ईशते तदभिध्यानाद्योजनासत्त्वभावनः भूयो ह्यस्य पशोरन्ते विश्वमाया निवर्तते
He who, by meditation on that, becomes established in its reality—at the end of bondage, for him, the illusion of the universe ceases.
यस्मिन्न भासते विद्युन्न सूर्यो न च चन्द्रमाः यस्य भासा विभातीदमित्येषा शाश्वती श्रुतिः
In whom neither lightning shines, nor the sun, nor the moon; by whose light all this shines—this is the eternal teaching.
एको देवो महादेवो विज्ञेयस्तु महेश्वरः न तस्य परमं किंचित्पदं समधिगम्यते
The one god, the great god, is to be known as the great Lord; no supreme state of his can be attained.
अयमादिरनाद्यन्तस्स्वभावादेव निर्मलः स्वतन्त्रः परिपूर्णश्च स्वेच्छाधीनश्चराचरः
He is the beginning, without beginning or end, pure by his own nature, independent, completely full, and moving and unmoving at his own will.
अप्राकृतवपुः श्रीमांल्लक्ष्यलक्षणवर्जितः अयं मुक्तो मोचकश्च ह्यकालः कालचोदकः
With a form beyond nature, glorious, free from marks and characteristics—he is liberated and the liberator, timeless, and the impeller of time.
सर्वोपरिकृतावासस्सर्वावासश्च सर्ववित् षड्विधाध्वमयस्यास्य सर्वस्य जगतः पतिः
Dwelling beyond all, yet present in all, all-knowing; of sixfold time, he is the lord of all this world.
उत्तरोत्तरभूतानामुत्तरश्च निरुत्तरः अनन्तानन्तसन्दोहमकरंदमधुव्रतः
He is the highest among higher beings, and beyond the highest; he is the endless meeting of the infinite and the finite, the honeybee at the nectar of the unending lotus.
अखंडजगदंडानां पिंडीकरणपंडितः औदार्यवीर्यगांभीर्यमाधुर्यमकरालयः
He is the wise one who fuses the unbroken cosmic eggs into a single mass; he is the abode of generosity, heroism, depth, sweetness, and awe.
नैवास्य सदृशं वस्तु नाधिकं चापि किंचन अतुलः सर्वभूतानां राजराजश्च तिष्ठति
There is nothing equal to him, nor anything greater; he stands incomparable among all beings, the king of kings.
अनेन चित्रकृत्येन प्रथमं सृज्यते जगत् अंतकाले पुनश्चेदं तस्मिन्प्रलयमेष्यते
By his wondrous act, the world is first created; and at the end of time, this same world will dissolve into him.
अस्य भूतानि वश्यानि अयं सर्वनियोजकः अयं तु परया भक्त्या दृश्यते नान्यथा क्वचित्
All beings are under his control; he directs all; yet he is seen only through supreme devotion, never otherwise, anywhere.
व्रतानि सर्वदानानि तपांसि नियमास्तथा कथितानि पुरा सद्भिर्भावार्थं नात्र संशयः
Vows, all gifts, austerities, and disciplines—these were declared by the wise of old for the sake of inner meaning; there is no doubt of this.
हरिश्चाहं च रुद्रश्च तथान्ये च सुरासुराः तपोभिरुग्रैरद्यापि तस्य दर्शनकांक्षिणः
Hari, I, Rudra, and other gods and demons—even now, with fierce austerities, we long for a vision of him.
अदृश्यः पतितैर्मूढैर्दुर्जनैरपि कुत्सितैः भक्तैरन्तर्बहिश्चापि पूज्यः संभाष्य एव च
He is unseen by the fallen, the deluded, and the wicked, even the contemptible; but by devotees, both within and without, he is to be worshiped and addressed.
तदिदं त्रिविधं रूपं स्थूलं सूक्ष्मं ततः परम् अस्मदाद्यमरैर्दृश्यं स्थूलं सूक्ष्मं तु योगिभिः
This threefold form—gross, subtle, and supreme—the gross is seen by us and the immortals; the subtle, by yogis.
ततः परं तु यन्नित्यं ज्ञानमानंदमव्ययम् तन्निष्ठैस्तत्परैर्भक्तैर्दृश्यं तद्व्रतमाश्रितैः
But that which is supreme, eternal, knowledge, bliss, and imperishable, is seen by those devoted to it, established in that vow.
बहुनात्र किमुक्तेन गुह्याद्गुह्यतरं परम् शिवे भक्तिर्न सन्देहस्तया युक्तो विमुच्यते
Why say much more? The highest secret of secrets is this: there is no doubt that devotion to Shiva, when practiced, brings liberation.
प्रसादादेव सा भक्तिः प्रसादो भक्तिसंभवः यथा चांकुरतो बीजं बीजतो वा यथांकुरः
That devotion arises only from grace, and grace is born of devotion—just as a sprout comes from a seed, and a seed from a sprout.
प्रसादपूर्विका एव पशोस्सर्वत्र सिद्धयः स एव साधनैरन्ते सर्वैरपि च साध्यते
All attainments for the soul everywhere are preceded by grace; and by all means, in the end, it is achieved only through grace.
प्रसादसाधनं धर्मस्स च वेदेन दर्शितः तदभ्यासवशात्साम्यं पूर्वयोः पुण्यपापयोः
The means to grace is dharma, as shown by the Veda; through its practice, there comes balance between merit and demerit.
साम्यात्प्रसादसंपर्को धर्मस्यातिशयस्ततः धर्मातिशयमासाद्य पशोः पापपरिक्षयः
From balance comes contact with grace, and from that, the excellence of dharma; attaining the excellence of dharma, the soul's sins are destroyed.
एवं प्रक्षीणपापस्य बहुभिर्जन्मभिः क्रमात् सांबे सर्वेश्वरे भक्तिर्ज्ञानपूर्वा प्रजायते
Thus, when sin is diminished, gradually over many births, devotion to Sāmba, the Lord of all, arises, preceded by knowledge.
भावानुगुणमीशस्य प्रसादो व्यतिरिच्यते प्रसादात्कर्मसंत्यागः फलतो न स्वरूपतः
The Lord's grace is bestowed according to one's disposition; from grace comes the abandonment of action—not in essence, but in its fruit.
तस्मात्कर्मफलत्यागाच्छिवधर्मान्वयः शुभः स च गुर्वनपेक्षश्च तदपेक्ष इति द्विधा
Therefore, from the renunciation of the fruit of action arises the auspicious path of Shiva's dharma; and this is twofold: independent of a teacher, or dependent upon one.
तत्रानपेक्षात्सापेक्षो मुख्यः शतगुणाधिकः शिवधर्मान्वयस्यास्य शिवज्ञानसमन्वयः
There, the one who acts with intention is superior by a hundredfold to the one who acts without intention; for in this lineage of Shiva's law, union with the knowledge of Shiva is foremost.
ज्ञनान्वयवशात्पुंसः संसारे दोषदर्शनम् ततो विषयवैराग्यं वैराग्याद्भावसाधनम्
Through the influence of knowledge, a person perceives the faults in worldly existence; from that arises dispassion toward sense objects, and from dispassion comes the cultivation of inner disposition.
भावसिद्ध्युपपन्नस्य ध्याने निष्ठा न कर्मणि ज्ञानध्यानाभियुक्तस्य पुंसो योगः प्रवर्तते
For one who has attained the right inner disposition, steadfastness is found in meditation, not in action; for the person engaged in knowledge and meditation, yoga is set in motion.
योगेन तु परा भक्तिः प्रसादस्तदनंतरम् प्रसादान्मुच्यते जंतुर्मुक्तः शिवसमो भवेत्
Through yoga, supreme devotion arises, and grace follows thereafter; by grace, the living being is liberated and becomes equal to Shiva.
अनुग्रहप्रकारस्य क्रमो ऽयमविवक्षितः यादृशी योग्यता पुंसस्तस्य तादृगनुग्रहः
The sequence of the mode of grace is not fixed; as is a person's fitness, so is the grace bestowed upon him.
गर्भस्थो मुच्यते कश्चिज्जायमानस्तथापरः बालो वा तरुणो वाथ वृद्धो वा मुच्यते परः
Some are liberated while still in the womb, others at birth; another is liberated as a child, a youth, or even as an old man.