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Bhagavad-gītā 18.69

न च तस्मान्मनुष्येषु कश्चिन्मे प्रियकृत्तम: । भविता न च मे तस्मादन्य: प्रियतरो भुवि ॥ ६९ ॥
na ca tasmān manuṣyeṣu
[na cha tasmaan manushyeshu]
kaścin me priya-kṛttamaḥ
[kashchin me priya-krittamah]
bhavitā na ca me tasmād
[bhavitaa na cha me tasmaad]
anyaḥ priya-taro bhuvi
[anyah priya-taro bhuvi]
Word-for-word
na — never ca — and tasmāt — than him manuṣyeṣu — among men kaścit — anyone me — to Me priya - kṛt - tamaḥ — more dear bhavitā — will become na — nor ca — and me — to Me tasmāt — than him anyaḥ — another priya - taraḥ — dearer bhuvi — in this world .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
na ca tasmān manuṣyeṣu
na
never
ca
and
tasmāt
than him
manuṣyeṣu
among men
kaścin me priya-kṛttamaḥ
kaścit
anyone
me
to Me
priya - kṛt - tamaḥ
more dear
bhavitā na ca me tasmād
bhavitā
will become
na
nor
ca
and
me
to Me
tasmāt
than him
anyaḥ priya-taro bhuvi
anyaḥ
another
priya - taraḥ
dearer
bhuvi
in this world .
Important Words
  • tasmāt — than him
    Ablative — *than* the teacher described in the previous verse. The comparison is sharp: no one else is dearer.
  • priya - kṛt - tamaḥ — more dear
    Triple compound from the synonyms list. Priya — beloved; kṛt — doer; tama — superlative. The one who *does* beloved-service most. The verse names a precise spiritual office: chief among the Lord's friends.
  • manuṣyeṣu — among men
    Locative plural. Specifically within the human realm. Among manuṣyas — among those with the rare gift of human birth — this is the highest station.
  • bhavitā — will become
    Future tense — *there will (not) be*. Combined with the verse's negation: not only is there no one dearer now — there will never be. The verse extends across time. The office of Gītā-teacher remains the dearest in every age.
  • priya - taraḥ — dearer
    Compound comparative. Echoes priya-kṛt-tamaḥ. The verse seals its claim twice — once in superlative (priya-kṛt-tamaḥ), once in comparative (priya-taraḥ). Redundancy as emphasis.
There is no servant in this world more dear to Me than he, nor will there ever be one more dear.
Classical Sanskrit analysis शास्त्रीय विश्लेषण
How Sanskrit scholars read this verse — split, rearranged, grammar-tagged. For the plain English distilled meaning, jump to Plain meaning below.
Auto-generated study layers — original analysis of the public-domain śloka. Review against a published edition for academic work.
Plain meaning (तात्पर्य · Tātparya)
No one among humans is dearer to Kṛṣṇa than the one who shares the Gītā with fellow devotees — nor will there ever be. The double superlative (now and ever) crowns the teacher of devotion.
Further notes (विवरण · Vivaraṇa)
Continuation of v. 68. The phala-śruti is exceptional: not merely a reward but the highest possible relational status with Kṛṣṇa. Sets the stage for the long tradition of Gītā-pravacana / Bhāgavata-pravacana as soteriologically potent activity. 'Bhavitā' (periphrastic future) makes the claim time-binding into the future as well.
Prose order (अन्वय · Anvaya)
तस्मात् मनुष्येषु मे प्रिय-कृत्तमः कश्चित् न । तस्मात् अन्यः मे प्रिय-तरः भुवि न भविता च ।
tasmāt manuṣyeṣu me priya-kṛttamaḥ kaścit na | tasmāt anyaḥ me priya-taraḥ bhuvi na bhavitā ca |
And there is no one among humans who does dearer work for Me than he; nor will there be on earth another more dear to Me than he.
Word split (पदच्छेद · Padaccheda)
न च तस्मात् मनुष्येषु कश्चित् मे प्रिय-कृत्तमः । भविता न च मे तस्मात् अन्यः प्रिय-तरः भुवि ॥
na ca tasmāt manuṣyeṣu kaścit me priya-kṛttamaḥ | bhavitā na ca me tasmāt anyaḥ priya-taraḥ bhuvi ||
Grammar (व्याकरण · Vyākaraṇa)
SanskritIASTGrammarMeaning
न na ind. (indeclinable) negation not
च ca ind. (indeclinable) and
तस्मात् tasmāt तद् (pron. (pronoun)) abl.sg. (ablative singular)m. than him
मनुष्येषु manuṣyeṣu मनुष्य (m.) loc.pl. (locative plural) among humans
कश्चित् kaścit किम् (pron. (pronoun)) + चित् nom.sg. (nominative singular)m. anyone
मे me अस्मद् (pron. (pronoun)) gen.sg. (genitive singular) to Me
प्रिय-कृत्तमः priya-kṛttamaḥ tatpuruṣa cpd. (compound) superl. nom.sg. (nominative singular)m. doing the most dear deed
भविता bhavitā √भू fut. (future) 3sg.par. (periph.) will be
अन्यः anyaḥ अन्य (pron. (pronoun)) nom.sg. (nominative singular)m. another
प्रिय-तरः priya-taraḥ compar. (comparative) nom.sg. (nominative singular)m. more dear
भुवि bhuvi भू (f.) loc.sg. (locative singular) on earth
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
69. Among men there is no one so dear to Me. There will never be one dearer to Me than he.
Commentary

There is no other whom I love so much as the person who teaches bhakti.

Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa Gauḍīya
Translation
69. Among men, there is no one who has satisfied Me as much and never will there be in the future. There has never been one dearer to Me than he in this world, and there will never be in the future.
Commentary

Among all men, there has never been one who satisfies Me (priya kṛttamaḥ) as much as the teacher of the Gītā, nor will there be such a person in the future. There has been no one dearer to Me in this world in the past, and there will be no one dearer in the future.

Study Notes — Gauranga Priya Dāsa
Gauranga Priya Dāsa Study
Bhakti-śāstrī Notes, ISKCON Chowpatty (2009)
Theme

Benediction for the teacher/preacher

THEME: No one is a more dear servant to Me than he (As mentioned in 18.68), nor will there ever be one

more dear

Classical Ācāryas
Śrī Śaṅkarācārya Classical
Translation
18.69 Ca, and; tasmat, as compared with him, with the one who hands down the Scripture; na kascit, none else; manusyesu, among human beings; is priya-krt-tamah, the best accomplisher of what is dear; me, to Me, i.e., among the present human beings, surely none else other than him exists who is a better accomplisher of what I cherish. Moreover, na bhavita, nor will there be in future; anyah, anyone else, a second person; bhuvi, in he world, here; priyatarah, dearer; tasmat, than him. [It may be argued that, since for a seeker of Liberation meditation is the best means for It, therefore he will have no inclination to transmit scriptural teachings. To this the Lord's answer is: One longing for Liberation has a duty to impart this scriptural teaching to one possessing the aforesaid alities.]
Śrī Rāmānujācārya Classical
Translation
18.69 There never exists nor has existed anyone other than such a person as described, who does greater service to Me than he. In the future too, there will not be another such. The first reference is to those who are not worthy to hear the Gita. It is meant to teach that explaining it to them is more displeasing to the Lord than not teaching to those who are worthy.
Śrī Abhinavagupta Classical
Translation
18.69 See Comment under 18.72
Swami Sivananda Classical
Translation
18.69 Nor is there any among men who does dearer service to Me, nor shall there be another on earth dearer to Me than he.
Commentary

18.69 न not? च and? तस्मात् than he? मनुष्येषु among men? कश्चित् any? मे of Me? प्रियकृत्तमः one who does dearer service? भविता shall be? न not? च and? मे of Me? तस्मात् than he? अन्यः another? प्रियतरः dearer? भुवि on the earth.Commentary He who hands down this Gita to My devotees does immense service to Me. He is very dear to Me. There is none in the present generation who des dearer service to Me? nor shall there be in future also in this world.Bhuvi On earth in this world.

Swami Gambhīrānanda Classical
Translation
18.69 And as compared with him, none else among human beings is the best accomplisher of what is dear to Me. Moreover, nor will there be anyone else in the world dearer to Me than he.
Shri Purohit Swami Classical
Translation
18.69 Nor is there among men any who can perform a service dearer to Me than this, or any man on earth more beloved by Me than he.
Related values & verses
Related values
Prema (Divine Love)Kshama (Forgiveness / Patience)Anahankarah (Freedom from False Ego)Shraddha (Faith / Reverence)Svadhyaya (Self-study & Scripture Study)
Related verses
BG 12.13 BG 7.17 BG 11.55 SB 10.9.21 SB 11.14.17 SB 11.29.34 CC Antya 4.70 CC Madhya 7.128 CC Madhya 25.264 Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad 3.2.4BRS 1.2.235
Study Q&A referencing this verse
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
There is no servant in this world more dear to Me than he, nor will there ever be one more dear.
Practical Applications
  • Receive the affection: spreading the Gītā makes you most dear to Kṛṣṇa.
  • Trust the love behind this verse.
  • Use it as motivation.
Reflection Questions
  • Has Kṛṣṇa's love motivated me as much as my own preferences?
  • What does this verse open?
Analogy

Among countless servants of a great king, the one most beloved is the one who carries the king's voice to his children. So with the teacher of the Gītā: no servant of the Lord ranks higher than the one who hands the Lord's own words forward.

Stories
Vyāsadeva

Vyāsadeva compiled the Vedas, composed the Mahābhārata (within which the Gītā sits), and dictated the Bhāgavatam. By 18.69's standard he is na tasmāt manuṣyeṣu kaścit me priya-kṛt-tamaḥ — none more dear in the human realm.

The Gauḍīya tradition holds Vyāsa-pūjā precisely because of this verse: the one who transmits the Gītā to subsequent generations is incomparably dear to Kṛṣṇa.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

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