Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 8, Verse 10
प्रयाणकाले मनसाऽचलेन
भक्त्या युक्तो योगबलेन चैव।
भ्रुवोर्मध्ये प्राणमावेश्य सम्यक्
स तं परं पुरुषमुपैति दिव्यम्।।
भक्त्या युक्तो योगबलेन चैव।
भ्रुवोर्मध्ये प्राणमावेश्य सम्यक्
स तं परं पुरुषमुपैति दिव्यम्।।
prayāṇa-kāle manasācalena
bhaktyā yukto yoga-balena caiva
bhruvor madhye prāṇam āveśya samyak
sa taṁ paraṁ puruṣam upaiti divyam
also searched as "prayana-kale manasacalena"
Translation
At the time of death, having fully fixed the Prana (vital force) between the eyebrows with an unwavering mind, and being imbued with devotion as well as the strength of concentration, he reaches that resplendent Supreme Person.
Vāṇi's rendering
At the last hour, mind unmoving, devoted, breath drawn up between the brows — one reaches that radiant person.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| प्रयाणकालेprayāṇa-kāle | at the time of departure, at the hour of death |
| मनसाmanasā | with the mind |
| अचलेनacalena | unmoving, unshaken (sandhi: manasā + acalena) |
| भक्त्याbhaktyā | with devotion |
| युक्तःyuktaḥ | joined to, steadied in |
| योगबलेनyoga-balena | by the strength gathered through yoga |
| चca | and |
| एवeva | indeed (sandhi: ca + eva = caiva) |
| भ्रुवोःbhruvoḥ | of the two eyebrows |
| मध्येmadhye | in the middle, at the point between |
| प्राणम्prāṇam | the life-breath |
| आवेश्यāveśya | having drawn up and settled |
| सम्यक्samyak | fully, rightly |
| सःsa | he, that one |
| तम्taṁ | that |
| परम्paraṁ | supreme |
| पुरुषम्puruṣam | person |
| उपैतिupaiti | reaches, arrives at |
| दिव्यम्divyam | radiant, shining |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 8 Verse 10 mean?
It describes the hour of departure for someone whose mind has long been steady. Devotion, the strength built by practice, and the breath drawn up between the brows are not summoned in a panic — they are simply present. Krishna says such a one reaches the radiant puruṣa. The dying is continuous with the living.
What is the meaning of prayana kale manasachalena?
Prayāṇa is the setting out — the last departure. Manasā acalena is a mind that does not shake. Together they name a condition, not a technique: at the very moment everything is being taken away, nothing inside moves. That steadiness is not made at the end. It is discovered there, already built.
Is the practice of fixing breath between the eyebrows meant for everyone?
Krishna is describing one who has trained for years, not offering a last-minute maneuver. The place between the brows is where a collected mind naturally settles; the yogī's breath follows it. If you have no such practice, the verse still speaks — it tells you what today's attention is quietly preparing.
Why does Krishna talk so much about the moment of death in Chapter 8?
Because Arjuna asked, and because the last hour reveals what a life actually contained. Nothing new can be added then. Whatever the mind has been rehearsing rises without being called. Krishna is not frightening Arjuna with death; he is showing him that death has no surprises for the practised.
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
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Commentary
Notice what is not asked for here. No new belief at the last hour, no bargain, no rescue. Krishna describes a mind already unmoving, a devotion already present, a breath the practice has taught to rise — and the last hour simply finds them there. Arjuna is being told that dying well is not a separate skill. It is what living attentively becomes when there is no more time left to be careless. The point between the brows is no trick; it is where a gathered mind rests. What you do with ordinary Tuesdays is what your last hour will have to work with.