Bhagavad Gita · Chapter 9: The Royal Knowledge and Royal Secret

Bhagavad Gita 9.16

ahaṃ kraturahaṃ yajñaḥ svadhāhamahamauṣadham | maṃtro'hamahamevājyamahamagnirahaṃ hutam ||

I am the rite, I am the sacrifice, I am the offering to the ancestors, I am the healing herb. I am the mantra, I am the clarified butter, I am the fire, and I am the act of offering.

Modern context

Krishna names every element of a fire ritual and says 'I am' each one: the rite, the offering, the herb, the chant, the ghee, the fire, the act of pouring. Nothing in the ceremony stands outside him. This echoes chapter 4's 'Brahman is the offering'. For anyone who performs a ritual, it shifts attention from getting the steps right to recognizing the presence in every step.