Whatever my desires, may they take me toward you, never away from you. (7.20)

Bhagavad Gita 7.20

kāmais tais tair hṛta-jñānāḥ prapadyante ‘nya-devatāḥ

taṁ taṁ niyamam āsthāya prakṛtyā niyatāḥ svayā

 

When their desires steal wisdom’s light,

And they serve other gods by rite,

To varied rules, their lives they bind,

By their own nature, mundane and blind.

 

Whatever my desires, may they take me toward you, never away from you.

My dear Lord, even if I desire something other than you, let me not see anyone other than you as the fulfiller of that desire.

You, my merciful Lord, seek a relationship with me even when I seek you as a tool for something mundane. You want to keep me in your shelter, even when I desire something other than you—as I do not seek anyone else as the fulfiller of my desires.

Grant me, O Lord, the conviction that you are the ultimate provider of everything. Whoever else promises me anything—and even delivers it—can do so only because you empower them to do so. When I seek those things through you, such seeking keeps me connected to you and even brings me closer to you. But when I seek those things from someone or something other than you, then that disconnects me from you.

O supremely wise Lord, help me grasp the truth that while the fulfillment or non-fulfillment of my desire matters for my happiness, my connectedness with you or disconnection from you matters far more. Empower me with the clarity and the purity to prioritize my devotional bond with you over my desire fulfillment.

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07.20 Those whose intelligence has been stolen by material desires surrender unto demigods and follow the particular rules and regulations of worship according to their own natures.

Whatever my desires, may they take me toward you, never away from you. (7.20)