svabhāvo yādṛśo yasya na jahāti kadācana |
aṅgāraḥ śata-dhautena malinatvaṁ na muñcati ||
(Unknown source; cited in Śabda-kalpa-druma)
“Whatever one’s svabhāva [may be], one can never give it up. Charcoal does not give up its blackness [even] by washing it a hundred times.”
kāka-ceṣṭā bako dhyānaṁ śvāna-nidrā tathaiva ca |
svalpāhārī gṛha-tyāgī vidyārthī pañca-lakṣaṇaḥ ||
(Unknown source)
“The effort of a crow [i.e., making a perseverant endeavor], the concentration of a crane [i.e., patient and unwavering concentration focused on one’s major goal (the “big fish”) and not lesser matters (the “little fish” that are often seen around)], the sleep of a dog [i.e., falling asleep easily, sleeping for a short time, waking up quickly, and remaining alert even while asleep], being a light eater, and being a renouncer of the household [i.e., being content to live away from home and without all the comforts of home] are the five characteristics of a seeker of knowledge [i.e., a student].”
puṁsaḥ striyāṁ striyāḥ puṁsi saṁbhogaṁ prati yā spṛhā |
sa śṛṅgāra iti khyātaḥ krīḍā-raty-ādi-kārakaḥ ||
(Unknown source; cited in Vaman Shivaram Apte Dictionary)
“The desire for copulation with a man in a woman and with a woman in a man is called śṛṅgāra and is the cause of amorous play, sexual pleasure, and so on.”
śāstrīyārtha-niścayaḥ siddhāntaḥ |
(Unknown source)
“Determination of the meaning of śāstra is siddhānta.”
alir bāṇo jyotiṣakaḥ stabdhībhūtaḥ kimekakaḥ |
preṣita-preṣakaś caiva ṣaḍ ete sevakādhamāḥ ||
(Unknown source)
“One who is like a bee, one who is like an arrow, one who is astrological, one who is stiff, one who thinks ‘how [can I do things] alone?’, and one who is a dispatcher of the dispatched—these six are the worst servitors.”
saṅgama-viraha-vikalpe
varam iha viraho na saṅgamas tasya |
ekaḥ sa eva saṅge
tribhuvanam api tanmayaṁ virahe ||
(Unknown source; cited in Padyāvalī: 239; Ānanda-candrikā-ṭīkā on Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi: 15.3)
“In the instance of [a lover having] an option between union and separation, separation is preferable in this case, and not union with him [i.e., the beloved]. In union, he alone is there, while in separation, indeed the three worlds are filled with him.”
mātāpy ekā pitāpy ekā mama ca tasya pakṣiṇo |
ahaṁ munibhir ānītas sa cānīto gavāśanaiḥ |
ahaṁ munīnāṁ vacanaṁ śṛṇomi gavāśanānāṁ sa śṛṇoti vākyam |
na tasya doṣo na ca me guṇo vā saṁsargajā doṣa-guṇā bhavanti ||
(Unknown Source)
[A parrot explains why he and his brother speak and act very differently:] “Although the other bird and I have the same mother and the same father, I was taken by sages, and he was taken by cow-eaters [from our parents’ nest when we were young]. I hear the speech of sages, and he hears the statements of cow-eaters. So, there is no fault on his part or any quality on my part. Faults and qualities are produced by association.”
saṁsāra-viṣa-vṛkṣasya dve eva madhure phale |
subhāṣitaṁ ca susvādu sadbhiś ca saha saṅgamaḥ ||
(Unknown Source)
“On the poisonous tree of saṁsāra there are only two sweet fruits: highly relishable subhāṣitas and association with the sādhus.”
vikṛtiṁ naiva gacchanti saṅga-doṣeṇa sādhavaḥ |
āveṣṭitaṁ mahāsarpaiś candanaṁ na viṣāyate ||
(Unknown Source)
“Sādhus do not become corrupted by bad association. Sandalwood does not become poisonous [even] when encircled by large snakes.”
rāmaṁ rājīva-locanaṁ raghu-varaṁ sīta-patiṁ sundaraṁ
kākuthsaṁ karuṇāmayaṁ guṇa-nidhiṁ vipra-priyaṁ dhārmikam |
rājendraṁ satya-sandhaṁ daśaratha-tanayaṁ śyāmalaṁ śānta-mūrtiṁ
vande lokābhirāmaṁ raghu-kula-tilakaṁ rāghavaṁ rāvaṇārim ||
(Unknown Source)
“I offer obeisance
Unto Rāma,
He of lotus eyes,
The best of the Raghus,
The husband of Sītā,
[Most] Beautiful,
A descendant of Kākuthsa,
Full of compassion,
A reservoir of virtue,
Dear to brāhmaṇas,
Dharmic,
An emperor among kings,
Truthful,
The Son of Daśartha,
Of dark complexion,
An embodiment of peace,
The joy of the people,
The ornament of the Raghu dynasty,
A descendant of Raghu,
The enemy of Rāvaṇa.”
