Chapter 2 (25 verses)

 CHAPTER TWO

जनक उवाच

Janaka spoke

अहो निरञ्जनः शान्तो बोधोऽहं प्रकृतेः परः।

एतावन्तमहं कालं मोहेनैव विडम्बितः ॥२-१॥

Aha! I am taintless, peaceful, and of the form of knowledge.

I am beyond the inert-state (of the body).

All this time, I was getting deceived as it were by the delusion.

यथा प्रकाशयाम्येको देहमेनं तथा जगत् ।

अतो मम जगत्सर्वमथवा न च किंचन ॥२-२॥

Just like I alone reveal the body (through the senses),

 so is the entire world revealed by me (through the senses).

Therefore, this whole world is mine (as my Knowledge-shine);

or nothing at all (since it is imagined by the mind).

सशरीरमहो विश्वं परित्यज्य मयाधुना ।

कुतश्चित् कौशलादेव परमात्मा विलोक्यते ॥२-३॥

   

Discarding now the entire Vishva along with the body,

(as mind-created only)

the Supreme Self gets seen by me with some subtle talent only

(as a subtle understanding).

यथा न तोयतो भिन्नास्तरङ्गाः फेनबुद्बुदाः ।

आत्मनो न तथा भिन्नं विश्वमात्मविनिर्गतम् ॥२-४॥

The waves, foam and bubbles are not different from the ocean waters.

This Vishva which is shining forth from me,

is not different from the Self.

तन्तुमात्रो भवेदेव पटो यद्वद्विचारितः ।

आत्मतन्मात्रमेवेदं तद्वद्विश्वं विचारितम् ॥२-५॥

When analyzed well through the thinking process,

the cloth gets understood as threads only.

When the Vishva gets analyzed well through the thinking process,

it is understood as made of just Self alone.

(Knowledge-bits interwoven)

यथेवेक्षुरसे क्लृप्ता तेन व्याप्तैव शर्करा ।

तथा विश्वं मयि क्लृप्तं मया व्याप्तं निरन्तरम् ॥२-६॥

The sweetness of the sugar

pervades the entire juice extracted from the sugarcane.

The Vishva which is extracted out of me

is pervaded by me all over, without a gap.

आत्माऽज्ञ्नानाज्जगद्भाति आत्मज्ञ्नानान्न भासते ।

रज्ज्वज्ञ्नानादहिर्भाति तज्ज्नानाद्भासते न हि ॥२-७॥

The world shines when bereft of the Knowledge of the Self.

It does not shine when endowed with the Knowledge of the Self.

The snake is seen because of not knowing the rope.

When the rope is understood, the snake does not get seen.

प्रकाशो मे निजं रूपं नातिरिक्तोऽस्म्यहं ततः ।

यदा प्रकाशते विश्वं तदाहं भास एव हि ॥२-८॥

My real form is the shine of this world alone.

I am not different from this world.

When the world shines like this (as all names and forms),

  I alone actually shine as all this (as their knowledge).

अहो विकल्पितं विश्वमज्ञ्नानान्मयि भासते ।

रूप्यं शुक्तौ फणी रज्जौ वारि सूर्यकरे यथा ॥२-९॥

The world shines in me

as a perturbation tainted by superimpositions because of ignorance,

 like the silver in the conch-shell,

 like the serpent in the rope, like the water in the hot sun of the desert.

मत्तो विनिर्गतं विश्वं मय्येव लयमेष्यति ।

मृदि कुम्भो जले वीचिः कनके कटं यथा ॥२-१०॥

The world shines out of me; and dissolves into me only,

 like the pot into the clay, the wave into the water, the bangle-shape into the gold.

(The Knowledge shines out as the objects of the world; and getting understood by me, they dissolve into me again.)

अहो अहं नमो मह्यं विनाशो यस्य नास्ति मे ।

ब्रह्मादिस्तम्बपर्यन्तं जगन्नाशोऽपि तिष्टतः ॥२-११॥

Aha! The wondrous ‘I’! Salutation to me!

(There is no other Supremacy other than me!)

There is no destruction for me at all.

Even when the entire world from Brahmaa to the pillar perishes,

I stay as I am.

(Everything is an object of knowledge with the beginning and end as its innate nature.

I who know them, have no beginning or end.

Everything can rise up and fall down like waves in an ocean.

‘I’ the ocean of Consciousness never can cease to be.)

अहो अहं नमो मह्यं एकोऽहम् देहवानपि ।

क्वचिन्न गन्ता नागन्ता व्याप्य विश्वमवस्थितः ॥२-१२॥

Aha! The wondrous ‘I’! Salutation to me!

I am one only, though with a body (called Vishva).

(The entire world is a pot-body of Brahman, known as Viraat).

I do not go anywhere; nor arrive anywhere;

and stay pervading the entire Vishva.

अहो अहं नमो मह्यं दक्षो नास्ति मत्समः ।

असंस्पृश्य शरीरेण येन विश्वं चिरं धृतम् ॥२-१३॥

Aha! The wondrous ‘I’! Salutation to me!

 There is no one as talented as me

(because)

I do not touch anything with my body (which is formless shine only);

yet hold the world for ever (as its support).

अहो अहं नमो मह्यं यस्य मे नास्ति किंचन ।

अथवा यस्य मे सर्वं यद्वाङ्ग्मनसगोचरम् ॥२-१४॥

Aha! The wondrous ‘I’! Salutation to me!

Nothing belongs to me! (There is nothing that is separate from me).

Or, rather everything seen by the mind and speech is mine.

(I am all; and all the names and forms are mine.)

ज्ञ्नानं ज्ञ्नेयं तथा ज्ञ्नाता त्रितयं नास्ति वास्तवम् ।

अज्ञ्नानाद्भाति यत्रेदं सोऽहमस्मि निरञ्जनः ॥२-१५॥

The knowledge of the object, the object known, and the Knower of the object;

this tri-fold unit is not real at all.

(It exists because of delusion.)

Where everything of this world shines forth because of ignorance,

 I stay taintless.

द्वैतमूलमहो दुःखं नान्यत्तस्याऽस्ति भेषजम् ।

दृश्यमेतन्मृषा सर्वं एकोऽहं चिद्रसोऽमलः ॥२-१६॥

Alas! Suffering rises from the idea of duality.

There is no medicine to cure it at all.

The ‘perceived’ is unreal.

I am the one taintless essence of Knowledge-consciousness.

बोधमात्रोऽहमज्ञ्नानादुपाधिः कल्पितो मया ।

एवं विमृशतो नित्यं निर्विकल्पे स्थितिर्मम ॥२-१७॥

I am of the form of Knowledge alone.

I have conceived superimpositions through ignorance.

When I stay in this realized state through Vichaara,

 I stay always in the unperturbed Knowledge state.

न मे बन्धोऽस्ति मोक्षो वा भ्रान्तिः शान्तो निराश्रया ।

अहो मयि स्थितं विश्वं वस्तुतो न मयि स्थितम् ॥२-१८॥

I have no bondage; no liberation; or delusion.

I am the tranquil state which does not need any other support.

Aha! The world stays in me only;

or rather, it does not exist in me at all (since it is unreal).

सशरीरमिदं विश्वं न किंचिदिति निश्चितम् ।

शुद्धचिन्मात्रात्मा च तत्कस्मिन्कल्पनाधुना ॥२-१९॥

I have understood for sure that this Vishva, along with the body

is nothing at all (and made of sheer emptiness).

I am the pure consciousness as my essence.

Why should I falsely imagine something in it (as a world)?

शरीरं स्वर्गनरकौ बन्धमोक्षौ भयं तथा ।

कल्पनामात्रमेवैतत् किं मे कार्यं चिदात्मनः ॥२-२०॥

The body made of elements;

the heaven and hell as rewards for my actions;

the bondage and liberation states;

 fear of the worldly existence and the future births;

all these are just imaginations only.

What have I to do with them, as I am of the nature of pure Knowledge only?

(I know of the body as an object of Knowledge only; but I am not the body.

Heaven and hell are my imaginations only.

As I am not the doer of any action, I do not experience heaven or hell as rewards of my actions.

I am not bound; I do not get liberated.

I have no fear of the ‘perceived’ for it is just the Knowledge that shines forth from me. Jeeva-ness is also just an imagination only. I am just the changeless state of pure consciousness.)

अहो जनसमूहेऽपि न द्वैतं पश्यतो मम ।

अरण्यमिव संवृतं क्व रतिं करवाण्यहम् ॥२-२१॥

Aha! I cannot see any duality even when in the midst of a crowd of people.

Everything looks like a stretch of forest without anyone.

What attraction can I have for anything?

नाहं देहो न मे देहो जीवो नाहमहं हि चित् ।

अयमेव हि मे बन्ध आसीद्या जीविते स्पृहा ॥२-२२॥

I am not the body. (Knowledge has no form).

I do not own a body.

 (Knowledge does not own anything it knows. It is all.)

I am not a Jeeva.

(Knowledge of Delusion alone shines as Jeeva.)

I am Chit (the essence of all Knowledge)!

This alone was my bondage, that I was attached to the life (believing it to be real).

{MIND IS TO BE BROUGHT UNDER FULL CONTROL}

अहो भुवनकल्लोलैर्विचित्रैर्द्राक् समुत्थितम् ।

मय्यनम्तमहाम्बोधौ चित्तवाते समुद्यते ॥२-२३॥

I am the endless stretch of Knowledge-ocean.

When the mind-storm blows, alas,

varied forms of turbulent waves rise up in me, immediately (as perceived objects).

मय्यनम्तमहाम्बोधौ चित्तवाते प्रशाम्यति ।

अभाग्याज्जीव​वणिजो जगत्पोतो विनश्वरः ॥२-२४॥

I am the endless stretch of Knowledge-ocean.

When the mind-storm quietens down,

the ship called the world belonging to the Jeeva-merchant,

perishes in the ocean as if by misfortune.

मय्यनम्तमहाम्बोधावाश्चर्यं जीववीचयः ।

उद्यन्ति घ्नन्ति खेलन्ति प्रविशन्ति स्वभावतः ॥२-२५॥

I am the endless stretch of Knowledge-ocean.

It is amazing that the Jeeva-waves

 rise up, hit each other, jump wildly, and fall back into the ocean,

by the very nature of the ocean.

(Ashtaavakra continues his instructions to remove some lingering subtle Vaasanaas in the king’s inner mind.)