Gita 05.17 – Spiritualize all the channels of consciousness to gain liberating knowledge
tad-buddhayas tad-ātmānas
tan-niṣṭhās tat-parāyaṇāḥ
gacchanty apunar-āvṛttiṁ
jñāna-nirdhūta-kalmaṣāḥ (BG 05.17)
Word-to-word
tat-buddhayaḥ — those whose intelligence is always in the Supreme; tat-ātmānaḥ — those whose minds are always in the Supreme; tat-niṣṭhāḥ — those whose faith is only meant for the Supreme; tat-parāyaṇāḥ — who have completely taken shelter of Him; gacchanti — go; apunaḥ-āvṛttim — to liberation; jñāna — by knowledge; nirdhūta — cleansed; kalmaṣāḥ — misgivings.
Translation
When one’s intelligence, mind, faith and refuge are all fixed in the Supreme, then one becomes fully cleansed of misgivings through complete knowledge and thus proceeds straight on the path of liberation.
Explanation
This section of the Gita focuses on transcendental knowledge (jñāna).
In the previous verses, Krishna explained how by acquiring knowledge, a person becomes illumined, just as the sun illuminates everything upon rising. Similarly, when a person attains true knowledge, everything becomes clear, and ignorance is dispelled.
Now, in this verse, Krishna describes the process by which such knowledge can be acquired and how it leads to ultimate purification.
The key phrase here is jñāna-nirdhūta-kalmaṣāḥ — “those whose impurities are cleansed away by knowledge.”
This purifying aspect of knowledge has been emphasized earlier in the Gita:
– In 4.10, Krishna says that many have become purified through the “austerity of knowledge.”
– In 4.38, He declares, na hi jñānena sadṛśaṁ pavitram iha vidyate — “there is nothing in this world as purifying as knowledge.”
That same theme continues here. Knowledge, when properly received and realized, cleanses the heart of all contamination — ignorance, attachment, and selfish desire.
Once the impurities are removed, what happens? Krishna says such souls gacchanti apunarāvṛttim — they progress along the path of no return, meaning they attain the eternal state of liberation, as opposed to temporary, perishable attainments in this world. And what ensures this eternal attainment?
It is the complete investment of one’s consciousness in tad — that Absolute Truth.
Krishna lists four dimensions of this focus:
1. tad-buddhayah — the intelligence fixed in the Absolute
2. tad-ātmānah — the mind absorbed in the Absolute
3. tad-niṣṭhāh — the faith anchored in the Absolute
4. tad-parāyaṇāḥ — the heart fully devoted to the Absolute
At this point in the Gita, the specific identity of tad (“that Absolute Truth”) is not yet explicitly defined — whether it refers to Brahman, Paramātmā, or Bhagavān.
But the direction of focus is unmistakable: Krishna is guiding the seeker to center their intelligence, heart, faith, and devotion entirely in the Divine Reality, by which knowledge matures into realization and realization into liberation.
The focus in this verse is on a higher reality — something beyond oneself.
When Krishna repeatedly uses the word tad (“that”), He is pointing our attention toward a truth transcending the individual self. The Gita consistently recommends orienting our consciousness toward that Absolute Truth.
In this verse, tad appears four times — tad-buddhayah, tad-ātmānah, tad-niṣṭhāh, tad-parāyaṇāḥ — and each time it is linked with a distinct aspect of the human personality:
– buddhi — intelligence or reason
– ātmā — mind or emotion
– niṣṭhā — faith or conviction
– parāyaṇa — dedication or devotion
These represent the various dimensions of our inner being.
Often in life, there is a conflict between emotion and reason. Yet here, the Bhagavad Gita urges us to harmonize both and invest them completely in the Absolute Truth — ultimately in Krishna Himself.
– Buddhi (reason) represents our faculty of discernment — the analytical, questioning, understanding aspect of consciousness.
– Ātmā (mind) represents the seat of feeling, emotion, and experience.
Both must flow toward the same divine center.
To understand this better, we can think of consciousness as a stream that flows from us toward the object of our focus. This stream of awareness can move along different channels — the channel of intellect, the channel of emotion, or even the channel of faith.
Sometimes we are intellectually attracted to something — then our consciousness primarily moves along the path of buddhi.
Sometimes we are emotionally absorbed — then it moves along the path of the mind.
These are not separate, physical channels inside us, but rather different pathways or orientations through which our consciousness expresses itself.
– Emotionally inclined people move along the flight of emotions.
– Rationally inclined people move along the ascent of reason.
Whichever path we take, the essential point is this: all these faculties — reason, emotion, and faith — are meant to be aligned and directed toward the Absolute Truth.
Beyond reason and emotion lies something even deeper: faith (niṣṭhā).
Our faith determines the ultimate direction of our consciousness. Wherever our faith moves, our consciousness follows.
Finally, parāyaṇa — our devotion or dedication — represents the culmination of this movement. Whatever we make the goal of our life, whatever we deeply dedicate ourselves to, that becomes the focal point of our consciousness.
Thus, Krishna here is showing the complete integration of the human personality — intellect, mind, faith, and devotion — all flowing harmoniously toward the Supreme Reality.
Although the verse itself does not explicitly name Krishna, the Gita will later reveal that “that Absolute Truth” (tad) indeed refers to Him.
This becomes clear in 7.7, where Krishna declares:
mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañ-jaya —
“There is no truth superior to Me, O Arjuna.”
Thus, when we read tad-buddhayah, tad-ātmānah, tad-niṣṭhāh, tad-parāyaṇāḥ, we understand that all the various directions in which our consciousness may move — the different channels or trajectories within our inner landscape — are meant to be directed toward Krishna.
When our intelligence, mind, faith, and heart are wholly invested in Him, our consciousness flows entirely toward the Absolute. And the beauty of this relationship is that the Absolute — Krishna — reciprocates.
By offering our consciousness, our emotions, our reasoning, and our devotion to Him, Krishna responds by granting knowledge. That divine knowledge purifies us, washing away ignorance and attachment, and propels us forward on the path of no return — the path of eternal liberation.
In this way, the Gita teaches that knowledge is not merely acquired by intellect, but awakened through reciprocal devotion — the meeting of the finite consciousness with the infinite consciousness, of the seeker with the Supreme.
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