Bhagavad Gita Chapter 18, Verse 50

English Translation

Understand for certain from Me, in brief indeed, O son of Kunti, that process by which one who has achieved success attains Brahman, which is the supreme consummation of Knowledge.

Detailed Commentary

18.50. Explanation -- Understand how Brahman is attained after achieving *Siddhi*. Here, *Siddhi* refers to the purification of the mind, as described in the previous verse by the terms *asakta-buddhi*, *jitātma*, and *vigata-spṛhaḥ*. For one whose mind has become so pure that it is free from any form of desire (*kāmanā*), possessiveness (*mamata*), or attachment (*āsakti*), there remains no need for any object, person, or circumstance. Therefore, this is called *Siddhi*. Ordinarily, people think that if they get what they desire, that is *Siddhi*, but in reality, it is a state of dependence (*parādhīnatā*). True *Siddhi* is that state where no desire arises. As long as desires continue to grow, it is not *Siddhi*, but bondage (*bandhana*). Only a *sādhaka* who attains *Siddhi* in the form of mental purity achieves Brahman. Understand from me how one attains Brahman. In *Sāṅkhyayoga*, actions (*kriyā*) and means (*sāmagrī*) are not primary; rather, understanding the fundamental principle (*tattva*) is essential. This point about the *Sāṅkhyayogi* has also been stated in the thirteenth verse of this very chapter. The ultimate state of a *Sāṅkhyayogi*, which is called the supreme culmination of knowledge (*jñāna kī parā niṣṭhā*), is where the *sādhaka* can have no other state. I am briefly explaining the attainment of Brahman. To attain the supreme culmination of knowledge (*jñāna kī parā niṣṭhā*), certain means (*sādhan sāmagrī*) are required, which are described in the subsequent three verses.