यः पृथिव्यां तिष्ठन्पृथिव्या अन्तरः, यं पृथिवी न वेद, यस्य पृथिवी शरीरं, यः पृथिवीमन्तरो यमयति, एष त आत्मान्तर्याम्यमृतः ॥ ३ ॥
yaḥ pṛthivyāṃ tiṣṭhanpṛthivyā antaraḥ, yaṃ pṛthivī na veda, yasya pṛthivī śarīraṃ, yaḥ pṛthivīmantaro yamayati, eṣa ta ātmāntaryāmyamṛtaḥ || 3 ||
3. He who inhabits the earth but is within it, whom the earth does not know, whose body is the earth, and who controls the earth from within, is the Internal Ruler, your own immortal self.
He who inhabits the earth…. is the Internal Ruler. Now all people inhabit the earth; so there may be a presumption that the reference is to anyone of them. To preclude this the text specifies Him by saying, ‘Who is within the earth.’ One may think that the deity identified with the earth is the Internal Ruler; hence the text says, ‘Whom even the deity identified with the earth does not know as a distinct entity dwelling within her.’ Whose body is the earth itself and none other—whose body is the same as that of the deity of the earth. The ‘body’ implies other things as well; i.e. the organs of this deity are also those of the Internal Ruler. The body and organs of the deity of the earth are the result of her own past actions; they are the body and organs of the Internal Ruler as well, for He has no past actions, being ever free. Since He is by nature given to doing things for others, the body and organs of the latter serve as His; He has no body and organs of His own. This is expressed as follows: ‘Whose body is the earth.’ The body and organs of the deity of the earth are regularly made to work or stop work by the mere presence of the Lord as witness. Such an īśvara, called Nāràyana, who controls the deity of the earth, i.e. directs her to her particular work, from within, is the Internal Ruler about whom you have asked, your own immortal self, as also mine and that of all beings. ‘Your’ implies ‘others’ as well. ‘Immortal,’ that is to say, devoid of all relative attributes.