नोदेति नाऽस्तमायाति सुखे दुःखे मुखप्रभा । यथाप्राप्तस्थितेर्यस्य जीवन्मुक्तः स उच्यते ॥ ६ ॥
nōdēti nā’stamāyāti sukhē duḥkhē mukhaprabhā | yathāprāptasthitēryasya jīvanmuktaḥ sa ucyatē || 6 ||
Translation
He whose face neither brightens in pleasure nor darkens in pain, and who lives on whatever comes: he is called freed while living.
Word by word
- na
- neither, nor
- udēti
- rises (brightens)
- astam
- setting
- āyāti
- goes to
- sukhē
- in pleasure
- duḥkhē
- in pain
- mukha
- whose face
- prabhā
- the light of
- yathā
- whatever
- prāpta
- comes
- sthitēḥ
- who lives on
- yasya
- he
- jīvan
- while living
- muktaḥ
- freed
- sa
- he
- ucyatē
- is called
Meaning
A mark anyone could see. The light of the face (mukha-prabhā) neither rises nor sets: it does not open in joy and wither in grief, as the commentary puts it. And he lives on what comes to him unasked (yathāprāpta), content with it, as the other commentary says. This is not a mask of composure: it is what remains when pleasure and pain no longer touch the one who knows himself to be what neither can reach.