The Philosophy of Sankhya

Verse 1 (bhagavata.11.24.1)

श्रीभगवानुवाच अथ ते सम्प्रवक्ष्यामि साङ्ख्यं पूर्वैर्विनिश्चितम् । यद् विज्ञाय पुमान् सद्यो जह्याद् वैकल्पिकं भ्रमम् ॥ 24.1 ॥

śrī-bhagavān uvāca atha te sampravakṣyāmi sāṅkhyaṁ pūrvair viniścitam yad vijñāya pumān sadyo jahyād vaikalpikaṁ bhramam

Shri Bhagavan said: Now I shall explain to you the Sankhya teaching, ascertained by the sages of old, by understanding which a person immediately gives up the illusion of duality.

Verse 2 (bhagavata.11.24.2)

आसीज्ज्ञानमथो अर्थ एकमेवाविकल्पितम् । यदा विवेकनिपुणा आदौ कृतयुगेऽयुगे ॥ 24.2 ॥

āsīj jñānam atho artha ekam evāvikalpitam yadā viveka-nipuṇā ādau kṛta-yuge ’yuge

In the beginning, in Krita-yuga, and before that too — in the time of dissolution when there was no yuga — when men were perfectly skilled in discrimination, knowledge and its object existed as a single undivided reality.

Verse 3 (bhagavata.11.24.3)

तन्मायाफलरूपेण केवलं निर्विकल्पितम् । वाङ्मनोऽगोचरं सत्यं द्विधा समभवद् बृहत् ॥ 24.3 ॥

tan māyā-phala-rūpeṇa kevalaṁ nirvikalpitam vāṅ-mano-’gocaraṁ satyaṁ dvidhā samabhavad bṛhat

That vast truth, alone, undivided, beyond the reach of speech and mind, through the effect of maya became twofold.

Verse 4 (bhagavata.11.24.4)

तयोरेकतरो ह्यर्थः प्रकृतिः सोभयात्मिका । ज्ञानं त्वन्यतमो भावः पुरुषः सोऽभिधीयते ॥ 24.4 ॥

tayor ekataro hy arthaḥ prakṛtiḥ sobhayātmikā jñānaṁ tv anyatamo bhāvaḥ puruṣaḥ so ’bhidhīyate

Of these two, one is the object — nature, comprising both cause and effect; the other is the aspect of knowledge, called the purusha.

Verse 5 (bhagavata.11.24.5)

तमो रजः सत्त्वमिति प्रकृतेरभवन् गुणाः । मया प्रक्षोभ्यमाणायाः पुरुषानुमतेन च ॥ 24.5 ॥

tamo rajaḥ sattvam iti prakṛter abhavan guṇāḥ mayā prakṣobhyamāṇāyāḥ puruṣānumatena ca

Tamas, rajas and sattva became the qualities of nature, when she was stirred by me, with the consent of the purusha.

Verse 6 (bhagavata.11.24.6)

तेभ्यः समभवत् सूत्रं महान् सूत्रेण संयुतः । ततो विकुर्वतो जातो योऽहङ्कारो विमोहनः ॥ 24.6 ॥

tebhyaḥ samabhavat sūtraṁ mahān sūtreṇa saṁyutaḥ tato vikurvato jāto yo ’haṅkāro vimohanaḥ

From those modes arose the sutra, the primal current of life, and, joined with that sutra, the mahat-tattva; from its transformation was born the deluding false ego.

Verse 7 (bhagavata.11.24.7)

वैकारिकस्तैजसश्च तामसश्चेत्यहं त्रिवृत् । तन्मात्रेन्द्रियमनसां कारणं चिदचिन्मयः ॥ 24.7 ॥

vaikārikas taijasaś ca tāmasaś cety ahaṁ tri-vṛt tan-mātrendriya-manasāṁ kāraṇaṁ cid-acin-mayaḥ

That false ego, threefold as vaikarika, taijasa and tamasa, itself both conscious and unconscious in nature, is the cause of the subtle elements, the senses and the mind.

Verse 8 (bhagavata.11.24.8)

अर्थस्तन्मात्रिकाज्जज्ञे तामसादिन्द्रियाणि च । तैजसाद् देवता आसन्नेकादश च वैकृतात् ॥ 24.8 ॥

arthas tan-mātrikāj jajñe tāmasād indriyāṇi ca taijasād devatā āsann ekādaśa ca vaikṛtāt

From the tamasic false ego arose the subtle elements, from the taijasa arose the senses, and from the vaikarika, or sattvic, false ego arose the eleven presiding deities.

Verse 9 (bhagavata.11.24.9)

मया सञ्चोदिता भावाः सर्वे संहत्यकारिणः । अण्डमुत्पादयामासुर्ममायतनमुत्तमम् ॥ 24.9 ॥

mayā sañcoditā bhāvāḥ sarve saṁhatya-kāriṇaḥ aṇḍam utpādayām āsur mamāyatanam uttamam

All these elements, impelled by me, worked together in combination and produced the cosmic egg, my supreme abode.

Verse 10 (bhagavata.11.24.10)

तस्मिन्नहं समभवमण्डे सलिलसंस्थितौ । मम नाभ्यामभूत् पद्मं विश्वाख्यं तत्र चात्मभूः ॥ 24.10 ॥

tasminn ahaṁ samabhavam aṇḍe salila-saṁsthitau mama nābhyām abhūt padmaṁ viśvākhyaṁ tatra cātma-bhūḥ

I myself came to be present within that egg, resting on the causal waters; from my navel arose the lotus called Vishva, and there the self-born Brahma appeared.

Verse 11 (bhagavata.11.24.11)

सोऽसृजत्तपसा युक्तो रजसा मदनुग्रहात् । लोकान् सपालान् विश्वात्मा भूर्भुवः स्वरिति त्रिधा ॥ 24.11 ॥

so ’sṛjat tapasā yukto rajasā mad-anugrahāt lokān sa-pālān viśvātmā bhūr bhuvaḥ svar iti tridhā

That soul of the universe, endowed with rajas, by austerity and by my grace, created the three worlds together with their rulers — Bhu, Bhuvar and Svar.

Verse 12 (bhagavata.11.24.12)

देवानामोक आसीत् स्वर्भूतानां च भुवः पदम् । मर्त्यादीनां च भूर्लोकः सिद्धानां त्रितयात् परम् ॥ 24.12 ॥

devānām oka āsīt svar bhūtānāṁ ca bhuvaḥ padam martyādīnāṁ ca bhūr lokaḥ siddhānāṁ tritayāt param

Svarloka became the abode of the gods, Bhuvarloka the place of spirits, and Bhurloka that of humans and other mortal beings; the perfected ones dwell above these three.

Verse 13 (bhagavata.11.24.13)

अधोऽसुराणां नागानां भूमेरोकोऽसृजत् प्रभुः । त्रिलोक्यां गतयः सर्वाः कर्मणां त्रिगुणात्मनाम् ॥ 24.13 ॥

adho ’surāṇāṁ nāgānāṁ bhūmer oko ’sṛjat prabhuḥ tri-lokyāṁ gatayaḥ sarvāḥ karmaṇāṁ tri-guṇātmanām

Lord Brahma created, below the earth, the abode of the asuras and the nagas; thus, within the three worlds, are contained all the destinies belonging to actions performed in the three modes.

Verse 14 (bhagavata.11.24.14)

योगस्य तपसश्चैव न्यासस्य गतयोऽमलाः । महर्जनस्तपः सत्यं भक्तियोगस्य मद्गतिः ॥ 24.14 ॥

yogasya tapasaś caiva nyāsasya gatayo ’malāḥ mahar janas tapaḥ satyaṁ bhakti-yogasya mad-gatiḥ

The pure destinations reached through yoga, austerity and renunciation are Mahar, Jana, Tapas and Satya; but the destination reached through bhakti-yoga is myself.

Verse 15 (bhagavata.11.24.15)

मया कालात्मना धात्रा कर्मयुक्तमिदं जगत् । गुणप्रवाह एतस्मिन्नुन्मज्जति निमज्जति ॥ 24.15 ॥

mayā kālātmanā dhātrā karma-yuktam idaṁ jagat guṇa-pravāha etasminn unmajjati nimajjati

This world, bound to karma, has been ordained by me, the creator in the form of time; within this stream of the modes, beings rise and sink by turns.

Verse 16 (bhagavata.11.24.16)

अणुर्बृहत् कृशः स्थूलो यो यो भावः प्रसिध्यति । सर्वोऽप्युभयसंयुक्तः प्रकृत्या पुरुषेण च ॥ 24.16 ॥

aṇur bṛhat kṛśaḥ sthūlo yo yo bhāvaḥ prasidhyati sarvo ’py ubhaya-saṁyuktaḥ prakṛtyā puruṣeṇa ca

Whatever entity is found to exist — small or great, slight or massive — every one of them is joined with both nature and the purusha.

Verse 17 (bhagavata.11.24.17)

यस्तु यस्यादिरन्तश्च स वै मध्यं च तस्य सन् । विकारो व्यवहारार्थो यथा तैजसपार्थिवाः ॥ 24.17 ॥

yas tu yasyādir antaś ca sa vai madhyaṁ ca tasya san vikāro vyavahārārtho yathā taijasa-pārthivāḥ

That which is the beginning and end of a thing is present in its middle as well; the transformation itself exists merely for the sake of naming, as with things made of gold or of earth.

Verse 18 (bhagavata.11.24.18)

यदुपादाय पूर्वस्तु भावो विकुरुतेऽपरम् । आदिरन्तो यदा यस्य तत् सत्यमभिधीयते ॥ 24.18 ॥

yad upādāya pūrvas tu bhāvo vikurute ’param ādir anto yadā yasya tat satyam abhidhīyate

That taking which as its basis a prior state transforms into another — that whose nature persists as a thing's beginning and end alike — is what is called real.

Verse 19 (bhagavata.11.24.19)

प्रकृतिर्यस्योपादानमाधारः पुरुषः परः । सतोऽभिव्यञ्जकः कालो ब्रह्म तत्त्रितयं त्वहम् ॥ 24.19 ॥

prakṛtir yasyopādānam ādhāraḥ puruṣaḥ paraḥ sato ’bhivyañjakaḥ kālo brahma tat tritayaṁ tv aham

That whose material cause is nature, whose support is the supreme purusha, and whose revealer is time — that threefold reality of nature, purusha and time is myself, the Absolute.

Verse 20 (bhagavata.11.24.20)

सर्गः प्रवर्तते तावत् पौर्वापर्येण नित्यशः । महान् गुणविसर्गार्थः स्थित्यन्तो यावदीक्षणम् ॥ 24.20 ॥

sargaḥ pravartate tāvat paurvāparyeṇa nityaśaḥ mahān guṇa-visargārthaḥ sthity-anto yāvad īkṣaṇam

Creation, arising through the mahat-tattva for the manifesting of the modes, continues perpetually in due succession, from its beginning until my glance withdraws, whereupon this state comes to its end.

Verse 21 (bhagavata.11.24.21)

विराण्मयासाद्यमानो लोककल्पविकल्पकः । पञ्चत्वाय विशेषाय कल्पते भुवनैः सह ॥ 24.21 ॥

virāṇ mayāsādyamāno loka-kalpa-vikalpakaḥ pañcatvāya viśeṣāya kalpate bhuvanaiḥ saha

The cosmic form, brought into being by me, fashioning the manifold worlds, remains, together with all its planetary systems, always ready as well for dissolution into the five elements.

Verse 22 (bhagavata.11.24.22)

अन्ने प्रलीयते मर्त्यमन्नं धानासु लीयते । धाना भूमौ प्रलीयन्ते भूमिर्गन्धे प्रलीयते ॥ 24.22 ॥

anne pralīyate martyam annaṁ dhānāsu līyate dhānā bhūmau pralīyante bhūmir gandhe pralīyate

The mortal body dissolves into food, food dissolves into grain, grain dissolves into the earth, and the earth dissolves into its own subtle quality, smell.

Verse 23 (bhagavata.11.24.23)

अप्सु प्रलीयते गन्ध आपश्च स्वगुणे रसे । लीयते ज्योतिषि रसो ज्योती रूपे प्रलीयते ॥ 24.23 ॥

apsu pralīyate gandha āpaś ca sva-guṇe rase līyate jyotiṣi raso jyotī rūpe pralīyate

Smell dissolves into water, and water into its own quality, taste; taste dissolves into fire, and fire dissolves into form.

Verse 24 (bhagavata.11.24.24)

रूपं वायौ स च स्पर्शे लीयते सोऽपि चाम्बरे । अम्बरं शब्दतन्मात्र इन्द्रियाणि स्वयोनिषु ॥ 24.24 ॥

rūpaṁ vāyau sa ca sparśe līyate so ’pi cāmbare ambaraṁ śabda-tan-mātra indriyāṇi sva-yoniṣu

Form dissolves into air, air dissolves into touch, and that too dissolves into ether; ether dissolves into the subtle essence of sound, and the senses dissolve into their own presiding sources.

Verse 25 (bhagavata.11.24.25)

योनिर्वैकारिके सौम्य लीयते मनसीश्वरे । शब्दो भूतादिमप्येति भूतादिर्महति प्रभुः ॥ 24.25 ॥

yonir vaikārike saumya līyate manasīśvare śabdo bhūtādim apyeti bhūtādir mahati prabhuḥ

O gentle one, those presiding sources dissolve into the sattvic false ego, present as the ruling mind; sound dissolves into the tamasic false ego, and that mighty tamasic false ego dissolves into the mahat.

Verse 26 (bhagavata.11.24.26)

स लीयते महान् स्वेषु गुणेषु गुणवत्तमः । तेऽव्यक्ते सम्प्रलीयन्ते तत् काले लीयतेऽव्यये ॥ 24.26 ॥

sa līyate mahān sveṣu guṇesu guṇa-vattamaḥ te ’vyakte sampralīyante tat kāle līyate ’vyaye

That mahat, greatest among the possessors of the modes, dissolves into its own modes; those modes dissolve into the unmanifest, and that unmanifest dissolves into imperishable time.

Verse 27 (bhagavata.11.24.27)

कालो मायामये जीवे जीव आत्मनि मय्यजे । आत्मा केवल आत्मस्थो विकल्पापायलक्षणः ॥ 24.27 ॥

kālo māyā-maye jīve jīva ātmani mayy aje ātmā kevala ātma-stho vikalpāpāya-lakṣaṇaḥ

Time dissolves into the maya-bound jiva; the jiva dissolves into the self, present in me, the unborn; and that self alone, abiding in itself, remains, marked by the utter cessation of duality.

Verse 28 (bhagavata.11.24.28)

एवमन्वीक्षमाणस्य कथं वैकल्पिको भ्रमः । मनसो हृदि तिष्ठेत व्योम्नीवार्कोदये तमः ॥ 24.28 ॥

evam anvīkṣamāṇasya kathaṁ vaikalpiko bhramaḥ manaso hṛdi tiṣṭheta vyomnīvārkodaye tamaḥ

For one who thus contemplates this process, how could the illusion of duality remain lodged in the heart's mind, any more than darkness could remain in the sky once the sun has risen?

Verse 29 (bhagavata.11.24.29)

एष साङ्ख्यविधिः प्रोक्तः संशयग्रन्थिभेदनः । प्रतिलोमानुलोमाभ्यां परावरदृशा मया ॥ 24.29 ॥

eṣa sāṅkhya-vidhiḥ proktaḥ saṁśaya-granthi-bhedanaḥ pratilomānulomābhyāṁ parāvara-dṛśā mayā

Thus have I, who see both the higher and the lower, spoken this teaching of Sankhya, which cuts through the knot of doubt, by way of both the forward and reverse order of creation and dissolution.