The Ashtavakra Gita, or the Ashtavakra Samhita as it is sometimes called, is a very ancient Sanskrit text. Nothing seems to be known about the author, though tradition ascribes it to the Sage Ashtavakra - hence the name.
There is little doubt though that it is very old, probably dating back to the days of the classic Vedanta period. The Sanskrit style and the doctrine expressed would seem to warrant this assessment.
The work was known, appreciated and quoted by Ramakrishna and his disciple Vivekananda, as well as by Ramana Maharshi, while Radhakrishnan always refers to it with great respect. Apart from that the work speaks for itself. It presents the traditional teachings of Advaita Vedanta with a clarity and power very rarely matched.
The translation here (2nd. version) is by John Richards, and is presented to the public domain with his affection. The work has been a constant inspiration in his life for many years. May it be so for many others.
janaka uvaacha
kathaM jñaanam avaapto'ti kathaM muktir bhavishhyati
vairaagyaM ca kathaM praaptam etad bruuhi mama prabho. 1.1
|
Janaka How is one to acquire knowledge? How is one to attain liberation? And how is one to reach dispassion? Tell me this, sir. | 1.1 |
ashhTaavakra uvaacha
muktim ichchhasi chet taata vishhayaan vishhavat tyaja
kshham'aarjava-dayaa-toshha-satyaM piiyuushhavad bhaja. 1.2
|
Ashtavakra If you are seeking liberation, my son, avoid the objects of the senses like poison, and cultivate tolerance, sincerity, compassion, contentment and truthfulness as the antidote. | 1.2 |
na pR^thvii na jalaM n'aagnir na vaayur dyaur na vaa bhavaan
eshhaaM saakshhiNam aatmaanaM chid-ruupaM viddhi muktaye. 1.3
| You do not consist of any of the elements - earth, water, fire, air or even ether. To be liberated, know yourself as consisting of consciousness, the witness of these . | 1.3 |
yadi dehaM pR^thak kR^tya chiti vishraamya tishhThasi
adhun'aiva sukhii shaanto bandha-mukto bhavishhyasi. 1.4
| If only you will remain resting in consciousness, seeing yourself as distinct from the body, then even now you will become happy, peaceful and free from bonds. | 1.4 |
na tvaM vipr'aadiko varNo n'aashramii n'aakshha-gocharaH
asaNgo'si niraakaaro vishva-saakshhii sukhii bhava. 1.5
| You do not belong to the brahmin or any other caste, you are not at any stage, nor are you anything that the eye can see. You are unattached and formless, the witness of everything - so be happy. | 1.5 |
dharm'aadharmau sukhaM duHkhaM maanasaani na te vibho
na kartaa'si na bhoktaa'si mukta ev'aasi sarvadaa. 1.6
| Righteousness and unrighteousness, pleasure and pain are purely of the mind and are no concern of yours. You are neither the doer nor the reaper of the consequences, so you are always free. | 1.6 |
eko drashhTaa'si sarvasya mukta-praayo'si sarvadaa
ayam eva hi te bandho drashhTaaraM pashyas'iitaram. 1.7
| You are the one witness of everything, and are always completely free. The cause of your bondage is that you see the witness as something other than this. | 1.7 |
ahaM karte'ty ahaM-maana-mahaa-kR^shhN'aahi-daMshitaH
n'aahaM karte'ti vishvaas'aamR^taM piitvaa sukhii bhava. 1.8
| Since you have been bitten by the black snake, the opinion about yourself that "I am the doer", drink the antidote of faith in the fact that "I am not the doer", and be happy. | 1.8 |
eko vishuddha-bodho'ham iti nishchaya-vahninaa
prajvaaly'aajñaana-gahanaM viita-sokaH sukhii bhava. 1.9
| Burn down the forest of ignorance with the fire of the understanding that "I am the one pure awareness", and be happy and free from distress. | 1.9 |
yatra vishvam idaM bhaati kalpitaM rajju-sarpavat
aananda-paramaanandaH sa bodhas tvaM sukhaM bhava. 1.10
| That in which all this appears - imagined like the snake in a rope, that joy, supreme joy and awareness is what you are, so be happy. | 1.10 |
mukt'aabhimaanii mukto hi baddho baddh'aabhimaany'api
kiM-vadant'iiha satye'yaM yaa matiH saa gatir bhavet. 1.11
| If one thinks of oneself as free, one is free, and if one thinks of oneself as bound, one is bound. Here this saying is true, "Thinking makes it so". | 1.11 |
aatmaa saakshhii vibhuH puurNa eko muktash chid akriyaH
asaNgo nispR^haH shaanto bhramaat saMsaaravaan iva. 1.12
| Your real nature is as the one perfect, free, and actionless consciousness, the all-pervading witness - unattached to anything, desireless and at peace. It is from illusion that you seem to be involved in samsara. | 1.12 |
kuuTasthaM bodham advaitam aatmaanaM paribhaavaya
aabhaaso'haM bhramaM muktvaa bhaavaM baahyam ath'aantaraM. 1.13
| Meditate on yourself as motionless awareness, free from any dualism, giving up the mistaken idea that you are just a derivative consciousness, or anything external or internal. | 1.13 |
deh'aabhimaana-paashena chiraM baddho'si putraka
bodho'haM jñaana-khaNgena tan nikR^tya sukhii bhava. 1.14
| You have long been trapped in the snare of identification with the body. Sever it with the knife of knowledge that "I am awareness", and be happy, my son. | 1.14 |
niHsaNgo nishhkriyo'si tvaM sva-prakaasho nirañjanaH
ayam eva hi te bandhaH samaadhim anutishhThasi. 1.15
| You are really unbound and actionless, self-illuminating and spotless already. The cause of your bondage is that you are still resorting to stilling the mind. | 1.15 |
tvayaa vyaaptam idaM vishvaM tvayi protaM yath'aarthataH
shuddha-buddha-svaruupas tvaM, maa gamaH kshhudra-chittataam. 1.16
| All of this is really filled by you and strung out in you, for what you consist of is pure awareness - so don't be small minded. | 1.16 |
nirapekshho nirvikaaro nirbharaH shiital'aashayaH
agaadha-buddhir akshhubdho bhava chin-maatra-vaasanaH. 1.17
| You are unconditioned and changeless, formless and immovable, unfathomable awareness and unperturbable, so hold to nothing but consciousness. | 1.17 |
saakaaram anR^taM viddhi niraakaaraM tu nishchalam
etat-tattv'opadeshena na punar-bhava-sambhavaH. 1.18
| Recognise that the apparent is unreal, while the unmanifest is abiding. Through this initiation into truth you will escape falling into unreality again. | 1.18 |
yath'aiv'aadarsham adhya'sthe ruupe'ntaH paritas tu saH
tath'aiv'aasmin shariire'ntaH paritaH param'eshvaraH. 1.19
| Just as a mirror exists everywhere both within and apart from its reflected images, so the Supreme Lord exists everywhere within and apart from this body. | 1.19 |
ekaM sarva-gataM vyoma bahir antar yathaa ghaTe
nityaM nirantaraM brahma sarva-bhuuta-gaNe tathaa. 1.20
| Just as one and the same all-pervading space exists within and without a jar, so the eternal, everlasting God exists in the totality of things. | 1.20 |
janaka uvaacha
aho nirañjanaH shaanto bodho'haM prakR^teH paraH
etaavantam ahaM kaalaM mohen'aiva viDambitaH. 2.1
|
Janaka Truly I am spotless and at peace, the awareness beyond natural causality. All this time I have been afflicted by delusion. | 2.1 |
yathaa prakaashayaamy eko deham enaM tathaa jagat
ato mama jagat sarvam athavaa na cha kiñchana. 2.2
| As I alone give light to this body, so I do to the world. As a result the whole world is mine, or alternatively nothing is. | 2.2 |
sariiram aho vishvaM parityajya may'aadhunaa
kutashchit kaushalaad eva paramaatmaa vilokyate. 2.3
| So now that I have abandoned the body and everything else, by good fortune my true self becomes apparent. | 2.3 |
yathaa na toyato bhinnaas taraNgaaH phena-budbudaaH
aatmano na tathaa bhinnaM vishvam aatma-vinirgatam. 2.4
| Waves, foam and bubbles do not differ from water. In the same way, all this which has emanated from oneself, is no other than oneself. | 2.4 |
tantu-maatro bhaved eva paTo yadvad vichaaritaH
aatma-tanmatram ev'edaM tadvad vishvaM vichaaritam. 2.5
| When you analyse it, cloth is found to be just thread. In the same way, when all this is analysed it is found to be no other than oneself. | 2.5 |
yath'aiv'ekshhu-rase klaptaa tena vyaapt'aiva sharkaraa
tathaa vishvaM mayi klaptaM mayaa vyaaptaM nirantaram. 2.6
| The sugar produced from the juice of the sugarcane is permeated throughout with the same taste. In the same way, all this, produced out of me, is completely permeated with myself. | 2.6 |
aatm'aajñaanaaj jagad bhaati aatma-jñaanaan na bhaasate
rajjv'ajñaanaad ahir bhaati, taj-jñaanaad bhaasate na hi. 2.7
| From ignorance of oneself, the world appears, and by knowledge of oneself it appears no longer. From ignorance of the rope it appears to be a snake, and by knowledge of it it does so no longer. | 2.7 |
prakaasho me nijaM ruupaM n'aatirikto'smy ahaM tataH
yadaa prakaashate vishvaM tad'aaham bhaasa eva hi. 2.8
| Shining is my essential nature, and I am nothing other than that. When the world shines forth, it is only me that is shining forth. | 2.8 |
aho vikalpitaM vishvam ajñaanaan mayi bhaasate
ruupyaM shuktau phaNii rajjau vaari suuryy akare yathaa. 2.9
| All this appears in me imagined due to ignorance, just as a snake appears in the rope, the mirage of water in the sunlight, and silver in mother of pearl. | 2.9 |
matto vinirgataM vishvaM mayy eva layam eshhyai.
mR^di kumbho jale viichiH kanake kaTakaM yathaa. 2.10
| All this, which has originated out of me, is resolved back into me too, like a jug back into clay, a wave into water, and a bracelet into gold. | 2.10 |
aho ahaM namo mahyaM, vinaasho yasya n'aasti me.
brahm'aadis tamba-paryantaM jagan naasho pi tishhThitaH. 2.11
| How wonderful I am! Glory to me, for whom there is no destruction, remaining even beyond the destruction of the world from Brahma down to the last clump of grass. | 2.11 |
aho ahaM namo mahyaM eko'haM dehavaan api
kvachin na gantaa n'aagantaa vyaapya vishvam avasthitaH. 2.12
| How wonderful I am! Glory to me, solitary even though with a body, neither going or coming anywhere, I who abide forever, filling all that is. | 2.12 |
aho ahaM namo mahyaM dakshho n'aastii'ha mat-samaH
asaMspR^shya shariireNa yena vishvaM chiraM dhR^tam. 2.13
| How wonderful I am! Glory to me! There is no one so clever as me! I who have borne all that is forever, without even touching it with my body! | 2.13 |
aho ahaM namo mahyaM yasya me n'aasti kiñchana
athavaa yasya me sarvaM yad vaaN-manasa-gocharam. 2.14
| How wonderful I am! Glory to me! I who possess nothing at all, or alternatively possess everything that speech and mind can refer to. | 2.14 |
jñaanaM jñeyaM tathaa jñaataa tritayaM n'aasti vaastavam
ajñaanaad bhaati yatr'edaM so'ham asmi nirañjanaH. 2.15
| Knowledge, what is to be known, and the knower - these three do not exist in reality. I am the spotless reality in which they appear because of ignorance. | 2.15 |
dvaita-muulam aho duHkhaM n'aanyat tasy'aasti bheshhajam
dR^shyam etan mR^shhaa sarvaM eko'haM chid-raso'malam. 2.16
| Truly dualism is the root of suffering. There is no other remedy for it than the realisation that all this that we see is unreal, and that I am the one stainless reality, consisting of consciousness. | 2.16 |
bodha-maatro'ham ajñaanaad upadhiH kalpito mayaa
evaM vimR^shato nityaM nirvikalpe sthitir mama. 2.17
| I am pure awareness though through ignorance I have imagined myself to have additional attributes. By continually reflecting like this, my dwelling place is in the Unimagined. | 2.17 |
na me bandho'sti mokshho vaa bhraantiH shaantaa niraashrayaa
aho mayi sthitaM vishvaM vastuto na mayi sthitam. 2.18
| For me here is neither bondage nor liberation. The illusion has lost its basis and ceased. Truly all this exists in me, though ultimately it does not even exist in me. | 2.18 |
sa-shariiram idaM vishvaM na kiñchid iti nishchitam
shuddha-chin-maatra aatmaa cha tat kasmin kalpanaa'dhunaa. 2.19
| Recognising that all this and my body too are nothing, while my true self is nothing but pure consciousness, what is there left for the imagination to work on now? | 2.19 |
shariiraM svarga-narakau bandha-mokshhau bhayaM tathaa
kalpanaa-maatram ev'aitat kim me kaaryaM chidaatmanaH. 2.20
| The body, heaven and hell, bondage and liberation, and fear too, all this is pure imagination. What is there left to do for me whose very nature is consciousness? | 2.20 |
aho jana-samuuhe'pi na dvaitaM pashyato mama
araNyam iva saMvR^ttaM kva ratiM karavaaNy aham. 2.21
| I do not even see dualism in a crowd of people, so what do I gain if it is replaced by a desert? | 2.21 |
n'aaham deho na me deho jiivo n'aaham, ahaM hi chit
ayam eva hi me bandha aasiit yaa jiivite spR^haa. 2.22
| I am not the body, nor is the body mine. I am not a living being. I am consciousness. It was my thirst for living that was my bondage. | 2.22 |
aho bhuvana-kallolair vichitrair draak samutthitam
mayy ananta-mahaa'mbhodhau chitta-vaate samudyate. 2.23
| Truly it is in the infinite ocean of myself, that, stimulated by the colourful waves of the world, everything suddenly arises in the wind of consciousness. | 2.23 |
mayy ananta-mahaa'mbhodhau chitta-vaate prashaamyati
abhaagyaaj jiiva-vaNijo jagat poto vinashvaraH. 2.24
| In the infinite ocean of myself, the wind of thought subsides, and world boat of the living being trader is wrecked by lack of goods. | 2.24 |
mayy ananta-mahaa'mbhodhav ashcharyaM jiiva-viichayaH
udyanti ghnanti khelanti pravishanti svabhaavataH. 2.25
| How wonderful it is that in the Infinite ocean of myself the waves of living beings arise, collide, play and disappear, in accordance with their nature. | 2.25 |
ashhTaavakra uvaacha
avinaashinam aatmaanam ekaM vijñaaya tattvataH
tav'aatma-jñasya dhiirasya katham arth'aarjane ratiH. 3.1
|
Ashtavakra Knowing yourself as truly one and indestructible, how could a wise man possessing self-knowledge like you feel any pleasure in acquiring wealth? | 3.1 |
aatm'aajñaanaad aho priitir vishhaya-bhrama-gochare
shukter ajñaanato lobho yathaa rajata-vibhrame. 3.2
| Truly, when one does not know oneself, one takes pleasure in the objects of mistaken perception, just as greed arises for the mistaken silver in one who does not know mother of pearl for what it is. | 3.2 |
vishvaM sphurati yatr'edaM taraNgaa iva saagare
so'ham asmii'ti vijñaaya, kiM diina iva dhaavasi. 3.3
| All this wells up like waves in the sea. Recognising, "I am That", why run around like someone in need? | 3.3 |
shrutvaa'pi shuddha-chaitany'aatmaanam atisundaram
upasthe'tyanta-saMsakto maalinyam adhigachchhati. 3.4
| After hearing of oneself as pure consciousness and the supremely beautiful, is one to go on lusting after sordid sexual objects? | 3.4 |
sarva-bhuuteshhu ch'aatmaanaM sarva-bhuutaani ch'aatmani
muner jaanata aashcharyaM mamatvam anuvartate. 3.5
| When the sage has realised that he himself is in all beings, and all beings are in him, it is astonishing that the sense of individuality should be able to continue. | 3.5 |
aasthitaH param'aadvaitaM mokshh'aarthe'pi vyavasthitaH
aacharyaM kaama-vashago vikalaH keli-shikshhayaa. 3.6
| It is astonishing that a man who has reached the supreme non-dual state and is intent on the benefits of liberation should still be subject to lust and in bondage to sexual activity. | 3.6 |
udbhuutaM jñaana-durmitram avadhaary'aatidurbalaH
aashcharyaM kaamam aakaaNkshhet kaalam antam anushritaH. 3.7
| It is astonishing that one already very debilitated, and knowing very well that its arousal is the enemy of knowledge should still hanker after sensuality, even when approaching his last days. | 3.7 |
ih'aamutra viraktasya nity'aanitya-vivekinaH
aashcharyaM mokshha-kaamasya mokshhaad eva vibhiishhikaa. 3.8
| It is astonishing that one who is unattached to the things of this world or the next, who discriminates between the permanent and the impermanent, and who longs for liberation, should still be afraid of liberation. | 3.8 |
dhiiras tu bhojyamaano'pi piiDyamaano'pi sarvadaa
aatmaanaM kevalaM pashyan na tushhyati na kupyati. 3.9
| Whether feted or tormented, the wise man is always aware of his supreme self-nature and is neither pleased nor disappointed. | 3.9 |
cheshhTamaanaM shariiraM svaM pashyaty anya-shariiravat
saMstave chaa'pi nindaayaaM kathaM kshhubhyet mah'aashayaH. 3.10
| The great souled person sees even his own body in action as if it were some-one else's, so how should he be disturbed by praise or blame? | 3.10 |
maayaa-maatram idaM vishvaM pashyan vigata-kautukaH
api sannihite mR^tyau kathaM trasyati dhiiradhiiH. 3.11
| Seeing this world as pure illusion, and devoid of any interest in it, how should the strong-minded person, feel fear, even at the approach of death? | 3.11 |
niHspR^haM maanasaM yasya nairaashye'pi mahaatmanaH
tasy'aatma-jñaana-tR^ptasya tulanaa kena jaayate. 3.12
| Who can be compared to the great-souled person whose mind is free from desire even in disappointment, and who has found satisfaction in self-knowledge? | 3.12 |
svabhaavaad eva jaanaano dR^shyam etan na kiñchana
idaM graahyam idaM tyaajyaM sa kiM pashyati dhiiradhiiH. 3.13
| How should a strong-minded person who knows that what he sees is by its very nature nothing, consider one thing to be grasped and another to be rejected? | 3.13 |
antas-tyakta-kashhaayasya nirdvandvasya niraashishhaH
yad-R^chchhay-aagato bhogo na duHkhaaya na tushhTaye. 3.14
| An object of enjoyment that comes of itself is neither painful nor pleasurable for someone who has eliminated attachment, and who is free from dualism and from desire. | 3.14 |
ashhTaavakra uvaacha
hant'aatma-jñasya dhiirasya khelato bhoga-liilayaa
na hi saMsaara-vaahiikair muuDaiH saha samaanataa. 4.1
|
Ashtavakra The wise person of self-knowledge, playing the game of worldly enjoyment, bears no resemblance whatever to samsara's bewildered beasts of burden. | 4.1 |
yat padaM prepsavo diinaaH shakr'aadyaaH sarva-devataaH
aho tatra sthito yogii na harshham upagachchhati. 4.2
| Truly the yogi feels no excitement even at being established in that state which all the Devas from Indra down yearn for disconsolately. | 4.2 |
taj-jñasya puNya-paapaabhyaaH sparsho hy antar na jaayate
na hy aakaashasya dhuumena dR^shyamaanaa'pi saNgati. 4.3
| He who has known That is untouched within by good deeds or bad, just as space is not touched by smoke, however much it may appear to be. | 4.3 |
aatm'aiv'edaM jagat sarvaM jñaataM yena mah'aatmanaa
yad-R^chchhayaa varttamaanaM taM nishheddhuM kshhameta kaH. 4.4
| Who can prevent the great-souled person who has known this whole world as himself from living as he pleases? | 4.4 |
aa-brahma-stamba-paryante bhuuta-graame chatur-vidhe
vijñasy'aiva hi saam'arthyam ichchh'aanichchhaa-vivarjane. 4.5
| Of all four categories of beings, from Brahma down to the last clump of grass, only the man of knowledge is capable of eliminating desire and aversion. | 4.5 |
aatmaanam advayaM kashchij jaanaati jagad iishvaraM
yad vetti tat sa kurute na bhayaM tasya kutrachit. 4.6
| Rare is the man who knows himself as the non-dual Lord of the world, and he who knows this is not afraid of anything. | 4.6 |
ashhTaavakra uvaacha
na te saNgo'sti kenaa'pi kiM shuddhas tyaktum ichchhasi
saNghaata-vilayaM kurvann evam eva layaM vraja. 5.1
|
Ashtavakra You are not bound by anything. What does a pure person like you need to renounce? Putting the complex organism to rest, you can find peace. | 5.1 |
udeti bhavato vishvaM vaaridher iva budbudaH
iti jñatv'aikam aatmaanam evam eva layaM vraja. 5.2
| All this arises out of you, like a bubble out of the sea. Knowing yourself like this to be but one, you can find peace. | 5.2 |
pratyakshham apy avastutvad vishvaM n'aasty amale tvayi
rajju-sarpa iva vyaktam evam eva layaM vraja. 5.3
| In spite of being in front of your eyes, all this, being insubstantial, does not exist in you, spotless as you are. It is an appearance like the snake in a rope, so you can find peace. | 5.3 |
sama-duHkha-sukhaH puurNa aashaa-nairaashyayoH samaH
sama-jiivita-mR^tyuH sann evam eva layaM vraja. 5.4
| Equal in pain and in pleasure, equal in hope and in disappointment, equal in life and in death, and complete as you are, you can find peace. | 5.4 |
ashhTaavakra uvaacha
aakaashavad ananto'haM ghaTavat prakR^taM jagat
iti jñaanaM tath'aitasya na tyaago na graho layaH. 6.1
|
Ashtavakra I am infinite like space, and the natural world is like a jar. To know this is knowledge, and then there is neither renunciation, acceptance or cessation of it. | 6.1 |
mah'odadhir iv'aahaM sa prapañcho viichi-sannidhaH
iti jñaanaM tath'aitasya na tyaago na graho layaH. 6.2
| I am like the ocean, and the multiplicity of objects is comparable to a wave. To know this is knowledge, and then there is neither renunciation, acceptance or cessation of it. | 6.2 |
ahaM sa shukti-saNkaasho ruupyavad vishva-kalpanaa
iti jñaanaM tath'aitasya na tyaago na graho layaH. 6.3
| I am like the mother of pearl, and the imagined world is like the silver. To know this is knowledge, and then there is neither renunciation, acceptance or cessation of it. | 6.3 |
ahaM vaa sarva-bhuuteshhu sarva-bhuutaany atho mayi
iti jñaanaM tath'aitasya na tyaago na graho layaH. 6.4
| Alternatively, I am in all beings, and all beings are in me. To know this is knowledge, and then there is neither renunciation, acceptance or cessation of it. | 6.4 |
janaka uvaacha
mayy ananta-mah'aambhodhau vishva-pota itas-tataH
bhramati sv'aanta-vaatena na mam'aasty asahishhNutaa. 7.1
|
Janaka In the infinite ocean of myself the world boat drifts here and there, moved by its own inner wind. I am not put out by that. | 7.1 |
mayy ananta-mah'aambhodhau jagad-viichiH svabhaavataH
udetu vastam aayaatu na me vR^ddhir na cha kshhatiH. 7.2
| Whether the world wave of its own nature rises or disappears in the infinite ocean of myself, I neither gain nor lose anything by that. | 7.2 |
mayy ananta-mah'aambhodhau vishvaM naama vikalpanaa
atishaanto niraakaara etad ev'aaham aasthitaH. 7.3
| It is in the infinite ocean of myself that the mind-creation called the world takes place. I am supremely peaceful and formless, and I remain as such. | 7.3 |
n'aatmaa bhaaveshhu no bhaavas tatr'aanante niranjane
ity asakto'spR^haH shaanta etad ev'aaham aastitaH. 7.4
| My true nature is not contained in objects, nor does any object exist in it, for it is infinite and spotless. So it is unattached, desireless and at peace, and I remain as such. | 7.4 |
aho chin-maatram ev'aaham indra-jaal'opamaM jagad
iti mama kathaM kutra hey'opaadeya-kalpanaa. 7.5
| I am pure consciousness, and the world is like a magician's show. How could I imagine there is anything there to take up or reject? | 7.5 |
ashhtaavakra uvaacha
tadaa bandho yadaa chittaM kinchid vaañchhati shhochati
kiñchin muñchati gR^hNaati kiñchid vR^shhyati kupyati. 8.1
|
Ashtavakra Bondage is when the mind longs for something, grieves about something, rejects something, holds on to something, is pleased about something or displeased about something. | 8.1 |
tadaa muktir yadaa chittaM na vaañchhati na shochati
na muñchati na gR^Naati na hR^shhyati na kupyati. 8.2
| Liberation is when the mind does not long for anything, grieve about anything, reject anything, or hold on to anything, and is not pleased about anything or displeased about anything. | 8.2 |
tadaa bandho yadaa chittaM saktaM kaasv'api dR^shhTishhu
tadaa mokshho yadaa chittam asaktaM sarva-dR^shhTishhu. 8.3
| Bondage is when the mind is tangled in one of the senses, and liberation is when the mind is not tangled in any of the senses. | 8.3 |
yadaa n'aahaM tadaa mokshho yad'aahaM bandhanaM tadaa
matve'ti helayaa kiñchit maa gR^haaNa vimuñcha maa. 8.4
| When there is no "me" that is liberation, and when there is "me" there is bondage. Consider this carefully, and neither hold on to anything nor reject anything. | 8.4 |
ashhTaavakra uvaacha
kR^t'aakR^te cha dvandvaani kadaa shaantaani kasya vaa
evaM jñaatve'ha nirvedaad bhava tyaaga-paro'vratii. 9.1
|
Ashtavakra Knowing when the dualism of things done and undone has been put to rest, or the person for whom they occur has, then you can here and now go beyond renunciation and obligations by indifference to such things. | 9.1 |
kasyaa'pi taata dhanyasya loka-cheshhT'aavalokanaat
jiivit'echchhaa bubhukshhaa cha bubhuts'opashamaH gataaH. 9.2
| Rare indeed, my son, is the lucky man whose observation of the world's behaviour has led to the extinction of his thirst for living, thirst for pleasure and thirst for knowledge. | 9.2 |
anityaM sarvam ev'edaM taapa-traya-duushhitam
asaraM ninditaM heyam iti nishchitya shaamyati. 9.3
| All this is transient and spoilt by the three sorts of pain. Knowing it to be insubstantial, ignoble and fit only for rejection, one attains peace. | 9.3 |
ko'sau kaalo vayaH kiM vaa yatra dvandvaani no nR^Naam
taany upekshhya yathaa-praapta-vartii siddhim avaapnuyaat. 9.4
| When was that age or time of life when the dualism of extremes did not exist for men? Abandoning them, a person who is happy to take whatever comes attains perfection. | 9.4 |
naanaa mataM maharshhiishhaaM saadhuunaaM yoginaaM tathaa
dR^shhTvaa nirvedam aapannaH ko na shaamyati maanavaH. 9.5
| Who does not end up with indifference to such things and attain peace when he has seen the differences of opinions among the great sages, saints and yogis? | 9.5 |
kR^tvaa muurti-parijñaanaM chaitanyasya na kiM guruH
nirveda-samat'aayuktyaa yas taarayati saMsR^teH. 9.6
| Is he not a guru who, endowed with dispassion and equanimity, achieves full knowledge of the nature of consciousness, and leads others out of samsara? | 9.6 |
pashya bhuuta-vikaaraaMs tvaM bhuuta-maatraan yath'aarthataH
tat-kshhaNaad bandha-nirmuktaH sva-ruupa-stho bhavishhyasi. 9.7
| If you would just see the transformations of the elements as nothing more than the elements, then you would immediately be freed from all bonds and established in your own nature. | 9.7 |
vaasanaa eva saMsaara iti sarvaa vimuñcha taaH
tat-tyaago vaasanaa-tyaagaat sthitir adya yathaa tathaa. 9.8
| One's desires are samsara. Knowing this, abandon them. The renunciation of them is the renunciation of it. Now you can remain as you are. | 9.8 |
ashhTaavakra uvaacha
vihaaya vairiNaM kaamam arthaM ch'aanartha-saNkulam
dharmam apy etayor hetuM sarvatr'aanaadaraM kuru. 10.1
|
Ashtavakra Abandoning desire, the enemy, along with gain, itself so full of loss, and the good deeds which are the cause of the other two - practice indifference to everything. | 10.1 |
svapn'endra-jaalavat pashya dinaani triiNi pañcha vaa
mitra-kshhetra-dhan'aagaara-daara-daay'aadi-sampadaH. 10.2
| Look on such things as friends, land, money, property, wife, and bequests as nothing but a dream or a magician's show lasting three or five days. | 10.2 |
yatra yatra bhavet tR^shhNaa, saMsaaraM viddhi tatra vai
prauDha-vairaamyam aashritya viita-tR^shhNaH sukhii bhava. 10.3
| Wherever a desire occurs, see samsara in it. Establishing yourself in firm dispassion, be free of passion and happy. | 10.3 |
tR^shhNaa-maatr'aatmako bandhas, tan-naasho mokshha uchyate
bhav'aasaMsakti-maatreNa praapti-tushhTir muhur-muhuH. 10.4
| The essential nature of bondage is nothing other than desire, and its elimination is known as liberation. It is simply by not being attached to changing things that the everlasting joy of attainment is reached. | 10.4 |
tvam ekas chetanaH shuddho, jaDaM vishvam asat tathaa
avidyaa'pi na kiñchit saa kaa bubhutsaa tathaa'pi te. 10.5
| You are one, conscious and pure, while all this is inert non-being. Ignorance itself is nothing, so what is the point of wanting to understand? | 10.5 |
raajyaM sutaaH kalatraaNi shariiraaNi sukhaani cha
saMsaktasyaa'pi nashhTaani tava janmani janmani. 10.6
| Kingdoms, children, wives, bodies, pleasures - these have all been lost to you life after life, attached to them though you were. | 10.6 |
alam arthena kaamena sukR^tenaa'pi karmaNaa
ebhyaH saMsaara-kantaare na vishraantam abhuun manaH. 10.7
| Enough of wealth, sensuality and good deeds. In the forest of samsara the mind has never found satisfaction in these. | 10.7 |
kR^taM na kati janmaani kaayena manasaa giraa
duHkham aayaasadaM karma tad adyaa'py uparamyataam. 10.8
| How many births have you not done hard and painful labour with body, mind and speech. Now at last, stop! | 10.8 |
ashhTaavakra uvaacha
bhaav'aabhaava-vikaarash cha sva-bhaavaad iti nishchayii
nirvikaaro gata-kleshaH sukhen'aiv'opashaamyati. 11.1
|
Ashtavakra Unmoved and undistressed, realising that being, non-being and change are of the very nature of things, one easily finds peace. | 11.1 |
iishvaraH sarva-nirmaataa n'eh'aanya iti nishchayii
antar-galita-sarv'aashaH shaantaH kvaa'pi na sajjate. 11.2
| At peace, having shed all desires within, and realising that nothing exists here but the Lord, the Creator of all things, one is no longer attached to anything. | 11.2 |
aapadaH sampadaH kaale daivaad eve'ti nishchayii
tR^ptaH sva-sth-endriyo nityaM na vaañchhati na shochati. 11.3
| Realising that misfortune and fortune come in their own time from fortune, one is contented, one's senses under control, and does not like or dislike. | 11.3 |
sukha-duHkhe janma-mR^tyuu daivaad ev'eti nishchayii
saadhy'aadarshii niraayaasaH kurvann api na lipyate. 11.4
| Realising that pleasure and pain, birth and death are from destiny, and that one's desires cannot be achieved, one remains inactive, and even when acting does not get attached. | 11.4 |
chintayaa jaayate duHkhaM n'aanyath'eh'eti nishchayii
tayaa hiinaH sukhii shaantaH sarvatra galit-sprhaH. 11.5
| Realising that suffering arises from nothing other than thought, dropping all desires one rids oneself of it, and is happy and at peace everywhere. | 11.5 |
n'aahaM deho na me deho bodho'ham iti nishchayii
kaivalyam iva saMpraapto na smaraty akR^taM kR^tam. 11.6
| Realising, "I am not the body, nor is the body mine. I am awareness", one attains the supreme state and no longer remembers things done or undone. | 11.6 |
aa-brahma-stamba-paryantam aham ev'eti nishchayii
nirvikalpaH shuchiH shaantaH praapt'aapraapta-vinirvR^taH. 11.7
| Realising, "I alone exist, from Brahma down to the last clump of grass", one becomes free from uncertainty, pure, at peace and unconcerned about what has been attained or not. | 11.7 |
naan'aashcharyam idaM vishvaM na kiñchid iti nishchayii
nirvaasanaH sphuurti-maatro na kiñchid iva shaamyati. 11.8
| Realising that all this varied and wonderful world is nothing, one becomes pure receptivity, free from inclinations, and as if nothing existed, one finds peace. | 11.8 |
janaka uvaacha
kaaya-kR^ty-aasahaH puurvaM tato vaag-vistaraasahaH
atha chintaasahas tasmaad evam ev'aaham aasthitaH. 12.1
|
Janaka First of all I was averse to physical activity, then to lengthy speech, and finally to thought itself, which is why I am now established. | 12.1 |
priity-abhaavena shabdaader adR^shyatvena ch'aatmanaH
vikshhep'aikaagra-hR^daya evam ev'aahaM aasthitaH. 12.2
| In the absence of delight in sound and the other senses, and by the fact that I am myself not an object of the senses, my mind is focused and free from distraction - which is why I am now established. | 12.2 |
sam-aadhyaas-aadi-vikshhiptau vyavahaaraH samaadhaye
evaM vilokya niyamam evam ev'aaham aasthitaH. 12.3 ???
| Owing to the distraction of such things as wrong identification, one is driven to strive for mental stillness. Recognising this pattern I am now established. | 12.3 |
hey'opaadeya-virahaad evaM harshha-vishhaadayoH
abhaavaad adya he brahmann evam ev'aaham aasthitaH. 12.4
| By relinquishing the sense of rejection and acceptance, and with pleasure and disappointment ceasing today, brahmin - I am now established. | 12.4 |
aashram'aanaashramaM dhyaanaM chittas-viikR^ta-varjanam
vikalpaM mama viikshhya etair evam ev'aaham aasthitaH. 12.5
| Life in a community, then going beyond such a state, meditation and the elimination of mind-made objects - by means of these I have seen my error, and I am now established. | 12.5 |
karm'aanushhThaanam ajñaanaad yath'aiv'oparamas tathaa
budhvaa samyag idaM tattvam evam ev'aaham aasthitaH. 12.6
| Just as the performance of actions is due to ignorance, so their abandonment is too. By fully recognising this truth, I am now established. | 12.6 |
achintyaM chintyamaano'pi chint'aaruupaM bhajaty asau
tyaktvaa tad-bhaavanaM tasmaad evam ev'aaham aasthitaH. 12.7
| Trying to think the unthinkable, is doing something unnatural to thought. Abandoning such a practice therefore, I am now established. | 12.7 |
evam eva kR^taM yena sa kR^t'aartho bhaved asau
evam eva svabhaavo yaH sa kR^t'aartho bhaved asau. 12.8
| He who has achieved this has achieved the goal of life. He who is of such a nature has done what has to be done. | 12.8 |
janaka uvaacha
akiñchana-bhavaM svaasthaM kaupiinatve'pi durlabham
tyaag'aadaane vihaay'aasmaad aham aase yathaa-sukham. 13.1
|
Janaka The inner freedom of having nothing is hard to achieve, even with just a loin-cloth, but I live as I please abandoning both renunciation and acquisition. | 13.1 |
kutraa'pi khedaH kaayasya, jihvaa kutraa'pi khedyate
manaH kutraa'pi tat tyaktvaa purushhaarthe sthitaH sukham. 13.2
| Sometimes one experiences distress because of one's body, sometimes because of one's speech, and sometimes because of one's mind. Abandoning all of these, I live as I please in the goal of human life. | 13.2 |
kR^taM kim api n'aiva syaad iti sañchintya tattvataH
yadaa yat karttum aayaati tat kR^tv'aase yathaa-sukham. 13.3
| Recognising that in reality no action is ever committed, I live as I please, just doing what presents itself to be done. | 13.3 |
karma-naishhkarmya-nirbandha-bhaavaa deha-stha-yoginaH
saMyog'aayoga-virahaad aham aase yathaa-sukham. 13.4
| Yogis who identify themselves with their bodies are insistent on fulfilling and avoiding certain actions, but I live as I please abandoning attachment and rejection. | 13.4 |
arth'aanarthau na me sthityaa gatyaa na shayanena vaa
tishhThana gachchhana svapan tasmaad aham aase yathaa-sukham. 13.5
| No benefit or loss comes to me by standing, walking or lying down, so consequently I live as I please whether standing, walking or sleeping. | 13.5 |
svapato n'aasti me haanaH siddhir yatnavato na vaa
naash'ollaasau vihaay'aasmaad aham aase yathaa-sukham. 13.6
| I lose nothing by sleeping and gain nothing by effort, so consequently I live as I please, abandoning success and failure. | 13.6 |
sukh'aadi-ruupaa niyamaM bhaaveshhv aalokya bhuurishaH
shubh'aashubhe vihaay'aasmaad aham aase yathaa-sukham. 13.7
| Continually observing the drawbacks of such things as pleasant objects, I live as I please, abandoning the pleasant and unpleasant. | 13.7 |
janaka uvaacha
prakR^tyaa shuunya-chitto yaH pramaadaad bhaava-bhaavanaH
nidrito bodhita iva kshhiiNa-saMsmaraNo hi saH. 14.1
|
Janaka He who by nature is empty-minded, and who thinks of things only unintentionally, is freed from deliberate remembering like one awakened from a dream. | 14.1 |
kva dhanaani kva mitraaNi kva me vishhaya-dasyavaH
kva shaastraM kva cha vijñaanaM yadaa me galitaa spR^haa. 14.2
| When my desire has been eliminated, I have no wealth, friends, robber senses, scriptures or knowledge? | 14.2 |
vijñaate saakshhi-purushhe paramaatmani ch'eshvare
nairaashye bandha-mokshhe cha na chintaa muktaye mama. 14.3
| Realising my supreme self-nature in the Person of the Witness, the Lord, and the state of desirelessness in bondage or liberation, I feel no inclination for liberation. | 14.3 |
antar-vikalpa-shuunyasya bahiH sva-chchhanda-chaariNaH
bhraantasy'eva dashaas taas taas taadR^shaa eva jaanate. 14.4
| The various states of one who is free of uncertainty within, and who outwardly wanders about as he pleases like an idiot, can only be known by someone in the same condition. | 14.4 |
ashhTaavakra uvaacha
yathaa-tath'opadeshena kR^t'aarthaH sattva-buddhimaan
aajiivam api jijñaasuH paras tatra vimuhyati. 15.1
|
Ashtavakra While a man of pure intelligence may achieve the goal by the most casual of instruction, another may seek knowledge all his life and still remain bewildered. | 15.1 |
mokshho vishhaya-vairasyaM bandho vaishhayiko rasaH
etaavad eva vijñaanaM yath'echchhasi tathaa kuru. 15.2
| Liberation is distaste for the objects of the senses. Bondage is love of the senses. This is knowledge. Now do as you wish. | 15.2 |
vaagmi-praajña-mah'odyogaM janaM muuka-jaD'aalasam
karoti tattva-bodho'yam atas tyakto bubhukshhabhiH. 15.3
| This awareness of the truth makes an eloquent, clever and energetic man dumb, stupid and lazy, so it is avoided by those whose aim is enjoyment. | 15.3 |
na tvaM deho na te deho bhoktaa karttaa na vaa bhavaan
chid-ruupo'si sadaa saakshhii nirapekshhaH sukhaM chara. 15.4
| You are not the body, nor is the body yours, nor are you the doer of actions or the reaper of their consequences. You are eternally pure consciousness, the witness, in need of nothing - so live happily. | 15.4 |
raaga-dveshhau mano-dharmau na manas te kadaachana
nirvikalpo'si bodh'aatmaa nirvikaaraH sukhaM chara. 15.5
| Desire and anger are objects of the mind, but the mind is not yours, nor ever has been. You are choiceless, awareness itself and unchanging - so live happily. | 15.5 |
sarva-bhuuteshhu ch'aatmaanaM sarva-bhuutaani ch'aatmani
vijñaaya nirahaM-kaaro nirmamas tvaM sukhii bhava. 15.6
| Recognising oneself in all beings, and all beings in oneself, be happy, free from the sense of responsibility and free from preoccupation with "me". | 15.6 |
vishhvaM sphurati yatr'edaM taraNgaa iva saagare
tat tvam eva na sandehash chin-muurte vijvaro bhava. 15.7
| Your nature is the consciousness, in which the whole world wells up, like waves in the sea. That is what you are, without any doubt, so be free of disturbance. | 15.7 |
shraddhasva taata shraddhasva n'aatra mohaM kurushhva bhoH
jñaana-svaruupo bhagavaan aatmaa tvaM prakR^teH paraH. 15.8
| Have faith, my son, have faith. Don't let yourself be deluded in this. You are yourself the Lord, whose very nature is knowledge, and you are beyond natural causation. | 15.8 |
guNaiH saMveshhTito dehas tishhThaty aayaati yaati cha
aatmaa na gantaa n'aagantaa kim enam anushochasi. 15.9
| The body invested with the senses stands still, and comes and goes. You yourself neither come nor go, so why bother about them? | 15.9 |
dehas tishhThatu kalp'aantaM gachchhatv ady'aiva vaa punaH
kva vR^ddhiH kva cha vaa haanis tava chin-maatra-ruupiNaH. 15.10
| Let the body last to the end of the Age, or let it come to an end right now. What have you gained or lost, who consist of pure consciousness? | 15.10 |
tvayy ananta-mah'aambhodhau vishva-viichiH sva-bhaavataH
udetu vaastam aayaatu na te vR^ddhir na vaa kshhatiH. 15.11
| Let the world wave rise or subside according to its own nature in you, the great ocean. It is no gain or loss to you. | 15.11 |
taata chin-maatra-ruupo'si na te bhinnam idaM jagad
ataH kasya kathaM kutra heyopaadeya-kalpanaa. 15.12
| My son, you consist of pure consciousness, and the world is not separate from you. So who is to accept or reject it, and how, and why? | 15.12 |
ekasminn avyaye shaante chid-aakaashe'male tvayi
kuto janma kutaH karma kuto'haMkaara eva cha. 15.13
| How can there be either birth, karma or responsibility in that one unchanging, peaceful, unblemished and infinite consciousness which is you? | 15.13 |
yat tvaM pashyasi tatr'aikas tvam eva prabhaasase
kiM pR^thak bhaasate svarNaat kaTak'aaNgada-nuupuram. 15.14
| Whatever you see, it is you alone manifest in it. How can bracelets, armlets and anklets be different from the gold they are made of? | 15.14 |
ayaM so' ham ayam n'aahaM vibhaagam iti santyaja
sarvam aatme'ti nishchitya niHsaNkalpaH sukhii bhava. 15.15
| Giving up such distinctions as "He is what I am", and "I am not that", recognise that "Everything is myself", and be without distinction and happy. | 15.15 |
tav'aiv'aajñaanato vishvaM tvam ekaH param-aarthataH
tvatto'nyo n'aasti saMsaarii n'aasaMsaarii cha kashchana. 15.16
| It is through your ignorance that all this exists. In reality you alone exist. Apart from you there is no one within or beyond samsara. | 15.16 |
bhraanti-maatram idaM vishvaM na kiñchid iti nishchayii
nirvaasanaH sphuurti-maatro na kiñchid iva shaamyati. 15.17
| Knowing that all this is just an illusion, one becomes free of desire, pure receptivity and at peace, as if nothing existed. | 15.17 |
eka eva bhav'aambhodhaav aasiid asti bhavishhyati
na te bandho'sti mokshho vaa kR^ta-kR^tyaH sukhaM chara. 15.18
| Only one thing has existed, exists and will exist in the ocean of being. You have no bondage or liberation. Live happily and fulfilled. | 15.18 |
maa saNkalpa-vikalpaabhyaaM chittaM kshhobhaya chin-maya
upashaamya sukhaM tishhTha sv'aatmany aananda-vigrahe. 15.19
| Being pure consciousness, do not disturb your mind with thoughts of for and against. Be at peace and remain happily in yourself, the essence of joy. | 15.19 |
tyaj'aiva dhyaanaM sarvatra maa kiñchid hR^di dhaaraya
aatmaa tvaM mukta ev'aasi kiM vimR^shya karishhyasi. 15.20
| Give up meditation completely but don't let the mind hold on to anything. You are free by nature, so what will you achieve by forcing the mind? | 15.20 |
ashhTaavakra uvaacha
aachakshhva shR^Nu vaa taata naanaa-shaastraaNy-anekashaH
tathaa'pi na tava svaasthyaM sarva-vismaraNaad R^te. 16.1
|
Ashtavakra My son, you may recite or listen to countless scriptures, but you will not be established within until you can forget everything. | 16.1 |
bhogaM karma samaadhiM vaa kuru vijña tathaa'pi te
chittaM nirasta-sarv'aasham aty'arthaM rochayishhyati. 16.2
| You may, as a learned man, indulge in wealth, activity and meditation, but your mind will still long for that which is the cessation of desire, and beyond all goals. | 16.2 |
aayaasaat sakalo duHkhii n'ainaM jaanaati kashchana
anen'aiv'opadeshena dhanyaH praapnoti nirvR^tim. 16.3
| Everyone is in pain because of their striving to achieve something, but no-one realises it. By no more than this instruction, the fortunate one attains tranquillity. | 16.3 |
vyaapaare khidyate yas tu nimeshh'onmeshhayor api
tasy'aalasya dhuriiNasya sukhaM n'anyasya kasyachit. 16.4
| Happiness belongs to no-one but that supremely lazy man for whom even opening and closing his eyes is a bother. | 16.4 |
idaM kR^tam idaM ne'ti dvandvair muktaM yadaa manaH
dharm'aartha-kaama-mokshheshhu nirapekshhaM tadaa bhavet. 16.5
| When the mind is freed from such pairs of opposites as, "I have done this", and "I have not done that", it becomes indifferent to merit, wealth, sensuality and liberation. | 16.5 |
virakto vishhaya-dveshhTaa raagii vishhaya-lolupaH
graha-mokshha-vihiinas tu na virakto na raagavaan. 16.6
| One man is abstemious and averse to the senses, another is greedy and attached to them, but he who is free from both taking and rejecting is neither abstemious nor greedy. | 16.6 |
hey'opaadeyataa taavat saMsaara-viTap'aaNkuraH
spR^haa jiivati yaavad vai nirvichaaradashaaspadam. 16.7
| So long as desire, the state of lack of discrimination, remains, the sense of revulsion and attraction will remain, which is the root and branch of samsara. | 16.7 |
pravR^ttau jaayate raago nirvR^ttau dveshha eva hi
nirdvandvo baalavad dhiimaan evam eva vyava-sthitaH. 16.8
| Desire springs from usage, and aversion from abstention, but the wise man is free from the pairs of opposites like a child, and becomes established. | 16.8 |
haatum ichchhati saMsaaraM raagii duHkha-jihaasayaa
viita-raago hi nirduHkhas tasminn api na khedyati. 16.9
| The passionate man wants to eliminate samsara so as to avoid pain, but the dispassionate man is free from pain and feels no distress even in it. | 16.9 |
yasy'aabhimaano mokshhe'pi dehe'pi mamataa tathaa
na cha jñaanii na vaa yogii kevalaM duHkhabhaag asau. 16.10
| He who is proud about even liberation or his own body, and feels them his own, is neither a seer nor a yogi. He is still just a sufferer. | 16.10 |
haro yady upadeshhTaa te hariH kamala-jo'pi vaa
tathaa'pi na tava svaathyaM sarva-vismaraNaad R^te. 16.11
| If even Shiva, Vishnu or the lotus-born Brahma were your instructor, until you have forgotten everything you cannot be established within. | 16.11 |
ashhTaavakra uvaacha
tena jñaana-phalaM praaptaM yog'aabhyaasa-phalaM tathaa
tR^ptaH svachchh'endriyo nityam ekakii ramate tu yaH. 17.1
|
Ashtavakta said He who is content, with purified senses, and always enjoys solitude, has gained the fruit of knowledge and the fruit of the practice of yoga too. | 17.1 |
na kadaachij jagaty asmin tattva-jñaa hanta khidyati
yata ekena ten'edaM puurNaM brahm'aaNDa-maNDalam. 17.2
| The knower of truth is never distressed in this world, for the whole round world is full of himself alone. | 17.2 |
na jaatu vishhayaaH ke'pi sv'aaraamaM harshhayanty amii
sallakii-pallava-priitam iv'ebhaM nimba-pallavaaH. 17.3
| None of these senses please a man who has found satisfaction within, just as Nimba leaves do not please the elephant that has acquired the taste for Sallaki leaves. | 17.3 |
yas tu bhogeshhu bhukteshhu na bhavaty adhivaasitaa
abhukteshhu niraakaaNkshhii tadR^sho bhava-durlabhaH. 17.4
| The man is rare who is not attached to the things he has enjoyed, and does not hanker after the things he has not enjoyed. | 17.4 |
bubhukshhur iha saMsaare mumukshhur api dR^shyate
bhoga-mokshha-niraakaaNkshhii viralo hi mahaashaayaH. 17.5
| Those who desire pleasure and those who desire liberation are both found in samsara, but the great souled man who desires neither pleasure nor liberation is rare indeed. | 17.5 |
dharm'aartha-kaama-mokshheshhu jiivite maraNe tathaa
kasy'aapy udaara-chittasya hey'opaadeyataa na hi. 17.6
| It is only the noble minded who is free from attraction or repulsion to religion, wealth, sensuality, and life and death too. | 17.6 |
vaañchhaa na vishva-vilaye na dveshhas tasya cha sthitau
yathaa jiivikayaa tasmaad dhanya aaste yathaa sukhaM. 17.7
| He feels no desire for the elimination of all this, nor anger at its continuing, so the fortunate man lives happily with whatever sustenance presents itself. | 17.7 |
kR^t'aartho'nena jñaanen'ety'evaM galita-dhiiH kR^tii
pashyan shR^Nvan spR^shan jighrann ashnann aste yathaa sukhaM. 17.8
| Thus fulfilled through this knowledge, contented and with the thinking mind emptied, he lives happily just seeing, hearing, feeling, smelling and tasting. | 17.8 |
shuunyaa dR^shhTir vR^thaa cheshhTaa vikalaan'iindriyaaNi cha
na spR^haa na viraktir vaa kshhiiNa-saMsaara-saagare. 17.9
| In him for whom the ocean of samsara has dried up, there is neither attachment or aversion. His gaze is vacant, his behaviour purposeless, and his senses inactive. | 17.9 |
na jagarti na nidraati n'onmiilati na miilati
aho para-dashaa kvaa'pi vartate mukta-chetasaH. 17.10
| Surely the supreme state is everywhere for the liberated mind. He is neither awake nor asleep, and neither opens nor closes his eyes. | 17.10 |
sarvatra dR^shyate sva-sthaH sarvatra vimal'aashayaH
samasta-vaasanaa mukto muktaH sarvatra raajate. 17.11
| The liberated man is resplendent everywhere, free from all desires. Everywhere he appears self-possessed and pure of heart. | 17.11 |
pashyan shR^Nvan spR^shan jighrann ashnan gR^hNan vadanvrajan
iihit'aaniihitair mukto mukta evaM mah'aashayaH. 17.12
| Seeing, hearing, feeling, smelling, tasting, speaking and walking about, the great souled man who is freed from trying to achieve or avoid anything is free indeed. | 17.12 |
na nindati na cha stauti na hR^shhyati na kupyati
na dadaati na gR^hNaati muktaH sarvatra nirasaH. 17.13
| The liberated man is free from desires everywhere. He neither blames, praises, rejoices, is disappointed, gives nor takes. | 17.13 |
s'aanuraagaaM striyaM dR^shTvaa mR^tyuM vaa samupasthitam
avihvala-manaaH sva-stho mukta eva mah'aashayaH. 17.14
| When a great souled one is unperturbed in mind, and equally self-possessed at either the sight of a woman inflamed with desire or at approaching death, he is truly liberated. | 17.14 |
sukhe duHkhe nare naaryaaM sampatsu vipatsu cha
visheshho n'aiva dhiirasya sarvatra sama-darshinaH. 17.15
| There is no distinction between pleasure and pain, man and woman, success and failure for the wise man who looks on everything as equal. | 17.15 |
na hiMsaa n'aiva kaaruNyaM n'auddhatyaM na cha diinataa
n'aashcharyaM n'aiva cha kshhobhaH kshhiiNa-saMsaraNe nare. 17.16
| There is no aggression nor compassion, no pride nor humility, no wonder nor confusion for the man whose days of samsara are over. | 17.16 |
na mukto vishhaya-dveshhTaa na vaa vishhaya-lolupaH
asaMsakta-manaa nityaM praapt'aapraaptam upaashnute. 17.17
| The liberated man is not averse to the senses and nor is he attached to them. He enjoys himself continually with an unattached mind in both success and failure. | 17.17 |
samaadhaan'aasamaadhaana-hit'aahita-vikalpanaaH
shuunya-chitto na jaanaati kaivalyam iva saMsthitaH. 17.18
| One established in the Absolute state with an empty mind does not know the alternatives of inner stillness and lack of inner stillness, and of good and evil. | 17.18 |
nirmamo nirahaN-kaaro na kiñchid iti nishchitaH
antar-galita-sarv'aashaH kuvann api karoti na. 17.19
| A man free of "me" and "mine" and of a sense of responsibility, aware that "Nothing exists", with all desires extinguished within, does not act even in acting. | 17.19 |
manaH-prakaasha-sammoha-svapna-jaaDya-vivarjitaH
dashaaM kaam api saMpraapto bhaved galita-maanasaH. 17.20
| He whose thinking mind is dissolved achieves the indescribable state and is free from the mental display of delusion, dream and ignorance. | 17.20 |
ashhTaavakra uvaacha
yasya bodhodaye taavat svapnavad bhavati bhramaH
tasmai sukh'aika-ruupaaya namaH shaantaaya tejase. 18.1
|
Ashtavakra Praise be to That by the awareness of which delusion itself becomes dream-like, to that which is pure happiness, peace and light. | 18.1 |
arjayitv'aakhilaan arthaan bhogaan aapnoti pushhkalaan
na hi sarva-parityaajam antareNa sukhii bhavet. 18.2
| One may get all sorts of pleasure by the acquisition of various objects of enjoyment, but one cannot be happy except by the renunciation of everything. | 18.2 |
karttavya-duHkha-maartaNDa-jvaalaad agdh'aantar'aatmanaH
kutaH prashama-piiyuushha-dhaaraasaaram R^te sukham. 18.3
| How can there be happiness, for one who has been burnt inside by the blistering sun of the pain of thinking that there are things that still need doing, without the rain of the nectar of peace? | 18.3 |
bhavo'yaM bhaavanaa-maatro na kiñchit param-arthataH
n'aasty abhaavaH sva-bhaavanaaM bhaav'aabhaava-vibhaavinaam. 18.4
| This existence is just imagination. It is nothing in reality, but there is no non-being for natures that know how to distinguish being from non being. | 18.4 |
na duuraM na cha saNkochaal labdham ev'aatmanaH padam
nirvikalpaM niraayaasaM nirvikaaraM nirañjanam. 18.5
| The realm of one's self is not far away, and nor can it be achieved by the addition of limitations to its nature. It is unimaginable, effortless, unchanging and spotless. | 18.5 |
vyaamoha-maatra-viratau svaruup'aadaana-maatrataH
viita'shokaa viraajante niraavaraNa-dR^shhTayaH. 18.6
| By the simple elimination of delusion and the recognition of one's true nature, those whose vision is unclouded live free from sorrow. | 18.6 |
samastaM kalpanaa-maatram aatmaa muktaH sanaatanaH
iti vijñaaya dhiiro hi kim abhyasyati baalavat. 18.7
| Knowing everything as just imagination, and himself as eternally free, how should the wise man behave like a fool? | 18.7 |
aatmaa brahme'ti nishchitya bhaav'aabhaavau cha kalpitau
nishhkaamaH kiM vijaanaati kiM bruute cha karoti kiM. 18.8
| Knowing himself to be God and being and non-being just imagination, what should the man free from desire learn, say or do? | 18.8 |
ayaM so'ham ayaM n'aaham iti kshhiiNaa vikalpanaa
sarvam aatme'ti nishchitya tuushhNiim-bhuutasya yoginaH. 18.9
| Considerations like "I am this" or "I am not this" are finished for the yogi who has gone silent realising "Everything is myself". | 18.9 |
na vikshhepo na ch'aikaagryaM n'aatibodho na muuDhataa
na sukhaM na cha vaa duHkham upashaantasya yoginaH. 18.10
| For the yogi who has found peace, there is no distraction or one-pointedness, no higher knowledge or ignorance, no pleasure and no pain. | 18.10 |
svaaraajye bhaikshha-vR^ttau cha laabh'aalaabhe jane vane
nirvikalpa-svabhaavasya na vishheso'sti yoginaH. 18.11
| The dominion of heaven or beggary, gain or loss, life among men or in the forest, these make no difference to a yogi whose nature it is to be free from distinctions. | 18.11 |
kva dharmaH kva cha vaa kaamaH kva ch'aarthaH kva vivekitaa
idaM kR^tam idaM ne'ti dvandvair muktasya yoginaH. 18.12
| There is no religious obligations, wealth, sensuality or discrimination for a yogi free from such opposites as "I have done this," and "I have not done that." | 18.12 |
kR^tyaM kim api n'aiv'aasti na kaa'pi hR^di rañjanaa
yathaa-jiivanam ev'eha jiivan-muktasya yoginaH. 18.13
| There is nothing needing to be done, or any attachment in his heart for the yogi liberated while still alive. Things things will last just to the end of life. | 18.13 |
kva mohaH kva cha vaa vishvaM kva tad dhyaanaM kva muktataa
sarva-saNkalpa-siimaayaaM vishraantasya mah'aatmanaH. 18.14
| There is no delusion, world, meditation on That, or liberation for the pacified great soul. All these things are just the realm of imagination. | 18.14 |
yena vishvam idaM dR^shhTaM sa n'aastii'ti karotu vai
nirvaasanaH kiM kurute pashyann api na pashyati. 18.15
| He by whom all this is seen may well make out it doesn't exist, but what is the desireless one to do. Even in seeing it he does not see it. | 18.15 |
yena dR^shhTaM paraM brahma so'haM brahme'ti chintayet
kiM chintayati nishchinto dvitiiyaM yo na pashyati. 18.16
| He by whom the Supreme Brahma is seen may think "I am Brahma", but what is he to think who is without thought, and who sees no duality. | 18.16 |
dR^shhTo yen'aatma-vikshhepo nirodhaM kurute tv'asau
udaaras tu na vikshhiptaH saadhy'aabhaavaat karoti kim. 18.17
| He by whom inner distraction is seen may put an end to it, but the noble one is not distracted. When there is nothing to achieve what is he to do? | 18.17 |
dhiiro loka-viparyasto varttamaano'pi lokavat
no samaadhiM na vikshhepaM na lopaM svasya pashyati. 18.18
| The wise man, unlike the worldly man, does not see inner stillness, distraction or fault in himself, even when living like a worldly man. | 18.18 |
bhaav'aabhaava-vihiino yas tR^pto nirvaasano budhaH
n'aiva kiñchit kR^taM tena loka-dR^shhTyaa vikurvataa. 18.19
| Nothing is done by him who is free from being and non-being, who is contented, desireless and wise, even if in the world's eyes he does act . | 18.19 |
pravR^ttau vaa nirvR^ttau vaa n'aiva dhiirasya durgrahaH
yadaa yatkarttum aayaati tatkR^tvaa tishhThataH sukham. 18.20
| The wise man who just goes on doing what presents itself for him to do, encounters no difficulty in either activity or inactivity. | 18.20 |
nirvaasano niraalambaH svachchhando mukta-bandhanaH
kshhiptaH saMskaara-vaatena cheshhTate shushhka-parNavat. 18.21
| He who is desireless, self-reliant, independent and free of bonds functions like a dead leaf blown about by the wind of causality . | 18.21 |
asaMsaarasya tu kvaa'pi na harshho na vishhaaditaa
sa shiitalaha-manaa nityaM videha iva raajaye. 18.22
| There is neither joy nor sorrow for one who has transcended samsara. With a peaceful mind he lives as if without a body. | 18.22 |
kutraa'pi na jihaas'aasti naasho vaa'pi na kutrachit
aatm'aaraamasya dhiirasya shiital'aachchhatar'aatmanaH. 18.23
| He whose joy is in himself, and who is peaceful and pure within has no desire for renunciation or sense of loss in anything. | 18.23 |
prakR^tyaa shuunya-chittasya kurvato'sya yad-R^chchhayaa
praakR^tasy'eva dhiirasya na maano n'aavamaanataa. 18.24
| For the man with a naturally empty mind, doing just as he pleases, there is no such thing as pride or false humility, as there is for the natural man. | 18.24 |
kR^taM dehena karm'edaM na mayaa shuddha-ruupiNaH
iti chint'aanurodhii yaH kurvann api karoti na. 18.25
| "This action was done by the body but not by me."The pure natured person thinking like this, is not acting even when acting . | 18.25 |
atad-vaadii'va kurute na bhaved api baalishaH
jiivan-muktaH sukhii shriimaan saMsarann api shobhate. 18.26
| He who acts without being able to say why, but is not thereby a fool, he is one liberated while still alive, happy and blessed. He is happy even in samsara. | 18.26 |
naanaa-vichaara-sushraanto dhiiro vishraantim aagataH
na kalpate na jaanaati na shR^Noti na pashyati. 18.27
| He who has had enough of endless considerations and has attained to peace, does not think, know, hear or see. | 18.27 |
asamaadher avikshhepaan na mumukshhur na ch'etaraH
nishchitya kalpitaM pashyan brahm'aiv'aaste mahaashayaH. 18.28
| He who is beyond mental stillness and distraction, does not desire either liberation or its opposite. Recognising that things are just constructions of the imagination, that great soul lives as God here and now. | 18.28 |
yasy'aantaH syaad ahaNkaaro na karoti karoti saH
nirahaNkaara-dhiireNa na kiñchid akR^taM kR^tam. 18.29
| He who feels responsibility within, acts even when doing nothing, but there is no sense of done or undone for the wise man who free from the sense of responsibility. | 18.29 |
n'odvignaM na cha santushhTam akarttR^ spanda-varjitam
niraashaM gata-sandehaM chittaM muktasya raajate. 18.30
| The mind of the liberated man is not upset or pleased. It shines unmoving, desireless, and free from doubt. | 18.30 |
nirdhyaatuM cheshhTituM vaa'pi yach chittaM na pravarttate
nirnimittam idaM kin tu nirdhyaayeti vicheshhTate. 18.31
| He whose mind does not set out to meditate or act, still meditates and acts but without an object. | 18.31 |
tattvaM yath'aartham aakarNya mandaH praapnoti muuDhataam
atha v'aayaati saNkocham amuuDhaH ko'pi muuDhavat. 18.32
| A stupid man is bewildered when he hears the ultimate truth, while even a clever man is humbled by it just like the fool. | 18.32 |
ek'aagrataa nirodho vaa muuDhair abhyasyate bhR^sham
dhiiraaH kR^tyaM na pashyanti suptavat sva-pade sthitaaH. 18.33
| The ignorant make a great effort to practise one-pointedness and the stopping of thought, while the wise see nothing to be done and remain in themselves like those asleep. | 18.33 |
aprayatnaat prayatnaad vaa muuDho n'aapnoti nirvR^tim
tattva-nishchaya-maatreNa praajñno bhavati nirvR^taH. 18.34
| The stupid does not attain cessation whether he acts or abandons action, while the wise man find peace within simply by knowing the truth. | 18.34 |
uddhaM buddhaM priyaM puurNaM nishhprapañchaM niraamayam
aatmaanaM taM na jaananti tatr'aabhyaasa-paraa janaaH. 18.35
| People cannot come to know themselves by practices - pure awareness, clear, complete, beyond multiplicity and faultless though they are. | 18.35 |
n'aapnoti karmaNaa mokshhaM vimuuDho'bhyaasa-ruupiNaa
dhanyo vijñaana-maatreNa muktas tishhThaty avikriyaH. 18.36
| The stupid does not achieve liberation even through regular practice, but the fortunate remains free and actionless simply by understanding. | 18.36 |
muuDho n'aapnoti tad brahma yato bhavitum ichchhati
anichchhann api dhiiro hi para-brahma-svaruupa-bhaak. 18.37
| The stupid does not attain Godhead because he wants it, while the wise man enjoys the Supreme Godhead without even wanting it. | 18.37 |
niraadhaaraa grahavya-graa muuDhaaH saMsaara-poshhakaaH
etasy'aanartha-muulasya muula-chchhedaH kR^to budhaiH. 18.38
| Even when living without any support and eager for achievement, the stupid are still nourishing samsara, while the wise have cut at the very root of its unhappiness. | 18.38 |
na shaantiM labhate muuDho yataH shamitum ichchhati
dhiiras tattvaM vinishchitya sarvadaa shaanta-maanasaH. 18.39
| The stupid does not find peace because he desires it, while the wise discriminating the truth is always peaceful minded. | 18.39 |
kv'aatmano darshanaM tasya yad dR^shhTam avalambate
dhiiraas taM taM na pashyanti pashyanty aatmaanam avyayam. 19.40
| How can there be self knowledge for him whose knowledge depends on what he sees. The wise do not see this and that, but see themselves as infinite. | 18.40 |
kva nirodho vimuuDhasya yo nirbandhaM karoti vai
sv'aaraamasy'aiva dhiirasya sarvadaa'saav akR^trimaH. 18.41
| How can there be cessation of thought for the misguided who is striving for it. Yet it is there always naturally for the wise man delighting in himself. | 18.41 |
bhaavasya bhaavakaH kashchin na kiñchid bhaavako'paraH
ubhay'aabhaavakaH kashchid evam eva niraakulaH. 18.42
| Some think that something exists, and others that nothing does. Rare is the man who does not think either, and is thereby free from distraction. | 18.42 |
shuddham advayam aatmaanaM bhaavayanti ku-buddhayaH
na tu jaananti saMmohaad yaavaj-jiivam anirvR^taaH. 18.43
| Those of weak intelligence think of themselves as pure nonduality, but because of their delusion do not really know this, and so remain unfulfilled all their lives. | 18.43 |
mumukshhor buddhir aalambam antareNa na vidyate
niraalamb'aiva nishhkaamaa buddhir muktasya sarvadaa. 18.44
| The mind of the man seeking liberation can find no resting place within, but the mind of the liberated man is always free from desire by the very fact of being without a resting place. | 18.44 |
vishhaya-dviipino viikshhya chakitaaH sharaN'aarthinaH
vishanti jhaTiti kroDaM nirodh'aikaagra-siddhaye. 18.45
| Seeing the tigers of the senses the frightened refuge-seekers at once enter the cave in search of cessation of thought and one-pointedness. | 18.45 |
nirvaasanaM hariM dR^shhTvaa tuushhNiiM vishhaya-dantinaH
palaayante na shaktaas te sevante kR^ta-chaaTavaH. 18.46
| Seeing the desireless lion the elephants of the senses silently run away, or, if that is impossible, serve him like courtiers. | 18.46 |
na mukti-kaarikaaM dhatte niHshaNko yukta-maanasaH
pashyan shR^Nvan spR^shan jighrann ashnann aaste yathaa-sukham. 18.47
| The man who is free from doubts and whose mind is free does not bother about means of liberation. Whether seeing, hearing, feeling smelling or tasting, he lives at ease. | 18.47 |
vastu-shravaNa-maatreNa shuddha-buddhir niraakulaH
n'aiv'aachaaram-anaachaaram audaasyaM vaa prapashyati. 18.48
| He whose mind is pure and undistracted from just hearing of the Truth does not see anything to do or anything to avoid or even a cause for indifference. | 18.48 |
yadaa yat-karttum aayaati tadaa tat-kurute R^juH
ubhaM vaa'py ashubhaM vaa'pi tasya cheshhTaa hi baalavat. 18.49
| The upright person does whatever presents itself to be done, good or bad, for his actions are like those of a child. | 18.49 |
svaa-tantryaat sukham aapnoti svaa-tantryaal labhate param
svaa-tantryaan nirvR^tiM gachchhet svaa-tantryaat paramaM padam. 18.50
| By inner freedom one attains happiness, by inner freedom one reaches the Supreme, by inner freedom one comes to absence of thought, by inner freedom to the Ultimate State. | 18.50 |
akarttR^tvam abhoktR^tvaM sv'aatmano manyate yadaa
tadaa kshhiiNaa bhavanty eva samastaash chitta-vR^ttayaH. 18.51
| When one sees oneself as neither the doer nor the reaper of the consequences, then all mind waves come to an end. | 18.51 |
uchchhR^Nkhalaa'py akR^tikaa sthitir dhiirasya raajate
na tu saspR^ha-chittasya shaantir muuDhasya kR^trimaa. 18.52
| The spontaneous unassuming behaviour of the wise is noteworthy, but not the deliberate purposeful stillness of the fool. | 18.52 |
vilasanti mahaabhogair vishanti giri-gahvaraan
nirasta-kalpanaa dhiiraa abaddhaa mukta-buddhayaH. 18.53
| The wise who are rid of imagination, unbound and with unfettered awareness may enjoy themselves in the midst of many goods, or alternatively go off to mountain caves. | 18.53 |
shrotriyaM devataaM tiirtham aNganaaM bhuupatiM priyam
dR^shhTvaa sampuujya dhiirasya na kaa'pi hR^di vaasanaa. 18.54
| There is no attachment in the heart of a wise man whether he sees or pays homage to a learned brahmin, a celestial being, a holy place, a woman, a king or a friend. | 18.54 |
bhR^tyaiH putraiH kalatraish cha dauhitraish chaa'pi gotri-jaiH
vihasya dhik-kR^to yogii na yaati vikR^tiM manaak. 18.55
| A yogi is not in the least put out even when humiliated by the ridicule of servants, sons, wives, grandchildren or other relatives. | 18.55 |
santushhTo'pi na santushhTaH khinno'pi na cha khidyate
tasy'aashcharya-dashaaM taaM taaM taadR^shaa eva jaanate. 18.56
| Even when pleased he is not pleased , not suffering even when in pain. Only those like him can know the wonderful state of such a man. | 18.56 |
kartavyatai'va saMsaaro na taaM pashyanti suurayaH
uunyaakaaraa niraakaaraa nirvikaaraa niraamayaaH. 18.57
| It is the feeling that there is something that needs to be achieved which is samsara. The wise who are of the form of emptiness, formless, unchanging and spotless see nothing of the sort. | 18.57 |
akurvann api saMkshhobhaad vyagraH sarvatra muuDhadhiiH
kurvann api tu kR^tyaani kushalo hi niraakulaH. 18.58
| Even when doing nothing the fool is agitated by restlessness, while a skilful man remains undisturbed even when doing what there is to do. | 18.58 |
sukham aaste sukhaM shete sukham aayaati yaati cha
sukhaM vakti sukhaM buNkte vyavahaare'pi shaantadhiiH. 18.59
| Happy he stands, happy he sits, happy sleeps and happy he comes and goes. Happy he speaks, and happy he eats. This is the life of a man at peace. | 18.59 |
svabhaavaad yasya n'aiv'aartir lokavad vyavahaariNaH
mahaa-hrada iv'aakshhobhyo gata-kleshaH sushobhate. 18.60
| He who of his very nature feels no unhappiness in his daily life like worldly people, remains undisturbed like a great lake, cleared of defilement. | 18.60 |
nivR^ttir api muuDhasya pravR^ttir upajaayate
pravR^ttir api dhiirasya nivR^tti-phalam aaginii. 18.61
| Even abstention from action has the effect of action in a fool, while even the action of the wise man brings the fruits of inaction. | 18.61 |
parigraheshhu vairaagyaM praayo muuDhasya dR^shyate
dehe vigalit'aashasya kva raagaH kva viraagataa. 18.62
| A fool often shows aversion towards his belongings, but for him whose attachment to the body has dropped away, there is neither attachment nor aversion. | 18.62 |
bhaavanaa'bhaavanaa-saktaa dR^shhTir muuDhasya sarvadaa
bhaavya-bhaavayaa saa tu svasthasy'aadR^shhTi-ruupiNii. 18.63
| The mind of the fool is always caught in thinking or not thinking, but the wise man's is of the nature of no thought because he thinks what is appropriate. | 18.63 |
sarv'aarambheshhu nishhkaamo yash chared baalavan muniH
na lepas tasya shuddhasya kriyamaaNo'pi karmaNi. 18.64
| For the seer who behaves like a child, without desire in all actions, there is no attachment for such a pure one even in the work he does. | 18.64 |
sa eva dhanya aatma-jñaH sarva-bhaaveshhu yaH samaH
pashyan shR^Nvan spR^shan jighrann ashnan nistarshha-maanasaH. 18.65
| Blessed is he who knows himself and is the same in all states, with a mind free from craving whether he is seeing, hearing, feeling, smelling or tasting. | 18.65 |
kva saMsaaraH kva ch'aabhaasaH kva saadhyaM kva cha saadhanam
aakaasha-sthe'va dhiirasya nirvikalpasya sarvadaa. 18.66
| There is no-one subject to samsara, no sense of individuality, goal or means to the goal in the eyes of the wise man who is always free from imaginations, and unchanging like space? | 18.66 |
sa jayaty artha-sanyaasii puurNa-svarasa-vigrahaH
akR^trimo'navachchhinne samaadhir yasya vartate. 18.67
| Glorious is he who has abandoned all goals and is the incarnation of the satisfaction, which is his very nature, and whose inner focus on the Unconditioned is quite spontaneous. | 18.67 |
bahun'aatra kim uktena jñaata-tattvo mahaashayaH
bhoga-mokshha-niraakaaMkshhii sadaa sarvatra niirasaH. 18.68
| In brief, the great-souled man who has come to know the Truth is without desire for either pleasure or liberation, and is always and everywhere free from attachment. | 18.68 |
mahad-aadi jagad-dvaitaM naama-maatra-vijR^mbhitam
vihaaya shuddha-bodhasya kiM kR^tyam avashishhyate. 18.69
| What remains to be done by the man who is pure awareness and has abandoned everything that can be expressed in words from the highest heaven to the earth itself? | 18.69 |
bhrama-bhR^tam idaM sarvaM kiñchin n'aastii'ti nishchayii
alakshhya-sphuuraNaH shuddhaH svabhaaven'aiva shaamyati. 18.70
| The pure man who has experienced the Indescribable attains peace by virtue of his very nature, realising that all this is nothing but illusion, and that nothing is. | 18.70 |
shuddha-sphuraNa-ruupasya dR^shya-bhaavam apashyataH
kva vidhiH kva vairaagyaM kva tyaagaH kva shamo'pi vaa. 18.71
| There are no rules, dispassion, renunciation or meditation for one who is pure receptivity by nature, and admits no knowable form of being. | 18.71 |
sphurato'nanta-ruupeNa prakR^tiM cha na pashyataH
kva bandhaH kva cha vaa mokshhaH kva harshhaH kva vishhaaditaa. 18.72
| For him who shines with the radiance of Infinity and is not subject to natural causality there is neither bondage, liberation, pleasure nor pain. | 18.72 |
buddhi-paryanta-saMsaare maayaa-maatraM vivartate
nirmamo nirahaNkaaro nishhkaamaH shobhate budhaH. 18.73
| Pure illusion reigns in samsara which will continue until self realisation, but the enlightened man lives in the beauty of freedom from me and mine, from the sense of responsibility and from any attachment. | 18.73 |
akshhayaM gata-santaapam aatmaanaM pashyato muneH
kva vidyaa cha kva vaa vishvaM kva deho'haM mame'ti vaa. 18.74
| For the seer who knows himself as imperishable and beyond pain there is neither knowledge, a world nor the sense that I am the body or the body mine. | 18.74 |
nirodh'aadiini karmaaNi jahaati jaDdhiir yadi
mano-rathaan pralaapaaMsh cha kartum aapnoty atatkshhaNaat. 18.75
| No sooner does a man of low intelligence give up activities like the elimination of thought than he falls into mind racing and chatter. | 18.75 |
mandaH shrutvaa'pi tad-vastu na jahaati vimuuDhataam
nirvikalpo bahir-yatnaad antar-vishhaya-laalasaH. 18.76
| A fool does not get rid of his stupidity even on hearing the truth. He may appear outwardly free from imaginations, but inside he is still hankering after the senses. | 18.76 |
jñaanaad galita-karmaa yo loka-dR^shhTyaa'pi karma-kR^t
n'aapnoty avasaraM karmaM vaktum iva na kiñchana. 18.77
| Though in the eyes of the world he is active, the man who has shed action through knowledge finds no means of doing or speaking anything. | 18.77 |
kva tamaH kva prakaasho vaa haanaM kva cha na kiñchana
nirvikaarasya dhiirasya niraataNkasya sarvadaa. 18.78
| For the wise man who is always unchanging and fearless there is neither darkness nor light nor destruction, nor anything. | 18.78 |
kva dhairyaM kva vivekitvaM kva niraataNkataa'pi vaa
anirvaachya-svabhaavasya niHsvabhaavasya yoginaH. 18.79
| There is neither fortitude, prudence nor courage for the yogi whose nature is beyond description and free of individuality. | 18.79 |
na svargo nai'va narako jiivan-muktir na chai'va hi
bahunaa'tra kim uktena yoga-dR^shhTyaa na kiñchana. 18.80
| There is neither heaven nor hell nor even liberation during life. In a nutshell, in the sight of the seer nothing exists at all. | 18.80 |
nai'va praarthayate laabhaM n'aalaabhen'aanushochati
dhiirasya shiitalaM chittam amR^tenai'va puuritam. 18.81
| He neither longs for possessions nor grieves at their absence. The calm mind of the sage is full of the nectar of immortality. | 18.81 |
na shaantaM stauti nishhkaamo na dushhTam api nindati
sama-duHkha-sukhas tR^ptaH kiñchit kR^tyaM na pashyati. 18.82
| The dispassionate man does not praise the good or blame the wicked. Content and equal in pain and pleasure, he sees nothing that needing doing. | 18.82 |
dhiiro na dveshhTi saMsaaram aatmaanaM na didR^kshhati
harshh'aamarshha-vinirmukto na mR^to na cha jiivati. 18.83
| The wise man is not averse to samsara, nor does he seek to know himself. Free from pleasure and impatience, he is not dead and he is not alive. | 18.83 |
niHsnehaH putra-daar'aadau nishhkaamo vishhayeshhu cha
nishchantaH svashariire'pi niraashaH shobhate budhaH. 18.84
| The wise man excels by being free from anticipation, without attachment to such things as children or wives, free from desire for the senses, and not even concerned about his own body. | 18.84 |
tushhTiH sarvatra dhiirasya yathaa-patita-vartinaH
svachchhandaM charato deshaan yatr'aastamita-shaayinaH. 18.85
| The wise man, who lives on whatever happens to come to him, roaming wherever he pleases, and sleeping wherever the sun happens to set, is at peace everywhere. | 18.85 |
patat'uudetu vaa deho n'aasya chintaa mah'aatmanaH
svabhaava-bhuumi-vishraanti-vismR^t'aasheshha-saMsR^teH. 18.86
| Whether his body rises or falls, the great souled one gives it no thought, having forgotten all about samsara in coming to rest on the ground of his true nature. | 18.86 |
akiñchanaH kaama-chaaro nirdvandvash chhinna-saMshayaH
asaktaH sarva-bhaaveshhu kevalo ramate budhaH. 18.87
| The wise man has the joy of being complete in himself and without possessions, acting as he pleases, free from duality and rid of doubts, and without attachment to any creature. | 18.87 |
nirmamaH shobhate dhiiraH sama-loshhT'aashma-kaañchanaH
subhinna-hR^daya-granthir vinirdhuuta-rajas-tamaH. 18.88
| The wise man excels in being without the sense of "me". Earth, a stone or gold are the same to him. The knots of his heart have been rent asunder, and he is freed from greed and blindness. | 18.88 |
sarvatr'aanavadhaanasya na kiñchid vaasanaa hR^di
mukt'aatmano vitR^ptasya tulanaa kena jaayate. 18.89
| Who can compare with that contented, liberated soul who pays no regard to anything and has no desire left in his heart? | 18.89 |
jaanann api na jaanaati pashyann api na pashyati
bruvann api na cha bruute ko'nyo nirvaasanaad R^te. 18.90
| Who but the upright man without desire knows without knowing, sees without seeing and speaks without speaking? | 18.90 |
bhikshhur vaa bhuupatir vaa'pi yo nishhkaamaH sa shobhate
bhaaveshhu galitaa yasya shobhan'aashobhanaa matiH. 18.91
| Beggar or king, he excels who is without desire, and whose opinion of things is rid of "good" and "bad". | 18.91 |
kva svaachchhandyaM kva saNkochaH kva vaa tattva-vinishchayaH
nirvyaaj'aarjava-bhuutasya charit'aarthasya yoginaH. 18.92
| There is neither dissolute behaviour nor virtue, nor even discrimination of the truth for the sage who has reached the goal and is the very embodiment of guileless sincerity. | 18.92 |
aatma-vishraanti-tR^ptena niraashena gat'aartinaa
antar yad anubhuuyeta tat kathaM kasya kathyate. 18.93
| That which is experienced within by one desireless and free from pain, and content to rest in himself - how could it be described, and of whom? | 18.93 |
supto'pi na sushhuptau cha svapne'pi shayito na cha
jaagare'pi na jaagarti dhiiras tR^ptaH pade pade. 18.94
| The wise man who is contented in all circumstances is not asleep even in deep sleep, not sleeping in a dream, nor waking when he is awake. | 18.94 |
jñaH sachinto'pi nishchintaH sendriyo'pi nirindriyaH
subuddhir api nirbuddhiH saahaNkaaro'nahaNkR^tiH. 18.95
| The seer is without thoughts even when thinking, without senses among the senses, without understanding even in understanding and without a sense of responsibility even in the ego. | 18.95 |
na sukhii na cha vaa duHkhii na virakto na saNgavaan
na mumukshhur na vaa muktaa na kiñchinn na cha kiñchana. 18.96
| Neither happy nor unhappy, neither detached nor attached, neither seeking liberation nor liberated, he is neither something nor nothing. | 18.96 |
vikshhepe'pi na vikshhiptaH samaadhau na samaadhimaan
jaaDye'pi na jaDo dhanyaH paaNDatye'pi na paNDitaH. 18.97
| Not distracted in distraction, in mental stillness not poised, in stupidity not stupid, that blessed one is not even wise in his wisdom. | 18.97 |
mukto yathaa-sthiti-svasthaH kR^ta-kartavya-nirvR^taH
samaH sarvatra vaitR^shhNyaan na smaraty akR^taM kR^tam. 18.98
| The liberated man is self-possessed in all circumstances and free from the idea of "done" and "still to do". He is the same wherever he is and without greed. He does not dwell on what he has done or not done. | 18.98 |
na priiyate vandyamaano nindyamaano na kupyati
n'aiv'odvijati maraNe jiivane n'aabhinandati. 18.99
| He is not pleased when praised nor upset when blamed. He is not afraid of death nor attached to life. | 18.99 |
na dhaavati jan'aakiirNaM n'aaraNyam upashaanta-dhiiH
yathaa-tathaa yatra-tatra sama ev'aavatishhThate. 18.100
| A man at peace does not run off to popular resorts or to the forest. Whatever and wherever, he remains the same. | 18.100 |
janaka uvaacha
tattva-vijñaana-sandaMsham aadaaya hR^dayodaraat
naanaa-vidha-paraamarsha-shaly'oddhaaraH kR^to mayaa. 19.1
|
Janaka Using the tweezers of the knowledge of the truth I have managed to extract the painful thorn of endless opinions from the recesses of my heart. | 19.1 |
kva dharmaH kva cha vaa kaamaH kva ch'aarthaH kva vivekitaa
kva dvaitaM kva cha vaa'dvaitaM svamahimni sthitasya me. 19.2
| For me, established in my own glory, there are no religious obligations, sensuality, possessions, philosophy, duality or even non-duality. | 19.2 |
kva bhuutaM kva bhavishhyad vaa vartamaanam api kva vaa
kva deshaH kva cha vaa nityaM svamahimni sthitasya me. 19.3
| For me established in my own glory, there is no past, future or present. There is no space or even eternity. | 19.3 |
kva ch'aatmaa kva cha vaa'naatmaa kva shubhaM kvaa'subhaM yathaa
kva chintaa kva cha vaa'chintaa svamahimni sthitasya me. 19.4
| For me established in my own glory, there is no self or non-self, no good or evil, no thought or even absence of thought. | 19.4 |
kva svapnaH kva sushhuptir vaa kva cha jaagaraNaM tathaa
kva turiyaM bhayaM vaa'pi svamahimni sthitasya me. 19.5
| For me established in my own glory, there is no dreaming or deep sleep, no waking nor fourth state beyond them, and certainly no fear. | 19.5 |
kva duuraM kva samiipaM vaa bahyaM kvaa'bhyantaraM kva vaa
kva sthuulaM kva cha vaa suukshhmaM svamahimni sthitasya me. 19.6
| For me established in my own glory, there is nothing far away and nothing near, nothing within or without, nothing large and nothing small. | 19.6 |
kva mR^tyur-jiivitaM vaa kva lokaaH kvaa'sya kva laukikam
kva layaH kva samaadhir vaa svamahimni sthitasya me. 19.7
| For me established in my own glory, there is no life or death, no worlds or things of this world, no distraction and no stillness of mind. | 19.7 |
alaM tri-varga-kathayaa yogasya kathayaa'py alam
alaM vijñaana-kathayaa vishraantasya mam'aatmani. 19.8
| For me remaining in myself, there is no need for talk of the three goals of life, of yoga or of knowledge. | 19.8 |
janaka uvaacha
kva bhuutaani kva deho vaa kv'endriyaaNi kva vaa manaH
kva shuunyaM kva cha nairaashyaM mat-svaruupe nirañjane. 20.1
|
Janaka In my unblemished nature there are no elements, no body, no faculties no mind. There is no void and no despair. | 20.1 |
kva shaastraM kv'aatma-vijñaanaM kva vaa nirvishhayaM manaH
kva tR^ptiH kva vitR^shhNatvaM gata-dvandvasya me sadaa. 20.2
| For me, free from the sense of dualism, there are no scriptures, no self-knowledge, no mind free from an object, no satisfaction and no freedom from desire. | 20.2 |
kva vidyaa kva cha vaa'vidyaa kvaa'haM kv'edaM mama kva vaa
kva bandhaH kva cha vaa mokshhaH svaruupasya kva ruupitaa. 20.3
| There is no knowledge or ignorance, no "me", "this" or "mine", no bondage, no liberation, and no property of self-nature. | 20.3 |
kva praarabdhaani karmaaNi jiivan-muktir api kva vaa
kva tad videha-kaivalyaM nirvisheshhasya sarvadaa. 20.4
| For him who is always free from individual characteristics there is no antecedent causal action, no liberation during life, and no fulfilment at death. | 20.4 |
kva kartaa kva cha vaa bhoktaa nishhkriyaM sphuraNaM kva vaa
kvaa'parokshhaM phalaM vaa kva niHsvabhaavasya me sadaa. 20.5
| For me, free from individuality, there is no doer and no reaper of the consequences, no cessation of action, no arising of thought, no immediate object, and no idea of results. | 20.5 |
kva lokaM kva mumukshhur vaa kva yogii jñaanavaan kva vaa
kva baddhaH kva cha vaa muktaH sva-svaruupe'ham advaye. 20.6
| There is no world, no seeker for liberation, no yogi, no seer, no-one bound and no-one liberated. I remain in my own non-dual nature. | 20.6 |
kva sR^shhtiH kva cha saMhaaraH kva saadhyaM kva cha saadhanam
kva saadhakaH kva siddhir vaa svasvaruupe'ham advaye. 20.7
| There is no emanation or return, no goal, means, seeker or achievement. I remain in my own non-dual nature. | 20.7 |
kva pramaataa pramaaNaM vaa kva prameyaM kva cha pramaa
kva kiñchit kva na kiñchid vaa sarvadaa vimalasya me. 20.8
| For me who am forever unblemished, there is no assessor, no standard, nothing to assess, and no assessment. | 20.8 |
kva vikshhepaH kva ch'aikagryaM kva nirbodhaH kva muuDhataa
kva harshhaH kva vishhaado vaa sarvadaa nishhkriyasya me. 20.9
| For me who am forever actionless, there is no distraction or one-pointedness of mind, no lack of understanding, no stupidity, no joy and no sorrow. | 20.9 |
kva ch'aishha vyavahaaro vaa kva cha saa param'aarthataa
kva sukhaM kva cha vaa dukhaM nirvimarshasya me sadaa. 20.10
| For me who am always free from deliberations there is neither conventional truth nor absolute truth, no happiness and no suffering. | 20.10 |
kva maayaa kva cha saMsaaraH kva priitir viratiH kva vaa
kva jiivaH kva cha tad-brahma sarvadaa vimalasya me. 20.11
| For me who am forever pure there is no illusion, no samsara, no attachment or detachment, no living organism, and no God. | 20.11 |
kva pravR^ttir nirvR^ttir vaa kva muktiH kva cha bandhanam
kuuTastha-nirvibhaagasya svasthasya mama sarvadaa. 20.12
| For me who am forever unmovable and indivisible, established in myself, there is no activity or inactivity, no liberation and no bondage. | 20.12 |
kv'opadeshaH kva vaa shaastraM kva shishhyaH kva cha vaa guruH
kva ch'aasti purushh'aartho vaa nirupaadheH shivasya me. 20.13
| For me who am blessed and without limitation, there is no initiation or scripture, no disciple or teacher, and no goal of human life. | 20.13 |
kva ch'aasti kva cha vaa n'aasti kv'aasti ch'aikaM kva cha dvayam
bahun'aatra kim uktena kiñchin n'ottishhThate mama. 20.14
| There is no being or non-being, no unity or dualism. What more is there to say? There is nothing outside of me. | 20.14 |
End
The Sanskrit was received in a "CSX" encoding. Conversion to the present encoding was carried out accoreding to this table.
| 224 | 1586 | aa | |
| 226 | 29 | aa | |
| 227 | 189 | ii | |
| 228 | 2 | ii | |
| 229 | 113 | uu | |
| 231 | 194 | R^ | |
| 239 | 37 | N | |
| 241 | 75 | T | |
| 243 | 34 | D | |
| 245 | 97 | N | |
| 247 | 331 | sh | |
| 248 | 012 | sh | |
| 249 | 268 | shh | |
| 252 | 475 | M | |
| 254 | 388 | H | |
| c | ch | ||
| ch | chh |
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