This summary is about verses 2.39 to 2.46 and 2.52 to 2.53 of the second chapter of the Gita. It is the first stop on the path of karma yoga.
The answer in one line
Knowing the imperishable self does not by itself make one steady in action. For that the intellect has to rest on one resolve, and it rests only when the mind finds repose in the self. Then yoga is reached.
What problem this answers
Arjuna has heard the teaching of the self (Gita 2.11–30), yet he still has to decide what to do. He calls himself a disciple and asks for teaching, and later he prays to be told "one sure path" (Gita 2.7, Gita 3.2).
In daily life this looks like asking everybody what to do, getting different advice from each, and ending up more confused than before. To know and to decide are different things.
In order, this comes after The Imperishable Self and before selfless action, which is action without a claim on the fruit.
The sections in order
Verse 2.39 says that the same teaching, which was first given as sankhya, knowing, is now given as yoga, living. By it Arjuna will be freed from the bondage of action. Bondage here means the grip on the fruit, not the stopping of action.
Verse 2.40 says that on this path no beginning is lost, there is no wrong result, and even a little of this practice saves from great fear. The sixth chapter says the same: a seeker who falls short does not perish either (Gita 6.40).
Verse 2.41 says that the resolute intellect is one. The intellects of the irresolute are many-branched and endless.
Verses 2.42 to 2.44 tell what scatters the mind: flowery words that promise pleasure and power, and our own attachment to them. In such a state the roots of resolve do not take hold.
Verses 2.45 and 2.46 say: rise above the three qualities, sattva, rajas and tamas. Be free of the pairs of opposites, ever calm, free from anxiety about gaining and keeping, and established in the self. For the knower the Vedas are what a small well is when floods cover everything around.
Verses 2.52 and 2.53 say that when the intellect crosses the swamp of delusion, it is no longer shaken by what has been heard and what is yet to be heard. When the intellect, bewildered by many views, stands unmoving and steady in the self, then yoga is reached.
The main points to remember
One aim, many decisions
Resolve is not a rigid opinion, nor one answer to every question. It is an aim that all the small decisions serve. The scattered mind is compared to a tree of endless branches. Each wish grows a plan, and each plan grows more plans.
The cause of the scattering
The cause of the scattering is inside as well as outside. Advertisements, talk of status and advice that promises pleasure and success take effect because the same wish is already sitting in the mind.
The Gita is not against the Vedas, ritual, learning or the world. It is against the claim that "there is nothing beyond this", and against making pleasure and power the whole aim. The joy of heaven is real, but it comes to an end (Gita 9.20–21). The comparison of the well in a flood gives the measure of use. It does not scorn the well. These verses support the same point (Gita 15.15, Gita 18.5, Gita 3.9).
Anxiety about gaining and keeping
Freedom from anxiety about gaining and keeping means freedom from a fearful grasping, not from work. For those who are devoted to the Lord alone, He Himself carries what they need and protects what they have (Gita 9.22). The work remains and the fear goes.
Indifference to what is heard
Indifference to what is heard comes after crossing delusion (Gita 2.52). It is not a ban on a teacher or on asking questions. The Gita itself says to learn from the wise (Gita 4.34).
Why it ends in repose in the self
Why does the teaching end not merely in firm decision but in repose in the self? Because the order within a person is this: body, senses, mind, intellect, and then the self (Gita 3.42). Desire can cover even the intellect (Gita 3.40), so the intellect alone cannot steady itself. A sailor needs a fixed place. The Gita says: steady the lower self by the higher Self (Gita 3.43).
Two kinds of firmness
Two kinds of firmness look alike from outside but are different (Gita 18.33–35). The firmness that comes through yoga is sattvic. The firmness that holds on to duty, pleasure and wealth out of desire for fruit is rajasic. The firmness that will not give up sleep, fear and grief is tamasic. The difference is in what is held and why.
The freedom to choose
The freedom to choose remains. At the end the Lord says, "Having reflected on this fully, do as you wish" (Gita 18.63). Resolve comes from thought, and it becomes one's own.
A second sense of the word in the tenth chapter
In the tenth chapter buddhi yoga has another sense. There it is the knowledge that the Lord gives to devotees who worship Him constantly and with love, by which they come to Him (Gita 10.10–11).
Common misunderstandings
The first misunderstanding is: do not listen to anyone's advice or to scripture. That is not so. Advice is welcome. It just does not rule the mind.
The second is: one resolve means a rigid opinion or the end of freedom to choose. That is not so. It is an aim, and it comes by thought.
The third is: a steady mind feels nothing. That is not so. It stays steady against what is heard, and does not become cold towards people.
The fourth is: the wish for pleasure is sin. That is not so. The trouble is when it becomes the whole aim.
The fifth is: "effort is not wasted" means nothing can go wrong. It means that a sincere beginning is not wasted (Gita 6.37–45).
The sixth is: buddhi yoga is a separate method of meditation. That is not so. It is a steady, focused understanding.
How to practise
Write one sentence: whom should this decision serve? (Gita 2.41) Then test each piece of advice against that sentence. Notice which voices, inside or outside, are promising pleasure or power (Gita 2.43–44). Make a small beginning, because even a little saves (Gita 2.40). Sit quietly for a few minutes each day, like the flame of a lamp in a windless place (Gita 6.19). And act, but keep the grip on the fruit loose. That will open further in selfless action.
The means to a single intellect are practice and dispassion (Gita 6.35), an intellect held with patience (Gita 6.25), and fixing mind and intellect on the Lord (Gita 12.8).
If you have to explain it in thirty seconds
When many voices are pulling you in different directions, more advice does not help. The Gita says that a steady mind has one aim. What scatters it is talk of pleasure and power, and our own wishes. The mind becomes steady when it rests in the self, that is, in the part of us that does not change, not in some fresh opinion. This is yoga. Make a small beginning, because a sincere start is not wasted, and the final choice is still yours.
Related hubs: The Imperishable Self (before) · Action Without Claiming the Fruit (next) · Equanimity (from verse 2.54) · The Enemy Called Desire (from verse 3.40)