Bg. 2.64 · Bhagavad-gita As It Is

Devanagari

रागद्वेषविमुक्तैस्तु विषयनिन्द्रियैश्चरन् । आत्मवश्यैर्विधेयात्मा प्रसादमधिगच्छति ॥ ६४ ॥

Verse text

rāga-dveṣa-vimuktais tu viṣayān indriyaiś caran ātma-vaśyair vidheyātmā prasādam adhigacchati

Synonyms

rāga — attachment ; dveṣa — and detachment ; vimuktaiḥ — by one who has become free from ; tu — but ; viṣayān — sense objects ; indriyaiḥ — by the senses ; caran — acting upon ; ātma-vaśyaiḥ — under one’s control ; vidheya-ātmā — one who follows regulated freedom ; prasādam — the mercy of the Lord ; adhigacchati — attains.

Translation

But a person free from all attachment and aversion and able to control his senses through regulative principles of freedom can obtain the complete mercy of the Lord.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

64. One whose mind is submissive, who engages in the sense objects with the senses freed of attachment and repulsion, under the control of the mind, attains peace.

Translation (Baladeva Vidyabhusana)

64. One whose mind is offered to me, even though he enjoys the sense objects with the senses freed of attachment and repulsion, under the control of the mind, attains a pure mind.

Purport

It is already explained that one may externally control the senses by some artificial process, but unless the senses are engaged in the transcendental service of the Lord, there is every chance of a fall. Although the person in full Kṛṣṇa consciousness may apparently be on the sensual plane, because of his being Kṛṣṇa conscious he has no attachment to sensual activities. The Kṛṣṇa conscious person is concerned only with the satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa, and nothing else. Therefore he is transcendental to all attachment and detachment. If Kṛṣṇa wants, the devotee can do anything which is ordinarily undesirable; and if Kṛṣṇa does not want, he shall not do that which he would have ordinarily done for his own satisfaction. Therefore to act or not to act is within his control because he acts only under the direction of Kṛṣṇa. This consciousness is the causeless mercy of the Lord, which the devotee can achieve in spite of his being attached to the sensual platform.

Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

This verse answers the question, “How does the sthita-prajṣa go?” (vrajeta kim) The Lord explains that it is not a fault to accept the objects of the senses, if it is done with controlled senses, with absence of attachment of the objects in the mind. According to Amara Kośa, vidheya means “submissive, situated in words, compliant, controlled, well behaved, polite, and equal.” One whose mind (ātmā) is submissive to instructions (vidheya ātmā), (who contacts objects with senses controlled by the mind, senses devoid of attachment and repulsion), attains peace (prasādam). Contacting the sense objects is not a fault. Rather it is a good quality for one who does so with control. In other words, for the sthita-prajṣa, accepting the renunciation of enjoyment of objects, either by withdrawal of the senses (āsana) or by engaging the senses (vrajana), is beneficial.

Purport (Baladeva Vidyabhusana)

If one conquers the mind, even if the senses are not subdued, there is no fault. In eight verses the Lord answers the last question, “How does the sthita prajṣa engage in action of the senses?” It has just been said that even if one has conquered the external senses, if he does not offer his mind to Me, his spiritual endeavor is a failure. That person who has a controlled mind, a mind offered to Me (vidheyātmā), through which he finally achieves destruction of the impurities of the mind such as attachment to pleasure, though enjoying (caran) the forbidden sense objects such as sound, by the senses such as the ear, but which are devoid of attraction and repulsion, and which are dependent on the mind (ātma vaśyair)(which is offered to Me)—that person finally attains a pure mind (prasādam), [Note: Prasāda can mean “purity” as well as “mercy.”] free from the appearance of contaminations such as attraction to sense objects.