Absolute freedom or bliss of Brahman exists on all sides for those self-controlled ascetics who are free from desire and anger, who have controlled their thoughts and who have realized the self.

Commentary

The whole series of verses describing the nature of a wise man should be read together in order to obtain a clear picture of Krishna's idea. Half-knowledge is like jumping half the width of an abyss.

"Sameness" is Brahman; and if we get firmly established in perfect equanimity and equilibrium of mind, we shall realize our oneness with the absolute. That sounds simple! But that is only part of the definition.

The wise man is full of dispassion. He does not allow himself to be led away by desire and hatred - the two emotions (e-motion, i.e. externalized movement) that lead the soul away from its center, Brahman. That seems simple, perhaps, especially to a dry killjoy ascetic. But this again is only partial description.

Such dispassion must be born of an inner experience of supreme bliss. The wise man is full of it. He is convinced of its reality. You may think: "Perhaps even this is not so difficult after all; people have discovered drugs which will create an inner wonderland." Oh, no ....

This bliss is not hallucination, but an inner light. It is not a fool's paradise, but the paradise of the sage who sees the self in all and is, therefore, vigorously engaged in the promotion of the welfare of all beings!

Such bliss is the true, perfect, perfection.