Chapter 2: Sānkhya Yoga – Yoga of Contemplation on Self: Verse 68
तस्माद्यस्य महाबाहो निगृहीतानि सर्वश: ।
इन्द्रियाणीन्द्रियार्थेभ्यस्तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता ॥
tasmād-yasya mahābāho nigṛhītāni sarvaśa:
indriyāṇīndriyārthebhyas-tasya prajñā pratiṣṭhitā – 2.68
Therefore, O Mahabahu (Arjuna), only when all the senses are well restrained from their respective objects, one’s consciousness becomes stable and steady.
Chapter 2: Sānkhya Yoga – Yoga of Contemplation on Self - Verse 68
Ma Gurupriya
This is a summary statement of Krishna in his Sthita-prajñā exposition. As mentioned earlier, Bhagavad Gita’s unique note as a śāstra, is discipline and sensory control. It is indispensable in spiritual seeking.
Mind, though associated with the body, does not pose any problem, except when it is enslaved by the senses, and thereby is led astray. Unless this possiblity is well safeguarded against, the mind will be in peril. That is why Krishna stresses in unmistakable terms that one can be a Sthita-prajñā only when his senses are under full control and regulation.
Mind is drawn only to the variety of world objects the senses together reveal ceaselessly. As long as senses work, the resultant variety cannot be avoided. Sensory regulation thus becomes paramount in every way for stable-mindedness. Do not fail to grasp this fact.
