📿 Shloka Collection

Asanshayam Mahabaho

Gita 6.35 Bhagavad Gita
📖 Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 6 — Atma Samyama Yoga
असंशयं महाबाहो मनो दुर्निग्रहं चलम् ।
अभ्यासेन तु कौन्तेय वैराग्येण च गृह्यते ॥
Asanshayam mahabaho mano durnigraham chalam
Abhyasena tu Kaunteya vairagyena cha grihyate
असंशयम्
without doubt, certainly
महाबाहो
O mighty-armed one (Arjuna)
मनः दुर्निग्रहम् चलम्
the mind is hard to restrain, restless
अभ्यासेन तु
but by practice
कौन्तेय
O son of Kunti (Arjuna)
वैराग्येण च गृह्यते
and by detachment, it is mastered

Krishna does not dismiss Arjuna's concern. He does not say 'it is easy' or 'you are exaggerating.' He says: Asanshayam — without doubt, you are right. The mind is restless and hard to control. Full agreement. That honesty matters.

But then comes the turning word: 'tu' — but. Yes, it is difficult. But it is not impossible. Two tools can master it. Abhyasa: practice. Doing it again and again. Falling off and getting back on. Vairagya: detachment. Gradually loosening the grip of the things that pull the mind away.

These two — practice and detachment — work like two oars of a boat. Practice without detachment becomes mechanical. Detachment without practice becomes passive. Together, they move the mind steadily toward stillness. Krishna addresses Arjuna with two names here — 'Mahabaho' and 'Kaunteya' — both terms of respect and warmth, as if to say: your struggle is real, and you are strong enough for it.

This shloka directly answers Arjuna's objection in 6.34. Patanjali's Yoga Sutra 1.12 states the same principle: 'abhyasa-vairagyabhyam tan-nirodhah' — the cessation of mental fluctuations comes through practice and detachment. The Gita and the Yoga Sutra speak with one voice here.

Krishna uses two affectionate names for Arjuna — Mahabaho (mighty-armed) and Kaunteya (son of Kunti). Acknowledging the difficulty of controlling the mind is not weakness. It is honesty, and Krishna honors it.

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