Gita 7.17

Sadhak: "Krishna seems to be playing favorites. He says the jnani is 'exceedingly dear.' What about the others?"

Guru: "He doesn't reject the others—He called them all sukritinah. But He's honest about degrees. A parent loves all children, but a grown child who understands and loves the parent back enjoys a different quality of relationship than an infant who only cries for milk. The jnani's relationship is mutual; the others are still largely one-directional."

Sadhak: "But isn't it unfair? The arta suffers, turns to God, and gets less love than someone who happens to have wisdom?"

Guru: "It's not 'less love' from Krishna's side—it's limited reception on the seeker's side. Sunlight falls equally on a closed room and an open field, but the field receives more. The arta's seeking is real, but clouded by suffering. The artharthi's is clouded by desire. The jnani's heart is fully open—so fully open that receiving and giving become identical."

Sadhak: "'Nitya-yukta'—ever-united. That sounds impossible. My attention wanders constantly. Is perfect concentration required?"

Guru: "Not concentration in the sense of effort. The jnani isn't straining to stay connected—they can't disconnect because they know there's nowhere to disconnect to. It's like asking if you're always united with space. You can't separate from space; you exist within it. The jnani's union is like that—effortless because there's no alternative."

Sadhak: "'Eka-bhakti'—devotion to One alone. Does that mean withdrawing from all other relationships?"

Guru: "No—it means seeing One in all relationships. The jnani doesn't love family less; they see the Divine in family. Eka-bhakti isn't exclusive devotion that rejects the world but inclusive vision that recognizes everything as Divine. One beloved appearing as many forms—that's the jnani's perception."

Sadhak: "Krishna says 'I am dear to the jnani.' But doesn't the jnani see everything as one? How can they have a personal beloved?"

Guru: "Beautiful question. The jnani holds a paradox: non-dual awareness and devotional love coexist. They know there's no separation, yet they love. They see themselves as waves knowing they're the ocean, yet the wave still rises toward the sun. Knowledge doesn't destroy love—it perfects it. The jnani loves Krishna while being Krishna."

Sadhak: "And Krishna says the jnani is dear to Him. Does the Absolute really have preferences?"

Guru: "This is the mystery of divine love. From one perspective, the Divine is beyond preference—equal in all. From another, it responds to receptivity. A tuning fork that matches your frequency resonates more strongly than one that doesn't—not because you reject others but because resonance is natural. The jnani resonates completely with the Divine. The word 'priya' suggests something like delight, a divine enjoyment of recognition."

Sadhak: "How do I become this jnani? It seems so far from where I am."

Guru: "You don't 'become' it through accumulation. You uncover it through subtraction—removing what obscures your natural state. The jnani isn't someone who acquired wisdom but someone who shed ignorance. Every moment of presence, of surrender, of recognizing the Divine, removes a veil. Eventually, who you truly are is revealed—and that one has always been dear to Krishna, always been united, always been devoted to the One."