AVG 15.2

Chapter 15 (A Celebration of the Seekers Native Self): Verse 2
मोक्षो विषयवैरस्यं बन्धो वैषयिको रसः ।
एतावदेव विज्ञानं यथेच्छसि तथा कुरु ॥ १५-२॥

PURPORT:
A sense of clarity in discernment and
a distaste for objects of the senses is
liberating; similarly, evincing a sense of
attachment towards these objects is bondage.
Knowing such is insight. Having known this,
do exactly as you so please.

TRANSLITERATION:
मोक्षः विषयवैरस्यम् बन्धः वैषयिकः रसः ।
mokṣaḥ viṣayavairasyam bandhaḥ vaiṣayikaḥ rasaḥ ।
एतावत् एव विज्ञानम् यथा इच्छसि तथा कुरु ॥ १५-२॥
etāvat eva vijñānam yathā icchasi tathā kuru ॥ 15-2॥

MEANING (concordance as numbered):
2. mokṣaḥ (मोक्षः) = liberation/emancipation
1. viṣayavairasyam (विषयवैरस्यम्) = distaste/aversion for entities senses by our sensoria (compound of viṣaya (विषय) meaning ‘sense-objects’ and vairasyam (वैरस्यम्) meaning ‘distaste’)
5. bandhaḥ (बन्धः) = bondage/attachment
3. vaiṣayikaḥ (वैषयिकः) = related to sense objects
4. rasaḥ (रसः) = taste [for pleasurable attachments] ।
6. etāvat (एतावत्) = of such kind
7. eva (एव) = indeed/truly
8. vijñānam (विज्ञानम्) = knowledge
9. yathā (यथा) = of such kind/such as this
10. icchasi (इच्छसि) = you wish
11. tathā (तथा) = thus/so
12. kuru (कुरु) = do/perform ॥ 15-2॥

COMMENT:
If one cannot initially understand the nature of one’s own native self (which in and of itself sits peaceful), a path to start off the journey may be that where the trail-markers along the path are vividly painted. Trail-markers that are defined by creations of our own best hopes, high aspirations and thoughtful objectives - such markers can range from meditation to finding a preceptor to enrolling in a monastery to devotional worship to ritual chanting* (the list of modalities available is long as there are many forms of such inspirational avenues** that we as a culture have developed not only for our mental sustenance but, also towards answering age-old questions that science may or may not have answered). These markers help the seeker to steady themselves along the path and obtain that initial clarity that is necessary to look closer into themselves.
In further reaching out toward self-awareness, the seeker reaches a state of inner clarity that will allow for the seeker to understand themselves better. The seeker also intuits that crutches like meditation, devotional worship, ritual chanting etc. while initially supportive, may now be discarded as the seeker confidently moves along the path towards understanding themselves.
In a certain sense, the seeker who is free at large is that one who have divested themselves of the following - the unreasonable fear of death, the irrational fear of god and the ability to release themselves from their own desires. In addition, the seeker who is internally aware is that one who is able to choicelessly observe the arising, enduring and the creation of every thought within themselves with a practiced ability to examine that free space that emanates between thoughts without actively seeking to suppress the next set of thoughts. A great clarity and stillness settles to one who is both free in the first sense and aware as in the second sense.


*One is reminded of the following words of Dajian Huineng (a central figure in the early history of Chinese Chan Buddhism) in this context: "A finger points at the moon, but the moon is not at the tip of the finger. Words points at the truth, but the truth is not in words".


**some find that a balanced combination of these modalities is also useful; a modality that involves some parts shared community, some parts teacher-student relationship, a part that includes a cultivated relationship with some god-like omniscient being and a part that provides meditative introspection. At the end of the day, understand that while these modalities or a combination of such modalities only serve to light up the way for the seeker initially, ultimately, the walk remains ones very own.