Sanskrit
यत्रोपरमते चित्तं निरुद्धं योगसेवया । यत्र चैवात्मनाऽऽत्मानं पश्यन्नात्मनि तुष्यति ॥
yatroparamate cittaṃ niruddhaṃ yogasevayā yatra caivātmanātmānaṃ paśyann ātmani tuṣyati
Translation
That in which the mind finds rest, quieted by the practice of yoga: that in which he, seeing the Self by the Self, in the Self is satisfied;
Annie Besant · The Bhagavad-Gita, translated by Annie Besant (4th ed., 1922) — Wikisource · Public Domain
Explanation
This begins a chain of four verses (20–23) built on a repeated “wherein… wherein…” structure, each clause piling on another description of the same state before verse 23 finally names it. The “seeing the Self by the Self” phrase echoes verse 5’s grammar exactly — the self as both the instrument and object of its own vision. Yoga-sevā — “the serving of yoga,” practice as attendance — treats the discipline as something tended, not achieved. BG 6.25 will insist the resting comes śanaiḥ śanaiḥ, gradually.
Study deeper
Word by word
- yatroparamate cittaṃयत्रोपरमते चित्तं
- where the mind comes to rest (yatra + uparamate + cittam)
- niruddhaṃ yogasevayāनिरुद्धं योगसेवया
- restrained by the practice of yoga (niruddham + yoga-sevayā)
- yatra caivātmanātmānaṃयत्र चैवात्मनात्मानं
- and where, [seeing] the self by the Self (yatra + ca + eva + ātmanā + ātmānam)
- paśyann ātmani tuṣyatiपश्यन्न् आत्मनि तुष्यति
- seeing, one is content in the Self (paśyan + ātmani + tuṣyati)
Commentary
Site Commentary
Verses 20 through 23 are built as one long sentence in slow motion — each “wherein” clause adds another feature of the same state before verse 23 finally gives it a name. It’s an unusual rhetorical choice: describe the destination in increasing detail across four full verses before saying what it’s called, trusting the reader to recognize it before being told.
Original commentary written for this site · © Amit Singh — original commentary
Apply this verse
Lessons
Personal
- You don't need the right word for a state of mind you're aiming toward before you can recognize and pursue it — sometimes describing it in enough concrete detail gets you closer to it than naming it prematurely would.
Professional
- When pitching a vision to your team, you can build recognition through concrete, layered description — what it looks like day to day — before ever giving it a label or slogan. The label lands better once people already recognize the thing.
Family & Social
- You don't have to have the perfect word for what you want a relationship to feel like before you start describing it concretely to the person — specific, layered description often gets you there faster than reaching for the right label first.
Ask yourself
A few ways to take this verse past reading. Ticks and the note stay in this browser.