Bhagavad Gītā Chapter 12, Verse 16: Krishna to Arjuna — Bhakti-Yoga
He wants nothing, stays clean and capable, stands apart from every side, is free of distress, and drops every self-willed undertaking, that devotee of mine is dear to me.
Bhāṣyakāra purports
- Śaṅkaraadvaita
The devotee who is without longing (anapeкsha) toward body, senses, and their objects is freed from the pull of what is other than the Self. Inner and outer purity (shaucha) together with immediate competence (daksha) in arising duties mark one established in equanimity — standing as a witness (udasina) who takes no side, not even friendship's side. Abandoning all action-initiations (sarvarambha-parityagi) whose seed is desire for fruit here or hereafter, such a one who is My devotee is dear to Me.
- Rāmānujaviśiṣṭādvaita
Anapeкsha here means indifference to every object other than the Atman — the devotee wants nothing beside the Lord. Purity (shaucha) is the body refined by scripture-enjoined substances; competence (daksha) is fitness for scriptural action; elsewhere the devotee stands unattached (udasina). Pain-freeness (gata-vyatha) is the absence of distress even amid unavoidable cold, heat, and harsh touch that arise in executing scripture's rites. Sarvarambha-parityagi means abandonment of every karma not sanctioned by shastra; such a devotee who acts only as kainkarya (service) to Bhagavan is supremely dear to Me.
- Madhvadvaita
Sarvarambha-parityagi receives its specific content from the general-to-particular reading strategy (samanya-vishesha): the general statement here specifies what the subsequent verse's 'one who does not rejoice' (yo na hrishyati, 12.17) partially instantiates. Joy and its absence are kadachitka (occasional) — hence the next verse clarifies that even occasional elation is absent in the highest devotee. The present verse's cluster of qualities is a elaboration (vistara) of the earlier teaching 'those who surrender all actions to Me' (ye tu sarvani karmani, 12.6), not a repetition; it deepens the hierarchy of devotional excellence without contradiction.
- Vallabhaśuddhādvaita
Anapeкsha means: the devotee does not even desire the four forms of liberation — salokya, sarshti, sarupya, samipya — let alone worldly objects, citing the Bhagavata (3.29.13) that those who truly serve Me do not accept even these when offered. Purity (shuchi) is conduct flowing from acarya-transmission, because dharma is born from conduct (acaraprabhavo dharmah). Daksha is skill and dexterity in the particular adornments (shrngara-yojana) of Bhagavan's seva. Sarvarambha-parityagi is the abandonment of every worldly initiation — family, wealth, comfort — that would become a distraction (udvega) or obstruction (pratibandha) to seva; such things are positively harmful (ghatakattva) to the devotee.
- Śrīdharabhakti
Anapeкsha is desirelessness toward any wealth or object that arrives of itself (yadricchopasthita): even unsolicited fortune does not arouse longing. Shuchi denotes one endowed with both outer bodily purity and inner mental purity. Daksha is 'non-lazy' (analasa) — prompt and unfailing in what must be done. Udasina is one free of partiality (pakshapata-rahita). Gata-vyatha is freedom from anxiety (adhi-shunya). Sarvarambha-parityagi is one whose settled disposition is to abandon all undertakings (udyama) aimed at visible or invisible fruits. Such a devotee of Mine is dear to Me.
- Madhusūdanaadvaita-bhakti
Nirapeкsha (desirelessness) extends to all enjoyment-instruments (bhogapakarana) whether or not they arrive unsolicited. Gata-vyatha receives a precise two-level gloss: the first level is that pain never arises even when struck by enemies; the second is that when pain does arise the devotee does not retaliate — these are distinct (bheda) excellences, not one. Sarvarambha-parityagi identifies the renunciant (sannyasi) who has abandoned all karma aimed at fruits in this world or the next — explicitly the sannyasa-bhakta, integrating Advaita's renunciation with devotion. Such a devotee is dear to Me.