यदा हि नेन्द्रियार्थेषु न कर्मस्वनुषज्जते। सर्वसङ्कल्पसंन्यासी योगारूढस्तदोच्यते॥६-४॥
yadā hi nendriyārtheṣu na karmasv anuṣajjate | sarva-saṃkalpa-sannyāsī yogārūḍhas tadocyate || 6.4 ||
When unattached to sense objects and to actions, and all saṃkalpas are renounced — then one is called yogārūḍha.
Word by word (5)
- yadā hi
- — when indeed / at the time when — marks the condition that defines the yogārūḍha
- na indriya-artheṣu
- — not attached to sense objects (indriya = senses, artha = object/purpose; indriyārtha = the objects that the senses pursue)
- na karmasu anuṣajjate
- — not clinging to actions / not hanging onto the process of action itself (anuṣajjate = clings to, from anu + sañj = to attach, to cling; note: not just the fruits but the action-process)
- sarva-saṃkalpa-sannyāsī
- — one who has renounced all saṃkalpas (sarva = all — total renunciation; saṃkalpa = ego-driven intention; sannyāsī = renunciant — this is the root of both the outer non-attachments)
- yogārūḍhaḥ tadā ucyate
- — then is called yogārūḍha / is said at that point to have ascended to yoga (tadā = then, at that time; ucyate = is called, is said — traditional recognition)
V4 completes the thought of V3 by giving the precise criteria for recognising the yogārūḍha (one ascended to yoga). Two outer signs: (1) not attached to indriyārtha (sense objects — what the senses pursue); (2) not anuṣajjate in karma (not clinging to actions themselves). And the root of both: sarva-saṃkalpa-sannyāsī — one who has renounced ALL saṃkalpas. When these are present, the recognition is made: yogārūḍha tadā ucyate — then, at that point, one is called yogārūḍha.
A modern analogy
A master craftsman at work: fully engaged with the material, with full skill and attention — but not anxious about being seen to work well, not dependent on approval of the output, not clinging to the process as 'my creation.' The work happens through them. This is na karmasu anuṣajjate — no ego-cling to the action-process. And sarva-saṃkalpa-sannyāsī: no inner voice saying 'this must turn out a specific way for me to be okay.' That combination — full engagement, zero ego-grip — is the yogārūḍha.
What it does NOT mean
Na karmasu anuṣajjate does not mean stopping action. Anuṣajjate means clinging — the emotional, ego-driven hanging-on to the action itself as 'mine, my doing, my achievement.' The yogārūḍha still acts (Ch.6 never asks the yogi to stop acting) but the ego's cling to the action process has released. Similarly, not attached to sense objects means not deriving the ego's identity from what the senses provide — not that the senses are switched off.
Take with you
- Two non-attachments + one root: na indriyārtheṣu (no grip on sense-pleasure objects) + na karmasu anuṣajjate (no ego-cling to action itself) = both rooted in sarva-saṃkalpa-sannyāsī (all ego-driven intentions released). The outer conditions flow from the inner root: when saṃkalpa is genuinely released, non-attachment to objects and actions follows naturally.
- Anuṣajjate at the action level is more subtle than anuṣajjate at the fruit level. Many practitioners learn to release fruit-attachment; fewer notice the attachment to the action-process itself: needing to be seen doing spiritual practice, needing to feel like a good meditator, needing the action to confirm their identity as 'someone who works on themselves.' V4 names this second layer of attachment.
- Sarva (all) saṃkalpas — the word is total. Not 'most' saṃkalpas, not 'the major ones.' V4 sets a high bar: all ego-driven intentions released. This is not achieved once and then permanently held — it is a direction of practice, an orientation that deepens over time.
V4 closes the opening four-verse unit of Ch.6 (V1-4) and serves as the definition of yogārūḍha that V3 promised. The verse has a precise logical structure: three conditions (na indriyārtheṣu, na karmasu anuṣajjate, sarva-saṃkalpa-sannyāsī) lead to one recognition (yogārūḍhas tadā ucyate). The first two conditions are at the level of engagement: not attaching at the sensory level (indriyārtha) or at the action level (karma). The third condition — sarva-saṃkalpa-sannyāsī — is the root from which the first two flow. V2 introduced saṃkalpa as the key concept; V4 now completes the arc: the full renunciation of ALL saṃkalpas (sarva-saṃkalpa-sannyāsī) is precisely what makes the yogārūḍha recognisable by their non-attachment to both objects and actions. Note the word anuṣajjate — not merely 'is not attracted to' but 'does not cling to.' Sajjate/anuṣajjate implies the visceral clinging that the ego does when it has identified its wellbeing with something outside itself. The yogārūḍha engages fully — with objects through senses, with the world through action — but the ego-cling (anuṣajjana) is not present. This is the subtle distinction between a stone's indifference (no engagement) and a sage's freedom (full engagement, no cling).
Advaita lens
From Advaita's perspective, sarva-saṃkalpa-sannyāsī describes the condition of one who has genuinely seen through the ego-self (ahankāra) as a construction. When ahankāra is seen through, the saṃkalpas that arise from it — 'I must have this outcome, I must be recognised for this action, I must feel this pleasure' — lose their power to compel. This is not suppression but dissolving of the false premise: when the separate self that was 'doing the wanting' is seen to be not ultimately real, the wanting-structure naturally relaxes. Shankaracharya notes that the sarva-saṃkalpa-sannyāsī is the one in whom the deepest saṃkalpa — 'I am a separate individual who needs outcomes to be okay' — has been released through jñāna (Self-knowledge).
Karma-Yoga lens
V4 defines the destination of karma-yoga practice. The karma-yogi begins by releasing fruit-attachment (V1's anāśrita karma-phala) and progresses toward releasing saṃkalpa (V2's asannyasta-saṃkalpa). The completion of this arc is V4's sarva-saṃkalpa-sannyāsī: all saṃkalpas released. At this point, the karma-yogi naturally becomes the yogārūḍha — no longer needing the scaffolding of deliberate non-attachment practice, because the ego-structure that made attachment necessary has been seen through. The karma-yoga path has done its work; the person has arrived at the stage where śama (stillness) becomes the primary means.
Modern parallels
Erik Erikson's concept of 'ego integrity' in late life development — the stage at which the person no longer needs the ego's constant self-reinforcement through achievements, relationships, or recognition — approximates sarva-saṃkalpa-sannyāsī at the psychological level. The research shows that people with high ego integrity report greater wellbeing, less fear of death, and more equanimity in the face of difficulty — not because they have become passive but because the ego's desperate need for outcomes has been resolved. This is the psychological analogue of yogārūḍha.
Practice
Sit. Notice what you want from this meditation — peace, clarity, progress, confirmation that you are a good practitioner. Name each one: 'That is saṃkalpa.' Release it: 'Released.' Continue until nothing is wanted from the sitting — neither a good experience nor the absence of a bad one. What remains when all saṃkalpas of meditation have been released? That remaining, wanting-nothing quality of awareness is the beginning of the yogārūḍha's stillness. This is V4 in practice.
Public-domain translations (6) compare all →
"When one is not attached to sense objects nor to actions — when all saṃkalpas are renounced — then one is called yogārūḍha." [1]
"When a man is not attached to sense-objects or to actions, and has renounced all purposes — then is he said to have attained Yoga." [4]
"When no more he cleaveth to objects of sense, nor to works, and hath renounced all purposes — then is he said to have attained Yoga." [5]
"When a man is not attached to objects of sense or to action, and has renounced all purposes — then he is said to have attained Yoga." [6]
"When one, who is not attached to outward touches, findeth joy within himself — such a one, who hath joined his soul by prayer to Brahman, enjoys unmoved felicity." [7]
"When one is not attached to any objects of sense, nor to actions, having renounced all purposes, then he is said to have obtained Yoga." [9]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
What they call sannyāsa — know it as yoga, O Pāṇḍava — for none becomes a yogī without renouncing saṃkalpa.
For the aspiring muni, action is the means to yoga; for the one ascended to yoga, stillness (śama) is the means.
Lift the self by the Self; let not the self drown itself — you alone are your own friend and your own foe.
Steady wisdom begins here: when all desires fall away and the Self finds fullness in itself alone.
Not elated at pleasant, not disturbed at unpleasant — steady, undeluded, the brahma-vit rests in Brahman.
Yogis act with body, mind, intellect, and bare senses — abandoning attachment — solely for self-purification.