यथा यथास्य पुंसो ऽन्तर् इच्छा समुपशाम्यति । तथा तथास्य कल्याणं मोक्षाय परिवर्धते
To the extent that a person's inner desire subsides, to that extent his well-being for liberation increases.
आत्मनो निर्विवेकस्य यद् इच्छापरिपूरणम् । संसारविषवृक्षस्य तद् एव परिषेचनम्
For one lacking discernment of the Self, the fulfillment of desire is just the watering of the poisonous tree of worldly existence.
हृद्वृक्षजास् स्वसुखदुẖखकुबीजकोश्यो वैराद् इवाशयकृताद् अशुभाच् छुभाच् च । आसाद्य दुष्कृतकृशानुशिखाश् शितान्ता इच्छाश् छमच्छमिति पुंस्पशुम् आदहन्ति
Desires, born from the tree of the heart, whose seeds are the duality of pleasure and pain, arising from good and evil intentions, having touched the sharp flames of bad actions, burn the embodied person again and again.
इच्छाविषविकारस्य प्रयोगं योगनामकम् । शान्तये शृणु भूयो ऽपि पूर्वम् उक्तम् अपि स्फुटम्
Now listen again, clearly, to the method called yoga for the pacification of the transformation of the poison of desire, though it has been stated before.
आत्मनो व्यतिरिक्तं चेद् विद्यते तद् इहेच्छया । इष्यताम् असति त्व् एवं स्वात्मान्यत्वे किम् इष्यते
If anything exists apart from oneself, let it be desired here by desire; but if there is no such otherness, what is there to desire in one's own Self?
निर्भागावयवा सूक्ष्मा व्योम्नश् शून्यतरैव चित् । सैवाहं जगद् आशाश् च सती किं तत् तयेष्यते
Consciousness, indivisible, partless, and subtler than space, is indeed I, the world, and all aspirations; when this truly is so, what remains to be desired by whom?
सा व्योमरूपा व्योम्न्य् एव वेत्तीवावेद्यवेदना । व्योमात्म जगदाभासम् अत्रेच्छाविषयो ऽस्ति कः
That which is of the nature of space, in space itself, is the knower, the known, and the knowing; when the self is space, what object of desire remains here, and what appearance of the world?
ग्राह्यग्राहकसम्बन्धẖ कुतश् चेद् इति तन् न नः । विद्यते ऽसौ प्रसक्तानां येषाम् अस्ति न वेद्मि तान्
If you ask, 'From where does the relation of the perceiver and the perceived arise?'—for us, it does not exist; it is found only among those who are entangled in it, but I do not know such people.
ग्राह्यग्राहकसम्बन्धस् स्वनिष्ठो ऽपि न लभ्यते । असतस् तु कथं लाभẖ केन लब्धो ऽसितश् शशी
Even the relation of perceiver and perceived, if sought within oneself, is not found; and how can the unreal be obtained? Who has ever grasped a black moon?
एषैव ग्राहकादीनां सत्ता यन् नाम निष्ठता । स्वभावप्रेक्षयासत्या न जाने क्व प्रयान्ति ते
This so-called existence of perceiver and the rest is merely a name for a supposed foundation; by observing its true nature, it is unreal—I do not know where they go.
एष एव स्वभावो यद् द्रष्टृदृश्यदृशो ऽखिलाः । ज्ञात्वासत्या विनिर्वाणम् अहन्तात्मनि गच्छति
This alone is the nature of all—the seer, the seen, and the seeing; knowing their unreality, one attains liberation in the Self, free from the sense of 'I'.
निर्वाणे नास्ति दृश्यादि दृश्यादौ नास्ति निर्वृतिः । मिथो ऽनयोर् अनुभवो न च्छायातपयोर् इव
In liberation, there is no seen or seer; in the seen, there is no liberation; the experience of the two is not mutual, just as shadow and sunlight do not coexist.
उभे एते मिथो ऽसत्यम् असत्यैवात्र निर्वृतिः । यतो निर्वाणम् अजरम् अदुẖखम् अनुभूयते
Both of these are mutually unreal; even liberation here is unreal, for liberation is experienced as ageless and free from sorrow.
भ्रमभूतं तु दृश्यादि नित्यानन्तसुखप्रदम् । असच् च तद् भाव्यतां मा निर्वाणे स्थीयताम् अजे
But the seen and the rest are delusion-born, though they seem to give eternal, infinite happiness; yet they are unreal—let them be considered as such, and abide in the unborn liberation.
शुक्तिकारुप्यसदृशं प्रेक्षितं यन् न लभ्यते । अर्थकार्य् अपि तन् नास्ति किम् अत्रापह्नवेन वः
Just as silver seen in a shell is not actually obtained, so too, even if desired, that thing does not exist; what need is there for denial from you?
तत्सद्भावान् महद् दुẖखम् असद्भावान् महत् सुखम् । अभावस् सोपपत्तिस् तु दृढतां याति भावनात्
From the existence of that, great sorrow arises; from its non-existence, great happiness. Non-existence, accompanied by reasoning, becomes firm through contemplation.
तत् किम् आत्मनि बन्धाय विदधध्वं नराधमाः । स्पष्ट एवोपचयदे वस्तुन्य् अस्तमितापदि
Why do you, lowest of men, impose bondage upon the self? It is clear that increase occurs only in what persists, not in what has ceased.
कार्यकारणताद्य् अस्मिन् संविन्मात्रात्मके तते । मार्गयन्त्य् अप्रबोधाद्य् एतैर् मृगैर् अलम् अस्तु नः
Let those who lack awakening search for causality and the like in this reality composed solely of consciousness; for us, let such pursuits be abandoned.
व्योमरूपे किलैकस्मिन् सर्वात्मनि तते सति । कार्यकारणताद्यानाम् उक्तीनाम् एव कẖ क्रमः
When, indeed, everything abides in the one universal self, which is like space, what order can there be in statements about causality and the like?
यो हेतुस् स्पन्दने वायोर् द्रवत्वे सलिलस्य च । शून्यत्वे नभसस् सो ऽस्य सर्गादित्वे चिदात्मनः
The cause for the movement of air, the liquidity of water, the emptiness of space—so too, for the origination of the consciousness-self, is that cause.
कार्यकारणभावादि ब्रह्मैव सकलं यदि । तदा ब्रह्मणि सर्गाणां कारणार्थी विलज्जताम्
If all states of cause and effect are nothing but Brahman, then let those seeking the cause of creation feel ashamed in Brahman.
न दुẖखम् अस्ति न सुखं शान्तं शिवमयं जगत् । नास्ति विन्मात्रतान्यत्वम् अत इच्छोदयẖ कुतः
There is neither sorrow nor happiness; the world is peaceful and full of auspiciousness. There is no otherness to pure consciousness, so whence could desire arise?
मृद्देहयोधसेनायां न मृण्मात्रेतरद् यथा । न सज्जगदहन्तादौ दृश्ये ब्रह्मेतरत् तथा
Just as in an army of clay bodies, nothing other than clay exists, so too, in the visible world of ego and otherness, nothing other than Brahman is present.
एवं चेत् तद् उदेत्व् इच्छा मा वोदेतु मुनीश्वर । सा तु ब्रह्मैव को ऽर्थस् स्याद् अस्या विधिनिषेधनैः
If this is so, O sage, let desire arise or not arise; it is only Brahman. What purpose would be served by rules or prohibitions regarding it?
ज्ञतायां सम्प्रबुद्धायाम् इच्छा ब्रह्मैव नेतरत् । यथासि बुद्धवान् राम तत् सत्यं किं त्व् इदं शृणु
When knowledge has fully awakened, desire is nothing but Brahman, not something else. As you have understood, O Rama, this is true; but listen to this further.
यदा यदा ज्ञतोदेति शाम्यतीच्छा तदा तदा । वस्तुस्वभावाद् उदयत्य् आदित्ये यामिनी यथा
Whenever knowledge arises, desire subsides at that time; just as night fades away by its own nature when the sun rises.
यथा यथोदयो ज्ञप्तेर् द्वैतशान्तिस् तथा तथा । वासनाविलयश् चैव कथम् इच्छोदयो भवेत्
As knowledge increases, duality is pacified in the same measure, and the dissolution of latent tendencies occurs; so how can the rise of desire happen?
तस्याविद्योपशान्तेयं निर्मला मुक्ततोदिता । अशेषदृश्यवैरस्याद् यस्येच्छोदेति न क्वचित्
When ignorance is quieted, this pure and liberated desire arises; but due to complete distaste for all that is seen, desire does not arise anywhere for such a one.
विरक्ततास्य नो दृश्ये न चाप्य् अत्रास्य रक्तता । केवलं ज्ञाय दृश्यश्रीस् स्वदते न स्वभावतः
He has neither attraction nor aversion to what is seen; only through knowledge does he enjoy the splendor of the visible, not by its own nature.
काकतलीययोगेन परप्रेरणयाथ वा । यदि किञ्चित् कदाचिच् च सम्यग् इच्छति वा न वा
By coincidence, by the prompting of others, or otherwise, if ever he desires something, whether rightly or not, it is only occasional.