If the mind’s tendency is allowed to indulge in pleasures, it must be checked at the very outset, just as a sprouting poison is cut off before it can spread. For when honor is bestowed only after one has been hurt, it brings endless suffering; just as rice scorched by the summer sun finds even a little water to be nectar. Conversely, for one who has not been afflicted, honor or high regard passes unnoticed—like a small flood in the rainy season that does not stand out when the rivers are already full. Yet, even when benefited, one who is full still desires more, just as the vast ocean, though filled by all the world’s waters, continues to take in everything. When the mind has been restrained, even a little pleasure or adornment, which was not previously experienced, is valued highly. A king who has been bound and then freed is content with a mere village, while another, never conquered or bound, does not value even a kingdom. Just as you can crush your hand with your own hand, grind your teeth with your teeth, and subdue your limbs with your limbs, so too must you conquer the enemies that are your own senses. For those eager to conquer others, striving with effort, the senses—being the first enemies within the heart—must certainly be subdued first. On this earth, men of noble mind who have not conquered their own mind are neither counted among the truly fortunate nor esteemed in the stories of men. I bow to that subduer of enemies in whom the serpent of the mind—whose poison is fierce imagination and who has made a coil in the cave of the heart—has become tranquil. Those who destroy their own body, their own support, are ungrateful; they are great repositories of evil deeds, and their own senses, the enemies, are hard to conquer. Having gained a body as their base, the senses, greedy like vultures for objects of pleasure, roam restlessly, like fierce birds of prey seeking what should and should not be done. Those deceivers who are caught by the net of discrimination do not harm its parts, just as a lump of stone does not damage a net. Those who delight in pleasures that are charming at first fall into hells when those pleasures become utterly tasteless in the end. He who is wealthy in discrimination, even in the city of the wretched body, is not overpowered by the inner enemies—the senses—even though he may appear helpless. Kings who dwell in mighty clay cities are not as happy as those who, with minds under their own control, are lords of the city of their own bodies. For one whose servant-senses are subdued and whose mind-enemy is well restrained, wise insights flourish like springtime blossoms. For one whose pride of mind is exhausted and whose sense-enemies are subdued, desires for enjoyment fade away like lotuses in winter. Desires roam in the heart like ghosts at night, until the mind is conquered through steadfast practice of oneness with the truth. The mind of the discerning person is a servant because of its obedience, a minister because of its accomplishment of noble deeds, and a lord because it has subdued its own senses. Through nurturing, gentle care is fostered; through protection, the father becomes pure. The mind of the wise is the best friend, endowed with supreme trust. When the mind, guided by the vision of scripture, purified and awakened by one’s own insight, relinquishes itself, it grants the highest accomplishment. Well polished, thoroughly cleansed, firmly established, awakened by self-knowledge, adorned with noble qualities, the jewel of the mind shines delightfully in the heart. This minister of the mind, through auspicious actions, provides axes to cut the tree of birth and also brings forth their subsequent results. Thus, O Rama, cleanse the jewel of the mind, stained by much mud and blemish, with the water of discernment for attainment, and become radiant. Even when discernment is spread across the dreadful realms of existence, do not, like the ordinary, fall helplessly into those full of calamities. Do not disregard this great mist of delusion arising in the world, crowded with hundreds of misfortunes born of worldly illusion. Relying on supreme discernment and perceiving truth with intellect, having conquered the enemies of the senses, cross over the ocean of existence. Let the analogy of the rope, snake, and stick not arise in you, O Raghava, regarding this body, which is itself unreal, and in the pleasures and pains that are likewise unreal. O wise one, abandon completely the false conviction, ‘I am this,’ with true discernment; relying on that which is other, reach that state, drink, eat, and remain unbound, free from mental agitation. While living in this world and enjoying its pleasures with wisdom, strive for what is best, aiming for the highest purpose, even as you remain established in what is beneficial. Let the analogy of the rope, snake, and stick not arise in you, O Raghava; let there be for you an extreme freedom from sorrow, with a steadfastness like a tree scorched by fierce light. The analogy of the rope, snake, and stick is cited as ‘let it not arise’; O Brahman, what is this, spoken by you, the remover of worldly suffering? By this noble and pure speech, awaken me; like the raincloud dispelling intense heat, awaken me as the peacock is awakened in the rainy season. O Raghava, having heard the analogy of the rope, snake, and stick, and the steadfastness like a tree scorched by fierce light, afterwards do whatever you desire. There once lived in a wondrous and enchanting cave in the netherworld a king of demons named Shambara, an ocean of magical gems. He had built temples for the gods in cities and gardens made of sky, and his own realm was adorned with artificial moons and suns of the highest kind. He possessed delightful mountains filled with lotuses formed from precious stones, and his wealth was endless, overflowing with every kind of treasure. The music of the women in his jeweled palaces surpassed the melodies of celestial nymphs, and the trees in his pleasure gardens bore fruits as full as the moon. His lovely abodes were surrounded by clusters of blooming blue lotuses, and golden swans summoned flocks of golden lotuses and waterfowl.