पयस्तरङ्गयोर् ऐक्यं यथैव परमार्थतः । विद्याविद्यादृशोर् ऐक्यं तथैव परमार्थतः
Just as water and its wave are truly one in essence, so too, knowledge and ignorance are ultimately one in reality.
नाविद्यात्वं न विद्यात्वम् इह किञ्चन विद्यते । विद्याविद्यादृशौ त्यक्त्वा यद् अस्तीह तद् अस्ति हि
Here, there is truly neither ignorance nor knowledge; setting aside the notions of knowledge and ignorance, whatever remains here, that alone truly exists.
प्रतियोगिव्यवच्छेदवशाद् एते रघूद्वह । विद्याविद्यादृशौ न स्तश् शेषे बद्धपदो भव
O descendant of Raghu, knowledge and ignorance exist only by mutual exclusion; when the rest is left behind, be established in that which remains.
नाविद्यास्ति न विद्यास्ति कृतं कल्पनयानया । किञ्चिद् अस्ति नकिञ्चिद् यच् चित्संविद् इति तत् स्थितम्
There is no ignorance, nor is there knowledge; let this imagination come to an end. What remains is either something or nothing—pure consciousness alone stands as that.
तद् एवाविदिताभासं सद् अविद्येत्य् उदाहृतं । विदितं सत् तद् एवेदम् अविद्याक्षयसञ्ज्ञितम्
That alone which appears as the absence of knowing is called ignorance; that which is known, that very thing here, is designated as the destruction of ignorance.
विद्याभावाद् अविद्याख्या मिथ्यैवोदेति कल्पना । मिथस् सत्तैतयोर् अन्ते छायातापदृशोर् इव
The notion called ignorance arises falsely from the absence of knowledge; at the end, the existence of both is like the relation between shadow and sunlight.
अविद्यायां तु लीनायां क्षणाद् द्वे एव कल्पने । एते राघव लीयेते अवाच्यं परिशिष्यते
But when ignorance is dissolved, these two concepts vanish instantly, O Raghava, and only the inexpressible remains.
अविद्यासङ्क्षयात् क्षीणे विद्यापक्षे ऽपि राघव । यच् छिष्टं तन् नकिञ्चिद् वा किञ्चिद् वापीदम् आततम्
When ignorance is completely destroyed and even the aspect of knowledge is diminished, O Raghava, what remains is either nothing at all or this expanse itself.
तत्रेदं दृश्यते सर्वं न च किञ्चन दृश्यते । वटस् स्ववटधानायाम् इव पुष्पफलादिमान्
Here, everything appears to be seen, yet nothing is truly seen—just as a banyan tree, with its flowers and fruits, exists within its own seed.
तत् सर्वशक्ति कचितं सर्वशक्तिसमुद्गकम् । नभसो ऽप्य् अधिकं शून्यम् अवेद्यं च चिदात्मकम्
That is pervaded by all powers, the source of all powers, more subtle than space, void, unknowable, and of the nature of consciousness.
सूर्यकान्ते यथा वह्निर् यथा क्षीरे घृतं तथा । तत्रेदं संस्थितं सर्वं देशकालक्रमोदयम्
Just as fire is latent in the sunstone, or ghee in milk, so too is everything established here, along with the arising of space, time, and sequence.
यथा स्फुलिङ्गा अनलाद् यथा भासो दिवाकरात् । तस्मात् तथेमा निर्यान्ति स्फुरन्त्यस् संविदस् स्थिताः
As sparks emerge from fire, as rays from the sun, so from that, these vibrant consciousnesses arise and abide.
यथाम्भोधिस् तरङ्गाणां यथामलमणिस् त्विषाम् । कोशो नित्यम् अनन्तानां तथा तत् संविदां त्विषाम्
As waves from the ocean, as radiance from a flawless gem, so it is the constant source of the infinite rays of consciousness.
सबाह्याभ्यन्तरं सर्ववस्तूनां तद् अवस्थितम् । सर्वदैवाविनाशात्म कुम्भानां गगनं यथा
It abides as the inner and outer reality of all things, ever indestructible, like space within and outside of jars.
यथा मणेर् अयस्स्पन्देष्व् अयस्कान्तस्य कर्तृता । अकर्तुर् एव हि तथा कर्तृता तस्य कल्प्यते
Just as the power of attraction is ascribed to the magnet in the movement of iron, though the magnet itself does not act, so too, agency is imagined in that which is actually non-agent.
मणिसन्निधिमात्रेण यथायस् स्पन्दते जडम् । तत्सत्तया तथैवायं देहश् चोपत्य् अचिद्वपुः
As iron moves merely by the presence of the magnet, though it is inert, so too, by the existence of that, this body, though insentient, arises.
तत्र स्थितं जगद् इदं जगदेकबीजे चिन्नाम्नि संविद् इति कल्पितकल्पने च । लोलोर्मिजालम् इव वारिणि चित्स्वरूपं खाद् अप्य् अरूपवति यत्र नकिञ्चिद् अस्ति
There, in that which is called consciousness—the single seed of the world—this world abides; and in the realm of imagination, it is like a mass of waves in water, the essence of consciousness, even in space which is formless, where nothing exists.
तस्मान् नकिञ्चिद् एवेदं जगत् स्थावरजङ्गमम् । न किञ्चिद् भूततां यातं यत् किञ्चिद् अपि विद्धि हे
Therefore, this world of moving and unmoving things is truly nothing; know that nothing at all has come into being, whatever it may be.
तत्र काचिन् न कलना भावाभावमयात्मिका । तद् इदं राम जीवादि सर्वं व्यर्थं किम् ईहसे
There, no notion exists at all, whose nature is the presence or absence of things; thus, O Rama, all this—soul and so on—is in vain, why do you strive?
सुबुद्धो ऽयम् असाव् अन्तर् इति यो व्यपदिश्यते । न तं लभामहे सर्पं रज्जुसर्पभ्रमाद् इव
That which is designated as 'this is the inner, awakened one,' we do not find—just as, through the illusion of the snake in the rope, the snake is not found.
अपरिज्ञात आत्मैव भ्रमतां समुपागतः । ज्ञात आत्मत्वम् आयाति सीमान्तं सर्वसंविदाम्
The self, not recognized, appears among those who are deluded; when the self is known, it reaches the limit of all awareness.
अविद्येत्य् उच्यते लोके चिच् चेत्यमलमालिता । चेत्यातीताच्छताम् एति सर्वोपाधिविवर्जिता
In the world, ignorance is said to be the impurity of consciousness and its objects; when it is transcended, it attains the state of pure clarity, free from all limitations.
चित्तमात्रं हि पुरुषस् तस्मिन् नष्टे न नश्यति । स्थिते तिष्ठति नात्मायं घटे सति यथाम्बरम्
A person is nothing but mind; when it is lost, he does not perish. When it remains, he remains. The self is not destroyed, just as space is not destroyed when a pot breaks.
गच्छन् पश्यति गच्छन्तं स्थितं तिष्ठञ् शिशुर् यथा । भानुम् एवम् इदं चेतः पश्यत्य् आत्मानम् आकुलम्
Just as a child sees a moving sun as moving and a stationary sun as stationary, so does the mind perceive itself as restless or still.
कोशकारवद् आत्मानं वासनाननतन्तुभिः । वेष्टयंश् चैव चेतो ऽन्तर् बालत्वान् नावबुध्यते
Like a cocoon-maker wrapping himself with threads spun from his own tendencies, the mind envelops itself within, but due to its childishness, it does not realize this.
मौर्ख्यम् अत्यन्तघनताम् आगतं सदवस्थितम् । स्थावरादितनुं प्राप्तं कीदृशं भवति प्रभो
When utter ignorance has become extremely dense and firmly established, and the mind has entered a body like that of an immobile being, what is its condition, O Lord?
अमनस्त्वम् असम्प्राप्तं मनस्त्वाद् अपि विच्युतम् । तटस्थं रूपम् आश्रित्य स्थितैषा स्थावरेषु चित्
When the state of 'no-mind' has not been attained, and the mind has even been displaced from its own nature, consciousness remains in a neutral form, abiding in immobile beings.
सुप्तपुर्यष्टका यत्र संस्थिता दुःखदायिनी । मूकान्धजडवत् तत्र सत्तामात्रेण तिष्ठति
Where the eightfold city of sleep is established, causing suffering, there consciousness abides only as existence, like one who is mute, blind, or inert.
सत्ताद्वैततया यत्र संस्थिता स्थावरेषु चित् । तत्रादूरस्थितां मुक्तिं मन्ये वेद्यविदां वर
Where consciousness is established in immobile beings as the non-duality of existence, there, O best among those who know, I consider liberation to be close at hand.
बुद्धिपूर्वं विचार्येदं यथावस्त्ववलोकनात् । सत्तासामान्यबोधो यस् स मोक्षश् चेद् अनन्तकः
When this is examined with intelligence and seen as it truly is, the awareness of the common essence of existence—that, if endless, is liberation.