Chapter 6, Verse 31
सर्वभूतस्थितं यो मां भजत्येकत्वमास्थितः | सर्वथा वर्तमानोऽपि स योगी मयि वर्तते ||६-३१||
sarvabhūtasthitaṃ yo māṃ bhajatyekatvamāsthitaḥ . sarvathā vartamāno.api sa yogī mayi vartate ||6-31||
Meaning
6.31 He who, being established in unity, worships Me Who dwells in all beings, that Yogi abides in Me, whatever may be his mode of living.
Word-by-Word Meaning
Explanation & Commentary
Krishna draws out a liberating consequence of the unity-vision. The yogi who is established in oneness (ekatvam asthitah) and worships the Lord dwelling in all beings abides in God 'whatever his mode of living' — sarvatha vartamano api. Whether he is meditating in solitude or moving busily through the marketplace, his communion with the Divine remains unbroken.
This is a profound reassurance for anyone who cannot retreat to a cave. Once the vision of unity is firmly grasped, outer activity no longer threatens inner union. The worship has become not an act performed at certain hours but a way of seeing that pervades every moment. Because he beholds the one Lord in all, every encounter becomes worship, every action takes place within God. Krishna here quietly dismantles the notion that spiritual life requires withdrawal from the world. The realized yogi carries his sanctuary within and dwells in the Divine no matter what his hands are doing.
💡 Key Takeaway
Once rooted in oneness and devotion, you abide in the Divine through every activity of daily life.
Related Verses
प्रशान्तात्मा विगतभीर्ब्रह्मचारिव्रते स्थितः | मनः संयम्य मच्चित्तो युक्त आसीत मत्परः ||६-१४||
praśāntātmā vigatabhīrbrahmacārivrate sthitaḥ . manaḥ saṃyamya maccitto yukta āsīta matparaḥ ||6-14||
6.14 Serene-minded, fearless, firm in the vow of a Brahmachari, having controlled the mind, thinking of Me and balanced in mind, let him sit, having Me as his supreme goal.
युञ्जन्नेवं सदात्मानं योगी नियतमानसः | शान्तिं निर्वाणपरमां मत्संस्थामधिगच्छति ||६-१५||
yuñjannevaṃ sadātmānaṃ yogī niyatamānasaḥ . śāntiṃ nirvāṇaparamāṃ matsaṃsthāmadhigacchati ||6-15||
6.15 Thus always keeping the mind balanced, the Yogi, with the mind controlled, attains to the peace abiding in Me, which culminates in liberation.
यदा विनियतं चित्तमात्मन्येवावतिष्ठते | निःस्पृहः सर्वकामेभ्यो युक्त इत्युच्यते तदा ||६-१८||
yadā viniyataṃ cittamātmanyevāvatiṣṭhate . niḥspṛhaḥ sarvakāmebhyo yukta ityucyate tadā ||6-18||
6.18 When the perfectly controlled mind rests in the Self only, free from longing for all the objects of desires, then it is said, 'He is united'.