| 66. There is
no wisdom to the unsteady, and no meditation to the unsteady, and to the
unmeditative no peace ; to the peaceless, how can there be happiness?To
the unsteady (ayukta=asamahita), to the man who cannot fix the mind in contemplation,
there can be no wisdom (buddhi), no knowledge of the true nature of the
Self. To the unsteady, there can be no meditation, no intense devotion to
Selfknowledge. So, to him who is not devoted to Selfknowledge there can
be no peace, no tranquillity. To the peaceless man, how can there be happiness
? Verily, happiness consists in the freedom of the senses from thirst of
sensual enjoyment, not in the thirst (trishna) for objects. This last is
mere misery indeed. While there is thirst, there can be no trace of happiness
; we cannot so much as smell it Senserestraint conduces to steady knowledge.(question)
;Why is there no knowledge for the unsteady ?(Answer) ;Listen:For, the mind
which yields to the roving senses carries away his knowledge, as the wind
(carries away) a ship on water.For, the mind which yields to the senses
engaged in their respective objects, i.e the mind which is altogether engrossed
in the thought of the various objects of the senses, destroys the devotees
discriminative knowledge of the Self and the notSelf.How ?As the wind carries
away a ship from the intended course of the sailors and drives her astray,
so the mind carries away the devotees consciousness from the Self and turns
it towards senseobjects.Having explained in several ways the proposition
enunciated , the Lord concludes by reaffirming the same proposition: |
