17. Chapter 17 — The True Knower
Verses 1–20
17.1
अष्टावक्र उवाच — aṣṭāvakra uvāca
तेन ज्ञानफलं प्राप्तं योगाभ्यासफलं तथा ।
तृप्तः स्वच्छेन्द्रियो नित्यं एकाकी रमते तु यः ॥
tena jñānaphalaṃ prāptaṃ yogābhyāsaphalaṃ tathā ।
tṛptaḥ svacchendriyo nityaṃ ekākī ramate tu yaḥ ॥
He has gained the fruit of Knowledge as well as of the practice of Yoga, who, contented and with purified" senses,
17.2
न कदाचिज्जगत्यस्मिन् तत्त्वज्ञा हन्त खिद्यति ।
यत एकेन तेनेदं पूर्णं ब्रह्माण्डमण्डलम् ॥
na kadācijjagatyasmin tattvajñā hanta khidyati ।
yata ekena tenedaṃ pūrṇaṃ brahmāṇḍamaṇḍalam ॥
Oh, the knower of Truth is never miserable in this world, for the whole universe is filled by himself alone.
17.3
न जातु विषयाः केऽपि स्वारामं हर्षयन्त्यमी ।
सल्लकीपल्लवप्रीतमिवेभं निंबपल्लवाः ॥
na jātu viṣayāḥ ke'pi svārāmaṃ harṣayantyamī ।
sallakīpallavaprītamivebhaṃ niṃbapallavāḥ ॥
No" sense-objects ever please him who delights in Self even as the leaves of
17.4
यस्तु भोगेषु भुक्तेषु न भवत्यधिवासिता ।
अभुक्तेषु निराकांक्षी तदृशो भवदुर्लभः ॥
yastu bhogeṣu bhukteṣu na bhavatyadhivāsitā ।
abhukteṣu nirākāṃkṣī tadṛśo bhavadurlabhaḥ ॥
Rare in the world is he who does not covet ^ things which he has enjoyed or does not desire things which he has not enjoyed.
17.5
बुभुक्षुरिह संसारे मुमुक्षुरपि दृश्यते ।
भोगमोक्षनिराकांक्षी विरलो हि महाशयः ॥
bubhukṣuriha saṃsāre mumukṣurapi dṛśyate ।
bhogamokṣanirākāṃkṣī viralo hi mahāśayaḥ ॥
One desirous of worldly enjoyment and one desirous of liberation are both found in this world. But rare is the greatsouled one who is not desirous of either enjoyment or liberation.
17.6
धर्मार्थकाममोक्षेषु जीविते मरणे तथा ।
कस्याप्युदारचित्तस्य हेयोपादेयता न हि ॥
dharmārthakāmamokṣeṣu jīvite maraṇe tathā ।
kasyāpyudāracittasya heyopādeyatā na hi ॥
It is only some broad-minded person who has neither attraction for, nor aversion to, Dharma, Artba, Kama and Moksha as well as life and death.
17.7
वांछा न विश्वविलये न द्वेषस्तस्य च स्थितौ ।
यथा जीविकया तस्माद् धन्य आस्ते यथा सुखम् ॥
vāṃchā na viśvavilaye na dveṣastasya ca sthitau ।
yathā jīvikayā tasmād dhanya āste yathā sukham ॥
The man of Knowledge does not feel any desire for the dissolution of the universe or aversion to its existence. The blessed"^ one, therefore, lives happily on whatever subsistence comes as a matter of course.
17.8
कृतार्थोऽनेन ज्ञानेनेत्येवं गलितधीः कृती ।
पश्यन् शृण्वन् स्पृशन् जिघ्रन्न् अश्नन्नस्ते यथा सुखम् ॥
kṛtārtho'nena jñānenetyevaṃ galitadhīḥ kṛtī ।
paśyan śṛṇvan spṛśan jighrann aśnannaste yathā sukham ॥
Being fulfilled by this"^ Knowledge and with his mind absorbed, and contented/ the wise one lives happily, seeing, hearing, touching, smelling and eating.
17.9
शून्या दृष्टिर्वृथा चेष्टा विकलानीन्द्रियाणि च ।
न स्पृहा न विरक्तिर्वा क्षीणसंसारसागरे ॥
śūnyā dṛṣṭirvṛthā ceṣṭā vikalānīndriyāṇi ca ।
na spṛhā na viraktirvā kṣīṇasaṃsārasāgare ॥
There is no attachment ior nonattachment in one for whom the ocean of the world has dried" up. His look is vacant/ action purposeless and the senses inoperative."
17.10
न जगर्ति न निद्राति नोन्मीलति न मीलति ।
अहो परदशा क्वापि वर्तते मुक्तचेतसः ॥
na jagarti na nidrāti nonmīlati na mīlati ।
aho paradaśā kvāpi vartate muktacetasaḥ ॥
The wise one neither keeps awake nor sleeps, neither opens nor closes his eyes. Oh, the liberated soul anywhere enjoys the supreme condition.
17.11
सर्वत्र दृश्यते स्वस्थः सर्वत्र विमलाशयः ।
समस्तवासना मुक्तो मुक्तः सर्वत्र राजते ॥
sarvatra dṛśyate svasthaḥ sarvatra vimalāśayaḥ ।
samastavāsanā mukto muktaḥ sarvatra rājate ॥
The liberated person is always found abiding in Self and pure"^ in heart, and he lives freed from all desires under all conditions.
17.12
पश्यन् शृण्वन् स्पृशन् जिघ्रन्न् अश्नन् गृण्हन् वदन् व्रजन् ।
ईहितानीहितैर्मुक्तो मुक्त एव महाशयः ॥
paśyan śṛṇvan spṛśan jighrann aśnan gṛṇhan vadan vrajan ।
īhitānīhitairmukto mukta eva mahāśayaḥ ॥
Seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, eating, taking, speaking and walking, the great-souled one, free from all efforts and non-efforts, is verily emancipated.
17.13
न निन्दति न च स्तौति न हृष्यति न कुप्यति ।
न ददाति न गृण्हाति मुक्तः सर्वत्र नीरसः ॥
na nindati na ca stauti na hṛṣyati na kupyati ।
na dadāti na gṛṇhāti muktaḥ sarvatra nīrasaḥ ॥
The liberated one neither slanders nor praises, neither rejoices nor is angry,
17.14
सानुरागां स्त्रियं दृष्ट्वा मृत्युं वा समुपस्थितं ।
अविह्वलमनाः स्वस्थो मुक्त एव महाशयः ॥
sānurāgāṃ striyaṃ dṛṣṭvā mṛtyuṃ vā samupasthitaṃ ।
avihvalamanāḥ svastho mukta eva mahāśayaḥ ॥
The great-souled one is not perturbed and remains self -poised both at the sight of a woman full of love and of approaching death. He is indeed liberated.
17.15
सुखे दुःखे नरे नार्यां संपत्सु विपत्सु च ।
विशेषो नैव धीरस्य सर्वत्र समदर्शिनः ॥
sukhe duḥkhe nare nāryāṃ saṃpatsu vipatsu ca ।
viśeṣo naiva dhīrasya sarvatra samadarśinaḥ ॥
The sage who sees the same everywhere, makes no difference between happiness and misery, man and woman, and prosperity and adversity.
17.16
न हिंसा नैव कारुण्यं नौद्धत्यं न च दीनता ।
नाश्चर्यं नैव च क्षोभः क्षीणसंसरणे नरे ॥
na hiṃsā naiva kāruṇyaṃ nauddhatyaṃ na ca dīnatā ।
nāścaryaṃ naiva ca kṣobhaḥ kṣīṇasaṃsaraṇe nare ॥
In the wise one whose worldly life is exhausted and who is no longer a man, there is neither any desire to harm nor compassion, neither insolence nor humility, neither wonder nor mental disturbance.
17.17
न मुक्तो विषयद्वेष्टा न वा विषयलोलुपः ।
असंसक्तमना नित्यं प्राप्ताप्राप्तमुपाश्नुते ॥
na mukto viṣayadveṣṭā na vā viṣayalolupaḥ ।
asaṃsaktamanā nityaṃ prāptāprāptamupāśnute ॥
The liberated one neither abhors the objects of the senses nor craves them. Ever with a detached mind he enjoys the attained as well as the unattained.
17.18
समाधानसमाधानहिताहितविकल्पनाः ।
शून्यचित्तो न जानाति कैवल्यमिव संस्थितः ॥
samādhānasamādhānahitāhitavikalpanāḥ ।
śūnyacitto na jānāti kaivalyamiva saṃsthitaḥ ॥
The liberated one neither slanders nor ‘praises, neither rejoices nor is. angry, iss ASHTAVAKRA SAMBITA neither gives nor takes. He is free from attachment to all objects.
17.19
निर्ममो निरहंकारो न किंचिदिति निश्चितः ।
अन्तर्गलितसर्वाशः कुर्वन्नपि करोति न ॥
nirmamo nirahaṃkāro na kiṃciditi niścitaḥ ।
antargalitasarvāśaḥ kurvannapi karoti na ॥
Devoid of the feeling of "mineness and ^I-ness knowing for certain that nothing is, and with all his desires set at rest within, the man of Knowledge does" not act though he may be acting.
17.20
मनःप्रकाशसंमोहस्वप्नजाड्यविवर्जितः ।
दशां कामपि संप्राप्तो भवेद् गलितमानसः ॥
manaḥprakāśasaṃmohasvapnajāḍyavivarjitaḥ ।
daśāṃ kāmapi saṃprāpto bhaved galitamānasaḥ ॥
An indescribable state is attained by the sage whose mind has melted away and who is free from the display of the mind, and from delusion, dream and dullness.