Bhagavad Gita 3.11
Spoken by Krishna · Verse 11 of 43
देवान्भावयतानेन ते देवा भावयन्तु वः । परस्परं भावयन्तः श्रेयः परमवाप्स्यथ ॥
devān bhāvayatānena te devā bhāvayantu vaḥ | parasparaṃ bhāvayantaḥ śreyaḥ param avāpsyatha ||
Nourish the cosmic forces and they nourish you back. Mutual giving is the path to the highest good.
Word by word (3)
- devān bhāvayata anena
- — nourish/cherish the gods by this (yajna) · Bhāvayata from bhāv (to make flourish, to nourish, to cherish). The 'gods' (devāḥ) here can be understood both literally (cosmic forces/deities) and functionally (the forces of nature, the principles that sustain the world). Nourishing them through yajna means maintaining the cosmic exchange.
- parasparaṃ bhāvayantaḥ
- — mutually cherishing / nourishing each other · Paras-para = each other, mutually, reciprocally. The cosmic principle of mutual sustenance: you sustain the forces of nature through your offerings; they sustain you through rain, fertility, health. This bidirectional nourishment is the cosmic yajna-cycle.
- śreyaḥ param avāpsyatha
- — you shall attain the highest good · Śreyas = highest good (the word Arjuna used in V2.2 when asking for clarity). Param = supreme, highest. Avāpsyatha = you shall attain. The promise: mutual nourishment through yajna leads to the supreme good — both material prosperity and ultimate spiritual liberation.
Nourish the gods (the cosmic forces) through your offerings, and let those forces nourish you in return. By mutually nourishing each other this way, you will attain the highest good.
A modern analogy
A farmer who maintains the soil, rotates crops, and returns nutrients to the earth finds the earth continuously productive. One who only extracts exhausts the land and destroys the source. That is the principle of this verse: maintain the reciprocal loop — nourish the cosmic forces and they nourish you back — and the highest good (abundant life) follows.
Take with you
- The highest good (śreyas) is attained through mutual nourishment — not through extraction and hoarding.
- Your relationship with the cosmic forces (nature, society, the people in your life) is a two-way exchange.
- When you feel depleted by the world, ask: have I been giving as well as taking? The loop may be broken.
- Parasparaṃ bhāvayantaḥ — this is the Gita's vision of a thriving community: mutual upliftment.
Public-domain translations (5) compare all →
Nourish the gods by this sacrifice, and may those gods nourish you; thus nourishing each other, you will attain the highest good. [1]
Nourish the gods with this, and may the gods nourish you; thus nourishing each other you shall attain the highest good. [4]
Cherish the gods with sacrifice and they will cherish you; thus mutually cherishing each other, you will attain the highest good. [6]
Cherish the Gods thereby, and let the Gods Cherish thee in return; thus propping each The other, thou shalt win to the Highest Good. [7]
Foster the gods with these, and may those gods foster you; fostering each other, you will attain the highest good. [9]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
Enjoy the gifts of existence without giving back — the Gita calls that theft. Participate, don't just consume.
Action → yajna → rain → food → all beings. Human right-action sustains the entire chain of life.
Those who eat yajna's remnants reach eternal Brahman. Without offering, not even this world is theirs.
Whoever does not turn the cosmic wheel of giving — living only for sense-pleasure — lives in vain.
Brahman is the Imperishable; Adhyātma is its presence in each body; Karma is the cosmic offering sustaining all beings.
At creation, the Creator embedded yajna into existence itself — give and the cosmos gives back.
Verse 11 of 43 · back to Chapter 3