Adhyātma-jñāna

indriyāṇi parāṇy āhur indriyebhyaḥ paraṁ manaḥ

indriyāṇi parāṇy āhur indriyebhyaḥ paraṁ manaḥ |
manasas tu parā buddhir yo buddheḥ paratas tu saḥ ||
evaṁ buddheḥ paraṁ buddhvā saṁstabhyātmānam ātmanā |
jahi śatruṁ mahābāho kāmarūpaṁ durāsadam ||
(Śrīmad Bhagavad-gītā: 3.42–43)

“They say the senses are superior [to their objects],
The mind is superior to the senses,
The intellect is superior to the mind,
And that [viz., the self (ātmā)] is what is superior to the intellect.
Thus understanding that which is superior to the intellect,
And steadying the self with the self,
Kill, O you of mighty arms,
The difficult to approach enemy
The form of which is desire (kāma).”

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puruṣasya ca saṁsthānaṁ svarūpaṁ vā parasya ca

puruṣasya ca saṁsthānaṁ svarūpaṁ vā parasya ca |
jñānaṁ ca naigamaṁ yat tad guru-śiṣya-prayojanam ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 3.7.38)

“[Please explain] The full existence of the puruṣa, the essential nature of the Supreme, and that knowledge related to the Nigamas which is the aim of the guru and disciple.”

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na hy ekasmād guror jñānaṁ susthiraṁ syāt supuṣkalam

na hy ekasmād guror jñānaṁ susthiraṁ syāt supuṣkalam |
brahmaitad advitīyaṁ vai gīyate bahudha rṣibhiḥ ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 11.9.31)

“Indeed knowledge [received] from one guru shall not become sufficiently steady and sufficiently extensive. This nondual Brahman is sung of by seers in numerous ways.”

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tatra saṁsāra-cakrasya mokṣo jñānena dṛśyate

tatra saṁsāra-cakrasya mokṣo jñānena dṛśyate |
ādhyātma-tattva-vijñānaṁ jñānam ity abhidhīyate ||
(Mahābhārata: 13.243.22)

“In that regard, mokṣa is observed [to occur] through knowledge of the wheel of saṁsāra. Refined knowledge of the nature of the higher self is known as ‘knowledge’ (jñānam).”

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indriyasyendriyasyārthe rāga-dveṣau vyavasthitau

indriyasyendriyasyārthe rāga-dveṣau vyavasthitau |
tayor na vaśam āgacchet tau hy asya paripanthinau ||
(Śrīmad Bhagavad-gītā: 3.34)

“Attraction (rāga) and aversion (dveṣa) to an object of each sense is firmly established [i.e., bound to occur]. One should not come under the control of these since they are one’s obstructions.”

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na yāvad etāṁ tanu-bhṛn narendra

na yāvad etāṁ tanu-bhṛn narendra
vidhūya māyāṁ vayunodayena |
vimukta-saṅgo jita-ṣaṭ-sapatno
vedātma-tattvaṁ bhramatīha tāvat ||
na yāvad etan mana ātma-liṅgaṁ
saṁsāra-tāpāvapanaṁ janasya |
yac choka-mohāmaya-rāga-lobha-
vairānubandhaṁ mamatāṁ vidhatte ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 5.11.15–16)

“[Rendered according to the Bhāvārtha-dīpikā:] O King, as long as the bearer of a body does not cast away this māyā, and, having become completely freed from attachment and victorious over the six co-wives [i.e., the six senses], understand the nature of the self (ātma-tattva) by means of the appearance of wisdom, so long he wanders here [i.e., in saṁsāra], and as long as one does not understand the mind, a guise of the self, to be the field of a person’s suffering in saṁsāra which bears a continuance of lamentation, delusion, disease, attraction, greed, and enmity, and produces my-ness [so long one wanders in saṁsāra].”

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dvā suparṇā sayujā sakhāyā samānaṁ vṛkṣaṁ pariṣasvajāte

dvā suparṇā sayujā sakhāyā samānaṁ vṛkṣaṁ pariṣasvajāte |
tayor anyaḥ pippalaṁ svādv atty anaśnann anyo abhicākaśīti ||
samāne vṛkṣe puruṣo nimagno’niśayā śocati muhyamānaḥ |
juṣṭaṁ yadā paśyaty anyam īśam asya mahimānam iti vīta-śokaḥ ||
(Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad: 3.1.1–2)

“Two birds of beautiful plumage,

Ever-united in friendship,

Perch on the same tree.

Among them,

One eats the tasty berry [of the tree],

And the other, not eating, watches over [the first].

On the same tree,

The puruṣa [i.e., the embodied living entity], absorbed,

Laments because of [his] powerlessness, being deluded.

When he sees the other, the Lord, satisfied, and his [i.e., the Lord’s] greatness, he becomes free from lamentation.”

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veda-gamyaḥ paraḥ śuddha iti me dhīyate matiḥ

veda-gamyaḥ paraḥ śuddha iti me dhīyate matiḥ ||
adhyātma-dhyāna-saṁbhūta-bhūtaṁ dīpavat sphuṭam |
jñānaṁ viddhi śubhācāre tena yānti parāṁ gatim ||
(Mahābhārata: 12.220.100)

“[Bhīṣmadeva:] The pure Supreme is knowable through the Veda. This is my firmly held view. O you of fine conduct, know knowledge (jñāna) to be that which is born of meditation related to the higher self and [self-] evident like a lamp. Thereby, one attains the supreme destination.”

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ātmānaṁ rathitaṁ viddhi śarīraṁ ratham eva tu

ātmānaṁ rathitaṁ viddhi śarīraṁ ratham eva tu |
buddhiṁ tu sārathiṁ viddhi manaḥ pragraham eva ca ||
indriyāṇi hayān āhur viṣayāṁs teṣu gocarān |
ātmendriya-manoyuktaṁ bhoktety āhur manīṣiṇaḥ ||
(Kaṭha Upaniṣad: 1.3.3–4)

“Know the self (ātmā) to be [like] the rider of a chariot and the body [to be like] a chariot. Know the intellect (buddhi) to be [like] a charioteer and the mind [to be like] reins. The wise say the senses are [like] horses and the objects of the senses (viṣayas) [are like] ranges, and [they] say the experiencer is the self united with the senses and mind [along with the body and intellect].”

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