Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 9, Verse 26
पत्रं पुष्पं फलं तोयं यो मे भक्त्या प्रयच्छति।
तदहं भक्त्युपहृतमश्नामि प्रयतात्मनः।।
तदहं भक्त्युपहृतमश्नामि प्रयतात्मनः।।
patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati
tadahaṁ bhaktyupahṛtam aśnāmi prayatātmanaḥ
also searched as "patram pushpam phalam toyam yo me bhaktya prayacchati"
Translation
Whoever offers Me with true devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit, or some water, I accept this offering made with devotion by them who are pure of heart.
Vāṇi's rendering
A leaf, a flower, a fruit, water — offered to me with love from a pure heart, I accept.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| पत्रम्patraṁ | a leaf |
| पुष्पम्puṣpaṁ | a flower |
| फलम्phalaṁ | a fruit |
| तोयम्toyaṁ | water |
| यःyaḥ | whoever |
| मेme | to me |
| भक्त्याbhaktyā | with love, with devotion |
| प्रयच्छतिprayacchati | offers, holds out |
| तत्tat | that (sandhi: tat + ahaṁ becomes tadahaṁ) |
| अहम्ahaṁ | I |
| भक्ति-उपहृतम्bhakti-upahṛtam | brought near out of love (sandhi: bhakti + upahṛtam becomes bhaktyupahṛtam) |
| अश्नामिaśnāmi | I eat, I consume |
| प्रयत-आत्मनःprayata-ātmanaḥ | from one whose heart is clean and gathered |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 9 Verse 26 mean?
It means the offering is never the point. A leaf, a flower, a fruit, water — Krishna names the cheapest things on earth, and says he takes them when they come with bhakti from a clean heart. The gift is small on purpose. What is being measured is the giver, not the goods.
What is the meaning of patram pushpam phalam toyam?
Leaf, flower, fruit, water. Four things anyone can reach without money, rank, or priest. Krishna lists them to close every excuse. You do not need to wait until you have something worthy; worthiness is not in the object. It enters through the hand that offers, and the heart behind the hand.
Does God really accept such a small offering?
Krishna does not say he tolerates it. He says aśnāmi — I eat it. The word is intimate, almost bodily. What is offered with love is taken in, not filed away. Smallness is no obstacle at all. Half-heartedness is the only offering that stays on the plate.
What does prayatatmanah mean in this verse?
One whose inner self is gathered and clean — not ritually spotless, but undivided. The heart that is not offering with one hand while bargaining with the other. Krishna attaches the condition to the giver, never to the gift. Simplify what you bring, and let the simplicity go all the way in.
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Commentary
Krishna has just described sacrifices, sages, the vast machinery of worship. Then this. A leaf. Water. The list is deliberately small — nothing you must buy, nothing you must be wealthy or ordained to hold. What is weighed is not the leaf but the love that carries it, and the heart it comes from. Arjuna is a warrior surrounded by grand ritual, and he is being told the whole apparatus is optional. Notice the verb — aśnāmi, I eat. Krishna does not merely accept; he consumes what you hand him. Whatever is nearest you right now is enough, if you give it and not the leftovers.