योऽयमर्थं प्रार्थयते तदर्थं यतते तथा । सोऽवश्यं तदवाप्नोति न चेच्छ्रान्तो निवर्तते ॥ ५ ॥
yō’yamarthaṁ prārthayatē tadarthaṁ yatatē tathā | sō’vaśyaṁ tadavāpnōti na cēcchrāntō nivartatē || 5 ||
Translation
Whoever seeks a thing and strives for it accordingly surely gains it, if he does not turn back, tired.
Word by word
- yō
- (yaḥ) whoever
- ayam
- this
- arthaṁ
- a thing; for (it)
- prārthayatē
- seeks
- tad
- (tat) it
- yatatē
- strives
- tathā
- accordingly
- sō
- (saḥ) he
- avaśyaṁ
- surely
- avāpnōti
- gains
- na
- not
- cēc
- (cet) if
- śrāntō
- (śrāntaḥ) tired
- nivartatē
- turns back
Meaning
Rāma might doubt, the commentary says, how a dull mind like his could reach what is hard even for the great. The answer is the law of effort, met in the Mumukṣu Prakaraṇa: whoever wants a thing and works for it gains it, on one condition, that he does not give up half way out of weariness.