In plain words
There are two kinds of Puruṣa in the world: the perishable and the imperishable. All beings are called the perishable; that which stands as a mass, the Lord's power of māyā, is called the imperishable.
Word for word
These two puruṣas [are] in the world, the perishable and the imperishable too; the perishable [is] all beings; that which stands as a mass is called the imperishable.
द्वाविमौ पुरुषौ लोके क्षरश्चाक्षर एव चक्षरः सर्वाणि भूतानि कूटस्थोऽक्षर उच्यते
Other commentaries
The commentators
▸Bhagavadgītābhāṣyam
भगवतः ईश्वरस्य नारायणाख्यस्य विभूतिसङ्क्षेपः उक्तः विशिष्टोपाधिकृतः ‘यदादित्यगतं तेजः’(भ. गी. १५ । १२) इत्यादिना । अथ अधुना तस्यैव क्षराक्षरोपाधिप्रविभक्ततया निरुपाधिकस्य केवलस्य स्वरूपनिर्दिधारयिषया उत्तरे श्लोकाः आरभ्यन्ते । तत्र सर्वमेव अतीतानागताध्यायार्थजातं त्रिधा राशीकृत्य आह —
द्वौ इमौ पृथग्राशीकृतौ पुरुषौ इति उच्येते लोके संसारे — क्षरश्च क्षरतीति क्षरः विनाशी इति एको राशिः ; अपरः पुरुषः अक्षरः तद्विपरीतः, भगवतः मायाशक्तिः, क्षराख्यस्य पुरुषस्य उत्पत्तिबीजम् अनेकसंसारिजन्तुकामकर्मादिसंस्काराश्रयः, अक्षरः पुरुषः उच्यते । कौ तौ पुरुषौ इति आह स्वयमेव भगवान् — क्षरः सर्वाणि भूतानि, समस्तं विकारजातम् इत्यर्थः । कूटस्थः कूटः राशी राशिरिव स्थितः । अथवा, कूटः माया वञ्चना जिह्मता कुटिलता इति पर्यायाः, अनेकमायावञ्चनादिप्रकारेण स्थितः कूटस्थः, संसारबीजानन्त्यात् न क्षरति इति अक्षरः उच्यते ॥ १६ ॥
In plain words
A condensed account of the Lord's manifest glory, the Lord called Nārāyaṇa, has now been given, expressed through particular conditioned forms, beginning with 'that splendor resting in the sun' (Bhagavad Gītā 15.12) and onward. Now, wanting to establish the very nature of that same Lord, free of any such condition, as he appears split by the two limiting conditions of the perishable and the imperishable, the verses that follow now begin. And here, gathering the whole subject of this chapter, what has already been said and what is yet to come, into three groups, he speaks —
These two, kept in separate groups, are what the world calls the two 'puruṣas' caught up in saṃsāra: the perishable, kṣara, because it decays away, one whole group by itself; and the other puruṣa, the imperishable, akṣara, its exact opposite, the Lord's own power of māyā, the very seed from which the perishable puruṣa arises, the reservoir holding the latent traces of desire and action left by countless transmigrating creatures. And what are these two? The Lord answers in his own words: the perishable is all beings, the entire mass of what changes, that is what it means. 'Kūṭastha' can simply mean standing there like a heap, unmoved. Or, taking kūṭa in its other sense, māyā, deception, crookedness, guile, all synonyms, he is 'kūṭastha' because he stands by way of these countless modes of māyā and deception; and because the seeds of saṃsāra never run out, he never decays, and so he is called the imperishable.
Close to the Sanskrit
A summary of the manifestations of the Lord, called Nārāyaṇa, has been stated, brought about through particular limiting adjuncts, beginning with 'that splendor resting in the sun' (Bhagavad Gītā 15.12), etc. Now, at this point, with the desire to ascertain the very nature — unconditioned, alone — of that same Lord, as divided by the limiting adjuncts of the perishable and imperishable, the following verses begin. There, having grouped into three the entire subject-matter of the chapter, past and future, he speaks —
These two, separately grouped, are called 'puruṣas' in the world, in saṃsāra — the perishable: 'it perishes,' thus 'kṣara,' destructible — this is one group; the other puruṣa, imperishable, the opposite of that, is the Lord's māyā-power, the seed of origination of the puruṣa called kṣara, the substrate of the latent impressions of desire, action, etc. of countless transmigrating creatures — this is called the imperishable puruṣa. 'What are those two puruṣas?' — thus the Lord himself says: the perishable is all beings, the entire mass of modifications; that is the meaning. 'Kūṭastha' means standing like a heap, a pile. Or alternatively, 'kūṭa' means māyā, deception, crookedness, guile, these are synonyms; he is 'kūṭastha' because he is situated by the manifold modes of māyā, deception, etc.; because of the endlessness of the seeds of saṃsāra, he does not perish, thus is he called imperishable. || 16 ||