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Chapter 6 · Dhyāna-yoga · 47 verses

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Questions & crisisChapter 6 · Dhyāna-yoga
6.326.34

Bhagavad-gītā As It Is · Text 6.33

Arjuna confesses difficulty controlling the mind

अर्जुन उवाच

योऽयं योगस्त्वया प्रोक्त: साम्येन मधुसूदन ।

एतस्याहं न पश्यामि चञ्चलत्वात्स्थितिं स्थिराम् ॥ ३३ ॥

arjuna uvāca

yo ’yaṁ yogas tvayā proktaḥ

sāmyena madhusūdana

etasyāhaṁ na paśyāmi

cañcalatvāt sthitiṁ sthirām

Translation

Arjuna said: O Madhusūdana, the system of yoga which You have summarized appears impractical and unendurable to me, for the mind is restless and unsteady.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

What this verse is saying, and where it sits in the story.

Arjuna’s Difficulty with Yoga

  1. 1Arjuna says this yoga system seems impractical and unbearable because the mind is restless and unsteady.
  2. 2Prabhupāda explains that this strict, secluded yoga practice is generally impossible for ordinary people in the Age of Kali.
  3. 3Simply imitating this yoga system without understanding its goal wastes time.

Where we are

In the story

Chapter 6, Dhyāna-yoga: arjuna confesses difficulty controlling the mind.

What it teaches

Theme summary

Honest questions open the way to wisdom.

2

Key ideas in this verse

The spiritual concepts this verse connects to.

Key ideas: saṁśaya, viṣāda.

3

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What does BG 6.33 establish in Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport, and how does it connect to questions & crisis?

Practice

Write down the real question behind your current dilemma.

4

The story behind it

Mahābhārata episodes and stories from the purports that shed light on this verse.

All stories for chapter 6 ›
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Related verses

Keep going: verses that carry this teaching further.

BG 6.34The restless mindBG 1.28Compassion entangled with attachmentBG 1.46The bow falls

Study notes are editorial summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport.

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Ask about BG 6.33 — get a simple answer linked to related ideas and verses.

Back to step 3The key ideasNext · Step 5 of 7 · 5 minLive the teachingsBring it into your day with a practice and a question, straight from Prabhupāda's purports.