samaḥ śatrau ca mitre ca tathā mānāpamānayoḥ śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkheṣu samaḥ saṅga-vivarjitaḥ
"Equal toward enemy and friend, honor and dishonor, cold and heat, pleasure and pain—equal, free from attachment—"
What This Means:
The devotee treats friend and enemy equally, doesn't inflate with praise or deflate with criticism, isn't disturbed by physical discomfort, and remains free from attachment in all conditions.
Going Deeper:
Three pairs of opposites transcended: (1) śatrau-mitre—enemy and friend (social), (2) māna-apamānayoḥ—honor and dishonor (psychological), (3) śīta-uṣṇa-sukha-duḥkheṣu—cold/heat and pleasure/pain (physical). 'Saṅga-vivarjitaḥ'—free from attachment. This isn't cold indifference but warm equanimity—treating all with the same divine vision.
How To Apply This:
Notice how you treat people who can benefit you versus those who can't. Notice how praise inflates your ego and criticism deflates it. Work toward treating all people and all feedback with the same respectful equanimity.
Key Sanskrit Terms: