Chapter 6, Verse 24
सङ्कल्पप्रभवान्कामांस्त्यक्त्वा सर्वानशेषतः | मनसैवेन्द्रियग्रामं विनियम्य समन्ततः ||६-२४||
saṅkalpaprabhavānkāmāṃstyaktvā sarvānaśeṣataḥ . manasaivendriyagrāmaṃ viniyamya samantataḥ ||6-24||
Meaning
6.24 Abandoning without reserve all desires born of Sankalpa (thought and imagination) and completely restraining the whole group of the senses by the mind from all sides.
Word-by-Word Meaning
Explanation & Commentary
Having defined the goal, Krishna returns to method, and the diagnosis is precise: desires are sankalpa-prabhava — born of the mind's own imaginings. We are not simply victims of cravings that arise from nowhere; the mind itself manufactures them by dwelling on objects, picturing their enjoyment, weaving stories of fulfillment. Trace any desire to its root and you find a thought the mind chose to entertain.
The remedy follows. First, abandon these desires 'without reserve' — sarvan asheshatah — not selectively, sparing a favorite few, but completely. Second, restrain the whole indriya-grama, the assembly of the senses, manasa eva, by the mind alone, holding them in from every direction. The senses are the gates through which the world rushes in to feed desire; the mind that has understood the game now stands watch at every gate. This is the inner work that makes the lamp burn steady — vigilance over thought and the senses it commands.
💡 Key Takeaway
Desires are born in the mind's imaginings — release them fully and guard the senses from every side.
Related Verses
श्रीभगवानुवाच | अनाश्रितः कर्मफलं कार्यं कर्म करोति यः | स संन्यासी च योगी च न निरग्निर्न चाक्रियः ||६-१||
śrībhagavānuvāca . anāśritaḥ karmaphalaṃ kāryaṃ karma karoti yaḥ . sa saṃnyāsī ca yogī ca na niragnirna cākriyaḥ ||6-1||
6.1 The Blessed Lord said He who performs his bounden duty without depending on the fruits of his actions he is a Sannyasi and a Yogi; not he who is without fire and without action.
यं संन्यासमिति प्राहुर्योगं तं विद्धि पाण्डव | न ह्यसंन्यस्तसङ्कल्पो योगी भवति कश्चन ||६-२||
yaṃ saṃnyāsamiti prāhuryogaṃ taṃ viddhi pāṇḍava . na hyasaṃnyastasaṅkalpo yogī bhavati kaścana ||6-2||
6.2 Do thou, O Arjuna, know Yoga to be that which they call renunciation; no one verily becomes a Yogi who has not renounced thoughts.
आरुरुक्षोर्मुनेर्योगं कर्म कारणमुच्यते | योगारूढस्य तस्यैव शमः कारणमुच्यते ||६-३||
ārurukṣormuneryogaṃ karma kāraṇamucyate . yogārūḍhasya tasyaiva śamaḥ kāraṇamucyate ||6-3||
6.3 For a sage who wishes to attain to Yoga, action is said to be the means; for the same sage who has attained to Yoga, inaction (iescence) is said to be the means.