Devanagari
अदृष्टादश्रुताद् भावान्न भाव उपजायते ।
असम्प्रयुञ्जत: प्राणान् शाम्यति स्तिमितं मन: ॥ २३ ॥
Verse text
adṛṣṭād aśrutād bhāvān
na bhāva upajāyate
asamprayuṣjataḥ prāṇān
śāmyati stimitaṁ manaḥ
Synonyms
adṛṣṭāt
—
which is not seen
;
aśrutāt
—
which is not heard
;
bhāvāt
—
from a thing
;
na
—
does not
;
bhāvaḥ
—
mental agitation
;
upajāyate
—
arise
;
asamprayuṣjataḥ
—
for one who is not using
;
prāṇān
—
the senses
;
śāmyati
—
becomes pacified
;
stimitam
—
checked
;
manaḥ
—
the mind .
Translation
Because the mind is not disturbed by that which is neither seen nor heard, the mind of a person who restricts the material senses will automatically be checked in its material activities and become pacified.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Because the mind is not disturbed by that which is neither seen nor heard, the mind of a person who restricts the material senses will automatically curtail its material activities and become pacified.
“But we see that even a sage who lives alone develops a disturbed mind.” That is true. It arises from previous impressions of seeing a woman. The correct method is described. When a person does not direct his senses (prāṇān) to women, the unmoving mind becomes calm.
Purport
It may be argued that even while closing one’s eyes, while dreaming or while living in a solitary place, one may remember or contemplate sense gratification. Such an experience, however, is due to previous sense gratification that one repeatedly saw and heard about. When one restricts the senses from their objects, especially from intimate contact with women, the mind’s material propensity will slacken and, like a fire without fuel, eventually die.