Gita 14.27
Gunatraya Vibhaga Yoga
ब्रह्मणो हि प्रतिष्ठाहममृतस्याव्ययस्य च | शाश्वतस्य च धर्मस्य सुखस्यैकान्तिकस्य च ||२७||
brahmaṇo hi pratiṣṭhāham amṛtasyāvyayasya ca | śāśvatasya ca dharmasya sukhasyaikāntikasya ca ||27||
In essence: I am the foundation of Brahman - the immortal, imperishable, eternal dharma, and absolute bliss.
A conversation between a seeker and guide to help you feel this verse deeply
Sadhak-Guru Dialogue
Sadhak: "Wait - Krishna is the foundation of Brahman? I thought Brahman was the ultimate reality, the ground of everything."
Guru: "Different traditions interpret this differently. Some say the personal God is a face of impersonal Brahman. This verse suggests the opposite - the impersonal rests on the personal. Perhaps both are true from different perspectives, or perhaps the distinction itself dissolves at the ultimate level."
Sadhak: "Why does Krishna make this claim at the end of the gunas chapter?"
Guru: "Because devotion is the method and knowing where devotion leads matters. If Krishna were less than Brahman, devotion to Him might not lead to the ultimate. By declaring Himself as Brahman's foundation, He assures the devotee: 'Love Me, and you reach the highest. Nothing is beyond what devotion to Me reveals.'"
Sadhak: "The attributes mentioned - immortal, imperishable, eternal dharma, absolute happiness - these sound like what was promised for guna-transcendence. Are they the same?"
Guru: "Yes. Earlier verses said transcending gunas leads to amṛta (immortality). Now we learn: Krishna is the foundation of that immortality. The goal described philosophically is revealed personally. The devotee doesn't just attain a state; they come home to their beloved, who was always the ground of everything."
Sadhak: "So the whole journey of guna-understanding leads to devotion, and devotion leads to Krishna, who is the foundation of everything?"
Guru: "Beautifully summarized. That's the complete teaching of Chapter 14. Know the gunas to see through their binding. Transcend the gunas through devoted love. And find that love's destination is Reality itself - immortal, imperishable, eternally right, absolutely blissful."
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🌅 Daily Practice
Begin with recognition: the immortal, imperishable reality that transcends all gunas - Krishna is its foundation. Whatever this day brings, it arises and dissolves in that eternal ground. Orientation toward that ground transforms everything.
Let the day's activities be offered to that foundation. The tasks are temporary; the foundation is eternal. The emotions are guna-movements; the witness rests on the imperishable. This continuous remembrance is living prayer.
End the day resting in what doesn't end. The body sleeps; what witnesses sleep doesn't sleep. That awareness, grounded in Krishna, is your true nature. Rest in absolute happiness, even for a moment, and let that taste inspire tomorrow's practice.