Step 4 of 7 · 5 min

Study a Verse

Pick any verse to see what it means and how to use it in your life.

  1. 1Tap a chapter, then a verse
  2. 2Read what it means
  3. 3Try the practice
700 verses37 detailed
Or browse by chapter
Chapter

Chapter 9 · The Most Confidential Knowledge · 34 verses

12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728293031323334

Deep profile← → keys move between verses

Krishna’s natureChapter 9 · The Most Confidential Knowledge
9.159.17

Bhagavad-gītā As It Is · Text 9.16

Krishna as shelter, friend and source

अहं क्रतुरहं यज्ञ: स्वधाहमहमौषधम् ।

मन्‍त्रोऽहमहमेवाज्यमहमग्न‍िरहं हुतम् ॥ १६ ॥

ahaṁ kratur ahaṁ yajñaḥ

svadhāham aham auṣadham

mantro ’ham aham evājyam

aham agnir ahaṁ hutam

Translation

But it is I who am the ritual, I the sacrifice, the offering to the ancestors, the healing herb, the transcendental chant. I am the butter and the fire and the offering.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

What this verse is saying, and where it sits in the story.

Kṛṣṇa Is the Sacrifice

  1. 1Kṛṣṇa says He is the ritual, sacrifice, offering to ancestors, healing herb, sacred chant, butter, fire, and offering.
  2. 2Prabhupāda explains that Vedic sacrifices in their entirety are Kṛṣṇa. Even the fire is His separated energy.
  3. 3Serve Kṛṣṇa with devotion: those who do so are understood to have performed all the sacrifices recommended in the Vedas.

Where we are

In the story

Chapter 9, The Most Confidential Knowledge: krishna as shelter, friend and source.

What it teaches

Theme summary

Recognize Kṛṣṇa as the source of all.

2

Key ideas in this verse

The spiritual concepts this verse connects to.

Key ideas: bhagavān, vibhūti.

3

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What does BG 9.16 establish in Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport, and how does it connect to krishna’s nature?

Practice

Notice something excellent and see it as His opulence.

4

Related verses

Keep going: verses that carry this teaching further.

BG 9.17Krishna as shelter, friend and sourceBG 9.18Krishna as shelter, friend and sourceBG 11.32Krishna reveals Himself as timeBG 11.51Composure returns in Krishna’s personal presence

Study notes are editorial summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport.

Ask the study guide

Ask about BG 9.16 — get a simple answer linked to related ideas and verses.

Back to step 3The key ideasNext · Step 5 of 7 · 5 minLive the teachingsBring it into your day with a practice and a question, straight from Prabhupāda's purports.