Transcendental Knowledge
Verse 2.67
इन्द्रियाणां हि चरतां यन्मनोऽनुविधीयते। तदस्य हरति प्रज्ञां वायुर्नावमिवाम्भसि।।2.67।।
indriyāṇāṁ hi charatāṁ yan mano ’nuvidhīyate tadasya harati prajñāṁ vāyur nāvam ivāmbhasi
Word Meanings
indriyāṇām—of the senses; hi—indeed; charatām—roaming; yat—which; manaḥ—the mind; anuvidhīyate—becomes constantly engaged; tat—that; asya—of that; harati—carries away; prajñām—intellect; vāyuḥ—wind; nāvam—boat; iva—as; ambhasi—on the water
Translation · English
For the mind, which follows in the wake of the wandering senses, carries away his discrimination, as the wind carries away a boat on the waters.
Deep Meaning · English
In this profound verse, Krishna employs a striking nautical metaphor to illustrate the precarious nature of the human consciousness. The senses are naturally outward-reaching, functioning like autonomous explorers interacting with a world of flickering phenomena. When the mind, which acts as the helm of the human vessel, allows itself to be 'carried away' by the sensory inputs, it loses its sovereign stability. In the Advaitic tradition, this signifies the intellect (prajna) becoming tethered to the ephemeral qualities of matter, effectively drowning the discernment required to perceive the Atman, which is the only fixed point in the storm of existence. This instruction follows Krishna's critique of the unbridled ego. The intellect, when aligned with the Self, acts as a lighthouse; however, when the mind drifts, the intellect is not merely weakened—it is actively 'carried away' (harati). This underscores a psychological truth: we do not lose our peace all at once, but rather through a progressive surrender of the mind to sensory impulses. For the seeker, this verse serves as a crucial warning that discipline (Yoga) is not about suppressing the world, but about anchoring the mind in the interiority of the soul, ensuring that the 'boat' of the life-force is not tossed aside by the turbulent gusts of desire and aversion.
The intellect, no matter how sharp, cannot remain steady if the mind is permitted to drift at the whim of the roaming senses.
Connected Verses
Arjuna echoes the difficulty of this control by comparing the mind to the wind, which is notoriously impossible to restrain.
Krishna warns that attraction and repulsion are inherent in the senses and constitute the primary obstacles to spiritual progress.
This verse describes the senses as turbulent and powerful, providing the immediate context for why they must be controlled.
This verse highlights that the intellect of the indecisive is many-branched, serving as the antidote to the scattered mind described in 2.67.
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