- 6.1श्री भगवानुवाचLord Shri Krishna said: He who acts out of duty, without considering the consequences, is truly spiritual and a true ascetic; not he who merely observes rituals or shuns all action.
- 6.2यं संन्यासमिति प्राहुर्योगं तं विद्धि पाण्डव।O Arjuna, renunciation is indeed what is known as right action. No one can become spiritually enlightened who has not renounced all desires.
- 6.3आरुरुक्षोर्मुनेर्योगं कर्म कारणमुच्यते।For the sage who seeks the heights of spiritual meditation, practice is the only method, and when they have attained it, they must maintain themselves there through continual self-control.
- 6.4यदा हि नेन्द्रियार्थेषु न कर्मस्वनुषज्जते।When a man renounces even the thought of initiating action, and is not interested in sense objects or any results that may flow from his acts, then he truly understands spirituality.
- 6.5उद्धरेदात्मनाऽऽत्मानं नात्मानमवसादयेत्।Let him seek liberation with the help of his Highest Self, and never disgrace his own Self. For that Self is his only friend; yet it can also be his enemy.
- 6.6बन्धुरात्माऽऽत्मनस्तस्य येनात्मैवात्मना जितः।To one who has conquered their lower nature with its help, the Self is a friend; but to one who has not done so, it is an enemy.
- 6.7जितात्मनः प्रशान्तस्य परमात्मा समाहितः।The Self of one who is self-controlled and has attained peace is equally unmoved by heat or cold, pleasure or pain, honor or dishonor.
- 6.8ज्ञानविज्ञानतृप्तात्मा कूटस्थो विजितेन्द्रियः।He who desires nothing but wisdom and spiritual insight, who has conquered his senses, and who looks upon a lump of earth, a stone, and fine gold with the same eye, is a real saint.
- 6.9सुहृन्मित्रार्युदासीनमध्यस्थद्वेष्यबन्धुषु।He looks impartially on all—lovers, friends, or foes; indifferent, hostile, alien, or relative; virtuous or sinful.
- 6.10योगी युञ्जीत सततमात्मानं रहसि स्थितः।Let the student of spirituality try unceasingly to concentrate his mind; let him live in seclusion, absolutely alone, with his mind and personality controlled, free from desire and without possessions.
- 6.11शुचौ देशे प्रतिष्ठाप्य स्थिरमासनमात्मनः।Having chosen a holy place, let him sit in a firm posture on a seat that is neither too high nor too low, and cover it with a grass mat, a deer skin, and a cloth.
- 6.12तत्रैकाग्रं मनः कृत्वा यतचित्तेन्द्रियक्रियः।Seated thus, with his mind concentrated, his functions controlled, and his senses governed, let him practice meditation for the purification of his lower nature.
- 6.13समं कायशिरोग्रीवं धारयन्नचलं स्थिरः।Let him hold his body, head, and neck erect, motionless and steady; let him look fixedly at the tip of his nose, turning neither to the right nor to the left.
- 6.14प्रशान्तात्मा विगतभीर्ब्रह्मचारिव्रते स्थितः।With peace in his heart and no fear, observing the vow of celibacy, with his mind controlled and fixed on Me, let the student lose himself in contemplation of Me.
- 6.15युञ्जन्नेवं सदाऽऽत्मानं योगी नियतमानसः।Thus, keeping his mind always in communion with Me and subduing his thoughts, he shall attain that Peace which is Mine and will lead him to liberation at last.
- 6.16नात्यश्नतस्तु योगोऽस्ति न चैकान्तमनश्नतः।Meditation is not for him who eats too much, nor for him who eats not at all; not for him who is overly addicted to sleep, nor for him who is always awake.
- 6.17युक्ताहारविहारस्य युक्तचेष्टस्य कर्मसु।But for him who regulates his food and recreation, who is balanced in action, in sleep, and in waking, it shall dispel all unhappiness.
- 6.18यदा विनियतं चित्तमात्मन्येवावतिष्ठते।When the mind is completely controlled, centered in the Self, and free from all earthly desires, then the man is truly spiritual.
- 6.19यथा दीपो निवातस्थो नेङ्गते सोपमा स्मृता।The wise man who has conquered his mind and is absorbed in the Self is like a lamp that does not flicker, as it stands sheltered from every wind.
- 6.20यत्रोपरमते चित्तं निरुद्धं योगसेवया।There, where the whole of nature is seen in the light of the Self, where the person abides within their Self and is satisfied there, their functions restrained by their union with the Divine, the mind finds rest.
- 6.21सुखमात्यन्तिकं यत्तद्बुद्धिग्राह्यमतीन्द्रियम्।When he enjoys the bliss that surpasses the senses and can only be grasped by the pure intellect, when he comes to rest within his highest self, he will never again stray from reality.
- 6.22यं लब्ध्वा चापरं लाभं मन्यते नाधिकं ततः।Finding That, he will realize that there is no possession so precious. And once established there, no calamity can disturb him.
- 6.23तं विद्याद् दुःखसंयोगवियोगं योगसंज्ञितम्।This inner severance from the affliction of misery is spirituality. It should be practiced with determination and with a heart that refuses to be depressed.
- 6.24सङ्कल्पप्रभवान्कामांस्त्यक्त्वा सर्वानशेषतः।Renouncing every desire that can be imagined, controlling the senses at every point through the power of the mind;
- 6.25शनैः शनैरुपरमेद् बुद्ध्या धृतिगृहीतया।Little by little, with the help of his reason controlled by fortitude, let him attain peace; and, fixing his mind on the Self, let him not think of anything else.
- 6.26यतो यतो निश्चरति मनश्चञ्चलमस्थिरम्।When the volatile and wavering mind wanders, let him restrain it and bring it back to its allegiance to the Self.
- 6.27प्रशान्तमनसं ह्येनं योगिनं सुखमुत्तमम्।Supreme bliss is the lot of the sage whose mind attains peace, whose passions subside, who is without sin, and who becomes one with the Absolute.
- 6.28युञ्जन्नेवं सदाऽऽत्मानं योगी विगतकल्मषः।Thus, free from sin, abiding always in the Eternal, the saint enjoys, without effort, the bliss that flows from the realization of the Infinite.
- 6.29सर्वभूतस्थमात्मानं सर्वभूतानि चात्मनि।He who experiences the unity of life sees his own Self in all beings, and all beings in his own Self, and looks upon everything with an impartial eye.
- 6.30यो मां पश्यति सर्वत्र सर्वं च मयि पश्यति।He who sees Me in everything and everything in Me, I shall never forsake him, nor shall he lose Me.
- 6.31सर्वभूतस्थितं यो मां भजत्येकत्वमास्थितः।The sage who realizes the unity of life and who worships Me in all beings, lives in Me, no matter what their lot may be.
- 6.32आत्मौपम्येन सर्वत्र समं पश्यति योऽर्जुन।O Arjuna! He is the perfect saint who, having been taught by the likeness within himself, sees the same Self everywhere, regardless of whether the outer form be pleasurable or painful.
- 6.33अर्जुन उवाचArjuna said: I do not see how I can attain this state of equanimity which You have revealed, owing to the restlessness of my mind.
- 6.34चञ्चलं हि मनः कृष्ण प्रमाथि बलवद्दृढम्।My Lord! Verily, the mind is fickle and turbulent, obstinate, and strong; indeed, it is extremely difficult to control, like the wind.
- 6.35श्री भगवानुवाचLord Shri Krishna replied: Doubtless, O Mighty One, the mind is fickle and exceedingly difficult to restrain; however, O Son of Kunti, with practice and renunciation, it can be done.
- 6.36असंयतात्मना योगो दुष्प्राप इति मे मतिः।It is not possible to attain Self-Realization unless one knows how to control oneself; however, for one who, striving by the proper means, learns such control, it is possible.
- 6.37अर्जुन उवाचArjuna asked: What of him who fails to control himself, whose mind falls from spiritual contemplation, yet retains his faith and does not attain perfection?
- 6.38कच्चिन्नोभयविभ्रष्टश्छिन्नाभ्रमिव नश्यति।Having failed in both, my Lord, is he without hope, like a riven cloud with no support, lost on the spiritual path?
- 6.39एतन्मे संशयं कृष्ण छेत्तुमर्हस्यशेषतः।My Lord! You are worthy to solve this doubt once and for all; there is no one else competent to do so, save Yourself.
- 6.40श्री भगवानुवाचLord Shri Krishna replied: My beloved child! There is no destruction for him, either in this world or the next. No evil fate awaits him who treads the path of righteousness.
- 6.41प्राप्य पुण्यकृतां लोकानुषित्वा शाश्वतीः समाः।Having reached the worlds where the righteous dwell, and having remained there for many years, he who has strayed from the path of spirituality will be born again into the family of the pure, benevolent, and prosperous.
- 6.42अथवा योगिनामेव कुले भवति धीमताम्।Or, he may be born in the family of wise sages, though such a birth is indeed very difficult to obtain.
- 6.43तत्र तं बुद्धिसंयोगं लभते पौर्वदेहिकम्।Then, the experience acquired in his former life will revive, and with it, he will more eagerly strive for perfection than before.
- 6.44पूर्वाभ्यासेन तेनैव ह्रियते ह्यवशोऽपि सः।Unconsciously, he will return to the practices of his old life; thus, one who strives to attain spiritual consciousness is certainly superior to one who merely talks about it.
- 6.45प्रयत्नाद्यतमानस्तु योगी संशुद्धकिल्बिषः।Then, after many lives of earnest striving and absolution of sins, the student of spirituality attains perfection and reaches the Supreme.
- 6.46तपस्विभ्योऽधिको योगी ज्ञानिभ्योऽपि मतोऽधिकः।The wise person is superior to the ascetic, the scholar, and the man of action; therefore, be thou a wise person, O Arjuna!
- 6.47योगिनामपि सर्वेषां मद्गतेनान्तरात्मना।I look upon him as the best of mystics, who, full of faith, worships Me and abides in Me.