📿 Shloka Collection

Patram Pushpam Phalam Toyam

Gita 9.26 Bhagavad Gita
📖 Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 9 — Raja Vidya Raja Guhya Yoga
पत्रं पुष्पं फलं तोयं यो मे भक्त्या प्रयच्छति ।
तदहं भक्त्युपहृतमश्नामि प्रयतात्मनः ॥
Patram pushpam phalam toyam yo me bhaktya prayachchhati
Tad aham bhakty-upahritam ashnami prayatatmanah
पत्रम्
a leaf
पुष्पम्
a flower
फलम्
a fruit
तोयम्
water
यः
whoever
मे
to me
भक्त्या
with devotion
प्रयच्छति
offers
तत् अहम्
that I
भक्त्युपहृतम्
offered with devotion
अश्नामि
I accept, I receive
प्रयतात्मनः
from one with a pure heart

This is among the most beloved shlokas in the Gita. Krishna says: I do not need grand ceremonies. Offer me a leaf, a flower, a fruit, or even just water — and if it comes from a devoted and pure heart, I will accept it.

Four simple things — patram, pushpam, phalam, toyam. A child can find them. A person with no money can offer them. The entire structure of expensive rituals is set aside in one sentence. What matters is not the gift but the giver's heart.

The word 'prayatatmanah' — from one whose inner self is pure — is the real condition. A king's gold offering and a villager's tulsi leaf stand equal before Krishna. The bhava is the measure, not the material.

This shloka is considered the essence of bhakti yoga. In 9.34, Krishna will again say 'manmana bhav madbhaktah' — fix your mind on me, be my devotee. This shloka is the practical foundation for that.

Across the bhakti tradition, this verse has been a source of comfort for those with limited means. Sant poets have returned to it again and again to affirm that simple, heartfelt devotion is enough.

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