सम्पश्यतीतरान् कश्चिद् बहीरूपेण चिद्घनान् । सर्वगत्वाद् अनाशत्वाद् दृश्यबीजस्य वै चितेः
Someone perceives other forms externally as dense masses of consciousness, since consciousness is all-pervading, indestructible, and the seed of all that is seen.
अन्तर् एवाखिलं कश्चित् पश्यत्य् अविकलं जगत् । तत्रातिकालं कलनाद् उन्मज्जति निमज्जति
Another sees the entire world within, without any division; there, through the calculation of time, one rises and sinks.
स्वप्नात् स्वप्नान्तरं तत्र तथा पश्यन् पुनः पुनः । मिथ्यावटेषु लुठितश् शिलेव शिखरच्युता
There, repeatedly seeing one dream after another, tossed about in false realms like a stone fallen from a mountain peak.
केचित् सम्मीलिताः केचिद् आत्मन्य् एव भ्रमे स्थिताः । मग्नास् स्वसंविद्रसतस् स्फुरन्तो देहिषण्डकाः
Some are closed off, some remain in confusion within themselves; immersed in their own awareness, the clusters of embodied beings shine forth.
स्वयम् अन्तः प्रपश्यन्ति ये जगज्जीवसम्भ्रमम् । तैः कैश्चित् तत् तथा दृश्यम् असत्स्वप्नवद् आश्रितम्
Those who themselves perceive inwardly the commotion of the world and living beings, for some among them, that is seen as unreal, like a dream.
सर्वात्मत्वात् स्वभावस्य तद् दृश्यं सत्यम् आत्मनि । सर्वगो विद्यते यत्र तत्र सर्वम् उदेति हि
Because the nature of all is universal, what is seen is true within oneself; wherever the all-pervading exists, there everything arises.
जीवान्तः प्रतिभासस्य सर्गस्य पुनर् अन्तरे । जीवषण्ड उदेत्य् उच्चैस् तस्यान्तर् इतरो ऽपि च
Within the living being, in the midst of the appearance of creation, the cluster of living beings rises up strongly, and within it, another also arises.
जीवान्तर् जायते जीवस् तस्यान्तर् अपि जीवकः । सर्वत्र रम्भादलवज् जीवबीजं प्रजीवति
Within a living being, another living being arises; within that, yet another lives. Everywhere, like the layers of a plantain leaf, the seed of life continues to sprout.
दृश्यबुद्धिपरावृद्धि समम् एतद् अनन्तकम् । हेम्नीव कटकादित्वं परिज्ञप्त्यैव नश्यति
The growth and decline of perceptual understanding occur together, endlessly; just as gold takes the form of ornaments, so too, through mere conceptualization, it ceases.
विचारो यस्य नोदेति को ऽहं किम् इदम् इत्य् अलम् । तस्याद्यन्ताविमुक्तो ऽसौ दीर्घो जीवज्वरभ्रमः
For one in whom inquiry does not arise—'Who am I? What is this?'—the long delusion of the fever of life, unbounded by beginning or end, persists.
विचारः फलितस् तस्य विज्ञेयो यस्य सन्मतेः । दिनानुदिनम् आयाति तानवं भोगगृध्नुता
For one whose discernment has matured and whose understanding is established, the craving for enjoyment diminishes day by day.
यथा देहोपयुक्तं हि करोत्य् आरोग्यम् औषधम् । तथेन्द्रियजये न्यस्तो विवेकः फलितो भवेत्
Just as medicine, when properly used for the body, produces health, so discernment, when applied to mastery of the senses, yields its fruit.
विवेको ऽस्ति वचस्य् एव चित्रे ऽग्निर् इव भासुरः । यस्य तेन परित्यक्ता दुःखायैव विवेकिता
Discernment exists only in speech, shining like a bright fire; for one who abandons it, discernment brings only suffering.
यथा स्पर्शेन पवनस् सत्ताम् आयाति नो गिरा । तथेच्छातानवेनैव विवेको ऽस्येति बुध्यते
Just as wind is known by touch and not by words, so discernment is recognized by the lessening of desire.
चित्रामृतं नामृतम् एव विद्धि चित्रानलं नानलम् एव विद्धि । चित्रे ऽङ्गना नूनम् अनङ्गनैव वाचा विवेकस् त्व् अविवेक एव
Know that the nectar in a painting is not real nectar; know that the fire in a painting is not real fire. In a painted woman, there is truly no woman; by words, discernment is merely non-discernment.
पूर्वं विवेकेन तनुत्वम् एति रागो ऽथ वैरं च समूलम् एव । पश्चात् परिक्षीयत एव यत्र स पावनस् तत्र विवेकितास्ति
First, by discernment, attachment and enmity are weakened at their root; later, they are completely eliminated—where this purification occurs, there true discrimination exists.
अथोत्पत्तिप्रकरणाद् अनन्तरम् इदं शृणु । स्थितिप्रकरणं राम ज्ञातं निर्वाणकारि यत्
Now, after the section on origination, listen to this, O Rama: the section on sustenance, which, when known, leads to liberation.
चिद्घनैकघनात्मत्वाज् जीवान्तर् जीवजातयः । कदलीदलवत् सन्ति कीटा इव नरोदरे
Because the essence of consciousness is one solid mass, the various types of living beings exist within it, like layers in a plantain stem or insects within a man's body.
यो यो राम यथा ग्रीष्मे कल्कस्वेदाद् भवेत् क्रिमिः । तत्तन्नाम तथा चित्त्वात् खं जीवीभवति स्वतः
Just as, O Rama, in the summer, worms arise from sweat and filth, so too, from the mind, beings spontaneously take on various forms and names.
यथा यथा यतन्ते ते जीवकास् स्वात्मसिद्धये । तथा तथा भवन्त्य् आशु विचित्रोपासनक्रमैः
As these living beings strive for realization of their own true nature, so, in accordance with their diverse practices, they quickly attain various results.
देवान् देवयजो यक्षयजो यक्षान् व्रजन्ति हि । ब्रह्म ब्रह्मयजो यान्ति यद् अतुच्छं तद् आश्रयेत्
Those who worship the gods become gods; those who worship yakshas become yakshas; those who worship Brahman attain Brahman—one attains that which is not trivial, which one truly seeks.
स शुक्रो भृगुपुत्रो हि निर्मलत्वात् स्वसंविदः । बद्धः प्रथमदृष्टेन दृश्येनाशु स्वभावतः
Shukra, the son of Bhrigu, due to the purity of his own awareness, was bound at first by what was seen, but quickly, by his very nature, became free.
अभिजातापरिम्लाना बाला यत् प्रथमं पुरः । संवित् प्राप्नोति तद्रूपा भवत्य् अन्या न काचन
Whatever form pure, untainted awareness first attains in the case of noble or undeveloped children, that alone becomes their nature; no other form arises.
जाग्रत्स्वप्नदशाभेदं भगवन् वक्तुम् अर्हसि । कथं च जाग्रज् जाग्रत् स्यात् स्वप्नो ऽजाग्रत् कथं भवेत्
O Lord, you should explain the distinction between the waking and dream states; and how does waking become waking, and how does dream become not-waking?
स्थिरप्रत्यययुक्तं यत् तज् जाग्रद् इति कथ्यते । अस्थिरप्रत्ययं यत् स्यात् स स्वप्नस् समुदाहृतः
That which is accompanied by steady conviction is called waking; that which is accompanied by unsteady conviction is declared to be dream.
जाग्रच् चेत् क्षणदृष्टं स्यात् स्वप्नः कालान्तरस्थितः । तज् जाग्रत् स्वप्नताम् एति स्वप्नो जाग्रत्त्वम् ऋच्छति
If what is seen for a moment in waking persists at another time, then that waking takes the form of dream, and the dream attains the nature of waking.
जाग्रत्स्वप्नदशाभेदो न स्थिरास्थिरतां विना । समस् सदैव सर्वत्र समस्तानुभवो ऽनयोः
The distinction between waking and dream does not exist apart from steadiness or unsteadiness; in both, the experience of all is always essentially the same everywhere.
यद् एव स्थिरताम् एति तज् जाग्रद् इति कथ्यते । क्षणभङ्गात्मकस् स्वप्नो यथा भवति तच् छृणु
Whatever attains steadiness is called waking; now listen to how dream is of the nature of momentary dissolution.
जीवधातुश् शरीरे ऽन्तर् विद्यते येन जीव्यते । तेजो वीर्यं जीवधातुर् इत्याद्यभिधम् अङ्ग तत्
Within the body there is the vital essence by which one lives; this vital essence, called 'tejas' or 'vīrya', is referred to as the life-principle, O dear one.
व्यवहारी यदा कायो मनसा कर्मणा गिरा । भवेत् तदा स सम्पन्नो जीवधातुः प्रसर्पति
When the body acts in the world through mind, action, or speech, then the vital essence flourishes and spreads.