असि चेत् त्वं तद् अन्येषु यातेषु बहुजन्मसु । ये बन्धवो ये विभवाः किं तान् अपि न शोचसि
If you are indeed yourself, then in the many past lives that have passed, did you not grieve for those relatives and possessions?
बभूवुस् ते सुपुष्पासु स्थलीषु मृगयोनिषु । बहवो बन्धवो धन्यास् तान् कथं नानुशोचसि
In the past, among blooming meadows and in animal births, you had many fortunate relatives; why did you not mourn for them?
बभूवुस् ते सपद्मासु तटीष्व् अम्बुधियोषिताम् । हंसस्य बन्धवो हंसास् तान् कथं नानुशोचसि
On the banks adorned with lotuses, among the women of the waters, you had swan relatives when you were a swan; why did you not mourn for them?
बभूवुस् ते लसत्पत्त्राश् चित्रासु वनराजिषु । बहवो बन्धवो वृक्षास् तान् कथं नानुशोचसि
Many trees with shining leaves were your companions in the varied groves of the forest—why do you not grieve for them?
बभूवुस् ते महाभ्रेषु शिखरेषु महीभृताम् । बहवो बन्धवस् सिंहास् तान् कथं नानुशोचसि
Many lions were your companions on the lofty peaks of great mountains—why do you not mourn for them?
बभूवुस् ते स्रवन्तीषु सरस्स्व् अम्भोजिनीषु च । बहवो बन्धवो मत्स्याः किं तान् अपि न शोचसि
Many fish were your companions in flowing streams, lakes, and lotus-filled ponds—do you not grieve for them as well?
बभूविथ दशार्णेषु कपिलो वनवानरः । राजपुत्रस् तुखारेषु पुण्ड्रेषु वनवायसः
You were a tawny forest monkey in the Daśārṇa lands, a prince among the Tukhāras, and a forest crow in Puṇḍra.
हेहयेषु च मातङ्गस् त्रिगर्तेषु च गर्दभः । साल्वेषु सरमापुत्रः पतत्री शवरद्रुमे
In Hehaya you were an elephant, in Trigarta a donkey, in Sālva the offspring of Saramā, a bird in the Śavara forest.
विन्ध्याद्रौ पिप्पलो भूत्वा घुणो भूत्वा महावटे । मन्दरे मर्कटो भूत्वा विप्राज् जातो ऽसि कन्दरे
On Mount Vindhya you became a pipal tree, in a great banyan a worm, on Mandara a monkey, and in a cave you were born a brāhmaṇa.
कोसलेषु द्विजो भूत्वा भूत्वा वङ्गेषु तित्तिरिः । अश्वो भूत्वा तुखारेषु जातस् त्वं ब्राह्मणाद् वने
In Kosala you were born a twice-born, in Vaṅga a partridge, in Tukhāra a horse, and in the forest you were born from a brāhmaṇa.
यः कीटस् तालकन्दान्तर् दंशको य उदुम्बरे । यः प्राजिको विन्ध्यवने स त्वं पुत्र ममानुजः
You who were the insect inside a palm root, the biting gnat in a fig tree, and the peacock in the Vindhya forest—O son, you are my younger brother.
हिमवत्कन्दराभूर्जतरुत्वग्रन्ध्रकोटरे । पिपीलको यष् षण् मासान् सो ऽयं त्वम् अनुजो मम
That ant which dwelt for six months in the crevice of the bark of a birch tree in a cave of the Himalayas—that was you, my younger brother.
सुह्मसीमान्तकुग्रामगोमये यश् च वृश्चिकः । सार्धं संवत्सरं साधो सो ऽयं त्वम् अनुजो मम
And that scorpion which lived for a year and a half in a dung heap in a remote village at the border of Suhma—that too was you, my younger brother.
पुलिन्दीस्तनपीठेषु निलीनं येन कानने । षट्पदेनेव पद्मेषु सो ऽयं त्वम् अनुजो मम
And that bee which hid in the breasts of a tribal woman in the forest, just as a bee in a lotus—that too was you, my younger brother.
एतास्व् अन्यासु चान्यासु बह्वीषु जनयोनिषु । जातो ऽसि जम्बुद्वीपे ऽस्मिन् पुरा शतसहस्रशः
In these and many other countless wombs, you have been born on this Jambudvīpa, thousands and hundreds of thousands of times before.
इत्थं तवात्मनश् चैव प्राक्तनं वासनाक्रमम् । पश्यामि सूक्ष्मया बुद्ध्या सम्यग्दर्शनशुद्धया
In this way, I perceive with subtle intellect, purified by true insight, the sequence of your own past tendencies and mine as well.
ममापि बह्व्यो बहुधा योनयो मोहमन्थराः । समतीतास् स्मराम्य् अद्य ता ज्ञानोदितया दृशा
I too have passed through many, various wombs, weighed down by delusion; today I recall them with the vision awakened by knowledge.
त्रिगर्तेषु शुको भूत्वा हंसो भूत्वा सरित्तटे । पक्कणे वायसो भूत्वा जातो ऽहम् इह कानने
Having been a parrot in Trigarta, a swan on the riverbank, and a crow in Pakkaṇa, I was born here in this forest.
भुक्त्वा पुलिन्दतां विन्ध्ये कृत्वा वङ्गेषु वृक्षताम् । उष्ट्रत्वम् अतिवाह्याद्रौ जातो ऽहम् इह कानने
Having lived as a tribal in the Vindhya, as a tree in Vaṅga, and as a camel in the high mountains, I was born here in this forest.
यश् चातको हिमगिरौ यो राजा पुण्ड्रमण्डले । व्याघ्रो यस् सह्यकुञ्जेषु स एवेह तवाग्रजः
The same one who was a chataka bird in the Himalayas, who was a king in the land of Pundra, and who was a tiger in the Sahya mountains—he is now your elder brother here.
यो गृध्रो दशवर्षाणि यो मृगो मासपञ्चकम् । यस् समानां शतं सिंहस् स एवेह तवाग्रजः
The one who was a vulture for ten years, who was a deer for five months, and who was a lion for a hundred years—he is now your elder brother here.
अन्ध्रग्रामचकोरेण तुखारनृपवाजिना । श्रीशैलाचार्यपुत्रेण मयेदं तव कथ्यते
With the body of a chakora in the Andhra village, as a horse of the Tukhara king, and as the son of a teacher on Mount Shri Shaila, I am telling you this.
सर्वे विविधसंरम्भा विविधाचारचेष्टिताः । विलासा जन्मनां भ्रातस् स्मर्यन्ते प्राक्तना मया
All the various efforts and diverse behaviors, the pleasures of many births, brother, are remembered by me as things of the past.
एवं स्थिते जगज्जाताव् आवयोश् शतशो गताः । पितरो मातरश् चैव भ्रातरस् सुहृदस् तथा
In this world as it stands, hundreds of fathers, mothers, brothers, and friends have passed for both of us.
कांस् तान् समनुशोचावो न शोचावश् च कान् अपि । बन्धून् किं वापि शोचाव ईदृश्य् एव जगत्स्थितिः
Which of them should we grieve for, and which should we not? Or why should we grieve for any relatives at all, since such is the nature of the world?
अनन्ताः पितरो यान्ति यान्त्य् अनन्ताश् च मातरः । इह संसारिणां पुंसां वनपादपपर्णवत्
Endless fathers come and go, endless mothers as well, for those who wander in this world, like leaves of trees in a forest.
किं प्रमाणम् अतः पुत्र दुःखस्यात्र सुखस्य वा । तस्मात् सर्वं परित्यज्य तिष्ठावस् स्वस्थतां गतौ
What certainty is there, my son, of sorrow or happiness here? Therefore, abandoning everything, let us remain established in equanimity.
प्रपञ्चभावनां त्यक्त्वा मनस्य् अहम् इति स्थिताम् । तां गतिं गच्छ भद्रं ते यां यान्ति गतिकोविदाः
Abandon the conception of the world and remain established in the mind as 'I am'; proceed toward that state, blessed one, which is attained by those skilled in the path.
इहाजवञ्जवीभावं पतनोत्पतनात्मकम् । नानुशोचन्ति सुधियश् चिकित्सन्ते च केवलम्
Wise people do not grieve over the fleeting and unstable nature of existence here, which is characterized by rising and falling; they simply treat it as it is.
भावाभावविनिर्मुक्तं जरामरणवर्जितम् । संस्मरात्मानम् अव्यग्रो मा विमूढमना भव
Recall your own self, free from both existence and non-existence, untouched by old age and death; remain unperturbed and do not let your mind be confused.