Atma-Jnana: The Knowledge of the Self

Verse 1 (garuda.1.236.1)

श्रीभगवानुवाच । आत्मज्ञानं प्रवक्ष्यामि शृणु नारद तत्त्वतः । अद्वैतं साङ्ख्यमित्याहुर्योगस्तत्रैकचित्तता

śrībhagavānuvāca ātmajñānaṁ pravakṣyāmi śṛṇu nārada tattvataḥ advaitaṁ sāṅkhyamityāhuryogastatraikacittatā

The Blessed Lord said: I shall declare the knowledge of the Self; hear it truly, O Narada. They call it Advaita and Sankhya; yoga there consists in one-pointedness of mind.

Verse 2 (garuda.1.236.2)

अद्वैतयोगसम्पन्नास्ते मुच्यन्तेऽतिबन्धनात् । अतीतारब्धमागामि कर्म नश्यति बोधतः

advaitayogasampannāste mucyante'tibandhanāt atītārabdhamāgāmi karma naśyati bodhataḥ

Those endowed with the yoga of non-duality are freed from the great bondage; past, begun, and future karma are destroyed through awakening.

Verse 3 (garuda.1.236.3)

सद्विचारकुठारेण च्छिन्नसंसारपादपः । ज्ञानवैराग्यतीर्थेन लभते वैष्णवं पदम्

sadvicārakuṭhāreṇa cchinnasaṁsārapādapaḥ jñānavairāgyatīrthena labhate vaiṣṇavaṁ padam

With the axe of true discrimination, the tree of samsara is felled; through the sacred ford of knowledge and dispassion, one attains the Vaishnava state.

Verse 4 (garuda.1.236.4)

जाग्रत्स्वप्नसुषुप्तं च माया त्रिपुरमुच्यते । अत्रैवान्तर्गतं सर्वं शाश्वते नाद्वये पदे

jāgratsvapnasuṣuptaṁ ca māyā tripuramucyate atraivāntargataṁ sarvaṁ śāśvate nādvaye pade

Waking, dream, and deep sleep — this threefold state is called the 'city' of Maya; all of this is contained within the eternal, non-dual state.

Verse 5 (garuda.1.236.5)

नामरूपक्रियाहीनं सर्वं तत्परमं पदम् । जगत्कृत्वेश्वरोऽनन्तं स्वयमत्र प्रविष्टवान्

nāmarūpakriyāhīnaṁ sarvaṁ tatparamaṁ padam jagatkṛtveśvaro'nantaṁ svayamatra praviṣṭavān

That supreme state is devoid of name, form, and action, yet is everything. Having made the universe, the infinite Lord himself entered into it.

Verse 6 (garuda.1.236.6)

वेदाहमेतं पुरुषं चिद्रूपं तमसः परम् । सोऽहमस्मीति मोक्षाय नान्यः पन्था विमुक्तये

vedāhametaṁ puruṣaṁ cidrūpaṁ tamasaḥ param so'hamasmīti mokṣāya nānyaḥ panthā vimuktaye

'I know this Purusha, of the form of consciousness, beyond darkness; I am He' — for liberation, there is no other path to freedom.

Verse 7 (garuda.1.236.7)

श्रवणं मननं ध्यानं ज्ञानानां चैव साधनम् । यज्ञदानतपस्तीर्थवेदैर्मुक्तिर्न लभ्यते

śravaṇaṁ mananaṁ dhyānaṁ jñānānāṁ caiva sādhanam yajñadānatapastīrthavedairmuktirna labhyate

Hearing, reflection, and meditation are the means of attaining knowledge; liberation is not obtained through sacrifice, charity, austerity, pilgrimage, or the Vedas alone.

Verse 8 (garuda.1.236.8)

त्यागेन केनचिद्ध्यानपूजाकर्मादिभिर्यथा । द्विविधं वेदवचनं कुरु कर्म त्यजेति च

tyāgena kenaciddhyānapūjākarmādibhiryathā dvividhaṁ vedavacanaṁ kuru karma tyajeti ca

It is attained through some form of renunciation, as through meditation, worship, and other rites. The teaching of the Veda is twofold: 'perform action' and 'renounce action.'

Verse 9 (garuda.1.236.9)

यज्ञादयो विमुक्तानां निष्कामानां विमुक्तये । अन्तः करणशुद्ध्यर्थमूचुरेवात्र केचन

yajñādayo vimuktānāṁ niṣkāmānāṁ vimuktaye antaḥ karaṇaśuddhyarthamūcurevātra kecana

Sacrifice and the rest are for those already free of desire, for the sake of their liberation; some have said these are here for the purpose of purifying the inner faculty.

Verse 10 (garuda.1.236.10)

एकेन जन्मना ज्ञानन्मुक्तिर्न द्वैतभाविनाम् । योगभ्रष्टाः कुयोगाश्च विप्रा योगिकुलोद्भवाः

ekena janmanā jñānanmuktirna dvaitabhāvinām yogabhraṣṭāḥ kuyogāśca viprā yogikulodbhavāḥ

Through knowledge, liberation is attained in a single birth; not so for those of dualistic mind. Those fallen from yoga, and those of false yoga, may be reborn as brahmins in families of yogis.

Verse 11 (garuda.1.236.11)

कर्मणा बध्यते जन्तुर्ज्ञानान्मुक्तो भवाद्भवेत् । आत्मज्ञानन्त्वाश्रयेद्वै अज्ञानं यदतोऽन्यथा

karmaṇā badhyate janturjñānānmukto bhavādbhavet ātmajñānantvāśrayedvai ajñānaṁ yadato'nyathā

A creature is bound by action, but freed from the cycle of existence through knowledge. One should take refuge in knowledge of the Self alone; whatever is other than this is ignorance.

Verse 12 (garuda.1.236.12)

यदा सर्वे विमुच्यन्ते कामा येस्यहृदि स्थिताः । तदामृतत्वमाप्नोति जीवन्नेव न संशयः

yadā sarve vimucyante kāmā yesyahṛdi sthitāḥ tadāmṛtatvamāpnoti jīvanneva na saṁśayaḥ

When all the desires lodged in one's heart are entirely abandoned, then one attains immortality, even while living — of this there is no doubt.

Verse 13 (garuda.1.236.13)

व्यापकत्वात्कथं याति को याति क्व स याति च । अनन्तत्वान्नदेशोऽस्ति अमूर्तित्वाद्गतिः कुतः

vyāpakatvātkathaṁ yāti ko yāti kva sa yāti ca anantatvānnadeśo'sti amūrtitvādgatiḥ kutaḥ

Being all-pervading, how does he go anywhere? Who goes, and where does he go? Because of infinitude, there is no limiting place; because of formlessness, whence could there be any motion?

Verse 14 (garuda.1.236.14)

अद्वयत्वान्न कोऽप्यस्ति बोधत्वाज्जडता कुतः । एकोद्दिष्टं यदन्यस्य मतिवाग्गतिसंस्थिति (म्)

advayatvānna ko'pyasti bodhatvājjaḍatā kutaḥ ekoddiṣṭaṁ yadanyasya mativāggatisaṁsthiti (m)

Because of non-duality, there is no 'other' at all; being of the nature of consciousness, whence could there be inertness? What is pointed to for one alone cannot belong to another's thought, speech, motion, or state.

Verse 15 (garuda.1.236.15)

कथमाकाशकल्पस्य गतिरागतिसंस्थिति । जाग्रत्स्वप्नसुषुप्तं च मायया परिकल्पितम्

kathamākāśakalpasya gatirāgatisaṁsthiti jāgratsvapnasuṣuptaṁ ca māyayā parikalpitam

How can there be going, coming, or abiding for one who is like space? Waking, dream, and deep sleep are all merely imagined through Maya.

Verse 16 (garuda.1.236.16)

वस्तु तैजसकं प्राज्ञे यत्तु पुण्यमखण्डकम् । यथा ते प्रियात्मा नः सर्वेषां च तथा प्रियः

vastu taijasakaṁ prājñe yattu puṇyamakhaṇḍakam yathā te priyātmā naḥ sarveṣāṁ ca tathā priyaḥ

The reality of the dream-state rests in the deep-sleep consciousness, both ultimately the unbroken meritorious Self; just as one's own self is dear to oneself, so it is dear to all.

Verse 17 (garuda.1.236.17)

बोधमार्गे यथा चित्तं सर्वेषां च तथा मते । सर्वदा सर्वभूतानां सर्वस्य च महामुने

bodhamārge yathā cittaṁ sarveṣāṁ ca tathā mate sarvadā sarvabhūtānāṁ sarvasya ca mahāmune

On the path of awakening, the mind functions the same way for all; and, O great sage, this is held to be true, always, for all beings and for everyone.

Verse 18 (garuda.1.236.18)

नाहमत्रात्मविज्ञानं तस्मात्पूर्णं निरन्तरम् । जाग्रत्स्वप्नं तथा वृत्तं सौषुप्तसुखमेव च

nāhamatrātmavijñānaṁ tasmātpūrṇaṁ nirantaram jāgratsvapnaṁ tathā vṛttaṁ sauṣuptasukhameva ca

Here there is no 'I' apart from the knowledge of the Self; therefore it is full and unbroken — pervading the waking and dream states, and the bliss of deep sleep too.

Verse 19 (garuda.1.236.19)

स्मरणं विस्मृतार्थस्य नास्ति चेत्कस्य जायते । सत्यमस्तु तथा वाणु अशरीरं परं तथा

smaraṇaṁ vismṛtārthasya nāsti cetkasya jāyate satyamastu tathā vāṇu aśarīraṁ paraṁ tathā

If there were no witness-consciousness, whose would be the memory of a forgotten thing? It should be understood as real, subtle, bodiless, and supreme.

Verse 20 (garuda.1.236.20)

नास्ति चेत्सुखदुः खानां सर्वेषां वेदनं कथम् । सदा सर्वत्र सर्वज्ञः सर्वस्य हृदये न येत्

nāsti cetsukhaduḥ khānāṁ sarveṣāṁ vedanaṁ katham sadā sarvatra sarvajñaḥ sarvasya hṛdaye na yet

If it did not exist, how would the experience of pleasure and pain of all be possible? It is always, everywhere, omniscient, though it is not confined to any one heart alone.

Verse 21 (garuda.1.236.21)

साक्षिभूतः समाश्रित्य को जानाति विचेष्टितम् । सत्य ज्ञानानन्त भिन्नं स्यान्नसत्यं ज्ञानतः पृथक्

sākṣibhūtaḥ samāśritya ko jānāti viceṣṭitam satya jñānānanta bhinnaṁ syānnasatyaṁ jñānataḥ pṛthak

Taking refuge as the witness, who truly knows all activity? Truth, knowledge, and infinity, if held to be distinct from each other, would be unreal — true reality is not separate from knowledge.

Verse 22 (garuda.1.236.22)

नानन्त्यात्पृथगानन्दं नाप्यमानन्दतः पृथक् । त्वमेव परमं ब्रह्म सत्यज्ञानादिलक्षणम्

nānantyātpṛthagānandaṁ nāpyamānandataḥ pṛthak tvameva paramaṁ brahma satyajñānādilakṣaṇam

Bliss is not separate from infinity, nor is infinity separate from bliss. You alone are the Supreme Brahman, characterized by truth, knowledge, and the rest.

Verse 23 (garuda.1.236.23)

अहं ब्रह्म परं तत्त्वं ज्ञात्वा त्वखिलविद्भवेत् । यथैकमृन्मये ज्ञाते सर्वमेतच्चराचरम्

ahaṁ brahma paraṁ tattvaṁ jñātvā tvakhilavidbhavet yathaikamṛnmaye jñāte sarvametaccarācaram

Knowing 'I am Brahman, the supreme truth,' one becomes the knower of all — just as, when a single clay is known, all this moving and unmoving clay-made world is known.

Verse 24 (garuda.1.236.24)

यथैकहेममणिना सर्वं हेममयं भवेत् । ज्ञानं तथैवमीशेन ज्ञानिनाप्यखिलं जगत्

yathaikahemamaṇinā sarvaṁ hemamayaṁ bhavet jñānaṁ tathaivamīśena jñānināpyakhilaṁ jagat

As, through a single golden jewel, all is understood in its essential gold-nature, so too, through knowledge of the Lord by the knower, the entire universe is understood in its essential nature.

Verse 25 (garuda.1.236.25)

यथान्धकारदोषेण रज्जुः सम्यङ्नदृश्यते । यथा संमोहदोषेण चात्मा सम्यङ्नदृश्यते

yathāndhakāradoṣeṇa rajjuḥ samyaṅnadṛśyate yathā saṁmohadoṣeṇa cātmā samyaṅnadṛśyate

As, through the fault of darkness, a rope is not correctly seen, so too, through the fault of delusion, the Self is not correctly seen.

Verse 26 (garuda.1.236.26)

सर्पधारादिभिर्भेदरैन्यथा वस्तुकल्पनम् । व्योमादिना सरूपाद्यैरन्यथात्मा प्रकल्प्यते

sarpadhārādibhirbhedarainyathā vastukalpanam vyomādinā sarūpādyairanyathātmā prakalpyate

Through such distinctions as 'snake,' 'streak,' and the like, the substance is falsely imagined otherwise; likewise, through space and other forms, the Self is falsely conceived otherwise.

Verse 27 (garuda.1.236.27)

प्रत्यक्षमपि यद्द्रव्यन्दुर्दर्शमिति भाषते । व्योमादिना सरूपाद्यैरन्यथा कल्पितैस्तथा

pratyakṣamapi yaddravyandurdarśamiti bhāṣate vyomādinā sarūpādyairanyathā kalpitaistathā

Even a directly perceived substance is sometimes said to be hard to discern in its true nature — likewise, through space and other such forms, it is falsely conceived.

Verse 28 (garuda.1.236.28)

तथा हि रज्जुरुरगः शुक्तिः कारजतं यथा । मृगतृष्णापथायाम्भस्तृप्तिं विष्णो तथा जगत्

tathā hi rajjururagaḥ śuktiḥ kārajataṁ yathā mṛgatṛṣṇāpathāyāmbhastṛptiṁ viṣṇo tathā jagat

As a rope appears as a snake, a shell as silver, and as a mirage on a desert road appears to give the satisfaction of water — so, O Vishnu, is this world.

Verse 29 (garuda.1.236.29)

हाहिष्णोद्विजा कथि द्भोहमितिदृ । ग्रहनाशात्पुनर्ध्यायन्ब्राह्मण्यं मन्यते यथा

hāhiṣṇodvijā kathi dbhohamitidṛ grahanāśātpunardhyāyanbrāhmaṇyaṁ manyate yathā

...as, when a possessing affliction is dispelled, one again, meditating, recalls one's true brahmin identity,

Verse 30 (garuda.1.236.30)

मायाविष्टस्तथा जीवो देहोहमिति मन्यते । मायानाशात्पुनः स्वीयरूपं ब्रह्मास्मि मन्यते

māyāviṣṭastathā jīvo dehohamiti manyate māyānāśātpunaḥ svīyarūpaṁ brahmāsmi manyate

— so too the jiva, possessed by Maya, thinks 'I am the body'; when Maya is destroyed, it again recognizes its own true form, thinking 'I am Brahman.'

Verse 31 (garuda.1.236.31)

ग्रहनाशाद्यथा मान्यजनोक्रूरमवेक्षते । स्वरूपदर्शनाच्चायं माया नाशन्तया विना

grahanāśādyathā mānyajanokrūramavekṣate svarūpadarśanāccāyaṁ māyā nāśantayā vinā

As, when the affliction is dispelled, one no longer regards even a respected person with hostility, so too this jiva is freed through the vision of its true nature, but not without the destruction of Maya.

Verse 32 (garuda.1.236.32)

अनादित्वं समं द्वाभ्यां स्वरूपं तद्विलक्षणम् । एकः सत्यं तथा भागी विचारेण परं मृषा

anāditvaṁ samaṁ dvābhyāṁ svarūpaṁ tadvilakṣaṇam ekaḥ satyaṁ tathā bhāgī vicāreṇa paraṁ mṛṣā

Beginninglessness is common to both, though their true nature differs; one is real, while the other, as if a mere part, upon examination proves ultimately false.

Verse 33 (garuda.1.236.33)

अजोपि हि सकृत्प्रेत्य संभवाम्यात्ममायया । मायेच्छया द्विधा स स्यात्पतिः पत्नी सुखं जगत्

ajopi hi sakṛtpretya saṁbhavāmyātmamāyayā māyecchayā dvidhā sa syātpatiḥ patnī sukhaṁ jagat

Though unborn, I come into being once through my own Maya; by the will of Maya, that one becomes twofold — husband and wife — and the pleasurable world comes forth.

Verse 34 (garuda.1.236.34)

अष्टाविंशतिभेदैस्तु त्रैगुण्यं विद्यते पृथक् । चतुरशीतिर्लक्ष्यन्ते नरनार्याकृतीनि च

aṣṭāviṁśatibhedaistu traiguṇyaṁ vidyate pṛthak caturaśītirlakṣyante naranāryākṛtīni ca

The threefold gunas are known separately through twenty-eight distinctions, and eighty-four lakh forms of men and women are observed.

Verse 35 (garuda.1.236.35)

एषुविश्वं प्रभवति खण्डजं मायया यथा । आदावन्ते च सन्त्येते नामरूपक्रियादयः

eṣuviśvaṁ prabhavati khaṇḍajaṁ māyayā yathā ādāvante ca santyete nāmarūpakriyādayaḥ

Within these, the universe arises, fragmented, through Maya; and at the beginning and the end, these name, form, action, and the rest also exist.

Verse 36 (garuda.1.236.36)

सत्तावकल्पनं काले न सन्ति परमार्थतः । यथा रथादयः स्वप्ने सन्तो नैव च सत्यतः

sattāvakalpanaṁ kāle na santi paramārthataḥ yathā rathādayaḥ svapne santo naiva ca satyataḥ

Their existence is a construction in time; in the ultimate sense they do not exist — just as chariots and the like appear in a dream, but are not real.

Verse 37 (garuda.1.236.37)

तथा जाग्रदवस्थायां भूतानि न तु सन्निधौ । द्वैरूप्यं मायया याति जाग्रत्स्वप्नपदज्ञ (क्ष) योः

tathā jāgradavasthāyāṁ bhūtāni na tu sannidhau dvairūpyaṁ māyayā yāti jāgratsvapnapadajña (kṣa) yoḥ

So too, in the waking state, beings likewise lack ultimate reality; duality arises through Maya in both the waking and dream states.

Verse 38 (garuda.1.236.38)

एवमेतत्परं ब्रह्म स्वप्नजाग्रत्पदद्वये । सुषुप्तमचलं रूपमद्वयं पदमुच्यते

evametatparaṁ brahma svapnajāgratpadadvaye suṣuptamacalaṁ rūpamadvayaṁ padamucyate

Thus this same supreme Brahman underlies both the dream and waking states; the unmoving form in deep sleep is called the non-dual state.

Verse 39 (garuda.1.236.39)

मायाविचारसिद्धैव विचारेण विलीयते । आपातरहिता सापि कल्पना कालवर्तिनी

māyāvicārasiddhaiva vicāreṇa vilīyate āpātarahitā sāpi kalpanā kālavartinī

Maya, established only through inquiry, is dissolved through inquiry itself; that construction, though seeming immediate, exists only within time.

Verse 40 (garuda.1.236.40)

एवं तस्या (दात्या) त्मनादित्यं सिद्धमेकस्य सत्यजा । सतोस्तित्वं वसातित्वादस्तित्वासत्यतां ततः

evaṁ tasyā (dātyā) tmanādityaṁ siddhamekasya satyajā satostitvaṁ vasātitvādastitvāsatyatāṁ tataḥ

Thus it is established, by the Self alone, as the one truth born of itself; and from this alone the reality or unreality of existence follows.

Verse 41 (garuda.1.236.41)

ज्ञानं ततोप्यनन्तो नः पूर्णोन्तः शुकमात्मना । न नित्यभावाज्जातोहमकृत्वादमृतोस्म्यहम् । दीपवद्धृदये ज्योतिरहं ब्रह्मास्मि मुक्तये

jñānaṁ tatopyananto naḥ pūrṇontaḥ śukamātmanā na nityabhāvājjātohamakṛtvādamṛtosmyaham dīpavaddhṛdaye jyotirahaṁ brahmāsmi muktaye

Knowledge, being infinite, full, is our very inner Self. I am not born from any ordinary birth; being uncaused, I am immortal. Like a lamp within the heart, that light — 'I am Brahman' — is for liberation.