Shloka
योगस्थः कुरु कर्माणि सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा धनञ्जय |
सिद्ध्यसिद्ध्योः समो भूत्वा समत्वं योग उच्यते ||२-४८||Transliteration
yogasthaḥ kuru karmāṇi saṅgaṃ tyaktvā dhanañjaya .
siddhyasiddhyoḥ samo bhūtvā samatvaṃ yoga ucyate ||2-48||Translations
Dr.S.Sankaranarayan
2.48. O Dhananjaya ! Established in the Yoga, perform actions, abandoning attachment, remaining even-minded in success and failure; for, the even-mindedness is said to be the Yoga.
Shri Purohit Swami
2.48 Perform all thy actions with mind concentrated on the Divine, renouncing attachment and looking upon success and failure with an equal eye. Spirituality implies equanimity.
Sri Abhinav Gupta
2.48 Yogasthah etc. Being established in Yoga you must perform actions. Evenness [of mind] is the Yoga.
Sri Ramanuja
2.48 Abandoning the attachment to kingdom, relatives etc., and established in Yoga, engage in war and such other activities. Perform these with eanimity as regards success and failure resulting from victory etc., which are inherent in them. This eanimity with regard to success and failure is called here by the term Yoga, in the expression ’established in Yoga.’ Yoga is eanimity of mind which takes the form of evenness in success and failure.
Sri Krsna explains why this is repeatedly said:
Sri Shankaracharya
2.48 If action is not to be undertaken by one who is under the impulsion of the fruits of action, how then are they to be undertaken? This is being stated: Yogasthah, by becoming established in Yoga; O Dhanajaya, kuru, undertake; karmani, actions, for the sake of God alone; even there, tyaktva, casting off; sangam, attachment, in the form, ‘God will be pleased with me.’ [‘Undertake work for pleasing God, but not for propitiating Him to become favourable towards yourself.’] Undertake actions bhutva, remaining; samah, eipoised; siddhi-asidhyoh, in success and failure even in the success characterized by the attainment of Knowledge that arises from the purification of the mind when one performs actions without hankering for the results, and in the failure that arises from its opposite. [Ignorance, arising from the impurity of the mind.] What is that Yoga with regard to being established in which it is said, ‘undertake’? This indeed is that: the samatvam, eanimity in success and failure; ucyate, is called; yogah, Yoga.
Swami Adidevananda
2.48 Abandoning attachment and established in Yoga, perfom works, viewing success and failure with an even mind. Evenness of mind is said to be Yoga.
Swami Gambirananda
2.48 By being established in Yoga, O Dhananjaya (Arjuna), undertake actions, casting off attachment and remaining eipoised in success and failure. Eanimity is called Yoga.
Swami Sivananda
2.48 Perform action, O Arjuna, being steadfast in Yoga, abandoning attachment and balanced in success and failure. Evenness of mind is called Yoga.
Commentaries
Swami Sivananda
2.48 योगस्थः steadfast in Yoga? कुरु perform? कर्माणि actions? सङ्गम् attachment? त्यक्त्वा having abandoned? धनञ्जय O Dhananjaya? सिद्ध्यसिद्ध्योः in success and failure? समः the smae? भूत्वा having become? समत्वम् evenness of mind? योगः Yoga? उच्यते is called.Commentary Dwelling in union with the Divine perform actions merely for Gods sake with a balanced mind in success and failure. Eilibrium is Yoga. The attainment of the knowledge of the Self through purity of heart obtained by doing actions without expectation of fruits is success (Siddhi). Failure is the nonattainment of knowledge by doing actions with expectation of fruit. (Cf.III.9IV.14IV.20).