Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 9, Verse 24

अहं हि सर्वयज्ञानां भोक्ता च प्रभुरेव च । न तु मामभिजानन्ति तत्त्वेनातश्च्यवन्ति ते

ahaṃ hi sarvayajñānāṃ bhoktā ca prabhureva ca | na tu māmabhijānanti tattvenātaścyavanti te

Translation

I am indeed the Enjoyer, as also the Lord, of all sacrifices; but they do not know Me in truth; whence they fail.

— Alladi Mahadeva Sastri

Word meanings

aham

I

hi

indeed

sarvayajñānām

of all, of sacrifices

bhoktā

the enjoyer

ca

and

prabhuḥ

lord

eva

even

ca

and

na

not

tu

indeed

mām

me

abhijānanti

know

tattvena

by essence

ataḥ

hence

cyavanti

fall

te

they

Śaṅkarācārya's commentary

As the Devatā (i.e., as the God to whom sacrifices are offered) I am the Enjoyer and the Lord of all sacrifices enjoined in the Śruti and the Smṛti. I am indeed the Lord of yajña, as said in viii.4. So they do not know Me as I am; whence, having worshipped in ignorance, they fail to attain the fruit of the sacrifice. Not having dedicated their actions to Me, they return to this world from the region to which they attain as the result of their sacrifice.