Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada

Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya

  • 33-37: Dealing with the mind, the main obstacle in yoga

Bg 6.37

arjuna uvāca

ayatiḥ śraddhayopeto
yogāc calita-mānasaḥ
aprāpya yoga-saṁsiddhiṁ
kāṁ gatiṁ kṛṣṇa gacchati

Word for word: 

arjunaḥ uvāca — Arjuna said; ayatiḥ — the unsuccessful transcendentalist; śraddhayā — with faith; upetaḥ — engaged; yogāt — from the mystic link; calita — deviated; mānasaḥ — who has such a mind; aprāpya — failing to attain; yoga–saṁsiddhim — the highest perfection in mysticism; kām — which; gatim — destination; kṛṣṇa — O Kṛṣṇa; gacchati — achieves.

Translation: 

Arjuna said: O Kṛṣṇa, what is the destination of the unsuccessful transcendentalist, who in the beginning takes to the process of self-realization with faith but who later desists due to worldly-mindedness and thus does not attain perfection in mysticism?

 

Śraddhayopeto, one has Sraddha and one engages in process but 

ayatiḥ, one is unsuccessful, Yathi means renunciate or transcendentalist, thus if transcendentalist as a Yathi, doesn’t contribute to path of yoga why yogāc calita-mānasaḥ, as mind becomes deviated, this is the connecting link as the whole chapter has been about the mind in many ways, it is of course about Astanga Yoga, but within Astanga yoga the essential thread of thought is how to control the mind, so yogāc calita-mānasaḥ then what happens is Aprapya, because the mind gets deviated so Chalita is also related with word chancala, so calita the mind goes off, Chanchala refers to restless, the mind goes here the mind goes there mind is restless but calita-mānasaḥ means it goes completely and drag the person also off from the path of Yoga, on the path of yoga sometimes our mind may goes to some sensual activities but if it doesn’t take us off from spiritual path entirely then that is just a mental deviation but here in this verse Arjuna is talking about the person who leaves the path completely yogāc calita-mānasaḥ, such a person aprāpya yoga-saṁsiddhiṁ, such a person does not attain saṁsiddhi, perfection on the path of Yoga, so then kāṁ gatiṁ kṛṣṇa gacchati, what will be destination of such a person, so here Arjuna is using sentiment form of address, kṛṣṇa kāṁ gatiṁ, what will be destination of such a person who is unable to attain success on the path of Yoga.

So Srila Prabhupada explains from 02.40 where Sri Krishna has assured Arjuna that on spiritual path there is no loss nehābhikrama-nāśo ’sti

pratyavāyo na vidyate, nehābhikrama, how there is no loss on this path that is going to be discussed over here the preliminary characteristic of it is having no loss, has been mentioned, but now there is more systematic elaboration.

Srila Prabhupada Purport: Self-realization is sought by the path of knowledge, by the practice of the eightfold system or by bhakti-yoga.

So there are the various processes of transcendence, Gyana Yoga, Astanga Yoga and Bhakti Yoga, now either way one has to realise oneself spiritually, so how does one do that? That is by spiritual practice 

So what happens when one is not able to continue it, so that is described in the next verse, Arjuna continues the question, clarifying it, what happens to such a person, so the first most imp point is the person gets deviated by the mind and is unsuccessful in the path of Yoga.

End of transcription.