Shloka 24
Dhyana Yoga — Atma Samyama Yoga
स निश्चयेन योक्तव्यो योगोऽनिर्विण्णचेतसा । संकल्पप्रभवान्कामांस्त्यक्त्वा सर्वानशेषतः मनसैवेन्द्रियग्रामं विनियम्य समन्ततः ॥ ६.२४ ॥
sa niścayena yoktavyo yogo 'nirviṇṇacetasā | saṅkalpaprabhavān kāmāṁs tyaktvā sarvān aśeṣataḥ manasaivendriyagrāmaṁ viniyamya samantataḥ || 6.24 ||
This Yoga should be practiced with firm resolve and with a mind that does not grow weary; having completely renounced all desires born of imagination, and restraining the entire host of senses on every side by the mind alone.
उस योग का अभ्यास निश्चयपूर्वक और न उकताए हुए चित्त से करना चाहिए; संकल्प से उत्पन्न होने वाली सम्पूर्ण कामनाओं को बिना शेष छोड़े त्यागकर और मन के द्वारा इन्द्रियसमुदाय को सब ओर से भलीभाँति वश में करके।
That yoga should be practiced with resolve and an undepressed mind; having abandoned entirely all desires born of planning/intentionality (saṅkalpa), and having restrained the whole group of senses on all sides by the mind alone.
The provided input is truncated, but the standard śloka includes the full second line with ‘manasaivendriyagrāmaṁ...’. ‘Saṅkalpa’ ranges from ‘imagination’ to ‘volitional construction’; thus ‘saṅkalpaprabhavān kāmān’ can mean desires generated by mental projection rather than all purposive intention.
FAQs
It targets the cognitive roots of craving: desires intensify through repeated mental construction and planning. The remedy is steady resolve, without discouragement, and systematic regulation of sensory engagement.
By reducing saṅkalpa-driven desire and sensory scattering, the mind becomes fit to disclose the Self, aligning practice with the chapter’s goal of abiding in ātman.
After defining yoga as freedom from the bond with suffering (6.23), Krishna turns to practical means: how to undertake the discipline.
Identify recurring desire-loops fueled by rumination/planning; reduce inputs that trigger them; practice consistent self-regulation with a non-defeated attitude.