A core teaching · reflective in mood · easy to enter
“A trained mind is its own austerity.”
Serenity of mind, gentleness, silence, self-control, and purity of feeling are called mental austerity.
The verse in reading order — each Sanskrit word with its meaning beneath. Tap a word to focus on it.
Read literallycheerfulness of mind · gentleness · silence · self-restraint · purity of feeling · thus · this · austerity · mental · is called
Mental discipline means keeping the mind calm, gentle, quiet, controlled, and clean in its feelings.
Krishna speaks this verse, on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, in the chapter titled "Shraddhatraya Vibhaga Yoga" (The Three Kinds of Faith).
Verse 16 sits in Chapter 17 of the Bhagavad Gita — Shraddhatraya Vibhaga Yoga, "The Three Kinds of Faith". The chapter has 28 verses in total.
Caring for a parent with dementia, a son learns to keep his mind calm, his words few and his feelings clear of resentment. Krishna calls that mental austerity.
Did you like this verse?
Mental austerity, in Krishna's list, is a calm mind, gentleness, silence, self-control and a clean heart.
What this verse means
Mental discipline means keeping the mind calm, gentle, quiet, controlled, and clean in its feelings.
Context & commentary
Krishna defines real discipline for Arjuna. After body and speech, he turns to the mind: real austerity here means calmness, gentleness, silence, self-restraint, and purity within.
What it looks like today
Caring for a parent with dementia, a son learns to keep his mind calm, his words few and his feelings clear of resentment. Krishna calls that mental austerity.
“Inner strength is not noise. It grows when the mind becomes steady and clear.”
Explore related themes: manas (49 verses), sattva (26 verses), tapas (22 verses)