Shloka 16
Rāja-Vidyā Rāja-Guhya Yoga (राजविद्या राजगुह्य योग) — The Yoga of Royal Knowledge and Royal Secret
चतुर्विधा भजन्ते मां जना: सुकृतिनोअ<र्जुनर | आर्तों जिज्ञासुरर्थार्थी ज्ञानी च भरतर्षभ,किंतु हे भरतवंशियोंमें श्रेष्ठ अर्जुन! उत्तम कर्म करनेवाले अर्थार्थिर्ड, आर्त,+ जिज्ञासुरई और ज्ञानी२--ऐसे चार प्रकारके भक्तजन मुझको भजते हैं
caturvidhā bhajante māṁ janāḥ sukṛtino 'rjuna | ārto jijñāsur arthārthī jñānī ca bharatarṣabha ||
Arjuna, four kinds of virtuous people turn to Me in devotion: the distressed, the seeker of knowledge, the seeker of worldly gain, and the wise one—O best of the Bharatas. In the moral landscape of the Gītā, this classifies devotion not by social status but by inner motive, showing that even need-driven worship can be a legitimate beginning, while wisdom-based devotion is the most mature form.
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Kṛṣṇa teaches that devotion arises from four main motivations—distress, curiosity for truth, desire for gain, and wisdom—and that all are recognized as meritorious beginnings, with the jñānī representing the most mature, insight-grounded devotion.
On the battlefield discourse of the Mahābhārata, Kṛṣṇa addresses Arjuna and categorizes the kinds of people who approach the Divine, framing Arjuna’s spiritual crisis within a broader ethical-spiritual map of human motives for turning toward God.