Chapter 2: Sankhya Yoga, verse 19
य एनं वेत्ति हन्तारं यश्चैनं मन्यते हतम्।
उभौ तौ न विजानीतो नायं हन्ति न हन्यते ॥
Say itya enaṁ vetti hantāraṁ yaśh chainaṁ manyate hatam
ubhau tau na vijānīto nāyaṁ hanti na hanyate
Translation
He who takes the Self to be the slayer and he who thinks it is slain, neither of them knows. It does not slay, nor is it slain.
Swami Sivananda
He who thinks of this One as the killer, and he who thinks of this One as the one being killed, both of them do not know. This One neither kills nor is It killed.
Swami Gambirananda
Follows the commentary of Shankara (Advaita).
He who considers It (the self) to be the slayer, and he who thinks of It as slain—both are ignorant. For, the self neither slays nor is being slain.
Swami Adidevananda
Follows the commentary of Ramanuja (Vishishtadvaita).
Whoever views This as the slayer and whoever believes This to be the slain, both of them do not understand: This does not slay, nor is This slain.
Dr. S. Sankaranarayan
Follows the commentary of Abhinavagupta (Kashmir Shaivism).
He who thinks that the Spirit kills, and he who thinks of it as killed, are both ignorant. The Spirit neither kills nor is it killed.
Shri Purohit Swami
जो मनुष्य इस अविनाशी शरीरीको मारनेवाला मानता है और जो मनुष्य इसको मरा मानता है, वे दोनों ही इसको नहीं जानते; क्योंकि यह न मारता है और न मारा जाता है।
Swami Ramsukhdas
जो इस आत्मा को मारने वाला समझता है और जो इसको मरा समझता है वे दोनों ही नहीं जानते हैं, क्योंकि यह आत्मा न मरता है और न मारा जाता है।
Swami Tejomayananda
Classical commentariesFor deeper study. Most are in the original Sanskrit.
Advaita
Non-dual: the self and the absolute are one.
Vishishtadvaita
Qualified non-dual: souls are real parts of the divine.
Dvaita
Dual: the soul and God are eternally distinct.
Shuddhadvaita
Pure non-dual, centred on grace and devotion.
Kashmir Shaivism
The Gita read through Trika Shaiva philosophy.
Modern teachers
20th-century teachers writing for today's readers.