Manisha Panchakam Meaning — Line by Line
मनीषा पञ्चकम्
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Meaning — Line by Line
Every verse of Manisha Panchakam with its English meaning. Tap any word to hear it, or ▶ to recite the verse.
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jāgratsvapnasuṣuptiṣu sphuṭatarā yā saṃvidujjṛmbhate
जाग्रत्स्वप्नसुषुप्तिषु स्फुटतरा या संविदुज्जृम्भते या ब्रह्मादिपिपीलिकान्ततनुषु प्रोता जगत्साक्षिणी । सैवाहं न च दृश्यवस्त्विति दृढप्रज्ञापि यस्यास्ति चेत् चण्डालोऽस्तु स तु द्विजोऽस्तु गुरुरित्येषा मनीषा मम ॥ १॥
jāgratsvapnasuṣuptiṣu sphuṭatarā yā saṃvidujjṛmbhate yā brahmādipipīlikāntatanuṣu protā jagatsākṣiṇī | saivāhaṃ na ca dṛśyavastviti dṛḍhaprajñāpi yasyāsti cet caṇḍālo'stu sa tu dvijo'stu gururityeṣā manīṣā mama || 1||
MeaningHe in whom there is the firm conviction — 'That Consciousness which shines ever more clearly through waking, dream and deep sleep, which is threaded as the one witness through all bodies from Brahma down to the ant, That alone am I, and not any perceived object' — whether he be an outcaste or a twice-born brahmin, he is my Guru: this is my firm conviction.
brahmaivāhamidaṃ jagacca sakalaṃ cinmātravistāritaṃ
ब्रह्मैवाहमिदं जगच्च सकलं चिन्मात्रविस्तारितं सर्वं चैतदविद्यया त्रिगुणयाऽशेषं मया कल्पितम् । इत्थं यस्य दृढा मतिः सुखतरे नित्ये परे निर्मले चण्डालोऽस्तु स तु द्विजोऽस्तु गुरुरित्येषा मनीषा मम ॥ २॥
brahmaivāhamidaṃ jagacca sakalaṃ cinmātravistāritaṃ sarvaṃ caitadavidyayā triguṇayā'śeṣaṃ mayā kalpitam | itthaṃ yasya dṛḍhā matiḥ sukhatare nitye pare nirmale caṇḍālo'stu sa tu dvijo'stu gururityeṣā manīṣā mama || 2||
MeaningHe whose mind is firmly fixed on that supremely blissful, eternal, supreme, stainless Reality, thinking 'I am verily Brahman, and this whole world is but an expansion of pure Consciousness, the entire thing imagined by me through the threefold ignorance of the gunas' — whether he be an outcaste or a twice-born brahmin, he is my Guru: this is my firm conviction.
śaśvannaśvarameva viśvamakhilaṃ niścitya vācā guroḥ
शश्वन्नश्वरमेव विश्वमखिलं निश्चित्य वाचा गुरोः नित्यं ब्रह्म निरन्तरं विमृशता निर्व्याजशान्तात्मना । भूतं भावि च दुष्कृतं प्रदहता संविन्मये पावके प्रारब्धाय समर्पितं स्ववपुरित्येषा मनीषा मम ॥ ३॥
śaśvannaśvarameva viśvamakhilaṃ niścitya vācā guroḥ nityaṃ brahma nirantaraṃ vimṛśatā nirvyājaśāntātmanā | bhūtaṃ bhāvi ca duṣkṛtaṃ pradahatā saṃvinmaye pāvake prārabdhāya samarpitaṃ svavapurityeṣā manīṣā mama || 3||
MeaningHe who, having ascertained through the words of the Guru that the whole universe is forever perishable, ceaselessly contemplating the eternal Brahman with a sincere and tranquil mind, burning up past and future sins in the fire of pure Consciousness, has surrendered his body to (the spending of) prarabdha karma — that his body is so surrendered is my firm conviction.
yā tiryaṅnaradevatābhirahamityantaḥ sphuṭā gṛhyate
या तिर्यङ्नरदेवताभिरहमित्यन्तः स्फुटा गृह्यते यद्भासा हृदयाक्षदेहविषया भान्ति स्वतोऽचेतनाः । तां भास्यैः पिहितार्कमण्डलनिभां स्फूर्तिं सदा भावयन् योगी निर्वृतमानसो हि गुरुरित्येषा मनीषा मम ॥ ४॥
yā tiryaṅnaradevatābhirahamityantaḥ sphuṭā gṛhyate yadbhāsā hṛdayākṣadehaviṣayā bhānti svato'cetanāḥ | tāṃ bhāsyaiḥ pihitārkamaṇḍalanibhāṃ sphūrtiṃ sadā bhāvayan yogī nirvṛtamānaso hi gururityeṣā manīṣā mama || 4||
MeaningThat Awareness which is clearly grasped within as 'I' by beasts, men and gods alike, by whose light the inwardly inert heart, senses, body and objects appear to shine — ever meditating on that pulsating Reality (which is like the sun's orb hidden by what it illumines), the yogi whose mind has found perfect peace is verily the Guru: this is my firm conviction.
yatsaukhyāmbudhileśaleśata ime śakrādayo nirvṛtāḥ
यत्सौख्याम्बुधिलेशलेशत इमे शक्रादयो निर्वृताः यच्चित्ते नितरां प्रशान्तकलने लब्ध्वा मुनिर्निर्वृतः । यस्मिन्नित्यसुखाम्बुधौ गलितधीर्ब्रह्मैव न ब्रह्मविद् यः कश्चित्स सुरेन्द्रवन्दितपदो नूनं मनीषा मम ॥ ५॥
yatsaukhyāmbudhileśaleśata ime śakrādayo nirvṛtāḥ yaccitte nitarāṃ praśāntakalane labdhvā munirnirvṛtaḥ | yasminnityasukhāmbudhau galitadhīrbrahmaiva na brahmavid yaḥ kaścitsa surendravanditapado nūnaṃ manīṣā mama || 5||
MeaningBy a mere fraction of a fraction of whose ocean of bliss Indra and the gods are made content; having gained whom in his perfectly stilled mind the sage rests fulfilled; in whose ocean of eternal bliss the intellect dissolves so that one becomes Brahman itself and not merely a knower of Brahman — whoever he be, his feet are worshipped by the king of the gods: this is my firm conviction.
Word-by-Word Breakdown
Origin & History
Source: Prakarana (instructional) hymn composed by Adi Shankaracharya
Author: Adi Shankaracharya
Period: 8th century CE (circa 788-820)
According to the traditional account, Adi Shankaracharya was walking through the holy city of Kashi when a Chandala (an outcaste) carrying meat, accompanied by four dogs, crossed his path. Shankara asked him to step aside. The Chandala — understood in the tradition to be Lord Shiva himself testing him — responded with searching questions: 'Do you wish the body to move away from the body, or the Self from the Self? In the sunlight reflected in the Ganga and in a cup of wine, is the reflecting sun ever defiled?' Struck by this revelation of pure non-dual wisdom from one deemed lowest by society, Shankaracharya prostrated and composed the Manisha Panchakam, five verses declaring that anyone established in this knowledge — outcaste or brahmin alike — is truly his Guru.
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