अन्यच्च रघुकुलेन्दो यदि चैते महामुनयो महर्षयश्च विप्राश्च राजानश्च ज्ञानकवचेनाऽवगुण्ठितशरीरास्ते कथमदुःखक्षमा अपि दुःखकरीं तां तां वृत्तिपूर्विकां संसारकदर्थनामनुभवन्तः सततमेव मुदितमनसस्तिष्ठन्ति ॥ १८ ॥
anyacca raghukulēndō yadi caitē mahāmunayō maharṣayaśca viprāśca rājānaśca jñānakavacēnā’vaguṇṭhitaśarīrāstē kathamaduḥkhakṣamā api duḥkhakarīṁ tāṁ tāṁ vṛttipūrvikāṁ saṁsārakadarthanāmanubhavantaḥ satatamēva muditamanasastiṣṭhanti || 18 ||
Translation
And again, moon of the Raghu line: if these great sages, seers, Brahmins and kings, their bodies wrapped in the armour of knowledge, unfit for sorrow as they are, go through the torment of saṁsāra with all its painful ways, as others do, how is it they remain ever glad at heart?
Word by word
- anyacca
- and again
- raghu
- of the Raghu
- kula
- line
- indō
- moon
- yadi
- if
- ca
- and
- ētē
- these
- mahāmunayō
- (mahāmunayaḥ) great sages
- maharṣayaś
- (maharṣayaḥ) seers
- viprāś
- (viprāḥ) Brahmins
- rājānaś
- (rājānaḥ) kings
- jñāna
- of knowledge
- kavacēna
- in the armour
- avaguṇṭhita
- wrapped
- śarīrās
- (śarīrāḥ) their bodies
- tē
- they
- katham
- how
- aduḥkha
- for sorrow
- kṣamā
- (kṣamāḥ) unfit
- api
- as they are
- duḥkhakarīṁ
- painful
- tāṁ
- that
- vṛtti
- ways
- pūrvikāṁ
- with its
- saṁsāra
- of saṁsāra
- kadarthanām
- the torment
- anubhavantaḥ
- go through
- satatam
- ever
- ēva
- indeed
- mudita
- glad
- manasas
- (manasaḥ) at heart
- tiṣṭhanti
- they remain
Meaning
The commentary sets out the doubt behind this. How can it be certain that inquiry brings good, when even Māṇḍavya and others devoted to scripture are known to have suffered thousands of indignities? The reply is that knowledge bears a visible fruit. The argument is built on the armour, jñāna-kavaca. Such people meet what others meet: wounds, loss, public affairs. If they were undergoing it as the ignorant do, they would suffer as the ignorant do. They stay glad, and so something in their situation is different. It is the claim the tradition rests on for living liberation, that knowledge changes how life is met even though life itself goes on.