BhG 2.59

viṣayā vinivartante nirāhārasya dehinaḥ
rasa-varjaṃ raso ‘py asya paraṃ dṛṣṭvā nivartate

Update Required
To play the media you will need to either update your browser to a recent version or update your Flash plugin.

analysis

syntax


nirāhārasya (of one who fasts) dehinaḥ (of the embodied) viṣayāḥ (objects) vinivartante (they stop to act),
[kintu] (but) rasa-varjaṁ (except the taste).
param (the supreme) dṛṣṭvā (after seeing),
asya (of this) rasaḥ api (even the taste) nivartate (it stops to act).

 

grammar

viṣayāḥ – viṣaya 1n.3 m. – sphere, territory, scope, sense object, subject (from: √viṣ – to be active, to perform);
vinivartante – vi-ni-√vṛt (to stop, to turn back) Praes. Ā 1v.3 – they stop to act, they turn away;
nirāhārasya – nir-āhara 6n.1 m. – of one who does not fetch, of one who fasts (from: niḥ – out of, away from, without; ā-√hṛ – to fetch, to carry near, āhāra – carrying near, fetching, taking food);
dehinaḥ – dehin 6n.1 m. – of the embodied one (from: √dih – to anoint, to smear, deha – a form, shape, body; dehin = dehavant = dehābhimānin – who possesses a body, thinking about oneself as a body);
rasa-varjam – av. – rasaṁ varjayitvā iti – except the taste (from: √ras – to taste, to relish, to love, rasa – juice, nectar, taste; √vṛj – to exclude, to avoid, varja – free from, devoid of, left, varjam – av. suffix: without, excluding);
rasaḥ – rasa 1n.1 m. – juice, nectar, taste (from: √ras – to taste, to relish, to love);
api – av. – although, moreover, besides, even;
asya – idam sn. 6n.1 n. – of this;
param – para 2n.1 n. – beyond, ancient, final, the best, the supreme;
dṛṣṭvā – √dṛś (to see) absol. – after seeing;
nivartate – ni-√vṛt (to stop, to turn back) Praes. Ā 1v.1 – it stops to act;

 

textual variants


rasa-varjaṃ → rasa-varjyaṃ (except the taste);

 
 


commentaries

Śāṃkara

The key:
an excerpt from the commented verse
quotes from the scriptures
starting polemic

(Question): – Now, even the senses of a diseased man who is not able to partake of sensuous objects withdraw from sense-objects, but the taste for them ceases not. How does that cease?
(Answer): – Listen:

 tatra viṣayān anāharataḥ āturasyāpi indriyāṇi kūrmāṅgānīva saṃhriyante na tu tad-viṣayo rāgaḥ sa kathaṃ saṃhriyate ity ucyate –

Objects withdraw from an abstinent man, but not the taste.
On ‚seeing the Supreme, his taste, too, ceases.

 viṣayā vinivartante nirāhārasya dehinaḥ |
rasa-varjaṃ raso ’py asya paraṃ dṛṣṭvā nivartate ||2.59||

The senses, – ‚vishayāḥ’ meaning literally sense-objects, here stands for the senses, – it is true, withdraw from objects even in the case of an ignorant person who, practicing extremest austerity, abstains from all sensuous objects; but the taste or inclination (rasa) for those objects ceases not.

 yadyapi viṣayāḥ viṣayopalakṣitāni viṣaya-śabda-vācyāni indriyāṇi nirāhārasya anāhriyamāṇa-viṣayasya kaṣṭe tapasi sthitasya mūrkhasyāpi vinivartante dehino dehavataḥ rasa-varjaṃ raso rāgo viṣayeṣu yas taṃ varjayitvā |

[Rasa is used in the sense of taste or inclination in such expressions as ‚svarasena pravṛttaḥ‚, ‚rasikaḥ‚ and ‘rasa-jñāḥ‚].

 rasa-śabdo rāge prasiddhaḥ, sva-rasena pravṛttaḥ rasikaḥ rasajñaḥ, ity ādi-darśanāt |

Even that taste, that subtle attachment, vanishes in the case of the devotee who, having seen the Supreme Reality, the Brahman, thinks ‚I am myself That’; that is to say, his perception of sensuous objects becomes seedless (nir-bija), has lost all germ of evil.

 so ’pi raso rañjana-rūpaḥ sūkṣmo ’sya yateḥ paraṃ paramārtha-tattvaṃ brahma dṛṣṭvā upalabhya aham eva tat iti vartamānasya nivartate nirbījaṃ viṣaya-vijñānaṃ saṃpadyate ity arthaḥ |

The meaning is this: In the absence of right knowledge, there can be no annihilation of taste for sensuous objects; wherefore, steadiness of right knowledge (prajña) should be acquired.

 nāsati samyag-darśane rasasya ucchedaḥ | tasmāt samyag-darśanātmikāyāḥ prajñāyāḥ sthairyaṃ kartavyam ity abhiprāyaḥ ||2.59||

 

Rāmānuja

evaṃ catur-vidhā jñāna-niṣṭhā pūrva-pūrvottarottara-niṣpādyeti pratipāditam | idānīṃ jñāna-niṣṭhāyā duṣprāpatāṃ tat-prāpty-upāyaṃ cāha—viṣayā iti | indriyāṇām āhārā viṣayāḥ | nirāhārasya viṣayebhyaḥ pratyāhṛtendriyasya dehino viṣayāḥ vinivartamānā rasa-varjaṃ vinivartante | raso ragaḥ, viṣaya-rāgo na nivartate ity arthaḥ | rāgo’py ātma-svarūpaṃ viṣayebhyaḥ paraṃ sukhataraṃ dṛṣṭvā vinivartate

 

Śrīdhara

nanu nendriyāṇāṃ viṣayeṣv apravṛttir sthita-prajñasya lakṣaṇaṃ bhavitum arhati | jaḍānām āturāṇām upavāsa-parāṇāṃ ca viṣayeṣv pravṛtter aviśeṣāt | tatrāha viṣayā iti | indriyāir viṣayāṇām āharaṇaṃ grahaṇam āhāraḥ | nirāhārasya indriyāir viṣaya-grahaṇam akurvato dehino dehābhimānino ‚jñasya rāgo ‚bhilāṣas tad-varjaṃ | abhilāṣasya na nivartata ity arthaḥ | yad vā nirāhārasya upavāsa-parasya viṣayāḥ prāyaśo nivartante kṣudhā-santaptasya śabda-sparśādy-apekṣābhāvāt, kintu rasa-varjaṃ rasāpekṣā tu na nivartata ity arthaḥ | śeṣaṃ samānam

 

Madhusūdana

nanu mūḍhasyāpi rogādi-vaśād viṣayebhya indriyāṇām upasaṃharaṇaṃ bhavati tat kathaṃ tasya prajñā pratiṣṭhitety uktam ? ata āha viṣayā iti | nirāhārasya indriyāir indriyāir viṣayān anāharato dehino dehābhimānavato mūḍhasyāpi rogiṇaḥ kāṣṭha-tapasvino vā viṣayāḥ śabdādayo vinivartante kintu rasa-varjaṃ rasa-tṛṣṇā taṃ varjayitvā | ajñasya viṣayā nivartante tad-viṣayo rāgas tu na nivartata ity arthaḥ | asya tu sthita-prajñasya paraṃ puruṣārthaṃ dṛṣṭvā tad evāham asmīti sākṣātkṛtya sthitasya raso ‚pi kṣudra-sukha-rāgo ‚pi nivartate | api-śabdād viṣayāś ca | tathā ca yāvān artha ity ādau vyākhyātam | evaṃ ca sa-rāga-viṣaya-nivṛttiḥ sthita-prajña-lakṣaṇam iti na mūḍhe vyabhicāra ity arthaḥ | yasmān nāsati paramātma-samyag-darśane sa-rāga-viṣayocchedas tasmāt sa-rāga-viṣayocchedikāyāḥ samyag-darśanātmikāyāḥ prajñāyāḥ sthairyaṃ mahatā yatnena sampādayed ity abhiprāyaḥ

 

Viśvanātha

mūḍhasyāpi upavāsato rogādi-vaśād vendriyāṇāṃ viṣayeṣv acalanaṃ sambhavet tatrāha viṣayā iti | rasa-varjaṃ raso rāgo ‚bhilāṣas taṃ varjayitvā | abhilāṣas tu viṣayeṣu na nivartanta ity arthaḥ | asya sthita-prajñasya tu paraṃ paramātmānaṃ dṛṣṭvā viṣayeṣv abhilāṣo nivartata iti na lakṣaṇa-vyabhicāraḥ | ātma-sākṣātkāra-samarthasya tu sādhakatvam eva, na tu siddhatvam iti bhāvaḥ

 

Baladeva

nanu mūḍhasyāmaya-grastasya viṣayeṣv indriyāpravṛtti-dṛṣṭā tat katham etat sthita-prajñasya lakṣaṇaṃ tatrāha viṣayā iti | nirāhārasya roga-bhayād bhojanādīny akurvato mūḍhasyāpi dehino janasya viṣayās tad-anubhavā vinivartante | kintu raso rāga-tṛṣṇā tad-varjaṃ viṣaya-tṛṣṇā tu na nivartata ity arthaḥ | asya sthita-prajñasya tu raso ‚pi viṣaya-rāgo ‚pi viṣayebhyaḥ paraṃ sva-prakāśānandam ātmānaṃ dṛṣṭvānubhūya nivartate vinaśyatīti sa-rāga-viṣaya-nivṛttis tasya lakṣaṇam iti na vyabhicāraḥ

 
 


translations

«
»
Both comments and pings are currently closed.