Chapter 6 Shloka 21

सुखमात्यन्तिकं यत्तद्बुद्धिग्राह्यमतीन्द्रियम्।

वेत्ति यत्र न चेवायं स्थितश्चलति तत्त्वत:।।२१।।

The one who perceives the eternal joy which is

beyond the senses and which can be experienced

only through the subtle and purified intellect,

becomes established in that state

and is never shaken from it.

Chapter 6 Shloka 21

सुखमात्यन्तिकं यत्तद्बुद्धिग्राह्यमतीन्द्रियम्।

वेत्ति यत्र न चेवायं स्थितश्चलति तत्त्वत:।।२१।।

Eulogising the sublime qualities of the Yogi, the Lord says:

The one who perceives the eternal joy which is beyond the senses and which can be experienced only through the subtle and purified intellect, becomes established in that state and is never shaken from it.

Atendriya (अतीन्द्रिय)

1. That which cannot be perceived through the sense organs.

2. Which the sense organs cannot know.

3. Which cannot be partaken of by the organs of sensory perception.

4. Which cannot be experienced by the organs of sensory perception.

5. Which is beyond the reach of the organs of sensory perception.

6. Which is not the subject of the sense organs.

The Lord says, this incredible joy transcends the organs of sense, yet, it can be experienced by the intellect. The intellect experiences this quality, this joy. That is, when the intellect becomes completely peaceful, it perceives within itself the indescribable bliss of the Atma. In fact, the mind and the sense organs do not have the capacity to experience this joy.

This tremendous joy can be comprehended only through inference.

1. That intellect which is ever uninfluenced by objects is in a state of bliss.

2. The intellect which is ever unaffected by respect or disrespect is ever joyous.

3. The intellect which is uninfluenced by sorrow and happiness dwells in that indescribable joy.

4. The intellect which is unaffected by duality is ever joyous.

5. The intellect which is eternally satiated and untouched by the objective world resides in complete happiness.

6. The intellect of equanimity abides in eternal joy.

7. That intellect which is ever absorbed in samadhi, is ever joyous.

Yet, this state of joyous satiation is not that which people mistakenly take to be the state of samadhi. This is a Yogi’s natural and perpetual state. This is the natural attribute of a Sthit Pragya. It becomes the normal condition of the intellect. Ordinary individuals are alternately happy or sad, but happiness or sorrow do not touch the one steady in yoga. This total absence of sorrow indicates complete joy.

Little one, it is said here that this tremendous joy is ‘buddhi graahya’ (बुद्धि ग्राह्य) – the intellect has the capacity to grasp it.

Graahya (‘ग्राह्य’)

1. One that stipulates;

2. One that acquires, obtains;

3. One that grasps, receives;

4. That which can be claimed;

5. To wear;

6. To accept;

7. To wed;

8. To bring under one’s control.

Understand therefore, that the intellect obtains this immeasurable joy and becomes one with its essential quality. No difference remains between the intellect and the joy it has received. The joy no longer remains an object of the intellect – it becomes an integral part of the intellect. That bliss is the essential core of such an intellect. There is complete fusion between the two.

You can realise your Self – you cannot perceive it. It is not an object which you can experience. Just as the Self is not an object of the mind or the intellect, similarly the joy spoken of here is not an object experienced by the mind. Such an intellect is bliss itself, there is no mental experience of it.

Thus does the Yogi know this intense joy. He is irrevocably established in this state. Nothing can shake him away from it, because the very essence of the Yogi is the Atma. He abides in the Atma and is not influenced by the attributes or associations of the body. He is unaffected by all circumstances of the world.