Gita.05.28 – Controlling the external and the internal brings liberation
yatendriya-mano-buddhir
munir mokṣa-parāyaṇaḥ
vigatecchā-bhaya-krodho
yaḥ sadā mukta eva saḥ (Bg 5.28)
Word-for-word:
yata — controlled; indriya — senses; manaḥ — mind; buddhiḥ — intelligence; muniḥ — the transcendentalist; mokṣa — for liberation; parāyaṇaḥ — being so destined; vigata — having discarded; icchā — wishes; bhaya — fear; krodhaḥ — anger; yaḥ — one who; sadā — always; muktaḥ — liberated; eva — certainly; saḥ — he is.
Translation:
Thus controlling the mind, senses and intelligence, the transcendentalist aiming at liberation becomes free from desire, fear and anger. One who is always in this state is certainly liberated.
Explanation:
This verse continues the summary description of the path of aṣṭāṅga-yoga, which Kṛṣṇa began in the previous verse and will elaborate upon in the next chapter. In the earlier verse, Kṛṣṇa spoke of external practices—shutting out sense objects, focusing the eyes on the space between the eyebrows, and regulating the breath.
In this verse, Kṛṣṇa speaks about the internals.
yatendriya-mano-buddhir: One must control or regulate the senses, mind, and intelligence.
As we remember from the third chapter of the Bhagavad-gītā (3.40), these three are the places where lust resides. Hence, Kṛṣṇa emphasizes the need to control them.
munir mokṣa-parāyaṇaḥ: The sage who is dedicated to the pursuit of liberation,
vigatecchā-bhaya-krodhaḥ: who is free from desire, fear, and anger,
yaḥ sadā mukta eva saḥ: such a person is indeed always liberated.
In this verse, Kṛṣṇa states that a person who remains internally detached and situated in this way throughout life is not merely destined to attain mokṣa, but is already liberated.
This is similar to what was stated in 5.19: ihaiva tair jitaḥ sargo—even in this world, such a person has conquered material existence. Yeṣāṁ sāmye sthitaṁ manaḥ—one who is situated in sameness, in equanimity. In the same way, Kṛṣṇa states here: yaḥ sadā mukta eva saḥ—such a person is liberated.
The exercise of the externals is meant for purifying and conquering the internals. Aṣṭāṅga-yoga, with its postures, breathing exercises, and prāṇāyāma, is widely practiced today. However, many people engage in it primarily for physical health and appearance, which is a gross underutilization of yoga’s true potential.
Here, Kṛṣṇa urges us to practice this for the sake of purification, elevation, and ultimately liberation. The statement “yaḥ sadā mukta eva saḥ” is extraordinary, for Kṛṣṇa declares that if we follow this process, we will remain liberated.
What does He state? Yatendriya-mano-buddhir: the senses, mind, and intelligence are the interfaces between the soul and the world, and it is through these that the soul’s consciousness becomes misdirected toward the world.
When these are brought under control, the misdirection of consciousness toward external sensual and tempting objects ceases. One then develops the extraordinary willpower needed to completely conquer the senses, mind, and intelligence by contemplating the imminent destruction of the body, the certainty of death, and the necessity of attaining liberation as the only means to transcend the misery of death.
It is almost impossible to give up anything unless we have something else—something better—to take up. Here, the muni is not merely giving up externals toward which the senses, the mind, and even the materially contaminated intelligence are attracted. He also strives for the ultimate reality—the liberated state of existence—where one pursues and relishes transcendence.
In this verse, however, the specific kind of mokṣa being pursued is not mentioned. Earlier, the term brahma-nirvāṇa was used, which, as the verse indicates, generally refers to impersonal liberation. Here, it is simply mokṣa-parāyaṇaḥ—the sage, recognizing this world as a place of misery, strives for liberation.
One can be devoted (parāyaṇaḥ) to various things—for example, Nārāyaṇa-parāyaṇaḥ. In the Bhagavad-gītā (16.12), the phrase kāma-krodha-parāyaṇāḥ is used: āśā-pāśa-śatair baddhāḥ kāma-krodha-parāyaṇāḥ. Similarly, in 13.26, there is śruti-parāyaṇaḥ—devoted to hearing.
Here, in this verse, the devotion is directed toward the attainment of mokṣa.
The practices of yoga, especially aṣṭāṅga-yoga, may seem very demanding—even excruciating. What makes them endurable, and ultimately elevates one to a level of purity where they become relishable, is the focus of the seeker on the pursuit of liberation—munir mokṣa-parāyaṇaḥ. Once one firmly decides to pursue liberation, the forces that misdirect consciousness toward the world are naturally kept under control—vigatecchā-bhaya-krodhaḥ.
Icchā is the desire to enjoy this world, while bhaya and krodha refer to different intellectual misconceptions. Icchā points to emotional misdirection. Bhaya and krodha, though emotions, arise from intellectual misconceptions. Bhaya is the fear of personal existence. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains in the purport to 4.10 that krodha refers to frustration caused by inveterate skepticism, where one keeps rejecting and rejecting, but does not accept anything positive.
All three mental dispositions, though marked by different emotions, keep the consciousness directed toward matter and material existence. However, the pursuer of liberation—mokṣa-parāyaṇaḥ—directs the consciousness toward the Supreme Lord, the ultimate object of liberation. By such focus, one can remain always liberated.
A person who has controlled the senses, mind, and intelligence; who has freed oneself from desire, anger, and fear; and who is devoted to the pursuit of liberation—that person truly attains liberation.
Thank you.
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