Gita 09.29 – Krishna is neither impartial nor partial – he is reciprocal

Audio Link: https://www.thespiritualscientist.com/gita-09-29-krishna-is-neither-impartial-nor-partial-he-is-reciprocal/

samo ’haṁ sarva-bhūteṣu
na me dveṣyo ’sti na priyaḥ
ye bhajanti tu māṁ bhaktyā
mayi te teṣu cāpy aham (Bg 9.29)

Word-for-word:
samaḥ — equally disposed; aham — I; sarva-bhūteṣu — to all living entities; na — no one; me — to Me; dveṣyaḥ — hateful; asti — is; na — nor; priyaḥ — dear; ye — those who; bhajanti — render transcendental service; tu — but; mām — unto Me; bhaktyā — in devotion; mayi — are in Me; te — such persons; teṣu — in them; ca — also; api — certainly; aham — I.

Translation:
I envy no one, nor am I partial to anyone. I am equal to all. But whoever renders service unto Me in devotion is a friend, is in Me, and I am also a friend to him.

Explanation:
samo ’haṁ sarva-bhūteṣu: I am equal toward all living beings.
na me dveṣyo ’sti na priyaḥ: I envy no one, nor am I partial to anyone.

The word ‘priya’ normally means ‘dear.’ However, in this context, because it is placed in juxtaposition with dveṣa, the meaning is that Kṛṣṇa is neither unfavorably disposed toward anyone nor especially favorably disposed toward anyone. This naturally raises the question: what, then, about His devotees?

ye bhajanti tu māṁ bhaktyā: But those who worship Me with devotion,
mayi te teṣu cāpy aham: they are in Me, and I am also in them.

It is a very intimate form of union that Kṛṣṇa is describing here. He is not merely saying that He loves them and they love Him. Rather, He speaks of an interpenetration of being itself: He is in them, and they are in Him.

sādhavo hṛdayaṁ mahyaṁ
sādhūnāṁ hṛdayaṁ tv aham
mad-anyat te na jānanti
nāhaṁ tebhyo manāg api (SB 9.4.68)

In the Ninth Canto of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Lord Viṣṇu, while speaking to Durvāsā Muni, says that the sādhus are in His heart, and He is in the hearts of the sādhus. They know no one apart from Him (mad-anyat te na jānanti), and He knows no one apart from them (nāhaṁ tebhyo manāg api). This is an exceptionally intimate form of affection, in which both the lover and the beloved love and live in each other’s hearts.

Furthermore, the second half of the verse under discussion (9.29) contrasts very sharply in emotional tenor with the first half, which emphasizes neutrality—“I am equal to all.” There is a clear and dramatic transition from neutrality in the first half of the verse to intensity and fervency in the second half.

To understand this transition, we need to look at the context. In this entire section, Kṛṣṇa explains that worshipers of the demigods attain only temporary results—kṣīṇe puṇye martya-lokaṁ viśanti (9.21)—whereas His devotees are personally maintained by Him: yoga-kṣemaṁ vahāmy aham (9.22). He then states that there are no rigid rules for worshiping Him; even simple offerings such as patram, puṣpam, phalam, toyam are sufficient (9.26). Finally, He declares, vimukto mām upaiṣyasi (9.28): worshipers of the devatās go to the devatās, but those who worship Him come to Him.

He has also already stated that those who attain Him reach an eternal destination, because His abode itself is eternal. This naturally raises a question: is Kṛṣṇa partial? Does He grant an elevated result to those who worship Him while denying such a result to others? Would this not amount to partiality?

Kṛṣṇa first clarifies this by stating that He is not partial. In fact, He is equal to all. In the first two lines of the verse, He leaves no scope for ambiguity regarding His impartiality when He says, samo ’haṁ sarva-bhūteṣu—to all living beings. This equality is not limited to devotees or demigod worshipers, nor even to human beings alone. Kṛṣṇa is equal toward all living entities.

na me dveṣyo ’sti na priyaḥ—He is present as the Supersoul in the hearts of all living beings, and He does not discriminate. He does not think, “This person is a śūdra; I will not be in his heart,” or “This person is a brāhmaṇa; I will be in his heart.” Nor does He think, “This creature is an insect in stool; I cannot be in its heart,” or “This creature is a swan in clean water; I will be in its heart.”

Kṛṣṇa does not discriminate. He is unflinchingly and unfailingly available to all living beings in His indwelling manifestation as the Supersoul. In this way, He reveals His uncompromising equality and impartiality in His dealings with all living entities.

At the same time, in the second half of the verse, He states, ye bhajanti tu māṁ bhaktyā—those who worship Him with devotion. The word ‘bhaktyā’ appearing here in 9.29 had already appeared three verses earlier, in 9.26, where Kṛṣṇa says, patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati—bhaktyā meaning “with devotion.” Similarly, here too, He emphasizes that those who worship Him not out of ritualistic obligation, but out of genuine devotion—ye bhajanti tu māṁ bhaktyā—mayi te teṣu cāpy aham: I am in them, and they are in Me.

This interpenetration of being is a far more intimate and relishable form of oneness than the oneness achieved through merging. Many people believe that merging into the Absolute Truth leads to liberation. In contrast, the second half of the verse—ye bhajanti tu māṁ bhaktyā mayi te teṣu cāpy aham—is essentially a continuation of what Kṛṣṇa stated earlier in 4.11: ye yathā māṁ prapadyante tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham—as all people surrender unto Him, Kṛṣṇa reciprocates accordingly.

He is reciprocal, and this reciprocity is foundational to His personality and essential for the possibility of loving relationships. If a person is absolutely neutral and unemotional, we may respect that person’s stoicism, but such stoicism makes a deeply intimate and affectionate relationship difficult. There may be admiration, but intimate affection cannot easily develop if there is no response or reciprocation.

Kṛṣṇa, as the Supersoul, is the guide, the overseer, and the permitter, and in that role, He is equal to all living beings. However, when living beings turn toward Him, seek to serve Him, and endeavor to devote themselves to Him, the relationship changes. As it is often said, when we take one step toward God, God takes a hundred steps toward us. In this spirit, Kṛṣṇa says that those who worship Him with devotion, He offers Himself to them—He exists in them—and they, in turn, offer themselves to Him and exist in Him.

It is Kṛṣṇa’s reciprocity that makes His personality tangible, His love transformational, and relationships with Him real. The more we turn toward Kṛṣṇa, the more He reveals His beauty to us, thereby increasing the sweetness of devotion that we relish in our hearts. This, in turn, inspires us to focus more and more of our heart on Him and on Him alone.

That singular focus—an expression of our deep intent to love Him—elicits further reciprocation from Kṛṣṇa. He responds by revealing more and more of His sweetness. In this mutual exchange, where our offering of devotion continually deepens and His revelation of sweetness continually expands, devotion becomes an everlasting, ever-increasing ecstasy.

Thank you.