Gita 9.16
Raja Vidya Raja Guhya Yoga
अहं क्रतुरहं यज्ञः स्वधाहमहमौषधम्। मन्त्रोऽहमहमेवाज्यमहमग्निरहं हुतम्॥
ahaṁ kratur ahaṁ yajñaḥ svadhāham aham auṣadham | mantro'ham aham evājyam aham agnir ahaṁ hutam ||
In essence: I am the ritual and the sacrifice, the offering and the herb, the mantra and the ghee, the fire and what is offered into it - everything sacred is My own manifestation.
A conversation between a seeker and guide to help you feel this verse deeply
Sadhak-Guru Dialogue
Sadhak: "If Krishna is everything in the ritual - the fire, the offering, the one who offers - then what is the point of performing the ritual at all?"
Guru: "What is the point of a mirror looking at itself?"
Sadhak: "I don't understand..."
Guru: "The ritual is the Divine recognizing Itself through form. Just as a mirror has no 'point' in looking at itself and yet that is its nature, so too the Divine expressing and recognizing Itself through sacred action is simply what Is happening. The ritual doesn't create something new; it reveals what was always true."
Sadhak: "But I don't feel like I am the Divine when I perform rituals. I feel like a limited person trying to connect with something greater."
Guru: "And where does that feeling of limitation come from?"
Sadhak: "From me... from my sense of being small, inadequate..."
Guru: "And that feeling - is it not also appearing in consciousness? Is it not also part of the play? Krishna does not say 'ahaṁ sukham' - I am only the pleasant parts. He says He is the fire AND the offering. Sometimes you appear as the one who feels connected; sometimes as the one who feels separate. Both are divine costume."
Sadhak: "This is disorienting. If everything is Krishna, how do I know what to do?"
Guru: "You continue doing what arises to be done - but now with understanding. Before this knowledge, you performed rituals hoping to please a distant God. Now you understand that the ritual is God pleasing Himself. The action may look the same from outside, but the inner experience is transformed. This is the difference between doing and being."
Sadhak: "So I should continue my practices but with this new understanding?"
Guru: "Yes. The practices themselves will teach you their deeper meaning when approached with this vision. Light the fire knowing you are lighting Krishna with Krishna. Chant the mantra knowing Krishna is chanting to Himself through you. Offer the ghee knowing the offering, the offered, and the receiver are one. Let every ritual become meditation on non-duality."
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🌅 Daily Practice
Before any spiritual practice (meditation, prayer, chanting), pause and consciously acknowledge: 'The One I seek is also the seeking, the practice, and the one practicing. This is not a transaction but a recognition.' Then proceed with your practice. Notice how this shifts the quality from 'doing something to get something' to 'participating in divine self-recognition.'
Take three ordinary activities and transform them into recognition of this verse: (1) While eating, know that Krishna is the food, the hunger, the eating, and the one who eats. (2) While working, know that Krishna is the task, the skill, the effort, and the worker. (3) While speaking, know that Krishna is the words, the voice, the meaning, and both speaker and listener. This practice makes the entire day into one continuous ritual.
Perform a simple offering ritual with full awareness of this verse. Light a candle or lamp and offer something - a flower, a fruit, or simply incense. As you do, silently acknowledge: 'The fire is You. The offering is You. The one offering is You. This act of offering is You. There is only You appearing as all these.' Rest in this recognition. Then carry it into sleep: 'The one who sleeps, the sleep, and the dreaming - all are expressions of the One.'