Prajahati Yada Kaman

Krishna's first answer is direct. When a person gives up all desires that live in the mind and finds contentment in the Self, by the Self — that person is called Sthitaprajna.

This does not mean such a person stops acting or wanting anything at all. The key word is manogatan — desires dwelling in the mind. The Sthitaprajna's contentment does not depend on external objects. Like a well that is full from its own underground spring, this person does not need water poured in from outside.

A small child completely absorbed in play — not thinking about snacks, not worried about tomorrow, simply present — carries a faint echo of this quality. Total absorption, total contentment, needing nothing from outside to feel whole.

This is the first answer-shloka of the Sthitaprajna Prakarana. Krishna places desire-renunciation and self-contentment as the foremost mark of steady wisdom.

The remaining shlokas (2.56 through 2.72) expand on this definition from different angles — emotional equanimity, sense-restraint, the chain of downfall, and the nature of inner peace.