Ishtopadesha

Author(s): Devnandi Maharaj, Jaibhagawan Jain
Publisher: Paramashruta Prabhavaka Mandal Anand
Catalog link: https://jainqq.org/explore/006539/1

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इप्रोपदेश Ishtopadesha
By Acarya Devanandi alias Pujyapada
And commented as "The Discourse Divine" By Late Champatarai Jain, Bar-at-Law, Vidyavaridhi
And translated in verses as
"Happy Sermons' By Jaibhagawan Jain, B. A., LL. B., Advocate.
Published by : Shri Paramashruta Prabhavaka Mandal
Shrimad Rajchandra Ashram, St. AGAS, Post BORIA-388 130
Via ANAND (Guj.)
Price
Vikram Samvat 2042.1
1986 A.D
I Rs. 31

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38 7: श्रीपूज्यपादस्वामिकृत
इष्टोपदेश The Discourse Divine Late Mr. Champatrai Jain, Bar-at-Law Vidyavaridhi
यस्य स्वयं स्वभावाप्तिरभावे कृत्स्नकर्मणः ।
तस्मै संज्ञानरूपाय, नमोऽस्तु परमात्मने ॥१॥ He who has attained the purity of his nature by the destruction of all his karmas by his own effort-to such an Omniscient Paramatman salutation is offered.
Note:--Omniscience is the attribute of the Pure and Perfect soul, and is the most essential of divine qualities, which are all implied in it. In Jainism salutation is offered to Divinity not because the devotee expects any boons from the object of his veneration and worship, not because salutation is pleasing to Him who is the embodiment of all divine attributes, not even because such salutation is itself, in any sense, the aim and object of worship, but because, the Paramatman is the Ideal of Perfection for the devotee, who wants to realize it in His own self, and because the adoration of Him who represents the Perfection of Divinity in His own pure being is the only means of attaining to it, at least in the earlier stages of the path.
योग्योपादानयोगेन, दृषदः स्वर्णता मता।
द्रव्यादिस्वादिसंपत्तावात्मनोऽप्यात्मता मता ॥२॥ As gold in the ore is held to become pure gold on the intervention of the real causes of purification, in the same manner on the attainment to self-nature the impure (unemancipated) soul is also regarded as pure Spirit.
Note :-The impure ego is like gold in the state of ore; both of them possess the potentiality of attaining to purity and perfection, when rid of the adhering impurities. Smelting is the process employed to obtain pure gold from the ore, which means the removal of the non-gold that is found to be mixed up with it. A lump of ore, thus, represents pure gold plus so much dross added to it. In the same way the emancipated soul is pure Spirit plus so much filth or dirt (matter) adhering to it. Hence, when the filth

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is removed by a process akin to that of smelting in the case of gold, the foreign material is separated off and self-nature attained, on the emergence of the purity of sva-dravya (own substance), consequent on the elimination of constituents of the not-self. The term sva-dravya (own substance) here includes the other three conceptions that are homogeneous with it, namely sva-kala (own-time, signifying the external states that are changing in time), sva-kshetra (own space, or self-sized i.e., as existing in its own expanse). and sva-bh ava (own-feelings or own nature, i.e., internal states). These may be termed the 'sa' quartette technically. The soul that is rid of the not-self exists in its own nature with respect to the sva quartette, while the transmigrating ego is overwhelmed with the conditions and limitations imposed by the companionship of the not-self. This may be explained in a tabulated form, as follows :
Pure Spirit
Conditions, of
existence
Impure ego.
Exists in His own substance... Dravya
Exists mixed with impurities of
the nature of the not-self Is Divine all over ...
Kshetra
Is involved in impurities
all over Abides in a form that is
Kala
Possesses a form that is liable His own forever more
to periodic changes on account of the liability to birth
and death. Always enjoys the bliss and Bhava ... Is devoid of self-feeling, and blessedness, appertaining
passes a joyless, cheerless to pure Spirit
existence. generally. वरं व्रतैः पदं देवं, नावतैर्वत नारकम् ।
छायातपस्थयोदः, प्रतिपालयतोर्महान् ॥३॥ Observance of vows leads to birth in the heavens, therefore their observance is proper; the vowless life drags one to a birth in the hells, which is painful; therefore, vowlessness should be avoided; when two persons are waiting for the arrival of another person, but one of them waits in the heat of the sun and the other in the shade, great is the difference between the conditions; precisely the same difference is to be found between the condition of him who leads a life regulated by the vows and of him whose life is not so regulated.
Note:- In the last verse divinity is said to be the natural attribute of the soul which arises from within its own self on the occurrence of the helpful causes of Self-realization. Naturally enough the question now arises : Why should one take the trouble of observing vows and otherwise

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subjecting oneself to a life of austerities and hardships, considering that Divinity is actually the potential nature of the soul? Will not the supreme status be obtained without undergoing penances and without vows? The reply is given here in this verse. Painful, at times very painful, indeed, is the life which results from the non-observance of vows. One might even descend into hells which is the most undesirable condition of existence. On the other hand, the observance of vows leads to very happy and desirable conditions, including a birth in the heavens. Therefore the acharya says that the difference between the soul that is leading a well regulated life and the one whose life is not so regulated is precisely that between the condition of the man who is waiting for the arrival of a companion in the heat of the day, exposed to hot winds and the burning glare of the sun, and of him who is also awaiting the arrival of the same person but in a cool and shady grove.
Metaphysically, of course, the helpful potent causes themselves include the observance of vows and the suffering of hardships at a certain stage of advancement; for without them the karmic filth cannot be separated from the soul. But the great thing to note about the observance of vows and the suffering of hardships is this that they appear to be irksome and unpleasant only when thought of or looked at from a distance. When one is imbued with the right Faith one realises at once the necessity of a well-regulated life and actually longs for the perfection of character through suffering and self-denial. And the task does not then appear to be burden-some, but is cheerfully accepted as the surest means of the acquisition of that joyous feeling of self-elevation which is dear to the heart of every aspirant on the path. That virtue is its own reward, is a saying the truth of which is not realized except by him whose life is characterized by self-imposed suffering in the name of Duty and Dharma.
यत्र भावः शिवं दत्ते, द्यौः कियदूरवर्तिनी।
यो नयत्याशु गव्यूति, क्रोशाखें कि स सीदति ॥४॥ The soul that is capable of conferring the divine status when meditated upon, how far can the heavens be from him ? Can the man who is able to carry a load to a distance of two koses feel tired when carrying it only half a kos?
Note:-This verse is intended to settle the doubt that might now arise in the mind as to the respective merits of self-contemplation and the observance of vows, especially in regard to the ability of the former to secure a rebirth in the heavenly-regions. The answer is that the soul's contemplation can grant both moksha as well as heavens, which are much nearer so to speak; since he who can easily cover a distance of four miles with

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out being fatigued is not likely to experience trouble in going only a mile. Self-contemplation thus, is much superior to the mere observance of vows, though the latter are able to lead to heavens for the time being.
हषीकजमनातडू दीर्घकालोपलालितम् ।
___ नाके नाकोकसां सौख्यं, नाके नाकोकसामिव ॥५॥ The happiness that is enjoyed by the residents of heavens appertains to the senses, is free from disturbance [ literally, disease 1, enjoyable for very very long periods of time, and is without a parallel outside the heavens !
Note:-The pleasures of a heavenly life are but sense-produced, though they are not to be found outside the heavenly region and are exceedingly delightful. The duration of the life, too, is incomparably longer in the heaven than on the earth, and it is therefore true that the heavenly pleasures are enjoyable for much longer periods than the pleasures of this world.
___ वासनामात्रमेवैतत्सुखं, दुःखं च देहिनाम् ।
तथा ह्य द्वैजयन्त्येते, मोगा रोगा इवापदि ॥६॥ The experiences of pleasures and pains of the samsari jivas (unemancipated souls) are purely imaginary; for this reason the sense-produced pleasures give rise, like disease, to uneasiness on the approach of trouble !
Note:-If the pleasures and pains of the world were not the product of imagination they would be lasting, unchanging and eternal. But we see that what is the cause of pleasures today becomes a source of disturbance and pain as soon as trouble arises or calamity overtakes the enjoyer. Hence the acharya points out that sense-produced pleasures and pain are purely imaginary in their nature, notwithstanding that the infatuated humanity regard them as real and run after them. By the use of the word imaginary it is not to be taken that the acharya denies the reality of the experiences altogether; what he is aiming at in reality is only an emphasis on the nature of true happiness to be described later
tha saat ini, Fanta sa a fel
मत्तः पुमान्पदार्थानां, यथा मदनकोद्रवः ॥७॥ Deluded by infatuation the knowing being is unable to acquire adequate knowledge of the nature of things, in the same way as a person who has lost his wits in consequence of eating intoxicating food is unable to know them properly!
Note:-Infatuations-likes and dislikes, etc.-deprive us of that purer form of mental serenity which is necessary for the acquisition of true knowledge, for, as is well known, lucidity of the intellectual faculty is clouded when the mind is strongly agitated by passions and desires and wrong convictions and beliefs.

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इष्टोपदेश वपुहं धनं दाराः पुत्रा मित्राणि शत्रवः ।
सर्वथान्यस्वभावानि, मूढः स्वानि प्रपद्यते ॥८॥ All the objects, the body, the house, the wealth, the wife, the son, the friend, the enemy and the like, are quite different in their nature from the soul; the foolish man, however, looks upon them as his own !
Note:--The wise always perceive themselves as different from the objects of the world whose relations are transient and temporary and perish after a time. The Self, however, is unperishing and eternal, and will pass away, on death, into some other form of life, leaving his newly-formed relations of a transient phase of life, in the course of his eternal wandering career, mourning his loss. Some times the relations depart plunging us in mourning. Hence, the acharya points out that the relations and, like them, the other objects which either leave us or are themselves left behind, on death, are all different from the Self in their nature, for otherwise they will always accompany the soul and cause it pleasure at all times and under all conditions.
दिग्देशेभ्यः खगा एत्य, संवसंति नगे नगे।
स्वस्वकार्यवशाधान्ति, देशे दिक्षु प्रगे प्रगे ॥९॥ The birds gather together to pass the night, on a tree, from various places in different directions in the evening; but at the earliest moment at the break of day they depart in the pursuit of their diverse purposes, for different places in all directions !
Note:—The world is like a tree where the birds gather together to pass the night; in the morning they are gone. In the same way friends and relations are formed in this world, as if for the night; at the break of day we part company from them, each one going his own way! Who, then, but the foolish will suffer himself to be entangled with such 'roostingtime' ties?
faciaa: fui , art afegirafa i
त्र्यगुलंपातयन्पद्धयां, स्वयं दण्डेन पात्यते ॥१०॥ Why should the evil-doer become angry with him who takes revenge on him? He who pulls down the trangura with both his feet is himself felled to the ground through its instrumentality! This is but just! It therefore, does not become one to get angry !
Note:-The tr angura is an instrument so constructed that if a man holds it with both his hands and then tries with his feet to pull it down to the ground, it will overthrow him at once. The acharya likens the action of an evil-doer to the result of pulling down the trangura. The evil one

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experiences at this moment from the hands of an enemy is sure enough the result of one's own evil-doing in the past. It is that evil which like the trangura has rebounded on oneself and is responsible for one's suffering. Surely, this is but justice, pure and simple. Where is, then, room for anger in this? The point is that in this world evil is caused by evil, what is experienced now as an evil, experience is sure enough the resultant of an evil act done by us in the past. The experiencer of evil is thus himself proved to be the doer of evil and the cause of his own suffering. Still it is necessary to punish the evil-doer, for otherwise it will be destructive of society and good order. The wise man should, however, so control himself that he should do his duty, but should not allow himself to be carried away by passion in its discharge. The judge, for instance, should so deport himself as to punish the prisoner who is proved to be guilty, but while doing so he should maintain his own serenity of mind and should not allow his decision to be influenced by anger. The result of anger is very harmful for the soul; it tends to undesirable conditions in the next rebirth. Hence, the judge who allows his mind to be swayed by passion will be incurring the liability for a painful hereafter, while the judge who merely discharges his duty and remains calm and collected and of an unruffled temperament will be avoiding that liability and will also be shortening his own bondage as the result of passionlessness.
रागद्वेषद्वयोदीर्घनेत्राकर्षणकर्मणा।।
अज्ञानात्सुचिरं जीवः, संसाराब्धौ भ्रमत्यसौ ॥११॥ Tied to the long rope intwined with (the strands of , attachments and aversions, the soul is whirled about in the ocean of samsara (transmigratory existence) for immeasurable time, led by ignorance !
Note:--Love and hatred, or attachment and aversion, are the causes of bondage and transmigration. The series of births and deaths is unending, except in the case of him who acquires Self-knowledge. Hence the statement that souls wander about in transmigration for time beyond measure. Ignorance of the real nature of the soul and the non-soul, and of happiness and what is not happiness though it may appear to be so, is the producer of loves and hatreds of embodied life. Led by these the soul comes and remains under the sway of karmic forces that drag it about in different conditions and grades of existence in the different parts of the world.
विपद्भवपदावर्ते, पदिकेवातिवाह्यते ।
यावत्तावद्भवन्त्यन्याः, प्रचुरा विपदः पुरः ॥१२॥ The samsāra (transmigratory condition) is like a wheel at a well, where before one bucketful of distress is got over a large number of afflictions overtake the soul!

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Note: The thoughtful mind only discovers the world to be full of misery and pain in all conditions. No one thinks of associating happiness with the conditions of existence in the lower grades of life. The trees are rooted to the spot and remain perpetually exposed to the inclemency of seasons; they are further subjected to all kinds of afflictions in the shape. of cutting, plercing, burning, uprooting and the like. The smaller insects are destroyed by the thousand by the careless movements of their bigger fellow-beings. No one cares for their writhings and suffering. The birds and beasts and fishes are seized and devoured mercilessly by animals and men. Man himself is a constant prey to the fear of death, and lives in perpetual dread of calamity and misfortune. Those even who may be regarded as favourites of fortune are troubled with many kinds of mental and bodily troubles of their own and of their relations and friends. And at the end of a career, even where it has been the least undesirable, there is nothing more comforting than the grave or the burning pyre to look forward to. Death and the blankness of death ever stare the thinking being in the face. Human life is short and the best of its conditions is ephemeral and fleeting; you have hardly celebrated the advent of a joy when its place is taken by affliction in some form or other. Those who are unlucky spend their whole time in crying and lamentations. Their suffering ceases even to excite the pity of the passers by, by its frequency. Some of them actually experience all the excruciating horrors of hell-life without being in hell! Kings and millionaires and potentates are no exceptions; they are subject to the painand misery which the flesh is heir to. The acharya therefore, justly says that this world of transmigratory life is so full of suffering and pain that you have hardly got-over one affliction when its place has been filled up. with a dozen others. The wise should, therefore, only seek to obtain release from the world to obtain nirvana where there is eternal peace and joy and life unending.
greuangcedor
नश्वरेण धनादिना ।
स्वस्थंमन्यो जनः कोऽपि ज्वरवानिव सर्पिषा ॥ १३॥
He who regards himself as happy on account of the possession of wealth and other like objects of desire, that are obtained with great trouble, that require a lot of botheration in their protection and that are after all perishable, is like the fool who eats clarified butter when suffering from fever and then thinks that he is enjoying good health!

७
Note:-Ghee (clarified butter) only goes to aggravate fever. so that he who eats ghee in that condition and regards himself as healthy because of his eating Ghee is a big fool. Precisely the same is the case with the man who considers himself happy because he is surrounded by the objects and

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sources of pleasure. These, too, aggravate the heat and fever of lust, and depart sooner or later without producing anything like satisfaction, that is happiness and rest and peace. The acharya, therefore, points out that it is an act of folly to regard oneself as happy when enjoying material prosperity and the like, which, it is further pointed out, are acquired with a lot of trouble and exertion and which, involve a great deal of additional trouble in guarding and protecting, and which, notwithstanding all this worry and trouble, are ultimately bound to depart, being perishable by nature.
विपत्तिमात्मनो मूढः परेषामिव नेक्षते ।
दह्यमानमृगाकीर्णवनान्तरतरुस्थवत् ॥१४॥ The fool is not warried by seeing distress overtake others, he acts like the man who, seated on the top of a tree in the midst of a burning forest, sees deer and other living things perish, but does not think that the same fate is soon to overtake him !
Note: The acharya here gives us a true description of the individual blinded by the lusts of the world, who though surrounded by calamity and distress all round is still unable to check himself in time to turn to the true side of life, taking no warning by the fate of others.
आयुर्वृद्धिक्षयोत्कर्षहेतुं कालस्य निर्गमम् ।
वांछतां धनिनामिष्टं जीवितात्सुतरां धनम् ।।१५॥ Time is the cause of the shortening of the duration of life as well as of the increase of wealth: the amassers of wealth (thus] love money more than their lives !
त्यागाय श्रेयसे वित्तमवित्तः संचिनोति यः ।
स्वशरीरं स पङ्केन स्नास्यामीति विलिम्पति ॥१६॥ The poor man who accumulates wealth so as to be able to acquire merit and the destruction of evil karmas by spending it in charity is like the man who covers himself with filth in the expectation that he is going to bathe his body thereafter.
Note: The acquisition of wealth is accompanied by So much evildoing and evil-thinking that it itself implies a lot of sin accruing to the soul : what purpose can, then, be served by charity and good works thereafter. The man who enters a drain full of filth in the hope that he will have a good bath afterwards covers himself for a certain with filth. Whether he will be able to wash it off thereafter is an entirely different matter !
आरंभे तापकान्प्राप्तावऽतृप्तिप्रतिपादकान् । अन्ते सुदुस्त्यजान् कामान्कामं कः सेवते सुधी ॥१७॥

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What! will any wise man indulge in the pleasures of the senses which cause trouble in their acquisition, enkindle lust and desire at the moment of enjoyment and are very painful at the time of parting? S man do so, he would not abandon himself to the lustful feeling.
Note:–According to the degree of foresight developed by them, men fall into three classes, namely, the short-sighted, the far-sighted and the farthest-sighted. The first class is that of fools, as all will agree. The second is that of men who are worldly wise. They are learned and thoughtful, but only in matters pertaining to the world, and the concerns of the immediate life that comes to an end after some three score years and ten, when their wisdom also perishes. The third class comprises those few but deeply thoughtful souls who have understood the nature of life and know that the soul survives the physical death. They are familiar with the true nature of things and know that there is no rest or peace for the soul outside nirvana. They are the farthest-sighted, for this reason; we may also call them Dharma - sighted, for Dharma signifies the ultimate Truth and the nature of things. Of these Knowers of the true nature of things it is said that they will not indulge in sensual lusts, knowing them to be the causes of suffering and pain, though not appearing to be such to the first or the second classes of men. Should a Knower of Truth be found to indulge in the pleasures of the world, he would not abandon himself altogether to them, but would only be influenced by them in so far as he is unable to resist the forces of karmic infatuation engendered in the past. The point is this that the knowledge of Truth changes the angle of vision of the wise one who may not be able to resist the temptation but who will detest himself all the time for his failings, where the fool will simply plunge himself head long in the whirling vortex of pleasures and lusts.
भवन्ति प्राप्य यत्संगमशुचीनि शुचीन्यपि ।
स कायः संततापायस्तदथं प्रार्थना वृथा ॥१८॥ By the contact of which even pure objects are rendered impure and which is a constant source of affliction, to seek to provide such a body with the objects of pleasure is vanity !
Note:- It is not the nature of the senses to ever attain to anything like a lasting sense of gratification. The source and store-house of impurity, the body may be surrounded by all sorts of luxuries and things that are expected to give one pleasure; but its cravings only increase while the things which it touches become impure for any other purpose !
यज्जीवस्योपकाराय, तद्देहस्यापकारकं । यद्देहस्योपकाराय, तज्जीवस्यापकारकं ॥१९॥

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Whatever action is beneficial to the soul is harmful to the body, and whatever action is beneficial to the body is harmful to the soul !
Note:-The association of the soul and the body being the cause of the pain & misery appertaining to embodied existence, nirvana really only signifies the destruction of the fleshy prison of the soul, when the latter, fully exalted and immortal in its own right, is installed in the Temple of Divinity as a God, by the mere process of emancipation from the bondage of matter. Hence, whatever tends to the fattening of the body is necessarily the source of continued affliction to the soul and vice versa.
इतश्चिन्तामणिदिव्य, इतः पिण्याकखण्डकम् ।
ध्यानेन चेदुभे लभ्ये, क्वाद्रियंताम् विवेकिनः ॥२०॥ When the divine wish-fulfilling Jewel and a piece of refuse both are obtainable by meditation, which of these will the man of discrimination choose?
Note: The man of discrimination will naturally prefer the soul which is like a divine wish-fulfilling Jewel, capable of conferring the inconceivably great boon-the status and the joy of Divinity-to a passing pleasurable form of sense-tickling that is like a worthless piece of khali (a cake of sesamum seeds from which oil has been extracted and serves only to prolong and to embitter the bondage of karmas.
स्वसंवेदनसुव्यक्तस्तनुमात्रो निरत्ययः ।
अत्यंतसौख्यवानात्मा, लोकालोकविलोकनः ॥२१॥ This soul can be adequately known by self-contemplation and is of the size of its body, immortal, of an exceedingly blissful nature and the knower of Loka and Aloka !
Note:-In this sloka the acharya has given a brief description of the soul as freed from the bondage of matter. It is, roughly speaking of the size, of its physical body and is indestructible, hence immortal. Knowledge and bliss appertain to it by nature, being but two of its divine attributes. It can be known adequately in self-contemplation, and when established in its natural purity, freed from the corrupting companionship of matter, it is the enjoyer of unbounded joy and the knower of the entirety of things, which constitute what is known as the Lokaloka (Loka=the universe of life and matter + alok a=the infinity of pure space lying beyond the Loka).
संयम्य करणग्राममेकाग्रत्वेन चेतसः ।
आत्मानमात्मवान्ध्यायेदात्मनैवात्मनि स्थितम् ॥२२॥ Controlling his senses, with concentrated mind, the knower of the Self should contemplate the Self, seated in his own Self, through the Self !
Note:-The contemplation of the divinity of the self, that is the soul, is only possible through the soul itself, by turning attention inwards.

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Now, because the self is seated inwards and the objects of the senses which attract and enthral the mind lie outwards the withdrawal of the mind from the outside, that is to say the controlling of the lustful cravings of the lower nature, is an absolute necessity for the realisation of the glory appertaining to Life. For one cannot serve two masters at one time. The Self and the world are antagonistic in nature. The dominance of the latter means the mancipation and distress of the former. Hence, the wise banish the world completely from their thoughts and attend with one-pointed mind to the glorious Divinity of the Self, seated inside.
अज्ञानोपास्तिरज्ञानम्, ज्ञानम् ज्ञानिसमाश्रयः ।
दवाति यत्तु यस्यास्ति सुप्रसिद्ध मिदम् वचः ॥२३॥ Devotion to ignorance bestows ignorance, and devotion to Gnana (selfknowledge) bestows Knowledge : for it is well established that a thing can grant only that of which it is possessed !
Note:-False beliefs and wrong convictions can never lead to true knowledge; for you cannot get what is not contained in the nature of a thing. e g., blood out of stones. But he who seeks knowledge is sure to be rewarded by enlightenment; for the law is that he who seeks shall find, he who asks shall get what he asks for and he who knocks shall be admitted into light, provided only the seeking, the asking and the knocking is sincere and persistent and in harmony with the nature of things
परीषहाद्यविज्ञानादास्रवस्य निरोधिनी ।
जायतेऽध्यात्मयोगेन, कर्मणामाशु निर्जरा ॥२४॥ By bearing with equanimity, by the power of the soulforce, the trials and hardships consequent on world-renunciation, is accomplished speedily the destruction of karmas and the stoppage of further inflow thereof !
Note:-There are two aspects of the karmic force the dravya and the bhava karmas. Dravya karmas simply mean matter which flows into the soul with every thought and word and deed. Bhava karmas are inner mental states, that is to say feelings, cravings and the like which are the causes that lead to the inflow of matter towards the soul. The bondage of the soul consists in the state of embodiment which signifies association with matter. The ascetic aspires to separate his soul completely from the material impurities that defile and hold it in bondage. The inflow of matter is termed asrava, and takes place only because of a certain kind of magnetic attraction which the soul develops under the influence of desire. It ceases when the soul becomes desireless completely. The matter existing in combination with the soul also then begins to dissolve and soon becomes separated from it. This is termed nirjara, in the course of which many

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The Discourse Divine
[ श्लोक
hardships have to be faced by the aspirant. If these are cheerfully borne, the goal of freedom and bliss is reached speedily, and the soul becomes a pure and perfected God. The destruction of desire, therefore, is the key to the situation, and the acharya points out that those who preserve equanimity of mind in the midst of trials and temptations speedily attain to the Supreme Status by the stoppage of the fresh inflow and the destruction of the existing karmas.
कटस्य कर्त्ता हमिति, संबंध: स्याद् द्वयोर्द्वयोः । ध्यानं ध्येयं यदात्मैव, संबंधः कीदृशस्तदा ॥ २५ ॥
In a statement such as 'I am the maker of the mat', two objects are implied; but where the soul itself is the instrument as well as the object of contemplation; how can there be duality in that state?
Note: This sloka is intended to further elucidate the nature of selfcontem plation which is non dual. There are in that state no two separate objects like a mat and the man who made it; but the object of contemplation is the same he who contemplates. The soul in reality only contemplates its own inherent glory, so as to realize its hidden divinity. Hence acharya points out that there is no room for duality in the process of pure self-contemplation.
बध्यते मुध्यते जीवः तस्मात्सर्व प्रयत्नेन,

सममो निर्ममः क्रमात् । निर्ममत्वं विचितयेत् ||२६||
The soul involved in the delusion of egoity is enmeshed in the bondage of karmas; he who is free from delusion of egoity is freed from the bondage of karma, this is the order of things; such being the law, one should try in all possible ways to attain to pure self-contemplation, devoid of the delusion of egoity.
Note: We have already seen that desire is the root of bondage. Here the acharya takes us a step further towards the analysis of desire, which is rooted in the delusion of identity with the body. The ordinary man only knows himself as the physical personality and naturally remains absorbed in the gratifications of the bodily cravings and wants. This is the delusion which the acharya warns us against.
एकोऽहं निर्ममः शुद्धो, ज्ञानी योगीन्द्रगोचरः ।
बाह्याः संयोगजा भावा मत्तः सर्वेऽपि सर्वथा ॥ २७ ॥
I am one, I am without delusion, I am the knower of knowable by Master Ascetics; all other conditions that arise of the not-self are foreign to my nature in every way!
Note:-The soul is here described from what is known as the nishchaya

things, I am by the union

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naya, that is to say in respect of its pure natural attributes, in other words, as a pure spirit. The pure spirit is devoid of parts, and therefore only one; being a pure embodiment of knowledge, without any obstructing veils to curtail the field of its knowing functions, it is devoid of delusion; rid of all forms of defilement and corruption, it is pure; having omniscience for its attribute, it is the true knower; and not being endowed with sensible qualities, it is knowable by the super-clairvoyant vision of Great Ascetics and Saints. All the other qualities, attributes and relations which appertain to embodied existence are really produced under the corrupting influence of matter, and are, therefore, not natural to a pure Spirit.
दुःखसंदोहभागित्वं, संयोगादिह देहिनाम् ।
त्यजाम्येनं ततः सर्व, मनोवाक्कायकर्मभिः ॥२८॥ The souls involved in transmigration have to suffer a multitude of afflictions, owing to the association of the not-Self, the body and the like : therefore, I shall 1 renounce them along with all the activities of the mind, the body and speech !
Note:-He who does not control the activities of his mind, speech and body, which are the three channels of sin, only prolongs his bondage and the transmigratory life which is simply full of pain and misery, even under the best of conditions. The aspirant after the final release, therefore, resolves in the manner indicated in the text.
न मे मृत्युः कुतो मीतिर्न मे व्याधिः कुतो व्यथा ।
नाहं बालो न वृद्धोऽहं न युवैतानि पुद्गले ॥२९॥ I am not subject to death; then, what should I fear death for ? Nor am I subject to disease, then, what can cause me pain ? I am not a child; I am not an old man; nor am I a youth : all these appertain to the flesh (matter) !
Note:- Pure Spirit is free from death and disease, and has no concern with the divisions of life, childhood, youth, oldage and the like. These are different conditions that appertain to the body of matter, which is, undoubtedly, not the same thing as Spirit or the soul. Why should, then, one fear death ? and how can one be really affected by disease ? The saint, knowing the pure immortal and incorruptible nature of the soul speedily attains to the highest and best condition of Life which is enjoyed by all who acquire the purity of their spiritual nature.
भूक्तोज्झिता मुहुर्मोहान्मया सर्वेऽपि पुद्गलाः ।
उच्छिष्टेष्विव तेष्वद्य, मम विज्ञस्य का स्पृहा ॥३०॥ Again and again, through delusions, have the bodies of matter been enjoyed and thrown off by me; how can I long for them now that I am endowed with true wisdom; for no one likes to eat the leavings.

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Note:-In the past infinity of time, during which the immortal soul has never ceased to exist, it has put on all kinds of bodies and enjoyed, again. and again, the pleasures appertaining to embodied existence, through them, throwing them off always at the end of each form of life. The bodies and things of matter are thus like the leavings in a plate which nobody will like to eat. The Right Believer, whose vision has been clarified to perceive the true side of Life, therefore, cannot long for them, since it will be like a longing to eat the leavings and refuse.
कर्म कर्महिताबन्धि, जीवो जीवहितस्पृहः । स्वस्वप्रभाव भूयस्त्वो, स्वार्थ को वा न वांछति ॥ ३१ ॥
karma works in its own cause; the soul works for its own good. who is there in the world that will not work for his own good when he has the power to do so?
Note:-Since karma produces karma, and thus is the cause of the perpethation of the soul's bondage, it is here described as working in its own cause, the soul also works for its own good, that is to say against the Karmic power, when it is able to do so. The interests of the two thus clash with each other. The acharya here exhorts the soul that has acquired the wisdom of the saints to gird up its loins for the destruction of the enemy; further is no one in the world who will not like to destroy his foe when he has the power to do so, especially such a foe or Karma, that acts by stealth and strikes mercilessly and hard.
परोपकृतिमुत्सृज्य स्वोपकारपरो भव ।
उपकुर्वन्परस्याज्ञो दृश्यमानस्य लोकवत् ॥ ३२ ॥

"
O Witless one! thou art serving this visible show that is not thyself; thou shouldst now renounce doing good to others and take to doing good to thine own Self!
Note: It is the way of the world that one gives up serving those who are found to be inimical to oneself. The soul has been serving its physical body and the rest of the visible sensible panorama; in the belief that its good lies with the things outside itself. But it has now learnt their real nature. They are-all the ties and joys and relationships of the world, taken together-only so many enemies in disguise! The acharya, therefore, exhorts the soul that is endowed with true insight into the nature of things to abandon them to their own fate and turn to its own welfare, that is, to take self contemplation.
गुरुपदेशादभ्यासात्संवित्तेः स्वपरांतरं ।
जानाति यः स जानाति मोक्षसौख्यं निरंतरम् ॥३३॥

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He who has acquired the discrimination between the Self and the notSelf, through the teachings of the preceptor, by repeated meditation on the nature of things, or by direct inner Self-perception, that great soul enjoys the happiness appertaining to salvation constantly !
Note:-Salvation and the happiness appertaining to it are obtained by self-contemplation, when the karmas are destroyed and the soul is left as a pure Spirit, omniscient, and blissful and immortal in its own nature.
स्वस्मिन्सदभिलाषित्वादभीष्टज्ञापकत्वतः ।
स्वयं हितप्रयोक्तृत्वादात्मैव गुरुरात्मनः ॥३४॥ Because of its internal longing for the attainment of the highest Ideal, because of its understanding of that Ideal, and because of its engaging itself in the realisation of its Ideal, because of these the soul is its own preceptor !
Note:-The outside Teachers and guides are only helpful where the soul itself is ripe for advancement on the path; their word is of no avail where the hearer is not open to receive it. For this reason the real teacher and guide is the soul itself; and so far as exertion is implied in the realisation of the Ideal, it is the soul's own action which can ever lead to its advancement and progress on the path. Hence the statement that it is its own preceptor !
नाज्ञो विज्ञत्वमायाति विज्ञो नाज्ञत्वमृच्छति ।
निमित्तमात्रमन्यस्तु, गतेधर्मास्तिकायवत् ॥३५।। Those not yet qualified for the acquisition of Truth cannot become the knowers of Truth; the knowers of Truth cannot become devoid of it; external Teachers are useful like Ether which is but helpful in the motion (of moving things)!
Note:-The charya here elucidates the nature of the teaching from an outside source. It is like ether which is helpful to the object in motion, but which does not push or move any one. Similarly an external Guide can help only the soul that has acquired a longing to proceed on the Path of Freedom; he cannot impart the impulse which is to initiate the proceeding !
अभवच्चित्तविक्षेप, एकांते तत्त्वसंस्थितः ।
अभ्यस्येदभियोगेन, योगी तत्त्वं निजात्मनः ॥३६।। He in whose mind no disturbances occur and who is established in the knowledge of the Self,-such an ascetic should engage himself diligently in the contemplation of his soul, in a lonely place.
Note:- The one-pointedness of the mind which is necessary for steady meditation is exceedingly difficult in a place where there is even a likelihood of disturbance. Hence, it is pointed out here that self-contemplation should be performed in a lonely place.

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[tiयथा यथा समायाति, संवित्तौ तत्त्वमुत्तमम् ।
तथा तथा न रोचंते, विषयाः सुलभा अपि ॥३७॥ As greater and greater progress is made in the realization of the glorious Self, so is lessened, more and more, the liking for even those objects of pleasure which may be obtained with ease.
Note: This slok a describes the effect of the progress in self enjoyment. It is destructive of the cravings of the lower nature. The Self is blissful by nature; he who begins to enjoy the divine thrill of spiritual bliss certainly cannot thereafter hanker for worldly pleasure, the craving for which decreases as the enjoyment of true happiness increases
यथा यथा न रोचंते विषयाः सुलभा अपि ।
तथा तथा समायाति संवित्तौ तत्त्वमुत्तमम् ॥३८।। As even those objects of pleasure which are easily obtainable become increasingly intolerable, in the same measure does the glorious self come into one's enjoyment !
Note:--The enjoyment of the natural inherent joy of life increases side by side with the sense of indifference for worldly pleasures. Thus the more there is of the enjoyment of the internal spiritual happiness, the less is the craving for the sense-produced pleasures; and, conversely, the greater the sense of indifference for worldiy attractions and joys, the greater the enjoyment of the real bliss appertaining to Life
निशामयति निःशेष/मद्रजालोपमं जगत् ।
स्पृहयत्यात्मलाभाय, गत्वान्यत्रानुतप्यते ।।३९।। The seeker of the self regards the whole world as a product of illusion, and is moved by the desire to attain to self-realization. If he ever becomes entangled in anything else he repents of it !
Note:Self-realization is possible only by completely turning the back on the temptations and snares of the world; hence, he who longs to attain to it must, regard the panorama of the world as transient, instable and fleeting, in other words, as the product of illusion. The wise man will thus never allow himself to be entangled in anything worldly. Born with all the weaknesses of the human nature, he is nevertheless subject to powerful cravings and impulsions, and may, under their influence, deviate from the proper path. The acharya says that the true characteristic of a wise man is that whenever he is entangled in any of the wordly pleasures, neglecting his proper dharma (duty), he will be repenting of his wrong action, even while doing it. For repentance implies confession which is half the amends.

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इष्टोपदेश इच्छत्येकांतसंवासं, निर्जनं जनितादरः ।
निजकार्यवशात्किचिदुक्त्वा विस्मरति द्रुतं ॥४०॥ The seeker after the Self longs for solitude, prefering dissociation with men; if he has to speak to men for a purpose of his own, he puts it out of his mind as soon as it is said ! Note :-Solitude is absolutely necessary for pure self-contemplation.
ब्रुवन्नपि हि न ब्रूते, गच्छन्नपि न गच्छति ।
स्थिरीकृतात्मतत्त्वस्तु, पश्यन्नपि न पश्यति ॥४१॥ He who has firmly established himself in the knowledge of the Self, such a one does not speak while speaking, does not move while moving and does not see while seeing !
Note:-When a man has put his faith firmly in the Self his actions cease to bind, that is to say, affect him. His activity in such a case ceases to be volitional and becomes automatic, as it were. Of such a being it is correct to say that speaking he does not speak, moving about he does not move about, and seeing he does not see.
किमिदं कीदृशं कस्य, कस्मात्क्वेत्यविशेष यन् ।
स्वदेहमपि नावैति, योगी योगपरायणः ॥४२।। The ascetic immersed in the process of self-realization has no awareness of even his body. being undisturbed by questions such as what is the soul? What is its nature? Who is its master ? From whom is it derived ? Where does it reside ? and the like.
Note :-In the culminating samadhi (the condition of entrancement of self-realization) thought is over-powered by the thrilling pulsation of the joyousness of self-feeling. Consequently, no question arises as to the nature, attributes, etc., of the soul-substance. The entire soul is then filled with the rapturous rhythm of a life that is at once illumined and blissful by its own light and the inherent ecstasy of delight. In that state there can, of course, be no engrossment of the conscious faculty with the idea of the physical personality or its basis and abode, the body of matter.
यो यत्र निवसन्नास्ते, स तत्र कुरुते रति ।
यो यत्र रमते तस्मादन्यत्र स न गच्छति ॥४३॥ He who abides in a place, becomes, attached to the place, he who takes a liking to a locality does not give it up to go elsewhere?
Note :-This is the general rule. When a person likes a place he sticks to it does not think of leaving it and of going to another place. Similary. the ascetic who loves the state of the samadhi of self-realization never

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entertains the idea of departing from it, it being full of delicious joy and ecstasy for him.
अगच्छंस्तद्विशेषाणामनभिज्ञश्च जायते ।
अज्ञाततद्विशेषस्तु, बध्यते न विमुच्यते ॥४४।। The ascetic, not stirring out of his Self and not attending to the particular natures of the not-self, does not become their enjoyer; by not enjoying the not-self he is not bound by karmas, but becomes released from them!
Note :-The law governing karma and transmigration is this that att achment and aversion for objects of the senses are the causes of bondage of the soul. They cause the influx of a kind of subtle invisible matter into the soul substance, and the fusion of the inflowing material with the soul is the form of the bondage of karma that is so harmful to the self. The soul not falling in the category of the objects of sense. its contemplation does not give rise to attachment and aversion; on the contrary, it is productive of a state of equanimity and indifference in the mind that is engaged in the enjoyment of the natural inborn joy of his own real self. Hence he is not afflicted with fresh karmic bondage while he is engaged in selfcontemplation. In addition, his existing karmic bonds also begin to break up on account of the prevailing state of equanimity; because what is attracted into the soul in consequence of an agitated state of the mind must begin to disperse and depart when a contrary state is established therein. The acharya, therefore, says that the samadhi of self-feeling has a two-fold merit : it is firstly, not productive of any additional mancipation for the soul, and, secondly, it is actually destructive of the existing bondage
परः परस्ततो दुःखमात्मैवात्मा ततः सुखं ।
अत एव महात्मानस्तन्निमित्तं कृतोद्यमाः ॥४५॥ The not-self are surely never the Self; only sorrow accrues to the soul from them: the Self ever remains the Self; it is, therefore, the cause of happiness; because of this, great personages have exerted themselves for the realization of the Self!
Note :--The distinction between sense-produced pleasure and the natural joy appertaining to the soul itself is again emphasized here by the acharya, for what shall a man profit if he gains the whole world but loses his own soul? The fact is, as the Jaïnacharyas have demonstrated, over and over again, that the soul is blissful by nature and comes into the enjoyment of surpassing, unsurpassed bliss by the simple practice of self-feeling. The pleasures of the world are false and illusory, as compared with the joyousness of life itself. They even fail and deceive one in the most critical moment.

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Moreover, nothing in the class of the not-self is lasting and unperishing, so that he who becomes attached to them has sooner or later to lament their loss.. Sometimes he himself has to part from the objects of pleasure, when the parting is all the more terrible. What good can. then, come of attachment to the objects in the world? Atman (the Self) alone is, thus, the fit object of attachment, and it rewards the devotee with life eternal and knowledge and joy unlimited!
अविद्वान्पुद् गलद्रव्यं योऽभिनंदति तस्य तत् ।
न जातु जंतोः सामीप्यं चतुर्गतिष मुंचति ॥४६॥ Matter which the undiscerning soul attaches itself to, him wherever he goes in the four gatis!
Note-Gatis signify the four principal types of embodied existence, in which souls are being constantly born and reborn in the course of their transmigration. These are the celestial, the hellish, the human and the subhuman or the lower kingdoms, the last of which includes all kinds of animals, plants and all other lower forms of life. All these are imposed on the soul because of the companionship of matter of which the not-self are chiefly composed. The law of the influx of matter has already been noticed a little earlier. It shows that the effect of the love of the not-self on the Self is its being over-powered by matter in the shape of the undesirable forces of karma that drag it from one gati to another or in the numerous classes and sub-classes of the same type. The acharya, therefore, discourses on the folly of the undiscerning who perpetuate their bondage by their own acts, not knowing the nature of the Law that keeps the soul tied to the ever revolving wheel of transmigration. He who allows himself to fall in love with matter-and all the not-self are perceived by us only in so far as they are matter-should know that the object he falls in love. with will not abide to console or grant solace to his heart for ever, but matter will cling to him, because of that act of love, all the more closely! Knowing this, the seeker after the glory of the Self will shun the pursuit of the objects of the world once the law is shown to him.
आत्मानुष्ठाननिष्ठस्य व्यवहारबहिः स्थितेः ।
जायते परमानंदः कश्चिद्योगेन योगिनः ||४७ ||
१९

He who is firmly established in his own Self and keeps away from the worldly intercourse, a supreme kind of happiness is produced in the being of such a yogi!
never leaves
Note Divine bliss is the nature of the soul which is realized the moment one is rid of all the sense of attachment to the world and is immersed in pure self-contemplation.

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आनंदो निर्दहत्युद्धं, करें धनमनारतं ।
a atat faua otit, afzg:wataa: 118011. Self produced happiness is constantly burning up the karmic fuel in large quantities, while the yogi, indifferent to the external pain, is not affected by it in the least !
Note :-The Master Ascetic is constantly absorbed in the enjoyment of the spiritual happiness pertaining to his soul, and is, therefore, not affected by bodily discomforts and pains to which he dose not even attend consciously.
अविद्याभिदुरं ज्योतिः, परं ज्ञानमयं महत् ।
तत्प्रष्टव्यं, तदेष्टव्यं, तद्रष्टव्यं मुमुक्षुभिः ॥४९।। That excellent and supreme light of the Self is the destroyer of ignorance, the seekers after salvation should always engage themselves in questioning others about it, in affectionately seeking it and in realizing it by actual experience!
Note :- The soul being the embodiment of knowledge is antithetical to ignorance. Hence the injunction to be constantly engaged in talking and thinking of it and in feeling it in every other possible way. It will not do to turn to the Self for a moment or two once a week or even every day; for the habit of the mind is that it runs always after what has engaged its attention the most of the time. The reason why novitiates in yoga find it difficult to concentrate their mind on the Self is to be found in the fact that their habitual thinking unconsciously directs the stream of thought into the accustomed channels of activity, and the slightest temptation, which they have never learnt to resist, suffices to steal away their determination.
जीवोऽन्यः पुद्गलश्चान्य, इत्यसौ तत्त्वसंग्रहः ।
यदन्यदुच्यते किंचित्सोऽस्तु तस्यैव विस्तरः ॥५०॥ The Self is different from matter, matter is different from the Self: this is the quintessence of all the compilations of wisdom; all the rest of knowledge is but an amplification of this !
Note :-Here the acharya sums up the result of the entire discourse and says that the one thing to know is the fact that the soul is not matter, nor matter the soul. This is the quintessence of philosophy, though it is necessary to explain it in detail for the benefit of the ignorant who entertain many doubts on the subject. Whoever has understood this one crucial point or fact thoroughly, so that no doubt is left in his mind concerning the nature and divinity of the soul, is the knower of truth who is

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इष्टोपदेश
sure soon to reap the benefit of his knowledge, and attain to the supreme status outside the painful dreary realm of transmigration and the kingdom of Death. For the soul being actually divine by nature, its divinity remains unrealized only just so long as it is ignorant of itself and devotes all its time to the pursuit of the non-self. Hence, when Self-knowledge has dispelled the thick mists of ignorance and set its natural energy of dispassion in opposition to the forces of karma the destruction of the latter becomes only a question of time, and is encompassed, generally, in the course of three or four incarnations, when it is loft, as the result of the process of selfrealization, as a pure Spirit, all-knowing, immortal and eternally blissful, a pure and real Divinity, second to none in the three worlds, and the object of devotion and worship on the part of devas (celestials) and men.
इष्टोपदेशमिति सम्यगधीत्य धीमान, मानापमानसमतां स्वमताद्वितन्य ॥
मुक्ताग्रहो विनिवसन्सजने वने वा मुक्तिश्रियं निरुपमामुपयाति भव्यः ॥५१॥ The wise bhavya* who has well understood the teaching of the “Ishtopadesha," and who maintains the serenity of the mind by the effort of his will when he is respected as well as when disrespect is shown to him, and who has freed himself from the attachment to the non-self, obtains the matchless treasure of moksha, whether he live in a city or in a jungle !
Note :-Faith in the glorious nature of the Self and the mental equanimity are the chief things necessary for the obtainment of release from the cycle of births and deaths (transmigration). The rule with faith is that it never fails to translate itself into action, sooner or later, since belief is the builder and noulder of character, and the controller of impulses. For this reason, even the greatest sinner need not despair, and if he will intelligently try to understand the teaching herein imparted and apply himself to put faith into it he will soon find himself travelling on the road to saintship Whether he walks towards it or travels in some more speedy way, will depend on the nature of the obstruction that might be offered by the karmas of his previous like. But even the worst of karmas begin to lose their power under the loosening influence of the Right Faith, and are speedily destroyed by the scorching fire of Right Knowledge. Mental equanimity is speedily reached in this manner, and the rest becomes easy by a constant meditation on the "Ishtopadesha'' which is the Discourse Divine as well as the name of the book in the reader's hand !
*The soul that is endowed with realizable potentiality for the attainment of salvation is termed bhavya, while the abhavya (a=not + bhavya) is the soul that is potentially divine like the bhavya, but with a portentiality that is not realizable into actuality.

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FOREWORD
Shri Pujyapada Swami the author of the “Ishtopadesha" (Dis course Divine) was a Jaina saint, of the Digambara sect, who flourished in the fourth century A.D. He composed several important works on the Jaina Philosophy and Religion of which the "Sarvartha Siddhi,' (an elaborate commentary on the Tattvartha Sutra, which may be termed the Jaina Bible),
Jainendra Vyakarana' the Samadhi Shataka" and the "Ishtopadesha" are the most famous. The last-named work was translated into Hindi from the original Sanskrit by Shri Dharma-Divakar, Dharma Bhushana Brahmachari Shital Prasadji in the year 1923. I have now translated it into English, at the suggestion of the respected Brahmachariji himself from his Hindi translation. The English translation has been personally revised by the Brahmachariji to whom I am indebted for the favour.
The “Ishtopadesha" is a charming composition in adhyatma-rasa, that signifies a sort of direct appeal to the experience of se!f-realization rather than a metaphysical study of the soul-nature through the intellectual faculty. I have no doubt that it will prove very serviceable in fixing the attention of the contemplative thought, and, read intelligently, will enable the thoughtful to burn up his karmas on the adhyatmic alter of the Glorious Divinity of the Inner Self.
C. R
Jain
Hardoi 17th May, 1925

Page #24

CONTENTS
24
25-36
25
25
29
I. Introduction Il. Versified Sermons 1. Obeisance 2. God and Self 3. Path of Peace and Piety 4. Philosophy of pain and pleasure 5. Ignorance the cause of all ills 6. Worldly life is a chain of pains 7. Wealth is no remedy for worldly ills 8. Concentrated thought is the only remedy
9. Self is the only thing worth realization 10. Path of self realization 11. Superiority of a devotee 12. The unreality of worldly life 13. The Path of victory 14. The unholy union 15. The divinity of self 16. Futility of worldly quest 17 The struggle of life 18. Appeal to self 19. Master's role in spiritual culture 20. In reality self is his own guide 21. The essential requisites of a devotee 22. Life features of a yogi 23 Yogi enjoys a free life 24. Self culture is the best culture 25. Summum bonum of life 26. Brief story of truth 27. Blessings

Page #25

Introduction
ISHTOPADESHA () (Happy sermons) is a didactic poem of 51 Stanzas in Sanskrit by Swami Pujyapada, a great saint of India, born in the Karnataka region in the 5th century A.D.* He was the preceptor of Durvinit, the then ruling King of the great Ganga dynasty of the Deccan. His real name was Devanandi but being held in high esteem by all, he was renowned as Pujyapada i,e. one whose feet are worth worshipping. For his lofty thinking, pure living and high order of asceticism as described in many inscriptions and Shastras of Karnataka, he was known as one who was untouched by earth, and whose ablution water of feet could change iron into gold.
Besides being a saint of high repute, he was a great scholar and thinker of his times. For his lucid style, precise expression and masterly exposition of the subject he has held a revered place amongst all Indian writers. His works on medicine, grammer, prosody and Jain philosophy, have always been regarded as works of standard value by all the subsequent scholars of India.
Amongst these works his Sarvarth Siddhi (affaf), a commentary on Tattvarth Sutra (d)-a compendium of Jain Metaphysics and cosmology written by Uma Swami of the first century A.D. in aphorisms-is a work of rare value, being a key to this vast treasure of knowledge. Jainendra Vyakarana (g) is an equally important work on grammer written by him.
Samadhi Shatak (wrfu) ("Equanimity") in 100 stanzas is an-other didactic poem composed by him. It is a work of about double the size of Ishtopadesha and is an outcome of his deep thinking and realisation of truth. This work undoubtedly possesses a rare spiritual charm. It provides a consolation to an afflicted mind, and an inspiring vision of the divine life to seeker after truth.
To advance, the cultural relationship between the East and the West-a dire need of our times, I have for the present selected Ishtopadesha-"Happy Sermons." as the first offering for being presented to the western peoples in a western garb.
In order that readers who take liking to these sermons, may remember them by heart, the translation has been done in a versified form; stanza, for stanza, but where the literal and formal translation of a stanza was unintelligible to convey the full substance of the pithy sayings and abstruse ideas condensed in it, a free and liberal style has been applied to expand it into several stanzas. Though taking this freedom with the style, the matter has been arranged in the same order as has been adopted by the original author. Every stanza of the original poem, whether rendered singly or in an expanded form has been numbered in its serial order on the left hand side, while the verses of this expanded composition have been numbered on the right hand side of the margin. Headings have been newly inserted to show the themes of the succeeding verses.
As to how far I have been able to fill up these verses with spirit which the saint wishes to convey through these sermons, is to be judged by the fancy, bestowed by western readers on this composition. In case it bears good fruits I shall try to offer Samadhi Shatak also in its versified form as a next contribution to the noble cause of strengthening the cultural relations between the East and the West.
The original text of the poem in Sanskrit has also been printed in this publication so the lovers of oriental studies have a facility of consulting it, and enjoying the original work of the master poet.
}
Panipat, Mahavir Jayanti 1954
*B. Lewis Rice-Journal of Royal Asiatic Society-1800, p. 245 ff.

Jai Bhagwan Jain
Advocate.

Page #26

1.
Happy Sermons Mr. Jai Bhagwan Jain, B.A. LL. B.
Obeisance I bow to the all knowing Lord, By total extinction of all flaws, Who shone forth into purest glow, And paved for all, salvation path. 1
God and Self God is self and self is God, Both are one like ore and Gold The difference lies in their modes, The pure is one, the other impure. 2 As ore transforms into gold, When released from foreign things, So self does evolve into God, When released from matter's strings. 3 Self is gripped by foreign matter, When tinged with egotistic trends, And gets relieved from its meshes, When filled with vision of cosmic rhythm. 4 To fill the self with cosmic rhythm, It needs a change of inner heart, Such as to shine coal in jewel, It needs a change in atomic form. 5 With broader outlook of the life, Greater and greater grows the soul, When all is compassed by the self It one and one becomes with God. 6
Path of Peace and Piety. It becomes a traveller in the summer, When treading towards the sweet home To follow a safe straightened path, Covered by cool shade of groves. 7 Similar in the walks of life, Moving towards the goal of truth, It behoves a man to firmly stick, To path of peace and good conduct. 8
3.

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PE
इष्टोपदेश
[9-17
4.
5.
The path of peace is double good, It comforts here and onwards. Through lovely vistas of heavens, Leads to the goal of eternal bliss. 9 While the unruly ways of life, Denying equal rights to all, Are ever a menace to this life, And onwards lead to hellish broil. 10 It does not matter for a man, To carry weight to half a mile, Who's fit, strong and ever used, To carry weight to many miles. 11 So far a path of peace and good, Which leads to goal of eternal bliss, It is not hard to reach a heaven A half way house on the trip 12 Heaven, place of songful plays, Free from worldly foes and fears, Is not the abiding goal of life, But halting place in march of life. 13
Philosophy of Pain and Pleasure Pleasures, pains of earthly beings, Are mere self's imagery things, They exist no-where but in mind, Engendered by fantastic whims. 14 No outer things are good or bad, They so become by likes dislikes, A food for one is not for all, It is a well-known fact of life. 15 So all the mates of worldly play, Which look delightful and so gay, Become how hideous, out of tune, When one is filled with grief and gloom. 16 Ignorance, the Cause of all Iis Being all engrossed in ignorance, Like drunkards under cover of drugs, Worldly beings have lost their sense, Of looking things in true colours. 17
6.
7.

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18-26]

8.
9.
10.
11
12.
Happy Sermons
It is all due to ignorance. That things all distinct and aloof, Like spouse, children, body, wealth, Are all viewed as parts of self. self. 18 If seen with clear crystal vision, Free whims of likes, dislikes, No more related to us they are, Than forest trees are to birds. 19. They flying come from distant lands, Settle on trees for the night, And take to wings for quarters new, When morning comes with feast of light. 20
14
As digger lowers the spade from high, The digger too is lowered by spade, Who lowers others by aggression, Is surely lowered by the same. 21 This Law of action and reaction. Though patent in the realm of life, But strange it is they fly in passion. When paid are in their own coin. 22 For false whims of likes, dislikes, Born of the egotistic trends, Self is dipped from eternal time, In deep waters of births and deaths. 23 Worldly Life is a Chain of Pains. The worldly life is set on frame, Ever on move like waterwheel, Full of turns of ills and pains, With little rest from cares and needs 24
Wealth is no remedy for worldly ills. 13. Wealth hard to earn, and retain, Unstable most, and most unsafe. One is never safe and sound with it, As fever patient with use of ghee. 25 A rich man like the common folk, Infested though with diverse woes, Yet being filled with self conceit, He thinks himself immortal being. 26

२७

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इष्टोपदेश
27-35
Like fools taking perch on the tree, In the midst of forest fire, He does not look to roaring flames, Engulfing him like other beings.
27
15.
16.
17.
8.
With passage of the fleeting time, Near and near man draws to end, But how strong is the lust of pelf, He looks to wealth and not to end. 28 A poor man wanting heaps of wealth, To give them off in public alms, Is like a fool who puts on mud, To wash it off with holy bath. 29 The lustful pleasures of the world, No sure-hand-maids of the wealth, They while departing leave behind, Grief and sorrow for the mind. 30 Nor body is the end of life, It is too frail and short in time One need not for its sustenance, Use vile means to heap up wealth. 31 Made of bones and loathsome flesh, Offensive filth and nasty germs, It is too hideous and impure, To turn sacred with wealthy hoard. 32 What doth add to vigour of flesh, Doth verily sap the vigour of soul. And what doth add to wealth of soul, Doth verily end the needs of flesh. 33 As wealth increases greeds of flesh, It verily saps the life of self, Of what use is the gain of wealth, Which makes you lose divine self. 34
19.
Concentrated Thought is the only remedy 20. Everything can be had in life,
By force of concentrated thought, Both the precious and the worthless, Philosopher's gem, or piece of stone. 35

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36-44]

Happy Sermons
It is to be settled by the wise, Which of the two is worth attempt, The divine self of eternal bliss, Or mortal life of filth and ills. Self is the only Thing Worth Realization The self enframed by body though, Is embodiment of the perfect light, Shining all, beyond and near, Visible, pure and crystal, clear. 37 Excellent bliss, the sublime peace, Free from time, unbound by space, Infinite, nearest, beyond the beyond, Undying, eternal, ever living. 38 The final truth, the perfect whole, The end of ends, the goal of goals, The aim, the light and the way, It is the thing to get realised. 39
21.
22.
23.
36
Path of Self Realization
To know, realise the boundless soul, Let outward senses be controlled, Give urges their an inner trend, To seek with in the joyful ends. Achieve all this with firm resolve, Of mind kept in a balanced polse, Then drawing yourself within the self, Meditate on self in steady pose. 41 The senses and their objects are, Made of dull, rash, callous matter, Whoever follows their foot prints, Is sure to fall in painful pits. 42 But if the voice of enlightened self, Is heard. grasped and put to work, One makes a gain of spiritual power, And enjoys the fruits of peace and joy. 43 Whatever is inherent a seed, Is sure to grow up in the field, So ignorance gropes in darker zones, And light leads to cherished home. 44

40
२९

Page #31

इष्टोपदेश
[45-52
24.
25.
Superiority of a Devotee A devotee of enlightened self, Conquers all the pains of flesh, He lets not in the vicious trends, And uproots what are seated deep. 45 When subject object are distinct Separation surely severs their link, It does not touch devotee's lot, He is both the seeker and the sought. 46 While one who clings to earthly things, And claims the same as his own, He mourns and groans with sorrow's pangs, Deserted when he is left alone. 47
The Unreality of Worldly Life. Self is self and matter is inatter, The twain can never meet in one, Their union rests on ego's whims, Baseless, flinsy and unreal. 48 When one is free from ego's whims, Free he is from matter too, So one should make his best efforts To free himself from ego's rule. 49
26.
27.
The Path of Victory In all hours of day and night, Sitting, walking or sleeping, To conquer the evil of egotism, Think. meditate and ever feel. 50 "Bereft of all the physical ties, I am one, alone, and free, Untinged by passions and emotions, Peace and purity reign in me.' 51 "A seer, a master seer of things, I stand above, a loof from seen, Unbound by egotistic whims, I compass all of them in peace". 52 “All the things of the outer world, Inherited and acquired by us,

Page #32

53-61]
Happy Sermons
28.
29.
Are wholly separate and others, There is no love lost between us” 53
The Unholy Union Union of self with physical things, Is perennial source of pains and ills, With all thy force of thought, word, deed, Give up thy greed for outer things. 54
The Divinity of Self To arise above the earthly woes, Should never lose the sight of soul, O! feel and feel the warm delight; In divine dignity of the soul. 55 I am not the death, nor disease, Neither young, adult, nor old, All these things belong to flesh, Nothing is there to fear and mourn. 56 I am, I was; shall ever be, This is the basic truth of life, In all the quests of the charmful bliss, I am the architect of plights. 57 “Powerful with my aspirations, Resourceful with imaginations, Blissful with glorious hopes, I tread my way through thick and thin.” 58
Futility of Worldly Quest “Enchanted by the charms of dust, Again and again I turned to it,
Filled, refilled in all its forms, Put all its poses and its tints." 59 “Moved up and down in varied ways, In various climes, in various places, Lived in heaven, hellish zones, But none gave the cherished goal.” 60 “Ages have past and eras rolled, Still no rest from outer quests, Now let me turn to inner self, For tried old things, no use of quest. 61
30.

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इष्टोपदेश
[62-70
The Struggle of life 31 The great struggle of worldly life,
Against pain, wants and ignorance, Is struggle against the physical bonds, Forged by foolish whims of self. 62 Self and matter both are real, But differ in roles of cosmic plan, The one is subject object other, To cast in forms the inner dreams. 63 The self is whole of space and time. Of charms, of beauty, joy and light, While matter is dark, dull, decaying, Ever on move for new combines. 64 Though highest charming truth is self, But self through his ignorance, Entangled in the outer meshes, Confuses matter with his self. 65 Thus there sets a servant's rule, Matter assumes the master's role, But self being the motive force, It ever asserts the will of soul. 66 As both belong to distinct realms, They ever differ in their trends, The self is astir for the whole, The matter tends to dingy cells. 67 Life is thus an eternal struggle, To evolve freedom from the bonds, Life from death, the light from dark, Purge from vice, peace from woes. 68
Appeal to Self 32. O Self ! awake, how long will thou,
Serve dictates of alien rule, And feel proud with names and forms, Like a fool who works as tool. 69 Delay not throw the foreign yoke, And busy thyself with own welfare, Rule thyself with thy own self, For self rule is the best for self. 70

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71-781
Happy Sermons
33.
Master's Role in Spiritual Culture The eternal bliss reveals on him, Who discerns self from motley heap, To equip thee with discerning sense, Practise to sit at master's feet. 71 Master is great beacon light, Showing the various paths of life, But helping only those ship-wrecked, Who themselves feel inclined to right. 72
Self is his Own Guide.
34. Self alone has urge for truth,
Animated with his lovely visions, And makes quests in diverse fields,
Propelled by his own missions. 35. As ether in the realm of matter,
Helps only those prone to move, So all the teachers and scriptures, Only help right-minded souls. 74 They neither bestow any wisdom, On perverse, niggards, and fools,
ey extract any knowledge, From the high enlightened souls. 75 Self alone is foe and friend, He has all the keys of betterment, So one should look to one's own self, For all his failures and success. 76
The Essential Requisites of a devotee 36. Who has a calm and content mind.
Who loves to live a lonely life, Is eager most for lasting truth, Is devotee best of life divine. 77
Life Features of a Yogi The more he reveals the truth of life,
The higher he soars from lustful world. 38. The higher he soars from lustful world.
The more he reveals the truth of life. 78

Page #35

38
इष्टोपदेश
[79-86
39.
40.
41.
Enriched with his spiritual sight, He looks on world as game of tricks, He ever yearns for glorious self, And feels annoyed with earthly things. 79 He loves to live in lonely place, Away from mart, away from fame, Speaks some times for personal need, Yet soon forgets of what he speaks, 80 He is fast fixed within his self, Talking though, he does not talk, Looking though, he does not look, Walking though he does not walk. 81 In ecstasy, self centered he, The world of senses does not heed, Self alone in cosmic rhythm, Shines to him as holy film. 82
Yogi Enjoys a free Life
42.
43. Where settles one with love and ease,
There he yearns to live in peace, And where one gets his heart's content. He makes that place as permanent. 83
44. So devotee is often lost in self,
Charmed with inner bliss and glow, He shuns the false, and loves the truth, He lives within, discards the show. 84 He is ever filled with self content, His mind does not rnam abroad, His senses too get drawn within, He is not aware of outer things. 85 When no sensations come within, Desires cease to drag abroad, Mind filled with charms divine, He gets free from worldly bonds. 86
Self Culture is the best Culture 15. Alien, after allan alien,
Is ever a source of ills and pains,

Page #36

87-95]

46.
Happy Sermons
Self, being after all one's one's self, Is ever a source of joy and gain. Sages are ever on their guard, Not to yield to alien matter, They rather use its energies, To get relief of physical needs. 88
The fools who ever take ever take delight, In claiming matter as their self, Are ever, dragged as prisoners war, Through endless gates of of births and deaths. 89 47. The ascetics with a content mind, Take their boats off noisy coast, And anchoring them in peaceful self, Are filled with an immortal joy. 90 The fruits of actions piled within, In forms of varled trends, instincts, From long, long immemorial times, Drive the self to sins and crimes, 91
48.
87
But ascetics of the serene mind, Are not touched by the instincts piled. They turn them into heap of ashes, By flash flash of concentrated light. 92
Summum Bonum of Life
49. The glorious lustre, free from bonds, With perfect beauty, peace and joy, Permeating all, compassing all, Forms the essence of divine soul. 93 This is the thing to be seen and asked This is the thing to be ever yearned There is nothing greater, more sublime, This is the highest truth of life.

94
Brief Story of Truth
50. Self is self, and matter is matter, The twain can never meet in one, Their visible union is unreal, A work of foolish whims of self. 95
३५

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इष्टोपदेश
[96-100
Egotism is the greatest devil, Which robs divinity of the self, Confines its vast glorious heights, Into dark nasty physical cells. 96 To curb the sin of egotism, Life should be made to ever grow, From low to high, from dark to light, From self-conceit to love of all. 97 This is in brief the story of truth, Conveyed to us by sages of yore, So let us take this truth to heart, And make our lives free and vast 98
Blessings 51. Living at home, or in woods,
Who pays his heed to these sermons, And with the help of knowledge gained, Under all events keeps the same. 99 Mindless of honour and disgrace, Follows the path of love and grace, Is sure one day to attain the goal, Of perfect and beauteous soul. 100

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Printing : Rajiv Printers, C-1/308, GIDC, Vithal Udyognagar 388 121, Gujarat.