शुद्धं बुद्धम् अनाद्यन्तं जीवो जनितवासनः । आद्यं क्षीव इवात्मानम् आवृतात्मा न पश्यति
The pure, awakened, beginningless and endless self, the individual soul, is veiled by the impressions of birth; just as a mirror covered with dust does not see its own reflection.
अज्ञानस्य महाग्रन्थेर् मिथ्यावेद्यात्मनो ऽसतः । अहमित्यर्थरूपस्य भेदो मोक्ष इति स्मृतः
The severance of the great knot of ignorance, which is the false, knowable, unreal self in the form of 'I', is called liberation.
व्यपगतघनचेतनस् समन्ताद् अहम् इति नूनम् अबुध्यमान आस्स्व । अनभिधपरचेतनैकरूपस् सदसदसन् न सदा सदोदितश् च
When the dense sense of individuality has vanished completely, abide as one who does not at all conceive 'I'; being of the nature of pure, unspoken consciousness, neither existent nor non-existent, but ever manifest as the real.
ज्ञानिनैव सदा भाव्यं राम न ज्ञानबन्धुना । अज्ञतैव वरं मन्ये न पुनर् ज्ञानबन्धुता
O Rama, one should always be a knower, not merely a companion of knowledge; I consider ignorance itself preferable to being merely a companion of knowledge.
किम् उच्यते ज्ञानबन्धुर् ज्ञानी चैव किम् उच्यते । किं फलं ज्ञानबन्धुत्वे ज्ञानित्वे ऽपि च किं फलं
What is meant by 'companion of knowledge', and what is meant by 'knower'? What is the fruit of being a companion of knowledge, and even in being a knower, what is the fruit?
व्याचष्टे यḫ पठति च शास्त्रं भोगाय शिल्पिवत् । यतते न त्व् अनुष्ठाने ज्ञानबन्धुस् स उच्यते
He who explains and recites scripture for enjoyment, like an artisan, but does not strive for practice, is called a companion of knowledge.
कर्मस्पन्देषु नो बोधḫ फलितो यस्य दृश्यते । बोधशिल्पोपजीवित्वाज् ज्ञानबन्धुस् स उच्यते
He in whom knowledge does not bear fruit in the movement of actions, who lives by the craft of knowledge, is called a companion of knowledge.
वसनाशनमात्रेण तुष्टाश् शास्त्रफलेन ये । अज्ञाञ् ज्ञानांशबन्धूंस् तान् विद्याच् छास्त्रार्थशिल्पिनः
Those who are satisfied merely with the destruction of desires and with the fruit of scripture, know them to be ignorant, companions of knowledge, artisans of the meaning of scripture.
प्रवृत्तिलक्षणे धर्मे वर्तते यश् श्रुतोचितम् । अदूरवर्तिज्ञानत्वाज् ज्ञानबन्धुस् स उच्यते
He who acts in accordance with the dharma characterized by activity, as prescribed by the scriptures, is called a 'friend of knowledge' because his understanding is not far from true knowledge.
आत्मज्ञानं विदुर् ज्ञानं ज्ञानान्य् अन्यानि यानि तु । तानि ज्ञानावभासानि सारस्यानवबोधनात्
Self-knowledge is regarded as true knowledge; all other forms of knowledge are merely reflections of knowledge, since they do not grasp its essence.
आत्मज्ञानम् अनासाद्य ज्ञानान्तरलवेन ये । सन्तुष्टाẖ कष्टचेष्टेन ते स्मृता ज्ञानबन्धवः
Those who, without attaining self-knowledge, are satisfied with fragments of other knowledge through difficult effort, are remembered as 'friends of knowledge.'
ज्ञानोदितज्ञेयविकासशान्त्या विना न सन्तुष्टधियेह भाव्यम् । त्वं ज्ञानबन्धुत्वम् उपेत्य राम रमस्व मा भोगभवामयेषु
Without the peace that arises from the expansion of what is to be known through knowledge, one should not be content in this world; having attained the state of a friend of knowledge, O Rama, delight in that, and do not indulge in pleasures born of worldly existence.
आहारार्थं कर्म कुर्याद् अनिन्द्यं कुर्याद् आहारं प्राणसन्धारणार्थम् । प्राणास् सन्धार्यास् तत्त्वजिज्ञासनार्थं तत्त्वं जिज्ञास्यं येन भूयो न दुẖखम्
One should perform actions for the sake of obtaining food, and should take food blamelessly for the maintenance of life; life should be sustained for the purpose of seeking truth, and truth should be sought so that suffering does not arise again.
ज्ञानेन ज्ञेयनिष्ठत्वाद् यो ऽचितं चितम् एव वा । न भुञ्जते कर्मफलं स ज्ञानीत्य् अभिधीयते
He who, through knowledge, is established in what is to be known, whether acquired or innate, does not experience the fruits of action; he is called a 'knower.'
ज्ञात्वा सम्यग् अनुष्ठानं दृश्यते यस्य कर्मसु । निर्वासनात्मकं ज्ञस्य स ज्ञानीत्य् अभिधीयते
He whose actions are performed with proper understanding and are seen to be free from latent tendencies is called a 'knower.'
अन्तश्शीतलतेहासु प्राज्ञैर् यस्यावलोक्यते । अकृत्रिमैव शान्तस्य स ज्ञानीत्य् अभिधीयते
He whose inner desires are cooled and whose peace is observed by the wise, and whose tranquility is natural, is called a 'knower.'
अपुनर्जन्मने यस् स्याद् बोधस् स ज्ञानशब्दभाक् । वसनाशनदा शेषा व्यवस्था शिल्पजीविका
That awareness which leads to non-rebirth is called knowledge; all else—such as the pursuit of impressions, eating, and the routines of livelihood—are mere crafts of living.
प्रवाहापतिते कार्ये कामसङ्कल्पवर्जितः । तिष्ठत्य् आकाशहृदयो यस् स पण्डित उच्यते
He whose actions have fallen into the current of inevitability, who is free from desire and conceptualization, and whose heart is as spacious as the sky—he is called wise.
अकारणं प्रवर्तन्ते इव भावा अकारणात् । अविद्यमाना अप्य् एते विद्यमाना इव स्थिताः
Phenomena seem to arise and act without cause, as if from no reason at all; though they do not truly exist, they appear as if they do.
आविर्भावतिरोभावैर् भावाभावभवाभवैः । पश्चात् कारणतां यान्ति मिथẖ कारणकर्मभिः
Through their appearance and disappearance, through being and non-being, phenomena later come to be regarded as having causes, mutually connected by causal actions.
असतश् शशशृङ्गादेर् मृगतृष्णाम्भसो ऽथ वा । आलोकनाद् अलभ्यस्य कीदृक् स्याद् अथ कारणम्
How could there be a cause for something nonexistent, like the horn of a hare or the water of a mirage? What kind of cause could there be for something that cannot be perceived?
असतश् शशशृङ्गादेẖ कारणं मार्गयन्ति ये । वन्ध्यापुत्रस्य पौत्रस्य स्कन्धम् आसादयन्ति ते
Those who seek a cause for what does not exist, like the horn of a hare, are like those who try to grasp the shoulder of the grandson of a barren woman.
असत्यप्रतिभासानाम् एतद् एवाशु कारणम् । यद् अनालोकनं नाम समालोकाक्षयक्षयम्
The immediate cause of unreal appearances is simply non-perception—that is, the absence of true seeing, which is the exhaustion of the power of perception.
परमात्मायते जीवो ऽबुध्यमानस् त्व् अचेतनम् । चेतनं बुध्यमानस् तु जीव एवावतिष्ठते
The individual soul appears as the supreme Self; when it is not aware, it is insentient, but when it is aware, it abides as the living being.
परमात्मैव जीवो ऽयं बुध्यमानस् त्व् अचेतनम् । आम्र एव रसापत्तेḫ प्रयाति सहकारताम्
The individual self is truly the supreme Self, while the intellect is insentient; just as a mango, when its juice is extracted, becomes like a citron.
चेतनं बुध्यमानस् तु जीव एवावतिष्ठते । जीवो जीवति जीर्णेषु जातिजन्मसु जर्जरः
When the intellect is conscious, it is only the individual self that abides; the individual self lives on, even as bodies decay and are born again, worn out by repeated births.
ये परां दृष्टिम् आयाता दृश्यश्रीपारदर्शिनः । न विद्यमानम् अप्य् अस्ति तेषां वेदनम् आततम्
Those who have attained the highest vision, who see through the splendor of appearances, for them, even what does not exist is not perceived at all.
ये परां दृष्टिम् आयाता विद्धि तेषाम् अपाम् इव । अरूपालोकमननं स्पन्दम् अस्पन्दनं सदा
Know that for those who have attained the highest vision, their contemplation is like water—formless, always perceiving movement and stillness as one.
ये परां दृष्टिम् आयाता विद्धि तेषाम् अपाम् इव । स्पन्दम् अस्पन्दनं सर्वम् अवेदनवशाद् इह
Know that for those who have attained the highest vision, their experience is like water—movement and stillness are all, here, due to the absence of sensation.
अरूपालोकमननं वेष्टितोन्मुक्तदामवत् । बुद्धाẖ कर्मसु चेष्टन्ते वृक्षपत्त्रेष्व् इवानिलाः
Their contemplation is formless, like a loosened string from a coil; the awakened act in the world as the wind moves among the leaves of trees.