Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 3, Verse 10
सहयज्ञाः प्रजाः सृष्ट्वा पुरोवाच प्रजापतिः।
अनेन प्रसविष्यध्वमेष वोऽस्त्विष्टकामधुक्।।
अनेन प्रसविष्यध्वमेष वोऽस्त्विष्टकामधुक्।।
saha-yajñāḥ prajāḥ sṛṣṭvā purovāca prajāpatiḥ
anena prasaviṣyadhvam eṣa vo ’stviṣṭa-kāma-dhuk
also searched as "sahayajnah prajah srishtva purovacha prajapatih"
Translation
In the beginning, the Lord of all beings created man along with the sacrifice and said, "By this shall you prosper; this shall be the cow of plenty, granting all your desires."
Vāṇi's rendering
The Creator made beings together with sacrifice, saying: by this, flourish. Let it grant what you need.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| सहयज्ञाःsaha-yajñāḥ | together with sacrifice — beings brought forth with the act of offering built into them |
| प्रजाःprajāḥ | living beings, the peoples, all that is brought forth |
| सृष्ट्वाsṛṣṭvā | having created, having sent forth |
| पुराpurā | in the beginning, long ago (joins with the next word: purā + uvāca → purovāca) |
| उवाचuvāca | said, spoke |
| प्रजापतिःprajāpatiḥ | the Creator, lord of all that is brought forth |
| अनेनanena | by this — by sacrifice, by the giving |
| प्रसविष्यध्वम्prasaviṣyadhvam | may you bring forth, multiply, flourish |
| एषःeṣa | this, this very thing (eṣaḥ, its final sound softened before the next word) |
| वःvaḥ | for you, yours (written vo before the next word) |
| अस्तुastu | let it be (the initial a is absorbed: vo 'stu) |
| इष्टकामधुक्iṣṭa-kāma-dhuk | the cow that yields whatever is wished for — the milk of what is needed |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 3 Verse 10 mean?
It says the Creator brought beings forth together with yajña — giving was woven into us at the start, not added later as a rule. The instruction is to live by that exchange and flourish through it. What returns is what sustains you, iṣṭa-kāma-dhuk, the milk of what is needed.
What is the meaning of sahayajnah prajah srishtva purovacha prajapatih?
Having created beings along with sacrifice, the lord of all that is brought forth spoke. The single word saha — together — carries the verse. Offering is not a later obligation laid on a finished creature. You arrived already inside a circulation of giving and receiving, and Krishna is reminding Arjuna of that fact.
Does this verse mean I have to perform rituals to prosper?
Yajña here is wider than fire and mantra. It is any act done as offering rather than acquisition — work, feeding someone, raising a child, keeping a promise. The ritual is one shape of it. Whatever you do while holding it out rather than clutching it is the sacrifice meant.
Why does Krishna promise flourishing in return for sacrifice?
Because it is a description, not a bargain. What you give re-enters the circulation that feeds you. The promise is carefully worded — iṣṭa-kāma-dhuk yields what is needed, the way a cow yields milk. It nourishes. It does not fill a vault. Expect sufficiency, and it comes.
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
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Commentary
Beings and sacrifice were made in the same breath — not creatures first, duty bolted on afterward. This is why withdrawal was never available to Arjuna. You were made inside an exchange. Everything sustaining you arrived because something gave: breath, grain, the road under your feet. The design asks that you give in turn, and says you will flourish by it, not despite it. Notice what is promised — let it grant what you need. Not what you crave. Plenty here means nourishment, never hoard. Whatever you ate today came from a hand that was not yours. Give in turn, today.