Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2, Verse 56 (BG 2.56) — Meaning, Translation & Commentary

The principal characteristic of one whose wisdom is steadfast is the renunciation of all desires through the experience of bliss in the Self. Sri Krishna now reveals the second mark by which the wise may be recognized: the equipoise of mind in both pleasure and pain. Here is described how such a one conducts himself as an experiencer of the sensations that arise from the maintenance of the body. The sage of steadfast wisdom is one who is free from attachment, fear, and anger. Should we study the lives of those who have attained perfection, we would find in them qualities entirely contrary to those of ordinary humanity. The wise possess none of the hundreds of sentiments and characteristics common to ordinary people, and therefore we might wonder why only the absence of three qualities is mentioned here. A doubt then arises in the mind: Did Vyasa forget the other qualities? Does this statement describe the complete characteristics? Yet upon reflection, such doubts prove to be without foundation. In the previous verse, the desirelessness of the wise was described; here is shown the steadiness of their mind. From our experience of countless objects in the world, we know that as attachment and clinging to them increase, fear also arises in the mind. When there is an intense desire to obtain something, fear emerges—the fear that the object may not actually be obtained. Even after obtaining it, anxiety and fear persist regarding its protection. When an obstacle arises between a person overwhelmed by attachment and fear and the object of their desire, the emotion that arises in the mind toward that obstacle is called anger. The intensity of anger's force is proportional to the intensity of attachment and fear. In other words, attachment itself, through circumstance, manifests as anger. Sri Shankaracharya writes in his commentary that the wise person remains unmoved in the face of the threefold afflictions. These three kinds of suffering are: (a) Adhyatmika—bodily ailments and diseases; (b) Adhibhautika—suffering caused by external objects such as wild beasts and thieves; (c) Adhidaivika—suffering from the fury of nature such as earthquakes and storms. When fuel is added to fire, it blazes forth. But in the wise person, though countless objects like fuel are presented, the fire of desire does not assume a fierce form. Such a person is called a sage of steadfast wisdom. And further it is said—