Bhagavad Gita 5.29
Spoken by Krishna ★ Essential verse · Verse 29 of 29
भोक्तारं यज्ञतपसां सर्वलोकमहेश्वरम्। सुहृदं सर्वभूतानां ज्ञात्वा मां शान्तिमृच्छति॥५-२९॥
bhoktāraṃ yajña-tapasāṃ sarva-loka-maheśvaram | suhṛdaṃ sarva-bhūtānāṃ jñātvā māṃ śāntim ṛcchati || 5.29 ||
Knowing Me as the enjoyer of all sacrifice and austerity, Great Lord of all worlds, Friend of all beings — peace comes.
Word by word (7)
- bhoktāram
- — the Enjoyer / the Receiver / the one who experiences — the ultimate recipient of all offerings (from bhuj = to enjoy, experience, receive)
- yajña-tapasām
- — of all sacrifices and austerities (yajña = sacrifice, ritual offering, selfless action; tapas = austerity, discipline, inner heat)
- sarva-loka-maheśvaram
- — the Great Lord (Maheśvara) of all worlds / the sovereign of every realm (sarva = all, loka = world/realm, maheśvara = great lord/ruler)
- suhṛdam
- — the Friend / the well-wisher (suhṛd = literally 'good-hearted one' — one who wishes well without any expectation; the most intimate, unconditional friend)
- sarva-bhūtānām
- — of all beings / of every creature that exists (sarva = all, bhūta = being, creature, entity)
- jñātvā mām
- — having known Me / by knowing Me — jñātvā is the decisive act: direct knowledge of what Krishna is (not belief, not faith, but jñāna — knowing)
- śāntim ṛcchati
- — attains peace / reaches śānti (śānti = peace, stillness, cessation of agitation; ṛcchati = arrives at, reaches — the peace is arrived at, not manufactured)
Knowing Me as the Enjoyer of all sacrifice and austerity, the great Lord of all the worlds, and the friend of every being, one comes to peace.
A modern analogy
Imagine discovering that everything you have ever done — every act of service, every discipline you kept, every sacrifice you made — was received and honoured by someone who was with you the whole time, who loved you unconditionally, and who is also the sovereign of everything. The discovery is not that the Supreme exists — it is that the Supreme is a Friend who has always been present, receiving everything. That discovery — jñātvā māṃ — produces the specific quality of peace that needs no outer condition: śānti.
What it does NOT mean
Suhṛd (Friend) is not a casual acquaintance. In Sanskrit, suhṛd means 'one with a good heart' — someone who wishes well unconditionally, without any agenda of return. This is different from mitra (friend with reciprocal ties) or priya (beloved). The Supreme as suhṛd is the ultimate unconditional well-wisher — the one who has always been for you, regardless of whether you knew it. The verse does not ask for effort or ritual; it asks for jñāna — the direct knowing of this truth.
Take with you
- Bhoktāraṃ yajña-tapasāṃ: every sacrifice and discipline you undertake is ultimately received by the Supreme. This teaching resolves the anxiety of 'is my practice reaching anywhere?' — this verse answers: yes, unconditionally received. The karma-yogi's fruits, surrendered to the Supreme — as Krishna taught when he said to offer all action to Him with the mind on the Self, and when he praised the one who acts with attachment to fruits abandoned, ever content — arrive here: they are received by the bhoktā (the Enjoyer).
- Sarva-loka-maheśvaram: the Great Lord of all worlds — not just the spiritual realm but sarva-loka (every world, every domain of existence). This closes the possible exception: 'yes, but in my particular sphere of life, the Supreme is not sovereign.' This verse forecloses that gap. Every realm, every moment, every context — the Lord is sovereign.
- Suhṛdaṃ sarva-bhūtānāṃ: this is the most direct statement of universal, unconditional goodwill in the entire Gita. The Supreme is the Friend of every being — not just the devoted, not just the virtuous, not just the human. Sarva-bhūtānāṃ: of all beings, without exception. This is the cosmic ground of the compassion Krishna asked for just before, when he described the liberated seers as delighting in the welfare of all beings.
Public-domain translations (6) compare all →
"Knowing Me as the Enjoyer of yajña and tapas, the Great Lord of all worlds, the Friend of all beings — he attains śānti." [1]
"Having known Me, the Enjoyer of sacrifices and austerities, the great Lord of all worlds, the Friend of all beings, he attains to peace." [4]
"He who knoweth Me as the Enjoyer of sacrifice and austerity, the Great Lord of all the worlds, the Friend of all beings, goeth to peace." [5]
"He who knows Me as the one who accepts the devotion and self-sacrifice of men, as the mighty Lord of all worlds and as the Friend of all creatures, finds peace." [6]
"Who knows Me as the Lord of all the worlds, the Friend of all that lives — knowing Me thus, he goeth to peace." [7]
"Knowing Me as the enjoyer of all sacrifices and penances, the great lord of all worlds, the friend of all beings, he attains tranquillity." [9]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
Surrender all action to Me, mind on the Self, free from hope and possessiveness — then fight, free from fever.
Instrument, offering, fire, act, destination — all Brahman. One absorbed in Brahman-action reaches Brahman alone.
I am the enjoyer and Lord of all sacrifices — but they do not know Me in truth, and so they fall.
I am the same toward all beings — none hateful nor dear to Me — but My devotees are in Me, and I am in them.
Ever-content, ever-yoked, self-controlled, firm in resolve, mind-intellect offered to Me — he is My dear devotee!
Take refuge in THAT with all your being, O Bharata — by His grace: supreme peace and the eternal abode.
Verse 29 of 29 · back to Chapter 5