Ashtavakra Gita-1

 Chapter 1, The Self, Instruction on Self-Realization ગુરૂપદેશપ્રકરણ

Ashtavakra Gita

Janaka uvāca

kathaṁ jñānamavāpnoti kathaṁ muktirbhaviṣyati vairāgyaṁ ca kathaṁ prāptaṁ etad brūhi mama prabho

॥ 1-1॥ Janaka: How is knowledge to be acquired? How is liberation to be attained? And how is dispassion to be reached? Tell me this, sir.

1.1     Master, Tell me how to find Detachment, wisdom, and freedom!

1.1 Master,

how is Knowledge to be achieved,

detachment acquired,

liberation attained?

જનક (અષ્ટાવક મુનિને) કહે છે. ભગવન્ ! (મનુષ્ય)

આત્મજ્ઞાનને કેવી રીતે મેળવે છે, (તેની ) મુક્તિ કેવી રીતે થાય

છે અને વૈરાગ્ય કેવી રીતે પ્રાપ્તથાય છે, તે મને કહો .

aṣṭāvakra uvāca

muktiṁ icchasi cettāta viṣayān viṣavattyaja kṣamārjavadayātoṣasatyaṁ pīyūṣavad bhaja

॥ 1-2॥ Ashtavakra: If you are seeking liberation, my son, shun the objects of the senses like poison. Practice tolerance, sincerity, compassion, contentment, and truthfulness like nectar.

1.2 Child, if you wish to be free, Shun the poison of the senses. Seek the nectar of truth, of love and forgiveness, Simplicity and happiness.

1.2 To be free,

shun the experiences of the senses

like poison.

Turn your attention to

forgiveness, sincerity, kindness, simplicity, truth.

અષ્ટાવક મુનિ કહે છે: પ્રિય (રાજન્)! જો (તું )

મુક્તિને ઇચ્છતો હોય તો (ઇન્દ્રિયોના) વિષયોને વિષની જેમ

છોડી દે (અને) ક્ષમા , સરળતા , દયા , સંતોષ અને સત્યનું

અમૃતની જેમ સેવન કર. ૨

na pṛthvī na jalaṁ nāgnirna vāyurdyaurna vā bhavān eṣāṁ sākṣiṇamātmānaṁ cidrūpaṁ viddhi muktaye 1.3

॥ 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.

1.3 Earth, fire and water, The wind and the sky - You are none of these. If you wish to be free, Know you are the Self, The witness of all these, The heart of awareness.

1.3 You are not earth, water, fire or air.

Nor are you empty space.

Liberation is to know yourself

as Awareness alone—

the Witness of these.

તુ પૃથ્વી નથી, જળ નથી, અગ્નિ નથી, વાયુ નથી

તેમ જ આકાશ પણ નથી. મુક્તિને માટે આ બધાના સાક્ષી -

રૂપે રહેલા ચિદ્રૂપ આત્માને જાણ (અથવા, બધાના સાક્ષીરૂપે

રહેલા ચિદ્રૂપને પોતાના આત્મા તરીકે જાણ.) ૩

yadi dehaṁ pṛthak kṛtya citi viśrāmya tiṣṭhasi adhunaiva sukhī śānto bandhamukto bhaviṣyasi

 ॥ 1-4 ॥ 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 Set your body aside, Sit in your own awareness. You will at once be happy, Forever still, Forever free.

1.4 Abide in Awareness

with no illusion of person.

You will be instantly free and at peace.

જો (તું) દેહને આત્માથી છૂટો પાડીને ચિદ્રૂપમાં

થઈને રહેશે (તો) હમણાં જ તું સુખી, શાંત અને બંધથી બનીશ. ૪

na tvaṁ viprādiko varṇo nāśramī nākṣagocaraḥ asaṅgo'si nirākāro viśvasākṣī sukhī bhava

॥ 1-5 ॥ 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.

1.5 You have no caste, No duties bind you.

Formless and free, Beyond the reach of the senses, The witness of all things. So be happy!

1.5 You have no caste or duties.

You are invisible, unattached, formless.

You are the Witness of all things.

Be happy.

તું વિપ્ર અર્થાત્ બાહ્મણાદિ વર્ણ નથી, (બ્રહ્મચર્ય આદિ)

આશ્રમી પણ નથી, અને તું ઇંદ્રિયગીચર - ઇન્દ્રિયોથી પમાય

એવો નથી. તું તો અસંગ, નિરાકાર અને (આખા) વિશ્વનો

છે. (એમ વિચારીને) તું સુખી થા . પ 

dharmādharmau sukhaṁ duḥkhaṁ mānasāni na te vibho na kartāsi na bhoktāsi mukta evāsi sarvadā

॥ 1-6 ॥ 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.

1.6 Right or wrong, Joy and sorrow, These are of the mind only. They are not yours. It is not really you, Who acts or enjoys. You are everywhere, Forever free.

1.6 Right and wrong, pleasure and pain,

exist in mind only.

They are not your concern.

You neither do nor enjoy.

You are free.

રાજન્! ધર્મ અને અધર્મ, તેમજ સુખ અને દુ:ખ,

તો મનને તારે  છે અને નહિ કે તને. તું કર્તા નથી તેમ જ

ભોક્તા પણ નથી પણ   હંમેશ મુકત જ છે. ૬

eko draṣṭāsi sarvasya muktaprāyo'si sarvadā ayameva hi te bandho draṣṭāraṁ paśyasītaram

॥ 1-7 ॥ 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.

1.7 Forever and truly free, The single witness of all things. But if you see yourself as separate, Then you are bound.

1.7 You are the Solitary Witness

of All That Is,

forever free.

Your only bondage is not seeing This.

તું સર્વનો એક દ્રષ્ટાછે અને નિરંતર અત્યંત મુક્ત છે.

તું જે બીજાને દ્રષ્ટાતરીકે જુએ છે, તે જ તારા બંધનું કારણ છે. ૭

ahaṁ kartetyahaṁmānamahākṛṣṇāhidaṁśitaḥ nāhaṁ karteti viśvāsāmṛtaṁ pītvā sukhī bhava

॥ 1-8 ॥ 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.

1.8 "I do this. I do that, The big black snake of selfishness Has bitten you! "I do nothing." This is the nectar of faith, So drink and be happy!

1.8 The thought: “I am the doer”

is the bite of a poisonous snake.

To know: “I do nothing”

is the wisdom of faith.

Be happy.

“હું કર્તા છું” એવા અહંભાવરૂપી મોટા કાળા સાપ વડે દંશિત

થયેલો તું “હું કર્તા નથી” એવા વિશ્વાસરૂપી અમૃતને પી જા. ૮

eko viśuddhabodho'haṁ iti niścayavahninā prajvālyājñānagahanaṁ vītaśokaḥ sukhī bhava

॥ 1-9 ॥ 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.

1.9 Know you are one, Pure awareness. With the fire of this conviction, Burn down the forest of ignorance. Free yourself from sorrow, And be happy.

1.9 A single understanding:

“I am the One Awareness,”

consumes all suffering

in the fire of an instant.

Be happy.

“હું એક અને વિશુદ્ધ જ્ઞાનરૂપ છું”, એવા નિશ્વયરૂપી

અગ્નિ વડે અજ્ઞાનરૂપ ગહન વનને સળગાવી દઈ તું શોકરહિત

બનીને સુખી થા. ૯

yatra viśvamidaṁ bhāti kalpitaṁ rajjusarpavat ānandaparamānandaḥ sa bodhastvaṁ sukhaṁ bhava

॥ 1-10 ॥ 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.

1.10 Be happy! For you are joy, unbounded joy. You are awareness itself. Just as a coil of rope is mistaken for a snake, So you are mistaken for the world.

1.10 You are unbounded Awareness—

Bliss, Supreme Bliss--

in which the universe appears

like the mirage of a snake in a rope.

Be happy.

જેમાં આ કલ્પિત વિશ્વ દોરડામાં સર્પની જેમ ભાસમાન

થાય છે તે આનંદના પરમ અવધિરૂપ જ્ઞાન તું જ છે,

(માટે) સુખપૂર્વક વિહાર કર . ૧૦

muktābhimānī mukto hi baddho baddhābhimānyapi kiṁvadantīha satyeyaṁ yā matiḥ sā gatirbhavet

॥ 1-11 ॥ 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".

1.11 If you think you are free, You are free. If you think you are bound, You are bound. For the saying is true: You are what you think.

1.11 It is true what they say:

“You are what you think.”

If you think you are bound you are bound.

If you think you are free you are free.

જે પોતાને મુકત માને છે તે મુકત છે, અને જે

પોતાને બંધાયેલો માને છે તે બંધાયેલો છે; કારણ કે અહીં (આ

જગતમાં) આ લોકવાદ સાચો છે કે જેવી મતિ તેવી ગતિ થાય છે. ૧૧

ātmā sākṣī vibhuḥ pūrṇa eko muktaścidakriyaḥ asaṁgo niḥspṛhaḥ śānto bhramātsaṁsāravāniva

॥ 1-12 ॥ 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 the illusion that you seem to be involved in samsara.

1.12 The Self looks like the world, But this is just an illusion. The Self is everywhere. One. Still. Free. Perfect. The witness of all things, Awareness Without action, clinging or desire.

1.12 You are Self—the Solitary Witness.

You are perfect, all-pervading, One.

You are free, desireless, forever still.

The universe is but a seeming in You.

આત્મા સાક્ષી, વ્યાપક, પૂર્ણ. એક, મુકત, ચૈતન્યસ્વરૂપ,

અક્રિય, અસંગ, નિઃસ્પૃહ અને શાંત છે (પરંતુ) ભ્રમને કારણે

સંસારવાળો હોય તેમ ભાસે  છે. ૧૨

kūṭasthaṁ bodhamadvaitamātmānaṁ paribhāvaya ābhāso'haṁ bhramaṁ muktvā bhāvaṁ bāhyamathāntar

॥ 1-13 ॥ 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.

1.13 Meditate on the Self. One without two, Exalted awareness. Give up the illusion Of the separate self. Give up the feeling, Within or without, That you are this or that.

1.13 Meditate on this: “I am Awareness alone--Unity itself.”

Give up the idea that you are separate, a person,

that there is within and without.

“હું” આભાસાત્મક છું” એવા ભ્રમને અને બાહ્ય તેમ

જ અંદરના ભાવને છોડી દઈ ને કૂટસ્થ અર્થાત્ પર્વતના જેવા

અચલ , બોધરૂપ _______, અદ્વૈતરુપ આત્માનો વિચાર કર. ૧૩

dehābhimānapāśena ciraṁ baddho'si putraka bodho'haṁ jñānakhaṁgena taḥnikṛtya sukhī Bhava

॥ 1-14 ॥ 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.

1.14 My child, Because you think you are the body, For a long time you have been bound. Know you are pure awareness. With this knowledge as your sword Cut through your chains. And be happy!

1.14 You have long been bound thinking:

“I am a person.”

Let the knowledge: “I am Awareness alone”

be the sword that frees you.

હે પુત્ર. દેહાધ્યાસરૂપ બંધન   વડે લાંબા કાળથી તું બંધાયો છે.

તે પાશને “હું જ્ઞાનરૂપ છું”: એવા જ્ઞાનરૂપ ખડ્ગ વડે છેદી

નાખી સુખી થા. ૧૪

niḥsaṁgo niṣkriyo'si tvaṁ svaprakāśo niraṁjanaḥ ayameva hi te bandhaḥ samādhimanutiṣṭhati

॥ 1-15 ॥ 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.

1.15 For you are already free, Without action or flaw, Luminous and bright. You are bound Only by the habit of meditation.

1.15 You are now and forever

free, luminous, transparent, still.

The practice of meditation

keeps one in bondage

તું અસંગ, અક્રિય, સ્વયંપ્રકાશ અને નિર્દોષ છે. જે

તું  સમાધિ  કરી રહ્યો છે તે જ તારું બંધન છે. ૧5

tvayā vyāptamidaṁ viśvaṁ tvayi protaṁ yathārthataḥ śuddhabuddhasvarūpastvaṁ mā gamaḥ kṣudracittatām

॥ 1-16 ॥ 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.

1.16 Your nature is pure awareness, You are flowing in all things, And all things are flowing in you. But beware The narrowness of the mind!

1.16 You are pure Consciousness—

the substance of the universe.

The universe exists within you.

Don’t be small-minded.

તારા વડે આ વિશ્વ વ્યાપ્તથયેલું છે અને તારામાં જ તે

વણાયેલું  છે. ખરું જોતાં તું શુદ્ધ જ્ઞાનસ્વરૂપ છે, (માટે)

ક્ષુદ્રચિત્તવૃત્તિને  વશ  થા મા. ૧6

nirapekṣo nirvikāro nirbharaḥ śītalāśayaḥ

agādhabuddhirakṣubdho bhava cinmātravāsanaḥ

॥ 1-17 ॥ You are unconditioned and changeless, formless and immovable, unfathomable awareness and unperturbable, so hold to nothing but consciousness.

1.17 You are always the same, Unfathomable awareness, Limitless and free, Serene and unperturbed. Desire only your own awareness.

1.17 You are unconditioned, changeless, formless.

You are solid, unfathomable, cool.

Desire nothing. You are Consciousness.

(તું) કશાની પણ ઈચ્છા વિનાનો , વિકારરહિત , ચિંતા -

રહિત (निर् +भर = ભાર વિનાનો), શાંત અંતઃકરણવાળો , ઊંડી

બુદ્ધિવાળો, ક્ષોભરહિત અને માત્ર ચૈતન્યમાં જ નિષ્ઠા રાખનારો થા .૧૭

sākāramanṛtaṁ viddhi nirākāraṁ tu niścalam etattattvopadeśena na punarbhavasaṁbhavaḥ

 ॥ 1-18 ॥ Recognise that the apparent is unreal, while the unmanifest is abiding. Through this initiation into truth, you will escape falling into unreality again.

1.18 Whatever takes form is false. Only the formless endures. When you understand The truth of this teaching, You will not be born again.

1.18 That which has form is not real.

Only the formless is permanent.

Once this is known,

you will not return to illusion.

(તું શરીરાદિક) સાકાર વસ્તુઓ)ને ખોટી માન અને

નિરાકારને નિશ્વલ અર્થાત્ નિત્ય માન. આ તત્વના (અર્થાત્

નિરાકાર તત્ત્વના) ઉપદેશથી ફરી સંસારમાં) જન્મવાનો સંભવ

રહેતો નથી. ૧૮

yathaivādarśamadhyasthe rūpe'ntaḥ paritastu saḥ tathaivā'smin śarīre'ntaḥ paritaḥ parameśvaraḥ

॥ 1-19 ॥ 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.

1.19 For God is infinite, Within the body and without, Like a mirror, And the image in a mirror.

1.19 Just as a mirror exists

both within and without

the image reflected,

the Supreme Self exists

both within and without the body.

જેવી રીતે આરસાની મધ્યમાં (પ્રતિબિબિત બનેલા)

રૂપની અંદર તેમ જ (બહાર) ચારે બાજુએ માત્ર એ

(આરસો) જ રહેલો છે (અને તેના સિવાય તેનાથી જુદું બીજું

કાંઈ નથી), તેવી રીતે આ શરીરમાં પણ અંદર તેમ જ (બહાર)

ચારે બાજુએ એક માત્ર પરમેશ્વર જ અર્થાત્ ચૈતન્ય જ રહેલું

છે (અને તેના સિવાય તેનાથી જુદું બીજું કાંઈ જ નથી.) ૧૯

ekaṁ sarvagataṁ vyoma bahirantaryathā ghaṭe nityaṁ nirantaraṁ brahma sarvabhūtagaṇe tathā

॥ 1-20 ॥ 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.

1.20 As the air is everywhere, Flowing around a pot And filling it, So God is everywhere, Filling all things And flowing through them forever.

1.20 Just as the same space exists

both within and without a jar,

the timeless, all-pervasive One

exists as Totality.

જેવી રીતે ઘડામાં બહાર તેમ જ અંદર એક અને

સર્વવ્યાપક આકાશ રહેલું છે, તેવી રીતે સમસ્ત ભૂતગણોમાં

(અંદર તેમ જ બહાર) નિત્ય, અવિનાશી બ્રહ્મરહેલું છે. ૨૦

Synopsis of Chapter-1

In the first chapter of the Ashtavakra Gita, Janak asks Ashtavakra about achieving knowledge detachment and liberation. Ashtavakra replies to Janak by saying first shun senses like poison. One needs to focus on forgiveness, kindness, simplicity, sincerity, and truth. We are not earth, fire, water, air, or space. True liberation is to recognize oneself in awareness alone. One needs to focus on awareness to find peace. In their true state, a person has no cast or duties. They are invisible, unattached, and formless. One must witness things and be happy. 

Ashtavakra Gita further tells us that right and wrong, pleasure and pain only exist in the mind. We should not worry about them. We neither do nor enjoy them. We are free from all those things. In the first chapter, Ashtavakra Gita further describes the way to attain knowledge, liberation, and freedom through Ashtavakra and King Janak's conversation.\