Dashak 8 · Samāsa 6

The listener asks the speaker: what is the glory of sat-sanga? In how many days is mokṣa gained? — expound this.

Holding the sādhu's company, in how many days does mukti come? O compassion-form, make this definite for me, the lowly.

Mukti is gained at that very moment — when one trusts in the exposition; in distraction, loss occurs.

From attentive, the mind suddenly becomes distracted; how should that be made peaceful?

Cutting the mind's pull, one should sit in śravaṇa with love; attentively moment by moment — time should be made fruitful.

Meaning-proof in book-inside should be examined inwardly; if distraction came — one should again do śravaṇa.

One who does śravaṇa without examining the deep meaning — that listener is not; [he is] a stone in human guise.

Here the listeners feel hurt: 'he called us stones'; then hear the sign of a stone.

A crooked stone was broken; shaped and made straight; looking a second time — it is still as it is.

A chisel broke the chip; it did not stick again; a person's bad-intellect is cleared — yet it clings again.

Telling, the defect went; again it stuck; therefore the great one — is the stone-pebble.

He whose defect does not come off is lower than a stone; know stone superior — by crores.

How is a stone crore-fold superior? Hear its sign too; listeners, listen — attentively.

Ruby, pearl, coral; emerald, cat's-eye, sapphire; gomeda-gem, parīsa purely — are called stones.

Besides these, many — sūrya-kānta, soma-kānta; many pre-tested stones — for medicine-purposes.

Besides these, good stones — which reside in many tīrthas; finally become Hari-Hara forms at wells and step-wells.

Examining its reasoning, nothing is as essential as stone; man — what a low creature before stone?

But not such is that stone — which is impure, purposeless; know as such the body of the distracted non-devotee.

Enough this talk; loss happens by distraction; by the quality of distraction, neither prapañca nor paramārtha.

By distraction, task fails; by distraction, anxiety dwells; by distraction, no remembrance — even for a moment.

By distraction, enemy conquers; by distraction, birth-death; by the quality of distraction, loss happens.

By distraction, no sādhana; by distraction, no bhajana; by distraction, no jñāna — for seekers.

By distraction, no resolve comes; by distraction, no victory happens; by distraction, decay happens — of one's own welfare.

By distraction, no śravaṇa; by distraction, no reflection; by distraction, the exposition goes out of hand.

The distracted-one sits and appears [present], but he is not present; he has fallen in the fickle wheel — his mind.

Mad, ghost-possessed continuously; blind, mute, and deaf — know such samsāra of the distracted creatures.

Being alert, does not understand; having śravaṇa, does not listen; having jñāna, does not grasp — sārāsāra-vicāra.

Such a distracted, lazy one — where is para-loka for him? In whose heart day-and-night — laziness dwells.

Freed from distraction, laziness immediately comes; the creature in laziness's hand — has no rest.

By laziness, reasoning stopped; by laziness, conduct drowned; by laziness, no memorization — howsoever attempted.

By laziness, no śravaṇa; by laziness, no exposition; by laziness, the mark of paramārtha — has become soiled.

By laziness, daily observance stopped; by laziness, practice drowned; by laziness, laziness grew — immeasurably.

By laziness, *dhāraṇā*, *dhṛti* went; by laziness, disposition became impure; by laziness, the motion of viveka — became slow.

By laziness, sleep grew; by laziness, tendency extended; by laziness, became void-form — the good-intellect of resolve.

With distraction goes laziness; by laziness, sleep-play; by sleep-play purely — destruction of life-span.

Sleep, laziness, distraction — these are the fool's signs; by these, exposition — is not understood.

Where these three signs are — where is viveka there? For ignorance, beyond this — there is no happiness.

On hunger, he ate; on getting up from eating, laziness came; laziness coming, he slept — leisurely.

On waking, immediately distracted; never alert; there, where is self-welfare — in exposition?

A gem given to a monkey; a treasure in a ghost's hand; exposition before a distracted-one — is like that.

Enough this argument; what is the fate of the objection? In how many days mukti — by the company of the noble?

Hear its reply; the narrative should be question-less; the reasoning of sat-sanga — is such.

Iron touched parīsa; a drop joined the ocean; the Ganges met a river — at that very moment.

The alert, the earnest, the clever — to him mokṣa at once; to others it is un-targeted — cannot be targeted.

Here only the disciple's *prajñā* is purely [the means]; the *prajñāvanta* needs no time; to the *ananya*, mokṣa instantly.

*Prajñāvanta* and *ananya* — to him not one moment; without *ananya bhāvārtha*, prajñā is false.

Without prajñā, meaning is not understood; without faith, substance not understood; prajñā-faith — dehābhimāna falls.

At the end of dehābhimāna, substance-attainment naturally; by sat-sanga, sadgati — no delay at all.

Alert, earnest, specially *prajñāvanta* and with faith — to him in sādhanas, effort — is not needed.

To the other faithful simple ones, mokṣa too comes by sādhanas; by sādhu-sanga, at once — viveka-sight opens.

But that sādhana should not be abandoned; it is the upāya of exposition; by exposition, the path is found — for all.

Now how is mokṣa? What is the state of svarūpa? What is the confidence of its attainment — by sat-sanga?

Such clear exposition ahead — all has been spoken; listeners, becoming unwavering — give attention.

For the sake of renouncing defects, just-and-harsh speech is required; listeners should not be angry — at such utterance.