Bhagavatapurana 10.87: atha saptaśītitamo'dhyāyaḥ

10.87.1

/0 śrī-parīkṣid uvāca
brahman brahmaṇy anirdeśye nirguṇe guṇa-vṛttayaḥ /
kathaṃ caranti śrutayaḥ sākṣāt sad-asataḥ pare //

Śrī Parīkṣit said:
O brāhmaṇa, in Brahman, which is undefinable, devoid of qualities, and beyond cause and effect,
how do the Vedic scriptures, whose operations deal with qualities, function directly?

Parikshit said:— O sage, how could the Srutis that speak of the gunas and their products be said to do their function directly in respect of Brahman (the Supreme Being) who is destitute of all qualities, who cannot be defined and who is therefore far beyond the range of things perceptible, to be the cause or effect— (O sage, be pleased to remove this doubt in my mind, for thou hast indicated that the Vedas wholly declare Parabrahman.)

10.87.2

/0 śrī-śuka uvāca
buddhīndriya-manaḥ-prāṇān janānām asṛjat prabhuḥ /
mātrārthaṃ ca bhavārthaṃ ca ātmane 'kalpanāya ca //

Śrī Śuka said:
The Lord created the intellect, senses, mind, and vital breaths of living beings
for experiencing sense objects, for rebirth, and for the self's attainment of liberation.

2. Sri Suka said:—The Lord created the intellect, the senses, the mind and the vital breaths for providing the Jivas with objects, for bringing about their birth and life of activites, for their enjoyments in various regions and for obtaining salvation.

10.87.3

saiṣā hy upaniṣad brāhmī pūrveśāṃ pūrva-jair dhṛtā /
śrraddhayā dhārayed yas tāṃ kṣemaṃ gacched akiñcanaḥ //

Indeed, this is that sacred secret taught by the ancients to their predecessors;
whoever maintains it with faith, possessing nothing, attains supreme peace.

3. This is indeed the secret essence of the Vedas referring to Brahman, treasured up in their minds by our most ancient seers; He who with faith keeps it alive in his mind will be rid of all (sin) and attain to final beatitude.

10.87.4

atra te varṇayiṣyāmi gāthāṃ nārāyaṇānvitām /
nāradasya ca saṃvādam ṛṣer nārāyaṇasya ca //

Here I shall narrate to you an ancient narrative connected with Nārāyaṇa,
and the conversation between Nārada and the sage Nārāyaṇa.

4. On this subject, I shall fully give thee an ancient traditional account which refers to Narayana, and it is the conversation between Narada and Narayana in the form of a sage.

10.87.5

ekadā nārado lokān paryaṭan bhagavat-priyaḥ /
sanātanam ṛṣiṃ draṣṭuṃ yayau nārāyaṇāśramam //

Once, Nārada, dear to the Lord, wandering through the worlds,
went to Nārāyaṇa's hermitage to see the eternal sage,

5. Once, as he was going about the worlds, Narada, beloved of the Almighty Lord, was eager to see Narayana and paid a visit to His Asrama.

10.87.6

yo vai bhārata-varṣe 'smin kṣemāya svastaye nṛṇām /
dharma-jñāna-śamopetam ā-kalpād āsthitas tapaḥ //

who indeed in this realm of Bhārata, for the welfare and good fortune of humanity,
endures austerity endowed with dharma, knowledge, and inner calm until the end of the cosmic age.

6. In this Bharatavarsha, for the well-being and prosperity (and moksha) of men Narayana, in the form of a sage, performs tapas throughout this Kalpa, exemplifying (perfect in) righteousness, wisdom and tranquility of mind.

10.87.7

tatropaviṣṭam ṛṣibhiḥ kalāpa-grāma-vāsibhiḥ /
parītaṃ praṇato 'pṛcchad idam eva kurūdvaha //

Having bowed, he asked this very question, O best of the Kurus,
to him who sat there surrounded by the sages residing in Kalāpa village.

7. O best of Kurus, Narada bowed to Narayana who was seated there (in the Asrama) in the midst of the Rishis, the residents of the village of Kalapa, and urged this very question (for solution).

10.87.8

tasmai hy avocad bhagavān ṛṣīṇāṃ śṛṇvatām idam /
yo brahma-vādaḥ pūrveṣāṃ jana-loka-nivāsinām //

To him, while the sages listened, the Lord spoke this,
which was a discourse on Brahman among the ancients residing in Janaloka.

8. In reply to him the Almighty Narayana related, Rishis listening, this account which was a Vedic discussion, (in relation to Para-Brahman) held by the ancient sages (Sanandana and others) who abode in Jana loka.

10.87.9

/0 śrī-bhagavān uvāca
svāyambhuva brahma-satraṃ jana-loke 'bhavat purā /
tatra-sthānāṃ mānasānāṃ munīnām ūrdhva-retasām //

The Lord said:
O son of the Self-born, formerly in Janaloka there was a sacrifice of Vedic study
among the mind-born sages residing there, who observed lifelong celibacy.

9. The Lord said:— O son of Brahma, formerly a Brahma-satra was held in the Janaloka among the sages that dwell there in eternal celibacy (Brahmasatra is an assembly of wise and learned men all of equal capacity that amuse themselves with debate in relation to the Veda).

10.87.10

śvetadvīpaṃ gatavati tvayi draṣṭuṃ tad-īśvaram /
brahma-vādaḥ su-saṃvṛttaḥ śrutayo yatra śerate /
tatra hāyam abhūt praśnas tvaṃ māṃ yam anupṛcchasi //

When you had gone to Śvetadvīpa to see its Lord,
a discourse on Brahman arose, where the Vedic scriptures rest [absorbed];
and there this very question arose, which you are asking me.

10. When thou wast at Svetadvipa to see the Lord there, a Vedic discussion took place, in which all the Srutis were passed in review and co-ordinated and in that discussion was started this very question which thou hast put Me.

10.87.11

tulya-śruta-tapaḥ-śīlās tulya-svīyāri-madhyamāḥ /
api cakruḥ pravacanam ekaṃ śuśrūṣavo 'pare //

Though equal in learning, austerity, and character, and viewing friends, foes, and neutrals as equal,
they appointed one to speak while the others desired to listen.

11. All those sages were equally learned, firm in tapas and good-natured and were such as regarded equally their own friends, enemies and the indifferent; still they made one of them lecture while others eagerly listened to him.

10.87.12

/0 śrī-sanandana uvāca
sva-sṛṣṭam idam āpīya śayānaṃ saha śaktibhiḥ /
tad-ante bodhayāṃ cakrus tal-liṅgaiḥ śrutayaḥ param //

Śrī Sanandana said:
Having drawn in this creation of his own, as he lay asleep along with his powers,
at the end of that [dissolution], the Vedic scriptures awakened the Supreme with his own characteristics,

12. Sanandana said:— When the Supreme Lord had swallowed up all this creation of His and along with His powers lay quiet, as it were in sleep, Śrutis, the deities presiding over them at the end of that period, awakened Him with hymns that properly describe Him,

10.87.13

yathā śayānaṃ saṃrājaṃ vandinas tat-parākramaiḥ /
pratyūṣe 'bhetya su-ślokair bodhayanty anujīvinaḥ //

just as panegyrists, his retainers, approaching a sleeping sovereign at dawn,
awaken him with fine verses celebrating his valorous deeds.

13. Just as bards and servants wait on the sleeping emperor early in the morning, sing in sweet verses his heroic deeds and awaken him.

10.87.14

/0 śrī-śrutaya ūcuḥ
jaya jaya jahy ajām ajita doṣa-gṛbhīta-guṇāṃ $ tvam asi yad ātmanā samavaruddha-samasta-bhagaḥ &
jaya jaya jahy ajām ajita doṣa-gṛbhīta-guṇāṃ $ tvam asi yad ātmanā samavaruddha-samasta-bhagaḥ &
aga-jagad-okasām akhila-śakty-avabodhaka te % kvacid ajayātmanā ca carato 'nucaren nigamaḥ //

The Vedic scriptures said:
Victory, victory! Slay the unborn [creative power], O Unconquered, whose qualities cause bondage! You are he whose all majestic attributes are inherently realized by your self!
O Awakener of all powers in those residing in immobile and mobile worlds, the Veda describes you when at times you wander with the unborn [power] and your own self!

14. Śrutis said:—O unconquered Lord, may Thou be gracious to reveal Thy exalted nature, put an end to the Avidya of all beings of mobile or immobile body,—Avidya that displays the three qualities for the production of evil (to obscure the nature of self); but Thou art by virtue of Thine own nature possessed of all powers and blessings, (and so Thou keepest that Maya also under Thy control), O Lord that kindlest all powers, in all. The Veda may in some measure follow Thee (indicate Thee) when sometimes Thou workest in conjunction with that Avidya or Maya.

10.87.15

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bṛhad upalabdham etad avayanty avaśeṣatayā $ yata udayāstam-ayau vikṛter mṛdi vāvikṛtāt &
bṛhad upalabdham etad avayanty avaśeṣatayā $ yata udayāstam-ayau vikṛter mṛdi vāvikṛtāt &
ata ṛṣayo dadhus tvayi mano-vacanācaritaṃ % katham ayathā bhavanti bhuvi datta-padāni nṛṇām //

They understand this experienced world as the vast [Brahman] because it remains as the residue,
from which is the origin and dissolution of transformation, as of clay from unmodified clay;
therefore the sages directed their mind, speech, and action to you—
how can the steps placed by humans on the earth fail to rest upon it?

15. Rishis realise all the perceptible Universe to be the perfect Brahman (Thyself) the only real thing left in the end, for, from the Perfect Brahman subject to no modification as from clay, appearance and disappearance of the Universe of modification proceed; therefore the Vedas as well as Rishis direct the activity of their mind and speech to Thee (they regard Thee to be the one conveyed by all Thought and pointed to by all names); how could the feet of men resting on any other support be not considered as ultimately resting on the earth?

10.87.16

* //
iti tava sūrayas try-adhipate 'khila-loka-mala- $ kṣapaṇa-kathāmṛtābdhim avagāhya tapāṃsi jahuḥ &
iti tava sūrayas try-adhipate 'khila-loka-mala- $ kṣapaṇa-kathāmṛtābdhim avagāhya tapāṃsi jahuḥ &
kim uta punaḥ sva-dhāma-vidhutāśaya-kāla-guṇāḥ % parama bhajanti ye padam ajasra-sukhānubhavam //

Thus, O ruler of the three, the wise, plunging into the nectar-ocean of tales that destroy the impurity of all worlds, abandon their austerities;
what need be said of those who, through your abode, have dispelled the qualities of mind and time, O Supreme, and adore your state of continuous experience of bliss?

16. Thus convinced, O Lord of the Three (Maya constituted of the three gunas) the learned plunge into the sea of nectar of Thy

stories, which washes off all the evil that besets the world, and thereby get free from all their sin and miseries. Does it need then dilating upon, O most perfect Lord, that those get free who by force of self-realisation cast off the evil tendencies (passions of the mind) and the effect of Time such as old age and contemplate Thyself of eternal and infinite blissfulness and wisdom?

10.87.17

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dṛtaya iva śvasanty asu-bhṛto yadi te 'nuvidhā $ mahad-aham-ādayo 'ṇḍam asṛjan yad-anugrahataḥ &
dṛtaya iva śvasanty asu-bhṛto yadi te 'nuvidhā $ mahad-aham-ādayo 'ṇḍam asṛjan yad-anugrahataḥ &
puruṣa-vidho 'nvayo 'tra caramo 'nna-mayādiṣu yaḥ % sad-asataḥ paraṃ tvam atha yad eṣv avaśeṣam ṛtam //

Living beings breathe like bellows if they do not follow you, by whose grace the cosmic intellect, ego, and the rest created the cosmic egg;
you are the ultimate person-like essence here that follows the food-sheath and the others,
beyond gross and subtle, yet what remains as truth within them.

17. Those men live who are devoutly after Thee; but those merely breathe, like bellows, who are not after Thee: for it is through Thy grace (by Thy Presence) the principles of Mahat, Ahankara, etc., created the Egg of the Universe and Thou art that Supreme Being who present in the five sheaths and assuming their form, knows them all: Thou art not any one of them but only the last of the Annamaya and other sheaths, i.e., Anandamaya distinct from the subtle and gross modifications, their witness, and the unchangeable and eternal Truth.

10.87.18

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udaram upāsate ya ṛṣi-vartmasu kūrpa-dṛśaḥ $ parisara-paddhatiṃ hṛdayam āruṇayo daharam &
udaram upāsate ya ṛṣi-vartmasu kūrpa-dṛśaḥ $ parisara-paddhatiṃ hṛdayam āruṇayo daharam &
tata udagād ananta tava dhāma śiraḥ paramaṃ % punar iha yat sametya na patanti kṛtānta-mukhe //

Those whose vision is coarse worship the belly among the paths of the sages; the Āruṇis worship the center-channel, the subtle heart;
from there, O Infinite One, your supreme realm rose up to the head,
reaching which people do not fall into the mouth of death again in this world.

18. In treading the path of Rishis some of gross vision contemplate Brahman as Udara, i. e., contemplate Brahman present at Manipooraka that depends on Udara (Navel): [some possessed of subtle vision contemplate at an intermediate stage Brahman at Udara for the purpose of realising Brahman in the heart]: some called Arunis contemplate directly the subtle Brahman at the heart which opens into the way leading to the course through the spinal system. O Ananta, thence (from the heart) the contemplatist goes up to the head (brain-centre) called Sushumna, the exalted position of light, having reached which Jivas do not again fall into the jaws of Death, i. e. Samsara).

10.87.19

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sva-kṛta-vicitra-yoniṣu viśann iva hetutayā $ taratamataś cakāssy anala-vat sva-kṛtānukṛtiḥ &
sva-kṛta-vicitra-yoniṣu viśann iva hetutayā $ taratamataś cakāssy anala-vat sva-kṛtānukṛtiḥ &
atha vitathāsv amūṣv avitathāṃ tava dhāma samaṃ % viraja-dhiyo 'nuyanty abhivipaṇyava eka-rasam //

Entering your own manifold created wombs, as if becoming the cause,
you shine in higher and lower degrees like fire, imitating your own creation;
then, turning away from worldly entanglements, those of pure intellect follow your uniform realm, truly one single essence amidst these unreal things.

19. Having as the prime cause entered as it were into various forms of Thine own make and assuming those forms of Thine own accord, Thou like fire appearest to be the higher and the lower. Therefore those possessed of unclouded light and purged of

other thoughts, realise Thy true nature to be the same one unmixed Reality in all these unreal forms.

10.87.20

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sva-kṛta-pureṣv amīṣv abahir-antara-saṃvaraṇaṃ $ tava puruṣaṃ vadanty akhila-śakti-dhṛto 'ṃśa-kṛtam &
sva-kṛta-pureṣv amīṣv abahir-antara-saṃvaraṇaṃ $ tava puruṣaṃ vadanty akhila-śakti-dhṛto 'ṃśa-kṛtam &
iti nṛ-gatiṃ vivicya kavayo nigamāvapanaṃ % bhavata upāsate 'ṅghrim abhavam bhuvi viśvasitāḥ //

In these bodies of your own making, they call the puruṣa your portion, endowed with the concealment that is neither outer nor inner, bearing all powers;
thus discriminating the human condition, the wise, confident on earth, worship your foot, the origin of the Vedas, which brings an end to worldly existence.

20. Men of vast knowledge say that the being invested with bodies created by Thyself is a product of an Amsa (portion or ray) of Thy Omnipotent Self, not limited by anything that may be called cause or effect. Having thus examined and conclusively understood the nature of the individual being (Jiva) they with perfect faith contemplate while on earth Thy feet to which all the righteous acts sanctioned by the Vedas are to be offered and which release them from Samsara.

10.87.21

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duravagamātma-tattva-nigamāya tavātta-tanoś $ carita-mahāmṛtābdhi-parivarta-pariśramaṇāḥ &
duravagamātma-tattva-nigamāya tavātta-tanoś $ carita-mahāmṛtābdhi-parivarta-pariśramaṇāḥ &
na parilaṣanti kecid apavargam apīśvara te % caraṇa-saroja-haṃsa-kula-saṅga-visṛṣṭa-gṛhāḥ //

To reveal the truth of the self, so hard to fathom, you have assumed a form; / immersing themselves in the great nectar-ocean of your deeds and throwing off their weariness,
some do not crave even liberation, O Lord, / having abandoned their homes in the company of the flock of swans at your lotus feet.

21. Those that have risen above misery, being immersed in the great sea of nectar of Thy glorious work, which Thou hast wrought having assumed personal forms for the purpose of throwing light on the Truth of Atman which is difficult to grasp—O Supreme Lord, those some do not long for Moksha, too, and at the same time they renounce all attachment to the domestic life and pleasures for the sake of (by) association with Thy devotees that do like swans dwell only on the lotus of Thy feet.

10.87.22

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tvad-anupathaṃ kulāyam idam ātma-suhṛt-priya-vac $ carati tathonmukhe tvayi hite priya ātmani ca &
tvad-anupathaṃ kulāyam idam ātma-suhṛt-priya-vac $ carati tathonmukhe tvayi hite priya ātmani ca &
na bata ramanty aho asad-upāsanayātma-hano % yad-anuśayā bhramanty uru-bhaye ku-śarīra-bhṛtaḥ //

If this body, following your path, acts like a friend, a beloved, and one's very self, / when you are thus inclined toward it, beneficial, dear, and the true self,
yet, alas, killers of the self do not take delight [in you] through worshiping what is unreal; / cherishing desires for that, bearing miserable bodies, they wander in great fear.

22. This nest (of corporeal body) is like one's own self, well-wisher and beloved one, is useful to walk the way towards Thee: prepared as Thou art to be the well-wisher, the beloved one, and the self, Atman, they do not, it is a pity, find delight in Thee that art so glorious; they err by devoting themselves to worthless things such as the body, and, charged with that tendency and housed in a miserable body, they wander through the most fearful Samsara.

10.87.23

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nibhṛta-marun-mano-'kṣa-dṛḍha-yoga-yujo hṛdi yan $ munaya upāsate tad arayo 'pi yayuḥ smaraṇāt &
nibhṛta-marun-mano-'kṣa-dṛḍha-yoga-yujo hṛdi yan $ munaya upāsate tad arayo 'pi yayuḥ smaraṇāt &
striya uragendra-bhoga-bhuja-daṇḍa-viṣakta-dhiyo % vayam api te samāḥ sama-dṛśo 'ṅghri-saroja-sudhāḥ //

That which sages with restrained breath, mind, and senses worship in the heart through firm yoga, / even your enemies attained simply by remembering you,
as did women whose minds were fixed upon your arms like the coils of the serpent king; / and we too, drinking the nectar of your lotus feet, are equal to them, for you look upon all alike.

23. What sages, perfect in Yoga, with complete control over the vital breaths, the mind and the senses, contemplate at heart even Thy haters have attained to, for constantly thinking of Thee: and so also the women that set their heart on Thy excellent arms

like unto the body of Sesha: equally the object of Thy grace are we who realise Thee to be equal everywhere and cling to the lotus of Thy feet.

10.87.24

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ka iha nu veda batāvara-janma-layo 'gra-saraṃ $ yata udagād ṛṣir yam anu deva-gaṇā ubhaye &
ka iha nu veda batāvara-janma-layo 'gra-saraṃ $ yata udagād ṛṣir yam anu deva-gaṇā ubhaye &
tarhi na san na cāsad ubhayaṃ na ca kāla-javaḥ % kim api na tatra śāstram avakṛṣya śayīta yadā //

Who in this world truly knows the primeval one from whom arose the seer [Brahmā], / followed by both classes of gods, when later-born beings are subject to dissolution?
At that time there was neither existence nor nonexistence, nor both together, nor the rush of time, / nor anything at all, when, drawing back the scriptures, he lay asleep.

24. Who born here at a later stage and short-lived could possibly know that which was in the beginning, from which the wise Brahmā first came forth and next to him both classes of the gods (presiding over Adhyātma and Adhidaiva)? Still less, when Thou restest withdrawing everything. For then exists neither sat (gross phenomenon), nor its subtle cause (Mahat, Ahaṃ etc.,), nor their product (the body), nor the force of Time, nor the instructive Sastra, nor anything else (with which Thou couldst be known).

10.87.25

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janim asataḥ sato mṛtim utātmani ye ca bhidāṃ $ vipaṇam ṛtaṃ smaranty upadiśanti ta ārupitaiḥ &
janim asataḥ sato mṛtim utātmani ye ca bhidāṃ $ vipaṇam ṛtaṃ smaranty upadiśanti ta ārupitaiḥ &
tri-guṇa-mayaḥ pumān iti bhidā yad abodha-kṛtā % tvayi na tataḥ paratra sa bhaved avabodha-rase //

Those who proclaim the birth of what is nonexistent, the death of what is existent, or difference in the self, / and who recall the world of transaction as real, teach through superimposed concepts;
for this difference—that the person consists of the three guṇas—is produced by ignorance; / it cannot exist in you, beyond that, who are the essence of pure consciousness.

25. Those that think that Being is born of Non-Being, or Being is born of Being, or that erasure of misery is Moksha, or, that intelligent beings are many and different or that the talk about fruits of Karma is real, are such as impart to others their own misapprehensions. The notion of difference that Purusha is constituted of the three guṇas is due to ignorance of Thyself; hence that difference finds no place in Thee. Nor does that ignorance exist in Thee that art untouched by it, and art absolute consciousness.

10.87.26

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sad iva manas tri-vṛt tvayi vibhāty asad ā-manujāt $ sad abhimṛśanty aśeṣam idam ātmatayātma-vidaḥ &
sad iva manas tri-vṛt tvayi vibhāty asad ā-manujāt $ sad abhimṛśanty aśeṣam idam ātmatayātma-vidaḥ &
na hi vikṛtiṃ tyajanti kanakasya tad-ātmatayā % sva-kṛtam anupraviṣṭam idam ātmatayāvasitam //

The mind with its three modes, though unreal, appears real in you, down to the human realm; / those who know the self perceive all this as real by virtue of its being the self.
For people do not reject the transformations of gold, recognizing them as gold in essence; / this [universe] has been ascertained to be the self, since you entered what you yourself created.

26. It is the mind that makes the Universe of three guṇas, both objective and subjective, seem an existence, because the non-existent so appears, being superimposed on Thee: But those that realise Ātman consider all this to be sat or real existence as being Ātman Himself: for those that are in quest of gold do not reject its modification, an ornament, because the modification also is gold. The wise conclude that this Universe is Ātman, because He makes it and He is in it.

10.87.27

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tava pari ye caranty akhila-sattva-niketatayā $ ta uta padākramanty avigaṇayya śiro nirṛteḥ &
tava pari ye caranty akhila-sattva-niketatayā $ ta uta padākramanty avigaṇayya śiro nirṛteḥ &
parivayase paśūn iva girā vibudhān api tāṃs % tvayi kṛta-sauhṛdāḥ khalu punanti na ye vimukhāḥ //

Those who worship you as the dwelling place of all living beings, / step on the head of death, paying it no heed;
but even the learned, [bound] like beasts with your words, you tie fast, / while those who have formed friendship with you purify them—not those who turn away from you.

27. Only those who devoutly worship Thee as the one abode of all beings overcome and set their foot on the head of Death (Saṃsāra). But those who turn away from Thee, learned as they may be, Thou keepest bound in Saṃsāra like cattle by a word of command: for only those who are devoted to Thee purify themselves as well as others.

10.87.28

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tvam akaraṇaḥ sva-rāḍ akhila-kāraka-śakti-dharas $ tava balim udvahanti samadanty ajayānimiṣāḥ &
tvam akaraṇaḥ sva-rāḍ akhila-kāraka-śakti-dharas $ tava balim udvahanti samadanty ajayānimiṣāḥ &
varṣa-bhujo 'khila-kṣiti-pater iva viśva-sṛjo % vidadhati yatra ye tv adhikṛtā bhavataś cakitāḥ //

Devoid of organs of action, self-ruler, you hold the power of all active agents; / the gods bring you offerings and enjoy their shares together with unborn Nature,
just as governors of provinces bring tribute to the ruler of all the earth; / and terrified of you, the creators of the universe carry out their duties wherever they are appointed.

28. Thou hast no organs or senses: still Thou hast the powers of all the organs, for Thou shinest as the embodiment of all knowledge. Therefore the progenitors of the world and the gods invested by Avidya bear homage to Thee while they accept the offerings from those under their control: and afraid of Thee, they do their duties in the places to which they are appointed just as the rulers of provinces do unto an Emperor on earth.

10.87.29

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sthira-cara-jātayaḥ syur ajayottha-nimitta-yujo $ vihara udīkṣayā yadi parasya vimukta tataḥ &
sthira-cara-jātayaḥ syur ajayottha-nimitta-yujo $ vihara udīkṣayā yadi parasya vimukta tataḥ &
na hi paramasya kaścid aparo na paraś ca bhaved % viyata ivāpadasya tava śūnya-tulāṃ dadhataḥ //

The classes of moving and unmoving beings arise through their connection with causal factors born of unborn Nature, / if, O unattached one, you cast your glance in play; / for to the highest, who are like space without location, assuming the likeness of the void, / no one can be either distant or intimate.

29. When Thou, O eternally blessed Lord, choosest to sport with Avidya, though untouched by her, all the mobile and the immobile classes of creatures do come into existence invested with the subtle body, depending upon the causal Karma which has in its turn its origin in the glance (will) of Thyself: for to Thy supreme Self like unto the sky there is none to be called foreign—to Thee that art beyond the range of words and thought and seemest to be void.

10.87.30

* //
aparimitā dhruvās tanu-bhṛto yadi sarva-gatās $ tarhi na śāsyateti niyamo dhrava netarathā &
aparimitā dhruvās tanu-bhṛto yadi sarva-gatās $ tarhi na śāsyateti niyamo dhrava netarathā &
ajani ca yan-mayaṃ tad avimucya niyantṛ bhavet % samam anujānatāṃ yad amataṃ mata-duṣṭatayā //

If embodied souls are infinite, eternal, and all-pervading, / then there can be no rule that they are governed, O changeless one; but it is otherwise;
and that from which a thing is born becomes its controller, never departing from it; / this is not accepted by those who hold that all are equal, due to the flaw in their view.

30. If all the jivas be numerically infinite and eternally real existences and all-pervading, O eternal Lord, that they are ruled by Thee or that Thou rulest them cannot be true, because they, being like Thee eternal and equal, may not be subject to control: on the other hand, control is possible only when they are limited (conditioned) beings. That which originates anything is necessarily a controller of the latter of which it forms a part as the cause and that controlling power is known to those who think that it is not known, for everything created is said to be a defective existence.

10.87.31

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na ghaṭata udbhavaḥ prakṛti-pūruṣayor ajayor $ ubhaya-yujā bhavanty asu-bhṛto jala-budbuda-vat &
na ghaṭata udbhavaḥ prakṛti-pūruṣayor ajayor $ ubhaya-yujā bhavanty asu-bhṛto jala-budbuda-vat &
tvayi ta ime tato vividha-nāma-guṇaiḥ parame % sarita ivārṇave madhuni lilyur aśeṣa-rasāḥ //

There is no birth for unoriginated matter and the soul; / yet through the union of both, living beings arise like bubbles upon water;
and then, with their diverse names and attributes, they merge back into you, the supreme, / just as rivers merge into the ocean, or all floral essences merge into honey.

31. Neither Prakriti nor Purusha nor both could be said to become the Jiva: but jivas come into existence when they both combine to produce illusion like bubbles on water. Thus the production of Jivas not being real, they with all their several names and attributes (i. e., their conditions) vanish into Thee, just as rivers do into the sea and into honey all tastes.

10.87.32

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nṛṣu tava mayayā bhramam amīṣv avagatya bhṛśaṃ $ tvayi su-dhiyo 'bhave dadhati bhāvam anuprabhavam &
nṛṣu tava mayayā bhramam amīṣv avagatya bhṛśaṃ $ tvayi su-dhiyo 'bhave dadhati bhāvam anuprabhavam &
katham anuvartatāṃ bhava-bhayaṃ tava yad bhru-kuṭiḥ % sṛjati muhus tri-nemir abhavac-charaṇeṣu bhayam //

Wise beings, fully understanding this delusion among men produced by your creative power, / place their deep devotion in you, the birthless source of all beings.
How could the fear of worldly existence pursue your followers, when your knitted brow, / three-rimmed [time], repeatedly creates fear in those who take no shelter in you?

32. Having thoroughly understood that in these Jivas Thy maya institutes misapprehension into which they repeatedly fall, the wise concentrate their mind on Thee that releasest them from Samsara. How could the fear of Samsara assail those that resort to Thee as their asylum, for Thy brows of three tyres (the time of a year of three seasons) repeatedly cause fear to those that do not resort to Thee as their asylum. 33. Those who try to control the unmanageable horse of the mind of very fickle disposition merely by means of curbing the senses and breaths without seeking the help of a Guru's feet, painfully labour for the means (of controlling the mind) and continue to be in countless miseries in this samsara and they are like unto merchants, O unborn Lord, who have not secured a pilot for their vessel in the sea.

10.87.33

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vijita-hṛṣīka-vāyubhir adānta-manas tura-gaṃ $ ya iha yatanti yantum ati-lolam upāya-khidaḥ &
vijita-hṛṣīka-vāyubhir adānta-manas tura-gaṃ $ ya iha yatanti yantum ati-lolam upāya-khidaḥ &
vyasana-śatānvitāḥ samavahāya guroś caraṇaṃ % vaṇija ivāja santy akṛta-karṇa-dharā jaladhau //

Those who strive to rein in the horse of the unsubdued mind, exceedingly fickle, / after subduing their senses and breaths, worn out by spiritual techniques,
are beset by hundreds of calamities when they abandon the feet of the guru; / O unborn one, they are like merchants at sea without a helmsman.

10.87.34

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svajana-sutātma-dāra-dhana-dhāma-dharāsu-rathais $ tvayi sati kiṃ nṛṇām śrayata ātmani sarva-rase &
svajana-sutātma-dāra-dhana-dhāma-dharāsu-rathais $ tvayi sati kiṃ nṛṇām śrayata ātmani sarva-rase &
iti sad ajānatāṃ mithunato rataye caratāṃ % sukhayati ko nv iha sva-vihate sva-nirasta-bhage //

When you exist as the self, the essence of all delight, what purpose is served / for men who resort to relatives, sons, bodies, wives, wealth, home, lands, vital breath, or chariots?
For those who fail to recognize this reality and consort together for sensual pleasure, / what in this world, doomed to its own destruction and bereft of true worth, can bring happiness?

34. "What good is there for men to be derived from kith and kin, children, their own body, wives, wealth, houses, lands, vital breath, or vehicles, while Thou, the embodiment of all blessings, art ready to bless him who resorts to Thee," those who, in this naturally transient (obscured by Prakriti) and worthless samsara, do not understand this truth, and only seek after the pleasures of sexual life, who could (would) comfort and make happy?

10.87.35

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bhuvi puru-puṇya-tīrtha-sadanāny ṛṣayo vimadās $ ta uta bhavat-padāmbuja-hṛdo 'gha-bhid-aṅghri-jalāḥ &
bhuvi puru-puṇya-tīrtha-sadanāny ṛṣayo vimadās $ ta uta bhavat-padāmbuja-hṛdo 'gha-bhid-aṅghri-jalāḥ &
dadhati sakṛn manas tvayi ya ātmani nitya-sukhe % na punar upāsate puruṣa-sāra-harāvasathān //

Free from pride, the sages have their abodes at the great holy bathing-places on earth, / carrying your lotus feet in their hearts, their waters cleansing all sin;
those who fix their mind even once upon you, the self of eternal bliss, / never again worship homes that steal away the true worth of a human being.

35. Destitute of Ahankara, are those rishis on earth who always contemplate Thy lotus feet in their heart and are themselves the holy waters in contact with Thy feet that destroy all sin and yet make pilgrimages to many holy waters and sacred shrines (who resort to the houses of great preceptors whose merit of worshipping and contemplating the Lord is abundant) and they do not devote themselves to (renounce) the houses (the domestic life) that saps man of all excellent virtues: for even those that but once set their mind on Thee, Atman, of eternal blissfulness, renounce the house.

10.87.36

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sata idaṃ utthitaṃ sad iti cen nanu tarka-hataṃ $ vyabhicarati kva ca kva ca mṛṣā na tathobhaya-yuk &
sata idaṃ utthitaṃ sad iti cen nanu tarka-hataṃ $ vyabhicarati kva ca kva ca mṛṣā na tathobhaya-yuk &
vyavahṛtaye vikalpa iṣito 'ndha-paramparayā % bhramayati bhāratī ta uru-vṛttibhir uktha-jaḍān //

Since this [world] did not exist in the beginning, nor will it exist hereafter, it is inferred to be unreal in the interval / within you, who are the sole aesthetic flavor; / hence it is compared to the varied transformations of material substances. The unwise consider this vain play of the mind to be real.

36. If it be argued that this Universe is real, being evolved out of the Real, the argument is fallacious, being contradicted by an examination of facts and it proves too much in certain cases, and in some cases it is altogether false, nor is it true to say that the Universe is a composite of both. For such a combination does not form a real existence. Therefore illusion is admitted for the purpose of explaining the transactions of the phenomenal world. Then it must be said that the Vedic Text does in a beginningless blind tradition fills with misapprehension through its various powers, those dull-witted men who are devoted to the course of Vedic performances.

10.87.37

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na yad idam agra āsa na bhaviṣyad ato nidhanād $ anu mitam antarā tvayi vibhāti mṛṣaika-rase &
na yad idam agra āsa na bhaviṣyad ato nidhanād $ anu mitam antarā tvayi vibhāti mṛṣaika-rase &
ata upamīyate draviṇa-jāti-vikalpa-pathair % vitatha-mano-vilāsam ṛtam ity avayanty abudhāḥ //

When the [individual soul] lies down beside your unborn creative power, embracing her and enjoying the strands [of nature], / he assumes similar forms and then, stripped of his fortune, meets death. / You, on the other hand, cast her off like a serpent its skin; endowed with all fortune, / boundless in majesty, you are glorified in eightfold divine glory.

37. Since this Universe did not exist in the beginning (i. e., before creation) and it has no future existence after its destruction, it is concluded that only the unreal Universe seems to exist superimposed on Thee, the one absolute Existence. Therefore it is compared to various phenomena of matter in its various forms. And those that take the baseless fancies for Reality are surely the ignorant.

10.87.38

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sa yad ajayā tv ajām anuśayīta guṇāṃś ca juṣan $ bhajati sarūpatāṃ tad anu mṛtyum apeta-bhagaḥ &
sa yad ajayā tv ajām anuśayīta guṇāṃś ca juṣan $ bhajati sarūpatāṃ tad anu mṛtyum apeta-bhagaḥ &
tvam uta jahāsi tām ahir iva tvacam ātta-bhago % mahasi mahīyase 'ṣṭa-guṇite 'parimeya-bhagaḥ //

If ascetics do not pluck out the knots of desire in the heart, / you, who dwell in the heart, are as hard to reach for the unvirtuous as an unremembered jewel around one's neck. / For yogins who merely gratify their vital breaths, O Lord, there is misery on both sides: / from Death, who has not departed, and from you, whose state is unobtained.

38. The Jiva under the influence of Maya embraces Avidya: consequently he becomes attached to a body, the senses and other belongings thereof and mistakes them for his own self: then he becomes like them, and, having lost sight of his blissful nature, goes to death (gets into samsara). But Thou castest off Maya even as the serpent casts off the slough, and in Thy eternal and uninterrupted supremacy and in Thy eight-fold glorious power Thou shinest as the almighty Lord of infinite bliss.

10.87.39

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yadi na samuddharanti yatayo hṛdi kāma-jaṭā $ duradhigamo 'satāṃ hṛdi gato 'smṛta-kaṇṭha-maṇiḥ &
yadi na samuddharanti yatayo hṛdi kāma-jaṭā $ duradhigamo 'satāṃ hṛdi gato 'smṛta-kaṇṭha-maṇiḥ &
asu-tṛpa-yoginām ubhayato 'py asukhaṃ bhagavann % anapagatāntakād anadhirūḍha-padād bhavataḥ //

One who understands you does not take note of the connections of good and bad qualities arising from you, / nor the words of embodied beings; / for from age to age, day after day, through a continuous tradition of songs endowed with qualities, / you are kept in their hearing, since you are the path to liberation for human beings.

39. O Almighty Lord, to those worthless men who control only their external senses and organs but do not eradicate the roots of passion in the heart, Thou art not accessible, though present in their heart, like the necklace of the person that is forgotten by the wearer. To those who practise every Yoga for the purpose of gratifying their own senses, there is misery from both sides, from death (samsara) that has not been averted and from Thee that hast not been realised.

10.87.40

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tvad avagamī na vetti bhavad-uttha-śubhāśubhayor $ guṇa-viguṇānvayāṃs tarhi deha-bhṛtāṃ ca giraḥ &
tvad avagamī na vetti bhavad-uttha-śubhāśubhayor $ guṇa-viguṇānvayāṃs tarhi deha-bhṛtāṃ ca giraḥ &
anu-yugam anv-ahaṃ sa-guṇa gīta-paramparayā % śravaṇa-bhṛto yatas tvam apavarga-gatir manu-jaiḥ //

Even the rulers of heaven have not reached your end because of your boundlessness, nor have you yourself; / for within you, surely, massed cosmic eggs along with their coverings / whirl together with time, like dust particles in the sky. Indeed, the Vedas / bear fruit in you, finding their end in you through the negation of what is not that.

40. O Lord of six-fold excellent attributes, he who realises Thee is not alive to the affections called happiness and misery which are the fruits of the merit, or, the demerit determined by Thyself that doles out the fruits of Karma and therefore he ceases to be conscious of the Vedic rules that are binding upon creatures invested with a body. For Thou art every day enthroned in the mind of the wise who receive Thee through the ear and the good precepts handed down from age to age and Thou art the goal called Moksha.

10.87.41

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dyu-pataya eva te na yayur antam anantatayā $ tvam api yad-antarāṇḍa-nicayā nanu sāvaraṇāḥ &
dyu-pataya eva te na yayur antam anantatayā $ tvam api yad-antarāṇḍa-nicayā nanu sāvaraṇāḥ &
kha iva rajāṃsi vānti vayasā saha yac chrutayas % tvayi hi phalanty atan-nirasanena bhavan-nidhanāḥ //

The Lord said: / Having heard this instruction about the Self, the sons of Brahmā, / perfected beings, then worshipped Sanandana, having understood their own goal.

41. Even the great gods ruling over the celestial regions see no limit of Thee, for Thou art unlimited. Thou Thyself dost not see Thyself limited: for in Thee do abide infinite Eggs of Universes with all their several sheaths, moving about like particles of dust in

the sky, driven by the wheel of Time. Therefore the Vedas convey Thee only by way of purport: for they end in Thee (i. e., they purport Thee, but do not directly describe Thee), because they speak of Thee as the negation of everything else.

10.87.42

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/0 śrī-bhagavān uvāca
ity etad brahmaṇaḥ putrā āśrutyātmānuśāsanam /
sanandanam athānarcuḥ siddhā jñātvātmano gatim //

Thus the essence of the entire Vedic tradition, the Purāṇas, and the Upaniṣads / was extracted by the exalted devotees born long ago, who wander the skies.

42. The Lord said:— Sanaka and other sons of Brahman heard the exposition regarding Atman, gained wisdom, understood their goal and honoured Sanandana.

10.87.43

ity aśeṣa-samāmnāya- purāṇopaniṣad-rasaḥ /
samuddhṛtaḥ pūrva-jātair vyoma-yānair mahātmabhiḥ //

And you, O heir of Brahmā, holding this instruction about the Self with faith, / wander the earth at will; it burns away the desires of men.

43. In this manner the hidden essence of all the Vedas and Puranas has been churned out by the ancient Mahatmas that course through the heavens.

10.87.44

tvaṃ caitad brahma-dāyāda śraddhayātmānuśāsanam /
dhārayaṃś cara gāṃ kāmaṃ kāmānāṃ bharjanaṃ nṛṇām //

Śrī Śuka said: / Receiving thus what was commanded by the sage, the self-controlled, / fulfilled, and attentive-eared sage of steadfast vows said, O king:

44. Do Thou also, O son of Brahma, treasure up with faith this exposition relating to Atman and freely go about the world — since it is an exposition which burns up all the desires of men.

10.87.45

/0 śrī-śuka uvāca
evaṃ sa ṛṣiṇādiṣṭaṃ gṛhītvā śraddhayātmavān /
pūrṇaḥ śruta-dharo rājann āha vīra-vrato muniḥ //

Śrī Nārada said: / Homage to that Lord, Kṛṣṇa of spotless renown, / who assumes delightful portions for the non-repetition of rebirth of all beings.

45. Sri Suka said:— Having with faith received what was imparted by the sage Narayana, the sage Narada of austere life, with control over self and able to remember what he hears but once, felt himself accomplished and said:

10.87.46

/0 śrī-nārada uvāca
namas tasmai bhagavate kṛṣṇāyāmala-kīrtaye /
yo dhatte sarva-bhūtānām abhavāyośatīḥ kalāḥ //

Having bowed thus to the primeval sage and his exalted disciples, / he then went directly to the hermitage of my father, Dvaipāyana.

46. Narada said:— I bow to that glorious Lord Krishna of purifying glory, who for the salvation of all beings assumes various charming amsas.

10.87.47

ity ādyam ṛṣim ānamya tac-chiṣyāṃś ca mahātmanaḥ /
tato 'gād āśramaṃ sākṣāt pitur dvaipāyanasya me //

Welcomed by the Lord, having taken a seat, / he described to him that which was heard from the mouth of Nārāyaṇa.

47. Having thus worshipped the First Sage and the Mahatmas who are his disciples, Narada directly went to the hermitage of Dwaipayana, my father.

10.87.48

sabhājito bhagavatā kṛtāsana-parigrahaḥ /
tasmai tad varṇayām āsa nārāyaṇa-mukhāc chrutam //

Thus has been described, O king, the question that was put to us by you / as to how the mind may move in Brahman, though it is indefinable and devoid of qualities.

48. Welcomed by the glorious Vyasa and having taken his seat, Narada reproduced to him what he heard from the lips of Narayana.

10.87.49

ity etad varṇitaṃ rājan yan naḥ praśnaḥ kṛtas tvayā /
yathā brahmaṇy anirdeśye nīṛguṇe 'pi manaś caret //

He who is the witness of this [universe] at its beginning, middle, and end, who is the ruler of the unmanifest and the individual souls, / who created this, entered within, and through the soul made the bodies and rules over them,

49. Thus, O king, the point has been dealt with on which questions was put to us by thee, so as to bring out how the mind

could go to Brahman who cannot be particularised, being destitute of qualities (gunas).

10.87.49.p1

yo 'syotprekṣaka ādi-madhya-nidhane yo 'vyakta-jīveśvaro $ yaḥ sṛṣṭvedam anupraviśya ṛṣiṇā cakre puraḥ śāsti tāḥ &

attaining whom the sleeping soul, resting alongside, casts off the unborn creative power just as an awakened sleeper leaves his body— / on that fearless Hari, whose absolute liberation dispels rebirth, one should constantly meditate.

50. One should incessantly contemplate that Hari, who, by His absolute nature, distances Maya from Himself and who is the one abode of fearlessness, who lays out the plan of this Universe with reference to its beginning, middle and end, who is the subtle Jiva and Isvara who having created this, enters into it along with the Jiva and creates bodies for him and controls them and having resorted to whom the Jiva by his devotion rescues himself from Avidya, leaving her, just as a bird in sleep leaves the nest.

10.87.50

yaṃ sampadya jahāty ajām anuśayī suptaḥ kulāyaṃ yathā % taṃ kaivalya-nirasta-yonim abhayaṃ dhyāyed ajasraṃ harim //

The king said: / Among gods, demons, and humans, those who worship inauspicious Śiva / are mostly wealthy and enjoyers of pleasure, but not those who worship Hari, the husband of Lakṣmī.