Verse 13

In plain words

And keeping it fixed right there, nowhere else —

'Om' — the single syllable that is Brahman: speaking that syllable, letting it sound, the very syllable that has become Brahman's own name; and remembering Me, the Lord, who is what that syllable actually means — whoever leaves the body this way, at the moment of death, giving it up completely — and note, 'giving up the body' simply tells us what kind of departure this is: it is the self leaving the body behind, never the self itself being destroyed — such a person goes, in just this way, to the supreme goal, the highest destination there is.

Close to the Sanskrit

And holding [it] there alone —

'Om' — the single syllable Brahman: uttering, pronouncing, the syllable Om, which has become the designation of Brahman; remembering, contemplating Me, the Lord, who is its meaning — whoever departs, dies, giving up, relinquishing, the body, the physical frame — 'giving up the body' means: this phrase serves to qualify the word 'departure' — it is the departure of the self by the abandonment of the body, not by the destruction of its true nature — this is the meaning — such a one, thus, goes, proceeds, to the supreme, most excellent, goal.

In plain words

Now the seventh. When Kṛṣṇa Paramātma declared, “Whoever, at the time of the prāṇa's departure, remember and meditate on Praṇava, they reach the Akṣara Parabrahman,” Arjuna entreats Him to explain this in full. In reply the Paramātma teaches as follows.

In plain words

Kṛṣṇa said, “Pārtha! When doing such contemplation, the Manas must be centred on one object alone. The Manas must hold only one object; it must not roam among many objects. Not only that, one must be full of fondness and Bhakti for the object held. Ordinarily the Prema of human beings falls on ordinary, unstable things and goes to waste. It gets caught in many sorrows and pains. Whoever turns such Prema away from worldly objects and turns it back upon God can become blessed. Listen, I will tell you a little of what Bhakti is. The citta-vṛtti taking the form of its own object of meditation – that alone can be true Bhakti.” “How can this be possible, Svāmī?” asked Pārtha. “Arjuna! Bringing all the gateways of the senses under saṃyama, holding the Manas in the region of the heart, establishing the prāṇa in the region of the head, having taken up the yoga-dhāraṇā that relates to the Ātma, whoever, at the time of the prāṇa's departure, leaves the body uttering ‘Oṃ’, the Brahman, reaches Me. The citta-vṛtti attains the form of That,” said Kṛṣṇa.

In plain words

Next, a doubt arose in Arjuna: if the senses are bound under control, how can the utterance of Oṃkāra take place? Then the Paramātma, knowing his mind, answered before he could ask: “Brother-in-law! The utterance of Oṃkāra must take place with the Manas, not with speech.” Then another doubt sprouted in Arjuna. “Kṛṣṇa! You said, ‘japatonāsti pātakaṃ’, did You not? Through japa only sin goes; how will attainment of the Paramātma be gained?” he asked. Then the Paramātma, pleased at Arjuna's question, said, “Pārtha! The question you have asked is very necessary indeed. But it need not be done separately, as a distinct act. Merely by contemplating the Paramātma, who is the meaning of the Oṃkāra mantra, while uttering the Oṃkāra mantra, the attainment of the Paramātma will come too.” “Svāmī! Is it even possible to do both at one time? It is easy enough for You to go on saying it all so quickly, but is not practising it a very laborious task, Svāmī!” said Arjuna.

In plain words

“In the same way, if one keeps up for a long time the practice of withdrawing the Manas from the senses, it will acquire such strength and ability. One who gives up the prāṇa remembering the Paramātma with the utterance of Oṃkāra surely attains God,” Kṛṣṇa declared firmly. At that, Pārtha ventured to say, “Svāmī! If God is attained only by those who remember Him at the end with such holy utterance of Praṇava, what will become of the rest? Theirs is surely the greater number! Is there then no deliverance for them? If there is a place in the Lord's court only for those of rank, it means there is no place at all for the lowly. Well then, tell me where their place is, where their entry is.”