Chapter 2, Verse 71
विहाय कामान्यः सर्वान्पुमांश्चरति निःस्पृहः | निर्ममो निरहङ्कारः स शान्तिमधिगच्छति ||२-७१||
vihāya kāmānyaḥ sarvānpumāṃścarati niḥspṛhaḥ . nirmamo nirahaṅkāraḥ sa śāntimadhigacchati ||2-71||
Meaning
2.71 That man attains peace who, abandoning all desires, moves about without longing, without the sense of mine and without egoism.
Word-by-Word Meaning
Explanation & Commentary
This verse names the final fruit of the entire chapter's teaching: peace (śānti). Krishna has described the steady-minded sage (sthitaprajña) at length, and here he distills the whole portrait into one luminous line. The person who attains peace is the one who has let go of three things in particular — desire (kāma), the sense of 'mine' (nirmama), and egoism (nirahaṅkāra). These three are the deepest roots of all agitation. Craving keeps the mind reaching outward; 'mine' binds us to possessions and people as extensions of ourselves; and the ego ('I am the doer, this is happening to me') makes every gain and loss personal.
Notice the word 'carati' — such a person still 'moves about,' still acts and lives fully in the world. This is not withdrawal or renunciation of activity. It is inner freedom amid outer engagement. Having dropped the three roots of disturbance, the sage walks through life 'niḥspṛha' — without the desperate longing that makes peace impossible. For us, the verse is a practical map: peace is not earned by acquiring more, but by releasing the grip of wanting, owning, and self-importance.
💡 Key Takeaway
Lasting peace comes not from getting what you want, but from releasing craving, possessiveness, and ego while still living fully in the world.
Related Verses
श्रीभगवानुवाच कुतस्त्वा कश्मलमिदं विषमे समुपस्थितम् । अनार्यजुष्टमस्वर्ग्यमकीर्तिकरमर्जुन ॥२-२॥
śrī bhagavān uvāca kutas tvā kaśmalam idaṃ viṣame samupasthitam | anārya-juṣṭam asvargyam akīrti-karam arjuna ||2-2||
The Supreme Lord said: My dear Arjuna, how have these impurities come upon you at this critical moment? This is not befitting a man who knows what is valuable in life. It does not lead to higher planets but to infamy.
क्लैब्यं मा स्म गमः पार्थ नैतत्त्वय्युपपद्यते । क्षुद्रं हृदयदौर्बल्यं त्यक्त्वोत्तिष्ठ परन्तप ॥२-३॥
klaibyaṃ mā sma gamaḥ pārtha naitat tvayy upapadyate | kṣudraṃ hṛdaya-daurbalyaṃ tyaktvottiṣṭha parantapa ||2-3||
Do not yield to this unmanliness, O Partha. It does not befit you. Shake off this faint-heartedness and arise, O scorcher of enemies.
अर्जुन उवाच कथं भीष्ममहं सङ्ख्ये द्रोणं च मधुसूदन । इषुभिः प्रतियोत्स्यामि पूजार्हावरिसूदन ॥२-४॥
arjuna uvāca kathaṃ bhīṣmam ahaṃ saṅkhye droṇaṃ ca madhusūdana | iṣubhiḥ pratiyotsyāmi pūjārhāv arisūdana ||2-4||
Arjuna said: O Madhusudana, how can I counterattack with arrows in battle against Bhishma and Drona, who are worthy of my worship, O destroyer of enemies?