नारद उवाच अशोकं शोकनाशार्थं शास्त्रं शान्तिकरं शिवम्। निशम्य लभते बुद्धिं तां लब्ध्वा सुखमेधते॥
Narada said By listening to such sacred scriptures, as bring about tranquillity, as remove grief, and as yield happiness, one acquired (a pure) understanding, and, having acquired it; obtains to great happiness.
शोकस्थानसहस्राणि भयस्थानशतानि च। दिवसे दिवसे मूढमाविशन्ति न पण्डितम्॥
A thousand causes of sorrow, a hundred causes of fear, from day to day, attack one who is shorn of understanding but not one who is endued with wisdom and learning.
तस्मादनिष्टनाशार्थमितिहासं निबोध मे। तिष्ठते चेद् वशे बुद्धिर्लभते शोकनाशनम्॥
Do you, therefore, listen to some old narratives as I recount them to you, for the object of removing your sorrow, If one can subjugate his understanding, he is sure to acquire happiness.
अनिष्टसम्प्रयोगाच्च विप्रयोगात् प्रियस्य च। मनुष्या मानसैर्दुःखैर्युज्यन्ते स्वल्पबुद्धयः॥
By accession of what is undesirable and dissociation from what is agreeable, only men of little intelligence yield to mental sorrow.
द्रव्येषु समतीतेषु ये गुणास्तान् न चिन्तयेत्। न तानाद्रियमाणस्य स्नेहबन्धः प्रमुच्यते॥
When things are passed, one should not grieve, thinking of their merits. He who thinks of such past things with affection can never liberate himself.
दोषदर्शी भवेत् तत्र यत्र रागः प्रवर्तते। अनिष्टवर्धितं पश्येत् तथा क्षिप्र विरज्यते॥
One should always try to find out the faults of those things to which one becomes attached, One should always consider such things to be fraught with much evil, By doing so, one should soon free him therefrom.
नार्थो न धर्मो न यशो योऽतीतमनुशोचति। अप्यभावेन युज्येत तच्चास्य न निवर्तते।॥
The man who grieves for what is past, cannot acquire either riches or religious merit or fame. What exists no longer cannot be acquired. When such things go away, they do not return.
गुणैर्भूतानि युज्यन्ते वियुज्यन्ते तथैव च। सर्वाणि नैतदेकस्य शोकस्थानं हि विद्यते॥
Creatures sometimes acquire and sometimes lose earthly objects. No man in this world can be grieved by all the events that befall him.
मृतं वा यदि वा नष्टं योऽतीतमनुशोचति। दुःखेन लभते दु:खं द्वावनों प्रपद्यते॥
Dead or lost, he who grieves for what is gone only gets sorrow for sorrow. Instead of one sorrow, he gets two.
नाश्रु कुर्वन्ति ये बुद्ध्या दृष्ट्वा लोकेषु संततिम्। सम्यक् प्रपश्यतः सर्वं नाश्रुकर्मोपपद्यते॥
Those men who, seeing the course of life and death in the world with the help of their intelligence, do not shed tears, are said to see properly. Such persons have never to shed tears.
दुःखोपघाते शारीरे मानसे चाप्युपस्थिते। यस्मिन् न शक्यते कर्तुं यत्नस्तन्नानुचिन्तयेत्॥
When any such calamity comes, which creates either their physical or mental grief, as is incapable of being prevented by even his best endeavours, one should cease to think on it with sorrow.
भैषज्यमेतद् दुःखस्य यदेतन्नानुचिन्तयेत्। चिन्त्यमानं हि न व्येति भूयश्चापि प्रवर्धते॥
Not to think of it is the panacea for sorrow. By thinking of it, one can never remove it; on the other hand, by thinking upon sorrow, one only increases it.
प्रज्ञया मानसं दुःखं हन्याच्छारीरमौषधैः। एतद् विज्ञानसामर्थ्य न बालैः समतामियात्॥
Mental sorrow should be destroyed by wisdom; while physical sorrow should be removed by medicines. This is the power of knowledge. One should not, in such matters, act like men of little understandings.
अनित्यं यौवनं रूपं जीवितं द्रव्यसंचयः। आरोग्यं प्रियसंवासो गृध्येत् तत्र न पण्डितः॥
Youth, beauty, life, hoarded riches, health, association with those that are loved, these all are fickle. One endued with wisdom should never covet them.
न जानपदिकं दुःखमेकः शोचितुमर्हति। अशोचन् प्रतिकुर्वीत यदि पश्येदुपक्रमम्॥
One should not lament individually for a sorrowful incident that concerns an entire community. Instead of indulgence in grief when it comes, one should try to avert it and apply a remedy as soon as he finds the opportunity for doing it.
सुखाद् बहुतरं दुःखं जीविते नात्र संशयः। स्निग्धत्वं चेन्द्रियार्थेषु मोहान्मरणमप्रियम्॥
There is no doubt that in this life misery is much greater than that of happiness. There is no doubt in this that all men show attachment for objects of the senses and that death is considered as disagreeable.
परित्यजति यो दुःखं सुखं वाप्युभयं नरः। अभ्येति ब्रह्म सोऽत्यन्तं न तं शोचन्ति पण्डिताः।१७।।
That man who renounces both joy and sorrow, is said to attain to Brahma. When such a man dies, men of wisdom never indulge in any grief for him.
त्यज्यन्ते दुःखमर्था हि पालने न च ते सुखाः। दुःखेन चाधिगम्यते नाशमेषां न चिन्तयेत्॥
There is pain in spending wealth. There is pain in protecting it. There is pain in acquiring it. Hence, when one's wealth is lost, he should not grieve for it.
अन्यामन्यां धनावस्थां प्राप्य वैशेषिकी नराः। अतृप्ता यान्ति विध्वंसं संतोषं यान्ति पण्डिता॥
Men of little understandings, in their efforts to acquire different grades of wealth, lose their contentment and at last die broken-hearted. Wise men, however, are always contented.
सर्वे क्षयान्ता निचयाः पतनान्ताः समुच्छ्रयाः। संयोगा विप्रयोगान्ता मरणान्तं हि जीवितम्॥
All combinations are sure to end in dissolution. All things that are high are destined to fall down and become low. Union is sure to end in disunion, and life is certain to end in death.
अन्तो नास्ति पिपासायास्तुष्टिस्तु परमं सुखम्। तस्मात् संतोषमेवेह धनं पश्यन्ति पण्डिताः॥
Thirst can never be satiated. Contentment is the greatest happiness. Hence, wise men regard contentment as the most valuable wealth.
निमेषमात्रमपि हि वयो गच्छन्न तिष्ठति। स्वशरीरेष्वनित्येषु नित्यं किमनुचिन्तयेत्॥
One's lease of life is running continually. It stops not in its course for even a single moment. When one's body itself is not durable, what other thing is there which one should consider as durable?
भूतेषु भावं संचिन्त्य ये बुद्ध्वा मनस: परम्। न शोचन्ति गताध्वानः पश्यन्तः परमां गतिम्॥
Those persons who, meditating on the nature of all creatures and, concluding that it is beyond the grasp of the mind, direct their attention to the highest path, and, starting, acquire a fair progress in it, have not to indulge in sorrow.
संचिन्वानकमेवैनं कामानामवितृप्तकम्। व्याघ्रः पशुमिवासाद्य मृत्युरादाय गच्छति।॥
Like a tiger seizing and running away with its prey, Death seizes and runs away with the man, who is engaged in such occupation and which is still not satiated with objects of desire and enjoyment.
तथाप्युपायं सम्पश्येद् दुःखस्य परिमोक्षणम्। अशोचन् नारभेच्चैव मुक्तश्चाव्यसनी भवेत्॥
One should always try to liberate himself from sorrow. One should try to remove sorrow by beginning his work with cheerfulness, that is without indulging, in sorrow, having freed himself from a particular sorrow, one should act in such a way as to keep sorrow at a distance by abstaining from all shortcomings of conduct.
शब्दे स्पर्शे च रूपे च गन्धेषु च रसेषु च। नोपभोगात् परं किंचिद् धनिनो वाधनस्य च॥
The rich and the poor alike find nothing in sound and touch and form and scent and taste, after the immediate enjoyment thereof.
प्राक्सम्प्रयोगाद् भूतानां नास्ति दुःखं परायणम्। विप्रयोगात् तु सर्वस्य न शोचेत् प्रकृतिस्थितः॥
Before union, creatures never suffer sorrow. Hence, one who has not deviated from his original nature, never grieves when that union comes to an end.
धृत्या शिश्नोदरं रक्षेत् पाणिपादं च चक्षुषा। चक्षुःश्रोत्रे च मनसा मनो वाचं च विद्यया॥
One should control his sexual appetite and the stomach with the help of patience. One should protect his hands and feet with the help of the eye. One's eyes and ears and the other senses, should be protected by the mind. One's mind and speech should be governed with the help of wisdomn.
प्रणयं प्रतिसंहृत्य संस्तुतेष्वितरेषु च। विचरेदसमुन्नद्धः स सुखी स च पण्डितः॥
Renouncing love and affection for persons that are known as well as for those that are unknown, one should act with humility. Such a person is said to be endued with wisdom, and such a one surely finds happiness.
अध्यात्मरतिरासीनो निरपेक्षो निरामिषः। आत्मनैव सहायेन यश्चरेत् स सुखी भवेत्॥
That man who is pleased with his own Soul, who is given to Yoga, who depends upon nothing out of self, who is without cupidity, and who acts without the help of anything but his self, succeeds in acquiring happiness.