Aṣṭāvakra Gītā / Janaka asks (अध्याय १) / 1.18
1.18
the Aṣṭāvakra Gītā (अष्टावक्र गीता)
साकारमनृतं विद्धि निराकारं तु निश्चलम् ।
एतत् तत्त्वोपदेशेन न पुनर् भवसम्भवः sākāram anṛtaṃ viddhi nirākāraṃ tu niścalam |
etat tattvopadeśena na punar bhavasambhavaḥ
The line
Know what has form to be untrue, and the formless to be unmoving. By this teaching of reality there is no arising of becoming again.
नेपालीमा
साकारलाई असत्य जान, निराकारलाई चाहिँ निश्चल जान। यो तत्त्वको उपदेशले गर्दा फेरि भव उत्पन्न हुँदैन।
Where it sits
Aṣṭāvakra (अष्टावक्र) is still speaking. The chapter's instruction closes on form and the formless.
Split: sākāram (साकारम्) + anṛtam (अनृतम्) + viddhi (विद्धि) + nirākāram (निराकारम्) + tu (तु) + niścalam (निश्चलम्) + etat (एतत्) + tattvopadeśena (तत्त्वोपदेशेन) + na (न) + punar (पुनर्) + bhavasambhavaḥ (भवसम्भवः)
Sanskrit, in depth
The words
| Word | Grammar | Sense |
|---|---|---|
| sākāram (साकारम्) | accusative singular, neuter | what has form. |
| anṛtam (अनृतम्) | accusative singular, neuter | untrue. Agrees with sākāram (साकारम्). |
| viddhi (विद्धि) | imperative second person singular | know. |
| nirākāram (निराकारम्) | accusative singular, neuter | the formless. |
| tu (तु) | indeclinable | but. |
| niścalam (निश्चलम्) | accusative singular, neuter | unmoving. Agrees with nirākāram (निराकारम्). |
| etat (एतत्) | nominative singular, neuter | this. |
| tattvopadeśena (तत्त्वोपदेशेन) | instrumental singular, masculine | by the teaching of reality. tattva (तत्त्व) is reality. upadeśa (उपदेश) is teaching. |
| na (न) | indeclinable | not. |
| punar (पुनर्) | indeclinable | again. |
| bhavasambhavaḥ (भवसम्भवः) | nominative singular, masculine | an arising of becoming. bhava (भव) is becoming. sambhava (सम्भव) is arising. |
The phrases
viddhi (विद्धि) takes two accusative pairs: sākāram (साकारम्) as anṛtam (अनृतम्), and nirākāram (निराकारम्) as niścalam (निश्चलम्). etat (एतत्) points back at that teaching. The instrumental is the means by which bhavasambhavaḥ (भवसम्भवः) is na (न).
Sanskrit in this line
etat plus tattva is written with a doubled t. punar plus bhava is one run.
Say it back
What is untrue, and what is unmoving?