जगन् नाम न चोत्पन्नं न चास्ति न च दृश्यते । हेम्नीव कटकादित्वं किम् एतन्मार्जने श्रमः
What is called the world has not arisen, does not exist, and is not seen; just as there is no bracelet-nature in gold itself, why exert oneself to remove it?
तथैतद् विस्तरेणेह वक्ष्यामो बहुयुक्तिभिः । अबाधितं यथा नूनं स्वयम् एवानुभूयते
This will be explained here in detail with many reasons, so that it is certainly realized directly and without doubt.
आदाव् एव हि नोत्पन्नं यत् तस्येहास्तिता कुतः । कुतो मरौ जलसरिद् द्वितीयेन्दौ कुतो ग्रहः
That which was not produced in the beginning—how can it exist here now? How can there be a river in a mirage, or a second moon, or a planet there?
यथा वन्ध्यासुतो नास्ति यथा नास्ति मरौ जलम् । यथा नास्ति नभोवृक्षस् तथा नास्ति जगद्भ्रमः
Just as there is no son of a barren woman, no water in a mirage, and no tree in the sky, so too there is no delusion of the world.
यद् इदं दृश्यते राम तद् ब्रह्मैव निरामयम् । एतत् पुरस्ताद् वक्ष्यामो युक्तितो न गिरैव वः
What is seen here, O Rama, is only the pure Brahman; this will be explained to you ahead by reasoning, not merely by words.
यन् नाम युक्तिभिर् इह प्रवदन्ति तज्ज्ञास् तत्रावहेलनम् अयुक्तम् उदारबुद्धेः । यो युक्तियुक्तम् अवमत्य विमूढबुद्ध्या कष्टावहो भवति तं विदुर् अज्ञम् एव
What the wise declare here with reasoning should not be disregarded by one of noble intellect; but he who, with deluded understanding, disregards what is reasonable, is known to be ignorant and brings himself suffering.
कयैतज् ज्ञायते युक्त्या कथम् एतत् प्रसिध्यति । न्याये ऽनुभूत एतस्मिन् न ज्ञेयम् अवशिष्यते
By what means is this known, and how does it become established? When this is experienced through reasoning, nothing remains to be known.
बहुकालम् इयं रूढा मिथ्याज्ञानविषूचिका । जगन्नाम्नी विचाराख्याद् ऋते मन्त्रान् न शाम्यति
This fever of false knowledge, long entrenched and called the world, does not subside except through inquiry, not by recitation of mantras.
वदाम्य् आख्यायिका राम या इमा बोधसिद्धये । ताश् चेच् छृणोषि तत् साधो मुक्त एवासि बुद्धिमान्
I shall tell you stories, Rama, which are meant for the attainment of understanding; if you listen to them, O noble one, you will indeed be liberated and wise.
नो चेद् उद्वेगशीलत्वाद् अर्धाद् उत्थाय गच्छसि । तत् तिर्यग्धर्मिणस् ते ऽद्य किञ्चिन् नापि तु सेत्स्यति
If not, due to your restless nature, you will rise and depart halfway; then today, nothing at all will come to you of the path of higher beings.
यो ऽयम् अर्थं प्रार्थयते तदर्थं यतते तथा । सो ऽवश्यं तद् अवाप्नोति न चेच् छ्रान्तो निवर्तते
Whoever desires a certain goal and strives for it accordingly, surely attains it, unless he becomes weary and turns back.
साधुसङ्गमसच्छास्त्रपरो भवसि राम चेत् । तद् दिनैर् एव नो मासैः प्राप्नोषि परमं पदम्
If you devote yourself, Rama, to the company of the virtuous and to true scriptures, then you will reach the supreme state in days, not months.
आत्मज्ञानप्रबोधाय शास्त्रं शास्त्रविदां वर । किंनाम तत् प्रधानं स्याद् यस्मिञ् ज्ञाते न शोच्यते
For awakening to self-knowledge, O best among those versed in scripture, what is that principal scripture, knowing which there is no sorrow?
आत्मज्ञानप्रधानानाम् इदम् एव महामते । शास्त्राणां परमं शास्त्रं महारामायणाभिधम्
For those whose focus is self-knowledge, O wise one, this alone is the supreme scripture among scriptures, known as the great Ramayana.
इतिहासोत्तमाद् अस्मात् परो बोधः प्रवर्तते । सर्वेषाम् इतिहासानाम् अयं सार उदाहृतः
From this supreme narrative arises a higher understanding; this is declared to be the essence of all histories.
श्रुते ऽस्मिन् वाङ्मये यस्माज् जीवन्मुक्तत्वम् अक्षतम् । उदेति स्वयम् एवात इदम् एवातिपावनम्
Because in this scripture, the state of liberation while living is described intact, it is supremely pure, arising naturally from itself.
स्थितम् एवास्तम् आयाति जगद् दृश्यं विचारणात् । यथा स्वप्ने परिज्ञाते स्वप्नार्थाद् एव भावना
Through inquiry, the visible world, though appearing to persist, comes to an end—just as, upon recognizing a dream, the imagined objects of the dream vanish.
यद् इहास्ति तद् अन्यत्र यन् नेहास्ति न तत् क्वचित् । इमं समस्तविज्ञानशास्त्रकोशं विदुर् बुधाः
Whatever exists here exists elsewhere; what does not exist here exists nowhere. The wise know this as the treasury of all the sciences of knowledge.
य इदं शृणुयान् नित्यं तस्योदारचमत्कृतेः । बालस्यापि परं बोधं बुद्धिर् एति न संशयः
Whoever listens to this daily, even a child, attains the highest understanding and a mind of noble wonder—of this there is no doubt.
यस्मै नेदं त्व् अभव्याय रोचते दुष्कृतोदयात् । विचारयतु यत् किञ्चित् स शास्त्रं ज्ञानवाङ्मयम्
If this does not appeal to someone whose mind is unprepared due to past misdeeds, let him study whatever scripture of knowledge he wishes.
जीवन्मुक्तत्वम् अस्मिंस् तु श्रुते समनुभूयते । स्वयम् एव यथा पीते नीरोगत्वं वरौषधे
In this scripture, the state of liberation while living is directly experienced, just as health is experienced upon drinking a supreme medicine.
श्रूयमाणे हि शास्त्रे ऽस्मिञ् श्रोता वेत्त्य् एतद् आत्मना । यथावद् इदम् अस्माभिर् न तूक्तं वरशापवत्
For, when this scripture is heard, the listener knows this by himself; we have not spoken this arbitrarily, like a curse or a boon.
शाम्यति संसृतिदुःखम् इदं ते स्वात्मविचारमहाकथयैव । नो धनदानतपश्श्रुतवेदैस् तत्कथनोज्झितयत्नशतेन
This suffering of worldly existence is pacified only by the great discourse of self-inquiry; not by wealth, charity, austerity, study of the Vedas, nor by hundreds of other efforts devoid of such inquiry.
तच्चित्तास् तद्गतप्राणा बोधयन्तः परस्परम् । कथयन्तश् च तन् नित्यं तुष्यन्ति रमयन्ति ये
Those whose minds are thus absorbed, whose life-breath is fixed therein, who awaken one another and speak of that always—such people rejoice and delight.
तेषां ज्ञानैकनिष्ठानाम् आत्मज्ञानविचारणात् । सा जीवन्मुक्ततोदेति विदेहोन्मुक्ततैव या
For those established solely in knowledge, through investigation into self-knowledge, arises that very state of liberation while living, which is also called disembodied liberation.
ब्रह्मन् विदेहमुक्तस्य जीवन्मुक्तस्य लक्षणम् । ब्रूहि येन तथैवाहं यते शास्त्रदृशा धिया
O Brahman, describe the characteristics of one liberated while living and one liberated after death, so that I may likewise strive, guided by the vision of scripture and reason.
यथास्थितम् इदं यस्य व्यवहारवतो ऽपि च । अस्तङ्गतं स्थितं व्योम स जीवन्मुक्त उच्यते
He for whom this world, though engaged in activity, remains as vanished and abiding as space—he is called liberated while living.
बोधैकनिष्ठतां यातो जागर्त्य् एव सुषुप्तवत् । य आस्ते व्यवहर्तैव स जीवन्मुक्त उच्यते
He who has attained steadfastness in knowledge, who remains awake even as in deep sleep, who simply abides and acts—he is called liberated while living.
नोदेति नास्तम् आयाति सुखे दुःखे मुखप्रभा । यथाप्राप्तस्थितेर् यस्य स जीवन्मुक्त उच्यते
He whose radiance of face does not rise or set in happiness or sorrow, who remains as he is, whatever comes—he is called liberated while living.
यो जागर्ति सुषुप्तस्थो यस्य जाग्रन् न विद्यते । यस्य निर्वासनो बोधस् स जीवन्मुक्त उच्यते
He who is awake while abiding in deep sleep, for whom waking does not exist, whose awareness is without impressions—he is called liberated while living.