In a clean spot, having established a firm seat of his own, neither too high nor too low, made of a cloth, a skin and Kusa-grass, one over the other.
In simple words
Krishna gets specific about the meditation setup: "Find a clean spot. Set up a firm seat for yourself — not too high, not too low. A layer of cloth over a deerskin over grass will do."
Word-by-word meanings
शुचौin a cleanदेशेspotप्रतिष्ठाप्यhaving establishedस्थिरम्firmआसनम्seatआत्मनःhis ownनnotअत्युच्छ्रितम्very highनnotअतिनीचम्very lowचैलाजिनकुशोत्तरम्a cloth skin and Kusagrass one over the other
6.11 शुचौ in a clean? देशे spot? प्रतिष्ठाप्य having established? स्थिरम् firm? आसनम् seat? आत्मनः his own? न not? अत्युच्छ्रितम् very high? न not? अतिनीचम् very low? चैलाजिनकुशोत्तरम् a cloth? skin and Kusagrass? one over the other.Commentary In this verse the Lord has prescribed the external seat for practising meditation. Details of the pose are given in verse 13.Spread the Kusagrass on the ground first. Over this spread a tigerskin or deerskin over this spread a white cloth.Sit on a naturally clean spot? such as the bank of a river. Or? make the place clean? wherever you want to practise meditation.
Contemporary scholarly and practical interpretations for modern seekers.
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.
Modern
The means to attain supreme peace and equanimity is profound meditation, and therefore the Lord must here expound that method in detail. In certain verses that follow, the fruits of posture, practice, and meditation are revealed to the seeker. The verse under consideration describes the place and the seat of practice. In a pure land, the external environment and circumstances exert a profound influence upon the human mind. Therefore, the place of meditation practice must be clean and pure, for it also aids in the purification of the mind. The commentators teach that such a place should be free from mosquitoes, flies, ants, bedbugs, and other insects and creatures that may hinder the seeker's concentration in the beginning. Regarding the seat itself, it is said that it must be firm and stable. It should be neither excessively high nor excessively low. By "high" is meant the summit of a mountain. Sitting in such a place may generate in the seeker's mind a fear of insecurity, and in that condition it becomes exceedingly difficult to withdraw the mind from the external world and establish it in the Self. Similarly, "low" refers to caves and places beneath the earth. Such locations, being damp, may cause pain in the joints. During meditation practice, the heart's rhythm and the pressure of blood circulation become somewhat slowed, and then a low place becomes even more harmful. Therefore, it is said here that the place of meditation should be neither excessively high nor excessively low.
In the Bhagavad Gita, whenever any subject is described, nothing is left unsaid that would prevent a student from understanding it fully. The description of the method of meditation is a clear example of this. By spreading sacred grass upon the ground and placing a deerskin upon it, and then spreading a clean cloth upon that, an appropriate seat is formed. The sacred grass protects against the dampness of the earth. Similarly, in summer, the deerskin itself may become warm, and perspiration arising in the seeker may obstruct concentration. To remedy this, a cloth is spread upon the deerskin. After sitting upon such a suitable seat, the instruction for what the seeker should do with mind and intellect is given in the verse that follows.