Who is the same in pleasure and pain, who dwells in the Self, to whom a clod of earth, stone and gold are alike, who is the same to the dear and the unfriendly, who is firm, and to whom censure and praise are as one.
In simple words
Krishna describes their balance: "This person remains the same in pleasure and pain. They rest in the self. A clump of dirt, a stone, and a bar of gold feel the same to them. Praise and criticism feel the same. They are steady."
Word-by-word meanings
समदुःखसुखःalike in pleasure and painस्वस्थःstanding in his own Selfसमलोष्टाश्मकाञ्चनःregarding a clod of earth a stone and gold alikeतुल्यप्रियाप्रियःthe same to the dear and the undearधीरःfirmतुल्यनिन्दात्मसंस्तुतिःthe same in censure and praise.
Contemporary scholarly and practical interpretations for modern seekers.
Swami Sivananda
14.24 समदुःखसुखः alike in pleasure and pain? स्वस्थः standing in his own Self? समलोष्टाश्मकाञ्चनः regarding a clod of earth? a stone and gold alike? तुल्यप्रियाप्रियः the same to the dear and the undear? धीरः firm? तुल्यनिन्दात्मसंस्तुतिः the same in censure and praise. Commentary Night and day have no meaning to a post fixed in the ground. Even so pleasure and pain have no meaning to a sage who dwells in his own Self. He is above the pairs of opposites. In his eyes cowdung or gold? a jewel or a stone? are of eal value. He is free from the idea of,giving and taking. His mind is not perturbed by anything pleasant or unpleasant. He is the same towards agreeable and disagreeable things. Praise and censure cannot affect him. He stands adamant. He abides in his own essential state as ExistenceKnowledgeBliss Absolute. He is ever calm and serene. (Cf.V.18)
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 describes the equanimity and balance of mind that the wise person maintains amidst the ever-changing circumstances of life. The wise one remains established in the Self, beyond the cruelties of the three gunas—where there is neither the exhilarating joy of sattva, nor the turbulence of rajas, nor the fatigue of tamas. Such a one embodies pure existence, consciousness, and bliss.
To the ordinary person, this state of equanimity may appear as complete death. And indeed, in a sense, it is—the death of the limited ego that experiences worldly phenomena. The conditioned self alone appears as life, forever disturbed by the violent and restless tendencies of the mind, like a piece of wood floating on the ocean's surface. This suffering being, constantly shaken by storms of love and hatred, attraction and aversion, endures countless distractions and sorrows.
Therefore, liberation lies in withdrawing oneself from this disordered realm of craving and attachment, and remaining established in one's true nature. The question of what relationship the wise person has with the world is like asking what relationship the waking person has with their dream world. The person freed from the bondage of the three gunas completely abandons the sense of "I" and "mine" born of ignorance toward the non-self objects of the world. In that state of true divine awakening, the lower experiences—the pleasures and pains of this world, the pleasant and unpleasant, praise and blame—lose all meaning. In all experiences, such a one remains equanimous and unattached, a witness.
The wise one, established in their true nature as pure existence, consciousness, and bliss—free from all conditioning—is said to be whole. Thus, they remain untouched by the world experienced through conditioning.
Through the senses' contact with the external world, we compare present experiences with those acquired in the past and then evaluate them as pleasure or pain—this is the logic of individual mind. If pleasure or pain existed in external objects themselves, all people would experience them equally, just as everyone experiences sunlight uniformly, for light is the sun's nature. Yet this is not observed regarding objects. What brings pleasure to one person brings pain to another. This proves that our pleasures and pains are merely mental constructs, not objective reality. The wise one does not view the world through the eyes of mind and intellect, and therefore remains equal in what worldly people call pleasure and pain.
The wise one regards clay, stone, and gold with equal vision. Worldly people have great interest in acquiring objects. They wish to collect precious things like gold, diamonds, and pearls, but neglect common clay and stone. Yet the wise one who has attained the supreme truth sees clay, stone, and gold as equal—for from the perspective of ultimate reality, all are false objects of no real value.
In childhood, a small child collects peacock feathers, shells, marble pieces, broken bangles, old stamps, and such things, treating them as a precious treasure. But upon reaching adulthood, that collection loses all importance. They give it to a younger sibling, who receives it with great joy. Similarly, the ignorant person in the state of individual existence wishes to collect countless objects, which to the wise one's vision are merely a child's play.
If we reflect upon our relationships with many people, we find that those of similar nature are dear to us, while those of contrary nature are disagreeable. The same applies to objects and circumstances. This experience of the dear and disagreeable belongs only to those dwelling at the level of mind; not to the wise one established in the Self beyond mind. In the world, certain objects and events are generally considered dear or disagreeable. For the wise one, all are equal, for they do not view the world by the standards of ordinary people.
In the dream state, some praise the dreamer and some blame him. When he awakens from the dream, does he not regard that blame and praise as equal? Worldly people sometimes blame and sometimes praise according to their own intellect and knowledge. For the one established in supreme Self-knowledge, both have no significance.
Through these four beautiful examples, Vyasa has shown some of life's principal experiences in which the ordinary person experiences pleasure and pain.