Chapter 7 · Shloka 22— The Yoga of Knowledge & Realization

sa tayā śhraddhayā yuktas tasyārādhanam īhate labhate cha tataḥ kāmān mayaiva vihitān hi tān

saḥ

— he

tayā

— with that

śhraddhayā

— faith

yuktaḥ

— endowed with

tasya

— of that

ārādhanam

— worship

īhate

— tries to engange in

labhate

— obtains

cha

— and

tataḥ

— from that

kāmān

— desires

mayā

— by me

eva

— alone

vihitān

— granted

hi

— certainly

tān

— those

"Sa taya sraddhaya yuktas tasyaradhanam ihate, labhate ca tatah kaman mayaiva vihitan hi tan." — Endowed with that faith, he engages in the worship of that deity and obtains his desires through it — desires that are, in reality, ordained by Me alone. Krishna completes the thought from 7.21. The devotee, now equipped with the faith that Krishna Himself has steadied (7.21), worships his chosen deity ('tasya aradhanam ihate') and indeed obtains the desired results ('labhate ca tatah kaman'). The worship is not fruitless; the desires are genuinely fulfilled. But Krishna reveals the hidden truth: 'mayaiva vihitan hi tan' — those very desires are granted by Me alone. Though the devotee imagines that the particular deity is the giver of the boon, in reality it is Krishna, the one Supreme reality behind all deities, who is the true bestower. The lesser deity is, as it were, a channel; the actual power and grace flow from the one Divine source. Shankaracharya explains: since all deities are expressions of the one Supreme, and since Krishna is the inner Self and ultimate dispenser of all fruits, every boon obtained through any form of worship at the deepest level comes from Him. The devotee receives real results, but misattributes the source. This verse continues the theme of divine inclusiveness while subtly pointing toward the higher truth: it is always the one Divine who responds to sincere faith, regardless of the form addressed. The fruits are real, but their true origin is the Supreme. This gently invites the worshipper toward recognizing the one source behind the many forms.

Krishna reveals a subtle truth: even when people attribute their blessings to various lesser sources, it's actually the one ultimate reality working behind them all. The devotee gets real results, but misidentifies where they truly come from. The deeper principle, beyond theology: there's often one underlying source behind the many things we credit for our good fortune. We tend to attribute results to the specific channel — this person, this method, this lucky break — while missing the deeper reality that runs through them all. This invites a more unified, grateful way of seeing: instead of scattering our gratitude among countless separate sources, we can recognize the single deeper reality flowing through everything. It's an invitation to look past the many channels to the one source.

Krishna reveals a subtle truth: even when people credit their blessings to various lesser sources, it's actually the ONE ultimate reality working behind all of them. The devotee gets real results — but misidentifies where they truly come from. The deeper principle, beyond theology: there's often one underlying source behind all the things we credit for our good fortune. We tend to attribute wins to the specific channel — this person, this method, this lucky break — while missing the deeper reality running through them all. This invites a more unified, grateful way of seeing: instead of scattering gratitude among a hundred separate sources, recognize the single deeper reality flowing through everything. It's an invitation to look past the many channels and see the one source.

Krishna shares a hidden secret! When people pray to different gods for their wishes and their wishes come true — Krishna reveals that it was actually HIM, the one Supreme God, granting those wishes all along! The smaller gods are like helpers, but the real gift comes from the one great Divine. It's like getting a present 'from' many different people, but discovering it was really one loving grandparent behind all of them! There's one wonderful source behind all the good things we receive.