दानादानसमाहारविहारविभवादिकाः । क्रिया जगति हस्यन्ते निराशैः पुरुषोत्तमैः
Acts such as giving, receiving, amassing, enjoying, and possessing wealth are laughed at in this world by the highest men who are free from expectation.
पदं यस्य न बध्नाति कदाचित् कलना हृदि । तृणीकृतत्रिभुवनः केनासाव् उपमीयते
Who can be compared to one whose heart is never bound by thoughts, who regards the three worlds as straw?
इदम् एवास्त्व् इदं मास्तु ममेति हृदि रञ्जना । न यस्यास्ति तम् आत्मेशं तोलयन्ति कथं जनाः
How can people weigh or measure that lord of the self, in whose heart there is no delight in thoughts such as 'let this be,' 'let this not be,' or 'this is mine'?
सर्वसङ्कटपर्यन्तम् असङ्कटमलं सुखम् । सौभाग्यं परमं बुद्धेर् नैराश्यम् अवलम्ब्यताम्
Let supreme good fortune, the pure happiness untouched by any distress, be attained by the intellect through reliance on dispassion.
न शास्तेह त्वम् आशानां विद्धि मिथ्याभ्रमं जगत् । वहद्रथस्थदिक्चक्रनेम्यावर्तवद् उत्थितम्
You do not rule over desires here; know the world to be a false illusion, arising like the whirling of a wheel on a moving chariot.
किं मुह्यसि महाबाहो मूर्खवत् पण्डितो ऽपि सन् । ममेदं तद् अयं सो ऽहम् इत्य् उद्भ्रान्तेन चेतसा
Why do you fall into delusion, O mighty-armed one, behaving like a fool even though you are wise, with a mind agitated by thoughts such as 'this is mine,' 'that is that,' and 'I am this'?
आत्मैवेदं जगत् सर्वं नानातेह न विद्यते । एकरूपं जगज् ज्ञात्वा धीरै राम न खिद्यते
This entire world is truly the Self; there is no diversity here. Knowing the world as of one form, the wise, O Rama, are not distressed.
यथाभूतपदार्थौघदर्शनाद् एव राघव । परमाश्वासनं बुद्धेर् नैराश्यम् अधिगम्यते
By perceiving the multitude of things as they truly are, O Raghava, the mind attains supreme reassurance, not despair.
भावाभावविसंवादमुक्तम् आद्यन्तयोस् स्थितम् । यद् रूपं तत् समालम्ब्य पदार्थानां स्थितिं कुरु
Rely on that reality which is free from the contradictions of existence and nonexistence, which abides at the beginning and end, and establish the state of things accordingly.
नैराश्यधीरमनसो मायेयम् अतिमोहिनी । पलाय्य याति संसारी मृगी केसरिणो यथा
This world-bewitching illusion, O steadfast-minded one, flees from the person established in dispassion, just as a deer flees from a lion.
कान्ताम् उद्दाममदनां लोलां वनलताम् अपि । जर्जरोपलपालीं च समं पश्यति धीरधीः
The wise, steadfast mind sees equally a beloved woman, wild with passion, a playful creeper in the forest, and a heap of broken stones.
भोगा नानन्दयन्त्य् अन्तः खेदयन्ति न चापदः । दृश्यश्रियो हरन्त्य् अङ्ग न ज्ञम् अद्रिम् इवानिलाः
Pleasures do not delight him within, nor do misfortunes distress him; the splendors of visible things, O dear one, cannot move the knower, just as the wind cannot move a mountain.
रक्तबालाङ्गनस्यापि ज्ञस्योदारधियो मुनेः । कणशः खण्डतां यान्ति मनसि स्मरसायकाः
Even the arrows of love, shot by a passionate young woman, are shattered bit by bit in the mind of the wise sage of noble understanding.
रागद्वेषैस् स्वरूपज्ञो नावशः परिकृष्यते । स्पर्श एवास्य नैताभ्यां किम् उताक्रमणं भवेत्
One who knows his true nature is not helplessly dragged by attraction and aversion; for him, these merely touch the surface, and certainly do not overpower him.
समदृष्टलतालोलवनिताद्रिशिलादिषु । रमते नैष भोगेषु पान्थो मरुमहीष्व् इव
He, whose vision is equal, does not delight in pleasures found in vines, women, mountains, rocks, and so forth—just as a traveler does not revel in the deserts he crosses.
अयत्नोपनतं सर्वं लीलया मुक्तमानसः । भुङ्क्ते भोगभरं प्राज्ञस् त्व् आलोकम् इव लोचनम्
The wise one, whose mind is free, effortlessly enjoys whatever comes to him, just as the eye receives light.
काकतालीयवत् प्राप्ता भोगाली ललनादिका । सेविताप्य् अङ्ग धीरस्य न दुःखाय न तुष्टये
Pleasures such as women and the like, which come by chance like a fruit falling as a crow alights, even if enjoyed by the steadfast, bring neither sorrow nor satisfaction.
सम्यग्दृष्टपदार्थं ज्ञं सुखदुःखगती मनाक् । द्वे वीच्याव् इव शैलेन्द्रं क्षोभं नेतुं न शक्नुतः
For the knower who sees things rightly, the courses of pleasure and pain cannot disturb him, just as two waves cannot shake a mighty mountain.
हेलयालोकयन् भोगान् मृदुर् दान्तो गतज्वरः । स्वम् एव पदम् आलम्ब्य सर्वभूतान्तरस्थितम्
He gently and calmly regards pleasures, free from fever, resting in his own state, which pervades all beings.
ज्ञस् तिष्ठति गतव्यग्रं व्यग्रयापि समन्वितः । जगन्ति जनयन्न् एव ब्रह्मेवात्मपरायणः
The knower abides without agitation, even when engaged in activity, creating worlds as Brahma does, devoted to the Self.
आपतत्सु यथाकामं यथाकालं यथाक्रमम् । सुखदुःखेषु न क्षोभम् एति भूभृद् ऋतुष्व् इव
In the face of calamities, as they arise according to time and order, he is not disturbed by pleasure or pain, like the earth through changing seasons.
मज्जतो ऽपि बहुज्ञस्य राम कर्मेन्द्रियक्रमैः । असक्तमनसो नित्यं न किञ्चिद् अपि मज्जति
O Rama, even when a person of great knowledge is immersed in actions through the organs of action, if his mind remains unattached, he is never truly immersed in them.
कलङ्क्य् अन्तःकलङ्केन प्रोच्यते हेम नान्यथा । भावासक्त्या समासक्त उक्तो जन्तुर् हि नान्यथा
Gold is said to be tainted only when there is an inner impurity; likewise, a creature is said to be attached only through attachment to mental states, not otherwise.
शरीरात् प्रविविक्तं स्वं पश्यतः प्रविवेकिनः । विकर्तिताङ्गकस्यापि न किञ्चित् प्रविकर्तितम्
For one who perceives his own self as distinct from the body, even if the body is mutilated, nothing of his true self is actually mutilated.
सकृत्प्रभातं विमलं यज् ज्ञातं ज्ञातम् एव तत् । न हि बन्धुः परिज्ञातः पुनर् अज्ञाततां व्रजेत्
That which has been known once, pure and clear, remains known; a relative, once recognized, does not become unknown again.
सर्पभ्रान्तौ निवृत्तायां न रज्ज्वां सर्पभावना । पुनर् एति यथा प्रावृण्नदी गिरितटच्युता
When the illusion of a snake is dispelled, the idea of a snake does not return to the rope, just as a mountain stream fallen from a cliff does not flow back.
न हेम तापशुद्धाङ्गं स्वाभासम् अलम् आगतम् । कर्दमे मग्नम् अपि सत् समादत्ते मलं पुनः
Gold, purified by fire and restored to its own brilliance, does not again take on impurity, even if it is immersed in mud.
क्षीणे स्वहृदयग्रन्थौ न बन्धो ऽस्ति पुनर् गुणैः । यत्नेनापि पुनर् बद्धं केन वृन्ते च्युतं फलम्
When the knot of the heart is dissolved, there is no bondage again through qualities; even with effort, a fruit fallen from its stem cannot be reattached.
अयश्छेदविचाराभ्याम् अभितः खण्डशो गतम् । पाषाणं च मनश् चैव सन्धातुं कस्य शक्तता
When iron and stone have been shattered into pieces by cutting and breaking, who has the power to join them together again, just as with the mind?
विज्ञातायाम् अविद्यायां कः पुनः परिमज्जति । परिज्ञाय श्वपाकानां यात्रां कः प्रेक्षते द्विजः
Once ignorance is understood, who would again attempt to erase it? After knowing the ways of outcastes, what twice-born person would observe their conduct?