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.
तद् अस्य सेच्छानिच्छा च ब्रह्मैवात्र न संशयः । इच्छायां ज्ञायते ज्ञस्यावश्यम् एव तु तानवम्
Therefore, both his desire and absence of desire are verily Brahman here—of this there is no doubt; in desire, one recognizes that for the knower, attenuation is inevitable.
ज्ञता चेद् उदिता जन्तोस् तद् इच्छास्योपशाम्यति । नैतयोस् स्थितिर् एकत्र प्रकाशतमसोर् इव
If the knower arises in a being, then his desire subsides; the two do not remain together in one place, just as light and darkness do not.
प्रतिषेधविधीनां तु तज्ज्ञो न विषयẖ क्वचित् । शान्तसर्वैषणेच्छस्य को ऽस्य किं वक्ति किंकृते
The one who knows is never subject to injunction or prohibition; for one whose all cravings and desires are pacified, who can say what, or for what purpose?
एतद् एव ज्ञताचिह्नं यद् इच्छास्व् अतितानवम् । ह्लादनं सर्वलोकानाम् अथानुदय एव वा
This alone is the mark of the knower: that his desires are exceedingly attenuated, bringing delight to all beings, or even not arising at all.
दृश्यं विरसतां यातं यदा न स्वदते क्वचित् । तदा नेच्छा प्रसरति तदैव च विमुक्तता
When the visible world has become insipid and is no longer enjoyed anywhere, then desire does not arise, and at that very moment, there is liberation.
बोधाद् अनैक्यम् अद्वैतं यश् शान्तम् अवतिष्ठते । इच्छानिच्छादयस् सर्वे भावास् तस्य शिवात्मकाः
He who abides in the nondual, tranquil state, undivided from awareness, for him all states such as desire and aversion are of the nature of auspiciousness.
बोधाद् अस्तमितद्वैतम् अद्वैताद् ऐक्यवर्जितम् । यस् स्वच्छो विगतव्यग्रश् शान्त आत्मन्य् अवस्थितः
He whose duality has ceased through awareness, who is free from even the unity of nonduality, who is clear, unagitated, and established in the Self—
नैव तस्य कृतेनार्थो न सता नासता सदा । न चात्मना न चान्येन नैतैर् मरणजीवितैः
For him, there is no purpose in what is done, nor in what exists or does not exist, nor in himself, nor in another, nor in these—death and life.
इच्छा च तस्य नोदेति निर्वाणस्य प्रबोधिनः । यदि वोदेति तत् स्वच्छा ब्रह्म शाश्वतम् एव सा
Desire does not arise in one awakened to nirvana; if it does arise, it is pure, eternal Brahman itself.
न दुẖखम् अस्ति न सुखं शान्तं शिवम् अजं जगत् । इति यो ऽन्तश् शिलेवास्ते तं प्रबुद्धं विदुर् बुधाः
There is no sorrow, no happiness; the world is peaceful, auspicious, unborn. Whoever abides inwardly in this, like a stone, is known by the wise as awakened.