Amanitvam, humility-the quality of a vain person is manitvam, boasting about oneself; the absence of that is amanitvam. Adambhitvam, unpretentiousness- proclaming one’s own virtues is dambhitvam; the absence of that is adambhitvam. Ahimsa, non-injury, absence of cruely towards creatures; ksantih, for-bearance, remaining undisturbed when offened by others; arjavam, sincerity, uprightness, absence of crookedness; acarya-upasanam, service of the teacher, attending on the teacher who instructs in the disciplines for Liberation, through acts of service etc.; saucam, cleanliness-washing away the dirt from the body with earth and water, and internally, removing the ‘dirt’ of the mind such as attachment etc. by thinking of their opposites; sthairyam, steadiness, perseverance in the path to Liberation alone; atma-vinigrahah, control of the aggregate of body and organs which is referred to by the word ‘self’, but which is inimical to the Self; restricting only to the right path that (aggregate) which naturally strays away in all directions. Further,/p>p>13.9 Vairagyam, non-attachment, the attitude of dispassion; indriya-arthesu, with regard to objects of the senses, viz sound etc., with regard to seen or unseen objects of enjoyment; eva ca, and also; anahankarah, absence of egotism, absence of pride; janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi-duhkha-dosa-anudarsanam, seeing the evil in birth, death, old age, diseases and miseries-seeing the evil in each one of them from ‘birth’ to ‘miseries’. The evil in birth consists in lying in the womb and coming out of it; seeing, i.e. thinking, of it. Similarly, thinking of the evil in death; so also, seeing in old age the evil in the form of deprivation of intelligence, strength and vigour, and becoming an object of contempt. In the same way, thinking of the evil in diseases like headtache etc.; so also with regard to miseries arising from causes physical, natural and supernatural. Or, duhkha-dosa may mean the miseries themselves which are evil. Seeing, as before, that (evil in the form of miseries) in birth etc.-birth is miserable, death is miserable, old age is miserable, diseases are miserable. Birth etc. are miserable because they cause misery; not that they are miseries in themselves. [Birth etc. are perceivable events, and as such are not miseries in themselves.] Thus, when one thinks of the evil in the form of miseries in birth etc. dispassion arises with regard to the pleasures in the body, organs and objects. From that follows the tendency of the organs towards the indwelling Self for the realization of the Self. The seeing of the evil in the form of misery in birth etc. is called Knowledge because it thus becomes a cuase of the rise of Knowledge. Moreover,/p>p>13.10 Asaktih, non-attachment-attachment means merely the kind for things arising from association; the absence of that is asaktih; and anabhisvangah, absence of fondness-abhisvangah, is in fact a special kind of attachment consisting of the idea of self-identification; as for instance, thinking ‘I myself am happy,’ or, ‘I am sorrowful,’ when somebody else is happy or unhappy, and thinking ‘I live’, or, ‘I shall die,’ when some- body else lives or dies-With regard to what? In answer the Lord says: putra-dara-grhadisu, with regard to sons, wives, homes, etc. From the use of ‘etc.’ (it is understood that this fondness is) even with regard to others who are liked very much-retinue of sevants and so on. And since both these (absence of attachment and fondness) lead to Knowledge, therefore they are called Knowledge. And nityam, constant; sama-cittatvam, equanimity of mind, mental equipoise;-with regard to what?-ista-anista-upapattisu, the attainment of the desirable and the undesirable; mental equipoise with regard to them, always, without exception. One does not become happy on the attainment of the desirable, nor does he become angry on the attainment of the undesirable. And that constant equanimity of mind which is of this kind is Knowledge Further,/p>p>13.11 Ca, and; avyabhicarini, unwavering-not having any tendency to deviate; bhaktih, devotion; mayi, to Me, to God; ananya-yogena, with single-minded concentration, with undivided concentration-ananyayogah is the decisive, unswerving conviction of this kind: ‘There is none superior to Lord Vasudeva, and hence He alone is our Goal’; adoration with that. That too is Knowledge. Vivikta-desa-sevitvam, inclination to repair into a clean place-a place (desa) naturally free (vivikta) or made free from impurity etc. and snakes, tigers, etc.; or, place made solitary (vivikta) by being situated in a forest, on a bank of a river, or in a temple; one who is inclined to seek such a place is vivikta-desa-sevi, and the abstract form of that is vivikta-desa-sevitvam. Since the mind becomes calm in places that are indeed pure (or solitary), therefore meditation on the Self etc. occurs in pure (or solitary) places. Hence the inclination to retire into clean (or solitary) places is called Knowledge. Aratih, lack of delight, not being happy; jana-samadi, in crowd of people-an assemblage, a multitude of people without culture, lacking in purity and immodest-, (but) not (so) in a gathering of pure and modest persons since that is conducive to Knowledge. Hence, lack of delight in an assembly of common people is Knowledge since it leads to Knowledge. Besides,/p>p>13.12 Adhyatma-jnana-nityatvam, steadfastness in the knowledge of the Self: adhyatma-jnanam is the knowledge of the Self, etc.; constant dwelling in that is nityatvam. Tattva-jnanartha-darsanam, contemplating on the Goal of the knowledge of Reality: Tattva-jnanam is that (realization of Truth) which arises from the fruition of application to the disciplines like humility etc. which are the means to knowledge. Its Goal (artha) is Liberation, the cessation of mundane existence. Contemplation (darsana) on that is tattva-jnana-artha-darsanam. For, when one engages in contemplation on the result of the knowledge of Reality, one gets the urge to undertake the disciplines which are its means. Etat, this-those that have been stated from ‘humility’ etc. to ‘contemplation on the Goal of the knowledge of Reality’; proktam, is spoken of; iti, as; jnanam, Knowledge, because they are meant to lead one to Knowledge. Ajnanam, ignorance; is yat, that which is; anyatha, other; atah, than this-what has been stated above. Contrarily, arrogance, pretentiousness, cruelty, revenge, insincerity, etc. are to be known as ignorance so that, since they are the cause of the origination of worldly existence, they can be avoided. To the question as to what is to be known through the aforesaid Knowledge, the Lord says, ‘I shall speak of that which is to be known,’ etc.
Objection: Do not humility etc. constitute yama and niyama [See fn. on p. 239.-Tr.]? The Knowable is not known through them. For humility etc. are not seen to determine the nature of anything. Moreover, everywhere it is observed that whatever knowledge reveals its own object, that itself ascertains the nature of that object of knowledge (the knowable). Indeed, nothing else is known through a knowledge concerning some other object. As for instance, fire is not known through the knowledge of a pot.
Reply: This is not a defect, for we have said that they are called ‘Knowledge’ because they lead one to Knowledge, and because they are auxiliary causes of Knowledge.
