Verse 1
अथ योगिनां परमहंसानां कोऽयं मार्गस्तेषां का स्थितिरिति नारदो भगवन्तमुपगत्योवाच । तं भगवानाह। योऽयं परमहंसमार्गो लोके दुर्लभतरो न तु बाहुल्यो यद्येको भवति स एव । नित्यपूतस्थः स एव वेदपुरुष इति विदुषो मन्यन्ते महापुरुषो यच्चित्तं तत्सर्वदा मय्येवावतिष्ठते तस्मादहं च तस्मिन्नेवावस्थीयते। असौ स्वपुत्रमित्रकलत्रबन्ध्वादीञ्छिखायज्ञोपवीतं स्वाध्यायं च सर्वकर्माणि संन्यस्यायं ब्रह्माण्डं च हित्वा कौपीनं दण्डमाच्छादनं च स्वशरीरोपभोगार्थाय च लोकस्योपकारार्थाय च परिग्रहेत्। तच्च मुख्योऽस्ति कोऽयं मुख्य इति चेदयं मुख्यः ।।
atha yogināṃ paramahaṃsānāṃ ko'yaṃ mārgasteṣāṃ kā sthitiriti nārado bhagavantamupagatyovāca । taṃ bhagavānāha। yo'yaṃ paramahaṃsamārgo loke durlabhataro na tu bāhulyo yadyeko bhavati sa eva । nityapūtasthaḥ sa eva vedapuruṣa iti viduṣo manyante mahāpuruṣo yaccittaṃ tatsarvadā mayyevāvatiṣṭhate tasmādahaṃ ca tasminnevāvasthīyate। asau svaputramitrakalatrabandhvādīñchikhāyajñopavītaṃ svādhyāyaṃ ca sarvakarmāṇi saṃnyasyāyaṃ brahmāṇḍaṃ ca hitvā kaupīnaṃ daṇḍamācchādanaṃ ca svaśarīropabhogārthāya ca lokasyopakārārthāya ca parigrahet। tacca mukhyo'sti ko'yaṃ mukhya iti cedayaṃ mukhyaḥ ।।
Then Nārada approached the Lord and asked, "What is this path for Paramahaṃsa Yogis? What is their state?" The Lord replied to him, "This path of the Paramahaṃsa is exceedingly rare in the world, not abundant. If there is even one such person, he alone is truly a Paramahaṃsa. He who is eternally pure is considered the Veda-puruṣa by the wise. The mind of such a great soul always abides in Me, and therefore I also abide in him. Such a Paramahaṃsa should renounce his own children, friends, wife, relatives, and so forth; his top-knot, sacred thread, self-study, and all ritualistic actions. Forsaking this entire universe, he should accept only a loincloth, a staff, and a covering for his bodily sustenance and for the benefit of the world. And this is the essence. If it is asked, 'What is this essence?', then this is that essence."
Verse 2
न दण्डं न शिखां न यज्ञोपवीतं न चाच्छादनं चरति परमहंसो न शीतं न चोष्णं न सुख न दु:खं न मानावमाने च षडूर्मिवर्जं निन्दागर्वमत्सरदम्भदर्पेच्छाद्वेषसुखदुःखकामक्रोधलोभमो-हहर्षासूयाहंकारादींश्च हित्वा स्ववपुः कुणपमिव दृश्यते यतस्तद्वपुरपध्वस्तं संशयविपरीत-मिथ्याज्ञानानां यो हेतुस्तेन नित्यनिवृत्तस्तन्नित्यबोधस्तत्स्वयमेवावस्थितिस्तं शान्तमचलमद्वया-नन्दचिद्घन एवास्मि । तदेव मम परमधाम तदेव शिखा च तदेवोपवीतं च। परमात्मात्मनोरे-कत्वज्ञानेन तयोर्भेद एव विभग्नः सा संध्या ॥
na daṇḍaṃ na śikhāṃ na yajñopavītaṃ na cācchādanaṃ carati paramahaṃso na śītaṃ na coṣṇaṃ na sukha na du:khaṃ na mānāvamāne ca ṣaḍūrmivarjaṃ nindāgarvamatsaradambhadarpecchādveṣasukhaduḥkhakāmakrodhalobhamo-haharṣāsūyāhaṃkārādīṃśca hitvā svavapuḥ kuṇapamiva dṛśyate yatastadvapurapadhvastaṃ saṃśayaviparīta-mithyājñānānāṃ yo hetustena nityanivṛttastannityabodhastatsvayamevāvasthitistaṃ śāntamacalamadvayā-nandacidghana evāsmi । tadeva mama paramadhāma tadeva śikhā ca tadevopavītaṃ ca। paramātmātmanore-katvajñānena tayorbheda eva vibhagnaḥ sā saṃdhyā ॥
A Paramahamsa carries no staff, no topknot, no sacred thread, and no covering. He experiences no cold, no heat, no pleasure, no pain, no honor, no dishonor, being free from the six waves (of hunger, thirst, sorrow, delusion, old age, death). Having abandoned censure, pride, envy, hypocrisy, arrogance, desire, aversion, pleasure, pain, lust, anger, greed, delusion, joy, malice, ego, and the like, his own body is seen as a mere corpse, for that body has been completely transcended. I am indeed that tranquil, unmoving, non-dual bliss-consciousness, who is perpetually free from the cause of doubt, perverted knowledge, and false knowledge, who is eternal knowledge and self-established. That alone is my supreme abode, that alone is my topknot, and that alone is my sacred thread. The distinction between the Supreme Self and the individual self is shattered by the knowledge of their oneness; that is the true twilight meditation (Sandhya).
Verse 3
सर्वान्कामान्परित्यज्य अद्वैते परमे स्थितिः। ज्ञानदण्डो धृतो येन एकदण्डी स उच्यते। काष्ठदण्डो धृतो येन सर्वाशी ज्ञानवर्जितः। तितिक्षाज्ञानवैराग्यशमादिगुणवर्जितः ।भिक्षामात्रेण यो जीवेत्स पापी यतिवृत्तिहा। स याति नरकान्घोरान्महारौरवसंज्ञकान्। इदगन्तरं ज्ञात्वा स परमहंसः ॥
sarvānkāmānparityajya advaite parame sthitiḥ। jñānadaṇḍo dhṛto yena ekadaṇḍī sa ucyate। kāṣṭhadaṇḍo dhṛto yena sarvāśī jñānavarjitaḥ। titikṣājñānavairāgyaśamādiguṇavarjitaḥ ।bhikṣāmātreṇa yo jīvetsa pāpī yativṛttihā। sa yāti narakānghorānmahārauravasaṃjñakān। idagantaraṃ jñātvā sa paramahaṃsaḥ ॥
He who, abandoning all desires, is established in the supreme non-duality, and by whom the staff of knowledge is held, he is called an Ekadaṇḍī (a renunciant with a single staff). But he by whom a mere wooden staff is held, who eats indiscriminately, is devoid of knowledge, and lacking qualities like forbearance, knowledge, dispassion, tranquility, and so forth; he who merely lives by begging for food is a sinner, a destroyer of the ascetic's way of life. He goes to terrible hells known as Mahāraurava. Understanding this distinction, one becomes a Paramahaṃsa.
Verse 4
आशाम्बरो न नमस्कारो न स्वाहाकारो न स्वधाकारो न निन्दा न स्तुतिर्यादृच्छिको भवेद्भिक्षुः। नावाहनं न विसर्जनं न मन्त्रं न ध्यानं नोपासनं च। न लक्ष्यं नालक्ष्यं न पृथङ नापृथगहं न न त्वं न सर्वं चानिकेतस्थिरमतिरेव स भिक्षुः सौवर्णादीनां नैव परिग्रहेन्न लोकनं नावलोकनं च न च बाधकः क इति चेद्बाधकोऽस्त्येव । यस्माद्भिक्षुर्हिरण्यं रसेन दृष्टं चेत्स। ब्रह्महा भवेद्यस्माद्भिक्षुर्हिरण्यं रसेन स्पृष्टं चेत्स पौल्कसो भवेद्यस्माद्भिर्हिरण्यं रसेन ग्राह्य चेत्स आत्महा भवेत्तस्माद्भिक्षुर्हिरण्यं रसेन न दृष्टं च न स्पृष्टं च न ग्राह्य च। सर्वे कामा मनोगता व्यावर्तन्ते । दुःखे नोद्विग्नः सुखे न स्पृहा त्यागो रागे सर्वत्र शुभाशुभयोरनभिस्न्नेहो न द्वेष्टि न मोदं च ।सर्वेषामिन्द्रियाणां गतिरुपरमते य आत्मन्येवावस्थीयते । तत्पूर्णानन्दैकबोधस्त-द्ब्रह्मैवाहमस्मीति कृतकृत्यो भवति कृतकृत्यो भवति ॥
āśāmbaro na namaskāro na svāhākāro na svadhākāro na nindā na stutiryādṛcchiko bhavedbhikṣuḥ। nāvāhanaṃ na visarjanaṃ na mantraṃ na dhyānaṃ nopāsanaṃ ca। na lakṣyaṃ nālakṣyaṃ na pṛthaṅa nāpṛthagahaṃ na na tvaṃ na sarvaṃ cāniketasthiramatireva sa bhikṣuḥ sauvarṇādīnāṃ naiva parigrahenna lokanaṃ nāvalokanaṃ ca na ca bādhakaḥ ka iti cedbādhako'styeva । yasmādbhikṣurhiraṇyaṃ rasena dṛṣṭaṃ cetsa। brahmahā bhavedyasmādbhikṣurhiraṇyaṃ rasena spṛṣṭaṃ cetsa paulkaso bhavedyasmādbhirhiraṇyaṃ rasena grāhya cetsa ātmahā bhavettasmādbhikṣurhiraṇyaṃ rasena na dṛṣṭaṃ ca na spṛṣṭaṃ ca na grāhya ca। sarve kāmā manogatā vyāvartante । duḥkhe nodvignaḥ sukhe na spṛhā tyāgo rāge sarvatra śubhāśubhayoranabhisnneho na dveṣṭi na modaṃ ca ।sarveṣāmindriyāṇāṃ gatiruparamate ya ātmanyevāvasthīyate । tatpūrṇānandaikabodhasta-dbrahmaivāhamasmīti kṛtakṛtyo bhavati kṛtakṛtyo bhavati ॥
A renunciate (bhikṣu) who is sky-clad offers no salutations, no offerings of 'svāhā' or 'svadhā', expresses no blame or praise, and lives spontaneously. For him, there is no invocation, no dismissal, no mantra, no meditation, and no worship. There is no objective, no non-objective; no separate, no non-separate; neither 'I' nor 'you' nor 'all'. That bhikṣu alone has a stable mind, without a fixed abode. He should certainly not accept gold or the like, nor even casually look at it, nor gaze upon it with interest. And if one asks, 'What is the obstacle (to such detachment)?', indeed there is an obstacle. Because if a bhikṣu sees gold with desire, he becomes a killer of Brahman. Because if a bhikṣu touches gold with desire, he becomes an outcast (pulkaśa). Because if a bhikṣu accepts gold with desire, he becomes a killer of self. Therefore, a bhikṣu should not see gold with desire, nor touch it, nor accept it. All desires residing in the mind cease. He is not distressed in sorrow, has no longing for happiness; he practices renunciation of attachment everywhere, has no affection for good or bad, neither hates nor rejoices. The activity of all senses ceases for one who is established in the Self alone. "That Brahman, which is complete bliss and singular consciousness, I indeed am!" — thinking thus, he becomes one who has accomplished all that needs to be accomplished; he becomes one who has accomplished all that needs to be accomplished.