Chapter 9: Raja Vidya Raja Guhya Yoga

Sanskrit Transliteration:

śhrī bhagavān uvācha idaṁ tu te guhyatamaṁ pravakṣhyāmy anasūyave jñānaṁ vijñāna-sahitaṁ yaj jñātvā mokṣhyase 'śhubhāt

Translation:

The Supreme Lord said: To you who are free from envy, I shall now reveal this most secret knowledge combined with realization, knowing which you shall be freed from evil.

Commentary:

Krishna promises to reveal the deepest secret to Arjuna because he is free from envy. This knowledge, combined with direct realization, liberates from all negativity. The qualification to receive it is being non-envious—having a pure, receptive heart.

Learning:

The deepest wisdom is given to those without envy. Jealousy blocks spiritual receptivity. If you can genuinely rejoice in others' spiritual achievements, you're ready to receive the highest teaching. Purify your heart of envy.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

rāja-vidyā rāja-guhyaṁ pavitram idam uttamam pratyakṣhāvagamaṁ dharmyaṁ su-sukhaṁ kartum avyayam

Translation:

This is the king of knowledge, the king of secrets, the supreme purifier, directly perceivable, righteous, easy to practice, and imperishable.

Commentary:

This knowledge is royal (supreme) in both its nature as knowledge and as a secret. It is supremely purifying, directly experienceable (not mere theory), aligned with dharma, joyful to practice, and eternal. These seven qualities make it incomparable.

Learning:

The highest knowledge is not dry or difficult—it is purifying, experiential, righteous, and joyful. If your spiritual practice is only painful and theoretical, you may not have found the essence yet. True knowledge transforms naturally and delightfully.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

aśhraddadhānāḥ puruṣhā dharmasyāsya parantapa aprāpya māṁ nivartante mṛityu-saṁsāra-vartmani

Translation:

Those without faith in this dharma, O scorcher of foes, do not attain Me but return to the path of death and rebirth.

Commentary:

Faith is essential. Those who lack faith in this teaching cannot attain Krishna and continue cycling through death and rebirth. The knowledge is available, but without faith, it cannot be received or applied. Faithlessness keeps one bound.

Learning:

Faith is the container that holds the teaching. Without some initial trust, you cannot receive what is offered. If you approach wisdom with cynicism, it cannot enter. Give teachings a fair trial before judging them.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

mayā tatam idaṁ sarvaṁ jagad avyakta-mūrtinā mat-sthāni sarva-bhūtāni na chāhaṁ teṣhv avasthitaḥ

Translation:

By Me, in My unmanifest form, this entire universe is pervaded. All beings exist in Me, but I do not exist in them.

Commentary:

Krishna pervades everything in his unmanifest form—he is the underlying reality of all existence. All beings have their existence in him, yet he is not contained by them. He is like space—everything exists in space, but space is not limited by what it contains.

Learning:

The divine is everywhere but not limited to anywhere. Everything exists within divine consciousness, yet that consciousness is not bound by what it contains. You exist in God, but God is infinitely more than you.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

na cha mat-sthāni bhūtāni paśhya me yogam aiśhvaram bhūta-bhṛin na cha bhūta-stho mamātmā bhūta-bhāvanaḥ

Translation:

And yet beings do not exist in Me—behold My divine mystery! I sustain all beings and am the source of all beings, yet I am not established in them.

Commentary:

This paradox deepens: beings both exist and don't exist in Krishna. He sustains all beings, causes their existence, yet is not located in them. This is his divine yoga (mystic power)—simultaneously immanent and transcendent, supporting yet untouched.

Learning:

The divine relationship defies simple logic. God is everywhere yet nowhere specifically; everything depends on God yet God depends on nothing. Embrace the paradox—the ultimate truth cannot be captured in linear thinking.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

yathākāśha-sthito nityaṁ vāyuḥ sarvatra-go mahān tathā sarvāṇi bhūtāni mat-sthānīty upadhāraya

Translation:

As the mighty wind, blowing everywhere, always rests in space, so understand that all beings rest in Me.

Commentary:

The analogy of wind and space clarifies the paradox. Wind moves everywhere but always exists within space. Similarly, all beings exist within Krishna. Space allows wind without being affected by it; Krishna contains all without being limited by any.

Learning:

Like the sky that holds all weather yet remains unaffected, divine consciousness holds all experiences without being disturbed. Cultivate this spacious awareness—containing all, identified with none, unmoved by any.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

sarva-bhūtāni kaunteya prakṛitiṁ yānti māmikām kalpa-kṣhaye punas tāni kalpādau visṛijāmy aham

Translation:

All beings, O son of Kunti, enter into My nature at the end of a cosmic cycle. At the beginning of the next cycle, I create them again.

Commentary:

At the end of each cosmic cycle (kalpa), all beings merge back into Krishna's prakriti (nature). At the beginning of the next cycle, he projects them forth again. This cosmic breathing—creation and dissolution—continues eternally under Krishna's direction.

Learning:

The universe breathes. Everything emerges from and returns to the source in endless cycles. This perspective puts individual existence in cosmic context—we are part of something vastly larger than our brief personal span.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

prakṛitiṁ svām avaṣhṭabhya visṛijāmi punaḥ punaḥ bhūta-grāmam imaṁ kṛitsnam avaśhaṁ prakṛiter vaśhāt

Translation:

Taking control of My own material nature, I create again and again this entire multitude of beings, which are helpless under the control of material nature.

Commentary:

Krishna uses his own prakriti as the instrument of creation. The beings he creates are helpless under nature's laws—they don't choose their existence or condition. They are subject to the gunas and karma, not in control of their own manifestation.

Learning:

You did not choose to exist, nor did you choose most of your circumstances. Material nature determines much of your situation. This isn't despair but realism—and motivation to seek what lies beyond nature's control.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

na cha māṁ tāni karmāṇi nibadhnanti dhanañjaya udāsīna-vad āsīnam asaktaṁ teṣhu karmasu

Translation:

O Dhananjaya, these actions do not bind Me, for I sit detached, unattached to these activities.

Commentary:

Though Krishna is the creator, the act of creation does not bind him. He remains detached, like a witness. This is because he has no selfish stake in creation—no desire for personal gain. Unattached action does not create karma.

Learning:

Detachment makes action non-binding. Krishna creates worlds without accumulating karma because he has no personal stake. Similarly, you can act without creating bondage if you release attachment to results. The how matters more than the what.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

mayādhyakṣheṇa prakṛitiḥ sūyate sa-charācharam hetunānena kaunteya jagad viparivartate

Translation:

Under My supervision, material nature produces all moving and unmoving beings. By this means, O son of Kunti, the world revolves.

Commentary:

Nature works under Krishna's oversight, producing the entire diversity of beings—mobile and immobile, animate and inanimate. The world keeps turning because of this arrangement. Krishna is the presiding authority; nature is the executive power.

Learning:

There is intelligence behind natural law. The universe doesn't run randomly but under divine supervision. When you see nature's workings, see the intelligence behind it. Order implies an orderer.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣhīṁ tanum āśhritam paraṁ bhāvam ajānanto mama bhūta-maheśhvaram

Translation:

Fools disregard Me when I appear in human form, not knowing My supreme nature as the Lord of all beings.

Commentary:

When the divine appears in human form, fools cannot recognize him. They see only the human appearance and miss the supreme nature within. This blindness to divine incarnation is a great loss—missing the opportunity that a human manifestation of God provides.

Learning:

Don't judge by appearances. When truth takes accessible form, recognize it. The divine may appear ordinary to ordinary perception. Cultivate the vision that can see depth beneath surface.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

moghāśhā mogha-karmāṇo mogha-jñānā vichetasaḥ rākṣhasīm āsurīṁ chaiva prakṛitiṁ mohinīṁ śhritāḥ

Translation:

Their hopes are vain, their actions vain, their knowledge vain, and they are mindless, having taken on the deluding, demonic, and dark nature.

Commentary:

Those who cannot recognize the divine are described: their hopes, actions, and knowledge are all futile. They are mindless (without discrimination) and have embraced demonic nature that keeps them deluded. This is the consequence of spiritual blindness.

Learning:

Spiritual blindness makes even good efforts fruitless. Wrong vision misdirects everything. If your fundamental orientation is confused, your hopes, work, and study lead nowhere. Get the basics right first.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

mahātmānas tu māṁ pārtha daivīṁ prakṛitim āśhritāḥ bhajanty ananya-manaso jñātvā bhūtādim avyayam

Translation:

But the great souls, O Partha, having taken refuge in the divine nature, worship Me with undivided mind, knowing Me as the imperishable origin of all beings.

Commentary:

In contrast, great souls (mahatmas) have embraced divine nature. They worship with single-pointed devotion, recognizing Krishna as the imperishable source of all existence. Divine nature and exclusive devotion characterize these elevated beings.

Learning:

Great souls are recognized by their devotion and their nature. They have consciously chosen the divine rather than the demonic. Their minds don't scatter—they're focused on the source of all. Aspire to this single-minded orientation.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

satataṁ kīrtayanto māṁ yatantaśh cha dṛiḍha-vratāḥ namasyantaśh cha māṁ bhaktyā nitya-yuktā upāsate

Translation:

Always chanting My glories, striving with firm resolve, bowing down to Me with devotion, always united, they worship Me.

Commentary:

The practices of great souls are described: constant glorification of God, determined effort, reverential salutation, and continuous connection through devotion. These are the activities that characterize genuine devotees.

Learning:

Devotion expresses itself in action: praising, striving, bowing, staying connected. It's not just feeling but doing. Regular glorification of the divine, determined practice, humble reverence, and maintaining connection—these are the devotee's life.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

jñāna-yajñena chāpy anye yajanto mām upāsate ekatvena pṛithaktvena bahudhā viśhvato-mukham

Translation:

Others, offering the sacrifice of knowledge, worship Me as the One, as the distinct, and as the many-faced, universal form in many ways.

Commentary:

Different seekers approach Krishna differently: some through knowledge sacrifice, seeing him as One (non-dual), as distinct (personal deity), or as the many-faced universal presence. All these approaches constitute worship—the divine can be approached in multiple valid ways.

Learning:

There are many valid approaches to the divine: as one without second, as personal Lord, as universal presence. Don't insist your approach is the only one. Different temperaments find different doors to the same truth.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

ahaṁ kratur ahaṁ yajñaḥ svadhāham aham auṣhadham mantro 'ham aham evājyam aham agnir ahaṁ hutam

Translation:

I am the Vedic ritual, I am the sacrifice, I am the offering to ancestors, I am the healing herb, I am the sacred chant, I am the clarified butter, I am the fire, and I am the oblation.

Commentary:

Krishna identifies himself with all elements of sacred ritual: the ritual itself, the sacrifice, ancestral offerings, medicinal herbs, mantras, ghee, fire, and the act of offering. Every component of worship is a form of the divine being worshipped.

Learning:

The divine is present in all aspects of sacred practice. The ritual, the substance, the words, the fire, the offering—all are God worshipping God. This understanding transforms mechanical ritual into living communion.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

pitāham asya jagato mātā dhātā pitāmahaḥ vedyaṁ pavitram oṁkāra ṛik sāma yajur eva cha

Translation:

I am the father of this universe, the mother, the supporter, the grandsire, the object of knowledge, the purifier, the syllable Om, and the Rik, Sama, and Yajur Vedas.

Commentary:

Krishna's cosmic roles continue: father of the universe, mother, sustainer, ancestor, the goal of knowledge, the purifier, the sacred syllable Om, and the three principal Vedas. He is both the origin and the means of knowing the origin.

Learning:

The divine is both the source and the guide. Father, mother, and ancestor—the origin. Knowledge, purifier, sacred sound, and scripture—the path back. Everything needed for the spiritual journey comes from the same source.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

gatir bhartā prabhuḥ sākṣhī nivāsaḥ śharaṇaṁ suhṛit prabhavaḥ pralayaḥ sthānaṁ nidhānaṁ bījam avyayam

Translation:

I am the goal, the sustainer, the master, the witness, the abode, the shelter, the friend, the origin, the dissolution, the foundation, the treasure, and the imperishable seed.

Commentary:

More roles are listed: destination, support, lord, witness, dwelling place, refuge, friend, source, end, foundation, storehouse, and eternal seed. Krishna is everything one might seek or need—goal and path, beginning and end, supporter and refuge.

Learning:

Whatever you need, it is found in the divine. Goal, support, witness, home, refuge, friend—all roles are fulfilled. Don't seek these things separately from various sources; recognize them all in one supreme source.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

tapāmy aham ahaṁ varṣhaṁ nigṛihnāmy utsṛijāmi cha amṛitaṁ chaiva mṛityuśh cha sad asach chāham arjuna

Translation:

I give heat; I withhold and send forth the rain. I am immortality and death; I am being and non-being, O Arjuna.

Commentary:

Krishna controls natural phenomena: heat and rain, life and death, existence and non-existence. The opposites that govern material life are both aspects of him. He is beyond dualities while manifesting as both poles of every duality.

Learning:

The divine is both sides of every pair of opposites. Life and death, being and non-being—all emerge from the same source. This understanding helps transcend the painful grip of dualities. What seems opposite is united at source.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

trai-vidyā māṁ soma-pāḥ pūta-pāpā yajñair iṣhṭvā svar-gatiṁ prārthayante te puṇyam āsādya surendra-lokam aśhnanti divyān divi deva-bhogān

Translation:

The knowers of the three Vedas who drink the soma, purified of sins, worshipping Me through sacrifice, pray for passage to heaven. They reach the holy world of Indra and enjoy divine celestial pleasures.

Commentary:

Those who follow Vedic rituals—purified by soma and sacrifice—attain heaven and enjoy celestial pleasures. This is a legitimate but limited result. They achieve what they seek: heavenly enjoyment. But this is not the highest attainment.

Learning:

You get what you aim for. Ritual practitioners seeking heaven get heaven. There's nothing wrong with this, but recognize its limitation. If you want the temporary, you get the temporary. Aim determines outcome.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

te taṁ bhuktvā svarga-lokaṁ viśhālaṁ kṣhīṇe puṇye martya-lokaṁ viśhanti evaṁ trayī-dharmam anuprapannā gatāgataṁ kāma-kāmā labhante

Translation:

Having enjoyed the vast heavenly world, when their merit is exhausted, they enter the mortal world. Thus, following the Vedic rituals, desiring pleasures, they attain the cycle of coming and going.

Commentary:

When heavenly merit is exhausted, souls return to the mortal realm. Those who follow rituals for pleasure-seeking remain trapped in the cycle of ascending and descending. This is the fundamental limitation of desire-driven religion.

Learning:

Even heavenly pleasures end. When the merit fueling them runs out, you fall back to earth. The cycle of gaining and losing continues as long as you seek through desire. Permanent attainment requires transcending desire itself.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

ananyāśh chintayanto māṁ ye janāḥ paryupāsate teṣhāṁ nityābhiyuktānāṁ yoga-kṣhemaṁ vahāmy aham

Translation:

To those who worship Me alone, thinking of no other, who are ever united with Me—to them I carry what they lack and preserve what they have.

Commentary:

This famous verse is a divine promise. To exclusive devotees who think only of Krishna, always connected—he personally ensures their yoga (acquisition of what they need) and kshema (protection of what they have). The Lord himself takes care of such devotees.

Learning:

Single-pointed devotion brings divine providence. When your mind doesn't scatter to various sources but rests in one divine refuge, that refuge provides and protects. Total trust in one source is rewarded with total care from that source.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

ye 'py anya-devatā-bhaktā yajante śhraddhayānvitāḥ te 'pi mām eva kaunteya yajanty avidhi-pūrvakam

Translation:

Even those devotees who worship other gods with faith—they also worship Me, O son of Kunti, though not in the proper way.

Commentary:

Those who worship other deities with faith are actually worshipping Krishna, but indirectly and improperly. The faith is real, but the understanding is incomplete. They get results, but not the ultimate result.

Learning:

All sincere worship ultimately reaches the supreme, but the method matters. Indirect worship is valid but limited. Recognizing the ultimate source of all divinity brings the complete fruit. Don't disparage others' worship, but understand the hierarchy.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

ahaṁ hi sarva-yajñānāṁ bhoktā cha prabhur eva cha na tu mām abhijānanti tattvenātas chyavanti te

Translation:

I am the enjoyer and the Lord of all sacrifices. But they do not know Me in truth, so they fall.

Commentary:

Krishna is the actual recipient and master of all sacrifices. However, worshippers of other gods don't recognize this truth. Because of incomplete understanding, they fall—they achieve temporary results but miss the eternal.

Learning:

Incomplete understanding leads to incomplete results. All worship goes to the same source, but knowing this brings the full benefit. Not knowing leads to falling back. Seek complete understanding, not just sincere effort.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

yānti deva-vratā devān pitṝīn yānti pitṛi-vratāḥ bhūtāni yānti bhūtejyā yānti mad-yājino 'pi mām

Translation:

Worshippers of the gods go to the gods; worshippers of ancestors go to ancestors; worshippers of spirits go to spirits; but My worshippers come to Me.

Commentary:

Destination follows intention. Those devoted to devas attain the devas; ancestor-worshippers join their ancestors; spirit-worshippers reach spirits. But Krishna's devotees attain Krishna himself—the supreme, eternal destination.

Learning:

Where you direct your devotion determines where you end up. This is a fundamental law. Choose your object of worship carefully—you will attain what you worship. Worship the highest if you want the highest.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

patraṁ puṣhpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayachchhati tad ahaṁ bhakty-upahṛitam aśhnāmi prayatātmanaḥ

Translation:

Whoever offers Me with devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit, or water—that offering of love, from a pure heart, I accept.

Commentary:

This beloved verse reveals Krishna's accessibility. He accepts the simplest offerings—a leaf, flower, fruit, or water—when given with devotion and a pure heart. The value lies not in the material offering but in the love behind it.

Learning:

God values love, not luxury. The poorest person can offer the richest worship. What matters is the devotion, not the donation. Elaborate offerings without love mean nothing; simple offerings with love mean everything.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

yat karoṣhi yad aśhnāsi yaj juhoṣhi dadāsi yat yat tapasyasi kaunteya tat kuruṣhva mad-arpaṇam

Translation:

Whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer in sacrifice, whatever you give, whatever austerity you practice, O son of Kunti—do that as an offering to Me.

Commentary:

All actions can become worship. Eating, working, giving, practicing austerity—everything can be offered to Krishna. Life itself becomes a continuous act of devotion when every action is dedicated to the divine.

Learning:

Transform your entire life into worship. You don't need special religious activities—your ordinary actions become sacred when offered to God. Eating becomes prasad, working becomes service, living becomes loving. This is the secret of constant devotion.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

śhubhāśhubha-phalair evaṁ mokṣhyase karma-bandhanaiḥ sannyāsa-yoga-yuktātmā vimukto mām upaiṣhyasi

Translation:

Thus, you shall be freed from the bondage of action and its good and bad results. With your mind fixed on the yoga of renunciation, liberated, you shall come to Me.

Commentary:

Offering all actions to Krishna frees you from both good and bad karmic results. With mind established in renunciation-in-action, you become liberated and attain Krishna. This is the complete fruit of devotional living.

Learning:

Dedication to God liberates from karma. Both good and bad results bind; offering all to God frees you from both. This is karma yoga perfected by bhakti—the combination that brings liberation.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

samo 'haṁ sarva-bhūteṣhu na me dveṣhyo 'sti na priyaḥ ye bhajanti tu māṁ bhaktyā mayi te teṣhu chāpy aham

Translation:

I am equally present in all beings. None is hateful to Me, none is dear. But those who worship Me with devotion are in Me, and I am in them.

Commentary:

Krishna is impartial—equally present everywhere, with no favorites or enemies. Yet devotees have a special relationship: they are in him and he in them. This is not divine favoritism but the natural result of devotion—love creates intimacy.

Learning:

God doesn't play favorites, yet devotees experience special closeness. The impartiality of the divine doesn't prevent loving relationship. Those who open to God find God responsive. The sun shines equally, but those who open their windows receive its light.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

api chet su-durāchāro bhajate mām ananya-bhāk sādhur eva sa mantavyaḥ samyag vyavasito hi saḥ

Translation:

Even if a person of very bad conduct worships Me with exclusive devotion, such a person should be regarded as righteous, for that person has rightly resolved.

Commentary:

Even a great sinner, if they turn to Krishna with exclusive devotion, should be considered saintly. Their firm decision to devote themselves to God indicates they are on the right path. Past conduct doesn't define one who has genuinely turned to God.

Learning:

Genuine devotion redefines identity. No matter your past, turning wholeheartedly to the divine transforms you. Don't let past mistakes prevent you from starting now. The decision to devote yourself is itself the beginning of transformation.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

kṣhipraṁ bhavati dharmātmā śhaśhvach-chhāntiṁ nigachchhati kaunteya pratijānīhi na me bhaktaḥ praṇaśhyati

Translation:

Quickly such a person becomes righteous and attains lasting peace. O son of Kunti, declare boldly that My devotee never perishes.

Commentary:

The transformation is rapid—the devotee quickly becomes dharmic and gains permanent peace. Krishna makes a guarantee and asks Arjuna to proclaim it: his devotee never perishes. This is a divine promise that can be confidently announced.

Learning:

Devotion transforms quickly. Don't think years of purification are needed before you can approach God—approach now and purification will follow. And the guarantee: the devotee is protected. This can be proclaimed with confidence.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśhritya ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ striyo vaiśhyās tathā śhūdrās te 'pi yānti parāṁ gatim

Translation:

O Partha, even those of sinful birth, women, merchants, and workers—they too, taking refuge in Me, reach the supreme destination.

Commentary:

Taking refuge in Krishna opens the supreme goal to all—regardless of background, gender, or social position. The categories mentioned were considered disadvantaged in ancient Indian society; Krishna explicitly includes them. Divine grace transcends all social barriers.

Learning:

Spiritual attainment is open to everyone. No birth, gender, or occupation excludes anyone. Taking refuge in the divine is available to all and leads all to the highest. Social distinctions are irrelevant to spiritual potential.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

kiṁ punar brāhmaṇāḥ puṇyā bhaktā rājarṣhayas tathā anityam asukhaṁ lokam imaṁ prāpya bhajasva mām

Translation:

How much more then the holy brahmins and devoted royal sages! Having come to this temporary and joyless world, devote yourself to Me.

Commentary:

If those considered disadvantaged can attain the supreme through devotion, how much more easily can the spiritually advantaged! This world is temporary and ultimately unsatisfying. The logical response is to devote oneself to the eternal source of joy.

Learning:

This world doesn't satisfy. Recognizing life's impermanence and inherent dissatisfaction should motivate spiritual seeking. Don't wait for perfect conditions—you're already in the imperfect world. Start devotion now.

Sanskrit Transliteration:

man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru mām evaiṣhyasi yuktvaivam ātmānaṁ mat-parāyaṇaḥ

Translation:

Fix your mind on Me, be devoted to Me, worship Me, bow down to Me. Thus, uniting yourself with Me as the supreme goal, you shall come to Me.

Commentary:

The chapter concludes with simple, direct instruction: think of Krishna, love Krishna, worship Krishna, bow to Krishna. With Krishna as your supreme goal, uniting with him, you will attain him. The teaching is clear and the promise certain.

Learning:

The essence of spiritual practice is simple: remember, love, worship, honor the divine. Make God your goal, unite your being with that goal, and you will reach it. This is the royal secret—simple devotion leading to the supreme destination.