Bhagavad Gita 4.27 · Krishna
The fire of self-mastery
सर्वाणीन्द्रियकर्माणि प्राणकर्माणि चापरे।
आत्मसंयमयोगाग्नौ जुह्वति ज्ञानदीपिते॥
sarvāṇīndriyakarmāṇi prāṇakarmāṇi cāpareātmasaṃyamayogāgnau juhvati jñānadīpite
Others offer all the workings of the senses and of the life-breath into the fire of self-mastery, lit by knowledge.
Words
- prāṇa
What it means
Krishna goes deeper. Some offer everything, the activity of the senses and even prana, the life-breath, into a fire of self-mastery. That fire is lit by knowledge. It's not about suppressing life. It's about bringing every movement of life under loving awareness, so nothing runs on autopilot.
The story
Arjuna's mind and body have been running wild with grief. Krishna describes people who live with complete inner command, every breath conscious. It's a picture of the steadiness Arjuna is learning.
In your life
Picture someone who notices their breathing whenever they walk into a stressful meeting, and slows it on purpose. Try it today. Three slow breaths before something hard.
Bring awareness to every breath.