Sanskrit
अध्येष्यते च य इमं धर्म्यं संवादमावयोः । ज्ञानयज्ञेन तेनाहमिष्टः स्यामिति मे मतिः ॥ ७० ॥
adhyeṣyate ca ya imaṃ dharmyaṃ saṃvādam āvayoḥ jñāna-yajñena tenāham iṣṭaḥ syām iti me matiḥ
Translation
And he who shall study this sacred dialogue of ours, by him I shall be worshipped with the sacrifice of wisdom. Such is My mind.
Annie Besant · The Bhagavad-Gita, translated by Annie Besant (4th ed., 1922) — Wikisource · Public Domain
Explanation
Even merely studying this dialogue counts as worship, “the sacrifice of wisdom” (jnana-yajna) — the same reframing of intellectual engagement as sacrifice that chapter 4 introduced when it ranked the sacrifice of wisdom above sacrifice of substance. Krishna isn’t only rewarding perfect surrender here; he’s building a ladder with multiple rungs that different levels of engagement with the teaching can actually reach. Even studying the dialogue is a jñāna-yajña, the sacrifice of knowledge (BG 4.33) — and by it, Krishna says, “I am worshipped.” Reading the Gita is itself an offering.
Study deeper
Word by word
- adhyeṣyate ca ya imaṃअध्येष्यते च य इमं
- and whoever shall study this (adhyeṣyate + ca + yaḥ + imam)
- dharmyaṃ saṃvādam āvayoḥधर्ंयं संवादं आवयोः
- righteous dialogue of ours (dharmyam + saṃvādam + āvayoḥ)
- jñāna-yajñena tenāhamज्ञान-यज्ञेन तेनाहं
- by him, with the sacrifice of knowledge (jñāna-yajñena + tena + aham)
- iṣṭaḥ syām iti me matiḥइष्टः स्यां इति मे मतिः
- I would be worshipped — such is My view (iṣṭaḥ + syām + iti + me + matiḥ)
Commentary
Site Commentary
“Such is my mind” — iti me matiḥ — is an odd hedge to attach to a claim about cosmic worship. Krishna doesn’t say this is simply how reality works, he frames it as his own judgment, offered rather than decreed. Even Krishna, delivering what should be the most authoritative possible claim, chooses to mark it as a considered opinion rather than an unqualified fact.
Original commentary written for this site · © Amit Singh — original commentary
Apply this verse
Lessons
Personal
- When you state something you're genuinely confident about, it can still help to mark it as your considered view rather than flat fact — conviction and humility about your own certainty aren't opposites, and both can be true in the same sentence.
Professional
- When presenting a strong recommendation to leadership, framing it as 'this is my read' rather than an unqualified fact often makes the same conviction easier for others to actually engage with rather than simply defer to or resist.
Family & Social
- When you share a strong opinion with someone close to you, saying 'this is how I see it' instead of stating it as plain fact keeps the door open for their view — conviction doesn't require certainty about being the only right one.
Ask yourself
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