VERSE 21
कैर्लिङ्‍गैस्त्रीन्गुणानेतानतीतो भवति प्रभो ।
किमाचारः कथं चैतांस्त्रीन्गुणानतिवर्तते ॥

arjuna uvaca
kair lingais trin gunan etan
atito bhavati prabho
kim acarah katham caitams
trin gunan ativartate

SYNONYMS
arjunaḥ uvāca—Arjuna said; kaiḥ—by which; liṅgaiḥ—symptoms; trīn—three; guṇān—qualities; etān—all this; atītaḥ—transcend; bhavati—become; prabho—my Lord; kim—what; ācāraḥ—behavior; katham—what; ca—also; etān—these; trīn—three; guṇān—qualities; ativartate—transcend.

TRANSLATION
Arjuna inquired: O my dear Lord, by what symptoms is one known who is transcendental to those modes? What is his behavior? And how does he transcend the modes of nature?

VERSE 22-25
प्रकाशं च प्रवृत्तिं च मोहमेव च पाण्डव ।
न द्वेष्टि सम्प्रवृत्तानि न निवृत्तानि काङ्‍क्षति ॥
उदासीनवदासीनो गुणैर्यो न विचाल्यते ।
गुणा वर्तन्त इत्येव योऽवतिष्ठति नेङ्‍गते ॥
समदुःखसुखः स्वस्थः समलोष्टाश्मकाञ्चनः ।
तुल्यप्रियाप्रियो धीरस्तुल्यनिन्दात्मसंस्तुतिः ॥
मानापमानयोस्तुल्यस्तुल्यो मित्रारिपक्षयोः ।
सर्वारम्भपरित्यागी गुणातीतः सा उच्यते ॥

sri-bhagavan uvaca
prakasam ca pravrttim ca
moham eva ca pandava
na dvesti sampravrttani
na nivrttani kanksati
udasina-vad asino
gunair yo na vicalyate
guna vartanta ity evam
yo ‘vatisthati nengate
sama-duhkha-sukhah sva-sthah
sama-lostasma-kancanah
tulya-priyapriyo dhiras
tulya-nindatma-samstutih
manapamanayos tulyas
tulyo mitrari-paksayoh
sarvarambha-parityagi
gunatitah sa ucyate

SYNONYMS
śrī bhagavān uvāca—the Supreme Personality of Godhead said; prakāśam ca—and illumination; pravṛttim ca—and attachment; moham—illusion; eva ca—also; pāṇḍava—O son of Pāṇḍu; na dveṣṭi—does not hate; sampravṛttāni—although developed; na nivṛttāni—nor stop development; kāṅkṣati—desires; udāsīnavat—as if neutral; āsīnaḥ—situated; guṇaiḥ—by the qualities; yaḥ—one who; na—never; vicālyate—is agitated; guṇāḥ—the qualities; vartante—is situated; iti evam—knowing thus; yaḥ—one who; avatiṣṭhati—remains; na—never; iṅgate—flickering; sama—equally; duḥkha—in distress; sukhaḥ—in happiness; svasthaḥ—being situated himself; sama—equally; loṣṭa—a lump of earth; aśma—stone; kāñcanaḥ—gold; tulya—equally disposed; priya—dear; apriyaḥ—undesirable; dhīraḥ—steadily; tulya—equally; nindā—in defamation; ātma-saṁstutiḥ—in praise of himself; māna—honor; apamānayoḥ—dishonor; tulyaḥ—equally; tulyaḥ—equally; mitra—friend; ari—enemy; pakṣayoḥ—in party; sarva—all; ārambhaḥ—endeavor; parityāgī—renouncer; guṇa-atītaḥ—transcendental to the material modes of nature; saḥ—he; ucyate—is said to be.

TRANSLATION
The Blessed Lord said: He who does not hate illumination, attachment and delusion when they are present, nor longs for them when they disappear; who is seated like one unconcerned, being situated beyond these material reactions of the modes of nature, who remains firm, knowing that the modes alone are active; who regards alike pleasure and pain, and looks on a clod, a stone and a piece of gold with an equal eye; who is wise and holds praise and blame to be the same; who is unchanged in honor and dishonor, who treats friend and foe alike, who has abandoned all fruitive undertakings-such a man is said to have transcended the modes of nature.

VERSE 26
मां च योऽव्यभिचारेण भक्तियोगेन सेवते ।
स गुणान्समतीत्येतान्ब्रह्मभूयाय कल्पते ॥

mam ca yo ‘vyabhicarena
bhakti-yogena sevate
sa gunan samatityaitan
brahma-bhuyaya kalpate

SYNONYMS
mām—unto Me; ca—also; yaḥ—person; avyabhicāreṇa—without fail; bhakti-yogena—by devotional service; sevate—renders service; saḥ—he; guṇān—all the modes of material nature; samatītya—transcending; etān—all this; brahma-bhūyāya—to be elevated on the Brahman platform; kalpate—is considered.

TRANSLATION
One who engages in full devotional service, who does not fall down in any circumstance, at once transcends the modes of material nature and thus comes to the level of Brahman.

VERSE 27
ब्रह्मणो हि प्रतिष्ठाहममृतस्याव्ययस्य च ।
शाश्वतस्य च धर्मस्य सुखस्यैकान्तिकस्य च ॥

brahmano hi pratisthaham
amrtasyavyayasya ca
sasvatasya ca dharmasya
sukhasyaikantikasya ca

SYNONYMS
brahmaṇaḥ—of the impersonal brahmajyoti; hi—certainly; pratiṣṭhā—the rest; aham—I am; amṛtasya—of the imperishable; avyayasya—immortal; ca—also; śāśvatasya—of eternal; ca—and; dharmasya—of the constitutional position; sukhasya—happiness; aikāntikasya—ultimate; ca—also.

TRANSLATION
And I am the basis of the impersonal Brahman, which is the constitutional position of ultimate happiness, and which is immortal, imperishable and eternal.