कर्तुराज्ञया प्राप्यते फलम् ।
कर्म किं परं कर्म तज्जडम् ॥ 1 ॥
The fruit of action is attained by the command of the Creator (or the law of karma). How can action be the Supreme? Action is insentient.
कृतिमहोदधौ पतनकारणम् ।
फलमशाश्वतं गतिनिरोधकम् ॥ 2 ॥
Action results in impermanent fruits and binds the individual to the ocean of karma, thereby hindering the path to liberation.
ईश्वरार्पितं नेच्छया कृतम् ।
चित्तशोधकं मुक्तिसाधकम् ॥ 3 ॥
Actions performed as an offering to God, without desire for their fruits, purify the mind and lead to liberation.
कायवाङ्मनः कार्यमुत्तमम् ।
पूजनं जपश्चिन्तनं क्रमात् ॥ 4 ॥
Worship through the body, speech, and mind—performed in that order—consisting respectively of ritual service, repetition of sacred names (Japa), and meditation, is the highest form of practice.
जगत ईशधी युक्तसेवनम् ।
अष्टमूर्तिभृद्देवपूजनम् ॥ 5 ॥
Seeing the world as the manifestation of God and serving it with that attitude is true worship of the Divine, who bears the eight forms.
उत्तमस्तवादुच्चमन्दतः ।
चित्तजं जपध्यानमुत्तमम् ॥ 6 ॥
Better than praising God loudly is whispering; better still is silent repetition of His name; but the best is meditation originating from the heart.
आज्यधारया स्रोतसा समम् ।
सरलचिन्तनं विरलतः परम् ॥ 7 ॥
Like a steady stream of oil or a flowing river, the constant, unbroken flow of meditation on the Divine is superior to interrupted, intermittent thought.
भेदभावनात् सोऽहमित्यसौ ।
भावनाऽभिदा पावनी मता ॥ 8 ॥
Instead of maintaining the duality of "I am separate from Him," the attitude of "I am He" (So-ham) is considered the most purifying of all meditations.
भावशून्यसद्भावसुस्थितिः ।
भावनाबलाद्भक्तिरुत्तमा ॥ 9 ॥
Abiding in the natural state of Being, free from all thought-constructs, is the highest form of devotion (Bhakti), powered by the strength of this meditation.
हृत्स्थले मनः स्वस्थता क्रिया ।
भक्तियोगबोधाश्च निश्चितम् ॥ 10 ॥
The mind, having subsided into its source, the Heart, is the true state of action, devotion, yoga, and knowledge; this is the definitive truth.
वायुरोधनाल्लीयते मनः ।
जालपक्षिवद्रोधसाधनम् ॥ 11 ॥
By the restraint of the breath, the mind is dissolved; this is a means of control, just as a net captures a bird.
चित्तवायवश्चित्क्रियायुताः ।
शाखयोर्द्वयी शक्तिमूलका ॥ 12 ॥
The mind and the vital breath are both composed of thought and action; they are like two branches, both rooted in the same source.
लयविनाशने उभयरोधने ।
लयगतं पुनर्भवति नो मृतम् ॥ 13 ॥
Dissolution and destruction are the two states of restraint; when the mind is merely dissolved, it rises again, but when it is destroyed, it does not.
प्राणबन्धनाल्लीनमानसम् ।
एकचिन्तनान्नाशमेत्यदः ॥ 14 ॥
When the mind is dissolved through the restraint of the vital breath, it ceases to be by focusing on the One.
नष्टमानसोत्कृष्टयोगिनः ।
कृत्यमस्ति किं स्वस्थितिं यतः ॥ 15 ॥
For the supreme yogi whose mind has been destroyed, there is no further action to perform, for he has attained his own true state.
दृश्यवारितं चित्तमात्मनः ।
चित्त्वदर्शनं तत्त्वदर्शनम् ॥ 16 ॥
When the mind is withdrawn from the objects of the world and fixed on its own nature as Consciousness, that is the vision of the Truth.
मानसं तु किं मार्गणे कृते ।
नैव मानसं मार्ग आर्जवात् ॥ 17 ॥
When one searches for what the mind truly is, it is discovered that there is no such entity as the mind; this is the direct path.
वृत्तयस्त्वहं वृत्तिमाश्रिताः ।
वृत्तयो मनो विद्ध्यहं मनः ॥ 18 ॥
The various mental impressions depend upon the "I" thought; the impressions themselves constitute the mind, and the "I" is the mind.
अहमयं कुतो भवति चिन्वतः ।
अयि पतत्यहं निजविचारणम् ॥ 19 ॥
When one inquires deeply into the source from which the "I" arises, the ego vanishes; this is the inquiry into the Self.
अहमि नाशभाज्यहमहन्तया ।
स्फुरति हृत्स्वयं परमपूर्णसत् ॥ 20 ॥
When the ego is destroyed, the true Self shines forth in the heart of its own accord as the supreme, all-encompassing Existence.
इदमहं पदाऽभिख्यमन्वहम् ।
अहमिलीनकेऽप्यलयसत्तया ॥ 21 ॥
When the mind merges into the Source and the sense of "I" vanishes, the Reality persists of its own accord, manifesting eternally as the true "I."
विग्रहेन्द्रियप्राणधीतमः ।
नाहमेकसत्तज्जडं ह्यसत् ॥ 22 ॥
The body, senses, vital breath, mind, and ignorance are all inert and unreal; I am none of these, for I am the one true Existence.
सत्त्वभासिका चित्क्ववेतरा ।
सत्तया हि चिच्चित्तया ह्यहम् ॥ 23 ॥
Since there is no other consciousness to illuminate existence, the Self is Consciousness itself. This Consciousness is our very being; thus, the Self is existence, consciousness, and bliss.
ईशजीवयोर्वेषधीभिदा ।
सत्स्वभावतो वस्तु केवलम् ॥ 24 ॥
Although God and the individual soul appear different due to their respective forms and attributes, in their fundamental nature, they are the one absolute Reality.
वेषहानतः स्वात्मदर्शनम् ।
ईशदर्शनं स्वात्मरूपतः ॥ 25 ॥
When the individual sheds all adventitious forms and attributes, the vision of the Self occurs, which is truly the vision of God, for God is the very nature of the Self.
आत्मसंस्थितिः स्वात्मदर्शनम् ।
आत्मनिर्द्वयादात्मनिष्ठता ॥ 26 ॥
To abide as the Self is to realize the Self, because the Self is devoid of duality; this state of being established in the Self is the true path.
ज्ञानवर्जिताऽज्ञानहीनचित् ।
ज्ञानमस्ति किं ज्ञातुमन्तरम् ॥ 27 ॥
True Knowledge is that Consciousness which is beyond both knowledge and ignorance. In the Self, there is no object to be known, so how could there be knowledge of another?
किं स्वरूपमित्यात्मदर्शने ।
अव्ययाऽभवाऽऽपूर्णचित्सुखम् ॥ 28 ॥
When one turns inward to realize the nature of the Self, one discovers it to be infinite, changeless, unborn, and the fullness of Consciousness and Bliss.
बन्धमुक्त्यतीतं परं सुखम् ।
विन्दतीह जीवस्तु दैविकः ॥ 29 ॥
Having transcended both bondage and liberation, one attains that supreme, divine happiness while still in this very life.
अहमपेतकं निजविभानकम् ।
महदिदन्तपो रमनवागियम् ॥ 30 ॥
That state in which the ego has perished and the Self shines forth as the sole Reality—this is the supreme austerity taught by Ramana.
