Being Witness

December 16, 2025

K SIVA PRASAD
A senior IAS officer in the Punjab Government

If one word could describe the entire Gita it would be ‘drishta’ (witness), which appears in many contexts. An understanding of this is important as most of us think that as karta (doer) ‘we’ do things and control situations. We need to free ourselves from this notion to lead a life of joy.
Arjuna, who was about sixty years old at the time of the Kurukshetra war, had lived a good life and enjoyed all luxuries. As a warrior he had tasted victory in many battles. At the time of war, he felt that he was the karta (aham-karta; ahankaar) and felt that he would be responsible for the death of his kith and kin. This led to his despondency on the battlefield.

The entire Gita is Lord Krishna’s attempt to tell him that he is not the karta. The Lord concludes that Arjuna is ‘drishta/sakshi’ – a witness.When we start realising ourselves to be nimitta-maatra – an instrument in the hands of the Almighty, we are on the firm path towards ‘being a witness’.
Most of us believe that we are the cause of all our actions and masters of our destiny. In the Gita, Lord Krishna says that interaction between gunas creates karma, but not due to any karta.When we realise this fact at the existential level, we will enter into the state of a sakshi.

Drishta (sakshi) is a state of intellect, but is not manifest in the physical world. It is the ability that helps us to step back from the day-to-day happenings around us and have internal stability. It helps us realise that we should always act without desiring any particular outcome (karma-phal). It is the ability to witness our feelings and subordinate them.