Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 9, Verse 23
येऽप्यन्यदेवता भक्ता यजन्ते श्रद्धयाऽन्विताः।
तेऽपि मामेव कौन्तेय यजन्त्यविधिपूर्वकम्।।
तेऽपि मामेव कौन्तेय यजन्त्यविधिपूर्वकम्।।
ye ’pyanya-devatā-bhaktā yajante śraddhayānvitāḥ
te ’pi mām eva kaunteya yajantyavidhi-pūrvakam
also searched as "ye pyanya devata bhakta yajante shraddhayanvitah"
Translation
Even those who are devoted to other divinities with faith in their hearts, worship Me alone, O Arjuna, though not in accordance with the Sastras.
Vāṇi's rendering
Even those who love other gods and worship in faith are worshipping me — without knowing it fully.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| येye | those who |
| अपिapi | even (sandhi: ye + api → ye 'pi) |
| अन्यदेवताभक्ताःanya-devatā-bhaktāḥ | devoted to other gods |
| यजन्तेyajante | worship, offer |
| श्रद्धयाśraddhayā | with faith |
| अन्विताःanvitāḥ | filled with, accompanied by (sandhi: śraddhayā + anvitāḥ) |
| तेte | they |
| अपिapi | also, they too (sandhi: te + api → te 'pi) |
| माम्mām | me |
| एवeva | alone, none but |
| कौन्तेयkaunteya | Arjuna, son of Kuntī |
| यजन्तिyajanti | they worship (sandhi: yajanti + avidhi → yajantyavidhi) |
| अविधिपूर्वकम्avidhi-pūrvakam | not by the prescribed way; without right understanding of the form |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 9 Verse 23 mean?
It means that faith offered anywhere arrives in one place. Krishna tells Arjuna that those who worship other gods with śraddhā are worshipping him too — not by mistake, but without knowing it fully. Their devotion is real. Only their understanding of where it lands is incomplete.
What is the meaning of 'ye pyanya devata bhakta yajante shraddhayanvitah'?
The line names people who love gods other than Krishna and worship them sincerely. Śraddhayā anvitāḥ — filled with faith. Krishna does not dismiss them. He says their worship reaches him anyway, though avidhi-pūrvakam: performed without the right understanding of what is being reached.
Does this verse say other forms of worship are wrong?
No. Krishna calls the method incomplete, not the heart false. Avidhi-pūrvakam points to knowledge, not to sincerity. The correction offered here is gentle — see clearly whom you have been loving all along. Nothing in the devotion itself is being asked to change.
How does Bhagavad Gita 9.23 apply to my own faith today?
It removes the anxiety of competing religions from your chest. If every genuine offering reaches the same place, then another person's prayer is not a threat to yours. Krishna is quietly telling you to stop counting sides. Attend instead to the faith you actually carry.
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
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Commentary
Krishna does not say those worshippers are wrong. He says they are already reaching him and do not know whose hand receives it. The offering finds its address regardless of the name on the envelope — this is not tolerance granted from above, it is a statement about where all offerings go. What is missing is not sincerity but knowledge; avidhi-pūrvakam means the form is imperfect, not the love. Arjuna hears that the faith of others is no rival to his own. So when you meet someone praying to a god you do not recognize, you are watching your own worship in a different accent.