Patanjali Yoga Sutra 3.48

Sanskrit Sutra

ग्रहण-स्वरूपास्मितान्वयार्थवत्त्वसंयमादिन्द्रियजयः॥४८॥

Swami Vivekananda's translation

By making Samyama on the objectivity and power of illumination of the organs, on egoism, the inherence of the Gunas in them and on their contributing to the experience of the soul, comes the conquest of the organs.

Vyasa Bhashya (Sanskrit)

सामान्यविशेषात्मा शब्दादिर्ग्राह्यः। तेष्विन्द्रियाणां वृत्तिर्ग्रहणम्। न च तत्सामान्यमात्रग्रहणाकारं कथमनालोचितः स विषयविशेष इन्द्रियेण मनसाऽनुव्यवसीयेतेति। स्वरूपं पुनः प्रकाशात्मनो बुद्धिसत्त्वस्य सामान्यविशेषयोरयुतसिद्धावयवभेदानुगतः समूहो द्रव्यमिन्द्रियम्। तेषां तृतीयं रूपमस्मितालक्षणोऽहंकारः। तस्य सामान्यस्येन्द्रियाणि विशेषाः। चतुर्थं रूपं व्ययवसायात्मकाः प्रकाशक्रियास्थितिशीला गुणा येषामिन्द्रियाणि साहंकाराणि परिणामः। पञ्चमं रूपं गुणेषु यदनुगतं पुरुषार्थवत्त्वमिति। पञ्चस्वेतेष्विन्द्रियरूपेषु यथाक्रमं संयमस्तत्र तत्र जयं कृत्वा पञ्चरूपजयादिन्द्रियजयः प्रादुर्भवति योगिनः ॥ ४७ ॥

Vyasa Bhashya (English Translation)

Sound and the rest, consisting of general and specific qualities, are the objects to be grasped. The functioning of the organs (senses) towards them is ‘cognition’ (grahana)… Their ‘basic form’ (svarupa) is the organ itself, which is a substance (dravya) characterized by the illuminating buddhi-sattva. Their third form is egoism (asmita/ahamkara). The organs are the specifics of this general egoism. The fourth form is the ‘pervasiveness’ (anvaya) of the gunas (sattva, rajas, tamas) whose nature is illumination, action, and inertia, and of which the organs along with egoism are modifications. The fifth form is ‘purposefulness’ (arthavattva), the purpose of the Purusha which is inherent in the gunas. By making Samyama on these five forms of the organs in order, and conquering them one by one, mastery over the organs (indriya-jaya) arises in the yogi. || 47 ||

Chapter link: Yoga Sutra Chapter 3