sattva, rajas, tamas)? Totally born from matter. All actions come from the mind, life force, senses, and body. Sankhya says matter and spirit are eternal and independent, but Vedanta says matter comes from Brahman, so it's not independent. Isvara's got total control over matter. Matter and spirit are Isvara's nature, and they're both timeless. Isvara uses these two to create, preserve, and destroy the universe. They're the cause of samsara (the cycle of birth and death). The 'inferior' nature is the Prakriti from chapter 13, verse 19, and the 'superior' nature is the Purusha from the same verse. Purusha here means the individual soul. Even babies feel joy, sadness, fear, anger, etc. Where do those feelings come from? Not just this life, but past lives too. That means the soul has to be timeless. If you don't believe in a timeless soul, you get into all sorts of logical problems. The scriptures say the soul is timeless, so there you go.