Shloka 5
Dharma-Pramāṇa-Vicāra: The Elusiveness of Dharma and the Limits of Rule-Lists
स्वपतां जाग्रतां चैष सर्वेषामात्मचिन्तितम् | प्रधानाद्वैधमुक्तानां जहतां कर्मजं रज:,जो अपने मनमें चिन्तित कर्मजनित रजोगुणका अर्थात् रजोगुणजनित काम आदिका योगबलसे परित्याग कर देते हैं तथा जो प्रकृतिके तादात्म्यभावसे भी मुक्त हैं, उन सभी योगपरायण योगी पुरुषोंका जीवात्मा जैसे दिनमें वैसे रातमें, जैसे रातमें वैसे दिनमें सोते- जागते समय निरन्तर उनके वशमें रहता है
svapatāṁ jāgratāṁ caiṣa sarveṣām ātma-cintitam | pradhānād vaidhā-muktānāṁ jahatāṁ karma-jaṁ rajaḥ ||
Vyāsa said: For those yogins who have cast off the rajas born of action—desire and the like—by the power of yoga, and who are also freed from identification with Pradhāna (primordial Nature), the self remains steadily under their mastery at all times: in sleep and in wakefulness alike, by day as by night, in whatever state the mind may be engaged.
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
A perfected yogin transcends action-born rajas (desire-driven agitation) and even identification with Pradhāna (Nature). As a result, the Self remains steady and mastered in every condition—sleeping or waking—showing true inner freedom rather than situational calm.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on liberation-oriented disciplines, Vyāsa describes the hallmark of advanced yogins: through yoga they abandon the rajas arising from karma and become free from Nature-based identification, so their inner self remains consistently controlled across day/night and sleep/wake states.