Bhagavad Gita 5.19
Spoken by Krishna · Verse 19 of 29
इहैव तैर्जितः सर्गो येषां साम्ये स्थितं मनः। निर्दोषं हि समं ब्रह्म तस्माद् ब्रह्मणि ते स्थिताः॥५-१९॥
ihaiva tair jitaḥ sargo yeṣāṃ sāmye sthitaṃ manaḥ | nirdoṣaṃ hi samaṃ brahma tasmād brahmaṇi te sthitāḥ || 5.19 ||
Equanimous minds conquer birth here itself — Brahman is flawless and equal, thus they rest in Brahman.
Word by word (6)
- iha eva
- — here itself / in this very life
- taiḥ jitaḥ sargaḥ
- — by them birth/creation is conquered / they have overcome rebirth
- yeṣāṃ sāmye sthitaṃ manaḥ
- — whose mind is established in equanimity / whose mind rests in sameness
- nirdoṣam
- — flawless / without defect / unblemished
- hi samam brahma
- — for Brahman is equal / Brahman is indeed the same in all
- tasmāt brahmaṇi te sthitāḥ
- — therefore they are established in Brahman
Even here, in this very life, rebirth is conquered by those whose mind rests in evenness; for Brahman is flawless and the same in all, and therefore they are established in Brahman.
A modern analogy
A person who has worked through deep grief reaches a point where they can hold loss without being destroyed by it — not indifference, but a stable equanimity that neither collapses into despair nor forces false positivity. That settled quality — sāmye sthitaṃ manaḥ — is the mind that no longer generates the turbulence that creates new binding karma.
What it does NOT mean
This is not saying that equanimity is a technique to escape life. 'Conquering birth' (jitaḥ sargaḥ) means the inner condition of no longer being driven by the craving and aversion that produce karmic rebirth — not the physical end of existence.
Take with you
- iha eva — 'here itself' — liberation is not post-death. It is available in this body, in this life, the moment the mind genuinely rests in equanimity.
- The logic of the verse: Brahman is equal and flawless → the equanimous mind reflects Brahman's nature → therefore the equanimous mind is already in Brahman. Equality of mind is not just a practice — it is a recognition.
- Sarga (birth/creation) is conquered not by renouncing action but by the mind no longer oscillating between attraction and aversion — which is what creates rebirth-causing karma.
Public-domain translations (6) compare all →
"Here itself, birth is overcome by those whose mind rests in equanimity — Brahman is indeed flawless and equal; therefore they rest in Brahman." [1]
"Even here, birth is conquered by those whose mind rests in equality; Brahman is flawless and equal; therefore they are established in Brahman." [4]
"Even here, the created world is overcome by those whose mind rests in equality; for Brahman is faultless and equal; therefore they abide in Brahman." [5]
"Even here in this world those whose minds are fixed in equality have conquered the world of conditioned existence, since Brahman is faultless and equal; therefore they rest in Brahman." [6]
"Here, in this life, they have conquered birth by those whose mind is fixed in equality; for Brahman is flawless, equal; therefore they abide in Brahman." [7]
"Even here is existence conquered by those whose mind is fixed in equality; since Brahman is spotless and equal, therefore they are fixed in Brahman." [9]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
The paṇḍita sees equally in a learned Brahmin, cow, elephant, dog, and outcaste — sama-darśana.
Do the work rooted in yoga, unattached. Equanimity in success and failure — that IS yoga.
Equal vision everywhere: the yogi sees the Self in all beings, and all beings within the Self — the same, everywhere.
Sitting as a neutral — unmoved by guṇas, knowing 'guṇas act' — firm, unshaken, the pure witness.
Sattva, rajas, or tamas — each can become dominant over the others, alternating in every mind.
Arjuna asks: what does the truly wise person look like? How do they speak, sit, and move?
Verse 19 of 29 · back to Chapter 5