कर्तव्यमस्ति न ममेह हि किञ्चिदेव स्थातव्यमित्यतिमना भुवि संस्थितोऽस्मि । संशान्तया सततसुप्तधियेह वृत्त्या कार्यं करोमि न च किञ्चिदहं करोमि ॥ ४४ ॥
kartavyamasti na mamēha hi kiñcidēva sthātavyamityatimanā bhuvi saṁsthitō’smi | saṁśāntayā satatasuptadhiyēha vṛttyā kāryaṁ karōmi na ca kiñcidahaṁ karōmi || 44 ||
Translation
There is nothing at all here that I have to do. Only, I must stay; and with that thought, past the mind, I rest upon the earth. In a stilled way of being, with intelligence as if always asleep, I do what is to be done, and I do nothing at all.
Word by word
- kartavyam
- that I have to do
- asti
- there is
- na
- not
- mama
- for me
- iha
- here
- hi
- indeed
- kiñcid
- (kiñcit) anything
- ēva
- at all
- sthātavyam
- I must stay
- iti
- with that thought
- atimanā
- past the mind
- bhuvi
- upon the earth
- saṁsthitō
- (saṁsthitaḥ) rest
- asmi
- I
- saṁśāntayā
- stilled
- satata
- always
- supta
- asleep
- dhiyā
- with intelligence
- vṛttyā
- in a way of being
- kāryaṁ
- what is to be done
- karōmi
- I do
- ca
- and
- ahaṁ
- I
Meaning
The sarga closes in a longer metre, vasantatilakā, with one of the great verses of the work. Everything before it has been the story of how Vasiṣṭha came to be here. This is how he is here. Kartavyam asti na: there is no duty, nothing needed to complete him. Sthātavyam: there is only remaining. And then the last line, which stops the mind: kāryaṁ karomi, na ca kiñcid ahaṁ karomi, I do the work, and I do nothing. The commentary says he acts as the ignorant see him act, while by his own understanding he does nothing. Satata-supta-dhiyā, with intelligence always as if asleep, means asleep to the sense of being a doer, not dull. This is what the last sarga's closing verse pointed to, following what is good and then letting even that go. Much of our exhaustion comes less from the work than from the one who feels that everything depends on them. The verse invites us to imagine doing today's work, all of it, with that one gone.