Chapter: 9, Sub-Chapter: 4

Narration on Knowledge

|| ShriRam ||

1. The listener asks, "On this earth there are all types of people. Some are prosperous,

some are poor, some are clean and some are dirty. Why is this so?

2. There are many who enjoy royalty, and many who suffer from poverty. There are

many who are in the best positions, and many that are in poor, pitiable positions.

3. For what reason has this happened? Please explain this to me." Now the answer to

this will be told to the listeners.

4. All of this happens according to our qualities. Those with good qualities, enjoy

good fortune, while those with negative qualities experience poverty. There is no

doubt about this.

5. One who masters the profession that he enters into is called a good worker by the

people.

6. One who knows a profession does his work well, while the one who does not

know any profession does nothing. The one who knows a profession can earn

money to satisfy his hunger, and the one who does not know anything begs for his

food.

7. This is quite evident and can be clearly seen among the people. One without any

education or knowledge lives an unfortunate life, while one with knowledge is

fortunate.

8. If one does not acquire any education along some line of knowledge, then one will

have to go around begging to get their meals. Elders everywhere speak of this basic

wisdom.

9. Many times it is seen that an elderly person becomes unfortunate because of a lack

of education, and a younger person becomes powerful because he is more educated

and knowledgeable.

10. One who has no knowledge, no intellect, and no discrimination, who does no hard

work, has no skill, and no occupation becomes destitute.

11. Where all of these qualities are present, prosperity is not lacking there, and even if

the prosperity is dropped, it comes again quite easily.

12. Sometimes it is seen that the father is powerful but the son is a pauper. This

happens because the son does not pursue any occupation like the father has done.

13. According to the knowledge one has, their ambition is along the same lines.

According to the occupation one is in, the prosperity is likewise. People do the

activities that are appropriate to their capacity.

14. Where there is no knowledge and no prosperity how can there be cleanliness?

Being unfortunate, a man appears unpleasant and destitute.

15. Even powerful people show kindness and appreciation towards animals and birds

that have good qualities. However, if a living being is without any good qualities,

their life is basically useless.

16. When a person has no good qualities he is not respected, if he has no power, he is

given no importance, and if he has no skillful capacity, he is not able to make good

decisions.

17. For these reasons, to have the best qualities is itself the sign of good fortune.

Without good qualities, one naturally becomes ill–fated.

18. If there is one among the people who is knowledgeable and educated he is

respected. Anyone who has knowledge is important in society.

19. Whether in worldly life or in spiritual life, the one who is knowledgeable is

powerful. Understand that one who is ignorant remains useless without any

purpose.

20. Being ignorant, a person gets bitten by scorpions and snakes, and is unable to

recognize something that is a threat to life. Due to ignorance even one’s work gets

spoiled.

21. Being ignorant, a person gets cheated, and behaves in strange ways. The ignorant

person easily gets deceived, and even forgets about their own belongings.

22. Because of ignorance a person's enemies can conquer him. Because of ignorance

people bear great losses, lives get destroyed, and even massacres are carried out.

23. Those people who don't know what is in their own best interest suffer pain and

sorrow in life. Without knowledge, the ignorant being experiences a downfall.

24. One should have knowledge and an understanding of Illusion and Brahman, of the

individual (jiva) and God (Shiva), of the permanent and the ephemeral, and of

meaning and lack of meaning, so that the birth and death cycle becomes nonexistent.

25. When one understands who the doer is, and for whom there is bondage and the

liberation, one becomes free from the birth and death cycle.

26. Realize that God is without attributes, understand who the "I" is, and understand

the sign of becoming one with the Self, and you will be liberated.

27. When whatever is known is given up, and when one goes beyond all that is visible,

then one knows the "knower," and the root of the ego sense is snapped.

28. If one does not gain Self-Knowledge, he will not become liberated even if he does

millions of types of practices.

29. By recognizing Illusion and Brahman and understand the Self by oneself, one

naturally escapes the birth and death cycle.

30. By knowing the mind of the realized saint and by practicing according to his

instruction, one naturally achieves great fortune and unlimited prosperity.

31. Therefore, to have knowledge is not an ordinary thing. With knowledge one

becomes popularly respected by everyone, but by not knowing anything, one does

not get respect anywhere.

32. An ignorant person may see some object in the dark and even give up his life

thinking that it’s a ghost, while the knowledgeable person understands that it is just

some imaginary thing.

33. The knowledgeable person understands the secret to success while the ignorant

person generally commits mistakes leading to misfortune. The knowledgeable

person knows what is one's proper duty and what is not.

34. The ignorant person suffers the agonies of death, and the knowledgeable one is not

hurt by anything. Having knowledge, the one who thinks things over properly

becomes liberated.

35. If one does not know how to act properly according to the various situations, he

may cause insult to others and even take away someone's life. The behavior of an

ignorant person creates difficulties for everyone.

36. Therefore, to remain ignorant is not proper. Those who have no knowledge are

truly unfortunate. Having knowledge and utilizing clear thinking are what break the

cycle of birth and death.

37. Therefore do not be negligent. Knowledge itself is the remedy. By gaining

knowledge one finds the way beyond the worldly life.

38. Having knowledge is accepted as being right for everyone. Only the foolish think

that it is wrong. It is only with knowledge that true detachment is understood.

39. Who has the power to help other living beings aside from those who have

knowledge? No work can be carried out that is not understood with knowledge.

40. To know means to remember, and to not know means to forget. The wise one

knows which of the two is correct.

41. Those who are knowledgeable are wise, and the ignorant are pitiable and destitute.

Even Self-Knowledge is gained by way of understanding knowledge.

42. Where knowledge reaches its limit, and where even words disappear, there is

contentment that is desireless.

43. The listener says, "With correct knowledge, one has become supremely content,

but now the signs of that whatever is in the human being is also the same in the

universe, must be explained.

44. Many say that whatever is the case for the universe is also true for man. (What is

true for the microcosm is true for the macrocosm.) However, there must be some

actual perception and realization that this is true. Please explain this."

Thus in Shri Dasbodh, a dialogue between the Guru and disciple, Sub-Chapter 4 of Chapter 9,

named "Narration on Knowledge" is concluded.