स्पर्शान्कृत्वा बहिर्बाह्यांश्चक्षुश्चैवान्तरे भ्रुवोः। प्राणापानौ समौ कृत्वा नासाभ्यन्तरचारिणौ॥५-२७॥
sparśān kṛtvā bahir bāhyāṃś cakṣuś caivāntare bhruvoḥ | prāṇāpānau samau kṛtvā nāsābhyantara-cāriṇau || 5.27 ||
Sense contacts excluded, gaze fixed between brows, breath equalized — this is the meditation posture for liberation.
Word by word (4)
- sparśān kṛtvā bahiḥ bāhyāṃḥ
- — having placed outer sense-contacts outside / having excluded external touches from attention (sparśa = sense contact, bahir = outside, bāhya = outer)
- cakṣuḥ ca eva antare bhruvoḥ
- — and having fixed the gaze between the eyebrows (cakṣus = eye/gaze, antare bhruvoḥ = between the two brows — the ājñā point in yogic tradition)
- prāṇa-apānau samau kṛtvā
- — having equalized prāṇa and apāna — the upward-moving and downward-moving breaths (sama = equal/balanced; this describes regulation of the breath cycle)
- nāsā-abhyantara-cāriṇau
- — moving within the nostrils / the two breaths flowing in the interior of the nostrils (nāsā = nose, abhyantara = within/internal, cārin = moving)
V27 is the first half of a two-verse dhyāna (meditation) instruction that continues into V28. Three specific physical-attentional preparations are given: (1) sparśān kṛtvā bahir bāhyāṃḥ — place the outer sense contacts outside (withdraw attention from sensory inputs); (2) cakṣuś caivāntare bhruvoḥ — fix the inner gaze between the eyebrows; (3) prāṇāpānau samau kṛtvā nāsābhyantara-cāriṇau — equalize prāṇa and apāna (the two breath-currents) as they move within the nostrils. The verse ends mid-sentence; its fruit is described in V28.
A modern analogy
Before a surgeon operates, there is a systematic preparation: scrubbing hands, putting on gloves, establishing a sterile field — a deliberate sequence that creates the conditions for the precision work to follow. V27's three-step preparation (withdraw senses, fix gaze, equalize breath) is the meditator's equivalent: creating the inner conditions for the precision work of self-inquiry to follow. None of the steps is the surgery itself — they are the preparation that makes the surgery possible.
What it does NOT mean
This is not a rigid prescription that the only valid meditation is this exact physical posture. The three elements are specific instances of broader principles: withdraw attention from outer contacts (pratyāhāra), fix the inner gaze (dhāraṇā), regulate the breath (prāṇāyāma). The Gita here is describing one traditional mode — not legislating the only mode. Ch.6 will return to meditation practice in much greater detail.
Take with you
- Sparśān kṛtvā bahir — 'having placed contacts outside.' This is the classic pratyāhāra (withdrawal of senses) step from Patañjali's eight-limbed yoga. Before meditating, intentionally close off sensory engagement: eyes closed, sounds acknowledged but not pursued, touch sensations noted but not elaborated. This deliberate withdrawal turns the attention from outside to inside.
- Antare bhruvoḥ (between the eyebrows): in yogic tradition, this is the ājñā chakra — the point of focused inner attention. Fixing the inner gaze here concentrates the scattered mind to a single internal locus. It is not a physical squint but an internal act of attention: imagining the gaze resting at that point draws the mind inward.
- Prāṇāpānau samau (equalizing prāṇa and apāna): prāṇa is the upward-moving breath; apāna is the downward-moving breath. Sama (equal) suggests a balanced, regulated breath cycle — neither forced nor held — which in yogic physiology settles the nervous system and prepares the mind for single-pointed awareness.
V27 and V28 together form the Gita's most compressed meditation instruction — three preparatory steps in V27 leading to the result in V28. The verse is grammatically incomplete, a dangling series of past participles (kṛtvā, kṛtvā — 'having done X, having done Y') pointing forward to V28's main clause. This was deliberate: the two verses form a single teaching unit. The three elements of V27 correspond precisely to the classical yoga taxonomy: (1) sparśān kṛtvā bahir = pratyāhāra (withdrawal of senses from objects); (2) antare bhruvoḥ cakṣuḥ = dhāraṇā (concentration — fixing attention at a single internal point); (3) prāṇāpānau samau kṛtvā = prāṇāyāma (breath regulation). In Patañjali's aṣṭāṅga yoga, these are limbs 5, 6, and 4 respectively — here given in a slightly different order by Krishna, collapsing the full eightfold system into a practical triad. The emphasis is on samau kṛtvā for the breath: sama (equal, balanced) suggests the natural, steady breath that neither forces inhalation nor strains exhalation — the breath that, when equalized, becomes an anchor for the wandering mind.
Advaita lens
Shankaracharya reads V27-28 as describing the adhikārin (qualified seeker) who has completed karma-yoga and is now ready for the direct inquiry into ātman. The three steps of V27 are the final preparation: sensory withdrawal removes the outward pull of the guṇas; the fixed inner gaze prevents the mind from scattering; the equalized breath calms the prāṇa-maya kosha (the vital sheath) so that deeper inquiry into the ānanda-maya kosha (the bliss-Self) becomes possible. In Advaita's model, these are not ends in themselves but conditions for the moment of recognition described in V28.
Karma-Yoga lens
V27 marks a transition in Ch.5's arc: after V16-26's philosophical and ethical teachings (jñāna, sama-darśana, iha-eva liberation, brahma-nirvāṇa), the chapter closes with a practical meditation instruction. For the karma-yogi, this is significant: the culmination of selfless action is not permanent renunciation but the ability to also sit in direct contemplation. Karma-yoga (action without ego) and dhyāna-yoga (meditation) are complementary, not exclusive — the same person who acts without attachment also sits in stillness with equal mastery.
Modern parallels
Modern neuroscience has confirmed the three-step sequence of V27 in studies on meditation. Sensory withdrawal (turning off external stimuli — sparśān kṛtvā bahir) reduces default mode network activity. Focused attention on a single internal point (antare bhruvoḥ) activates the dorsal attention network and reduces mind-wandering. Regulated breathing (prāṇāpānau samau) directly activates the parasympathetic nervous system through vagal stimulation, reducing cortisol and settling the amygdala. Together, these three steps produce the neurological baseline for the deeper meditative states described in V28.
Practice
Sit upright. Close your eyes. (1) For the first 2 minutes, name each sense contact that arises and deliberately place it outside your field: 'Sound — outside. Sensation in left shoulder — outside. Thought about email — outside.' (2) Gently bring the inner attention to the space between the eyebrows — not a look but a presence. (3) Let the breath equalize: inhale gently, exhale gently, without counting. Notice when the breath becomes quiet and self-sustaining. When these three are in place, simply remain. This is the threshold of V28.
Public-domain translations (6) compare all →
"Having excluded outer sense-contacts from outside, and having fixed the gaze between the eyebrows, and having equalized prāṇa and apāna moving within the nostrils..." [1]
"Shutting out all external contacts, fixing the vision between the eyebrows, equalising the outgoing and incoming breaths moving within the nostrils..." [4]
"Shutting out external contacts, fixing the vision between the brows, making equal the outgoing and incoming breaths that move through the nostrils..." [5]
"The devotee who shuts out from his mind all the impacts of the senses and fixes his gaze between the brows, who suspends in the nostrils the inbreathing and outbreathing of his breath..." [6]
"Putting sense-contacts away — outside — with the gaze fixed between the eyebrows, and equalising the in-breathing and out-breathing within the nostrils..." [7]
"Keeping all external objects outside, the eye fixed between the brows, and making equal the two vital airs in the nostrils..." [9]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
With senses, mind and buddhi controlled, free of desire, fear and anger — the liberation-oriented muni is ever-free.
The yogi practises constantly in solitude — alone, mind and body subdued, free from craving and possessiveness.
Abandon all desires born of mental planning — without remainder — and restrain the senses completely, by the mind alone.
Close all nine gates, hold mind in heart, fix prāṇa in the head — the body's yoga posture for final departure.
Sāttvic tyāga: niyata karma done ONLY because 'this must be done,' having abandoned attachment and fruit.
Frequenting solitude, eating lightly, restraining speech-body-mind, always in dhyāna-yoga, fully in vairāgya —