kathopanishad-1-3-5-yastvavijñā

Commentary by Swami Krishnananda of the great Divine Life Society

Yas tv avijñānavān bhavaty ayuktena manasā sadā, tasyendriyāṇy avaśyāni duṣṭāśvā iva sāratheḥ (1.3.5). Yas tv avijñānavān bhavaty: The horses of the senses become non-cooperative if a person is unintelligent. Ayuktena manasā sadā: by not having a controlled mind; tasyendriyāṇy avaśyāni: for such a person the indriyas, or the senses, become restive and uncontrolled as uncontrolled horses. Duṣṭāśvā iva sāratheḥ: Sometimes we see horse carriages moving from Rishikesh to Lakshmanjhula. We can observe that the driver drives the cart up to the water tank, and then the horse stops; and if he pushes the horse, it will go backward. The carriage goes backwards into a ditch, and all the occupants have to get down. That is duṣṭāśvā, which means ‘not cooperative’, ‘a non-cooperative thing’.