Bhagavad Gita 16.15
Spoken by Krishna · Verse 15 of 24
आढ्यो ऽभिजनवान् अस्मि को ऽन्यो ऽस्ति सदृशो मया । यक्ष्ये दास्यामि मोदिष्य इत्य् अज्ञानविमोहिताः ॥
āḍhyo 'bhijanavān asmi ko 'nyo 'sti sadṛśo mayā | yakṣye dāsyāmi modiṣya ity ajñāna-vimohitāḥ ||
The ego-apex: 'I am rich, well-born — who equals me? I'll sacrifice, give, rejoice.' — all deluded by ajñāna.
Word by word (3)
- āḍhyo 'bhijanavān asmi ko 'nyo 'sti sadṛśo mayā
- — I am wealthy (āḍhyaḥ), of noble birth (abhijanavān); who else (kaḥ anyaḥ) exists (asti) equal to me (sadṛśaḥ mayā)? — wealth + lineage as the status-claim, the rhetorical challenge
- yakṣye dāsyāmi modiṣye
- — I will sacrifice (yakṣye), I will give (dāsyāmi), I will rejoice (modiṣye) — the three acts of daivī-sampad (yajña, dāna, śānti) now performed for ego-display, not liberation
- ity ajñāna-vimohitāḥ
- — thus (iti) deluded/bewildered (vimohitāḥ) by ignorance (ajñāna) — the root diagnosis: all five verses (V13-15) of this monologue = ajñāna-vimoha in operation
'I am wealthy and well-born. Who else is equal to me? I will sacrifice, I will give, I will be merry.' — thus deluded by ignorance.
A modern analogy
This verse shows the ultimate corruption: even virtuous acts (sacrifice, giving) can be hijacked by the ego. The āsurī doesn't refuse to do yajña and dāna — they DO them, but 'yakṣye dāsyāmi' (I will sacrifice, I will give) serves 'ko 'nyo 'sti sadẛśo mayā' (who equals me?). The acts become performance pieces for the ego's status theater.
Public-domain translations (4) compare all →
I am rich and well-born. Who else is equal to me? I will sacrifice, I will give, I will rejoice. Thus deluded by unwisdom. [1]
I am rich and well-born. Who else is there equal to me? I will sacrifice, I will give, I will rejoice. Thus deluded by ignorance, [4]
I am rich and of noble birth; who else is equal to me? I will sacrifice, I will give, I will be happy — thus deluded by ignorance. [9]
I am happy, I am rich and of noble birth. Who else is there that is like me? I will sacrifice, I will make gifts, I will be merry, thus deluded by ignorance. [13]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
Veiled by yoga-māyā, I am not manifest to all — this deluded world does not recognize Me, the Unborn, the Imperishable.
When the seer sees only guṇas as agents and knows what is beyond them — he attains My being.
Six āsurī qualities: dambha, darpa, abhimāna, krodha, pāruṣya, ajñāna — all rooted in ego-assertion and ignorance.
Self-complacent, stubborn, wealth-proud — they perform name-only sacrifices, ostentatiously ignoring śāstric ordinance.
You grieve for those who should not be grieved for — and call it wisdom.
Arjuna asks: what does the truly wise person look like? How do they speak, sit, and move?
Verse 15 of 24 · back to Chapter 16