At the time of death, with unshaken mind, endowed with devotion, by the power of Yoga, fixing the whole life-breath in the middle of the two eyebrows, he reaches that resplendent Supreme Person.
In simple words
Krishna describes the practice at the moment of death: "At that final moment, with an unshaken mind full of devotion, using the power of yogic practice to draw the life-breath to the point between the eyebrows — that person reaches the supreme, radiant being."
प्रयाणकालेat the time of deathमनसाwith mindअचलेनunshakenभक्त्याwith devotionयुक्तःjoinedयोगबलेनby the power of Yogaचandएवonlyभ्रुवोःof the two eyrowsमध्येin the middleप्राणम्Prana (breath)आवेश्यhaving placedसम्यक्thoroughlyसः
Contemporary scholarly and practical interpretations for modern seekers.
Swami Sivananda
8.10 प्रयाणकाले at the time of death? मनसा with mind? अचलेन unshaken? भक्त्या with devotion? युक्तः joined? योगबलेन by the power of Yoga? च and? एव only? भ्रुवोः of the two eyrows? मध्ये in the middle? प्राणम् Prana (breath)? आवेश्य having placed? सम्यक् thoroughly? सः he? तम् that? परम् Supreme? पुरुषम् Purusha? उपैति reaches? दिव्यम् resplendent.Commentary The Yogi gets immense inner strength and power of concentration. His mind becomes ite steady through constant practice of concentration and meditation. He practises concentration first on the lower Chakras? viz.? Muladhara? Svadhishthana and Manipura. He then concentrates on the lotus of the heart (Anahata Chakra). Then he takes the lifreath (Prana) through the Sushumna and fixes it in the middle of the two eyrows. He eventually attains the resplendent Supreme Purusha (Person) by the above Yogic practice.This is possible for one who has devoted his whole life to the practice of Yoga.
Swami Chinmayananda
This interpretation draws on a specific tradition and may not represent the view of any single school. For authoritative guidance within a specific tradition, seek a qualified teacher.
This verse is commonly misunderstood when taken merely at its literal level, which is not its true intention. The subject presented in the Bhagavad Gita is meditation upon the Supreme Being with a concentrated mind. Therefore, the moment of departure should be understood as the moment of the death of ego. Through the practice of meditation, when one remains conscious and completely dissolves the identification with body, mind, and intellect, the practitioner experiences a stable moment of inner peace. At that time, with an unwavering mind, one should follow the practice taught in this verse.
The word devotion here should not be understood as the commercial form of devotion practiced by ordinary worldly people. That supreme love for the Divine in which there is neither desire nor expectation—love that exists for love's sake alone—is called devotion. Love means that unity with one's beloved in which the joy and sorrow of the beloved are experienced as one's own joy and sorrow. In essence, the lover and the beloved, the devotee and God, become one with each other. Therefore, Sri Shankaracharya defines devotion as self-recognition in accordance with one's true nature—that is, the unity of the individual soul with its true essence is devotion.
The most important instruction given to the practitioner in the context of this verse is that one's meditation practice should be infused with readiness to become one with the atman. The nature of the atman has been explained in detail in the previous verse. During moments of inner peace, when the ego dies, the practitioner should remain established in the form of the atman.
By the word yoga-strength, we are not speaking of some secret and mysterious kundalini force about which secrecy is maintained and whose mystery is generally not revealed even to the devotees of God. Yoga-strength refers to that power which the practitioner obtains as a result of sustained, regular meditation practice over a long period. It is that inner force which is obtained when the mind withdraws from sense objects and their distractions, and the intellect becomes established in the ultimate truth, and it continuously grows stronger.
In a short time, the practitioner finds within oneself the wealth of mental equilibrium and an indescribable efficiency, with the aid of which one becomes single-pointed in meditation with complete readiness. The entire life-force of the yogi engaged in meditation becomes centered at the point of meditation—as is said here, between the eyebrows. This region is considered the seat of steady thought.
In Vedanta, prana does not refer merely to air, but to the life-force expressed in various ways in different parts of the body. This life-force (prana) is classified into five divisions according to five functions: prana—the action of receiving sense objects; apana—the elimination of waste; vyana—the circulation of blood throughout the entire body; samana—the process of digestion; and udana—through which we have the capacity to understand knowledge beyond the present moment. Through these, much of our energy is scattered, but during meditation practice it becomes concentrated in one place for some time. For the practitioner walking the path of meditation, there is no need for any vigorous physical practice.
In such profound moments of meditation, when the practitioner's mind becomes completely calm and still, through yoga-strength the life-force becomes centered between the eyebrows, and one who becomes united with the object of meditation—the atman—with supreme faith and enthusiasm attains that Supreme Divine Being.
The next verse serves as an introduction to meditation upon Om.