BG 12.8 — Bhakti-Yoga — Sūtrakṛt-Gītā

Bhagavad Gītā 12.8Chapter 12 · Bhakti-Yoga · Krishna → Arjuna · anuṣṭubh

मय्येव मन आधत्स्व मयि बुद्धिं निवेशय ।

निवसिष्यसि मय्येव अत ऊर्ध्वं न संशयः ॥

mayy eva mana ādhatsva mayi buddhiṃ niveśaya

nivasiṣyasi mayy eva ata ūrdhvaṃ na saṃśayaḥ

spokensingle-voice recital; rendered via IndicF5 conditioned on a Sanskrit reference clip

meaning

Set your mind on Me alone, and rest your understanding in Me. You will dwell in Me after this life, with no doubt about it.

ekras · bhāṣya

Place the manas in Me alone. Settle the buddhi in Me. You will dwell in Me afterwards. No doubt. Two imperatives: adhatsva — place; niveshaya — settle. One assurance: nivasishyasi — you will dwell. The verse names the simplest possible practice.

Shankara reads each precisely. Manas — the inner organ that grasps and feels — placed in Krishna. Buddhi — the discriminating intellect — settled in Krishna. Both inner instruments oriented at Krishna alone; the practice is structural. Nivasishyasi mayi eva — you will dwell in Me alone — names the destination as the natural extension of the practice. Na samshayah — no doubt — closes the assurance.

Madhusudana reads with characteristic precision: the verse is the chapter's most direct prescription for the bhakta. Both manas and buddhi need to be placed; the verse asks for both. The dwelling-in-Me-after-this-life is not earned by additional practice; it follows from the inner placement.

Ramanuja reads with characteristic warmth: Bhagavan is naming what the bhakta should do, plain and simple. The dwelling that follows is the natural completion of the placement.

Madhva reads on the bheda-frame: the eternally distinct jiva places its instruments in Hari; svatantra Hari grants the dwelling-with as the natural fruit.

Vallabha reads through pushti-marga: the placement is itself the prasada's working channel; the dwelling is what follows.

Shridhara reads cleanly: place manas, settle buddhi, you will dwell, no doubt.

Context

where

Chapter 12 · Bhakti-Yoga · meter anuṣṭubh

who speaks

Krishna → Arjuna

preceded by — BG 12.7

Fix your mind on Me, and I will swiftly lift you out of the ocean of death and rebirth.

What's going on

Set your mind on Me alone, and rest your understanding in Me. You will dwell in Me after this life, with no doubt about it.

Sūtras through this verse (51)

AbhinavaguptaclassicalG

Saṃvit: one referent under many namesbetween

12.5Every 'Me' from Krishna is Śiva-consciousness speaking.───→here12.8───→18.62Three names yoked — one referent sealed.

MadhusūdanaclassicalA

Three groups of six: you, the Lord, the joiningbetween

7.1First six unfold 'you,' middle six unfold 'that.'───→here12.8───→12.20The middle six are sealed and finished.

ĀnandagiriclassicalB

Three hexads = tat tvam asibetween

7.1Middle hexad named: tat-padārtha begins.───→here12.8───→12.20Middle hexad closes; tat-pada sealed.

show all 51

Madhusūdanaclassicalmadhusudan_bhagavad_arpana

Madhusudan Bhagavad Arpanabetween · other

11.55Five offering-clauses───→here12.8───→12.20Mat-paramāḥ as upasaṃhāra

MadhusūdanaclassicalB

Different students need different teachingsbetween

12.1Saguṇa or nirguṇa? Depends on who's asking.───→here12.8───→17.1A third class: faith without textual training.

MadhusūdanaclassicalD

Offer the act to the Lord and it stops bindingbetween

11.55The whole Gītā distilled to five offering-clauses.───→here12.8───→12.20Holding-Me-supreme seals the bhakti chapter.

MadhusūdanaclassicalE

Devotion is how knowing actually arrivesbetween

11.55The five-clause crystal is bhakti named whole.───→here12.8───→12.20Saguṇa worship ripens into nirguṇa knowing.

MadhusūdanaclassicalF

Every middle chapter opens with a bow to the teacherbetween

11.55With awe I praise him, Kāśirāja, my teacher.───→here12.8───→12.20Therefore I praise him, Kāśirāja, my own.

MadhusūdanaclassicalI

Liberation while alive — the body finishes its runbetween

9.22The undivided devotee is already complete.───→here12.8───→12.20The middle six closes on the fearless ripened one.

AbhinavaguptaclassicalH

Bhakti as non-dual recognitionbetween

12.2Two paths reconciled — one gracious face.───→here12.8───→18.65Four parallel ways of saying one thing.

JayatīrthaclassicalB

Pañcabheda — the five distinctions enforced verse by versebetween

12.3Avyakta worshippers stay plural, distinct.───→here12.8───→15.16Bhūta is not inert; ranges over jīvas.

JayatīrthaclassicalD

Saṅgati declared at the head of every adhyāyabetween

12.1Avyakta follows the manifest rūpa.───→here12.8───→15.1World-tree rooted up; Viṣṇu is ūrdhva.

JayatīrthaclassicalE

Vishnu-sarvottamatva read into apparently neutral wordsbetween

12.1Beyond avyakta is puruṣa, and Viṣṇu.───→here12.8───→15.1World-tree rooted up; Viṣṇu is ūrdhva-mūla.

JayatīrthaclassicalF

Bhakti-tāratamya: gradation among devotees, gradation in fruitbetween

12.5Avyakta-path costs greater toil.───→here12.8───→12.20Dear devotee is at the apex.

JayatīrthaclassicalH

Pūrva-pakṣa explicit — nanu / iti cet / ity ata āhabetween

12.5Avyakta-rival raised, then answered.───→here12.8───→18.3Three pakṣas staged at the chapter head.

RamsukhdasclassicalA

What binds you (and how to let go)between

9.34Bind your mind to Me, the only safe tie.───→here12.8───→12.20The devotee holds this teaching dearest.

RamsukhdasclassicalF

Surrender — the single shelterbetween

12.6Surrender every act, and He lifts you out.───→here12.8───→18.62Take refuge whole; grace is the road.

RamsukhdasclassicalG

Equanimity in everythingbetween

9.29I am equal to all; lovers live in Me.───→here12.8───→12.13Friend to all, equal in cold and in heat.

RamsukhdasclassicalH

All paths arrive at the same roombetween

6.46The lover outranks every other yogi.───→here12.8───→12.12Even devotion holds its own gradient.

Ramsukhdasclassical

Sādhaka Sañjīvanī commentary at this versebetween

───→here12.8───→

AbhinavaguptaclassicalE

Field and field-knower as Parameśvaraapproach

───→here12.8───→13.1One knower in every field — Parameśvara.

AbhinavaguptaclassicalA

Knowing and acting are one powerexit

11.34Already slain — the question is finally retired.───→here12.8───→

AbhinavaguptaclassicalC

Vision is the structural centerexit

11.49Cosmic returns to gracious; ananya means non-dual.───→here12.8───→

AbhinavaguptaclassicalD

Avatāra: appearance without departureexit

11.46Cosmic and gracious one self-luminous.───→here12.8───→

ĀnandagiriclassicalC

Adhikāra: seeker vs. fulfilledbetween

6.46Yogin vs. jñānin: not synonyms.───→here12.8───→12.12Bhakti's gradient is jijñāsu-relative.

ĀnandagiriclassicalG

Anūdyate, na vidhīyatebetween

2.55A description, not a command. Anchor.───→here12.8───→12.12Bhakta's gradient read as description.

ĀnandagiriclassicalI

Bhakti carries jñāna, never parallelbetween

7.2Bhakti's fruit is jñāna itself.───→here12.8───→12.12Bhakti's gradient ends in jñāna.

ĀnandagiriclassicalK

Upasaṃhāra — recap as instrumentbetween

6.46Dhyāna section sealed: yogin is supreme.───→here12.8───→12.20Bhakti hexad sealed at the close.

RāmānujaclassicalC

Three ṣaṭkas (1–6 / 7–12 / 13–18)between

12.1Sa-guṇa or nir-guṇa, which path wins?───→here12.8───→13.1Open the third ṣaṭka: field and knower.

RāmānujaclassicalE

Bhakti as continuous recollectionbetween

12.7I lift them across.───→here12.8───→18.65Recollection like sight: the final command.

RāmānujaclassicalJ

Śeṣa-śeṣī · pati-vrata similebetween

12.7I lift him across.───→here12.8───→18.65You are dear to Me — I promise.

MadhvaclassicalT4

Liberation is bliss in body — not absorptionbetween

12.5The formless route is hard for a reason.───→here12.8───→14.2At creation's reissue the released remain free.

MadhvaclassicalT6

Citation is the spine — texts carry the loadbetween

12.6Saukarāyaṇa-śruti ranks the personal route.───→here12.8───→14.3Kāṣāyaṇa-śruti gives three goddesses one job each.

MadhvaclassicalT8

Direct vision — the only proximate causebetween

6.46The five-rung ladder ends in love, not knowledge.───→here12.8───→12.12Anabhimlāna-śruti names every rung in order.

MadhvaclassicalT9

Devotion and grace — what knowledge cannot do alonebetween

12.5The personal route is easier — by design.───→here12.8───→18.66Drop every refuge, take the One refuge.

ŚrīdharaclassicalC

Devotion is both the way and the homebetween

12.2Such are dearest to Me of all yogis.───→here12.8───→12.20These devotees are exceedingly dear.

ŚrīdharaclassicalH

The grammar of single-pointednessbetween

12.6Single-aim devotion draws the lifting hand.───→here12.8───→14.26Unswerving devotion crosses the modes.

ŚrīdharaclassicalL

Chapter prefaces as the bhāṣya's spinebetween

12.1Form or formless: which is the better road?───→here12.8───→13.2I lift my devotees, so I now teach truth.

RāmānujaclassicalK

Tri-guṇa diagnostic for the bhaktaapproach

───→here12.8───→13.20Both natures cause the body's binding.

ŚrīdharaclassicalG

Soul as His portion, neither cut nor identicalapproach

───→here12.8───→14.26Fit for the state of brahman, not fused.

VallabhaclassicalA

Two paths — rule-bound and grace-onlybetween

11.55Grace-soul acts only when the Lord wills.───→here12.8───→12.20The dear devotee holds the teaching fast.

VallabhaclassicalG

The Lord plays — calf-affection, not contractbetween

12.1The object of love is the puruṣottama himself.───→here12.8───→18.65The chariot-driving Lord is the calf-affection ocean.

VallabhaclassicalH

Stilling the mind — into the Lordbetween

11.54Vision opens only to the love-stilled mind.───→here12.8───→12.13Friend to all beings, mind given to the Lord.

Ekrasmodernbhakti

Bhakti — devotion pathbetween · v2

11.54Only by undivided bhakti───→here12.8───→12.13Dear-bhakta description begins

Gauravmodernheart_leadership

Heart Leadershipbetween

6.35'Asamshayam maha-baho mano durnigraham chalam, abhyasena tu Kaunteya vairagyena ───→here12.8───→12.13'Adveshta sarva-bhutanam maitrah karuna eva cha.' Without enmity, friendly, comp

Gauravmodernthree_yogas_braid

Three Yogas Braidbetween

9.27'Yat karoshi yad ashnasi yaj juhoshi dadasi yat.' Bhakti-inside-karma. Whatever ───→here12.8───→12.12'Shreyo hi jnanam abhyasaj jnanad dhyanam vishishyate, dhyanat karma-phala-tyaga

ŚaṅkaraclassicalI

The lover and the knower are one personbetween

12.2The form-devotee is most perfectly joined.───→here12.8───→12.20Living this teaching itself is the highest devotion.

VedāntadeśikaclassicalB

Prapatti — bhakti's access for those the long path defeatsbetween

12.7I lift them out of saṃsāra's ocean.───→here12.8───→18.66The phala-vilamba grief is what 18.66 closes.

VedāntadeśikaclassicalF

Saṅgati — anticipation-and-resolutionbetween

12.1Arjuna's question Krishna already answered.───→here12.8───→13.1The kṣetra-question resolves 12.20's hint.

Ekrasmodernforgiveness

Forgivenessapproach · other

───→here12.8───→12.13Friendly, compassionate

ŚaṅkaraclassicalH

The Lord is friend of every beingexit

11.55Acting for Me, holding Me supreme — that is the road.───→here12.8───→

Śabda · lemmas (11 unique · 14 occurrences)

निवेशय ni-√veśay — to cause to settle, fix in (caus. of ni- + √viś) · present imperative 2nd person singular verb
निवसिष्यसि ni-√vas — to dwell, reside (ni- + √vas) · future indicative 2nd person singular verb
आधत्स्व √ādhā — to place upon, deposit, fix · present imperative 2nd person singular verb
संशयः saṃśaya — doubt (sam- + √śi 'lie/rest' — 'lying both ways') · nominative masculine singular noun

show all 11

मयि mad ×3 — I, me (1st person pronoun stem); also: to rejoice (verbal root) · locative singular noun
एव eva ×2 — indeed, truly, only (emphatic particle)
मनः manas — mind (lower mind), the inner organ of perception · accusative neuter singular noun
बुद्धिम् buddhi — intellect, intelligence, discriminating faculty · accusative feminine singular noun
अतस् atas — from this, hence, therefore
ऊर्ध्वम् ūrdhvam — upward, above
न na — not (negation particle)

Praśna · so what (6)

01The verse commands mental fixation (mano-nivesha) before intellectual conviction (buddhi-nivesha) — does the order matter, and what happens when intellect precedes the heart?
02Shankara reads 'mayi' as the universal-form Ishvara; Vallabha reads it as the manifest personal Purushottama; Ramanuja reads it as the supremely attainable personal Bhagavan — are these three pointing at the same referent or at genuinely different soteriological objects?

show all 6

03The verse makes an unqualified promise — 'you will dwell in Me, there is no doubt' — yet Chapter 12 has already acknowledged that direct fixation is hard for embodied beings. What makes this assurance credible rather than merely motivational?
04Sridhara appends a shruti citation to secure the verse's claim. What does it reveal about the relationship between smriti (Gita) and shruti (Upanishads) in bhakti-philological hermeneutics?
05Vallabha's reading turns 'eva' (alone) into a seed of total dharma-surrender to come later. How does a single grammatical particle carry that weight, and what are the interpretive risks?
06Madhusudana holds saguna bhakti and shuddha Brahman as start and finish of the same arc. Is this synthesis methodologically stable, or does it privilege one pole under the guise of synthesis?

Vyavahāra · try it in your life

Advaita

In a moment of decision-fatigue — when sankalpa-vikalpa (the mind's weighing and counter-weighing) consumes all energy — practise treating the universal ground of awareness itself as the settling object. Notice that the background in which all options appear is already still; rest the decision-mind there before choosing.

Dvaita

Cultivate the practice of recognising your own finitude clearly — you are not the author, Hari is. In a team or family context, this means letting a wiser authority (a mentor, a principle) carry the load of final judgement, while you contribute fully within your distinct role without collapsing into the leader.

show all 4

Bhakti

Build a daily practice where both the feeling-mind (sankalpa) and the reasoning-mind (buddhi) are aimed at the same object — a teacher, a text, a quality of presence. Sridhara's 'mat-prasadena' (by grace) reminds us that jnana is received, not produced; the practice creates receptivity, not the outcome.

Advaita-Bhakti

When meditation on a personal form feels shallow and conceptual practice feels cold, Madhusudana's synthesis offers a path: begin with the personal image, let it warm the heart, then notice that the warmth is not bounded by the image. The saguna entry-point and the nirguna abode are the same movement at different depths.

Adhiṣṭhāna · substrate signature

substratev2.6-frozen

parserByT5-Sanskrit-multitask (Nehrdich/Hellwig/Keutzer EMNLP 2024)

mūlaBelvalkar critical edition (BORI 1947), via Ambuda multi-witness

show all metadata

weightsa=1 · b=0.01 · e_v=0.005 · z=0.2 · h=0 · th=0.01

anchorfit on Ramsukhdas's Sādhak Sañjīvanī (1980), frozen across the eight-commentator panel; cross-validated R@4 = 71.6% on Śaṅkara

extracted2026-04-21

methodPaper 1, Section II.B

↓ view raw per-verse object (JSON)↗ per-verse-object schema ↗ substrate code (MIT) + data (CC-BY 4.0)

The schema generalizes to any bounded-polysemy corpus with discrete primary text units, attested witness traditions, identifiable schools, and formal substrate. Port the per-verse object; refit weights on a domain-appropriate Layer-3 anchor; ship.

Bhagavad Gītā Chapter 12, Verse 8: Krishna to Arjuna — Bhakti-Yoga