A core teaching · reflective in mood · a little context helps
“Yoga begins when the mind stops being pulled in every direction.”
When your intellect, unmoved by conflicting teachings, becomes steady in complete stillness, you will attain yoga.
The verse in reading order — each Sanskrit word with its meaning beneath. Tap a word to focus on it.
Read literallyconfused by conflicting teachings · your · when · will remain · steady, unmoving · in complete stillness · unmoving · intellect · then · yoga · you will attain
When your mind is no longer shaken by conflicting ideas and becomes completely steady, you reach yoga.
Krishna speaks this verse, on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, in the chapter titled "Sankhya Yoga" (The Yoga of Knowledge).
Verse 53 sits in Chapter 2 of the Bhagavad Gita — Sankhya Yoga, "The Yoga of Knowledge". The chapter has 72 verses in total.
Parents choosing a school hear ten opinions from relatives, neighbours and other parents. Adding an eleventh won't help. Once their own minds settle, they can see which school suits their child.
Did you like this verse?
Arjuna hears that yoga arrives when conflicting teachings stop shaking the mind and it rests still.
What this verse means
When your mind is no longer shaken by conflicting ideas and becomes completely steady, you reach yoga.
Context & commentary
Krishna says that when the mind stops wavering under competing teachings and becomes steady in deep stillness, the state of yoga finally opens.
What it looks like today
Parents choosing a school hear ten opinions from relatives, neighbours and other parents. Adding an eleventh won't help. Once their own minds settle, they can see which school suits their child.
“Relief comes from knowing clarity is not forced; it settles when the mind stops being pulled around.”
Explore related themes: manas (49 verses), buddhi (26 verses)