Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 22
Vānaprastha-vidhi and Sannyāsa-dharma: Austerity, Detachment, and the Paramahaṁsa Ideal
अन्वीक्षेतात्मनो बन्धं मोक्षं च ज्ञाननिष्ठया । बन्ध इन्द्रियविक्षेपो मोक्ष एषां च संयम: ॥ २२ ॥
anvīkṣetātmano bandhaṁ mokṣaṁ ca jñāna-niṣṭhayā bandha indriya-vikṣepo mokṣa eṣāṁ ca saṁyamaḥ
Par une connaissance ferme, le sage doit discerner clairement la nature de l’enchaînement et de la libération de l’âme. L’enchaînement est la dispersion des sens vers la jouissance; la libération est la maîtrise totale de ces sens.
By carefully understanding one’s eternal nature, one will not again be bound up in the shackles of material energy, and by constant engagement in the service of the Absolute Truth, one is liberated. Then the flickering material senses can no longer drag one into the false consciousness of being a material enjoyer. Such steady sense control gives one relief from the harassment of material sense gratification.
FAQs
This verse defines bondage as the mind being pulled outward by sense-distraction (indriya-vikṣepa), and liberation as mastery and restraint of the senses (saṁyama), understood through steady realized knowledge (jñāna-niṣṭhā).
In Canto 11, Krishna instructs Uddhava on the path of renunciation and inner freedom; here He clarifies the practical difference between bondage and liberation as an inner condition shaped by sense-control and realized knowledge.
Notice where attention is scattered by sensory impulses, then consciously restrain and redirect it toward sattvic habits—study, prayer, and devotional remembrance—so the senses serve spiritual purpose rather than dominate the mind.