Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 2/Verse 53

Chapter 2/Verse 53

श्रुतिविप्रतिपन्ना ते यदा स्थास्यति निश्चला ।
समाधावचला बुद्धिस्तदा योगमवाप्स्यसि ॥२- ५३॥

śrutivipratipannā te yadā sthāsyati niścalā ।
samādhāvacalā buddhistadā yogamavāpsyasi ॥2- 53॥

When your immovable wisdom averse to hearing will stand immovable in samādhi, then you will attain yoga. 


Word-for-word translations

śrutivipratipannā (śruti + vipratipannā) (compound) (adjective) (feminine, nominative, singular) = averse to hearing 

te (pronoun, 2nd person, genitive, singular) = your

yadā (relative adverb) (indeclinable) = when 

sthāsyati (future tense, 3rd person, singular) = it will stand 

niścalā (feminine, nominative, singular) = immovable

samādhau (masculine, locative, singular) = in samādhi (a higher state of consciousness arising from a state of profound concentration)

acalā  (adjective) (feminine, nominative, singular) = immovable

buddhis (feminine, nominative, singular) = wisdom

tadā (correlative adverb) (indeclinable) = then 

yogam (masculine, accusative, singular) = yoga (union)

avāpsyasi (future tense, 2nd person, singular) = you will attain 


Commentary

The word "samādhi" is a word that can mean "a higher state of consciousness arising from a state of profound concentration" in a spiritual practice context, which is the context I choose for this verse. Asking what samādhi is has much conjecture behind it and that is why I left it untranslated in this verse, just like the word "yoga". These words are very important in the culture from which the Bhagavad Gita sprung from. I feel these words find their definition from experience based on discipline and practice in the spiritual arts.