Bhagavad Gita — Sankhya Yoga, Shloka 53
Sankhya Yoga
श्रुतिविप्रतिपन्ना ते यदा स्थास्यति निश्चला । समाधावचला बुद्धिस्तदा योगमवाप्स्यसि ॥ २.५३ ॥
śruti-vipratipannā te yadā sthāsyati niścalā | samādhāv acalā buddhis tadā yogam avāpsyasi || 2.53 ||
When your buddhi, bewildered by the diversity of teachings you have heard, stands firm and unmoving in samādhi, then you will attain yoga.
When your intellect, confused by what you have heard, becomes steady and unmoving in samādhi, then you will attain yoga.
When your understanding—thrown into conflict by teachings—will stand still, unwavering, in concentration (samādhi), then you will attain yoga.
“Śruti-vipratipannā” points to interpretive conflict among authoritative teachings (ritual, ethics, metaphysics). “Samādhi” here can denote collectedness rather than a later technical absorption-state; traditions differ on whether this verse signals meditative attainment specifically or stable contemplative clarity generally.
FAQs
It captures the move from cognitive dissonance (competing frameworks) to coherent integration, where attention becomes stable and decision-making less fragmented.
Unwavering buddhi in samādhi suggests a settled apprehension of reality that is not shaken by competing conceptual schemes—often treated as proximate to liberating knowledge.
This verse closes the sequence (2.45–2.53) by describing the endpoint of buddhi-yoga: stable concentration/clarity that constitutes ‘attaining yoga.’
When faced with conflicting advice, cultivate reflective concentration (e.g., disciplined attention, ethical deliberation) until a stable guiding principle emerges.