“Of these, the wise one who is in full knowledge in union with Me through pure devotional service is the best. For I am very dear to him, and he is dear to Me.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 7.17)

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तेषां ज्ञानी नित्य-युक्त
एक-भक्तिर् विशिष्यते
प्रियो हि ज्ञानिनो ऽत्यर्थम्
अहं स च मम प्रियः

teṣāṁ jñānī nitya-yukta
eka-bhaktir viśiṣyate
priyo hi jñānino ‘tyartham
ahaṁ sa ca mama priyaḥ

“Bhagavad-gita mentions that people who initially approach Shri Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, tend to fall into one of four categories. This is a really important distinction, because it drifts away from the tendency to have a sort of binary classification when it comes to religion. You are either part of the flock or external to them. You are either a believer or an atheist. You are either afraid of God or think that He does not exist. You are either in knowledge or in ignorance.

“You and I both know that the reality of the situation is different. There is nuance. There is subtlety. Often times, the atheist is actually someone who simply goes against the prevailing faith of their area, the one they inherited from their ancestors. They ask too many questions, according to the authorities. Based on their challenging spirit, on their refusal to submit to dogmatic insistence, they are ostracized. In response, the victim to such strong arm tactics declares that God must not exist. Their refusal is based on their limited understanding of spirituality, considering the circumstances of the lack of intelligence in the proponents of the faith of the area.

“Speaking of the inquisitive, that is one of the four categories which approaches Krishna. Off the top of my head, I believe the others are the distressed, the person looking for personal gain (such as money), and the person with knowledge of how things are. This last category is the subject of discussion today. They are the jnani. They have jnana, which is knowledge. These people understand the basic distinction between matter and spirit, which is at the essence of our predicament, at present.

“We are constantly changing bodies. Correspondingly, we constantly shift our identities. Years ago, I was a student. I was the son of my parents. I was a child. Today, I am an adult. I am a father of my own. I am a gainfully employed citizen of the nation. I have colleagues. I have friends. Perhaps in several years, I will be a retiree. I will be out of the workforce.

“The identities change, but who I am remains the same. I am the exact same individual who first manifest before others within the womb. This proper identification, on the basis of the imperishable spirit, is the result of actual jnana. Thus the jnani has a different angle of vision when approaching Krishna.

“Perhaps that is the reason for Krishna declaring the jnani to be the best of the four categories. The stipulation is that the jnani must be connected, yukta, in a mood of devotion, bhakti. That is fine and good, but what about the other categories? I thought that God does not discriminate. We are equally different but also equally the same. You are as much a spark of Brahman as I am. We each come from the same original fire, as described in Vishnu Purana, if considering the impersonal understanding of Divinity. Why would Krishna make distinctions, then? Is not the sweeper in the temple just as valuable as the respected speaker commenting on shastra from their higher perch?”

एक-देश-स्थितस्याग्नेर्
ज्योत्स्ना विस्तारिणी यथा
परस्य ब्रह्मणः शक्तिस्
तथेदम् अखिलं जगत्

eka-deśa-sthitasyāgner
jyotsnā vistāriṇī yathā
parasya brahmaṇaḥ śaktis
tathedam akhilaṁ jagat

“Everything that is manifested within this cosmic world is but the energy of the Supreme Lord. As fire emanating from one place diffuses its illumination and heat all around, so the Lord, although situated in one place in the spiritual world, manifests His different energies everywhere. Indeed, the whole cosmic creation is composed of different manifestations of His energy.” (Vishnu Purana, 1.22.52)

At a surface level, the distinction is easy to draw and understand. The jnani is already convinced. They approach Krishna and stay connected to Him out of knowledge. They are not lost in ignorance. They are not necessarily suffering from a condition. They are not necessarily seeking anything from the person who is indeed the benefactor of the benefactors of this material world. Krishna is the deva of the devas, after all. He can gift anything to anyone, at any time, at a schedule of His choosing, without any risk of interference. This is the meaning to satya-sankalpa.

If the jnani chooses in favor of devotion, their vow will be strong. They are less likely to be distracted. The others might turn away after getting what they want. Krishna will turn the distressed into the alleviated. The inquisitive will have some knowledge to use in deliberation. The poor person will become wealthy.

But then what? To where will they go? What is their next destination? Remember that they were asking for something. Their desires were then fulfilled. Does that mean their condition has actually improved, though? What are their long-term prospects in terms of escaping the cycle of birth and death? Do they understand just why they were suffering to begin with? Do they know things as they are?

Hence the vulnerability to which the jnani will likely be immune. If someone was devoted to me after knowing my kind nature, after considering what I have to deal with, without asking anything in return, then I will surely think highly of them. I will feel indebted to them. I will feel a sense of burden to at least try to repay the favor. This begins to explain how Krishna feels about the gopis, who are well beyond the stage of the four categories.

The end condition eliminates the distinctions. Indeed, if any of the four categories should find devotion, without motivation, without external desires, then their past no longer matters. They have found the promise-land, so to speak. They have no need to follow rituals, to inquire more for the sake of gathering knowledge, or to pay attention to their progress. They are already under the shelter of the lotus feet of the beloved of Radha, reaping the eternal benefits of full surrender, sharanagati.

In Closing:

Jnani considered the best,
Distinction by Krishna blessed.

Easy at surface to understand,
Since knowledge to command.

Not looking anything to take,
Duality long ago to forsake.

But not mattering much the initial way,
Just that in devotion to Supreme to stay.

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