आत्मसंयमयोगः

अनाश्रितः कर्मफलं कार्यं कर्म करोति यः ।
स संन्यासी च योगी च न निरग्निर्न चाक्रियः

anāśritaḥ karmaphalaṃ kāryaṃ karma karoti yaḥ |
sa saṃnyāsī ca yogī ca na niragnirna cākriyaḥ

One who does the work that ought to be done, without depending on its fruit, is a sannyasi and a yogi. Not the one who merely gives up the sacred fire, nor the one who merely gives up the rites.

यं संन्यासमिति प्राहुर्योगं तं विद्धि पाण्डव ।
न ह्यसंन्यस्तसंकल्पो योगी भवति कश्चन

yaṃ saṃnyāsamiti prāhuryogaṃ taṃ viddhi pāṇḍava |
na hyasaṃnyastasaṃkalpo yogī bhavati kaścana

What they call renunciation, know that to be yoga, O Pandava. For no one becomes a yogi without giving up sankalpa, the mind's willing for its own ends.

आरुरुक्षोर्मुनेर्योगं कर्म कारणमुच्यते ।
योगारूढस्य तस्यैव शमः कारणमुच्यते

ārurukṣormuneryogaṃ karma kāraṇamucyate |
yogārūḍhasya tasyaiva śamaḥ kāraṇamucyate

For the sage who wants to climb into yoga, action is said to be the means. For the same sage once he has climbed into yoga, stillness is said to be the means.

यदा हि नेन्द्रियार्थेषु न कर्मस्वनुषज्जते ।
सर्वसंकल्पसंन्यासी योगारूढस्तदोच्यते

yadā hi nendriyārtheṣu na karmasvanuṣajjate |
sarvasaṃkalpasaṃnyāsī yogārūḍhastadocyate

When a man is attached neither to the objects of the senses nor to actions, and has given up every sankalpa, then he is said to have climbed into yoga.

बन्धुरात्मात्मनस्तस्य येनात्मैवात्मना जितः ।
अनात्मनस्तु शत्रुत्वे वर्तेतात्मैव शत्रुवत्

bandhurātmātmanastasya yenātmaivātmanā jitaḥ |
anātmanastu śatrutve vartetātmaiva śatruvat

For one who has conquered himself by the self, the self is a friend. For one who has not, the self turns hostile, like an enemy.

जितात्मनः प्रशान्तस्य परमात्मा समाहितः ।
शीतोष्णसुखदुःखेषु तथा मानापमानयोः

jitātmanaḥ praśāntasya paramātmā samāhitaḥ |
śītoṣṇasukhaduḥkheṣu tathā mānāpamānayoḥ

In one who has conquered himself and is at peace, the supreme Self stays settled in cold and heat, in pleasure and pain, in honour and dishonour.

ज्ञानविज्ञानतृप्तात्मा कूटस्थो विजितेन्द्रियः ।
युक्त इत्युच्यते योगी समलोष्टाश्मकाञ्चनः

jñānavijñānatṛptātmā kūṭastho vijitendriyaḥ |
yukta ityucyate yogī samaloṣṭāśmakāñcanaḥ

Content with knowledge and its realisation, unshaken, master of his senses, the yogi who sees a clod of earth, a stone and gold as the same is called yukta, one who is joined.

सुहृन्मित्रार्युदासीनमध्यस्थद्वेष्यबन्धुषु ।
साधुष्वपि च पापेषु समबुद्धिर्विशिष्यते

suhṛnmitrāryudāsīnamadhyasthadveṣyabandhuṣu |
sādhuṣvapi ca pāpeṣu samabuddhirviśiṣyate

He stands highest who has an even mind towards well-wishers, friends and enemies, towards the indifferent and the neutral, towards the hateful and his own kin, towards the righteous and the sinful.

योगी युञ्जीत सततमात्मानं रहसि स्थितः ।
एकाकी यतचित्तात्मा निराशीरपरिग्रहः

yogī yuñjīta satatamātmānaṃ rahasi sthitaḥ |
ekākī yatacittātmā nirāśīraparigrahaḥ

The yogi should keep himself constantly joined in yoga, staying in a solitary place, alone, with mind and body held in check, free of longing and owning nothing.

शुचौ देशे प्रतिष्ठाप्य स्थिरमासनमात्मनः ।
नात्युच्छ्रितं नातिनीचं चैलाजिनकुशोत्तरम्

śucau deśe pratiṣṭhāpya sthiramāsanamātmanaḥ |
nātyucchritaṃ nātinīcaṃ cailājinakuśottaram

In a clean place he should set up a firm seat for himself, neither too high nor too low, laid with kusha grass, a deerskin and a cloth, one over the other.

तत्रैकाग्रं मनः कृत्वा यतचित्तेन्द्रियक्रियः ।
उपविश्यासने युञ्ज्याद्योगमात्मविशुद्धये

tatraikāgraṃ manaḥ kṛtvā yatacittendriyakriyaḥ |
upaviśyāsane yuñjyādyogamātmaviśuddhaye

Sitting there on that seat, making the mind one-pointed, holding in the workings of thought and senses, he should practise yoga to purify the self.

समं कायशिरोग्रीवं धारयन्नचलं स्थिरः ।
सम्प्रेक्ष्य नासिकाग्रं स्वं दिशश्चानवलोकयन्

samaṃ kāyaśirogrīvaṃ dhārayannacalaṃ sthiraḥ |
samprekṣya nāsikāgraṃ svaṃ diśaścānavalokayan

Holding body, head and neck straight and still, steady, gazing at the tip of his own nose and not looking about him,

प्रशान्तात्मा विगतभीर्ब्रह्मचारिव्रते स्थितः ।
मनः संयम्य मच्चित्तो युक्त आसीत मत्परः

praśāntātmā vigatabhīrbrahmacārivrate sthitaḥ |
manaḥ saṃyamya maccitto yukta āsīta matparaḥ

Calm and without fear, firm in the vow of brahmacharya, the mind held back and fixed on Me, he should sit joined in yoga, with Me as his highest goal.

युञ्जन्नेवं सदात्मानं योगी नियतमानसः ।
शान्तिं निर्वाणपरमां मत्संस्थामधिगच्छति

yuñjannevaṃ sadātmānaṃ yogī niyatamānasaḥ |
śāntiṃ nirvāṇaparamāṃ matsaṃsthāmadhigacchati

Always joining himself in this way, the yogi of disciplined mind reaches the peace that culminates in nirvana and rests in Me.

नात्यश्नतस्तु योगोऽस्ति न चैकान्तमनश्नतः ।
न चाति स्वप्नशीलस्य जाग्रतो नैव चार्जुन

nātyaśnatastu yogo'sti na caikāntamanaśnataḥ |
na cāti svapnaśīlasya jāgrato naiva cārjuna

Yoga is not for one who eats too much, nor for one who does not eat at all. It is not for one who sleeps too much, nor for one who keeps awake too long, Arjuna.

युक्ताहारविहारस्य युक्तचेष्टस्य कर्मसु ।
युक्तस्वप्नावबोधस्य योगो भवति दुःखहा

yuktāhāravihārasya yuktaceṣṭasya karmasu |
yuktasvapnāvabodhasya yogo bhavati duḥkhahā

For one who is measured in eating and in recreation, measured in his efforts at work, measured in sleep and in waking, yoga becomes the destroyer of sorrow.

यदा विनियतं चित्तमात्मन्येवावतिष्ठते ।
निःस्पृहः सर्वकामेभ्यो युक्त इत्युच्यते तदा

yadā viniyataṃ cittamātmanyevāvatiṣṭhate |
niḥspṛhaḥ sarvakāmebhyo yukta ityucyate tadā

When the disciplined mind rests in the Self alone, free from longing for any object of desire, then a man is called yukta.

यत्रोपरमते चित्तं निरुद्धं योगसेवया ।
यत्र चैवात्मनात्मानं पश्यन्नात्मनि तुष्यति

yatroparamate cittaṃ niruddhaṃ yogasevayā |
yatra caivātmanātmānaṃ paśyannātmani tuṣyati

Where the mind, held in check by the practice of yoga, comes to rest, where seeing the Self by the self he is content in the Self,

सुखमात्यन्तिकं यत्तद् बुद्धिग्राह्यमतीन्द्रियम् ।
वेत्ति यत्र न चैवायं स्थितश्चलति तत्त्वतः

sukhamātyantikaṃ yattad buddhigrāhyamatīndriyam |
vetti yatra na caivāyaṃ sthitaścalati tattvataḥ

Where he knows that boundless joy which the intellect can grasp and the senses cannot reach, and standing there never moves from the truth,

यं लब्ध्वा चापरं लाभं मन्यते नाधिकं ततः ।
यस्मिन्स्थितो न दुःखेन गुरुणापि विचाल्यते

yaṃ labdhvā cāparaṃ lābhaṃ manyate nādhikaṃ tataḥ |
yasminsthito na duḥkhena guruṇāpi vicālyate

Having gained which he counts no other gain as greater, and standing in which he is not shaken even by the heaviest sorrow,

तं विद्याद्‌दुःखसंयोगवियोगं योगसंज्ञितम् ।
स निश्चयेन योक्तव्यो योगोऽनिर्विण्णचेतसा

taṃ vidyād‌duḥkhasaṃyogaviyogaṃ yogasaṃjñitam |
sa niścayena yoktavyo yogo'nirviṇṇacetasā

Know that to be yoga, the breaking of all contact with sorrow. This yoga should be practised with firm resolve and a mind that does not lose heart.

संकल्पप्रभवान्कामांस्त्यक्त्वा सर्वानशेषतः ।
मनसैवेन्द्रियग्रामं विनियम्य समन्ततः

saṃkalpaprabhavānkāmāṃstyaktvā sarvānaśeṣataḥ |
manasaivendriyagrāmaṃ viniyamya samantataḥ

Giving up completely every desire born of sankalpa, reining in the whole crowd of senses from every side by the mind alone,

शनैः शनैरुपरमेद्‌बुद्ध्या धृतिगृहीतया ।
आत्मसंस्थं मनः कृत्वा न किंचिदपि चिन्तयेत्

śanaiḥ śanairuparamed‌buddhyā dhṛtigṛhītayā |
ātmasaṃsthaṃ manaḥ kṛtvā na kiṃcidapi cintayet

Little by little he should grow still, with the intellect held firm. Settling the mind in the Self, he should think of nothing else.

यतो यतो निश्चरति मनश्चञ्चलमस्थिरम् ।
ततस्ततो नियम्यैतदात्मन्येव वशं नयेत्

yato yato niścarati manaścañcalamasthiram |
tatastato niyamyaitadātmanyeva vaśaṃ nayet

Whenever the restless, unsteady mind wanders off, he should draw it back from there and bring it under the rule of the Self.

प्रशान्तमनसं ह्येनं योगिनं सुखमुत्तमम् ।
उपैति शान्तरजसं ब्रह्मभूतमकल्मषम्

praśāntamanasaṃ hyenaṃ yoginaṃ sukhamuttamam |
upaiti śāntarajasaṃ brahmabhūtamakalmaṣam

The highest joy comes to the yogi whose mind is at peace, whose rajas has settled, who has become one with Brahman and is free of stain.

युञ्जन्नेवं सदात्मानं योगी विगतकल्मषः ।
सुखेन ब्रह्मसंस्पर्शमत्यन्तं सुखमश्नुते

yuñjannevaṃ sadātmānaṃ yogī vigatakalmaṣaḥ |
sukhena brahmasaṃsparśamatyantaṃ sukhamaśnute

Always joining himself in this way, the yogi freed from sin easily enjoys the boundless joy of contact with Brahman.

सर्वभूतस्थमात्मानं सर्वभूतानि चात्मनि ।
ईक्षते योगयुक्तात्मा सर्वत्र समदर्शनः

sarvabhūtasthamātmānaṃ sarvabhūtāni cātmani |
īkṣate yogayuktātmā sarvatra samadarśanaḥ

One whose self is joined in yoga and who sees the same everywhere sees the Self present in all beings and all beings in the Self.

यो मां पश्यति सर्वत्र सर्वं च मयि पश्यति ।
तस्याहं न प्रणश्यामि स च मे न प्रणश्यति

yo māṃ paśyati sarvatra sarvaṃ ca mayi paśyati |
tasyāhaṃ na praṇaśyāmi sa ca me na praṇaśyati

One who sees Me everywhere and sees everything in Me, I am never lost to him, and he is never lost to Me.

सर्वभूतस्थितं यो मां भजत्येकत्वमास्थितः ।
सर्वथा वर्तमानोऽपि स योगी मयि वर्तते

sarvabhūtasthitaṃ yo māṃ bhajatyekatvamāsthitaḥ |
sarvathā vartamāno'pi sa yogī mayi vartate

The yogi who, established in oneness, worships Me as dwelling in all beings, lives in Me whatever his way of life.

आत्मौपम्येन सर्वत्र समं पश्यति योऽर्जुन ।
सुखं वा यदि वा दुःखं स योगी परमो मतः

ātmaupamyena sarvatra samaṃ paśyati yo'rjuna |
sukhaṃ vā yadi vā duḥkhaṃ sa yogī paramo mataḥ

One who, judging by his own self, sees the same in all, Arjuna, whether in joy or in sorrow, is held to be the highest yogi.

योऽयं योगस्त्वया प्रोक्तः साम्येन मधुसूदन ।
एतस्याहं न पश्यामि चञ्चलत्वात्स्थितिं स्थिराम्

yo'yaṃ yogastvayā proktaḥ sāmyena madhusūdana |
etasyāhaṃ na paśyāmi cañcalatvātsthitiṃ sthirām

This yoga of evenness that You have taught, Madhusudana, I cannot see how it can stay steady, because the mind is so restless.

चञ्चलं हि मनः कृष्ण प्रमाथि बलवद्‌दृढम् ।
तस्याहं निग्रहं मन्ये वायोरिव सुदुष्करम्

cañcalaṃ hi manaḥ kṛṣṇa pramāthi balavad‌dṛḍham |
tasyāhaṃ nigrahaṃ manye vāyoriva suduṣkaram

The mind is restless, Krishna, turbulent, strong and stubborn. To hold it back seems to me as hard as holding back the wind.

असंयतात्मना योगो दुष्प्राप इति मे मतिः ।
वश्यात्मना तु यतता शक्योऽवाप्तुमुपायतः

asaṃyatātmanā yogo duṣprāpa iti me matiḥ |
vaśyātmanā tu yatatā śakyo'vāptumupāyataḥ

For one who has not mastered himself, yoga is hard to reach. That is My view. But one who has mastered himself and keeps striving can attain it by the right means.

अयतिः श्रद्धयोपेतो योगाच्चलितमानसः ।
अप्राप्य योगसंसिद्धिं कां गतिं कृष्ण गच्छति

ayatiḥ śraddhayopeto yogāccalitamānasaḥ |
aprāpya yogasaṃsiddhiṃ kāṃ gatiṃ kṛṣṇa gacchati

Krishna, what end awaits the one who has faith but does not strive enough, whose mind slips away from yoga, and who does not reach perfection in yoga?

कच्चिन्नोभयविभ्रष्टश्छिन्नाभ्रमिव नश्यति ।
अप्रतिष्ठो महाबाहो विमूढो ब्रह्मणः पथि

kaccinnobhayavibhraṣṭaśchinnābhramiva naśyati |
apratiṣṭho mahābāho vimūḍho brahmaṇaḥ pathi

Fallen from both, O mighty-armed, does he not perish like a broken cloud, with no support, lost on the path to Brahman?

एतन्मे संशयं कृष्ण छेत्तुमर्हस्यशेषतः ।
त्वदन्यः संशयस्यास्य छेत्ता न ह्युपपद्यते

etanme saṃśayaṃ kṛṣṇa chettumarhasyaśeṣataḥ |
tvadanyaḥ saṃśayasyāsya chettā na hyupapadyate

Krishna, You alone can cut this doubt of mine away completely. There is no one but You who could dispel it.

पार्थ नैवेह नामुत्र विनाशस्तस्य विद्यते ।
न हि कल्याणकृत्कश्चिद्‌दुर्गतिं तात गच्छति

pārtha naiveha nāmutra vināśastasya vidyate |
na hi kalyāṇakṛtkaścid‌durgatiṃ tāta gacchati

Partha, there is no ruin for him, neither in this world nor in the next. No one who does good, My dear son, ever comes to a bad end.

प्राप्य पुण्यकृतां लोकानुषित्वा शाश्वतीः समाः ।
शुचीनां श्रीमतां गेहे योगभ्रष्टोऽभिजायते

prāpya puṇyakṛtāṃ lokānuṣitvā śāśvatīḥ samāḥ |
śucīnāṃ śrīmatāṃ gehe yogabhraṣṭo'bhijāyate

Reaching the worlds of those who did good and living there for countless years, the one who fell from yoga is born in the home of the pure and the prosperous.

अथवा योगिनामेव कुले भवति धीमताम् ।
एतद्धि दुर्लभतरं लोके जन्म यदीदृशम्

athavā yogināmeva kule bhavati dhīmatām |
etaddhi durlabhataraṃ loke janma yadīdṛśam

Or he is born into a family of wise yogis. A birth like that is harder still to come by in this world.

तत्र तं बुद्धिसंयोगं लभते पौर्वदेहिकम् ।
यतते च ततो भूयः संसिद्धौ कुरुनन्दन

tatra taṃ buddhisaṃyogaṃ labhate paurvadehikam |
yatate ca tato bhūyaḥ saṃsiddhau kurunandana

There he regains the understanding he had in his former body, and from there he strives once more for perfection, O joy of the Kurus.

पूर्वाभ्यासेन तेनैव ह्रियते ह्यवशोऽपि सः ।
जिज्ञासुरपि योगस्य शब्दब्रह्मातिवर्तते

pūrvābhyāsena tenaiva hriyate hyavaśo'pi saḥ |
jijñāsurapi yogasya śabdabrahmātivartate

By that very practice from before he is carried forward, even without willing it. Even one who only wishes to know yoga goes beyond the rites of the Veda.

प्रयत्नाद्यतमानस्तु योगी संशुद्धकिल्बिषः ।
अनेकजन्मसंसिद्धस्ततो याति परां गतिम्

prayatnādyatamānastu yogī saṃśuddhakilbiṣaḥ |
anekajanmasaṃsiddhastato yāti parāṃ gatim

But the yogi who strives with all his effort, cleansed of sin, perfected over many births, then reaches the highest goal.

तपस्विभ्योऽधिको योगी ज्ञानिभ्योऽपि मतोऽधिकः ।
कर्मिभ्यश्चाधिको योगी तस्माद्योगी भवार्जुन

tapasvibhyo'dhiko yogī jñānibhyo'pi mato'dhikaḥ |
karmibhyaścādhiko yogī tasmādyogī bhavārjuna

The yogi is greater than the ascetics, held greater even than the men of knowledge, and greater than those devoted to ritual works. So be a yogi, Arjuna.