Shloka 5
Śarīrin, Buddhi, and the Limits of Sense-Perception (इन्द्रियबुद्धिशरीरिविचारः)
तत्र ध्यानेन संश्लिष्टमेकाग्रं धारयेन्मन: । पिण्डीकृत्येन्द्रियग्राममासीन: काष्ठवन्मुनि:,ध्यानयोगके साधकोंको चाहिये कि सर्दी-गर्मी आदि द्वन्द्धोंसे रहित, नित्य सत्त्वगुणमें स्थित, सब प्रकारके दोषोंसे रहित और शौच-संतोषादि नियमोंमें तत्पर रहें। जो स्थान असंग (सब प्रकारके भोगोंके संगसे शून्य), ध्यानविरोधी वस्तुओंसे रहित तथा मनको शान्ति देनेवाले हों, वहीं इन्द्रियोंको विषयोंकी ओरसे समेटकर काठकी भाँति स्थिरभावसे बैठ जाय और मनको एकाग्र करके परमात्माके ध्यानमें लगा दे
tatra dhyānena saṁśliṣṭam ekāgraṁ dhārayen manaḥ | piṇḍīkṛtyendriyagrāmam āsīnaḥ kāṣṭhavan muniḥ ||
There, with the mind joined to meditation, one should hold it steady and one-pointed. Having gathered the whole host of senses into a single restraint, the sage should sit motionless like a piece of wood, fixing the mind in contemplation.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches meditative discipline: choose the proper inner condition, restrain and gather the senses, sit perfectly still, and sustain a one-pointed mind absorbed in contemplation. Ethical force lies in self-mastery—freedom from sensory scattering is presented as the foundation for higher insight.
Bhīṣma, instructing on dharma and the means to peace, gives practical guidance for a seeker of meditation-yoga: how to seat oneself, withdraw the senses, and stabilize the mind so that contemplation of the Supreme (as implied by the surrounding passage) becomes possible.