Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 17, Verse 16
मनःप्रसादः सौम्यत्वं मौनमात्मविनिग्रहः।भावसंशुद्धिरित्येतत्तपो मानसमुच्यते।।
manaḥ-prasādaḥ saumyatvaṁ maunam ātma-vinigrahaḥ
bhāva-sanśuddhir ity etat tapo mānasam ucyate
also searched as "manah prasadah saumyatvam maunam atmavinigrahah"
Translation
Serenity of mind, benevolence, silence, self-control, and purity of mind—these are known as austerity of the mind.
Vāṇi's rendering
A settled mind, gentleness, silence, self-command, and a heart swept clean — this is austerity of the mind.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| मनःप्रसादःmanaḥ-prasādaḥ | clearness of mind; a mind that has settled |
| सौम्यत्वंsaumyatvaṁ | gentleness, mildness of temper |
| मौनम्maunam | silence; the holding of speech |
| आत्मविनिग्रहःātma-vinigrahaḥ | self-command, holding oneself in hand |
| भावसंशुद्धिःbhāva-sanśuddhiḥ | purity of inner motive; nothing hidden behind the act (final -ḥ becomes -r before the next word) |
| इतिiti | thus, so |
| एतत्etat | this |
| तपःtapaḥ | austerity, heat willingly borne (appears as tapo before mānasam) |
| मानसम्mānasam | of the mind, mental |
| उच्यतेucyate | is called, is said to be |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 17 Verse 16 mean?
Krishna names the austerity nobody can watch you perform: a mind that has stopped churning, a gentle temper, silence, self-command, and a motive with nothing concealed in it. Body and speech can be disciplined for an audience. This discipline has no audience, which is exactly why Krishna insists on calling it tapas.
What is the meaning of manah prasadah saumyatvam maunam atmavinigrahah?
Manaḥ-prasādaḥ is the mind gone clear, the way water clears when you stop stirring it. Saumyatva is gentleness, maunam is silence, ātma-vinigraha is keeping hold of yourself. Read together they are not five practices but one condition, described from five sides.
What is mental austerity in the Gita, and how is it different from fasting or rituals?
Fasting and ritual work on the body; measured speech works on the tongue. Mental austerity works on the place both come from. Krishna puts it last because it is hardest and cannot be faked. A person may keep every observance perfectly and still be seething. That seething is what this verse asks you to bear the heat of.
What does bhava-samshuddhi, purity of motive, actually ask of me?
That the reason you gave be the reason you had. Most of what we do carries a second intention folded inside it — to be seen, to be owed, to be safe. Bhāva-sanśuddhi is the slow work of unfolding that and letting it go. Krishna calls it purity because what remains is simply one thing.
Themes in this verse
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
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Commentary
Nothing on this list can be seen from outside. The verses before named austerity of the body and of speech — offerings, service, words that do not wound — and someone watching could grade you on them. This one no one can grade. A settled mind, gentleness, silence, self-command, a motive with nothing hidden in it: these happen where only you are looking. Which is why Krishna calls them austerity too. Arjuna is about to act in full view of two armies; his hardest work is the invisible part. You can hold your tongue and still be at war inside. Sweep that room first.