Subhāṣita-ratna-bhāṇḍāgāra

yadyapi bahu nādhīṣe tathāpi paṭha putra vyākaraṇam

yadyapi bahu nādhīṣe tathāpi paṭha putra vyākaraṇam |
svajanaḥ śvajano mā bhūt sakala śakala sakṛc chakṛt ||
(Subhāṣita-ratna-bhāṇḍāgāra: Vaiyākaraṇa-praśaṁsā, 2)

“Even if you do not study a lot, at least study vyākaraṇa [i.e., grammar], my son, lest svajana (a relative) be śvajana (a dog), sakala (a whole) be śakala (a part), and sakṛt (once) be śakṛt (excrement) [i.e., so that at least you do not pronounce svajana as śvajana, sakala as śakala, and sakṛt as śakṛt, or mistake one for the other].”

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aneka-saṁśayocchedi parokṣārthasya darśakam

aneka-saṁśayocchedi parokṣārthasya darśakam |
sarvasya locanaṁ śāstraṁ yasya nāsty andha eva saḥ ||
(Subhāṣita-ratna-bhāṇḍāgāra, Mahāsubhāṣita-saṅgraha, Hitopadeśa: 1.10)

“The remover of numerous doubts and revealer of the invisible, śāstra is the eye of everyone. One without it is certainly blind.”

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gaṅgā pāpaṁ śaśī tāpaṁ dainyaṁ kalpa-tarur haret

gaṅgā pāpaṁ śaśī tāpaṁ dainyaṁ kalpa-tarur haret |
pāpaṁ tāpaṁ ca dainyaṁ sadyaḥ sādhu-samāgamaḥ ||
(Garga-saṁhitā: 10.62.9)

“The Gaṅgā removes sin, the moon suffering [alt., heat], and the desire-tree dejection [i.e., poverty]. Meeting with a sādhu [however] immediately removes sin, suffering, and dejection.”

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asadbhiḥ śapathenoktaṁ jale likhitam akṣaram

asadbhiḥ śapathenoktaṁ jale likhitam akṣaram |
sadbhis tu līlayā proktaṁ śilā-likhitam akṣaram ||
(Subhāṣita-ratna-bhāṇḍāgāra)

“The words [even] under oath of the wicked are like letters written on water [i.e., completely insubstantial]. The [even] playful words of sādhus, however, are like words written in stone [i.e., they certainly prove truthful].”

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anirvācyam anirbhinnam aparicchinnam avyayam

anirvācyam anirbhinnam aparicchinnam avyayam |
brahmeva sujana-prema duḥkha-mūla-nikṛntanam ||
(Mahāsubhāṣita-saṅgraha; Subhāṣita-ratna-bhāṇḍāgāra)

“Like Brahman, the prema of a virtuous person is indescribable, undivided [i.e., unbreakable], uninterrupted [i.e., everlasting], and imperishable, and it cuts out the [very] root of suffering.”

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saṁsāra-viṣa-vṛkṣasya dve phale hy amṛtopame

saṁsāra-viṣa-vṛkṣasya dve phale hy amṛtopame |
kāvyāmṛta-rasāsvādaḥ saṅgamaḥ sajjanaiḥ saha ||
(Subhāṣita-ratna-bhāṇḍāgāra)

“On the poisonous tree of saṁsāra only two fruits are like nectar: tasting the rasa of the nectar of poetry (kāvya) and associating with sādhus.”

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vanaspater apakvāni phalāni pracinoti yaḥ

vanaspater apakvāni phalāni pracinoti yaḥ |
sa nāpnoti rasaṁ tebhyo bījaṁ cāsya vinaśyati ||
(Vidura-nīti; Subhāṣita-ratna-bhāṇḍāgāra)

“One who picks the unripened fruits of a tree does not get any juice (rasa) from them, and its [i.e., the tree’s] seed is also destroyed.”

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prathama-vayasi dattaṁ toyam alpaṁ smarantaḥ

prathama-vayasi dattaṁ toyam alpaṁ smarantaḥ
śirasi nihita-bhārā nārikelā narāṇām |
salilam amṛta-kalpaṁ dadyur ājīvanāntaṁ
na hi kṛtam upakāraṁ sādhavo vismaranti ||
(Subhāṣita-ratna-bhāṇḍāgāra)

“Remembering the small amount of water given [to them by human beings] in their early age, coconut trees, holding loads on their heads, can give water resembling nectar to human beings as long as they live. [Similarly,] The sādhus never forget help rendered [unto them by others].”

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hastasya bhūṣaṇaṁ dānaṁ satyaṁ kaṇṭhasya bhūṣaṇam

hastasya bhūṣaṇaṁ dānaṁ satyaṁ kaṇṭhasya bhūṣaṇam |
śrotrasya bhūṣaṇaṁ śāstraṁ bhūṣaṇaiḥ kiṁ prayojanam ||
(Subhāṣita-ratna-bhāṇḍāgāra)

“Giving is the hand’s ornament, truth is the throat’s ornament, and śāstra is the ear’s ornament. So, what need is there of ornaments?”

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sajjanā eva sādhūnāṁ prathayanti guṇotkaram

sajjanā eva sādhūnāṁ prathayanti guṇotkaram |
puṣpāṇāṁ saurabhaṁ prāyas tanvate dikṣu mārutaḥ ||
(Subhāṣita-ratna-bhāṇḍārāgāra)

“Only sādhus proclaim the qualities of [other] sādhus [i.e., the impious, on the contrary, typically engage in discussion of sādhus’ supposed faults instead]. Mostly [it is] the winds [that] spread the fragrance of flowers throughout the directions.”

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