Bhagavad Gita · Chapter 6: The Path of Meditation

Bhagavad Gita 6.23

taṃ vidyād duḥkhasaṃyogaviyogaṃ yogasaṃjñitam | sa niścayena yoktavyo yogo'nirviṇṇacetasā ||

know that this breaking of the bond with sorrow is what is called yoga. This yoga should be practised with determination and with a mind that does not lose heart.

Modern context

Here is perhaps the Gita's most beautiful definition of yoga: the breaking of the bond with sorrow. Yoga means 'joining', and Krishna gives it a playful twist. True yoga is a disjoining, the undoing of our union with suffering. Then comes the practical advice: practise it with determination and without losing heart. Discouragement is the great enemy of every practice. The verse admits that there will be dry days and asks one to keep going through them.