Who is a sage of steady wisdom - Bhagavad Gita

Who is a sage of steady wisdom

- Bhagavad Gita Ch. 2

Arjuna said:

54. What, O Krishna, is the description of him who has steady wisdom and is merged in the Superconscious State? How does one of steady wisdom speak? How does he sit? How does he walk?

The Blessed Lord said:

55. When a man completely casts off, O Arjuna, all the desires of the mind and is satisfied in the Self by the Self, then is he said to be one of steady wisdom!

COMMENTARY: All the pleasures of the world are worthless to an illumined sage who is ever content in the immortal Self.

56. He whose mind is not shaken by adversity, who does not hanker after pleasures, and who is free from attachment, fear and anger, is called a sage of steady wisdom.

57. He who is everywhere without attachment, on meeting with anything good or bad, who neither rejoices nor hates, his wisdom is fixed.

58. When, like the tortoise which withdraws its limbs on all sides, he withdraws his senses from the sense-objects, then his wisdom becomes steady.

59. The objects of the senses turn away from the abstinent man, leaving the longing (behind); but his longing also turns away on seeing the Supreme.

60. The turbulent senses, O Arjuna, do violently carry away the mind of a wise man though he be striving (to control them)!

61. Having restrained them all he should sit steadfast, intent on Me; his wisdom is steady whose senses are under control.

62. When a man thinks of the objects, attachment to them arises; from attachment desire is born; from desire anger arises.

63. From anger comes delusion; from delusion the loss of memory; from loss of memory the destruction of discrimination; from the destruction of discrimination he perishes.

64. But the self-controlled man, moving amongst objects with the senses under restraint, and free from attraction and repulsion, attains to peace.

65. In that peace all pains are destroyed, for the intellect of the tranquil-minded soon becomes steady.

COMMENTARY: When peace is attained all miseries end.

Naasti buddhir ayuktasya na chaayuktasya bhaavanaa;
Na chaabhaavayatah shaantir ashaantasya kutah sukham.

66. There is no knowledge of the Self to the unsteady, and to the unsteady no meditation is possible; and to the un-meditative there can be no peace; and to the man who has no peace, how can there be happiness?

67. For the mind which follows in the wake of the wandering senses, carries away his discrimination as the wind (carries away) a boat on the waters.

68. Therefore, O mighty-armed Arjuna, his knowledge is steady whose senses are completely restrained from sense-objects!

69. That which is night to all beings, then the self-controlled man is awake; when all beings are awake, that is night for the sage who sees.

COMMENTARY: The sage lives in the Self; this is day to him. He is unconscious of worldly phenomena; this is like night to him. The ordinary man is unconscious of his real nature. So life in the Self is like night to him. He experiences sense-objects; this is day to him.

70. He attains peace into whom all desires enter as waters enter the ocean, which, filled from all sides, remains unmoved; but not the man who is full of desires.

71. The man attains peace, who, abandoning all desires, moves about without longing, without the sense of mine and without egoism.

72. This is the Brahmic seat (eternal state), O son of Pritha! Attaining to this, none is deluded. Being established therein, even at the end of life one attains to oneness with Brahman.

Hari Om Tat Sat