अनन्तानीह दुःखानि सुखं तृणलवोपमम् । नाऽतः सुखेषु बध्नीयाद्दृष्टिं दुःखानुबन्धिषु ॥ २३ ॥
anantānīha duḥkhāni sukhaṁ tṛṇalavōpamam | nā’taḥ sukhēṣu badhnīyāddṛṣṭiṁ duḥkhānubandhiṣu || 23 ||
- Another reading: बध्नीयात् दृष्टिं (badhnīyāt dṛṣṭiṁ) for बध्नीयाद्दृष्टिं
Translation
Sorrows here are endless, and happiness is like a bit of straw. So one should not fix one's gaze on joys that are tied to sorrow.
Word by word
- anantāni
- endless
- iha
- here
- duḥkhāni
- sorrows
- sukhaṁ
- happiness
- tṛṇa
- of straw
- lava
- a bit
- upamam
- like
- na
- not
- ataḥ
- so
- sukhēṣu
- on joys
- badhnīyād
- (badhnīyāt) should fix
- dṛṣṭiṁ
- one's gaze
- duḥkha
- to sorrow
- anubandhiṣu
- tied
Meaning
An unsentimental arithmetic. Happiness is not denied. It is measured, and it comes to a straw's worth. The key word is anubandhin, tied to: the joys of the world come with something fastened behind them. The commentary says that sorrow soaks them through. The advice concerns where one looks. It asks that the eye should not settle there.