तं विद्याद् दु:खसंयोगवियोगं योगसञ्ज्ञितम् |
स निश्चयेन योक्तव्यो योगोऽनिर्विण्णचेतसा || 23||
taṁ vidyād duḥkha-sanyoga-viyogaṁ yogasaṅjñitam
sa niśhchayena yoktavyo yogo ’nirviṇṇa-chetasā
tam vidyad duhkha-sanyoga-viyogam yogasanjnitam
sa nishchayena yoktavyo yogo ’nirvinna-chetasa
Translation
BG 6.23: That state of severance from union with misery is known as Yog. This Yog should be resolutely practiced with determination free from pessimism.
Commentary
The material world is the realm of Maya, and it has been termed by Shree Krishna in verse 8.15 as duḥkhālayam aśhāśhvatam, or temporary and full of misery. Thus, the material energy Maya is compared to darkness. It has put us in the darkness of ignorance and is making us suffer in the world. However, the darkness of Maya naturally gets dispelled when we bring the light of God into our heart. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu states this very beautifully:
kṛiṣhṇa sūrya-sama, māyā haya andhakāra
yāhāñ kṛiṣhṇa, tāhāñ nāhi māyāra adhikāra
(Chaitanya Charitāmṛit, Madhya Leela, 22.31)[v19]
“God is like the light and Maya is like darkness. Just as darkness does not have the power to engulf light, similarly Maya can never overcome God.” Now, the nature of God is divine bliss while the consequence of Maya is misery. Thus, one who attains the divine bliss of God can never be overcome by the misery of Maya again.
Thus, the state of Yog implies both 1) attainment of bliss, and 2) freedom from misery. Shree Krishna emphasizes both successively. In the previous verse, the attainment of bliss was highlighted as the result of Yog; in this verse, freedom from misery is being emphasized.
In the second line of this verse Shree Krishna states that the stage of perfection has to be reached through determined practice. He then goes on to explain how we must practice meditation.
