Verse 8.12

सर्वद्वाराणि संयम्य मनो हृदि निरुध्य च ।

मूर्ध्न्याधायात्मनः प्राणमास्थितो योगधारणाम् ॥

8.12

Transliteration

sarvadvārāṇi saṃyamya mano hṛdi nirudhya ca |

mūrdhnyādhāyātmanaḥ prāṇamāsthito yogadhāraṇām ||

By Sanskrit System · Machine draft · @indic-transliteration/sanscript 1.3.3

Translation

Having closed all the gates, confined the mind in the heart and fixed the life-breath in the head, engaged in the practice of concentration.

From the owner's sheet · +1 more

Word by word

all the gates
restraining
the mind
in the heart
confining
and

in the head
placing
one's own
life breath
established in
yogic concentration

By Sanskrit System · Machine draft · claude-opus-5-5 · 2026-11-08

Explanation

Krishna describes the yogic practice at death in detail. All the gates of the body, the senses through which the mind goes out, are closed. The mind is confined within the heart. The vital breath is drawn up and placed in the head, and the yogi remains firm in yogic concentration, dhāraṇā. These instructions reflect an ancient discipline of drawing life inward and upward. The sentence continues into the next verse, which names the sacred sound that accompanies this final act.