| | English | | Devanagari | | Telugu | | Tamil | | Kannada | | Malayalam | | Gujarati | | Odia | | Bengali | | |
| | Marathi | | Assamese | | Punjabi | | Hindi | | Samskritam | | Konkani | | Nepali | | Sinhala | | Grantha | | |
|
Ashtavakra Gita Chapter 9 aṣṭāvakra gītā is a 20-chapter dialogue of direct advaita, and by this point it is no longer trying to "convince" the intellect; it is trying to mature the heart. The teaching keeps returning to the same non-dual recognition - you are the awareness that knows experience - but it approaches it through different angles so that residual attachments, fears, and habits lose their grip. This is why the text can feel both philosophical and intensely practical: it keeps asking you to see what actually drives your suffering. In the previous chapters, the dialogue has already moved from inquiry to lived steadiness. Chapter 1 combines ethical stabilizers with the witness standpoint (sākṣī). Chapter 2 expresses recognition through metaphors like rope-snake and wave-ocean, loosening fear and ownership. Chapter 3 exposes subtle forms of craving and identity even after insight, and Chapter 4 describes freedom as the absence of inner compulsion. Chapter 5 urges laya - dissolution of false identification - and Chapter 6 has janaka respond that for the Self there is "no giving up and no grasping." Chapter 7 then describes the ocean-like stance where the rise and fall of experience produces no inner gain or loss. Chapter 9 now makes a decisive turn toward nirvēda - a mature disillusionment that is not cynicism but clarity. aṣṭāvakra is not asking you to hate the world; he is asking you to see what the world can and cannot deliver. When dualities (dvandva) are taken as ultimate, the mind swings endlessly. When their inevitability is understood, the mind can stop bargaining with reality. The chapter also names vāsanā (latent tendencies) as the engine of saṃsāra - the repeating cycle of craving and dissatisfaction - and it points to the dropping of vāsanās as the heart of peace. The chapters ahead keep unfolding the same message until it becomes effortless. Later sections will emphasize the naturalness of freedom, the emptiness of egoic striving, and the quiet joy of resting as awareness. But Chapter 9 is a key hinge: it gives the "why" behind dispassion, showing how observation of life, impermanence, and the diversity of opinions can ripen the mind into steadiness. Seen as a whole, Chapter 9 is a chapter of ripening. It begins by questioning the promise of dualities like "doing vs not-doing" and "success vs failure", and it shows how a blessed maturity can arise simply by watching how people live. It then gives a clear contemplative lens: everything is impermanent and mixed with suffering, so clinging is irrational. It warns that no age or time escapes duality, so peace must be learned amid life rather than postponed. Finally, it gives a concise Advaitic diagnosis: see the elements as elements, and drop vāsanā - because vāsanā is saṃsāra. The summary of this chapter is simple: disillusionment, when it becomes clear and compassionate, is the doorway to freedom. aṣṭāvakra uvācha ॥ Meaning (padārtha): Translation (bhāvārtha): Commentary (anusandhāna): This aligns with the gItA's insistence that the wise person lives amid dualities without being shaken. It also resonates with the Upanishadic emphasis on the impermanence of results: actions produce outcomes, outcomes change, and no outcome can become an unchanging refuge. Advaita adds an even deeper point: the Self is not improved by favorable dualities and not harmed by unfavorable ones. But the mind forgets this and keeps trying to manufacture safety through performance or avoidance. The verse is inviting a different kind of strength: become vratī - steady - not by winning every duality, but by seeing through the need to win. Practice by identifying the duality you are currently bargaining with. It might be "work hard vs rest", "be liked vs be honest", "achieve vs be at peace". Notice the subtle belief: "If I land on the right side, then I'll be okay." Then pause and test it: has the right side ever stayed? Has it ever ended the chase? Let that recognition mature into nirvēda. After that, choose one act of tyāga that is inner, not dramatic: drop one compulsive checking habit, drop one argument you don't need to win, drop one self-punishing standard. Keep it steady for a week. This is how renunciation becomes lived: not by throwing life away, but by withdrawing energy from what keeps the mind enslaved. kasyāpi tāta dhanyasya lōkachēṣṭāvalōkanāt । Meaning (padārtha): Translation (bhāvārtha): Commentary (anusandhāna): Notice that the verse does not condemn curiosity or the desire to live. It is describing excess: the compulsive version of these drives that keeps the mind restless. Many people are not unhappy because life is hard; they are unhappy because the mind cannot stop wanting a different moment. Observation can break this spell. You see that even those who "have it all" still worry; those who win still fear losing; those who appear powerful are still insecure. This is the beginning of vivēka (discernment): understanding what truly satisfies and what cannot. Advaita uses this discernment to point beyond all objects to the Self as the only stable refuge. Practice by turning observation into a contemplative habit rather than a judgmental one. Once a day, notice one pattern in the world that repeats: people craving validation, people chasing novelty, people fighting to be right. Then look inward and ask: "Where does this pattern live in me?" This is the blessedness: you learn without needing to repeat every mistake. Next, take one simplifying action: eat a simpler meal, reduce a needless scroll, or spend ten minutes in quiet without stimulation. The aim is not to hate life, but to let the mind taste upaśama and discover that peace is not dependent on constant input. anityaṃ sarvamēvēdaṃ tāpatritayadūṣitam । Meaning (padārtha): Translation (bhāvārtha): Commentary (anusandhāna): This is also a corrective for how we romanticize objects. We treat certain things as if they are pure good: success, pleasure, recognition, even spiritual experiences. Then we are shocked when they disappoint. Calling the world asāra (without stable essence) does not mean it has no beauty; it means it cannot be a permanent refuge. Advaita uses this clarity to point to the Self as the only non-changing reality. When you stop demanding permanence from the impermanent, relationships become healthier and ambition becomes cleaner. You can enjoy and work, but without turning outcomes into salvation. Practice by applying this verse to one attachment at a time. Pick one object you silently treat as a "savior" - a person, a future plan, an achievement. Then contemplate: it is anitya; it is touched by tāpa; it cannot stay. Let that land. Next, make one practical adjustment: loosen one demand you place on that object. For example, love a person without demanding they remove your insecurity; pursue a career goal without letting it define your worth; enjoy a comfort without turning it into addiction. Then add a daily anchor to the changeless: two minutes of resting as the witness, or repeating a simple truth like "awareness is here." Over time, this turns dispassion into peace rather than bitterness. kō'sau kālō vayaḥ kiṃ vā yatra dvandvāni nō nṛṇām । Meaning (padārtha): Translation (bhāvārtha): Commentary (anusandhāna): The phrase yathā-prāpta-vartī is powerful and easy to misunderstand. It does not mean you do nothing. It means you stop fighting reality as it arrives. You meet what comes with intelligence and steadiness. This is close to the Advaitic flavor of "what is, is" - not as fatalism, but as the starting point for wise action. When you accept the present fact, the mind stops wasting energy on resentment and fantasy. Then action becomes more effective. In daily life, you can feel the difference immediately: a problem is handled better when you stop arguing with its existence. Practice by picking one daily duality you habitually resist: discomfort vs comfort, praise vs blame, success vs failure. When the "unwanted" side shows up, notice the extra suffering produced by resistance: "This shouldn't be." Then apply upēkṣā: allow the fact to be true for now. Ask: "What is the next sensible step?" and take it. Also practice yathā-prāpta in small ways: accept one inconvenience without complaint, accept one criticism without immediate defense, accept one uncertainty without panic. Each time, return to the witness for two breaths. Over weeks, you build the capacity to be steady in duality - and that steadiness is the "fulfillment" the verse points to. nānā mataṃ maharṣīṇāṃ sādhūnāṃ yōgināṃ tathā । Meaning (padārtha): Translation (bhāvārtha): Commentary (anusandhāna): This is also a call to discernment. Diversity of views does not mean "anything goes"; it means the mind should stop expecting concepts to be final. Concepts can point, but they cannot replace seeing. Advaita often uses this humility to redirect attention from debate to the witness. When you notice that even refined philosophies can contradict, you can ask: "What is the one fact that does not contradict?" The fact is awareness: every view is known in awareness. This is why non-duality keeps pointing to the knower rather than to the map. The verse is freeing you from spiritual consumerism and inviting you to settle into practice. Practice by simplifying your input. If you consume many teachings, choose one primary text and one primary practice for a month. Let other opinions be interesting, but not intoxicating. When you encounter a contradiction, instead of arguing, ask: "What is the lived effect of this idea? Does it reduce craving and fear?" Then return to the witness: the very impulse to be certain is a movement known in awareness. Finally, practice intellectual humility in a small way: admit "I don't know" once, or listen fully to an opposing view without preparing your rebuttal. These small actions weaken egoic rigidity and make the mind calmer and more open to direct recognition. kṛtvā mūrtiparijñānaṃ chaitanyasya na kiṃ guruḥ । Meaning (padārtha): Translation (bhāvārtha): Commentary (anusandhāna): This is also a gentle correction to "teacher shopping." A true guru is invaluable, but the mind can misuse the idea of guru to avoid responsibility: "If only I find the right teacher, my mind will stop." The verse says: if you have already seen the truth of awareness, then everything can instruct you. A harsh moment teaches where pride lives; a loss teaches where grasping lives; a joy teaches where clinging to highs lives. Advaita treats every experience as an opportunity for anusandhāna - reflective assimilation - so knowledge becomes lived. The phrase saṃsṛti points to the repetitive wandering of the mind; crossing it is less about changing geography and more about ending compulsion. Practice by turning one ordinary difficulty into a guru for a week. Choose one recurring trigger - maybe criticism, loneliness, or uncertainty. Each time it arises, ask: "What is this teaching me about my vāsanā?" Then apply the three tools: (1) nirvēda - recognize that feeding the old pattern has never brought peace; (2) samatā - take one breath to equalize the mind, neither dramatizing nor suppressing; (3) yukti - choose the most reasonable next step (a conversation, a boundary, rest, a plan). Write two lines in a journal each night: "What did today teach?" and "What did I drop?" This makes life a teacher without turning it into self-criticism. paśya bhūtavikārāṃstvaṃ bhūtamātrān yathārthataḥ । Meaning (padārtha): Translation (bhāvārtha): Commentary (anusandhāna): This does not mean you neglect the body or ignore emotions. It means you stop turning them into an identity. For example, anxiety becomes a pattern of breath and thought, not "I am anxious therefore I am unsafe." Pain becomes sensation, not "I am broken therefore I am doomed." This aligns with the broader Advaita approach: the seen is not the seer. The gItA similarly speaks of seeing the body as a field (kṣētra) and the knower as distinct (kṣētrajña). When this distinction is lived, the mind becomes less reactive and more capable of wise care. Practice by doing a short "element-view" check-in twice a day. Sit for two minutes and scan: sensations, emotions, thoughts. For each, label: "element-change." Feel the difference between sensation and story. Then ask: "What is aware of this?" Rest as that for one breath. After that, take one caring action for the body-mind (stretch, hydrate, message someone, take a walk) without taking the body-mind as the Self. This combination - clear seeing plus kind action - makes the verse practical: you become less identified and more responsible at the same time. vāsanā ēva saṃsāra iti sarvā vimuñcha tāḥ । Meaning (padārtha): Translation (bhāvārtha): Commentary (anusandhāna): This is also where Advaita becomes very practical. You might agree intellectually that you are awareness, and still be pulled by old habits: seeking approval, replaying shame, chasing stimulation, holding grudges. These are vāsanā patterns. The verse points to a freedom that is not merely philosophical: the nervous system becomes less reactive, the mind becomes less hungry, and life becomes simpler. The phrase yathā tathā is important: it hints at acceptance. When vāsanā drops, you can be with reality as it is, without constantly negotiating for a different moment. Practice by picking one vāsanā to release for a month. Make it specific and observable: "checking messages for reassurance," "replaying a past insult," "doom-scrolling when tired," "needing to be right." Each time the urge appears, do a three-step release: (1) feel the urge in the body, (2) name it "vāsanā", (3) choose not to feed it for two minutes while resting as the witness. After two minutes, if action is still needed, act deliberately rather than compulsively. Also add one nourishment practice: a short daily meditation, a walk, or a service act - not as moralism, but as re-patterning. Over time, the tendency loses force. Then the verse becomes true in your life: sthiti - steady abiding - is available today, not as an achievement, but as the natural state when the old grooves are not fed.
|
