Mahabharata 5.42: dvicatvāriṃśo'dhyāyaḥ

5.42.1

vaiśaṃpāyana uvāca |
tato rājā dhṛtarāṣṭro manīṣī saṃpūjya vākyaṃ vidureritaṃ tat |
sanatsujātaṃ rahite mahātmā papraccha buddhiṃ paramāṃ bubhūṣan || 1 ||

"Vaisampayana said, 'Then the illustrious and wise king Dhritarashtra, having applauded the words spoken by Vidura, questioned Sanat-sujata in secret, desirous of obtaining the highest of all knowledge. And the king questioned the Rishi saying, 'O Sanat-sujata, I hear that thou art of the opinion that there is no Death. Again it is said that the gods and the Asuras, practise ascetic austerities in order to avoid death. Of these two opinions, then, which is true?'

5.42.2

dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca |
sanatsujāta yadīdaṃ śṛṇomi mṛtyurhi nāstīti tavopadeśam |
devāsurā hyācaranbrahmacaryamamṛtyave tatkatarannu satyam || 2 ||

5.42.3

sanatsujāta uvāca |
amṛtyuḥ karmaṇā kecinmṛtyurnāstīti cāpare |
śṛṇu me bruvato rājanyathaitanmā viśaṅkithāḥ || 3 ||

"Sanat-sujata said, 'Some say, death is avertable by particular acts; others' opinion there is no death; thou hast asked me which of these is true. Listen to me, O king, as I discourse to thee on this, so that thy doubts may be removed. Know, O Kshatriya, that both of these are true. The learned are of opinion that death results from ignorance. I say that ignorance is Death, and so the absence of ignorance (Knowledge) is immortality. It is from ignorance that the Asuras became subject to defeat and death, and it is from the absence of ignorance that the gods have attained the nature of Brahman. Death doth not devour creatures like a tiger; its form itself is unascertainable. Besides this, some imagine Yama to be Death. This, however, is due to the weakness of the mind. The pursuit of Brahman or self-knowledge is immortality. That (imaginary) god (Yama) holdeth his sway in the region of the Pitris, being the source of bliss to the virtuous and of woe to the sinful. It is at his command that death in the form of wrath, ignorance, and covetousness, occurreth among men. Swayed by pride, men always walk in unrighteous path. None amongst them succeeds in attaining to his real nature. With their understanding clouded, and themselves swayed by there passions, they cast off their bodies and repeatedly fall into hell. They are always followed by their senses. It is for this that ignorance receives the name of death. Those men that desire the fruits of action when the time cometh for enjoying those fruits, proceed to heaven, casting off their bodies. Hence they cannot avoid death. Embodied creatures, from inability to attain the knowledge of Brahman and from their connection with earthly enjoyments, are obliged to sojourn in a cycle of re-births, up and down and around, The natural inclination of man towards pursuits that are unreal is alone the cause of the senses being led to error. The soul that is constantly affected by the pursuit of objects that are unreal, remembering only that with which it is always engaged, adoreth only earthly enjoyments that surround it. The desire of enjoyments first killeth men. Lust and wrath soon follow behind it. These three, viz., the desire of enjoyments, lust, and wrath, lead foolish men to death. They, however, that have conquered their souls, succeed by self-restraint, to escape death. He that hath conquered his soul without suffering himself to be excited by his ambitious desire, conquereth these, regarding them as of no value, by the aid of self-knowledge. Ignorance, assuming the form of Yama, cannot devour that learned man who controlled his desires in this manner. That man who followeth his desires is destroyed along with his desires. He, however, that can renounce desire, can certainly drive away all kinds of woe. Desire is, indeed, ignorance and darkness and hell in respect of all creatures, for swayed by it they lose their senses. As intoxicated persons in walking along a street reel towards ruts and holes, so men under the influence of desire, misled by deluding joys, run towards destruction. What can death do to a person whose soul hath not been confounded or misled by desire? To him, death hath no terrors, like a tiger made of straw. Therefore, O Kshatriya, if the existence of desire, which is ignorance, is to be destroyed, no wish, not even the slightest one, is either to be thought of or pursued. That soul, which is in thy body, associated as it is with wrath and covetousness and filled with ignorance, that is death. Knowing that death arises in this way, he that relies on knowledge, entertaineth no fear of death. Indeed, as the body is destroyed when brought under the influence of death, so death itself is destroyed when it comes under the influence of knowledge.'

5.42.4

ubhe satye kṣatriyādyapravṛtte moho mṛtyuḥ saṃmato yaḥ kavīnām |
pramādaṃ vai mṛtyumahaṃ bravīmi sadāpramādamamṛtatvaṃ bravīmi || 4 ||

5.42.5

pramādādvai asurāḥ parābhavannapramādādbrahmabhūtā bhavanti |
na vai mṛtyurvyāghra ivātti jantūnna hyasya rūpamupalabhyate ha || 5 ||

5.42.6

yamaṃ tveke mṛtyumato'nyamāhurātmāvasannamamṛtaṃ brahmacaryam |
pitṛloke rājyamanuśāsti devaḥ śivaḥ śivānāmaśivo'śivānām || 6 ||

5.42.7

āsyādeṣa niḥsarate narāṇāṃ krodhaḥ pramādo moharūpaśca mṛtyuḥ |
te mohitāstadvaśe vartamānā itaḥ pretāstatra punaḥ patanti || 7 ||

5.42.8

tatastaṃ devā anu viplavante ato mṛtyurmaraṇākhyāmupaiti |
karmodaye karmaphalānurāgāstatrānu yānti na taranti mṛtyum || 8 ||

5.42.9

yo'bhidhyāyannutpatiṣṇūnnihanyādanādareṇāpratibudhyamānaḥ |
sa vai mṛtyurmṛtyurivātti bhūtvā evaṃ vidvānyo vinihanti kāmān || 9 ||

5.42.10

kāmānusārī puruṣaḥ kāmānanu vinaśyati |
kāmānvyudasya dhunute yatkiṃcitpuruṣo rajaḥ || 10 ||

5.42.11

tamo'prakāśo bhūtānāṃ narako'yaṃ pradṛśyate |
gṛhyanta iva dhāvanti gacchantaḥ śvabhramunmukhāḥ || 11 ||

5.42.12

abhidhyā vai prathamaṃ hanti cainaṃ kāmakrodhau gṛhya cainaṃ tu paścāt |
ete bālānmṛtyave prāpayanti dhīrāstu dhairyeṇa taranti mṛtyum || 12 ||

5.42.13

amanyamānaḥ kṣatriya kiṃcidanyannādhīyate tārṇa ivāsya vyāghraḥ |
krodhāllobhānmohamayāntarātmā sa vai mṛtyustvaccharīre ya eṣaḥ || 13 ||

5.42.14

evaṃ mṛtyuṃ jāyamānaṃ viditvā jñāne tiṣṭhanna bibhetīha mṛtyoḥ |
vinaśyate viṣaye tasya mṛtyurmṛtyoryathā viṣayaṃ prāpya martyaḥ || 14 ||

5.42.15

dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca |
ye'smindharmānnācarantīha kecittathā dharmānkecidihācaranti |
dharmaḥ pāpena pratihanyate sma utāho dharmaḥ pratihanti pāpam || 15 ||

"Dhritarashtra said, 'In this world, some practise virtue, and some renounce action or Karma (adopting what is called Sannyasa Yoga). (Respecting those that practise virtue) I ask, is virtue competent to destroy vice, or is it itself destroyed by vice?'

5.42.16

sanatsujāta uvāca |
ubhayameva tatropabhujyate phalaṃ dharmasyaivetarasya ca |
dharmeṇādharmaṃ praṇudatīha vidvāndharmo balīyāniti tasya viddhi || 16 ||

"Sanat-sujata said, 'The fruits of virtue and of (perfect) inaction are both serviceable in that respect (i.e., for procuring emancipation). Indeed, both are sure means for the attainment of emancipation. The man, however, that is wise, achieveth success by knowledge (inaction). On the other hand, the materialist acquireth merit (by action) and (as the consequence thereof) emancipation. He hath also (in course of his pursuit) to incur sin. Having obtained again fruits of both virtue and vice which are transitory, (heaven having its end as also hell in respect of the virtuous and the sinful), the man of action becometh once more addicted to action as the consequence of his own previous virtues and vices. The man of action, however, who possesseth intelligence, destroyeth his sins by his virtuous acts. Virtue, therefore, is strong, and hence the success of the man of action.'

5.42.17

dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca |
yānimānāhuḥ svasya dharmasya lokāndvijātīnāṃ puṇyakṛtāṃ sanātanān |
teṣāṃ parikramānkathayantastato'nyānnaitadvidvannaiva kṛtaṃ ca karma || 17 ||

"Dhritarashtra said, 'Tell me, according to their gradation, of those eternal regions that are said to be attainable, as the fruits of their own virtuous acts, by regenerate persons, engaged in the practice of virtue. Speak unto me of others' regions also of a similar kind. O learned sire, I do not wish to hear of actions (towards which man's heart naturally inclineth, however interdicted or sinful they may be).'

5.42.18

sanatsujāta uvāca |
yeṣāṃ bale na vispardhā bale balavatāmiva |
te brāhmaṇā itaḥ pretya svargaloke prakāśate || 18 ||

"Sanat-sujata said, 'Those regenerate persons that take pride in their Yoga practices, like strong men in their own strength, departing hence, shine in the region of Brahman. Those regenerate persons that proudly exert in performing sacrifices and other Vedic rites, as the fruit of that knowledge which is theirs, in consequence of those acts, freed from this world, proceed to that region which is the abode of the deities. There are others, again, conversant with the Vedas, who are of opinion that the performance of the sacrifices and rites (ordained by the Vedas) is obligatory (their non-performance being sinful). Wedded to external forms, though seeking the development of the inner self (for they practise these rites for only virtue's sake and not for the accomplishment of particular aims), these persons should not be regarded very highly (although some respect should be theirs). Wherever, again, food and drink worthy of a Brahmana are abundant, like grass and reeds in a spot during the rainy season, there should the Yogin seek for his livelihood (without afflicting the householder of scanty means); by no means should he afflict his own self by hunger and thirst. In a place, where there may be both inconvenience and danger to one, for one's aversion, to disclose one's superiority, he that doth not proclaim his superiority is better than he that doth.

5.42.19

yatra manyeta bhūyiṣṭhaṃ prāvṛṣīva tṛṇolapam |
annaṃ pānaṃ ca brāhmaṇastajjīvannānusaṃjvaret || 19 ||

5.42.20

yatrākathayamānasya prayacchatyaśivaṃ bhayam |
atiriktamivākurvansa śreyānnetaro janaḥ || 20 ||

5.42.21

yo vākathayamānasya ātmānaṃ nānusaṃjvaret |
brahmasvaṃ nopabhuñjedvā tadannaṃ saṃmataṃ satām || 21 ||

The food offered by that person who is not pained at the sight of another disclosing his superiority, and who never eateth without offering the prescribed share to Brahmanas and guests, is approved by the righteous. As a dog oftentimes devoureth its own evacuations to its injury, so those Yogins devour their own vomit who procure their livelihood by disclosing their pre-eminence. The wise know him for a Brahmana, who, living in the midst of kindred, wishes his religious practices to remain always unknown to them. What other Brahmana deserveth to know the Supreme Soul, that is unconditioned, without attributes, unchangeable, one and alone, and without duality of any kind? In consequence of such practices, a Kshatriya can know the Supreme Soul and behold it in his own soul. He that regardeth the Soul to be the acting and feeling Self,--what sins are not committed by that thief who robbeth the soul of its attributes? A Brahmana should be without exertion, should never accept gifts, should win the respect of the righteous, should be quiet, and though conversant with the Vedas should seem to be otherwise, for then only may he attain to knowledge and know Brahman. They that are poor in earthly but rich in heavenly wealth and sacrifices, become unconquerable and fearless, and they should be regarded as embodiments of Brahman.

5.42.22

yathā svaṃ vāntamaśnāti śvā vai nityamabhūtaye |
evaṃ te vāntamaśnanti svavīryasyopajīvanāt || 22 ||

5.42.23

nityamajñātacaryā me iti manyeta brāhmaṇaḥ |
jñātīnāṃ tu vasanmadhye naiva vidyeta kiṃcana || 23 ||

5.42.24

ko hyevamantarātmānaṃ brāhmaṇo hantumarhati |
tasmāddhi kiṃcitkṣatriya brahmāvasati paśyati || 24 ||

5.42.25

aśrāntaḥ syādanādānātsaṃmato nirupadravaḥ |
śiṣṭo na śiṣṭavatsa syādbrāhmaṇo brahmavitkaviḥ || 25 ||

5.42.26

anāḍhyā mānuṣe vitte āḍhyā vedeṣu ye dvijāḥ |
te durdharṣā duṣprakampyā vidyāttānbrahmaṇastanum || 26 ||

5.42.27

sarvānsviṣṭakṛto devānvidyādya iha kaścana |
na samāno brāhmaṇasya yasminprayatate svayam || 27 ||

That person even, in this world, who (by performing sacrifices) succeedeth in meeting with the gods that bestow all kinds of desirable objects (on performers of sacrifices), is not equal to him that knoweth Brahman for the performer of sacrifices hath to undergo exertions (while he that knoweth Brahman attaineth to Him without such exertions). He was said to be really honoured, who, destitute of actions, is honoured by the deities. He should never regard himself as honoured who is honoured by others. One should not, therefore, grieveth when one is not honoured by others. People act according to their nature just as they open and shut their eyelids; and it is only the learned that pay respect to others. The man that is respected should think so. They again, in this world, that are foolish, apt to sin, and adepts in deceit, never pay respect to those that are worthy of respect; on the other hand, they always show disrespect to such persons. The world's esteem and asceticism (practices of Mauna), can never exist together. Know that this world is for those that are candidates for esteem, while the other world is for those that are devoted to asceticism. Here, in this world, O Kshatriya, happiness (the world's esteem) resides in worldly prosperity. The latter, however, is an impediment (to heavenly bliss). Heavenly prosperity, on the other hand, is unattainable by one that is without true wisdom.

5.42.28

yamaprayatamānaṃ tu mānayanti sa mānitaḥ |
na mānyamāno manyeta nāmānādabhisaṃjvaret || 28 ||

5.42.29

vidvāṃso mānayantīha iti manyeta mānitaḥ |
adharmaviduṣo mūḍhā lokaśāstraviśāradāḥ |
na mānyaṃ mānayiṣyanti iti manyedamānitaḥ || 29 ||

5.42.30

na vai mānaṃ ca maunaṃ ca sahitau carataḥ sadā |
ayaṃ hi loko mānasya asau mānasya tadviduḥ || 30 ||

5.42.31

śrīḥ sukhasyeha saṃvāsaḥ sā cāpi paripanthinī |
brāhmī sudurlabhā śrīrhi prajñāhīnena kṣatriya || 31 ||

5.42.32

dvārāṇi tasyā hi vadanti santo bahuprakārāṇi durāvarāṇi |
satyārjave hrīrdamaśaucavidyāḥ ṣaṇmānamohapratibādhanāni || 32 ||

The righteous say that there are various kinds of gates, all difficult of being guarded, for giving access to the last kind of prosperity. These are truth, uprightness, modesty, self-control, purity of mind and conduct and knowledge (of the Vedas). These six are destructive of vanity and ignorance.'"