Bhagavad Gita BG 4.31
Chapter 4, Verse 31 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
यज्ञशिष्टामृतभुजो यान्ति ब्रह्म सनातनम् । नायं लोकोऽस्त्ययज्ञस्य कुतोऽन्यः कुरुसत्तम ॥
yajna-shishta-amrita-bhujo yanti brahma sanatana nayam loko 'sty ayajnasya kuto 'nyah kurusattama
Meaning
Those who eat the amrita (nectar) of the remnants of yajna go to the eternal Brahman. This world is not even for the one who performs no yajna — how then the next, O best of Kurus?
Understanding
Yajna-shishta-amrita: the 'amrita' (nectar, immortality) left over from yajna. This refers to the inner fruit of practice — after the offering, what remains is pure, purified, nectar-like. Those who 'eat' this (live by the purified state that follows genuine yajna) go to sanatanam Brahman (the eternal, ever-existing Brahman). The stark statement: without yajna, one doesn't even prosper in this world — how much less in the higher realms?
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| यज्ञशिष्ट | yajna-shishta | remnants of yajna, what is left after sacrifice |
| अमृत | amrita | nectar, immortality, the purified remainder |
| सनातनम् | sanatana | eternal, ever-existing, ancient |
| अयज्ञस्य | ayajnasya | of the one without yajna |
| कुरुसत्तम | kurusattama | O best of Kurus (Arjuna) |
| भुजाः | bhujaḥ | who eat / who partake (of yajna remnants) |
| यान्ति | yānti | go / attain / reach |
| ब्रह्म | brahma | Brahman / the eternal absolute |
| नायम् | nāyam | not this / this is not (for the non-sacrificer) |
| लोकः | lokaḥ | world / this world |
| अस्ति | asti | is / exists |
| कुतः | kutaḥ | how / from where / much less |
| अन्यः | anyaḥ | the other / the next (world) |