Bhagavad Gita — Dhyana Yoga, Shloka 22
Atma Samyama Yoga
यं लब्ध्वा चापरं लाभं मन्यते नाधिकं ततः । यस्मिन्स्थितो न दुःखेन गुरुणापि विचाल्यते ॥ ६.२२ ॥
yaṁ labdhvā cāparaṁ lābhaṁ manyate nādhikaṁ tataḥ | yasmin sthito na duḥkhena guruṇāpi vicālyate || 6.22 ||
Having attained which, one deems no other gain greater than that; and established in which, one is not shaken even by grievous sorrow.
जिसको प्राप्त होकर वह उससे अधिक कोई दूसरा लाभ नहीं मानता और जिसमें स्थित होकर वह भारी दुःख से भी विचलित नहीं होता।
Having obtained which, one considers no other gain greater than that; and established in which, one is not shaken even by severe suffering.
No major textual issues. The interpretive focus is on ‘लाभ’ as soteriological gain (liberating insight) rather than material attainment; ‘दुःखेन गुरुणा’ is typically understood as intense adversity, framed as a test of equanimity rather than a denial of human feeling.
FAQs
It describes resilience grounded in a stable inner reference point: adversity may occur, but it does not disorganize the practitioner’s core orientation.
The ‘greatest gain’ is typically read as realization of the Self or brahman; stability in that realization is said to undercut the ultimate power of suffering to destabilize one’s identity.
The verse strengthens the description of meditative attainment: it is not a transient state but a transformative ground that reorders values and responses.
Frame priorities around enduring values (clarity, integrity, compassion). This reduces the sense that external losses are the final measure of well-being.