For one who wishes to mount, who is not yet mounted, who is unable to stand firm in the yoga of meditation. For which such one? For the sage who wishes to mount yoga, the renouncer of the fruit of action. The cause, the means, is said to be action. But for that same one, once mounted on yoga, the cause, the means, is said to be quiet, repose, the turning-away from all action. The more he turns away from actions, the more, being free of strain and master of his senses, his mind is gathered; and being so, he soon becomes mounted on yoga. So too Vyāsa has said: 'a brāhmaṇa has no such mind as when there is oneness, evenness and truthfulness, and good conduct, steadiness, the laying-down of the rod, uprightness, and, step by step, the withdrawing from actions' (Mahābhārata, Śānti 175.37). Now it is told when one becomes mounted on yoga.

For one who seeks liberation, who wishes to attain the discipline (yoga), the beholding of the self, the discipline of action is said to be the cause. And for that same man, once mounted on the discipline, once firmly settled in it, calm, the ceasing from action, is said to be the cause. Until the gaining of liberation, the beholding of the self, action is to be done. This is the meaning. When does one become firmly settled in the discipline? To this the Lord speaks.

Up to what time should action be done? To that Krishna says, with 'for the sage who would climb to yoga'. 'One who would climb to yoga' is one who wishes to complete the means; 'one who has climbed to yoga' is one whose means is complete, the man of direct knowledge; that is the sense. 'The cause' is the cause of the supreme happiness. Even for the man of direct knowledge, samadhi and the rest were said to be the fruit; for him, by the calming of all things, it is samadhi that is the cause in the primary sense. Even so, only when there is the ceasing of what is to be enjoyed does objectless samadhi arise rightly; at other times there is an abiding in the deeds of the Lord and the like. So it is said, 'those who see you, O Lord, they alone are happy in the highest degree; only by passing into that does samadhi arise for men. While the action to be enjoyed is not yet worn away, the great souls, His devotees, given over to Him, pass their time with the muttered name, or with the telling of His tale'.