Vijñāna Yoga · Verse 4
भूमिरापोऽनलो वायुः खं मनो बुद्धिरेव च | अहङ्कार इतीयं मे भिन्ना प्रकृतिरष्टधा
bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṃ mano buddhir eva ca | ahaṅkāra itīyaṃ me bhinnā prakṛtir aṣṭadhā
Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intellect and ego — this is My nature divided into eight parts.
The eight elements of prakṛti: five mahābhūta (dense elements — earth, water, fire, air, ether) and three subtle tanmātra — manas (mind), buddhi (intellect/intuition), ahaṅkāra (ego/identifying principle).
Bhinnā — “divided, apparently separated” — but it is me (Mine), prakṛti (nature). It is “inferior” (aparā, 7.5) in the sense of being insentient matter, although it is God’s energy.