Avidyā

lokasya mithyābhimater acakṣuṣaś

lokasya mithyābhimater acakṣuṣaś
ciraṁ prasuptasya tamasy anāśraye |
śrāntasya karmasv anuviddhayā dhiyā
tvam āvirāsīḥ kila yoga-bhāskaraḥ ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 3.29.5)

[Devahūti to Kapiladeva:] “You, the sun of yoga [i.e., the illuminator of yoga, that is, the sun who nourishes the lotus of yoga], have appeared for the people who are eyeless [i.e., ignorant], [thus] possessed of identification with the unreal [i.e., the body and so on], [thus] exhausted because of their minds being entangled in karma, [thus] shelterless, and [thus] slumbering for a long time in darkness [i.e., saṁsāra; that is, you have appeared to teach the wisdom of yoga which resembles the sun in that it brings light to the eyes of the ignorant, removes the numbness of false identity, dispels the sleep and darkness of saṁsāra, and dries up the pool of exhaustion produced by the mind being attached to karma].”

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māyā-javanikācchannam

māyā-javanikācchannam ajñādhokṣajam avyayam |
na lakṣyase mūḍha-dṛśā naṭo nāṭyadharo yathā ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 1.8.19)

[Kuntī Devī to Śrī Kṛṣṇa:] “Covered by the curtain of māyā, imperceptible to the ignorant, and immutable, you are not perceived by one of untrained eye just like an actor engaged in performance arts [is not really perceived properly by those untrained in appreciation of the arts].”

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ajñaś cāśraddadhānaś ca

ajñaś cāśraddadhānaś ca saṁśayātmā vinaśyati |
nāyaṁ loko’sti na paro na sukhaṁ saṁśayātmanaḥ ||
(Śrīmad Bhagavad-gītā: 4.40)

“One who is ignorant [i.e., devoid of knowledge of śāstra], devoid of śraddhā [as a result of observing differences of opinion about the meaning of śāstra], and doubtful [regarding whether something will actually lead to success] is ruined. Neither this world [i.e., any future prospect of well-being in this world], nor the next [i.e., any prospect of attaining a desirable afterlife], nor happiness [i.e., any present sense of satisfaction] exist for one who is doubtful.”

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bhayaṁ dvitīyābhiniveśataḥ syād

bhayaṁ dvitīyābhiniveśataḥ syād
īśād apetasya viparyayo’smṛtiḥ |
tan-māyayāto budha ābhajet taṁ
bhaktyaikayeśaṁ guru-devatātmā ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 11.2.37; cited in Tattva Sandarbha: 32; Paramātma Sandarbha: 47; Bhakti Sandarbha: 1, 59, 114; Prīti Sandarbha: 1; Caitanya-caritāmṛta: 2.20.116)

“Non-awareness, misapprehension, and fear because of absorption in a second shall occur by means of Īśa’s māyā for one who is averse to him. Therefore, a wise person, being one for whom the guru is the Devatā and the self (ātmā), should fully worship him, Īśa [i.e., Bhagavān] with one-pointed bhakti.”

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na rarājoḍupaś channaḥ

na rarājoḍupaś channaḥ sva-jyotsnā-rājitair ghanaiḥ |
ahaṁ-matyā bhāsitayā sva-bhāsā puruṣo yathā ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 10.20.19)

“The moon covered by clouds illuminated by its own light does not shine, just as the puruṣa [i.e., the jīva, or, the Supreme Īśvara] covered by egotism [i.e., avidyā, ignorance] illuminated by its own light [i.e., consciousness] does not [shine either].”

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ātma-māyām ṛte rājan

ātma-māyām ṛte rājan parasyānubhavātmanaḥ |
na ghaṭetārtha-sambandhaḥ svapna-draṣṭur ivāñjasā ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 2.9.1)

[Śukadeva to Parīkṣit:] “Without the māyā of the Self, O King, a relationship of that which is distinct [from material objects] and constituted of consciousness with [material] objects does not actually occur, as [no relationship] of the seer of a dream [with objects in a dream actually occurs].”

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evaṁ manaḥ karma-vaśaṁ prayuṅkte

evaṁ manaḥ karma-vaśaṁ prayuṅkte
avidyayātmany upadhīyamāne |
prītir na yāvan mayi vāsudeve
na mucyate deha-yogena tāvat ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 5.5.6)

“Thus, karma subjugates the mind when the ātmā is covered by avidyā. Until one has prīti for me, Vāsudeva, one is not freed from entanglement with the body.”

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yathā nabhasi meghaugho

yathā nabhasi meghaugho reṇur vā pārthivo’nile |
evaṁ draṣṭari dṛśyatvam āropitam abuddhibhiḥ ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 1.3.31)

“Like a mass of clouds to the sky or a particle of earth to the air, so the visible [i.e., the body] is attributed [i.e., taken to be] to the seer [i.e., the ātmā] by the unintelligent.”

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tvaṁ tu rājan mariṣyeti

tvaṁ tu rājan mariṣyeti paśu-buddhim imāṁ jahi |
na jātaḥ prāg abhūto’dya deha-vat tvaṁ na naṅkṣyasi ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 12.5.2)

[Śukadeva to Mahārāja Parīkṣit:] “O King, you should give up this animal mentality [of thinking], “I will die.” Like the body, you were not previously non-existent, are not [merely] presently manifest, and will not be destroyed [in the future].”

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athātmano’rtha-bhūtasya

athātmano’rtha-bhūtasya yato’nartha-paramparā |
saṁsṛtis tad-vyavacchedo bhaktyā paramayā gurau ||
vāsudeve bhagavati bhakti-yogaḥ samāhitaḥ |
sadhrīcīnena vairāgyaṁ jñānaṁ ca janayiṣyati ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 4.29.36–37)

“Therefore, termination of [ignorance,] that because of which the succession of anarthas, saṁsāra, exists for the ātmā, the [truly] existent entity, occurs through pure bhakti to Guru [i.e., Bhagavān, or, the teacher of Bhagavad-bhakti], for fully performed bhakti-yoga to Vāsudeva, Bhagavān [i.e., bhakti performed entirely for Bhagavān’s satisfaction without any separate interest—prema-bhakti], will produce real non-attachment (vairāgya) and knowledge (jñāna).”

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