Devanagari
गुणानुरक्तं व्यसनाय जन्तो:
क्षेमाय नैर्गुण्यमथो मन: स्यात् ।
यथा प्रदीपो घृतवर्तिमश्नन्
शिखा: सधूमा भजति ह्यन्यदा स्वम् ।
पदं तथा गुणकर्मानुबद्धं
वृत्तीर्मन: श्रयतेऽन्यत्र तत्त्वम् ॥ ८ ॥
Verse text
guṇānuraktaṁ vyasanāya jantoḥ
kṣemāya nairguṇyam atho manaḥ syāt
yathā pradīpo ghṛta-vartim aśnan
śikhāḥ sadhūmā bhajati hy anyadā svam
padaṁ tathā guṇa-karmānubaddhaṁ
vṛttīr manaḥ śrayate ’nyatra tattvam
Synonyms
guṇa
—
anuraktam — being attached to the material modes of nature
;
vyasanāya
—
for the conditioning in material existence
;
jantoḥ
—
of the living entity
;
kṣemāya
—
for the ultimate welfare
;
nairguṇyam
—
being unaffected by the material modes of nature
;
atho
—
thus
;
manaḥ
—
the mind
;
syāt
—
becomes
;
yathā
—
as much as
;
pradīpaḥ
—
a lamp
;
ghṛta
—
vartim — a wick within clarified butter
;
aśnan
—
burning
;
śikhāḥ
—
the flame
;
sadhūmāḥ
—
with smoke
;
bhajati
—
enjoys
;
hi
—
certainly
;
anyadā
—
otherwise
;
svam
—
its own original
;
padam
—
position
;
tathā
—
so
;
guṇa
—
karma — anubaddham — bound by the modes of nature and the reactions of material activities
;
vṛttīḥ
—
various engagements
;
manaḥ
—
the mind
;
śrayate
—
takes shelter of
;
anyatra
—
otherwise
;
tattvam
—
its original condition .
Translation
When the living entity’s mind becomes absorbed in the sense gratification of the material world, it brings about his conditioned life and suffering within the material situation. However, when the mind becomes unattached to material enjoyment, it becomes the cause of liberation. When the flame in a lamp burns the wick improperly, the lamp is blackened, but when the lamp is filled with ghee and is burning properly, there is bright illumination. Similarly, when the mind is absorbed in material sense gratification, it causes suffering, and when detached from material sense gratification it brings about the original brightness of Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
When the mind is attached to the guṇas it is the cause of the jīva’s suffering and when the mind is detached from the guṇas it is the cause of liberation. Just as the lamp with a charred wick displays a smoky flame and with a fresh wick displays a bright flame, the mind bound by the guṇas takes shelter of many conditions, and at another time, enjoys the taste of the Lord’s sweetness.
How can the one mind be the cause of differing conditions--bondage and liberation? Nairguṇyam means nirguṇam. A lamp with a burned up ghee wick, burns with a smoky flame, and at another time, gets extinguished and merges with the elements (svapadam). Or a lamp with a burned up ghee wick burns with a smoky flame but when fed on golden ghee, it burns without smoke in its brilliant form (svapadam). Similarly the mind, bound by the guṇas, takes shelter of many functions (vṛrtīḥ), but at another time, obtains a taste of the Lord’s sweetness (tattvam).
Purport
It is therefore concluded that the mind is the cause of material existence and liberation also. Everyone is suffering in this material world because of the mind; it is therefore proper to train the mind or to cleanse the mind from material attachment and engage it fully in the Lord’s service. This is called spiritual engagement. As confirmed in
Bhagavad-gītā
(14.26)
:
māṁ ca yo ’vyabhicāreṇa
bhakti-yogena sevate
sa guṇān samatītyaitān
brahma-bhūyāya kalpate
“One who engages in full devotional service, who does not fall down in any circumstance, at once transcends the modes of material nature and thus comes to the level of Brahman.”
We should engage the mind fully in Kṛṣṇa conscious activities. Then it will be the cause of our liberation, for our returning home, back to Godhead. However, if we keep the mind engaged in material activities for sense gratification, it will cause continuous bondage and will make us remain in this material world in different bodies, suffering the consequences of our different actions.