Verse 2.59
Speaker: Krishna
Sanskrit
विषया विनिवर्तन्ते निराहारस्य देहिनः। रसवर्जं रसोऽप्यस्य परं दृष्ट्वा निवर्तते॥
Transliteration (IAST)
viṣayā vinivartante nirāhārasya dehinaḥ rasa-varjaṁ raso 'py asya paraṁ dṛṣṭvā nivartate
Word-by-Word Meanings
viṣayāḥ-sense objects
vinivartante-turn away
nirāhārasya-of one who abstains
rasa-varjam-except the taste/longing
param-the Supreme
Translation
The sense objects turn away from one who abstains from feeding them, but the taste for them remains. Even this taste ceases for one who has seen the Supreme.
Commentary
Krishna makes a crucial distinction: mere abstinence (fasting, withdrawal) removes contact with objects but not the underlying desire (rasa). Only direct experience of the Supreme dissolves desire at its root. This explains why forced renunciation often fails - it addresses symptoms, not the cause.
Themes
yogajnanamoksha