Shloka 43
Karma-Saṃnyāsa–Karma-Yoga Saṃvāda
Renunciation and the Discipline of Action
इन्द्रियोंको स्थूल शरीरसे पर यानी श्रेष्ठ, बलवान् और सूक्ष्म कहते हैं; इन इन्द्रियोंसे पर मन है, मनसे भी पर बुद्धि है और जो बुद्धिसे भी अत्यन्त पर है वह आत्मा है ।।
indriyāṇi parāṇy āhur indriyebhyaḥ paraṁ manaḥ | manasas tu parā buddhir yo buddheḥ paratas tu saḥ || evaṁ buddheḥ paraṁ buddhvā saṁstabhya ātmānam ātmanā | jahi śatruṁ mahābāho kāmarūpaṁ durāsadam ||
Arjuna said: “The senses are said to be superior to the gross body—finer, stronger, and more capable. Beyond the senses is the mind; beyond the mind is the intellect; and beyond even the intellect stands the Self. Knowing thus the Self as higher than the intellect, and steadying the mind by the disciplined power of the inner self, O mighty-armed one, strike down this hard-to-conquer enemy that takes the form of desire.”
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
A hierarchy is taught—body < senses < mind < intellect < Self—and the ethical instruction is to use discernment (buddhi) and inner steadiness (ātman) to restrain the mind and defeat desire (kāma), portrayed as a formidable inner enemy.
On the battlefield setting of Bhīṣma Parva, Arjuna voices a reflective teaching that reframes combat as inner discipline: before confronting external foes, one must conquer the internal adversary—desire—by recognizing the Self as higher than mind and intellect and by exercising self-restraint.