Balance in pleasant and unpleasant situations shows maturity.
Krishna speaks to Arjuna
न प्रहृष्येत्प्रियं प्राप्य नोद्विजेत्प्राप्य चाप्रियम् |स्थिरबुद्धिरसम्मूढो ब्रह्मविद् ब्रह्मणि स्थितः ||५-२०||
na prahṛṣyetpriyaṃ prāpya nodvijetprāpya cāpriyam . sthirabuddhirasammūḍho brahmavid brahmaṇi sthitaḥ ||5-20||
Use this verse when external events shake your mood.
Meaning
One established in Brahman, steady in intellect and free from delusion, neither rejoices excessively on getting the pleasant nor is disturbed on getting the unpleasant.
Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).
In plain words
Steady wisdom remains balanced in pleasant and unpleasant events.
Word-by-word meaning
Tap a word to see its meaning.
Explanation
Krishna gives a practical marker of spiritual steadiness. The wise person still experiences life, but does not swing wildly with every pleasant or unpleasant event. This is not emotional numbness; it is freedom from being possessed by circumstances. This applies to feedback, money, relationships, exams, metrics, and social media.
Read the traditional commentary
Krishna describes the emotional poise of one established in Brahman. Such a person does not become elated (na prahrishyet) when something pleasant arrives, nor agitated (na udvijet) when something unpleasant befalls. Life brings its constant alternation of the welcome and the unwelcome, but the brahma-vit meets both with the same unwavering composure.
Two qualities make this possible: sthira-buddhi, a steady, settled intellect, and being asammudha, free from delusion. Because such a one no longer mistakes fleeting experiences for the source of happiness, the mind is not yanked up by gain or dragged down by loss. This is not cold indifference but profound stability — the calm of someone rooted in something deeper than circumstance. Resting in Brahman, the unchanging Reality, they remain serene amid the ceaseless tides of fortune.
In daily life
Receive good and bad news with one breath of steadiness.
A creator should not feel invincible after praise or worthless after criticism.
Try this today
Before reacting to news, take one breath and return to center.
I remain steady in pleasant and unpleasant moments.Reflect
What event easily makes me overjoyed or disturbed?
Private — only you can see this
Quick check
What does ‘न उद्विजेत्’ mean in this verse?
Krishna on non attachment, in other chapters
- Verse 13.15Like light that reveals every colour yet takes on none, the Self enables all experience while remaining untouched.
- Verse 2.38Train yourself to act with full commitment while holding all outcomes — success and failure, gain and loss — with equal steadiness; that equanimity is the key to action without karmic bondage.
- Verse 6.9Spiritual maturity shows in seeing the same essence in friend and foe, saint and sinner alike, without partiality.
- Verse 12.17Rise above rejoicing, hating, grieving, and craving — while keeping the heart full of devotion.
Swipe left for 5.21 · Inner joy is more stable than external stimulation.
Questions about Bhagavad Gita 5.20
Who says Bhagavad Gita 5.20, and to whom?
Krishna speaks to Arjuna in verse 5.20, in Chapter 5, Karma Sannyas Yoga (Karma Sannyas Yoga).
What does Bhagavad Gita 5.20 mean?
One established in Brahman, steady in intellect and free from delusion, neither rejoices excessively on getting the pleasant nor is disturbed on getting the unpleasant. (Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).)
What is the lesson of Bhagavad Gita 5.20 for daily life?
Receive good and bad news with one breath of steadiness. A creator should not feel invincible after praise or worthless after criticism.
What do the Sanskrit words in Bhagavad Gita 5.20 mean?
न प्रहृष्येत् — should not rejoice / be elated; प्रियम् प्राप्य — on obtaining the pleasant; न उद्विजेत् — should not be agitated / grieve; प्राप्य च अप्रियम् — on obtaining the unpleasant; स्थिरबुद्धिः — of steady intellect.
Where does verse 5.20 come in the Bhagavad Gita?
It is verse 20 of 29 in Chapter 5, Karma Sannyas Yoga. The next verse is 5.21.