Aṣṭāvakra Gītā / Aṣṭāvakra (अध्याय ३) / 3.2
3.2
the Aṣṭāvakra Gītā (अष्टावक्र गीता)
आत्माज्ञानादहो प्रीतिर् विषयभ्रमगोचरे ।
शुक्तेरज्ञानतो लोभो यथा रजतविभ्रमे ātmājñānād aho prītir viṣayabhramagocare |
śukter ajñānato lobho yathā rajatavibhrame
The line
Ah, fondness for the range of error about objects comes from not knowing the self, as greed for a false show of silver comes from not knowing the shell.
नेपालीमा
अहो, आत्मालाई नचिन्दा विषयभ्रमको क्षेत्रमा प्रीति हुन्छ, जसरी शुक्तिलाई नचिन्दा चाँदीको झूटो रूपमा लोभ हुन्छ।
Where it sits
Astavakra is still speaking. The shell and the silver are the likeness for the fondness just named.
Split: ātmājñānāt (आत्माज्ञानात्) + aho (अहो) + prītiḥ (प्रीतिः) + viṣayabhramagocare (विषयभ्रमगोचरे) + śukteḥ (शुक्तेः) + ajñānataḥ (अज्ञानतः) + lobhaḥ (लोभः) + yathā (यथा) + rajatavibhrame (रजतविभ्रमे)
Sanskrit, in depth
The words
| Word | Grammar | Sense |
|---|---|---|
| ātmājñānāt (आत्माज्ञानात्) | ablative singular, neuter | from ignorance of the self. Recited ātmājñānād (आत्माज्ञानाद्) before a (अ). |
| aho (अहो) | indeclinable | ah. |
| prītiḥ (प्रीतिः) | nominative singular, feminine | fondness. Recited prītir (प्रीतिर्) before v (व्). |
| viṣayabhramagocare (विषयभ्रमगोचरे) | locative singular, masculine | in the range of the error about objects. |
| śukteḥ (शुक्तेः) | ablative singular, feminine | from the shell. Recited śukter (शुक्तेर्) before a (अ). |
| ajñānataḥ (अज्ञानतः) | indeclinable | out of ignorance. Recited ajñānato (अज्ञानतो) before l (ल्). |
| lobhaḥ (लोभः) | nominative singular, masculine | greed. Recited lobho (लोभो) before y (य्). |
| yathā (यथा) | indeclinable | as. |
| rajatavibhrame (रजतविभ्रमे) | locative singular, masculine | in the false show of silver. |
The phrases
prītiḥ (प्रीतिः) comes from ātmājñānāt (आत्माज्ञानात्) and sits in viṣayabhramagocare (विषयभ्रमगोचरे). yathā (यथा) lines the shell up with that same mistake: lobhaḥ (लोभः) from ajñānataḥ (अज्ञानतः) in rajatavibhrame.
Sanskrit in this line
ātmājñānāt (आत्माज्ञानात्) before aho is voiced to d. śukteḥ (शुक्तेः) before a vowel is śukter (शुक्तेर्). prītiḥ (प्रीतिः) before v is prītir (प्रीतिर्), and lobhaḥ (लोभः) before y is lobho.
Say it back
What is the shell mistaken for?