Bhagavad Gita 5.20
Spoken by Krishna · Verse 20 of 29
न प्रहृष्येत् प्रियं प्राप्य नोद्विजेत् प्राप्य चाप्रियम्। स्थिरबुद्धिरसम्मूढो ब्रह्मविद् ब्रह्मणि स्थितः॥५-२०॥
na praharṣet priyaṃ prāpya nodvijet prāpya cāpriyam | sthira-buddhir asaṃmūḍho brahma-vid brahmaṇi sthitaḥ || 5.20 ||
Not elated at pleasant, not disturbed at unpleasant — steady, undeluded, the brahma-vit rests in Brahman.
Word by word (8)
- na praharṣet
- — should not rejoice excessively / not elated
- priyam prāpya
- — upon getting the pleasant / on receiving what is dear
- na udvijet
- — should not be disturbed / not agitated
- prāpya ca apriyam
- — upon getting the unpleasant / on receiving what is not dear
- sthira-buddhiḥ
- — steady intellect / one whose intellect is firm and unwavering
- asaṃmūḍhaḥ
- — undeluded / not confused / clear-minded
- brahma-vit
- — knower of Brahman / one who knows the Supreme
- brahmaṇi sthitaḥ
- — established in Brahman / resting in the Supreme
The knower of Brahman (brahma-vit) does not rejoice excessively when something pleasant arrives, and does not grieve when something unpleasant arrives. With a steady intellect (sthira-buddhi) and undeluded mind (asaṃmūḍha), this person is established in Brahman — not as a future goal, but as their present reality.
A modern analogy
A seasoned sailor feels the waves — even large ones — but the ship doesn't capsize because the keel is deep and steady. Beginners panic at waves; the experienced sailor adjusts sail without drama. The brahma-vit's sthira-buddhi is the keel: deep enough that no wave of fortune or misfortune overturns the vessel.
What it does NOT mean
This is not emotional suppression or forced positivity. The brahma-vit still experiences pleasant and unpleasant events — the verse says they don't praharṣet (become over-elated) or udvijet (become agitated). The response happens; the identity remains unmoved. There is a difference between feeling and being swept away by feeling.
Take with you
- Praharṣa (elation at pleasant events) and udvega (agitation at unpleasant events) are the two poles of ordinary reactivity — the brahma-vit has transcended both, not by numbing but by being rooted deeper than both.
- sthira-buddhi + asaṃmūḍha: steady intellect AND freedom from delusion — these two together describe the inner condition, not just the outer behaviour.
- This verse is the behavioural test of the previous one's claim that the equanimous rest in Brahman: the one truly established in Brahman (brahmaṇi sthitaḥ) will show exactly these qualities in daily life — the inner state expresses outward as equanimity.
Public-domain translations (6) compare all →
"One who neither rejoices on getting the pleasant nor grieves on getting the unpleasant — with steady intellect, undeluded, the brahma-vit is established in Brahman." [1]
"He who, not rejoicing on obtaining what is pleasant and not lamenting on obtaining what is unpleasant, is of steady mind and undeluded, the knower of Brahman, is established in Brahman." [4]
"He who, obtaining pleasant things, is not uplifted, and obtaining unpleasant things, is not cast down, stable in mind, undeluded, the knower of Brahman is established in Brahman." [5]
"He who is not overjoyed when good fortune comes to him, and does not shrink when evil comes, who is stable in mind and undeluded — such a man who knows Brahman is fixed in Brahman." [6]
"Who, getting good, is not glad; who, getting evil, grieves not; with steady mind, untroubled, the Brahman-knower dwells in Brahman." [7]
"One who, on obtaining something pleasant, is not elated, and on obtaining something unpleasant, is not pained — who is steady-minded, undeluded, a knower of Brahman, is established in Brahman." [9]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
Steady wisdom begins here: when all desires fall away and the Self finds fullness in itself alone.
Equanimous minds conquer birth here itself — Brahman is flawless and equal, thus they rest in Brahman.
Once that joy is found, no other gain seems greater — established in it, even the heaviest sorrow cannot shake you.
The guṇātīta neither hates light, activity, or delusion when present — nor yearns for them when absent.
Do the work rooted in yoga, unattached. Equanimity in success and failure — that IS yoga.
Arjuna asks: what does the truly wise person look like? How do they speak, sit, and move?
Verse 20 of 29 · back to Chapter 5