Chapter 5, Verse 21
बाह्यस्पर्शेष्वसक्तात्मा विन्दत्यात्मनि यत्सुखम् | स ब्रह्मयोगयुक्तात्मा सुखमक्षयमश्नुते ||५-२१||
bāhyasparśeṣvasaktātmā vindatyātmani yatsukham . sa brahmayogayuktātmā sukhamakṣayamaśnute ||5-21||
Meaning
5.21 With the self unattached to external contacts he finds happiness in the Self; with the self engaged in the meditation of Brahman he attains to the endless happiness.
Word-by-Word Meaning
Explanation & Commentary
Krishna reveals where lasting joy is truly found. The one whose self is unattached to bahya-sparsha — the external contacts of the senses with their objects — discovers a happiness within, in the Self itself (vindati atmani sukham). And by uniting the self with Brahman through yoga (brahma-yoga-yukta-atma), he comes to enjoy akshayam sukham, imperishable happiness.
The teaching draws a sharp line between two sources of joy. Pleasures arising from sense-contact are fleeting and depend on outer conditions; they fade and leave us craving more. But the joy of the Self is self-sufficient, needing no external trigger, and therefore inexhaustible. By turning attention inward and resting in Brahman, one taps a wellspring of bliss that no circumstance can disturb or deplete. Withdraw from grasping at outer pleasures, and you uncover an ocean of joy already within.
💡 Key Takeaway
Stop chasing pleasure in external things and turn within — the Self holds an inexhaustible joy that nothing can take away.
Related Verses
श्रीभगवानुवाच | संन्यासः कर्मयोगश्च निःश्रेयसकरावुभौ | तयोस्तु कर्मसंन्यासात्कर्मयोगो विशिष्यते ||५-२||
śrībhagavānuvāca . saṃnyāsaḥ karmayogaśca niḥśreyasakarāvubhau . tayostu karmasaṃnyāsātkarmayogo viśiṣyate ||5-2||
5.2 The Blessed Lord said Renunciation and the Yoga of action both lead to the highest bliss; but of the two, the Yoga of action is superior to the renunciation of action.
ज्ञेयः स नित्यसंन्यासी यो न द्वेष्टि न काङ्क्षति | निर्द्वन्द्वो हि महाबाहो सुखं बन्धात्प्रमुच्यते ||५-३||
jñeyaḥ sa nityasaṃnyāsī yo na dveṣṭi na kāṅkṣati . nirdvandvo hi mahābāho sukhaṃ bandhātpramucyate ||5-3||
5.3 He should be known as a perpertual Sannyasi who neither hates nor desires; for, free from the pairs of opposites, O mighty-armed Arjuna, he is easily set free from bondage.
संन्यासस्तु महाबाहो दुःखमाप्तुमयोगतः | योगयुक्तो मुनिर्ब्रह्म नचिरेणाधिगच्छति ||५-६||
saṃnyāsastu mahābāho duḥkhamāptumayogataḥ . yogayukto munirbrahma nacireṇādhigacchati ||5-6||
5.6 But renunciation, O mighty-armed Arjuna, is hard to attain without Yoga; the Yoga-harmonised sage ickly goes to Brahman.