Chapter VII · Śloka 16
Śrī Kṛṣṇa uvāca
चतुर्विधा भजन्ते मां जनाः सुकृतिनोऽर्जुन ।
आर्तो जिज्ञासुरर्थार्थी ज्ञानी च भरतर्षभ ॥
आर्तो जिज्ञासुरर्थार्थी ज्ञानी च भरतर्षभ ॥
catur-vidhā bhajante māṃ janāḥ sukṛtino 'rjuna |
ārto jijñāsur arthārthī jñānī ca bharatarṣabha ||
ārto jijñāsur arthārthī jñānī ca bharatarṣabha ||
Four kinds of virtuous people worship Me, O Arjuna: the distressed, the seeker of knowledge, the seeker of wealth, and the wise, O best of Bharatas.
All four types are called sukṛtino — of meritorious deeds — because even the most self-interested worship of the divine is a step toward liberation. The ārta (the afflicted) comes out of pain, the jijñāsu out of spiritual curiosity, the arthārthī out of desire, and the jñānī out of wisdom alone.