Liberation

Yam hi na vyathayanty ete purusham purusharshabha, sama-duhkha-sukham dhiram so 'mritatvaya kalpate

O best among men, the person who is not disturbed by happiness and distress and is steady in both is certainly eligible for liberation.

Vedavinasinam nityam ya enam ajam avyayam katham sa purushah partha kam ghatayati hanti kam

Krishna asks: how can one who knows the soul to be indestructible, unborn, eternal, and immutable kill anyone or cause anyone to kill? The question is rhetorical — true knowledge of the self makes the concept of killing spiritually meaningless. Only ignorance creates guilt around fulfilling one's righteous duty.

Esha te 'bhihita sankhye buddhir yoge tv imam shrinu buddhya yukto yaya partha karma-bandham prahasyasi

So far I have declared to you the wisdom of Sankhya philosophy. Now hear about Yoga, by which you shall break through the bonds of karma. Having explained the Sankhya (philosophical analysis of the self), Krishna now transitions to the practical path of Yoga — specifically karma yoga, the yoga of selfless action.

Yam imam pushpitam vacam pravadanty avipashcitah veda-vada-ratah partha nanyad astiti vadinah

Men of small knowledge are very much attached to the flowery words of the Vedas, which recommend various fruitive activities for elevation to the heavenly planets, and so on. They say there is nothing more than this. Krishna cautions against those who reduce the Vedas to rituals for material gain and heavenly rewards.

Kamatmanah svarga-para janma-karma-phala-pradam kriya-vishesha-bahulam bhogaishvarya-gatim prati

Being full of desires and intent on heavenly enjoyment, they prescribe many elaborate rituals that promise birth, good actions, and various results aimed at enjoyment and power. Such a materialistic approach to religion keeps the soul bound to the cycle of birth, enjoyment, and death without achieving true liberation.

Traigunya-vishaya veda nistrai-gunyo bhavarjuna nirdvandvo nitya-sattva-stho niryoga-kshema atmavan

The Vedas mainly deal with the subject of the three modes of material nature. Rise above these three modes, O Arjuna. Be transcendental to them. Be free from all dualities, and from all anxieties for gain and safety, and be established in the self. The call is to transcend the gunas (modes of nature) and rest in pure awareness beyond all relative distinctions.

Yavan artha udapane sarvatah samplutodake tavan sarvesu vedeshu brahmanasya vijanatah

All purposes served by a small well can at once be served by a great reservoir of water. Similarly, all the purposes of the Vedas can be served to one who knows the Supreme Brahman. When one has realized the Supreme, all the partial prescriptions of scripture are automatically fulfilled. The knower of Brahman transcends all ritual requirements.

Durena hy avaram karma buddhi-yogad dhananjaya buddhau sharanam anviccha kripanah phala-hetavah

O Dhananjaya, keep all abominable activities far distant by means of devotional service, and in that consciousness surrender to the Lord. Those who want to enjoy the fruits of their work are misers. Fruitive action is far inferior to the yoga of wisdom. Seeking refuge in equanimous intelligence, one should act without attachment to results.

Karma-jam buddhi-yukta hi phalam tyaktva manisinah janma-bandha-vinirmuktah padam gacchanty anamayam

By thus engaging in devotional service to the Lord, great sages or devotees free themselves from the results of work in the material world. In this way they become free from the cycle of birth and death and attain the state beyond all miseries. Renouncing the fruits of karma through wisdom-yoga, the wise transcend the cycle of rebirth.

Yada te moha-kalilam buddhir vyatitarishyati tada gantasi nirvedam shrotavyasya shrutasya ca

When your intelligence has passed out of the dense forest of delusion, you shall become indifferent to all that has been heard and all that is to be heard. As the mind becomes purified through yoga practice, one reaches a state of vairagya — dispassion toward all scripturally prescribed duties and worldly experiences. This marks the beginning of true liberation.

Sri bhagavan uvaca: prajahati yada kaman sarvan partha mano-gatan atmany evatmana tushtah sthita-prajnas tadocyate

Krishna replies: One is said to be one of steady wisdom when he gives up all desires of the mind, finding contentment in the pure self alone. The sthitaprajna is one who has completely abandoned all desires born of the mind and finds perfect contentment within the self. This inner self-sufficiency is the mark of the enlightened.

Raga-dvesha-vimuktais tu vishayan indriyaish caran atma-vashyair vidheyatma prasadam adhigacchati

But a person free from all attachment and aversion, able to control the senses through regulative principles of freedom, can obtain the full mercy of the Lord. One who engages with sense objects with controlled senses, free from attraction and repulsion, attains prasada — divine grace and serenity of mind.

Prasade sarva-duhkhanam hanir asyopajayate prasanna-cetaso hy ashu buddhih paryavatishthate

For one thus satisfied in divine grace, the threefold miseries of material existence exist no longer; and in such pleasant consciousness, one's intelligence is soon well established. The serene mind rapidly establishes itself in wisdom. Inner peace (prasada) is not merely pleasant — it is the very ground from which steady wisdom grows.

Esha brahmi sthitih partha nainam prapya vimuhyati sthitvasyam anta-kale 'pi brahma-nirvanam ricchati

That is the way of the spiritual and godly life, after attaining which a man is not bewildered. If one is thus situated even at the hour of death, one can enter into the kingdom of God. The final verse of Chapter 2 describes brahmi sthiti — the state of Brahman-consciousness — as the supreme destination. One who attains this state is never again deluded, and even at death merges into the Absolute.

Yas tv atma-ratir eva syad atma-triptas ca manavah, atmany eva ca santushtas tasya karyam na vidyate

But those who rejoice in the self, who are illumined and fully satisfied in the self, for them there is no duty.

Tasmad asaktah satatam karyam karma samachara, asakto hy acharan karma param apnoti purushah

Therefore, without attachment, constantly perform action which is duty, for by performing action without attachment, one attains the Supreme.

Ye me matam idam nityam anutishthanti manavah, shraddhavantos 'nasuyanto mucyante te 'pi karmabhih

Those who constantly follow this teaching of Mine with faith and without caviling — they too are freed from the bondage of karma. Faith in sacred teaching, combined with action, leads to liberation.

Janma karma ca me divyam evam yo vetti tattvatah, tyaktva deham punar janma naiti mam eti so 'rjuna

One who truly understands the divine nature of My birth and activities, O Arjuna, upon leaving the body at death, does not take birth again in this material world — they come to Me.

Na mam karmani limpanti na me karma-phale sprha, iti mam yo 'bhijanati karmabhir na sa badhyate

Actions do not taint Me, nor do I desire the fruits of action. One who understands this truth about Me is also not bound by the reactions of their own work.

Evam jnatva kritam karma purvair api mumukshubhih, kuru karmaiva tasmat tvam purvaih purvataram kritam

Knowing this, the ancient seekers of liberation also performed action. Therefore, perform your duty as the ancients did in earlier times.

Kim karma kim akarmeti kavayo 'py atra mohitah, tat te karma pravakshyami yaj jnatva mokshyase 'shubhat

Even the wise are bewildered as to what is action and what is inaction. I shall teach you what action is, knowing which you shall be freed from all inauspiciousness.

Gata-sangasya muktasya jnanavasthita-cetasah, yajnayacaratah karma samagram praviliyate

All the karmic reactions of a person who is without attachment, who is liberated, whose mind is established in knowledge, and who performs action as sacrifice — entirely dissolve.

Evam bahu-vidha yajna vitata brahmano mukhe, karma-jan viddhi tan sarvan evam jnatva vimokshyase

Many forms of sacrifice are spread out before Brahman — know all of them to be born of action. Knowing this you shall be liberated.

Api ced asi papebhyah sarvebhyah papa-krit-tamah, sarvam jnana-plavenaiva vrjinam santarishyasi

Even if you are the most sinful of all sinners, once you are situated in the boat of transcendental knowledge, you will be able to cross over the ocean of miseries.

Sri bhagavan uvaca: Sannyasah karma-yogash ca nihshreyasa-karav ubhau, tayos tu karma-sannyasat karma-yogo vishishyate

Krishna replies that both renunciation and karma yoga lead to liberation, but karma yoga is superior to mere renunciation of action. The path of selfless action is practically more accessible and leads to the same supreme goal.

Jneyah sa nitya-sannyasi yo na dveshti na kankshaති, nirdvandvo hi maha-baho sukham bandhat pramucyate

That person is a true renunciant who neither hates nor desires. Free from all dualities, such a person is easily liberated from bondage.

Yat sankhyaih prapyate sthanam tad yogair api gamyate, ekam sankhyam ca yogam ca yah pashyati sa pashyati

The state reached by followers of Sankhya is also reached by practitioners of yoga; those who truly see, see that Sankhya and yoga are one. This is the unifying vision that dissolves the false debate between contemplation and action.

Jnanena tu tad ajnanam yesham nashitam atmanah, tesham aditya-vaj jnanam prakashayati tat param

But for those in whom this ignorance of the Self is destroyed by knowledge, that knowledge illuminates the Supreme like the sun reveals all things. Self-knowledge is the most powerful force — it dissolves the darkness of ignorance entirely.

Tad-buddhayas tad-atmanah tan-nishthhas tat-parayanah, gacchanty apunar-avrittim jnana-nirdhuta-kalmashah

Those whose intellect is absorbed in That, whose self is That, who are established in That, and whose supreme goal is That — they go to the state of no-return, their impurities washed away by knowledge. Complete absorption in the Supreme leads to final liberation.

Labhante brahma-nirvanam rishayah kshina-kalmashah, chinna-dvaidha yatatmanah sarva-bhuta-hite ratah

The sages who have destroyed their sins, cut through their doubts, mastered themselves, and are devoted to the welfare of all beings — they attain Brahman-nirvana. Liberation is not for the solitary seeker alone but for those who radiate care for all creation.

Yatendriya-mano-buddhir munir moksha-parayanah, vigateccha-bhaya-krodho yah sada mukta eva sah

The sage with senses, mind, and intellect controlled, intent on liberation, free from desire, fear, and anger — that one is always free. This verse describes the liberated sage: the triad of desire, fear, and anger being absent, freedom is constant and unbroken.

Yam labdhva caparam labham manyate nadhikam tatah, yasmin sthito na duhkhena gurunapi vicalyate

Having attained which, no other gain is considered greater; established in which, one is not shaken even by the heaviest sorrow. This is the supreme attainment — a state so complete that no further seeking is needed and no sorrow can dislodge the yogi from it.

Antavat tu phalam tesham tad bhavaty alpa-medhasam, devan deva-yajo yanti mad-bhakta yanti mam api

But the fruit gained by these men of small understanding is finite. The worshipers of the devas go to the devas, but My devotees come to Me. Worship of limited powers yields limited, temporary results, while devotion to the Supreme leads to the supreme eternal goal.

Jara-marana-mokshaya mam ashritya yatanti ye, te brahma tad viduh kritsnam adhyatmam karma cakhilam

Those who strive for liberation from old age and death, taking refuge in Me, come to know Brahman in its entirety — the nature of the Self and all karma. Taking refuge in God with the sincere desire to be freed from the cycle of birth and death opens the door to complete spiritual knowledge.

Prayana-kale manasacalena bhaktya yukto yoga-balena caiva, bhruvor madhye pranam aveshya samyak sa tam param purusham upaiti divyam

One who at the time of death fixes the life-air between the eyebrows with devotion and the power of yoga, with the mind not deviating — that person attains the divine Supreme Person. The yogic practice of drawing the prana to the ajna chakra (between the eyebrows) at the moment of death facilitates conscious union with the Divine.

Sarva-dvarani samyamya mano hridi nirudhya ca, murdhny adhayatmanah pranam asthito yoga-dharanam

Closing all the doors of the body, fixing the mind in the heart, drawing the life-force to the crown of the head, and establishing oneself in yogic concentration — this is the practice for liberation. This verse describes the precise yogic technique: withdrawing the senses, interiorizing the mind, and redirecting the prana upward through the spine.

Mam upetya punar janma duhkhalayam ashashvatam, napnuvanti mahatmanah samsiddhim paramam gatah

Having attained Me, the great souls are no longer subject to rebirth in this temporary world of misery, having achieved the highest perfection.

Abrahma-bhuvanal lokah punar avartino 'rjuna, mam upetya tu kaunteya punar janma na vidyate

From the highest planet in the material world down to the lowest, all are places of misery wherein repeated birth and death take place. But one who attains My abode, O son of Kunti, never takes birth again. Even the most elevated material realms — including the realm of Brahma the creator — are subject to the cycle of rebirth. Only God's abode grants permanent liberation.

Avyakto 'kshara ity uktas tam ahuh paramam gatim, yam prapya na nivartante tad dhama paramam mama

That which the Vedantists describe as unmanifest and infallible, that which is known as the supreme destination, that place from which, having attained it, one never returns — that is My supreme abode. The supreme abode of God, from which there is no return, is the ultimate destination described throughout the Upanishads and Vedanta philosophy.

Yatra kale tv anavrittim avrittim caiva yoginah, prayata yanti tam kalam vakshyami bharatarshabha

O best of the Bharatas, I shall now explain the different times at which, departing from this world, yogis either do not return or do return. Krishna introduces the teaching of the two paths — the bright path of no-return and the dark path of return — revealing that even the time of death influences the spiritual outcome.

Agnir jyotir ahah shuklah shan-masa uttarayanam, tatra prayata gacchanti brahma brahma-vido janah

Those who know the Absolute, who pass away in fire, in light, in the daytime, in the bright fortnight, or in the six months when the sun travels in the northern sky — they go to the Absolute. The path of light (devayana) — associated with fire, day, the bright lunar fortnight, and the northern solstice — leads those who know Brahman to liberation.

Shukla-krishne gati hy ete jagatah shashvate mate, ekaya yaty anavrittim anyayavartate punah

These two paths — the bright and the dark — are said to be the world's two eternal paths. By one, one goes and does not return; by the other, one returns again. These two paths, the path of light and the path of smoke, are eternal cosmic paths. One leads to permanent liberation; the other to eventual rebirth.

Sri bhagavan uvaca: idam tu te guhyatamam pravakshyamy anasuyave, jnanam vijnana-sahitam yaj jnatva mokshyase 'shubhat

The Supreme Lord said: Because you are free from envy, I shall impart to you this most secret wisdom combined with direct realisation. Knowing this, you shall be freed from all misfortune. This royal knowledge is the highest purifier and is directly perceivable by experience.

Ashraddadhanah purusha dharmasyasya parantapa, aprapya mam nivartante mrityu-samsara-vartmani

Those who lack faith in this dharma, O Parantapa, do not attain Me; they return to the path of birth and death in this mortal world. Without inner conviction in the supreme teaching, the soul remains bound to the cycle of transmigration.

Yanti deva-vrata devan pitrin yanti pitri-vratah, bhutani yanti bhutejya yanti mad-yajino 'pi mam

Those who worship the demigods go to the demigods; those who worship the ancestors go to the ancestors; those who worship spirits go to spirits; and those who worship Me will come to Me. The destination of a soul mirrors the object of its deepest devotion and worship.

Shubhashubha-phalair evam mokshyase karma-bandhanais, sannyasa-yoga-yuktatma vimukto mam upaisyasi

In this way, you shall be freed from the bondage of actions and their good and evil results. With your mind fixed on renunciation and yoga, you shall come to Me. Dedicating all actions to God through yoga of renunciation dissolves karmic bondage and leads to union with the Supreme.

Mam hi partha vyapashritya ye 'pi syuh papa-yonayah, striyo vaishyas tatha shudras te 'pi yanti param gatim

O Partha, even those who are born of sinful wombs — women, merchants (vaishyas), and labourers (shudras) — by taking refuge in Me, they too attain the supreme destination. Devotion transcends all social categories; the path of surrender to God is open to every soul regardless of birth or status.

Yo mam ajam anadim ca vetti loka-maheshvaram, asammudho sa martyeshu sarva-papaih pramucyate

One who knows Me as unborn, without beginning, the Supreme Lord of all worlds — that person among mortals is undeluded and freed from all sins. Recognising the eternal and beginningless nature of God purifies the soul and removes the ignorance that is the root of all bondage.

Tesham aham samuddharta mrityu-samsara-sagarat, bhavami na chirat partha mayy aveshita-chetasam

For those whose minds are set on Me, I am soon the deliverer from the ocean of death and transmigration, O Partha.

Iti kshetram tatha jnanam jneyam choktam samasatah, mad-bhakta etad vijnaya mad-bhavayopapadyate

Thus the field, knowledge, and the knowable have been briefly described. My devotee, understanding this, attains to My nature. Comprehending the distinction between field and knower leads directly to liberation through devotion.

Ya evam vetti purusham prakriti cha gunaih saha, sarvatha vartamano 'pi na sa bhuyo 'bhijayate

One who understands Purusha and Prakriti together with the gunas in this way, regardless of one's present position, is not born again. This knowledge is the direct means to liberation — understanding the distinction between knower and field breaks the cycle of rebirth.

Anye tv evam ajanantah shrutvanyebhya upasate, te 'pi chatitaranty eva mrityum shruti-parayanah

Others, not knowing these paths, worship upon hearing from others. They also cross beyond death, being devoted to what they have heard. Even those who lack direct philosophical knowledge but follow authentic teachings with faith can attain liberation.

Samam pashyan hi sarvatra samavasthitam ishvaram, na hinasty atmanatmanam tato yati param gatim

Because one who sees the Lord equally everywhere does not harm the self by the self, that person reaches the supreme destination. Perception of divine equality prevents self-destructive actions and leads to the highest goal.

Prakrityaiva cha karmani kriyamanani sarvashah, yah pashyati tathatmanam akartaram sa pashyati

One who sees that all actions are performed by Prakriti alone, and that the Self is not the doer — that person truly sees. The realization that material nature is the actual agent of all activity liberates consciousness from the burden of doership.

Idam jnanam upashritya mama sadharmyam agatah, sarge 'pi nopajayante pralaye na vyathanti cha

By becoming fixed in this knowledge, one attains to My own nature. Such persons are not born at the time of creation, nor disturbed at the time of dissolution. Merger with the divine nature is the ultimate fruit — transcending even the cosmic cycles of creation and destruction.

Nanyam gunebhyah kartaram yada drasthanupashyati, gunebhyas cha param vetti mad-bhavam so 'dhigacchati

When one sees that there is no agent of action other than the three gunas, and knows that which is transcendental to all these gunas, one attains My divine nature. The final insight is that all action is driven by gunas; the one who sees this transcends them.

Gunan etan atitya trin dehi deha-samudbhavan, janma-mrityu-jara-duhkhair vimukto 'mritam ashnute

When the embodied being transcends these three gunas associated with the body, they are freed from birth, death, old age, and suffering, and attains immortality.

Shri bhagavan uvaca: Prakasham cha pravrittim cha moham eva cha pandava, na dveshti sampravrittani na nivrittani kankhati

The Supreme Lord says: O Arjuna, one who does not hate illumination, attachment, and delusion when present, nor longs for them when absent — such a person has transcended the gunas. The transcended soul is neither attracted nor repelled by the manifestations of any guna.

Manapamanayos tulyas tulyo mitrari-pakshayoh, sarvarambha-parityagi gunatatita uchyate

One who treats honor and dishonor equally, who is equal toward friend and enemy, and who has renounced all material activities — such a person is said to have transcended the three gunas. Complete equanimity across all social and material distinctions defines the guna-transcendent state.

Na rūpam asyeha tathopalabhyate nānto na chādir na cha sampratiṣhṭhā, aśhvattham enaṁ su-virūḍha-mūlam asaṅga-śhastreṇa dṛiḍhena chhittvā

The real form of this tree cannot be perceived in this world, nor its beginning, end, or existence. Cut down this firmly rooted tree with the weapon of detachment.

Tatah padam tat parimargitavyam yasmin gata na nivartanti bhuyah, tam eva cadyam purusham prapadye yatah pravrttih prasrta purani

One must seek that supreme abode from which, having gone, one never returns. There one should surrender to that Primal Person from whom everything has emanated since time immemorial. This verse describes the goal of spiritual practice — the ultimate liberation from the cycle of birth and death by taking refuge in the Supreme.

Nirmāna-mohā jita-saṅga-doṣhā adhyātma-nityā vinivṛitta-kāmāḥ, dvandvair vimuktāḥ sukha-duḥkha-sanjñair gachchhanty amūḍhāḥ padam avyayaṁ tat

Those free from pride and illusion, victorious over attachment, constantly dwelling in the self, with desires completely stilled, liberated from the dualities of pleasure and pain—the undeluded reach that eternal abode.

Na tad bhasayate suryo na shashanko na pavakah, yad gatva na nivartante tad dhama paramam mama

That supreme abode of Mine is not illumined by the sun, moon, or fire. Those who reach it never return to this material world. Krishna describes His transcendental realm, which is self-luminous and beyond all material light sources — an eternal realm that transcends the limits of the cosmos.

Daivī sampad vimokṣhāya nibandhāyāsurī matā, mā śhuchaḥ sampadaṁ daivīm abhijāto 'si pāṇḍava

Divine qualities lead to liberation, while demoniac qualities lead to bondage. Do not grieve, O Pandava, for you are born with divine treasures.

Etair vimuktaḥ kaunteya tamo-dvārais tribhir naraḥ, ācharaty ātmanaḥ śhreyas tato yāti parāṁ gatim

Liberated from these three gates to darkness, O son of Kunti, a person does what is best for the soul and thus attains the supreme goal.

Yah shastra-vidhim utsrjya vartate kama-karatah, na sa siddhim avapnoti na sukham na param gatim

One who discards scriptural injunctions and acts according to his own whims attains neither perfection, nor happiness, nor the supreme destination. Acting on personal whim and desire alone — without the guidance of scripture — leads only to failure in all three goals: spiritual perfection, lasting happiness, and liberation.

tad ity anabhisandhaya phalam yajna-tapah-kriyah, dana-kriyash ca vividhah kriyante moksha-kankshibhih

With the word 'Tat' (meaning 'That'), acts of sacrifice, austerity, and charity are performed by seekers of liberation without any desire for fruits.

anistam istam misram ca tri-vidham karmanah phalam bhavaty atyaginam pretya na tu sannyasinam kvacit

After death, those who are not renunciants receive the threefold fruits of their actions — the undesirable, the desirable, and the mixed. But for true renunciants who have given up attachment to fruits, no such fruits arise at all.

yasya nahankrito bhavo buddhir yasya na lipyate hatvapi sa imal lokan na hanti na nibadhyate

One whose intelligence is free from the sense of 'I am the doer' and whose understanding is not tainted — even if that person slays these worlds — does not slay and is not bound. The absence of ego-doership brings true freedom from karmic bondage.

pravrittim ca nivrittim ca karyakaryec bhayabhaye bandham moksam ca ya vetti buddhi sa partha sattviki

The intellect that knows what is to be done and what is not to be done, what is to be feared and what is not to be feared, what leads to bondage and what leads to liberation — that intellect is sattvic, O Arjuna.

siddhim prapto yatha brahma tathapnoti nibodha me samasenaiva kaunteya nistha jnanasya ya para

Learn from me briefly how one who has attained siddhi also attains Brahman — the highest culmination of knowledge. Having described svadharma and devotional action, Krishna now pivots to the supreme culmination of jnana.

ahankaram balam darpam kamam krodham parigraham vimucya nirmamah santo brahma-bhuyaya kalpate

Having relinquished egotism, force, arrogance, desire, anger, and possessiveness, freed from the sense of 'mine' and at peace — one becomes fit for becoming Brahman. These are the final obstacles that must be transcended before liberation.

sarva-karmany api sada kurvano mad-vyapasrayah mat-prasadad avapnoti sasvatam padam avyayam

Taking refuge in me, one attains through my grace the eternal, imperishable abode, even while performing all actions always. Divine grace, working through devotion, enables liberation without abandonment of worldly duties.

Mac-chittah sarva-durgani mat-prasadat tarishyasi, atha cet tvam ahankaran na shroshyasi vinankshyasi

If you become conscious of Me, you will pass over all the obstacles of conditioned life by My grace. But if you do not work in such consciousness, but act through ego, you will be lost.

Sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam sharanam vraja, aham tvam sarva-papebhyo mokshayishyami ma shuchah

Abandon all varieties of dharmas and simply surrender unto Me alone. I shall liberate you from all sinful reactions; do not fear.

sraddhaval anasuyas ca srinuyad api yo narah so 'pi muktah subhal lokan prapnuyat punya-karmanam

And the person who listens to this with faith and without malice, even that person shall be liberated and shall attain the auspicious worlds of the righteous. Even hearing the Gita with sincerity bears transformative spiritual fruit.