Final Words of Advice

Acharya Sankara's Viveka Chudamani(Crest Jewel of Wisdom)

Final  Words of  Advice(521-575)
The  Guru(Teacher)advises   the  disciple   how  a man of Realisation  should work in  the world and   what his   relationship  with  it   should   be.

• An unbroken series of   perceptions  of Brahman is  this universe; so in  every   respect it   is  nothing  but Brahman.  In  all  conditions see   this   with the  vision  of  illumination  and   a   serene  mind. What   is   there   to   engage   the   intellect  of   a   realised man,  save  Brahman?(522)Which   wise man  would   relinquish  revelling   in  supreme Bliss  for  the  enjoyment   of paltry things? When  the greatly enchanting moon is shining, who would wish   to gaze upon a painted moon?(523)
• In   the   perception  of  objects   unreal,  there   is   neither  the   slightest  entertainment  nor   the  cessation   of  misery.Therefore, content   in   the   realisation  of the  essence   of  non-dual Bliss,  remain   happy, ever- identified   with   the  Self(524)
• O noble   one, beholding  the  Self  always contemplating   upon   the  Self which  is  non-dual and   enjoying  the Bliss   of   the Self,  you should spend  your  time(525)
• In the   unbroken  Knowledge, the  Absolute,  the  Atman, dualistic  conceptions  are   like  castles  in   the  air.Therefore, attaining  supreme  Peace  live   in  silence,  identifying  yourself   with  the  non-dual  Bliss  Absolute(526)
• The  cause   of  all  fancies, the  mind, becomes   perfectly  serene to   the   sage who has   known  Brahman.  Indeed,  this is    the  state  of quiescence, which ever-   identified   with   Brahman, he  constantly   enjoys  the  non-dual Bliss  Absolute(527)
• There   is nothing   more exhilarating  than   the quiescence  which comes   from being free of  vasanas,   to him who has   known his   own  nature and   who   drinks   the  Bliss   of   the  Self(528)
• Whether   going   or   staying,sitting   or   lying   down,  or   in  any   other   state, the   enlightened  sage,whose sole pleasure is in the Atman,lives ever   at ease.(529)
• The Sage who has perfect Realisation of  Truth and  whose mind, therefore,  encounters no obstruction,no more relies upon conditions  of place,  time,posture, direction,moral  discipline,objects of meditation etc.  What formulae can there be for recognising  one's own  Self?(530)The   Atman which  is   an  eternal  Truth, manifests   itself  in  the  presence   of  the  right means   of Knowledge.  It is dependent neither on  place nor time nor (outward)purity(532)
• Here   is the Self-effulgent Atman of   endless power,beyond   all conditioned knowledge  yet   the   direct   experience  of  all, Freed   from bondage,  realising   this   alone,  the  best   among the  knowers   of Brahman  lives   his  life   of   victory.(536)
• Neither   grieved  nor   elated, neither   attached   nor   averse  to   sense-objects,  but   content   with   the  endless   essence   of  Bliss, he  sports and revels  in  the  Self(537)
• Forgetting   his  hunger and  physical  pains  a child plays with   toys.  In   the same way the   wise man  is happy  and  revels   without the ideas  of  "I"  and  "mine"(538)
• He   wears   no   insignia and  is unattached   to sense-objects;  he  remains  in  this  body  without  identifying  with  it and   experiences sense-objects as they  come, by   the   wish   of   others;the knower of the  Atman  is  like a child(540)
• Being  of   the   nature   of   desirelessness,  the  sage 'enjoys'  sense-objects but   lives   alone.He   is  ever-satisfied  with   his   own  Self, and  exists  as  everything   everywhere(542)
• Though   without   wealth,he is  ever-satisfied,though  without help  he  is very powerful, though he does not enjoy sense-objects,  he  is  eternally content,and  though  without  exemplar,he   has  equal  vision(544)
• Though  acting he is inactive, though he   experiences   the  fruit  of past actions he is untouched  by  them;though he has a body he  is not   identified  with it and   though limited he is  omnipresent(545)This knower of Brahman lives without  the body idea,and neither pleasure nor pain, neither good nor evil ever  touch him(546)
• Through  desires  produced   by  Pararabdha karma, the man of Perfection,bereft of  the body   idea,moves   in   the   midst   of sense-enjoyments like one subject   to  transmigration.He, however, lives   unmoved   in   the  body,like a witness,free   from mental agitations,like the  pivot of a potter's  wheel(552)
• He  does not   direct   the  sense-organs   to  their   objects, nor   does   he   detach  from   these, but   he   remains   like    an  indifferent   onlooker.  His   mind  being   drunk  with "wine"of  Bliss of  the   Self,he   holds not the   least   regard  for   the   fruits   of  action(553)
• He   who  has   renounced   the   anxiety   to   reach  the  Goal and   never   to   deviate  from it,  and   lives   as   the  Absolute  Brahman,  indeed,  he  is  Siva  himself,  the   best   among   the knowers   of  Brahman(554)
• The  perfect   knower   of  Brahman  becomes   eternally free,  evan  in  this  life  and   is  fulfilled; he   merges   with   the  non-dual  Brahman--which   he   had   been   all   along--- through  the  destruction   of   his   limitations(555)
• Just as an actor,whether  he  wears   the dress   of   his   role   or  not,is  always  a man ,so too, the  perfect knower  is   always  Brahman  and  nothing   else(556)
• The   body  of a Sanyasin who has   realised  Brahman may   wither and fall anywhere like  the  leaf  of  a  tree, it(matters  not)for it has   already been burnt  in   the   fire of Knowledge(557)
• The   sage  who   isn  firmly   established   in   the  eternal   Reality,Brahman, as infinite, non-dual   Bliss,  depends not   on   the usual consideration   of place,   time etc.for  giving  up this bundle of  skin, flesh and   filth(558)
• For   giving  up  the   body  or   the staff or  the  water bowl  is not liberation;  liberation  is  the surrendering   of  the  heart's knots, which are constituted of   ignorance.  (559)
• Like the destruction  of a leaf,flower or   fruit(to a tree)  is  the   destruction   of the  body, sense-organs,pranas and  intellect;  the  Atman,the eternal Reality,  is never   affected. It  is the embodiment of Bliss  which  is  one's  Real Nature and  exists like the  tree(561)
• "The embodiment  of consciouness"---in  these  words the scriptures indicate   the nature of the  Self, establish Its Reality,and voice the destruction of apparent conditionings only(562)
• "Immortal   is  the  Atman,my  dear"---  this   passage from the  scriptures speaks  of   the  Immortal  in   the midst  of things finite and  subject to   modification(563)
• Just as  the stone,tree,straw,grain,husk, etc. are reduced to ashes when   burnt,  so  too, the whole objective universe comprising the body,sense-objects,Pranas,mind,etc. are  reduced    to   the supreme Self when  burnt   in the   fire of Knowledge(564)
• Just   as  darkness---  which  is   distinctly different from sunlight--- vanishes   in   the   sun'e effulgence,  so   too,  this   entire  objective   universe  vanishes   into  Brahman(565)
• Just   as  when   a   pot   is broken  the   pot   space becomes   the   limitless space,  so   too, when   the conditionings are   destroyed,  the   knower of  Brahman  becomes  Brahman  Itself(566)
• Just   as   milik  poured   into milk,oil   into  oil  and  water   into   water  each   becomes   united and  one, so too,he  who has realised  the  Atman becomes  one   with   the  Atman(567)
• He  does not   suffer   transmigration having   experienced  seclusion   as  a   result   of  being  dismembered  and   becoming   ever-  identified   with   the   one Reality, Brahman (568)
• By   realising   the  oneness   of the  Jeeva  and  Brahman, his  bodies(gross, subtle and  causal),  consisting   of   ignorance  etc.,  are  burnt and  he becomes Brahman  Itself;  how  can  the Brahman(unborn) ever  have   rebirth?(569)
• Maya  conjured   up  bondage   and   liberation  do not  really   exist in  the Reality, one's  Self, just   as   the  appearance  and   disappearance  of   the snake  are   not   in   the   rope  which   undergoes   no change(570)

• When  there   is   presence   or  absence   of of  veiling, bondage and   liberation  can  be  spoken   of.  There  can  be  no veiling  for  Brahman as i t   is  obvious,  there   being  no second  thing besides   It.  If   there  is, it  will contradict the non-duality of  Brahman, the  scriptures  will never  suffer   duality(571)
• Bondage and   liberation  are   the   attributes   of  the  intellect  which   the   foolish superimpose  upon   the  Reality,  as  the  veiling   of   the  eyes   by  clouds  is superimposed upon  the  sun. In  fact,  this  Immutable Reality  is Absolute  Knowledge, non-dual  and  unattached(572)
• The  concept   that bondage  is  and --  that  it   is   not,  are,  with  reference   to   the  Reality,  only  attributes   of   the  intellect.Never do  they belong  to  Brahman, the  eternal  Reality(573)Therefore, bondage   and   liberation  are   conjured   up by  Maya  and are   not   in  the  Atman.  As  there can  be  no  limitation  regarding   the infinite  space,how   can   there  be  any   limitation  regarding   the  supreme Reality  which  is  devoid  of  parts,devoid  of  activity, serene, unimpeacheable, untainted  and non-dual?(574)
• Neither  is  the rebirth nor   death,neither  a bound nor  a  struggling one,  neither  a  seeker nor  a  liberated  one---this is the  ultimate  Truth(575)

Vedprakash