Bhagavad-gītā 9.16
Read once with your eyes. Read again aloud.
अहं क्रतुरहं यज्ञः स्वधाऽहमहमौषधम्। मंत्रोऽहमहमेवाज्यमहमग्निरहं हुतम्।।9.16।।
ahaṁ kratur ahaṁ yajñaḥ svadhāham aham auṣhadham mantro ’ham aham evājyam aham agnir ahaṁ hutam
I am the Kratu, I the Yajna, I the Svadhâ, I the Aushadham, I the Mantra, I the Ajyam, I the fire, and I the oblation.
English rendering by Swami Swarupananda. Public domain first edition, 1909.
Build the sentence from its parts
Read across once, then cover the meanings and recover them from the Sanskrit forms.
| Sanskrit form | Meaning here |
|---|---|
| aham | I |
| kratuḥ | Vedic ritual |
| aham | I |
| yajñaḥ | sacrifice |
| svadhā | oblation |
| aham | I |
| aham | I |
| auṣhadham | medicinal herb |
| mantraḥ | Vedic mantra |
| aham | I |
| aham | I |
| eva | also |
| ājyam | clarified butter |
| aham | I |
| agniḥ | fire |
| aham | I |
| hutam | the act offering |
Read the Sanskrit as a connected thought built from aham (I), mantraḥ (Vedic mantra), and hutam (the act offering). Ask what changes between the first and last term, and how that movement contributes to the most confidential royal knowledge. State the connection in your own words, then check it against Bhagavad-gita 9.16.
Original school explanation. Written independently from the Sanskrit word map. It is not a quotation, translation, or summary of a named modern commentary. Chapter lens: Observe the chapter’s first-person claims, the relation between Kṛṣṇa and the world, different forms of worship and accessible devotion.
Five careful reading routes
The cards below are reading references, not claims about what an acharya says in this verse. Modern wording stays inside authorized editions. Classical commentary will appear only after an independent translation has passed scholarly and rights review.
Meaning map
Follow the thought
- 1
I am the Kratu, I the Yajna, I the Svadhâ, I the Aushadham, I the Mantra, I the Ajyam, I the fire
- 2
I the oblation
- 3
aham: I
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A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Bhagavad-gita As It IsFor Bhagavad-gita 9.16, consult the authorized BBT edition. No purport, translation, or author-attributed summary is reproduced here.
Find the authorized editionBhaktivinoda Thakura
Rasika-ranjanaA verified independent rendering for Bhagavad-gita 9.16 has not yet passed scholarly and rights review. Modern translations are not copied here.
Independent rendering pending reviewBaladeva Vidyabhushana
Gita-bhushana-bhashyaThe original work is classical. A newly commissioned or independently prepared translation for Bhagavad-gita 9.16 must be verified before publication.
Independent translation pending reviewVishvanatha Cakravarti Thakura
Sarartha-varshini-tikaThe original work is classical. A newly commissioned or independently prepared translation for Bhagavad-gita 9.16 must be verified before publication.
Independent translation pending reviewOther Gaudiya acharyas
Authorized Gaudiya editionsFor Bhagavad-gita 9.16, later teachers remain a further-reading route. Their wording and distinctive teaching structures require permission or a separate rights review.
Use an authorized edition