All men, attached to
children and wives and kinsmen and relatives, sink in the miry sea of
grief like wild elephants, when destitute of strength, sinking in a miry
slough. Indeed. O lord, upon loss of wealth or son or kinsmen or
relatives, man suffers great distress, which resembles as regards its
power of burning, a forest conflagration. All this, viz., joy and grief,
existence and non-existence, is dependent upon destiny. One having
friends as one destitute of friends, one having foes as one destitute of
foes, one having wisdom as one destitute of wisdom, each and every one
amongst these, obtains happiness through destiny. Friends are not the
cause of one's happiness. Foes are not the cause of one's misery. Wisdom
is not competent to bring an accession of wealth; nor is wealth competent
to bring an accession of happiness. Intelligence is not the cause of
wealth, nor is stupidity the cause of penury. He only that is possessed
of wisdom, and none else, understands the order of the world. Amongst the
intelligent, the heroic, the foolish, the cowardly, the idiotic, the
learned, the weak, or the strong, happiness comes to him for whom it is
ordained. Among the calf, the cowherd that owns her, and the thief, the
cow indeed belongs to him who drinks her milk.[503] They whose
understanding is absolutely dormant, and they who have attained to that
state of the mind which lies beyond the sphere of the intellect, succeed
in enjoying happiness. Only they that are between the two classes, suffer
misery.
Pages:
1717
1718
1719
1720
1721
1722
1723
1724
1725
1726
1727
1728
1729
1730
1731
1732
1733
1734
1735
1736
1737
1738
1739
1740
1741