(English Translation of Vairagya Satakam - kind contribution of Ms Rajani Arjun Shankar)
1. Shiva, the lamp
of wisdom, resides gloriously in the house of the hearts of Yogis. This lamp shines with the flickering rays of
the beautiful moon that has been made a crest-jewel, and glows auguring
welfare. It effortlessly burnt the fickle moth called Manmatha. It dispels the
dense mass of darkness of infinite delusion germinating in the mind.
2. Those who
understand are envious. Those who are rich are corrupted by pride. Others are
overpowered by ignorance. So, good speech is digested within (for want of good
listeners).
3. The earth’s
surface was dug expecting a treasure. The mountain’s minerals were mined. The
oceans were crossed and kings pleased with effort. Nights were spent at the
cremation ground, with the mind intent on chanting Mantras (which are very
effective there). (Despite all these) not a broken shell–coin was gained by me.
O Greed! Leave me now.
4. Inaccessible,
rugged terrains were roamed about, but with no gain. Giving up rightful pride
in (my) birth and lineage, I served (others) to no avail. I ate in strangers’
homes with apprehension, like a crow. O Greed, taking pleasure in sinful deeds!
You are unsatisfied as yet and open your mouth wider.
5. The
deceitful words of the wicked were tolerated somehow by those (of us) eager to
worship them; holding back tears inside and laughing with a vacant mind (was
done). The mind was steadied and even salutations were made to those with
limited intelligence. O Greed, hoping in vain! Will you make me dance even
further now?
6. For the sake of
this life, transient like water on lotus-leaf, what has not been done by us who
are bereft of discernment? For, in the presence of rich men whose hearts are
insensitive due to the arrogance of wealth, even lauding our own virtues was
done unabashedly.
7. We endured
(slights etc.) but not because of a forgiving nature. We gave up domestic
bliss, but not contentedly. The difficulties of extreme heat, cold and winds
were suffered, but not as austerities. Day and night, with bated breath, we
contemplated on wealth, not on the feet of Shiva. We did all those actions
which ascetics perform, but have been deceived of the fruits.
8. It
wasn’t pleasures being enjoyed, but we who were devoured. No austerities were
practised, yet we were scorched. It wasn’t time that was spent, but it was we
who were spent . Desire has not withered, but we have wasted away.
9. The face is covered with wrinkles; the head is marked by grey hair;
the limbs have become infirm. Desire alone remains youthful.
10. The desire for
pleasures has vanished. The manly pride has disappeared. Friends of the same age, dear as life, have
reached heaven. Getting up is slow and with a staff. The eyes are blinded by
dense darkness. Alas! Yet the insubordinate body trembles at the danger posed
by death.
11. Desire
is, indeed, a river, with the objects of desire for its water, agitated by the
waves in the form of hankerings, having for sharks the passions, and for birds
the misgivings (of the heart), destroying the tree of fortitude, difficult to
cross on account of eddies in the form of infatuation, very deep and having
anxiety for its steep (lit. high) banks; the great ascetics of pure heart, who
have crossed it (the river), enjoy felicity.
12. I do not
expect the course of life in this world to turn out happy; the result of
meritorious deeds inspires me with fear as I contemplate it; for, enjoyments,
long experienced in return for accumulated stores of merit, assume mighty
proportions to make the enjoyer miserable, as it were.
13. Even
after remaining with one for a long time pleasures must needs vanish. What more
is there in pleasures tearing themselves off from one, that one does not of
one’s own accord relinquish them? When vanishing of their own accord, they end
in keen anguish for the mind; but when relinquished by one’s own will, they
produce infinite happiness proceeding from tranquility.
14. Those,
who, by the knowledge of Brahman, have acquired discrimination and possess a
refined intellect, do what is hard to do, in that they renounce riches even
such as contribute to pleasures, being absolutely unselfish: (these) were
neither obtained before, nor are they now; nor is there any certainty (lit.
firm belief,) as to their attainment; and still we are not able to renounce
them, although their possession (lit. desire) is only a matter of imagination.
15. Of the
blessed persons who dwell in the caves of mountains and contemplate the Supreme
Light, birds drink the tears of delight, fearlessly resting on their laps: our
life on the other hand, is being wasted, (as) we enjoy the delight of sports in
the pleasure gardens adjoining the walls of mansions reared up by our
imagination.
16. Alas!
the mind does not give up (its longing) for carnal pleasures even when one has
to eat food obtained by begging, and that too unsubstantial and once (only in a
day); when one has the earth for a couch, and only one’s self for an attendant,
and when one’s raiment is a wallet of a hundred threadbare rags (stitched
together).
17. The
breasts which are fleshy protuberances are compared to golden jars; the mouth
which is the receptacle of phlegm is likened to the moon; the hips ------(are
described as) rivalling the head of an elephant king. Mark how the despicable
form (of a woman) has been heightened (cried up) by a certain class of poets.
18. Among
passionate persons stands conspicuous Siva alone, who took for himself half the
body of his beloved, (and yet) to whom there is none superior among
passion-renouncing men, as one who has given up his attachment to women; the
rest of the people, smitten with the poison of the cobra-like and irresistible
shafts of love, and therefore maddened, are able neither to enjoy nor to reject
pleasures, which are rendered (mere) objects of mockery by the God of Love.
19. Let a
moth fall upon the flame of a lamp not knowing its power; let the fish through
ignorance bite the baited flesh; but even we that know better do not give up
sensual objects which are complicated with a net of difficulties. Alas! how
mysterious is the influence of infatuation!
20. The
removal of pain man wrongly considers as happiness itself – when the mouth is
parched with thirst, he drinks sweet and fragrant water; when oppressed with
hunger, he swallows rice mixed with vegetable and other condiments: and when
the fire of love is kindled he clasps his wife closely.
21. A tall
mansion, children appreciated by good people, countless treasures, a caring
wife and youthful age: seeing these, a man deluded by ignorance, considering
the world permanent, enters the prison of worldly life. The blessed man,
realizing that all these are momentary, renounces them.
22. If he did not see his
poor wife, emaciated without food, with hungry, crying children with pitiable
faces tugging at her worn-out garment, which self-respecting man would, for the
sake of the accursed stomach, seek charity with words broken or partly
swallowed in the throat, choking due to fear of rejection of his request.
23. The pot
that is the stomach, impossible to fill, mocks at us. It is skilled at cutting
the knot of high dignity, that is held dear. It is the clear, bright moonlight
to the lotuses of superior virtues (causing them to wilt). It is the axe
lopping the creeper of modesty that grows thickly.
24. Fortunate is
the self-respecting man who, living in a holy city or big forest, whose
environs are greyed with the smoke of the fire worshipped by Brahmins filled
with righteousness, goes door to door to fill the pit of his stomach when
hungry, taking a begging bowl covered with white cloth. But a poor man living
everyday amidst those of equal rank, is not so (fortunate).
25. Are the abodes in the Himalayas, cool with
the spray from the waves of Ganga, with delightful slabs of rocks where
Vidyadharas reside, become extinct, that men are attached to food given by
others along with insults.
26 Have tubers become extinct in mountain caves, or streams
from mountains? Have branches bearing juicy fruits and covered with bark (which
can be worn), perished entirely from trees, that the faces of evil men whose
civility has left them and whose creeper-like eyebrows sway with the wind of
pride at hard-earned meager wealth, are looked upon earnestly.
27. Arise, dear friend, let us go to the forest, where there
is not even a mention of the names of rich and powerful people, who are petty,
whose minds are deluded with lack of discernment, and whose speech is slurred
due to the effect of the disease called wealth. Take up now the desirable way
of living with holy fruits and roots, sleeping on the ground and wearing fresh
barks – all plentifully there.
28. Fruits of trees can be obtained in every forest easily,
when one wishes. At every place there is cool, sweet water of sacred rivers
available and so is a bed made of delicate tender leaves of creepers, soft to
the touch. Even so, petty men endure suffering at the doorstep of the rich.
29. In the breaks of my meditation, seated on the stone-bed
in the cave of a mountain, with a smile blossoming inside, I think of those
days which seemed long to (me who was) a person undergoing the suffering of
making entreaties before the wealthy, and which seemed short to (me) the person
whose mind is caught and tossed about by desire for sense pleasures.
30. The happiness of those always rejoicing in contentment,
is not broken (by it). The desire of others, whose minds are agitated by greed
for wealth, has not been quenched (by it). Thus, to what purpose was such an
abode of wealth made by the creator? Meru, the glory of whose gold serves only
itself, does not appeal to me.
31. The food got by
begging causes no indignity, is independent, removes fear, destroys envy,
arrogance and desire, and annihilates a flood of sorrows. It is available with
no effort everywhere, every day, is preferred by good people and is pure. Great
Yogis laud it as the charity house of Shiva, with inexhaustible store and
denied to none.
32. Fear of disease
lurks in enjoyment of pleasures, fear of a fall from grace, in noble birth.
Wealth is closely followed by fear of the king, self-respect by fear of poverty
and power by fear of enemies. Beauty brings about fear of old age and learning
brings the fear of debates (and defeat). Virtue results in fear of the wicked,
and the body has the fear of death. Every object in this world is beset with
fear. Only renunciation of desires causes fearlessness.
33. Birth is
affected by death and sparkling youth with old age. Contentment is overrun by
greed and the bliss of quietude by the attractions of young women. Virtues are
troubled by ill-natured people. Forests are infested with serpents (and other
wild beasts) and kings with wicked people. Glories are afflicted by
impermanence. What is not under the grip of some other thing?
34. The health of a
man is eroded by hundreds of mental and physical afflictions. Where there is
wealth, calamities rush in as if the doors are opened (for them). Death quickly
and certainly claims every helpless creature as its own. What then has been
created by the unrestrained Creator to be stable?
35. Pleasures are
ephemeral like the breaking of tall waves. Life can be destroyed in a second.
The joy of youth lasts only a few days. Affection for loved ones is unsteady.
Thus seeing the whole of worldly existence to be meaningless, O wise teachers,
with minds that softened with (the intent of) bestowing welfare upon the world,
devote (your) efforts (to enlighten people accordingly).
36. To all embodied
creatures, enjoyments of sense pleasures are fickle like flashes of lightning
amidst the canopy of clouds. Their life is unstable like water clinging to the
row of clouds buffeted by the wind. Indulgence of youth is transient. O wise men!
Reckoning these, swiftly apply your minds to oneness (with the divine) which is
easy to attain with steadfastness and meditation.
37. Life is
ever-moving like a wave. The beauty of youth stays but a few days. Wealth is
fleeting like thoughts, and the multitude of pleasures are like the flashes of
lightning during the rains. Even the embrace given by the beloved does not
remain for long. Let your minds be affixed on the Brahman, to cross over to the
shores of the ocean of fear from worldly existence.
38. With bodies
constricted, men have to remain in the womb with difficulty amidst impurities.
In youth, enjoyment is difficult due to the misfortune of separation from the
beloved. Surely old age is disagreeable, since the contempt of women is
evident. Oh men! Pray tell me if there is even an iota of happiness in this
world.
39. Old age stands
(ready to pounce) like a tigress. Diseases, like enemies, attack the body.
Lifespan ebbs away like water from a broken pot. It is a wonder that men still
practise what is improper.
40. The many
pleasures are temporary in nature, yet worldly life is made up only of them. So
to what end do you wander about, O men? Enough of your (aimless) activities! If
you have faith in our words, let the mind, made pure by cessation of desires
and attachments, be established in its own (inner) abode, when desires have
been uprooted.
41. That
indescribable pleasure shines as supreme and eternal, abiding in which, one
considers even (the gods like) Brahma, Indra and the Maruts to be blades of
grass, savouring which, even powers like sovereignty of the three worlds become
tasteless. O Good man, do not hanker
after other pleasures, which are transient.
42. That charming
city, the great king, the circle of vassals, that assembly of scholars and
those beautiful ladies with moon-like faces, that group of haughty princes, the
bards and their narratives : salutations to Time, by whose power, all this is
reduced to memories.
43. Where in a
single house (or square) there were many, there is only one; where there was
one, later there were many and none finally : in this manner, rolling day and
night as if they were two dice, Kala (Time) plays with his wife Kali, on the
gameboard of the world, with the living beings as pawns.
44. With the
setting and rising of the sun, every day, life becomes shorter; the (passage
of) time in not realized due to one’s daily affairs, with the pressing burden
of many activities; even after seeing birth, old age, calamities and death, no
fear is born; the world is rendered senseless, having drunk the intoxicating
wine of delusion.
45. Thinking that
it is the same night and the same day again and again, ignorant beings run
about, engaged in various activities started with secret resolves. In this
manner, with affairs of (merely) repetitive sense pleasures, we are belittled
by worldly life, but how indeed, due to delusion, are we not ashamed!
46. The feet of the
Lord were not contemplated (by us) for severing the worldly bonds. Religious
merit, capable of throwing open the doors of heaven, was not acquired. Even in
our dreams, the well-endowed forms of beautiful women were not embraced. We
have simply been the axes that cut down the forest of youth of our mother.
47. Learning that
can subdue an assembly of debaters, was not acquired. Fame was not raised to
the heavens, with the sword’s edge that breaks open the forehead of (enemy)
elephants. The nectar of the tender shoot-like lip of the beloved was not
partaken of, at moonrise. Alas! Like a lamp in an unoccupied house, youth has
passed away without purpose.
48. Learning that
is blemish-free was not obtained; wealth was not earned; service to parents,
with an attentive mind, was not secured; young women with tremulous, long eyes
were not embraced even in dreams. All this time has been spent craving for food
from others, like crows.
49. Those from whom
we were born, are long gone. Those who grew up together (with us), have reached
a state where they are only to be remembered. Now, here we are, our fall
drawing closer, sharing the same state as that of trees on the sandy banks of a
river.
50. The lifespan of
men is limited to a hundred years. Half of it is spent as night. Of the
remaining half, one half goes in childhood and old age and the rest is spent in
servitude etc., along with sorrows due to disease and separation. In this life
that is more capricious than the waves in water, where is there any happiness
for living beings?
51. For an instant,
he plays a child, and in another, a youth delighting in love; in one moment he
is bereft of wealth, and in another, full of riches. Like an actor, at the end
of worldly existence, a man steps behind the curtains of Yama’s abode, his
limbs worn out with age, and his body adorned with wrinkles.
52. O One who
subjugates enemies! You are the king, while we stand tall in the pride of the
enlightenment obtained by serving the master. You are celebrated for your
powers, while poets spread our fame in all directions. Thus, there isn’t much
of a difference between us. If you are indifferent to us, we too are completely
free of desire (of any favour from you).
53. You rule over
riches, and we too over words with their meanings. You are brave, while we have
infinite expertise in the act of checking the feverish pride of debaters. Rich
men serve you, while those eager to listen (to my teachings) serve me, to rid
themselves of the impurities of the heart. If you have no regard for me, it is
more so for me. Here I leave, O King!
54. Here we are
content with bark garments, and you with silks. The contentment is the same and
so, the difference (between us) is insignificant. He whose desire is vast, may
be called poor. When the mind is content, who is rich and who is poor?
55. Sweet fruits
are enough to eat, and water to drink.
The surface of the earth is the bed, while tree-barks are garments. I
cannot bear to allow the impropriety of wicked men whose senses are all
agitated by drinking the wine of new riches.
56. We subsist on
alms, wear the directions as garments and recline on the earth’s surface. What
do we have to do with kings?
57. We are not
actors, jesters or singers. Nor those whose minds are set on harming others, or
well-endowed women. What place do we have in a king’s palace?
58. The world was
created in earlier times by some large-hearted blessed ones; it was protected
by others, and conquered and then given away by others, as it were a blade of
grass. Again, there are others here, who lord over the fourteen worlds. What
indeed is this feverish haughtiness of men having obtained kingship over a few
towns?
59. What pride is
there to kings, in gaining some part of earth, which has not been left
unenjoyed even for a second, by hundreds of kings? Ignorant ones who become
lords of a fraction of a fraction of a small part of it, rejoice when they
should feel dejected.
60. The earth is a
clod of mud surrounded by water. It is but an atom (in the universe). It is
enjoyed by multitudes of kings after gaining it with hundreds of battles. Those
mean, poor kings may or may not give anything. Fie then upon those lowly men
who desire from them, even a small measure of wealth.
61. He alone is
born (i.e. his birth is fruitful) whose white skull was placed as an ornament,
high on His head, by Shiva. What indeed is this unequalled feverish pride in
men, now that a few people, intent on saving their lives, supplicate to them.
62. Alas, O heart!
Why do you enter a thicket of sorrow, propitiating and pleasing minds of others
in many ways, day after day ? When you are inwardly tranquil, with the
qualities of the Chintamani gem arising in you by themselves, will not your
resolve, free (from desire), satisfy all your wishes?
63. O Mind! Why do
you wander in vain? Rest somewhere. Whatever happens by itself, will happen
that way, and not any other. Not remembering the past and not making plans for
the future, enjoy the pleasures whose coming and going are unexpected.
64. O Mind! Desist
from the maze of sense objects, which are tiresome. Reach the path of welfare,
that is adept at removing all sorrows in a trice. Giving us your movement that
is fickle as a wave, take up a peaceful stance. Do not again seek enjoyment in
this transient worldly existence. Be tranquil now!
65. O Mind! Wipe
away delusion. Acquire that (supreme) devotion towards Shiva. Embrace residence
in the banks of the divine river, Ganga. What faith can one have in waves,
bubbles, flashes of lightning, women, the tips of flames, snakes and the
currents of rivers?
66. O Mind! Do not
think at all, of Lakshmi, the fickle one, with hope. She is a venal woman who
tends to sport in the house that is the frown of kings. Clad in rags, entering
the gates of the houses in the streets of Varanasi, we shall seek alms falling
in the vessel of our palms.
67. O Mind! Music
before you, charming poets from the South beside you, and the playful tinkling
of the bracelets of women holding flywhisks behind you- if it is so, you may
desire to enjoy worldly pleasures. If not, enter into the highest state of
contemplation of the Brahman, immediately.
68. If riches that
grant all desires are obtained, what thence? What if one’s foot is placed on the heads of foes? What thence,
once all one’s favoured people are honoured with riches? If mortals could
remain with their bodies for an entire Kalpa, what then? (What permanent good
is gained from wealth, victory, charity and longevity?)
69. Devotion to
Shiva, fear of (repeated) birth and death in the heart, lack of attachment to
relatives, absence of agitations caused by Manmatha, a secluded forest free of
defects of social contact and detachment :
What more is to be desired than these?
70. Therefore,
meditate on the Brahman, that is infinite, ageless, supreme and resplendent.
What is the use of false notions? To one associated with the Brahman, all
pleasures from sovereignty onwards, are considered to be aspirations of petty
people.
71. O Mind! With
your fleeting nature, you enter the netherworld, you traverse the sky and
wander around all the directions. How is it that, even by mistake, you do not
remember that Supreme Being, beneficial to oneself, by which you can attain
fulfillment.
72. Of what avail are the Vedas, Smrtis, reading
of Puranas, and the Shastras of vast elaboration? What is the use of
ritualistic actions that delude us, and procure a hut to dwell in the village
called heaven? Apart from that one attainment of the state of bliss in the
self, which is the apocalyptic fire to the sorrows created by the bondages of
worldly existence, the rest are mere trading activities.
73. When the
glorious Meru falls, struck by the apocalyptic fire, when oceans, homes to
multitudes of sharks and alligators, dry up and when the earth supported by the
feet of mountains, reaches her end, what is to be said about the body, that is
as unsteady as tip of a calf elephant’s ear?
74. (In old age)
the body is shrunk, the gait falters, the row of teeth has fallen off, vision
is lost, deafness increases, and the mouth slavers. His family disregards his
words and his wife does not serve him; alas! Even his son turns hostile towards
the aged man.
75. Seeing the
white colour of the hair on the head of men, the sight of disgrace caused by
old age, young ladies go away leaving them afar, as they would a well used by
outcastes, mounted with pieces of bones.
76. While the body
is healthy and free of ailments, while
old age is far away, while the power of the senses is unaffected, while life is
not yet in decline, an intelligent person should take great efforts for his
spiritual welfare then. Of what use is the attempt to dig a well, when the
house is ablaze?
77. Shall we reside
by the Ganga, practicing penance, or attend submissively upon a wife who is
filled with virtues? Shall we drink from the flood of Shastras, or the
nectar-like essence of various poetic works? Given that man has a lifespan that
is just a few moments, we do not know what to do.
78. These kings,
with minds as fleeting as horses, are hard to please; but we have huge desires,
and minds set on high positions. Old age and death covet the body and dear life
respectively. O friend! There is nothing apart from penance that can confer
welfare to a wise one in this world.
79. When pride
fades, wealth is reduced, alms-seekers are turned back with nothing, relatives
have diminished, servants have left and youth has slowly ebbed away, this is
the only right thing for wise people to do : reside somewhere in an alcove of a
cave, in a mountain whose rocks are purified by the waters of the Ganga.
80. Charming are
the rays of the moon; charming is the grassy clearing in the forest; the joy of
association with good people and friends is delightful; the narratives in
poetic works are delightful; the face of the beloved agitated by teardrops
caused by anger, is beautiful. All these are enjoyable, but nothing is so when
the mind has realized (their) impermanence.
81. Is a palace not
delightful to reside in? Are not music etc. pleasant to hear? Is not the joy of
the company of one’s wife, dear as life, cause for much pleasure? But
considering all these to be as fickle as the shadow of the small flame, that is
flickering in the wind raised by the wings of the moth falling excitedly upon
it, great men have (left these and) gone away to the forest.
82. O friend! Even
while searching the three worlds, from the time the worldly existence began,
such a person has not come within our sight or hearing, who has the capacity to
fetter the mind-elephant, mad with deep attachment to the she-elephant of sense
pleasures.
83. This wandering
at will, this meal free of pitiful situations, living in the company of noble
people, learning whose single fruit is the vow of self-restraint, a mind that
is slow to stir out – even after reflecting for long, I know not what great
penance has resulted in these.
84. Desires have
worn away in the heart; that youth (when those desires were fresh) is gone.
Alas! The virtues in our limbs have become fruitless, due to lack of those who
appreciate them. The mighty, unforgiving Yama, causing the end, shall come
suddenly. What is proper now? Ah, it is known (to me) – there is no other
refuge, except the twin-feet of Shiva, the lord who punished Manmatha.
85. Between
Mahesvara, the Lord of the worlds and Janardana, the in-dwelling spirit of the
universe, I have no conception of any difference; still, my devotion is unto
Him whose crest-jewel is the crescent moon.
86. Seated at ease
on the sandy bank of the celestial river Ganga, that shines white in the
bright, abundant moonlight, in the nights with quietened sounds, when shall we,
repelled by the vastness of worldly existense, loudly chanting the name of
Shiva, have eyes overflowing with copious tears born of joy ?
87. Having donated
all wealth, with hearts filled with tender compassion, recalling the courses of
fate, that result in worthless ends in the worldly existence, we shall spend
nights filled with the autumn full moon’s rays, in some sacred forest,
meditating on the feet of Shiva being our only recourse.
88. When shall I,
dwelling on the banks of the divine river in Varanasi, pass days as if there
were seconds, wearing only a loin-cloth, my hands folded above the head, crying out “ O
Shambhu, Lord of Gauri ! O Destroyer of the three cities ! O Three-eyed one! Be
pleased! “.
89. O Lord,
destroyer of Manmatha! Bathing in the waters of the Ganga, worshipping you with
pure flowers and fruits, fixing my mind on the thing worth contemplating (i.e.
you) on a bed of stone in a mountain cave, abiding blissfully in the self,
living on fruits, delighting in the words of my master, when shall I, with your
grace, give up the sorrow born of servitude to a rich man, whose feet carry the
Makara sign (of prosperity)?
90. O Sambhu, when
shall I, living all alone, devoid of desires, peaceful, and having for only my
hand as a vessel (to beg) and the quarters as clothing, be able to root out
Karma?
91. The
indescribable path (to salvation), easily attainable with the grace of Shiva,
opens up to Yogis, whose hands serve as vessels, who are content with begged
food which is naturally pure, who sit anywhere, who constantly look at world as
if it was a lot of grass, and who have reached the experience of infinite,
great bliss, even without giving up the body.
92. The loincloth
that is frayed in a hundred places; a garment that’s similar, food obtained by
begging, that is free from worry and dependence, sleep in a cremation ground; a
mind that is very pure, treating friend and foe alike: with these, a Yogi stays
happily in a place devoid of people, rejoicing that all pride and errors are
destroyed.
93. Will this small
circle of universe cause any desire in one who has conquered his mind? Will the
ocean become agitated with the quivering of a tiny fish?
94. Mother Lakshmi!
Seek someone else, and do not be inclined towards me. We are not desirous of
pleasures, and who are you to desireless people (you are nobody)? We wish only
for subsistence with coarse meals got by begging, made holy by placing in a
vessel of stitched Palasha leaves.
95. With the earth
being an agreeable bed, the creeper-like arm a large pillow, the sky as canopy,
the favourable breeze being a fan, the moon being a lustrous lamp, rejoicing
with detachment as his wife, with plenty of ash smeared on himself, the ascetic
sleeps happily and peacefully, like a king who has enormous wealth.
96. There could be a (rare) Yogi , living by
begging, free of attachment even amidst people, with restrained movements,
practising the path that is devoid of giving and taking, wearing a frayed
garment made of discarded torn clothes in the streets, bereft of pride and ego,
wanting only the vast bliss of tranquility.
97. “Is he an
outcaste? A twice-born? One of the fourth caste? Is he an ascetic or a most
eminent Yogi, with an intellect capable of discerning the truth?” – discussed
thus by people, talking glibly due to speculations arising (in their minds),
the Yogis go their way, neither irked nor pleased at heart.
98. Air has been ordained by the Creator as food
for serpents, that is got without effort and violence. Cattle eat grass and lie
upon the (bare) earth. Such a way of living is made (available) to people with
the intellectual capability to cross the ocean of worldly existence, seeking
which, all natural attributes reach an end (being transcended).
99. When will those
blessed days be experienced by me, where old deer fearlessly rub their bodies
on mine (to relieve their itch), as I go into a Yogic trance with the practice
of meditation on the Supreme Being, seated in Padmasana, on a rock of the
Himalayas on the banks of the Ganga?
100. The blessed
ones, who have renounced the multitude of actions resulting from inner poverty,
who are content within themselves as a result of accepting solitude, whose
hands serve as a sacred bowl, whose food is the undiminishing alms obained
while wandering, whose clothes are the vast ten directions and whose pure,
spacious bed is the earth, (they) root out Karma (thus ending the cycle of
births)
101. O Mother Earth! O Wind, my Father! O Fire, my friend! O Water, my good relative! O Sky, my Brother! Here is my final salutation to you, with joined palms. Your association has led to abundant merits, resulting from which, shining pure knowledge has swept away the entire might of delusion. I now unite with the Supreme Being.
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