AVG 11.3

Chapter 11 (Coherence on a choiceless witnessing of happenings) Verse 3
आपदः सम्पदः काले दैवादेवेति निश्चयी ।
तृप्तः स्वस्थेन्द्रियो नित्यं न वाञ्छति न शोचति ॥ ११-३॥

PURPORT:
Insightful in the understanding that opulence
and misfortune stem from one's perception of
the world as well as from random circumstance,
one remains content with their self-abiding
senses peaceful and does not experience
regret nor covet things unnecessarily.

TRANSLITERATION:
आपदः सम्पदः काले दैवात् एव इति निश्चयी ।
āpadaḥ sampadaḥ kāle daivāt eva iti niścayī ।
तृप्तः स्वस्थेन्द्रियः नित्यम् न वाञ्छति न शोचति ॥ ११-३॥
tṛptaḥ svasthendriyaḥ nityam na vāñchati na śocati ॥ 11-3॥

MEANING:
āpadaḥ (आपदः) = calamity/misfortune/adversity
sampadaḥ (सम्पदः) = abundance/opulence/prosperity
kāle (काले) = in time
daivāt (दैवात्) = from destiny/from circumstance
eva (एव) = indeed/certainly
iti (इति) = thus
niścayī (निश्चयी) = on who has known for certain ।
tṛptaḥ (तृप्तः) = contented/gratified/satisfied
svasthendriyaḥ (स्वस्थेन्द्रियः) = with all self-abiding senses controlled (compound of svasthendriyaḥ (स्वस्थ) meaning 'composed/peaceful/controlled' and indriyaḥ (इन्द्रियः) meaning 'senses')
nityam (नित्यम्) = forever
na (न) = not
vāñchati (वाञ्छति) = desires/greed/motive
na (न) = not
śocati (शोचति) = bemoan/regret/grieve ॥ 11-3॥

COMMENTS:
The accomplishments and the inadequacies, the feats and defeats, the triumphs and the disasters; all of these are illumined or extinguished by the discerning senses of the individual - they are creations of, by and within the individual - the fluctuations, permutations and vicissitudes of the world constantly varies bringing with it attendant circumstances that may be unwelcome, unpleasant or achingly beautiful and calming.
Established within this understanding the seeker moves, always content and working choicelessly with the whole presentation of the present moment without excessive dwelling on the past nor exaggerated apprehension for the impending.

Awareness in the present moment allows for the body (that is presented with the sensations) and the mind (that integrates the same) to be a unified locus inseparably linked in insight and experience where the senses and the sensations do not overwhelm and preoccupy the seeker.
Awareness in this sense is not only a path to edifying clarity of the unified mind-body accompaniment, but a complete transformation of the moods, feelings and attitudes that one presents - both intrinsically and extrinsically - the sense of calm will prevail in the face of any fluctuation presented without the impingement of prior conditioning. This practice of dispassionate detachment broadens and coherently enunciates itself across the entire gamut of ones thoughts and actions thus allowing for the cultivation of a mindset of emptiness - where the underlying lack of essence within all experience becomes the nonpartisan correlate of the sense of spontaneity experienced by the seeker who has let go of all attachments.

A brief journey through the various states of awareness prompted by the imagery within this verse and the various mental renderings that this verse impelled me to consider can be summarized as follows: Separation of oneself from desires and negative states of mind can be considered the first step in the seekers journey towards finding oneself and the awareness thereof. Such separateness involves a conscious concentrated action on the part of an individual and is accompanied by continued thought fluctuations. Subduing sustained thought and its fluctuations by starting to look specifically to the point where one thought ends and the juncture where the next thought begins and working to extend this interval where thought, forms, shapes, names or other constructions not enter that empty mental space of no-concentration can be considered to be the next step in the journey. Transcending concepts of form, of name, of fluctuations caused by the senses and leaving behind the ideas of disparate discreteness, one attains an awareness of wide open realms of space marked by equanimity, compassion and peace. From the wide open realms of space, one lets the same awareness permeate and saturate the space that one has just experienced to see a sense of fullness that such awareness brings upon oneself. From the realm of wide open awareness that permeates the space, one understands that there is nothing in the sense of the meaning of the word 'wide open spaces' nor in the meaning of the word 'awareness' and one enters a domain of emptiness. In the domain of emptiness, one can sense neither perception nor not-perception, neither conceptual-notion nor not-conceptual-notion. In this state, one remains without experience, thoughts or knowledge for as long as one can.
In closing, on more general terms, the inquiry for knowledge, the quest to designate, the impetus to classify and like accumulations of cultural scree only succeeds in adding more and more conceptual thoughts and ideas to one’s mental framework – which is already fairly cluttered by the time one has attained their formative years; at the end of the day, all of what one has accomplished can be described variously as under terms such as 'addition', 'inclusion', 'annexation' and 'augmentation'. What one seeks is 'subtraction' - a slow removal of concepts, a gradual attrition of designations, a removal of our inherent biases and a complete evisceration of all of the learnt information that only serves to resonate and amplify the fluctuations within our minds. It is within a frame of mind that is empty of concepts and designations that one can find a measure of stillness.