Chapter 1 ॥ प्रथभोऽध्याम्॥

Chapter 1
॥ प्रथभोऽध्याम्॥जनक उवाच ॥
कथ ं ऻानभवाप्नोतत कथ ं भतुिबतभवष्यतत ।
वयै ाग्म ं च कथ ं प्राप्त ं एतद ्ब्रतू ह भभ प्रबो ॥ १-१॥
janaka uvāca
kathaṁ jñānamavāpnoti kathaṁ muktirbhaviṣyati
vairāgyaṁ ca kathaṁ prāptaṁ etad brūhi mama prabho
Janaka: How is knowledge to be acquired? How is liberation to
be attained? And how is dispassion to be reached? Tell me this,
sir.
अष्टावक्र उवाच ॥
भतुिं इच्छतस चत्ते ात तवषमान त्वषवत्त्यज ।
ऺभाजवभ दमातोषसत्य ं ऩीमषू वद ्बज ॥ १-२॥
aṣṭāvakra uvāca
muktiṁ icchasi cettāta viṣayān viṣavattyaja
kṣamārjavadayātoṣasatyaṁ pīyūṣavad bhaja
Ashtavakra: If you are seeking liberation, my son, shun the
objects of the senses like poison. Practise tolerance, sincerity,
compassion, contentment and truthfulness like nectar.
न ऩथ्वृ ी न जरं नातिन भवामर्द्यु ौन भवा बवान ।्
एषा ं सातऺणभात्मान ं तचद्रूऩ ं तवति भिु म े॥ १-३॥na pṛthvī na jalaṁ nāgnirna vāyurdyaurna vā bhavān
eṣāṁ sākṣiṇamātmānaṁ cidrūpaṁ viddhi muktaye 1.3
You do not consist of the elements - earth, water, fire, air or even
ether. To be liberated, know yourself as consisting of
consciousness, the witness of these.
मतद दहे ं ऩथृ क ्कृत्य तचतत तवश्राम्य ततष्ठतस ।
अधनु वै सखु ी शान्तो फन्धभिु ो बतवष्यतस ॥ १-४॥yadi dehaṁ pṛthak kṛtya citi viśrāmya tiṣṭhasi
adhunaiva sukhī śānto bandhamukto bhaviṣyasi
If only you will remain resting in consciousness, seeing yourself
as distinct from the body, then even now you will become happy,
peaceful and free from bonds. 1.4
न त्वं तवप्रातदको वणो नाश्रभी नाऺगोचय् ।
असङ्गोऽतस तनयाकायो तवश्वसाऺी सखु ी बव ॥ १-५॥na tvaṁ viprādiko varṇo nāśramī nākṣagocaraḥ
asaṅgo'si nirākāro viśvasākṣī sukhī bhava
You do not belong to the brahmin or any other caste, you are not
at any stage, nor are you anything that the eye can see. You are
unattached and formless, the witness of everything - so be
happy.
धभाधभ भौ सखु ं दु्ख ं भानसातन न त े तवबो ।
न कतातभस न बोिातस भिु एवातस सवदभ ा ॥ १-६॥dharmādharmau sukhaṁ duḥkhaṁ mānasāni na te vibho
na kartāsi na bhoktāsi mukta evāsi sarvadā
Righteousness and unrighteousness, pleasure and pain are
purely of the mind and are no concern of yours. You are neither
the doer nor the reaper of the consequences, so you are always
free.
एको द्रष्टातस सवस्यभ भिु प्रामोऽतस सवदभ ा ।
अमभवे तह त े फन्धो द्रष्टायं ऩश्मसीतयभ ॥् १-७॥eko draṣṭāsi sarvasya muktaprāyo'si sarvadā
ayameva hi te bandho draṣṭāraṁ paśyasītaram
You are the one witness of everything, and are always
completely free. The cause of your bondage is that you see the
witness as something other than this.
अहं कतेत्यहंभानभहाकृष्णातहदंतशत् ।
नाहं कतते त तवश्वासाभतृ ं ऩीत्वा सखु ी बव ॥ १-८॥ahaṁ kartetyahaṁmānamahākṛṣṇāhidaṁśitaḥ
nāhaṁ karteti viśvāsāmṛtaṁ pītvā sukhī bhava
Since you have been bitten by the black snake, the opinion about
yourself that "I am the doer", drink the antidote of faith in the
fact that "I am not the doer", and be happy.
एको तवशिु फोधोऽहं इतत तनश्चमवतिना ।
प्रज्वाल्याऻानगहन ं वीतशोक् सखु ी बव ॥ १-९॥eko viśuddhabodho'haṁ iti niścayavahninā
prajvālyājñānagahanaṁ vītaśokaḥ sukhī bhava
Burn down the forest of ignorance with the fire of the
understanding that "I am the one pure awareness", and be happy
and free from distress.
मत्र तवश्वतभद ं बातत कतित ं यज्जसु ऩवभ त ।्
आनन्दऩयभानन्द् स फोधस्त्व ं सखु ं बव ॥ १-१०॥yatra viśvamidaṁ bhāti kalpitaṁ rajjusarpavat
ānandaparamānandaḥ sa bodhastvaṁ sukhaṁ bhava
That in which all this appears - imagined like the snake in a rope,
that joy, supreme joy and awareness is what you are, so be
happy.
भिु ातबभानी भिु ो तह फिो फिातबभान्यतऩ ।
तकंवदन्तीह सत्यमे ं मा भतत् सा गततबवभ ते ॥् १-११॥muktābhimānī mukto hi baddho baddhābhimānyapi
kiṁvadantīha satyeyaṁ yā matiḥ sā gatirbhavet
If one thinks of oneself as free, one is free, and if one thinks of
oneself as bound, one is bound. Here this saying is true,
"Thinking makes it so".
आत्मा साऺी तवब्ु ऩणू भ एको भिु तश्चदतक्रम् ।
असंगो तन्स्पृह् शान्तो भ्रभात्संसायवातनव ॥ १-१२॥ātmā sākṣī vibhuḥ pūrṇa eko muktaścidakriyaḥ
asaṁgo niḥspṛhaḥ śānto bhramātsaṁsāravāniva
Your real nature is as the one perfect, free, and actionless
consciousness, the all-pervading witness - unattached to
anything, desireless and at peace. It is from illusion that you
seem to be involved in samsara.
कू टस्थ ं फोधभद्वतै भात्मान ं ऩतयबावम ।
आबासोऽहं भ्रभ ं भक्त्वु ा बाव ं फाह्यभथान्तयभ ॥् १-१३॥kūṭasthaṁ bodhamadvaitamātmānaṁ paribhāvaya
ābhāso'haṁ bhramaṁ muktvā bhāvaṁ bāhyamathāntaram
Meditate on yourself as motionless awareness, free from any
dualism, giving up the mistaken idea that you are just a
derivative consciousness, or anything external or internal.
दहे ातबभानऩाशने तचयं फिोऽतस ऩत्रु क ।
फोधोऽहं ऻानखगं ने त्तनकृत्य सखु ी बव ॥ १-१४॥dehābhimānapāśena ciraṁ baddho'si putraka
bodho'haṁ jñānakhaṁgena taḥnikṛtya sukhī Bhava
You have long been trapped in the snare of identification with
the body. Sever it with the knife of knowledge that "I am
awareness", and be happy, my son.
तन्संगो तनतिमोऽतस त्वं स्वप्रकाशो तनयंजन् ।
अमभवे तह त े फन्ध् सभातधभनतुतष्ठतत ॥ १-१५॥niḥsaṁgo niṣkriyo'si tvaṁ svaprakāśo niraṁjanaḥ
ayameva hi te bandhaḥ samādhimanutiṣṭhati
You are really unbound and actionless, self-illuminating and
spotless already. The cause of your bondage is that you are still
resorting to stilling the mind.
त्वमा व्याप्ततभदं तवश्व ंत्वतम प्रोत ं मथाथतभ ् ।
शिु फिु स्वरूऩस्त्व ं भा गभ् ऺद्रु तचत्तताभ ॥् १-१६॥tvayā vyāptamidaṁ viśvaṁ tvayi protaṁ yathārthataḥ
śuddhabuddhasvarūpastvaṁ mā gamaḥ kṣudracittatām
All of this is really filled by you and strung out in you, for what
you consist of is pure awareness - so don't be small minded.
तनयऩऺे ो तनतवकभ ायो तनबयभ ् शीतराशम् ।
अगाधफतुियऺब्धु ो बव तचन्मात्रवासन् ॥ १-१७॥nirapekṣo nirvikāro nirbharaḥ śītalāśayaḥ
agādhabuddhirakṣubdho bhava cinmātravāsanaḥ
You are unconditioned and changeless, formless and immovable,
unfathomable awareness and unperturbable, so hold to nothing
but consciousness.
साकायभनतृ ं तवति तनयाकायं त ुतनश्चरं ।
एतत्तत्त्वोऩदशे ने न ऩनु बवभ सबं व् ॥ १-१८॥sākāramanṛtaṁ viddhi nirākāraṁ tu niścalam
etattattvopadeśena na punarbhavasaṁbhavaḥ
Recognise that the apparent is unreal, while the unmanifest is
abiding. Through this initiation into truth you will escape falling
into unreality again.
मथवै ादशभभ ध्यस्थ ेरूऩऽे न्त् ऩतयतस्त ुस् ।
तथवै ाऽतिन श् यीयऽे न्त् ऩतयत् ऩयभश्वे य् ॥ १-१९॥yathaivādarśamadhyasthe rūpe'ntaḥ paritastu saḥ
tathaivā'smin śarīre'ntaḥ paritaḥ parameśvaraḥ
Just as a mirror exists everywhere both within and apart from its
reflected images, so the Supreme Lord exists everywhere within
and apart from this body.
एकं सवगभ त ंव्योभ फतहयन्तमथभ ा घटे ।
तनत्य ं तनयन्तयं ब्रह्म सवबभ तू गण े तथा ॥ १-२०॥
ekaṁ sarvagataṁ vyoma bahirantaryathā ghaṭe
nityaṁ nirantaraṁ brahma sarvabhūtagaṇe tathā
Just as one and the same all-pervading space exists within and
without a jar, so the eternal, everlasting God exists in the totality
of things.