Shloka 5

Purushottama Yoga — Purushottama Yoga

Devanagari script

निर्मानमोहा जितसङ्गदोषा अध्यात्मनित्या विनिवृत्तकामाः । द्वन्द्वैर्विमुक्ताः सुखदुःखसंज्ञैर्गच्छन्त्यमूढाः पदमव्ययं तत् ॥१५.५॥

Transliteration

nirmāna-mohā jita-saṅga-doṣā adhyātma-nityā vinivṛtta-kāmāḥ | dvandvair vimuktāḥ sukha-duḥkha-saṃjñair gacchanty amūḍhāḥ padam avyayaṃ tat ||15.5||

Translation

निर्मानमोहा जितसङ्गदोषा अध्यात्मनित्या विनिवृत्तकामाः। द्वन्द्वैर्विमुक्ताः सुखदुःखसंज्ञैर्गच्छन्त्यमूढाः पदमव्ययं तत्॥

Gita Press Meaning

Those who are free from pride and delusion, who have conquered the defect of attachment, who are ever devoted to the Self (spiritual knowledge), whose desires have ceased, and who are liberated from the pairs of opposites known as pleasure and pain—such undeluded persons reach that imperishable state.

Critical Edition Meaning

Free from self-conceit and bewilderment, having overcome the fault inherent in attachment, constantly oriented to the inner self, with desires turned back (ceased), released from the dualities designated as pleasure and pain—those not deluded go to that imperishable abode.

Comparative Note

Most recensions read substantially the same. Translation differences typically concern (a) saṅga-doṣa: rendered as “defect of attachment” (ethical-psychological) versus “fault caused by association/attachment” (more literal), and (b) adhyātma-nityā: interpreted devotionally as “constantly engaged in spiritual practice” or philosophically as “constantly grounded in the self/inner domain.” The verse is often linked by commentators to the soteriological ‘path’ to the avyaya-pada (‘imperishable state/abode’).

Word by Word

• निर्मानमोहाः: free from pride and delusion
• निर्मानमोहाः: Karta
• Root: निर्मानमोह (प्रातिपदिक)

• जितसङ्गदोषाः: those who have conquered the fault of attachment
• जितसङ्गदोषाः: Karta
• Root: जित (√जि) + सङ्गदोष (प्रातिपदिक)

• अध्यात्मनित्याः: ever devoted to the Self (spirituality)
• अध्यात्मनित्याः: Karta
• Root: अध्यात्म (प्रातिपदिक) + नित्य (प्रातिपदिक)

• विनिवृत्तकामाः: those whose desires have completely ceased/turned back
• विनिवृत्तकामाः: Karta
• Root: विनिवृत्त (√वृत् with वि-नि-; भूतकृदन्त) + काम (प्रातिपदिक)

• द्वन्द्वैः: from the pairs of opposites
• द्वन्द्वैः: Apadana
• Root: द्वन्द्व (प्रातिपदिक)

• विमुक्ताः: liberated, freed
• विमुक्ताः: Karta
• Root: विमुक्त (√मुच् with वि-; भूतकृदन्त)

• सुखदुःखसंज्ञैः: (from those) designated as pleasure and pain
• सुखदुःखसंज्ञैः: Apadana
• Root: सुख (प्रातिपदिक) + दुःख (प्रातिपदिक) + संज्ञा (प्रातिपदिक)

• गच्छन्ति: they go, they attain
• Root: √गम्

• अमूढाः: undeluded, not confused
• अमूढाः: Karta
• Root: अमूढ (प्रातिपदिक)

• पदम्: the state/abode/goal
• पदम्: Karma
• Root: पद (प्रातिपदिक)

• अव्ययम्: imperishable, undecaying
• अव्ययम्: Karma
• Root: अव्यय (प्रातिपदिक)

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karma
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

Speakers

• Krishna

Primary Concepts

• Vairāgya (dispassion)
• Mokṣa (liberation)
• Adhyātma (inner self/spirituality)
• Dvandva (pairs of opposites)
• Avidyā/Moha (delusion)

Key Themes

• Overcoming pride and delusion
• Non-attachment as a disciplined virtue
• Equanimity toward pleasure and pain
• Soteriological orientation toward the imperishable (avyaya)

FAQs

Psychological significance?

The verse outlines a psychological profile associated with liberation: reduced ego-inflation (nirmāna), diminished cognitive distortion or confusion (amohā), loosening of compulsive attachment (jita-saṅga-doṣā), and affective balance in response to pleasure and pain (dvandvair vimuktāḥ). It can be read as a description of stabilized attention and emotion regulation grounded in sustained self-reflection (adhyātma-nityā).

Metaphysical meaning?

Metaphysically, it presents prerequisites for reaching the ‘imperishable state/abode’ (padam avyayam), commonly associated with liberation (mokṣa) or realization of the highest principle. The verse implies that bondage is sustained by delusion, ego-identification, desire, and dualistic valuation; release involves their cessation or transcendence.

Contextual relevance?

Chapter 15 uses the metaphor of an inverted aśvattha tree to depict conditioned existence and its entanglements. Verse 5 functions as a practical-ethical bridge: it specifies the dispositions and disciplines by which one becomes fit to move beyond that entanglement and ‘go’ toward the imperishable.

Modern Application?

In contemporary terms, it can be applied as guidance for reducing ego-driven behavior, examining attachments that drive distress, cultivating reflective practices (study, meditation, ethical self-discipline), and developing steadiness amid changing experiences of comfort and discomfort—without requiring withdrawal from ordinary responsibilities.