Bhagavad Gita 17.16
Spoken by Krishna · Verse 16 of 28
मनःप्रसादः सौम्यत्वं मौनम् आत्मविनिग्रहः । भावसंशुद्धिर् इत्य् एतत् तपो मानसमुच्यते ॥
manaḥ-prasādaḥ saumyatvaṃ maunam ātma-vinigrahaḥ | bhāva-saṃśuddhir ity etat tapo mānasamucyate ||
Mental tapas: serenity of mind, kindliness, silence, self-restraint, and purity of motive/bhāva.
Word by word (3)
- manaḥ-prasādaḥ saumyatvaṃ maunam ātma-vinigrahaḥ
- — serenity/clarity of mind (manaḥ-prasāda = mind's clearness/brightness), gentleness/kindliness (saumyatva), silence/stillness (mauna), self-restraint/discipline of the self (ātma-vinigraha)
- bhāva-saṃśuddhiḥ
- — purity/complete-purification (saṃ-śuddhi = thorough purification) of motive/feeling/bhāva (bhāva = the inner state, emotion, intention, attitude) — not just clean action but clean intention
- ity etat tapo mānasamucyate
- — this indeed (ity etat) is called (ucyate) the tapas of mind (mānasa = mental/of the mind) — completing the triad: body (V14) + speech (V15) + mind (V16)
Serenity of mind, gentleness, silence, self-control, and purity of inner motive — this is called the austerity of the mind.
A modern analogy
Mental tapas is not meditation in a cave — it is the discipline of the inner life at all times. A mind that is genuinely serene (manaḥ-prasāda), gentle in its impulses (saumyatva), restrained in its reactions (ātma-vinigraha), and pure in its motivations (bhāva-saṃśuddhi) is performing continuous tapas every moment, regardless of what the body or speech is doing.
Public-domain translations (4) compare all →
Serenity of mind, good-heartedness, silence, self-control, purity of nature — this is called the mental austerity. [1]
Serenity of mind, kindliness, silence, self-control, honesty of motive — this is called the mental austerity. [4]
Cheerfulness of mind, placidity, silence, self-restraint, purity of heart — this is called the penance of the mind. [9]
Cheerfulness of mind, good-heartedness, silence, self-restraint, purity of thought — this is called the mental penance. [13]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
Where yogeśvara Kṛṣṇa is, where archer Pārtha stands — there abide fortune, victory, flourishing, and steadfast dharma.
Sattva, rajas, or tamas — each can become dominant over the others, alternating in every mind.
Sitting as a neutral — unmoved by guṇas, knowing 'guṇas act' — firm, unshaken, the pure witness.
Tāmasic yajña: against ordinance, no food-sharing, no mantras, no dakṣiṇā, no śraddhā — declared tāmasic.
One who — given the five causes — sees the self alone as doer due to unrefined intellect sees not; that is durmati.
The duties of Brāhmaṇas, Kṣatriyas, Vaiśyas, and Śūdras are distributed by the guṇas born of their own nature.
Verse 16 of 28 · back to Chapter 17