yogī yuñjīta satatam
ātmānaḿ rahasi sthitaḥ
ekākī yata-cittātmā
nirāśīr aparigrahaḥ
Translation of Bhagavad Gita 6.10
A transcendentalist should always engage his body, mind and self in relationship with the Supreme; he should live alone in a secluded place and should always carefully control his mind. He should be free from desires and feelings of possessiveness.
Commentary by Sri Vishvanatha Chakravarthi Thakur of Gaudiya Sampradaya:
The yogi performs yoga with its angas. That descriptions starts with this verse and ends with sa yogi paramo matah in verse 32. He who has attained the stage of yogarudha (yogi) should engage his mind, should remain in samadhi (yunjita atmanam)
Commentary by Sri Ramanuja of Sri Sampradaya:
6.10 The Yogin who is steady in the practice of Karma Yoga, should ‘constantly’, i.e., daily when practising Yoga, fix his mind to the practice of Yoga, i.e., make himself engaged in the vision of the self. He must remain in a ‘solitary place,’ i.e., a place devoid of crowd and noise. And even there he must be ‘all alone,’ i.e., must not have a second person with him. He should ‘control his thought and mind,’ i.e., he should control the activities of thinking. He must be free from ‘desire’, i.e., he should not depend on anything except the self and be without the ‘sense of possession,’ without the idea of mineness with regard to anything other than the self.
Commentary by Sri Sridhara Swami of Rudra Sampradaya:
Having thus stated the characteristics of one who has attained yoga or the science of the individual consciousness attaining communion with the ultimate consciousness, Lord Krishna deigns to describe the different components of such yoga by referring to the yogi or one in the process of perfecting yoga and declaring that the best yogi resides alone in a solitary place, devoid of desires, with all mind fluctuations subdued immersed in meditation on the atma or soul.
Commentary by Sri Madhvacharya of Brahma Sampradaya:
Here Lord Krishna speaks on the process of equanimity. The word yunjitah means concentrated in meditation and denotes that one should focus the mind on the soul by use of the word atmanam which can refer to the mind as well as the soul.
Commentary by Sri Keshava Kashmiri of Kumara Sampradaya:
Such are the characteristics of a person situated in yoga or the science of the individual consciousness attaining communion with the ultimate consciousness. Now Lord Krishna presents the process by which such yoga is practised. The yogi is one perfecting yoga who has complete control over their mind and senses and is free from desire engaged in meditation in order to attain atma tattva or realisation of the soul. The word ekaki means alone and the word rahasi means solitary place. One should perform this yoga in seclusion by oneself in mountain caves or forest bowers that are not inhabited by others.
Commentary by Sri Adi Shankaracharya of Advaita Sampradaya:
6.10 A yogi, a man of meditation; satatam yunjita, should constantly concentrate; atmanam, his mind; sthitah, by staying; rahasi, in a solitary place, in mountain caves etc.; ekaki, alone, without any companion; yata-citta-atma, with mind and body controlled; nirasih, without expectations, free from hankering; and aparigrahah, free from acquisition. From the uise of the qualifying words, ‘in a solitary place’ and ‘alone’, it follows that (he has to undertake all these) after espousing monasticism. And even after renunciation, he should concentrate his mind by desisting from all acquisition. This is the meaning. Now then have to be stated the rules regarding seat, food, movements, etc. as disciplines for yoga in the case of one practising concentration; as also the signs of one who has succeeded in Yoga, and the consequent result etc. Hence this is begun. Among these, the seat is being first spoken of:
Commentary by Sri Abhinavagupta of Kaula Tantra Sampradaya:
6.10-15 Yogi etc. upto adhigacchati. Self : the mind. Let him yoke it : let him make it single-pointed. Always : not for a limited period of time. If the conditions like remaining alone etc., are fulfilled, this [controlling of mind] is possible and not otherwise. On account of the firmness of seat, the time-nerve (or the body ?) remains firm and due to this, mind remains firm. He, by whom the mental activities i.e., those that are in the form of intention, and other activities of the sense-organs are subdued i.e., are brought under full control; [he is the person of the subdued mental and sensual activities]. Holding : i.e., with effort. If the nose-tip is looked at, [it is possible] not to look at [different] directions. Let him remain endowed with the state of having Me alone as supreme goal. This is the meaning [here]. He who yokes i.e., concentrates his self (mind) in this manner, there arises for him Peace in which the culmination – as far as the end-is the same as attaining Me.
Sanskrit to English Word for Word Meanings:
yogī — a transcendentalist; yuñjīta — must concentrate in Kṛṣṇa consciousness; satatam — constantly; ātmānam — himself (by body, mind and self); rahasi — in a secluded place; sthitaḥ — being situated; ekākī — alone; yata-citta-ātmā — always careful in mind; nirāśīḥ — without being attracted by anything else; aparigrahaḥ — free from the feeling of possessiveness.
