Bhagavad Gita 9.32
Spoken by Krishna ★ Essential verse · Verse 32 of 34
मां हि पार्थ व्यपाश्रित्य येऽपि स्युः पापयोनयः | स्त्रियो वैश्यास्तथा शूद्रास्तेऽपि यान्ति परां गतिम् ||३२||
māṃ hi pārtha vyapāśritya ye'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ | striyo vaiśyās tathā śūdrās te'pi yānti parāṃ gatim || 32 ||
Even women, vaiśyas, śūdras of lower birth — taking complete refuge in Me — attain the supreme goal, O Pārtha.
Word by word (3)
- māṃ hi pārtha vyapāśritya ye'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ
- — For, O Pārtha — those who take complete refuge in Me, even those of sinful/lower birth · māṃ = Me (objective — the refuge-object). hi = for, indeed (explanatory — grounding what follows in V31's assurance). pārtha = O son of Pṛthā (vocative — Arjuna, addressed by his matrilineal name Pārtha = son of Pṛthā/Kuntī; emphasizing the teaching's personal relevance). vyapāśritya = having completely taken refuge (vi + apa + √āśri = to completely take shelter, to thoroughly resort to; vyapāśritya = gerund 'having fully taken refuge' — more complete than simple āśrita; the 'vi+apa' prefix indicates thoroughness and completeness of the taking-refuge act). ye'pi = even those who (ye = who, relative; api = even — the inclusive/surprising marker). syuḥ = they may be (√as = to be; optative 'they may be, they might be' — the optative marks this as hypothetical but real: 'even if they happen to be'). pāpa-yonayaḥ = of sinful birth (pāpa = sin, evil; yoni = womb, source, origin, birth; pāpa-yonayaḥ = 'those whose birth/origin is sinful' — the compound reflects the era's social prejudice that certain births were considered spiritually inferior). V32's first half: māṃ vyapāśritya ye'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ — 'those who FULLY TAKE REFUGE IN ME, even those of sinful/low birth.' The vyapāśritya (complete refuge) is the decisive qualifier — the same as mām vyapāśritya in V9.18 (Me as refuge); V30's ananya-bhāk = undivided devotion is what 'complete refuge' means practically.
- striyaḥ vaiśyāḥ tathā śūdrāḥ te'pi yānti parāṃ gatim
- — Women, vaiśyas, and śūdras — even they attain the supreme goal · striyaḥ = women (plural of strī = woman; in the Vedic/brahmanical tradition, women were largely excluded from formal study of the Vedas and from many ritual roles). vaiśyāḥ = the third varṇa (vaiśya = merchant/farmer class — the third of the four varṇas; below brāhmaṇa and kṣatriya). tathā = likewise, also (connecting all three groups). śūdrāḥ = the fourth varṇa (śūdra = the servant/laboring class — the fourth and lowest of the four varṇas; in the brahmanical system, śūdras were typically excluded from Vedic study and many higher religious practices). te'pi = even they (te = they; api = even — the most emphatic marker of inclusion). yānti = they go, they attain (√yā = to go; yānti = third person plural — 'they go, they reach'). parāṃ gatim = the supreme destination (para = highest, supreme; gati = destination, path, state — parāṃ gatim = 'the supreme goal, the highest destination'). V32's second half: striyaḥ vaiśyāḥ tathā śūdrāḥ te'pi yānti parāṃ gatim — 'women, vaiśyas, śūdras — even they attain the supreme goal.' The te'pi (even they) is the verse's revolutionary marker: in the brahmanical system where these groups were largely excluded from the formal spiritual path, Krishna explicitly includes them as attainers of paramā gati (the same supreme goal as brāhmaṇas). The verse's revolutionary theological claim: vyapāśritya māṃ (taking complete refuge in Me) = the ONLY criterion for paramā gati. Not birth, not varṇa, not gender.
- pāpa-yonayaḥ and vyapāśritya māṃ — the verse's theological revolution
- — V32 uses the era's discriminatory language (pāpa-yonayaḥ = sinful birth) to explicitly REVERSE the discrimination: taking refuge in Me is the only criterion for the supreme goal · V32's most difficult and most important term is pāpa-yonayaḥ (of sinful birth/womb). This compound reflects the brahmanical social prejudice of the era: certain births (women's, lower-varṇa) were considered spiritually inferior — 'sinful birth' in the traditional reading. The verse's theological revolution: Krishna uses this prejudicial categorization (pāpa-yonayaḥ) precisely to OVERRIDE it. He doesn't say 'those are not really of sinful birth' (which would have been a social reform argument). He says: 'even IF they are of sinful birth — women, vaiśyas, śūdras — taking complete refuge in Me, even THEY attain the supreme goal.' The criterion is vyapāśritya māṃ (complete refuge in Me), not birth-status. This is a profound religious democracy: the supreme goal (paramā gati) is accessible to anyone who takes complete refuge in Krishna. The specific naming of striyaḥ, vaiśyāḥ, śūdrāḥ makes the inclusion concrete and undeniable — these are the three groups most excluded from Vedic spiritual access in the brahmanical system, and all three are explicitly included. V32 thus represents one of the earliest explicit statements of spiritual inclusivity in Indian religious literature. V33 will then argue a fortiori: if even these attain it, how much more the brāhmaṇas and royal sages? V32-V33 form a complete inclusivity argument: ALL people, from the socially lowest to the highest, can attain the supreme goal through refuge in Krishna.
For those who take refuge in Me, O son of Pṛthā — even those of lowly birth, women, merchants, and labourers — they too reach the supreme goal.
A modern analogy
In a country club that restricts membership to certain families, someone of authority declares: 'Anyone who applies with genuine commitment — regardless of their family background, gender, or profession — is admitted to the highest membership.' That's this verse. The declaration uses the existing categories to explicitly override them. The verse was radical in its era: women, vaiśyas, and śūdras were explicitly named as attainers of the supreme goal (paramā gati) through taking refuge in the divine — not through fulfilling the requirements of the brahmanical system.
What it does NOT mean
This verse does not endorse the term 'sinful birth' (pāpa-yonayaḥ) as a valid description — it uses the era's language to explicitly reverse the exclusion. Krishna is not saying 'these are sinful' but 'even those the social system calls sinful-born are fully included through refuge in Me.' The verse's point is not to validate caste hierarchy but to demolish its spiritual gatekeeping. This is one of the Gita's clearest statements that social birth status is irrelevant to spiritual attainment.
Take with you
- This verse is the foundation of spiritual democracy: the only qualification for the supreme goal (paramā gati) that the Gita recognizes is taking complete refuge in the divine (vyapāśritya mām). Not birth, not gender, not profession, not social class. The verse makes this explicit by naming the three most excluded groups of its era and declaring their full inclusion. Apply this teaching: no social category excludes anyone from spiritual practice or attainment.
- The phrase 'even they' (te'pi) is the inclusive marker: in the verse's original context, 'even they' was the shocking element — the most surprising inclusion. Today, 'even they' applies to whoever you think is excluded or excluded yourself: 'Even that person — even I — taking complete refuge in the divine, attains the supreme goal.' This verse is the Gita's explicit demolition of spiritual gatekeeping in any form.
- Taking complete refuge in the divine (vyapāśritya mām) is the complete criterion: vyapāśritya = completely taking refuge (a thorough, complete surrender). This is the same as the undivided devotion of the worst-sinner verse, the worshipping with devotion of the equal-regard verse, and the thinking of Me undividedly that the chapter's central promise describes. Complete refuge = the devotional orientation consistently held. This is accessible to anyone.
Public-domain translations (3) compare all →
For, taking refuge in Me, they also, O son of Pritha, who might be of inferior birth — women, Vaishyas, as well as Shudras — even they attain to the Supreme Goal. [4]
even who may be of the womb of sin, women, vaisyas, and sudras, shall tread the highest path if they take sanctuary with me. [6]
They also come to me who were of sinful wombs — of women's wombs, and Vaisyas', Shudras' too; / What is it then for holy Brahmans? [7]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
How much more the holy brāhmaṇas and devoted royal sages! This world is transient and joyless — worship Me.
Even if the most sinful worships Me with undivided devotion — he must be deemed righteous, for he has rightly resolved.
The paṇḍita sees equally in a learned Brahmin, cow, elephant, dog, and outcaste — sama-darśana.
Those whose sin has ended — virtuous in deed, freed from dvandva-delusion — worship Me with firm resolve.
This knowledge, more secret than all secrets, has been declared to you — reflect on it fully and act as you wish.
Mind-in-Me, devotee, worshiper, bow to Me — you will come to Me; truly I promise, you are dear to Me.
Verse 32 of 34 · back to Chapter 9