Vishnu Purana — Amsha 2 — Chapter 14
ViP 2 14.1
निशम्य तस्येति वचः परमार्थसमन्वितम् प्रश्रयावनतो भूत्वा तम् आह नृपतिर् द्विजम् ॥
niśamya tasyeti vacaḥ paramārthasamanvitam praśrayāvanato bhūtvā tam āha nṛpatir dvijam //
Having heard that speech of his, imbued with the highest truth, the king, bowed down in reverence, said to the brahmin:
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.2
भगवन् यत् त्वया प्रोक्तं परमार्थमयं वचः श्रुते तस्मिन् भ्रमन्तीव मनसो मम वृत्तयः ॥
bhagavan yat tvayā proktaṃ paramārthamayaṃ vacaḥ śrute tasmin bhramantīva manaso mama vṛttayaḥ //
"Holy one, at hearing that speech which you spoke, full of the highest truth, the workings of my mind seem to reel.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.3
एतद् विवेकविज्ञानं यद् अशेषेषु जन्तुषु भवता दर्शितं विप्र तत् परं प्रकृतेर् महत् ॥
etad vivekavijñānaṃ yad aśeṣeṣu jantuṣu bhavatā darśitaṃ vipra tat paraṃ prakṛter mahat //
This discriminative knowledge which has been shown by you (as present) in all creatures without exception — that, O brahmin, is the Great One, beyond primal matter (prakṛti).
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.4
नाहं वहामि शिबिकां शिबिका न मयि स्थिता शरीरम् अन्यद् अस्मत्तो येनेयं शिबिका धृता ॥
nāhaṃ vahāmi śibikāṃ śibikā na mayi sthitā śarīram anyad asmatto yeneyaṃ śibikā dhṛtā //
'I do not carry the palanquin; the palanquin does not rest on me; the body by which this palanquin is borne is other than us' —
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.5
गुणप्रवृत्त्या भूतानां प्रवृत्तिः कर्मचोदिता प्रवर्तन्ते गुणाश् चैते किं ममेति त्वयोदितम् ॥
guṇapravṛttyā bhūtānāṃ pravṛttiḥ karmacoditā pravartante guṇāś caite kiṃ mameti tvayoditam //
'by the activity of the guṇas the activity of beings, impelled by past acts, (arises); and these guṇas are what act — what has that to do with me?' — thus was it said by you.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.6
एतस्मिन् परमार्थज्ञ मम श्रोत्रपथं गते मनो विह्वलताम् एति परमार्थार्थितां गतम् ॥
etasmin paramārthajña mama śrotrapathaṃ gate mano vihvalatām eti paramārthārthitāṃ gatam //
When this, O knower of the highest truth, has come within range of my hearing, my mind, having become a seeker of the highest truth, falls into agitation.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.7
पूर्वम् एव महाभागं कपिलर्षिम् अहं द्विज प्रष्टुम् अभ्युद्यतो गत्वा श्रेयः किं न्व् इत्य् असंशयम् ॥
pūrvam eva mahābhāgaṃ kapilarṣim ahaṃ dvija praṣṭum abhyudyato gatvā śreyaḥ kiṃ nv ity asaṃśayam //
Already before this, O brahmin, I had set out to go and ask the greatly blessed sage Kapila, 'What indeed is the highest good?' — of this there is no doubt.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.8
तदन्तरे च भवता यद् इदं वाक्यम् ईरितम् तेनैव परमार्थार्थं त्वयि चेतः प्रधावति ॥
tadantare ca bhavatā yad idaṃ vākyam īritam tenaiva paramārthārthaṃ tvayi cetaḥ pradhāvati //
And in the meantime, because of this utterance that has been spoken by you, my thought runs toward you for the sake of the highest truth.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.9
कपिलर्षिर् भगवतः सर्वभूतस्य वै किल विष्णोर् अंशो जगन्मोहनाशायोर्वीम् उपागतः ॥
kapilarṣir bhagavataḥ sarvabhūtasya vai kila viṣṇor aṃśo jaganmohanāśāyorvīm upāgataḥ //
The sage Kapila is, they say, a portion of the Lord Viṣṇu who is all beings, come to earth for the destruction of the world's delusion.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.10
स एव भगवान् नूनम् अस्माकं हितकाम्यया प्रत्यक्षताम् अत्र गतो यथैतद् भवतोच्यते ॥
sa eva bhagavān nūnam asmākaṃ hitakāmyayā pratyakṣatām atra gato yathaitad bhavatocyate //
Surely that same Lord, out of a wish for our welfare, has here become visible (to us), as (is shown) by what you are saying.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.11
तन् मह्यं प्रणताय त्वं यच् छ्रेयः परमं द्विज तद् वदाखिलविज्ञानजलवीच्युदधिर् भवान् ॥
tan mahyaṃ praṇatāya tvaṃ yac chreyaḥ paramaṃ dvija tad vadākhilavijñānajalavīcyudadhir bhavān //
Therefore tell me, who bow before you, what the supreme good is, O brahmin; you are an ocean whose waves of water are knowledge of everything.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.12
भूप पृच्छसि किं श्रेयः परमार्थं नु पृच्छसि श्रेयांस्य् अपरमार्थानि अशेषाण्य् एव भूपते ॥
bhūpa pṛcchasi kiṃ śreyaḥ paramārthaṃ nu pṛcchasi śreyāṃsy aparamārthāni aśeṣāṇy eva bhūpate //
O king, do you ask what the good is, or do you ask about the highest truth? Goods, O lord of the earth, are one and all not the highest truth.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.13
देवताराधनं कृत्वा धनसंपदम् इच्छति पुत्रान् इच्छति राज्यं च श्रेयस् तत्प्राप्तिलक्षणम् ॥
devatārādhanaṃ kṛtvā dhanasaṃpadam icchati putrān icchati rājyaṃ ca śreyas tatprāptilakṣaṇam //
Having performed worship of the gods, one wishes for abundance of wealth, one wishes for sons and for a kingdom: (that is) a good characterized by the obtaining of these.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.14
कर्म यज्ञात्मकं श्रेयः स्वर्लोकफलदायि यत् श्रेयः प्रधानं च फले तद् एवानभिसंहिते ॥
karma yajñātmakaṃ śreyaḥ svarlokaphaladāyi yat śreyaḥ pradhānaṃ ca phale tad evānabhisaṃhite //
Sacrificial action is a good, since it yields the fruit of the heavenly world; and that same (action), when no fruit is intended, is the foremost good.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.15
आत्मा ध्येयः सदा भूप योगयुक्तैस् तथा परम् श्रेयस् तस्यैव संयोगः श्रेयो यः परमात्मनः ॥
ātmā dhyeyaḥ sadā bhūpa yogayuktais tathā param śreyas tasyaiva saṃyogaḥ śreyo yaḥ paramātmanaḥ //
The self is always to be meditated on, O king, by those joined in yoga; and the highest good is union with that very supreme Self.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.16
श्रेयांस्य् एवम् अनेकानि शतशो ऽथ सहस्रशः सन्त्य् अत्र परमार्थास् तु न त्व् एते श्रूयतां च मे ॥
śreyāṃsy evam anekāni śataśo 'tha sahasraśaḥ santy atra paramārthās tu na tv ete śrūyatāṃ ca me //
Thus there are many goods here, by hundreds and by thousands; but these are not the highest truths — and let (this) be heard from me.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.17
धर्माय त्यज्यते किं तु परमार्थो धनं यदि व्ययश् च क्रियते कस्मात् कामप्राप्त्युपलक्षणः ॥
dharmāya tyajyate kiṃ tu paramārtho dhanaṃ yadi vyayaś ca kriyate kasmāt kāmaprāptyupalakṣaṇaḥ //
But if wealth is the highest truth, why is it given up for the sake of dharma, and why is it spent as a means marked by the obtaining of desires?
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.18
पुत्रश् चेत् परमार्थाख्यः सो ऽप्य् अन्यस्य नरेश्वर परमार्थभूतः सो ऽन्यस्य परमार्थो हि तत्पिता ॥
putraś cet paramārthākhyaḥ so 'py anyasya nareśvara paramārthabhūtaḥ so 'nyasya paramārtho hi tatpitā //
If a son is called the highest truth, O lord of men, he too is the highest truth for another; for his father is the highest truth of another.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.19
एवं न परमार्थो ऽस्ति जगत्य् अस्मिंश् चराचरे परमार्थो हि कार्याणि कारणानाम् अशेषतः ॥
evaṃ na paramārtho 'sti jagaty asmiṃś carācare paramārtho hi kāryāṇi kāraṇānām aśeṣataḥ //
Thus there is no highest truth in this world of moving and unmoving things; for effects are, without exception, the highest goal of their causes.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition — the model flagged this verse as uncertain
ViP 2 14.20
राज्यादिप्राप्तिर् अत्रोक्ता परमार्थतया यदि परमार्था भवन्त्य् अत्र न भवन्ति च वै ततः ॥
rājyādiprāptir atroktā paramārthatayā yadi paramārthā bhavanty atra na bhavanti ca vai tataḥ //
If the obtaining of a kingdom and the like is here declared to be the highest truth, then they are highest truths here — and yet they are not.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.21
ऋग्यजुःसामनिष्पाद्यं यज्ञकर्म मतं तव परमार्थभूतं तत्रापि श्रूयतां गदतो मम ॥
ṛgyajuḥsāmaniṣpādyaṃ yajñakarma mataṃ tava paramārthabhūtaṃ tatrāpi śrūyatāṃ gadato mama //
You hold that sacrificial action, to be accomplished by Ṛc, Yajus and Sāman, is the highest truth; on that too, listen to me as I speak.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.22
यत् तु निष्पाद्यते कार्यं मृदा कारणभूतया तत् कारणानुगमनाज् ज्ञायते नृप मृण्मयम् ॥
yat tu niṣpādyate kāryaṃ mṛdā kāraṇabhūtayā tat kāraṇānugamanāj jñāyate nṛpa mṛṇmayam //
But the effect that is produced out of clay as its material cause — that, from its conformity with its cause, is known, O king, to be made of clay.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.23
एवं विनाशिभिर् द्रव्यैः समिदाज्यकुशादिभिः निष्पाद्यते क्रिया या तु सा भवित्री विनाशिनी ॥
evaṃ vināśibhir dravyaiḥ samidājyakuśādibhiḥ niṣpādyate kriyā yā tu sā bhavitrī vināśinī //
Just so, whatever rite is performed with perishable materials — kindling, ghee, kuśa grass and the rest — that rite is bound to be perishable.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.24
अनाशी परमार्थश् च प्राज्ञैर् अभ्युपगम्यते तत् तु नाशि न संदेहो नाशिद्रव्योपपादितम् ॥
anāśī paramārthaś ca prājñair abhyupagamyate tat tu nāśi na saṃdeho nāśidravyopapāditam //
And the supreme reality is accepted by the wise to be imperishable; but that (rite), brought about by perishable materials, is perishable — there is no doubt of it.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.25
तद् एवाफलदं कर्म परमार्थो मतस् तव मुक्तिसाधनभूतत्वात् परमार्थो न साधनम् ॥
tad evāphaladaṃ karma paramārtho matas tava muktisādhanabhūtatvāt paramārtho na sādhanam //
That very fruitless action is held by you to be the supreme reality; (but) since it serves as a means to liberation, the supreme reality is not a means.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.26
ध्यानं चैवात्मनो भूप परमार्थार्थशब्दितम् भेदकारि परेभ्यस् तत् परमार्थो न भेदवान् ॥
dhyānaṃ caivātmano bhūpa paramārthārthaśabditam bhedakāri parebhyas tat paramārtho na bhedavān //
And meditation on the self, O king, which is spoken of as having the supreme reality for its object, makes a difference from others; (but) the supreme reality has no difference.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.27
परमात्मात्मनोर् योगः परमार्थ इतीष्यते मिथ्यैतद् अन्यद्रव्यं हि नैति तद्द्रव्यतां यतः ॥
paramātmātmanor yogaḥ paramārtha itīṣyate mithyaitad anyadravyaṃ hi naiti taddravyatāṃ yataḥ //
The union of the supreme Self and the (individual) self is held to be the supreme reality; this is false, since one substance does not attain the substantiality of another.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.28
तस्माच् छ्रेयांस्य् अशेषाणि नृपैतानि न संशयः परमार्थस् तु भूपाल संक्षेपाच् छ्रूयतां मम ॥
tasmāc chreyāṃsy aśeṣāṇi nṛpaitāni na saṃśayaḥ paramārthas tu bhūpāla saṃkṣepāc chrūyatāṃ mama //
Therefore all these are (merely) goods, O king — of that there is no doubt; but hear from me in brief, O ruler of the earth, what the supreme reality is.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.29
एको व्यापी समः शुद्धो निर्गुणः प्रकृतेः परः जन्मवृद्ध्यादिरहित आत्मा सर्वगतो ऽव्ययः ॥
eko vyāpī samaḥ śuddho nirguṇaḥ prakṛteḥ paraḥ janmavṛddhyādirahita ātmā sarvagato 'vyayaḥ //
One, pervading, uniform, pure, without qualities, beyond primal matter, free from birth, growth and the rest, the Self is all-pervading and unchanging.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.30
परज्ञानमयो ऽसद्भिर् नामजात्यादिभिर् विभुः न योगवान् न युक्तो ऽभून् नैव पार्थिव योक्ष्यति ॥
parajñānamayo 'sadbhir nāmajātyādibhir vibhuḥ na yogavān na yukto 'bhūn naiva pārthiva yokṣyati //
Made of supreme knowledge, the all-pervading one is not possessed of union through unreal names, classes and the like; he never has been united, nor will he be united, O king.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.31
तस्यात्मपरदेहेषु सतो ऽप्य् एकमयं हि यत् विज्ञानं परमार्थो ऽसौ द्वैतिनो ऽतत्त्वदर्शिनः ॥
tasyātmaparadeheṣu sato 'py ekamayaṃ hi yat vijñānaṃ paramārtho 'sau dvaitino 'tattvadarśinaḥ //
That cognition of his which is of one single nature, although he exists in one's own body and in the bodies of others — that is the supreme reality; the dualist does not see the truth.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.32
वेणुरन्ध्रविभेदेन भेदः षड्जादिसंज्ञितः अभेदव्यापिनो वायोस् तथा तस्य महात्मनः ॥
veṇurandhravibhedena bhedaḥ ṣaḍjādisaṃjñitaḥ abhedavyāpino vāyos tathā tasya mahātmanaḥ //
As, by the difference of the holes of a flute, difference named ṣaḍja and the other notes arises in the air that pervades without difference, so too with that great Self:
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition
ViP 2 14.33
एकत्वं रूपभेदश् च बाह्यकर्मप्रवृत्तिजः देवादिभेदे ऽपध्वस्ते नास्त्य् एवावरणो हि सः ॥
ekatvaṃ rūpabhedaś ca bāhyakarmapravṛttijaḥ devādibhede 'padhvaste nāsty evāvaraṇo hi saḥ //
(so too is his) oneness, while difference of form arises from the activity of external actions; when the difference of gods and the rest is dispelled, he has no covering at all.
AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition — the model flagged this verse as uncertain