|| 6.20 ||
यत्रोपरमते चित्तं निरुद्धं योगसेवया। यत्र चैवात्मनाऽऽत्मानं पश्यन्नात्मनि तुष्यति।।
yatroparamate cittaṁ niruddhaṁ yoga-sevayā yatra caivātmanātmānaṁ paśyann ātmani tuṣyati
Word by Word
yatra (in that state) uparamate (cease/become still) cittam (mental activities) niruddham (being restrained) yoga-sevayā (by practice of yoga) yatra (in which) ca (also) eva (certainly) ātmanā (by the pure mind) ātmānam (the self) paśyan (realizing/seeing) ātmani (in the self) tuṣyati (one rejoices)
Translation
In the stage of perfection called trance, or samādhi, one’s mind is completely restrained from material mental activities by practice of yoga. This perfection is characterized by one’s ability to see the self by the pure mind and to relish and rejoice in the self.
Meaning
Kṛṣṇa describes the peak of meditation: ‘Samādhi’, or trance. In this state, the mind is completely restrained from all material activity through the practice of yoga. It is the moment when the mental ‘noise’ finally stops.
In this profound silence, the yogī is able to see the soul by the soul and ‘tuṣyati’—rejoices in the self. They have found the ultimate source of joy. This joy is not dependent on anything outside; it is the natural bliss of the soul discovering its own existence. It is like waking up from a long, chaotic dream into a beautiful reality.
Kṛṣṇa is showing Arjuna that the greatest prize is this internal reunion. By mastering his mind, Arjuna will find a satisfaction so deep that no earthly victory or defeat could ever compare to it. Samādhi is the state where the observer and the observed merge into a unified experience of spiritual happiness.