Bhagavad Gita Chapter 5, Verse 19

Chapter 5 – Karma Sanyasa Yoga · Speaker: Krishna

Sanskrit verse

इहैव तैर्जितः सर्गो येषां साम्ये स्थितं मनः ।
निर्दोषं हि समं ब्रह्म तस्माद् ब्रह्मणि ते स्थिताः ॥

Transliteration

ihaiva tairjitaḥ sargo yeṣāṃ sāmye sthitaṃ manaḥ .
nirdoṣaṃ hi samaṃ brahma tasmād brahmaṇi te sthitāḥ ॥

Meaning

Those whose minds rest in equanimity have conquered creation right here; for Brahman is flawless and even, therefore they abide in Brahman.

Word meanings

इह एव – right here, in this very life
तैः – by them
सर्गः – the world of creation, the cycle of birth
जितः – is conquered
येषाम् – whose
मनः – mind
साम्ये – in equanimity
स्थितम् – is established
हि – for
ब्रह्म – Brahman
निर्दोषम् – faultless
समम् – even, equal
तस्मात् – therefore
ते – they
ब्रह्मणि – in Brahman
स्थिताः – abide

Anvaya (word order)

येषां मनः साम्ये स्थितम्, तैः इह एव सर्गः जितः; हि ब्रह्म निर्दोषं समम्; तस्मात् ते ब्रह्मणि स्थिताः ।

Explanation

The fruit of the previous verse's equal vision is stated here. ‘Ihaiva tair jitah sargah’ — right here in this world they have conquered ‘sarga’, the cycle of birth and death. Liberation is not merely a fruit awaiting after death; it is a state attainable in this very life, known as jivanmukti.

Its key is ‘samye sthitam manah’ — the mind established in equanimity. Equanimity means the mind staying balanced in pleasure and pain, gain and loss, honour and insult, one's own and others'. One whose mind is free from the race between high and low is free from the wheel of the world, since the world is really a chain of ups and downs of attraction and aversion.

The reason is stated: ‘nirdosham hi samam brahma’ — Brahman itself is flawless and even. So one whose mind has become even and flawless has a nature like Brahman, that is, abides in Brahman. Shankara links this with Brahman's attributeless, flawless equality. According to Ramanuja, the soul's own nature as knowledge is also even, like Brahman, and when the mind is steady there the seeker abides in Brahman-experience.

The verse gives a simple test for life: how even is my mind? Where there is equanimity, there liberation begins.

Context

After equal vision in 5.18, verse 5.19 gives its fruit. In 5.20 the conduct of one established in Brahman will be described.

Life lesson

Equanimity of mind is the true conquest of the world. Practise balance between pleasure and pain, honour and insult; this is the door to liberation in this very life.

Key terms

Sarga: the cycle of creation, of birth and death
Samya: equanimity, balance of mind
Nirdosha Brahman: the flawless, even Supreme Reality