Vidya-vinaya-sampanne

Here is one of the Gita's most far-reaching declarations. A truly wise person sees the same Atma in a learned Brahmana, in a cow, in a great elephant, in a small dog, and in an outcaste — someone society considers the lowest.

Outwardly, they all look different. Some large, some small. Some honored, some ignored. But within every single one of them dwells the same Atma. Water poured into a gold vessel and water poured into a clay pot is the same water. Bodies differ; the soul within them is one.

When a person truly begins to see one Self in all, distinctions of high and low, worthy and unworthy, dissolve on their own.

This shloka is from Chapter 5, Karma Sannyasa Yoga, where Krishna compares the paths of action and renunciation and concludes that the truly wise person is one who holds equal vision toward all beings. Tradition considers this verse the litmus test of real knowledge — whoever sees the same Atma in all is the true pandit.