Chapter VII · Śloka 17
Śrī Kṛṣṇa uvāca
तेषां ज्ञानी नित्ययुक्त एकभक्तिर्विशिष्यते ।
प्रियो हि ज्ञानिनोऽत्यर्थमहं स च मम प्रियः ॥
प्रियो हि ज्ञानिनोऽत्यर्थमहं स च मम प्रियः ॥
teṣāṃ jñānī nitya-yukta eka-bhaktir viśiṣyate |
priyo hi jñānino 'tyartham ahaṃ sa ca mama priyaḥ ||
priyo hi jñānino 'tyartham ahaṃ sa ca mama priyaḥ ||
Of these, the wise one, ever steadfast, devoted to the One, is the most excellent. For I am exceedingly dear to the wise, and the wise is exceedingly dear to Me.
The jñānī is singled out because his devotion is non-instrumental — it does not seek anything beyond the divine itself. The mutuality of love declared here (I am dear to him; he is dear to Me) reveals that the ultimate relationship between the Supreme and the fully realised soul is one of reciprocal, unitive love.