श्रीभगवानुवाच |
दुःखेष्वनुद्विग्नमनाः सुखेषु विगतस्पृहः |
वीतरागभयक्रोधः स्थितधीर्मुनिरुच्यते ||
Transliteration:
Duḥkheṣv anudvigna-manāḥ sukheṣu vigata-spṛhaḥ |
Vīta-rāga-bhaya-krodhaḥ sthita-dhīr munir ucyate ||
Translation:
A person whose mind is not shaken by sorrow, who does not crave pleasure, and who is free from attachment, fear, and anger is called one of steady wisdom.
Where this verse is mentioned This shloka appears in Chapter 2, Verse 56 of the Bhagavad Gita, a section known as Sankhya Yoga or The Yoga of Knowledge.
Chapter 2 is one of the most frequently cited parts of the Gita. Here, Lord Krishna begins to lift Arjuna out of despair on the battlefield of Kurukshetra. Overwhelmed by grief, moral confusion, and anxiety about fighting his own relatives, Arjuna lays down his weapons. Krishna responds not with sentimentality but with clarity, explaining the nature of the self, duty, action, and inner steadiness.
Verse 2.56 is part of Krishna’s description of the “sthita-prajna”, a person of stable intellect and emotional equilibrium. Arjuna has asked how such a balanced individual thinks, speaks, and lives in the world. Krishna answers by sketching a psychological portrait that feels remarkably modern: someone who is not ruled by emotional highs and lows, who does not cling to pleasure or collapse under pain.
What this shloka teaches about emotional balance At first glance, the verse sounds austere, free from desire, untouched by sorrow, beyond fear and anger. But Krishna is not describing emotional numbness. He is describing emotional maturity.
The opening line, “duḥkheṣv anudvigna-manāḥ”, speaks of a mind that is not agitated in suffering. Pain still arrives; losses still happen. The difference lies in the inner reaction. Instead of spiralling into panic or despair, the steady person meets difficulty without being internally shattered.
Next comes “sukheṣu vigata-spṛhaḥ”, one who does not desperately chase pleasure. This is not a rejection of joy, but freedom from dependency on it. When happiness becomes something we cling to, its disappearance leaves us anxious and fragile. Krishna suggests that true balance comes when joy is welcomed but not hoarded.
The verse then lists three powerful emotional forces: attachment (rāga), fear (bhaya), and anger (krodha). These are the currents that often pull human behaviour off course. Attachment can make us possessive. Fear can paralyse decision-making. Anger can cloud judgment. A person of steady wisdom is not driven by these impulses; they notice them, but they no longer let them steer the mind.
What makes this teaching especially relevant today is how closely it mirrors modern conversations about emotional regulation and resilience. Therapists speak of responding rather than reacting, of not letting every thought dictate action, of learning to sit with discomfort without being overwhelmed. Krishna frames the same idea in spiritual language: steadiness comes from loosening the grip of craving and aversion.
Importantly, the Gita does not propose retreat from life. This verse is spoken on a battlefield, moments before action is required. Emotional balance here is not passive calm, it is clarity under pressure. It is the ability to make decisions without being hijacked by panic, rage, or craving.
For readers seeking grounding in uncertain times, this shloka works like a daily reminder: notice what shakes you, notice what you chase, and gently bring the mind back to centre. Emotional balance, the Gita suggests, is not something the world gives us. It is something we cultivate within, moment by moment, reaction by reaction, until steadiness becomes our natural state.
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