वैराग्यशतकम् - विषयत्यागः - 18

अजानन् दाहात्म्यं पततु शलभस्तीव्रदहने
स मीनोऽप्यज्ञानाद्बडिशयुतमश्नुते पिशितम्।
विजानन्तोऽप्येते वयमिह विपज्जालजटिला-
न्न मुञ्चामः कामान् अहह गहनो मोहमहिमा॥18॥

ajānan dāhātmyaṁ patatu śalabhaḥ tīvradahane
sa mīno'pi-ajñānād-baḍiśa-yutam aśnute piśitam|
vijānanto'pi-ete vayamiha vipaj-jāla-jaṭilān-
na muñcāmaḥ kāmān ahaha gahano mohamahimā||18||

अजानन् - not knowing
दाहात्म्यं - its burning power
शलभः - firefly
पततु - may fall
तीव्रदहने - in the intense fire
अज्ञानात् - out of ignorance
स मीनोऽपि - the fish too
अश्नातु - may eat
पिशितं बडिशयुतम् - the fleshy bait
विजानन्तः अपि - even when we know
वयमिह - we
न मुञ्चामः - do not forsake
कामान् - desires
विपत्-जाल-जटिलान् - complicated with dangers
मोहमहिमा - power of delusion
अहह - alas!
गहनः - is inscrutable

We can excuse simple beings like fireflies and fish because it is out of ignorance that they keep falling prey. Can there be any excuse given for us human beings who are quite intelligent and have a pretty good understanding of how desires can trap us into a vicious circle of birth and rebirth? Yet, if we keep falling repeatedly into the clutches of these dangerous desires, then it shows how powerful and enigmatic delusion can be.

4 comments:

ambarish said...

नमस्ते,

प्रायः पदान्वयः "विपज्जालजटिलात्" न तु "विपज्जालजटिलान्" स्यात् । "मुचॢ" धातोः प्रयोगे अपादानसंज्ञा एव विहिता इति मे भाति ।

Visalakshi said...

"बन्धात् मोचते" इत्यत्र अपदानसंज्ञा भवेत्। When used in the sense of release or set free, the object of बन्ध will be अपादानसंज्ञा. If the sense used is leave, abandon or quit then the object of त्याग is the most desired object by the action मुच् hence it takes the कर्मसंज्ञा. The word "विपज्जालजटिलान्" is an adjective of "कामान्".

ambarish said...

समाधानाय धन्यवादाः वक्तव्याः ।

karunakaran said...

nice yar