12.317
Nārada said.
By hearing the treatise that is free from sorrow, meant for the destruction of sorrow, peace-giving and auspicious, one attains intellect; having obtained that, one prospers in happiness. (12-317-1)
Thousands of causes for sorrow and hundreds of causes for fear enter the deluded person day by day, but not the wise one. (12-317-2)
Therefore, in order to remove misfortune, listen to my history; if the intellect remains under control, it attains the destruction of sorrow. (12-317-3)
Humans of little understanding are afflicted by mental sufferings due to association with the undesirable and separation from the beloved. (12-317-4)
One should not dwell on the qualities of objects that have passed away; for one who does not value them, the bond of attachment is broken. (12-317-5)
Wherever attachment arises, one should become a fault-finder there; seeing even benefit as if it were undesirable, one quickly becomes dispassionate. (12-317-6)
Neither purpose, nor righteousness, nor fame comes to one who grieves over the past; even if he were to unite with non-existence, that which is past does not return to him. (12-317-7)
Beings are united and separated by the guṇas in the same way; all this is not truly a cause for sorrow for any one person. (12-317-8)
Whoever grieves for what is dead or lost in the past, obtains sorrow through sorrow and attains two misfortunes. (12-317-9)
Those who, with understanding, do not weep after seeing the succession of beings in the worlds, for one who rightly perceives everything, the act of not weeping arises. (12-317-10)
When suffering arises in the body or mind, and if there is no possible effort to be made, one should not dwell upon it. (12-317-11)
This is the remedy for suffering: not to dwell upon it repeatedly. For when suffering is repeatedly contemplated, it does not go away, but rather increases. (12-317-12)
Mental suffering should be removed by wisdom, and bodily suffering by medicines. This power of knowledge to attain equanimity is not achieved by the ignorant. (12-317-13)
Youth, beauty, life, wealth, health, and the company of loved ones are all impermanent; a wise person does not covet them. (12-317-14)
One should not grieve alone for the suffering of the people. If one sees an initiative, one should respond without grieving. (12-317-15)
In life, suffering is much greater than happiness; there is no doubt about this. Attachment to sense-objects, and due to delusion, death becomes unpleasant. (12-317-16)
The man who completely gives up pain, pleasure, or both, attains Brahman fully; the wise do not grieve for him. (12-317-17)
Objects of pain are indeed abandoned; in their protection, they are not pleasures; and by pain they are attained; one should not think of their destruction. (12-317-18)
Men, attaining one after another special state of wealth, being unsatisfied, go to destruction; wise men go to contentment. (12-317-19)
All accumulations ultimately decay, all heights eventually fall; every union ends in separation, and life itself ends in death. (12-317-20)
There is no end to thirst, but contentment is the highest happiness; therefore, the wise see contentment alone as wealth here. (12-317-21)
Even for the duration of a blink, age does not stand still. What is there to constantly ponder about one's own impermanent bodies? (12-317-22)
Those who, having considered the non-existence in beings and having realized what is beyond darkness, do not grieve; their journey is complete, and they behold the supreme state. (12-317-23)
Death, having seized this person who is ever accumulating and never satisfied with desires, carries him away just as a tiger carries off an animal. (12-317-24)
At this point, one should also carefully consider the means for complete liberation from suffering. Without sorrow, one should certainly begin the task, remaining disciplined and free from addiction. (12-317-25)
In sound, touch, form, smell, and taste, there is nothing beyond enjoyment for the wealthy or for wealth itself. (12-317-26)
Before beings come together, there is no suffering or disease. But when separation occurs, one who is established in their own nature should not grieve for anyone. (12-317-27)
With firmness, one should guard the generative organ and belly; hands and feet should be watched with the eye; the eye and ear should be controlled by the mind; the mind and speech should be governed by knowledge. (12-317-28)
Withdrawing affection, one should move among both the praised and others without arrogance; such a person is happy and wise. (12-317-29)
He who is established in delight for the self, independent, free from desire, and acts by himself alone as his own helper, he becomes happy. (12-317-30)
