Shloka 5
Chapter 19
तस्माज् ज्ञानेन सहितं ज्ञात्वा स्वात्मानम् उद्धव ।
ज्ञान-विज्ञान-सम्पन्नो भज मां भक्ति-भावतः ॥
tasmāj jñānena sahitaṃ jñātvā svātmānam uddhava / jñāna-vijñāna-sampanno bhaja māṃ bhakti-bhāvataḥ //
ထို့ကြောင့် အုဒ္ဓဝာ၊ ဉာဏ်နှင့်အတူ မိမိ၏ အတ္တမန်အမှန်ကို သိမြင်ပြီး၊ ဉာဏ-ဝိညာဏ ပြည့်စုံကာ၊ ဘက္တိ-ဘာဝဖြင့် ငါ့ကို ပူဇော်ပါ။
In this verse, Śrī Kṛṣṇa guides Uddhava to integrate self-knowledge with devotion. Mere intellectual understanding (jñāna) can remain abstract unless it matures into lived realization (vijñāna)—a steady, experiential clarity that transforms one’s character and choices. Kṛṣṇa therefore begins with the foundation: know the self (svātmānam) as distinct from the temporary body and mind. Yet He does not stop at impersonal self-analysis; the culmination is bhajana—loving worship of the Supreme Person. The instruction also resolves a common spiritual tension: whether liberation is attained by knowledge or devotion. Here, Kṛṣṇa harmonizes them—true knowledge should lead to devotion, and devotion becomes most stable when rooted in right understanding of the self and the Lord. “Bhakti-bhāvataḥ” emphasizes the inner orientation: not mechanical ritual, but heartfelt surrender, gratitude, and loving service. Thus, the verse teaches that the perfected stage of knowledge is to recognize oneself as Kṛṣṇa’s eternal servant and to live accordingly through devotional worship.
FAQs
Jñāna is spiritual understanding of truth, while vijñāna is realized, practical wisdom—knowledge that becomes lived experience and transforms one’s devotion and conduct.
Because self-knowledge removes bodily misidentification, and when that clarity matures, it naturally culminates in loving service to the Supreme Person—bhakti grounded in realization.
Perform spiritual practices and duties with an inner mood of devotion—remembering Krishna, offering results to Him, and cultivating sincerity rather than mere ritualism.