Chapter2- Sloka 58
yadā saṃharate cāyaṃ kūrmo’ṇgānīva sarvaśaḥ |
indriyāṇīndriyārthebhyas tasya prajñā pratiṣṭhitā || 58||
(2.58)
yadā- When; ayaṃ- the seeker of true knowledge; ca- thus; saṃharate- pulls back; indriyāṇi- his senses (which try to come in contact with the sense objects); sarvaśaḥ- in all ways; indriyārthebhyaḥ- from the sense objects; kūrmaḥ aṇgāni iva- just as a tortoise retracts its limbs; tasya- Such a person's; prajñā- wisdom; pratiṣṭhitā- is firmly established (he is a sthitaprajña);
Purport
In this śloka, 'yatamānasaṃjña', which is the first phase of practice for a jñāna yogi is described by Kṛṣṇa.
Kṛṣṇa says to Arjuna, "When the seeker of true knowledge thus pulls back his senses from the objects of senses in all ways just as a tortoise retracts its limbs, such a person's wisdom is firmly established. He is a sthitaprajña."
yadā indriyāṇi ayaṃ saṃharate indriyārthebhyaḥ
yadā indriyāṇi ayaṃ saṃharate (When he pulls back his senses)
Q: From where does he pull them back? This is answered next .
A: indriyārthebhyaḥ He pulls back his senses of hearing, touch, sight, taste and smell from their foods
namely sounds, touch, forms, different tastes and smells which are called sense objects.
Skin, mouth, eyes, nose and ears are the five jñāna indriyas which attempt to come in contact with the
sense objects designated for them, for eg: the eyes constantly crave to view the different forms in nature.
The practitioner of jñāna yoga in this first stage strives to pull the senses back from their objects every time
they attempt to make contact. There are certain times when the senses do not make contact with their
objects, for eg: at the time of suffering from a disease or old age or in the suṣupti state (state of dreamless
sleep). To accommodate the exclusion of these times, it is specified as 'when the senses try to establish
contact with their objects'. Also, pulling back the senses after experiencing the objects is of no use,
hence it is specified that they must be pulled back at a stage where they are trying to establish contact.
Q: How can the senses be pulled back? This is described next with an illustration.
A: aṇgāni kūrmaḥ iva is the answer. The senses have to be pulled back just as a tortoise retracts its limbs into its shell. The example of the tortoise is given to make the important point that this act of pulling back is done at will.
sarvaśaḥ (in all ways) This clarifies that pulling the senses back in all ways means total abstinence from seeing them, talking about them, rejoicing in them or ridiculing them in good humour. The senses must be controlled by all means.
saṃharate Since the main topic of discussion in this set of four ślokas is the four stages in the practice of jñāna yoga, the word saṃharate not only means 'restraining the senses by pulling them back' but also conveys the result of such a restrain which is to be able to fix the mind steadily on the soul.
tasya prajñā pratiṣṭhitā Such a person is also called a 'sthitaprajña'. Since these are all the different stages in the practice of jñāna yoga, a practitioner in this 'yatamānasaṃjña' stage is also called a 'sthitaprajña'.