Bhagavad Gita 12.20
Spoken by Krishna · Verse 20 of 20
ये तु धर्म्यामृतमिदं यथोक्तं पर्युपासते।श्रद्दधाना मत्परमा भक्तास्तेऽतीव मे प्रियाः ॥
ye tu dharmyāmṛtamidaṃ yathoktaṃ paryupāsate|śraddadhānā matparamā bhaktāste'tīva me priyāḥ ||
Those who follow this nectar of dharma with śraddhā, taking Me as supreme — they are EXCEEDINGLY dear to Me!
Word by word (3)
- ye tu dharmāmṛtam idaṃ yathoktaṃ paryupāsate
- — those who follow this nectar of dharma as described · ye tu = but those who (ye = relative pronoun; tu = but/however; the tu marks a special category: among all the types of people described, these are the ones Krishna singles out for the final superlative). dharmāmṛtam = nectar of dharma (dharma = righteousness, right-living, the foundational principle of cosmic and personal order; amṛta = nectar, immortality-essence, deathlessness; the compound dharmāmṛta = the dharma that is itself amṛta = the deathless-nectar-form of right-living; this is not dharma as mere duty but dharma as immortalizing medicine). idam = this (pointing at the entire passage just given: the dear-devotee portrait of V13-V19). yathoktam = as described above (yathā = as; uktam = spoken/declared; yathoktam = as-has-been-spoken = as has just been taught; the verse is self-referential: Krishna is referring to His own teaching in this chapter). paryupāsate = follow, resort to, practice, receive (pari = around/fully + upa + āsate = sit near; paryupāsate = follow with attention, practice fully; the word suggests sustained engagement with the teaching, not just one-time reading).
- śraddadhānā mat-paramāḥ bhaktāḥ
- — those endowed with śraddhā, having Me as the Supreme, devoted · śraddadhānāḥ = those who hold śraddhā (from śraddā = trust, faith, confident belief; dhānāḥ = bearing, holding; śraddadhānāḥ = those who bear śraddhā in their practice; śraddhā is more than belief — it is a resonant inner conviction that makes a teaching real in one's life; without śraddhā, the same words remain abstract; with śraddhā, they become alive and transformative). mat-paramāḥ = those who have Me as the Supreme (mat = My; parama = highest; mat-para = those whose highest is Me; this echoes the mat-parāḥ of V6: the chapter closes with the same term it used to open the mat-para teaching). bhaktāḥ = devoted ones (plural of bhakta; devoted to Krishna). The three together: śraddadhānāḥ (inner faith) + mat-paramāḥ (supreme orientation) + bhaktāḥ (devotional relationship) = the complete devotee-description.
- te'tīva me priyāḥ
- — they are exceedingly dear to Me · te = they (plural demonstrative). atīva = exceedingly, extremely, very much (ati = beyond; iva = like/as; atīva = beyond-likeness = exceeding all comparison = extremely). me = My (genitive). priyāḥ = dear ones (plural of priya). te atīva me priyāḥ = they are EXCEEDINGLY dear to Me. This is the superlative upgrade from the portrait's previous refrains: V14 said 'sa me priyaḥ' (dear to Me); V15 said 'sa ca me priyaḥ'; V16 said 'sa me priyaḥ'; V17 said 'sa me priyaḥ'; V19 said 'me priyo naraḥ' — but V20's closing line is atīva: EXCEEDINGLY. Those who receive this dharmāmṛta with śraddhā and mat-paratā and bhakti are not just dear but most dear. The chapter closes not with metaphysics but with Krishna's love.
But those who follow this nectar of dharma as I have taught it, with faith, holding Me as the supreme — those devotees are exceedingly dear to Me.
A modern analogy
Like a teacher at the end of a semester who singles out not the brightest students or the best-behaved, but the ones who genuinely received the teaching — who came in with openness, took it seriously, let it change them. Those students are not just passing grades — they're held dear. This verse's declaration that such devotees are 'atīva me priyāḥ' — exceedingly dear to Me — is exactly that recognition.
Sit with this: This verse says those who follow the dharmāmṛta — the nectar of dharma — with śraddhā are atīva (exceedingly) dear. Śraddhā is often translated 'faith' but also means 'resonant conviction.' What is the difference between following a teaching because you should and following it with śraddhā? How do you cultivate the second?
Public-domain translations (5) compare all →
They, verily, who follow this immortal Law described above, endued with faith, looking up to me as the Supreme, and devoted, they are exceedingly dear to Me. [1]
And they who follow this Immortal Dharma, as described above, endued with Shraddha, regarding Me as the Supreme Goal, and devoted — they are exceedingly dear to Me. [4]
But most of all I love / Those happy ones to whom 'tis life to live / In single fervid faith and love unseeing, / Drinking the blessed Amrit of my Being! [7]
But those devotees who, imbued with faith, and (regarding) me as their highest (goal), resort to this holy (means for attaining) immortality, as stated, they are exceedingly dear to me. [9]
They who resort to this righteousness (leading to) immortality which has been (already) declared, those devotees full of faith and regarding me as the highest object (of their acquisition) are the dearest to me. [13]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
Offer all actions to Me alone, worship through undivided yoga — the mat-parāḥ hold Me as their supreme goal.
Whoever teaches this supreme secret among My devotees, with supreme bhakti — comes to Me without doubt.
Those who fix their mind in Me and worship with supreme śraddhā — these I consider the most perfectly yoked!
Where yogeśvara Kṛṣṇa is, where archer Pārtha stands — there abide fortune, victory, flourishing, and steadfast dharma.
Sāttvic yajña: performed as ordained, without fruit-desire, with the conviction 'this must be done.'
Sāttvic dāna: given with 'this must be given,' to one expecting no return, at right place, time, and recipient.
Verse 20 of 20 · back to Chapter 12