Meaning
Supreme God Krishna spoke
The knower of the Truth immersed in divine consciousness believes: "I do nothing {as the soul}". While seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, eating, walking, sleeping, breathing, speaking, evacuating, grasping, opening, and closing the eyes, he realizes that only his senses {animated by Nature} are engaging with their objects. (5:8,9)
Sanskrit
श्रीभगवान् उवाच
नैव किंचित्करोमीति युक्तो मन्येत तत्त्ववित् ।
पश्यञ्श्रृण्वन्स्पृशञ्जिघ्रन्नश्नन्गच्छन्स्वपञ्श्वसन् ॥
Word-by-word
न एव किञ्चित् करोमि, इति युक्तः मन्येत तत्त्व-वित्,
पश्यन्, श्रृण्वन्, स्पृशन्, जिघ्रन्, अश्नन्, गच्छन्, स्वपन्, श्वसन्,
Commentary
This verse introduces us to the fundamental distinction between the soul, on the one hand, and the body along with its intricate faculties, on the other. The soul is a divine fragment of God, distinctly separate from the physical body, which is a product of material Nature. However, the body—including its faculties such as the senses, mind, intellect, and ego—often leads one to mistakenly believe that they (as the soul) are the doer of all actions. Nature, through body, mind, ego, and intelligence, envelops the soul—the real Self—causing it to forget its true identity. and places itself in the seat of the driver or the kartā, the doer.
A profound realization of this distinction between Nature and the soul is the path to Nirvāna— freedom from the cycle of rebirths and permanent liberation from suffering.
The actions mentioned in this verse encompass both involuntary actions, such as reflex actions beyond our control, and voluntary actions that are influenced by Nature. In all these actions, it is beneficial to adopt the perspective that “the body is the one acting, not the true self. This mindset should extend to even those actions that we consider purely voluntary, recognizing that Nature plays a role in them as well. Nature, however, has to be brought under control and finally transcended.