अथ प्रवेशयाम् आस जनको ऽन्तःपुरं शुकम् । राजा न दृश्यते तावद् इति सप्तदिनानि तम्
After that, Janaka brought Śuka into the inner chambers, but for seven days he did not appear before him.
तत्रोन्मदाभिः कान्ताभिर् भोजनैर् भोगसञ्चयैः । जनको लालयाम् आस शुकं शशिसमाननम्
There, Janaka entertained Śuka—whose face was like the moon—with delightful women, food, and various enjoyments.
ते भोगास् तानि दुःखानि व्यासपुत्रस्य तन् मनः । न जह्रुर् मन्दपवनो बद्धपीठम् यथाचलम्
But those pleasures were like sorrows to the mind of Vyāsa's son; they did not move him, just as a gentle breeze does not stir a firmly anchored mountain.
केवलं सशमस् स्वच्छो मौनी मुदितमानसः । अतिष्ठद् अत्र स शुकस् सम्पूर्ण इव चन्द्रमाः
He remained there, tranquil, pure, silent, and with a joyful mind—like the full moon, complete in itself.
परिज्ञातस्वभावं तं शुकं स जनको नृपः । आनीय मुदितात्मानम् अवलोक्य ननाम ह
King Janaka, having understood the true nature of Śuka, had him brought in, and seeing him, bowed with a joyful heart.
निश्शेषितजगत्कार्य प्राप्ताखिलमनोरथ । किम् ईप्सितं तवेत्य् आशु कृतस्वागतम् आह तम्
Having accomplished all worldly duties and attained every desire, he quickly welcomed him and asked, 'What is it that you wish for?
संसाराडम्बरम् इदं कथम् अभ्युत्थितं गुरो । कथं प्रशमम् आयाति यथावत् कथयाशु मे
O teacher, how has this display of worldly existence arisen, and how does true peace come about? Tell me this clearly and without delay.
जनकेनेति पृष्टेन शुकस्य कथितं तथा । तद् एव यत् पुरा प्रोक्तं तस्य पित्रा महात्मना
When questioned by Janaka in this way, Śuka replied just as his noble father had previously explained to him.
स्वयम् एव मया पूर्वम् एतज् ज्ञातं विवेकतः । एतावद् एव पृष्टेन पित्रा मे समुदाहृतम्
I myself had already discerned this through my own understanding, and when my father questioned me, I answered only this much.
भवताप्य् एष एवार्थः कथितो वाग्विदां वर । एष एव च वाक्यार्थश् शास्त्रेषु परिदृश्यते
O best of speakers, you too have spoken this very meaning, and this is exactly what is found in the scriptures.
यथायं स्वविकल्पोत्थस् स्वविकल्पपरिक्षयात् । क्षीयते दग्धसंसारो निस्सार इति निश्चयः
Just as this world, arising from one's own imagination, is dissolved by the cessation of that imagination, so is the certainty that the burned-out world is empty of essence.
तत् किम् एतन् महाबाहो सत्यं ब्रूहि ममामलम् । त्वत्तो विश्रामम् आप्नोति चेतो मा भ्रमताज् जगत्
Therefore, O mighty-armed one, tell me truly and purely: from you my mind finds rest—let it not wander in the world.
नातः परतरः कश्चिन् निश्चयो ऽस्त्य् अपरो मुने । स्वयम् एतत् त्वया ज्ञातं गुरुतश् च पुनश् श्रुतम्
There is no higher or further certainty than this, O sage; you have known this yourself, and have also heard it again from your teacher.
अव्युच्छिन्नश् चिदात्मैकः पुमान् अस्तीह नेतरत् । स सङ्कल्पवशाद् बद्धो निस्सङ्कल्पश् च मुच्यते
Here, only the undivided consciousness-self exists, not anything else; he is bound by the force of thought, and freed when thought ceases.
येन त्व् एतत् स्फुटं ज्ञातं ज्ञेयं तस्य महात्मनः । भोगेभ्यो विरतिर् जाता दृश्याद् वा सकलाद् इह
By whom this is clearly known, that great soul gains dispassion from all enjoyments or from all that is seen here.
तव चालं महावीर मतिर् विरतिम् आगता । भोगेभ्यो दीर्घरोगेभ्यः किम् अन्यत् परिपृच्छसि
And for you as well, O mighty hero, your mind has attained dispassion from enjoyments and from long-lasting afflictions; what else do you seek to ask?
न तथा पूर्णता जाता सर्वज्ञानमहानिधेः । तिष्ठतस् तपसि स्फारे पितुस् तव यथा तव
Such fullness has not arisen even for your father, who remains in vast austerity, though he is a great treasure of all-knowingness, as it has for you.
व्यासाद् अधिक एवाहं व्यासशिष्यो ऽपि तत्सुतः । भोगेच्छातानवेनेह मत्तो ऽप्य् अभ्यधिको भवान्
I am even greater than Vyasa, though I am his disciple and his son; yet, because your desire for enjoyment is so diminished, you surpass even me here.
प्राप्तं प्राप्तव्यम् अखिलं भवता पूर्णचेतसा । न दृश्ये पतसि ब्रह्मन् मुक्तस् त्वं भ्रान्तिम् उत्सृज
You have attained everything to be attained, with a mind fully complete; you do not fall into the visible, O Brahman, you are liberated—abandon delusion.
अनुशिष्टस् स इत्य् एवं जनकेन महात्मना । विशश्राम शुकस् तूष्णीं स्वच्छे परमवस्तुनि
Thus instructed by the great-souled Janaka, Shuka rested silently in the pure, supreme reality.
वीतशोकभयायासो निरीहश् छिन्नसंशयः । जगाम शिखरं मेरोस् समाध्यर्थम् अनिन्दितम्
Free from sorrow, fear, and fatigue, indifferent and with all doubts severed, he ascended the flawless summit of Meru for the purpose of meditation.
तत्र वर्षसहस्राणि निर्विकल्पसमाधिना । दश स्थित्वा शशामासाव् आत्मन्य् अस्नेहदीपवत्
There, for a thousand years, he remained in absorption without conceptualization, like a lamp without oil, at rest within himself.
व्यपगतकलनाकलङ्कशुद्धस् स्वयम् अमलात्मनि पावने पदे ऽसौ । सलिलकण इवाम्बुधौ महात्मा विगलितभेदम् अथैकतां जगाम
With all traces of mental activity and impurity gone, pure in his own stainless self, the great soul entered the state of unity, like a drop of water merging into the ocean.
तस्य व्यासतनूजस्य मतिमात्रापमार्जनम् । यथोपयुक्तं ते राम तावद् एवोपयुज्यते
Rama, the cleansing of mere intellect for the son of Vyasa is used only as much as is needed, and only for that purpose.
ज्ञेयम् एतेन विज्ञातम् अशेषेणावनीश्वर । स्वदन्ते ऽस्मै न यद् भोगा रोगा इव सुमेधसे
By this, everything is known, O lord of the earth; pleasures do not delight him, just as diseases do not please the wise.
ज्ञातज्ञेयस्य मनसो नूनम् एतद् धि लक्षणम् । न स्वदन्ते समग्राणि भोगवृन्दानि यत् पुनः
This is surely the mark of one whose mind has known what is to be known: that all arrays of pleasures no longer delight him.
भोगभावनया याति बन्धो दार्ढ्यम् अवस्तुजः । तयैव शान्तया याति बन्धो जगति तानवम्
By the imagination of enjoyment, bondage rooted in unreality becomes firm; by the same imagination pacified, bondage in the world becomes thin.
वासनातानवं राम मोक्ष इत्य् उच्यते बुधैः । पदार्थवासनादार्ढ्यं बन्ध इत्य् अभिधीयते
Rama, the thinning of desires is called liberation by the wise; the firmness of desire for objects is called bondage.
आत्मतत्त्वाभिगमनं भवति प्रायशो नृणाम् । पुनर् विषयवैरस्यं कदर्थाद् उपजायते
Most people, after approaching the knowledge of the Self, soon again develop aversion to sense objects, though only with difficulty.
सम्यक् पश्यति यस् तज्ज्ञो ज्ञातज्ञेयस् तु पण्डितः । न स्वदन्ते बलाद् एव तस्मै भोगा महात्मने
He who truly sees is wise; he who knows both the knower and the known is learned; to such a great soul, enjoyments do not taste sweet, even if forced upon him.