The Avadhoota Gita: by Dattatreya

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The Avadhoota Gita

By Dattatreya
The Avadhoota Gita
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The Avadhoota Gita
The Avadhoota Gita is writen by Sage Dattatreya. Dattatreya is regarded by
many as the foremost incarnation. He was the combined incarnation of
Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. His narration was recorded by his two decipes
Swami and !arti"a. #t is undoubtedy one of the ancient most Hinhu
Scriptures. Dattatreya beonged to the ancient Vedic period as there is a
Dattatreya Upanishad in the Atharvaveda. He is definitey before the
$amayana period as it is mentioned that Dattatreya taught the Shoda%
nyasa of Srividya to &ord 'arashurama, who was before &ord $ama. He aso
taught the Asthanga (oga to 'atan)ai, who then wrote the famous 'atan)ai
(oga Sutras. The Avadhoota Gita is regarded by amost a sages as the
greatest treatise on Advaita Vedanta. Some are of the openion that
Dattatreya was the originator of Tantra.
&egends about his birth are many and varied, and the pace he died is
un"nown. #t is stated that he was born on *ednesday, the +,th day of the
-u .oon in the month of .argashirsha, but of year and pace there is no
reiabe information. Schoars specuate it must have been not ess than
/000 B.1, or even earier.
Swami Vive"ananda once said of the Avadhoota Gita, 2.en i"e the one who
wrote this song "eep reigion aive. They have actuay sef%reai3ed4 they
care for nothing, fee nothing done to the body, care not for heat, cod,
danger, or anything. They sit sti en)oying the biss of Brahman.2
The story of Dattatreya is tod in many 'uranas. The story from
.ar"andeya purana, chapter +/, is as foows5
A brahmin named !aushi"a was enchanted by a courtesan and ost his
weath, heath etc. However, his wife, Shandii was faithfu to him. She even
carried him on her shouders to the courtesan2s pace. 6nce, by mista"e,
she stepped on Sage .andavya and the sage cursed both of them to die by
sunrise. Shandii prayed and appeaed that the sun may never rise so that
her husband woud ive. Her prayer was answered and the devas were in an
uproar seeing the word order of time destroyed. They as"ed for the hep of
Anusuya, the wife of sage Atri, to convince Shandii. Anusuya was abe to
convince Shandii on the condition that !aushi"a woud ive on sunrise. #n
appreciation of Anusuya2s intervention, the gods granted her three boons.
She as"ed for her iberation, her husband2s iberation and that the three
gods Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva be born as sons to her. The wishes being
granted, from Sage Atri2s eyes issued a ight and served as the seed for the
divine sons % Soma, Durvasa, and Datta % partia incarnations of Brahma,
Shiva and Vishnu, respectivey.
6ther puranas give different narratives but a invove the attribution of the
name Dattatreya to mean 2Son of sage Atri.2 -or e7ampe, there is a story
is that the gods decided to test the chastity of Anasuya, the wife of the rishi
Atri. So, brahma, Vishnu and Siva went to her posing as handsome men.
However, Atri was not fooed and transformed a three of them into a singe
chid with three heads. This chid is "nown as Dattatreya and is considered
to be an incarnation of a the three gods5 Brahma, Vishnu and .ahesha.
At birth, Dattatreya oo"ed i"e a we%deveoped chid of three or four
years. $ight after his birth, he tod his mother, 2# am eaving home.2 She
The Avadhoota Gita
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tod him to at east wear a angoti, a oincoth. He said that he did not need
one5 2# wi ive )ust as # have come.2 And he spent his whoe ife as an
avadhoota. He initiated thousands of peope. 8ven whie on the move, he
woud ma"e discipes, give mantra di"sha, wor" for their deiverance,
without any discrimination according to reigion, caste, se7 or conduct. He
spent most of his ife wandering in the area between and incuding 9orth
.ysore, through .aharashtra, and into Gu)arat as far as the 9armada
$iver. 6ne scripture refers to a discipe finding Datta meditating on
Gandhmadana .ountain. He attained reaisation at a pace not far from the
town now "nown as Gangapur.
He is said to have ived a rather unconventiona ife, first being a warrior,
then renouncing the word and practicising yoga and then drin"ing wine
and iving with a maiden etc to show his discipes that he coud be
unattached to such mundane peasures even if he induges in them.
Dattatreya is said to have met Shan"ara near !edarnath before Shan"ara2s
mahasamadhi. There is a sti a cave in !edarnath signifying this event.
Apart from Avadhuta Gita, he aso composed the :ivanmu"ta %gita which is
a short compendium of ;< verses which ta"s about the )nani =)ivan
mu"ta>, a tantri" te7t "nown as Haritayana Samhita and Dattatreya
Tantra.
Dattatreya is aso mentioned in the .ahabharata, in the (agyava"ya
?panishad, :abaa ?panishad, 9arada%'arivra)a ?panishad, Bhi"shu
?panishad ans Shandiya ?panishad. The Vaishnavites hod him in high
esteem since he is mentioned as a incarnation of vishnu. Dattatreya is the
narrator of the :nana !anda of tripura rahasya to 'arasurama to dispe the
atter2s doubts on iberation. This contains the famous Shodanyasa of Devi.
=The story of Samvrata found in tripura rahasya has been cited by shan"ara
in his brahma suutra bhashya>.
Dattatreya is usuay depicted with four dogs by his side, representing the
four vedas, a cow behind him representing &ord Vishnu, a trident in his
hand representing &ord Shiva and three heads representing &ord Brahma.
The Avadhoota Gita
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1hapter +
+. Through the grace of God aone, the desire for nonduaity
arises in wise men to save them from great fear.
9onduaity % monistic 1onsciousness, in which the "nower, "nowedge,
and "nowabe % sou and God % become one4 the highest reai3ation
of Divinity.
-ear % The word @fear@ incudes aso such states of mind as insecurity,
despair, and grief, a of which arise from a consciousness of onesef as
imited and separate from others and which therefore can be dispeed
ony by reai3ing onesef as the A.
;. How sha # saute the formess Being, indivisibe, auspicious and
immutabe, who fis a this with His Sef and aso fis the sef
with His SefA
Saute % 9o form of greeting or worship is possibe where there is no
consciousness of distinction.
-is, etc. % The reaity and substance of the so%caed individua sef
is the Divine Sef.
<. The universe composed of the five eements is i"e water etc.
in a mirage. 6h, to whom sha # ma"e obeisance %
# who am one and taintessA
-ive eements% earth, water, fire, air, and ether.
According to most phiosophica systems of #ndia, these combine
to constitute the phenomena universe and are derived from God
associated with maya or ignorance.
The terms are not to be ta"en iteray.
Taintess % untouched by the sightest ignorance
and hence absoutey pure. The word is often
appied to the Sef and God.
,. A is veriy the absoute Sef.
Distinction and nondistinction do not e7ist.
How can # say, @#t e7ists4 it does not e7ist@A
# am fied with wonderB
#t % the universe.
/. The essence and the whoe of Vedanta is this !nowedge,
this supreme !nowedge5
That # am by nature the formess, a%pervasive Sef.
C. There is no doubt that # am that God who is the Sef of a4
'ure, indivisibe, i"e the s"y.
9aturay stainess.
D. # indeed am immutabe and infinite %
of the form of pure #nteigence.
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# do not "now how or in reation to whom
)oy and sorrow e7ist.
E. # have no menta activity, good of bad4
# have no bodiy function, good or bad4
# have no verba action, good or bad.
# am the nectar of !nowedge %
beyond the senses, pure.
F. The mind indeed is of the form of space.
The mind indeed is omnifaced.
The mind is the past.
The mind is a.
But in reaity there is no mind.
A % the phenomena universe %
incuding a time and space % cosmos.
#n reaity % #n the highest reai3ation of the Spirit there is no mind.
+0. #, the 6ne ony, am a this, beyond space and continuous.
How can # see the Sef as visibe or hiddenA
1ontinuous % without the intervention of another substance4
Therefore homogeneous and undifferentiated.
Hidden % The Guestion of the Sef as being hidden or visibe
does not arise when one onesef is that Sef.
++. Thus you are 6ne. *hy then do you not understand %
that you are the unchangeabe 6ne, eGuay perceived in aA
6 mighty 6ne, how can you, who are ever%shining, unrestricted,
thin" of day and nightA
(ou % Dattatreya now addresses the discipe to whom he is imparting
the highest truth.
9ight % There can be no perception of any time or condition in perfect
Sef%reai3ation.
+;. !now the Sef aways to be everywhere, one and unintercepted.
# am the meditator and the highest ob)ect of meditation.
*hy do you divide the #ndivisibeA
?nintercepted % See note on @1ontinuous,@ verse +0.
Divide, etc. % 8ven the act of meditation is an e7pression of ignorance
because it impies duaity.
+<. (ou are not born nor do you die.
At no time do you have a body.
The scripture decares in many different ways %
the we%"nown dictum5 @A is Brahman.@
+,. (ou are He who is e7terior and interior.
(ou are the auspicious 6ne e7isting everywhere at a times.
*hy are you running hither and thither deuded, i"e an uncean spiritA
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+/. ?nion and separation e7ist in regard neither to you nor to me.
There is no you, no me, nor is there this universe.
A is veriy the Sef aone.
+C. (ou do not beong to that which is composed of the five ob)ects
of sense, such as sound4 nor does that beong to you.
(ou indeed are the supreme $eaity.
*hy then do you sufferA
-ive. % The word appearance is composed of the five ob)ects of sense5
sight, sound, touch, taste, and sme, and is not in reaity connected
with the Sef.
+D. -or you there is no birth or death, for you there is no mind,
for you there is no bondage or iberation, no good or evi.
*hy do you shed tears, my chidA
9either you nor # have name and form.
+E. 6h mind, why do you wander about deuded, i"e an uncean spiritA
Behod the Sef indivisibe.
Be happy through renunciation of attachment.
+F. (ou veriy are Truth, devoid of change, motioness, one,
of the nature of freedom.
(ou have neither attachment nor aversion .
*hy do you suffer, see"ing the ob)ects of desiresA
;0. A the scriptures say that the Truth is without attributes, pure,
immutabe, bodiess, and e7isting eGuay everywhere.
!now me to be That.
;+. !now that which has form to be fase, that which is formess
to be eterna.
Through the instruction of this truth there is no onger rebirth
into this word.
9o onger, etc. % !nowing onesef as eterna,
one is not born into this word anymore, since incarnation is caused
ony by the sou2s ignorance of its true nature.
(et et it be "nown that some return for compassion2s sa"e whie
yet "nowing the absoute.
;;. Sages say that $eaity is one ony and the same.
And through renunciation of attachment, the mind, which is one and many,
ceases to e7ist.
6ne and many % @one@ in a high =but not the highest> state of iumination,
@many@ in the state of ignorance.
;<. #f it is of the nature of the not%Sef,
how can there be SamahdiA
#f it is of the nature of the Sef, how can there be SamahdiA
#f it is both @is@ and @is not@, how can there be SamahdiA
#f a is one and of the nature of freedom,
how can there be SamahdiA
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#t % inconscientousness or true reai3ation.
Samahdi % the absorption of the mind in the absoute Brahman,
as a resut of which the eterna Truth is reai3ed.
Dattatreya maintains that the practice of Samahdi has no )ustification.
#f the universe of our e7perience is the not%Sef, then the true @#@ is not
in the state of Samahdi, for Truth is not there.
#f our e7perience is of the Sef, then Samahdi is superfuous.
How can The Sef then be in SamahdiA
;,. (ou are pure homogeneous $eaity, disembodied, unborn,
and immutabe.
*hy do you thin" of yoursef as @# "now it here@ or as @# do not "now@A
@# "now it here@, etc. % 6ur "nowedge of our Sef in this earthy state is
incorrect. To maintain that we do not have any true "nowedge of
our Sef here is aso incorrect.
;/. By such sentences as @That thou art,@ our own Sef is affirmed.
6f that which is untrue and composed of the five eements %
the Sruti =scripture> says, @9ot this, not this.@ =9eti 9eti>
That, etc. % the phenomena e7istence as we as the un"nowabe.
-ive eements % earth, water, fire, air, and ether, of which, according
to the #ndian systems of phiosophy the whoe reative e7istence is
constituted. See verse <.
Sruti % the Vedas, particuary the ?panishads, the origina te7ts
of the Vedanta phiosophy.
;C. As the sef is fied by the Sef, so is a fied continuousy by you.
There is no meditator or meditation.
*hy does your mind meditate shameessyA
Shameessy % 6ne shoud be ashamed to meditate,
because meditation pre%supposes a shamefu forgetfuness
of one2s true nature.
#f one does not "now The Sef meditation is the way to reai3ation.
After reai3ation one wi cease to meditate.
;D. # do not "now the Supreme4 how sha # spea" of HimA
# do not "now the Supreme how sha # worship HimA
#f # am the supreme 6ne, who is the highest Truth,
who is homogeneous Being and i"e unto space,
how then sha # spea" of Him and worship HimA
!now, etc. % 8mpirica "nowedge beongs to a ower state
in which the Supreme cannot be perceived4
therefore one cannot spea" of @"nowing@ the Supreme.
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#f # am the supreme, how can # see mysefA
1an the eye see the eyeA
;E. The principe of ego is not the Truth, which is homogeneous,
which is free from the cause of superimposition and distinctions of
perceived and perceiver.
How can the ego be That which is aware of #tsefA
;F. There is no substance whatever which is by nature unimited.
There is no substance whatever which is of the nature of $eaity.
The very Sef is the supreme Truth. There is neither
in)ury nor non in)ury in #t.
Substance % reative reaity.
<0. (ou are the homogeneous $eaity4
you are pure, bodiess, birthess, and imperishabe.
*hy then do you have any deusion about the SefA
Again, why am # mysef deudedA
<+. *hen the pot is bro"en,
the space within it is absorbed in the infinite space
and becomes undifferentiated.
*hen the mind becomes pure,
# do not perceive any difference between the
mind and the supreme Being.
<;. There is no pot4 there is no pot2s interior space.
9either is there an individua sou nor the form of an individua sou.
!now the absoute Brahman, devoid of "nowabe and "nower.
<<. !now me to be that Sef who is everything and everywhere
at a times, the one who is eterna, steady, the A, the none7istent,
and the 87istent.
Have no doubt.
9one7istent % the phenomena aspect of being, which has
now disappeared.
<,. There are no Vedas, no words, no gods, no sacrifices.
There is certainy no caste, no stage in ife, no famiy, no birth.
There is neither the path of smo"e nor the path of ight.
There is ony the highest Truth, the homogeneous Brahman.
Stage in ife % any of the four stages into which ife is divided
by the Hindus, namey, those of the student, the househoder,
the contempative, and the mendicant.
The path of smo"e, etc. % the two paths aong which %
according to Hinduism, sous trave to the invisibe words
after death.
</. #f you are free of the pervaded and pervader, if you are one
and fufied, how can you thin" of yoursef as directy perceptibe
by the senses or beyond the range of the sensesA
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-ree, etc. % one who has transcended the sense of distinction
between forms =@pervaded@> and the Divine Substance =@pervader@>.
Such a one, therefore, has constant, unobstructed consciousness of
Divinity.
Such a one has the dua reai3ation of form and formess.
Directy % that is to say, in the manner in which the unenightened
perceives by the sense.
#n the highest state of reai3ation, sense perception is no onger
distinguishabe from spiritua intuition.
<C. Some see" nonduaity, others duaity.
They do not "now the Truth, which is the same at a times and everywhere,
which is devoid of both duaity and nonduaity.
<D. How can they describe the Truth, which is beyond mind and words,
which is devoid of white and other coours, of sound and other GuaitiesA
<E. *hen a these appear to you as fase, when the body and so on
appear to you i"e space, then you "now Brahman truy, then for you
there is no dua series.
Dua series % such as @# and Thou@ =sef and God>, @# and it@ =sef and the word>,
and so on. Aso it means @Sef and not%Sef@ and the series of their evoutes.
<F. 8ven my natura sef appears to me as non%distinct
from the supreme Sef4 it appears to be one and i"e space.
How can there be meditator and meditationA
,0. *hat # do, what # eat, what # sacrifice, what # give %
a this is not mine in the east. # am pure, unborn, undecaying.
,+. !now a this universe to be formess.
!now a this universe to be without change.
!now a this universe to be of purified body.
!now a this universe to be of the nature of the Absoute.
6f purified body % That is to say, the materia substance
of which the universe appears to be constituted
is reay nothing but pure SpiritH1onsciousness.
,;. (ou are veriy the Truth.
There is no doubt about it % otherwise, what do # "nowA
*hy do you consider the Sef, which is perceptibe to #tsef,
as imperceptibeA
6therwise % #f one does not perceive every being as The Sef,
one is sti ignorant.
,<. .y chid, how can there be iusion and non iusion,
shadow and ac" of shadowA
A this is one Truth, a this is of the nature of space
and without taint.
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,,. # am free in the beginning, in the midde, and in the end.
# am never bound. This is my sure "nowedge %
that # am naturay spotess and pure.
,/. The whoe universe, beginning with the principe of cosmic
inteigence, is not in the east manifest to me.
A is indeed Brahman aone.
How can there be any e7istence in cast or stage of ife for meA
,C. # "now that a, in every way, is the one indivisibe @#@
which is sef%sustained and fu, whie the five eements,
beginning with ether, are empty.
,D. The Sef is neither eunuch, man, nor woman5
it is neither idea nor imagination.
How can you thin" the Sef to be fu of )oy or )oyessA
-u of )oy % Here @)oy@ is used in the sense of reative )oy
as perceived by the senses and the mind.
:oyess % Here the reference is to transcendenta :oy.
,E. The Sef certainy does not become pure through the practice
of si7%imbed yoga.
#t certainy is not purified by the destruction of the mind.
#t certainy is not made pure by the instructions of the teacher.
#t is #tsef the Truth.
#t is #tsef the iumined 6ne.
Si7%imbed % consisting of si7 parts or steps, namey, posture,
contro of the vita force, sef% withdrawa, concentration,
meditation, and Samahdi.
,F. There is no body made up of five eements4
nor is there anyone who is disembodied.
A is veriy the Sef aone.
How can there be the three states and the fourthA
-ive eements % See verses < and ;/.
Anyone, etc. % *hen the pure Sef is spo"en of as disembodied,
the idea of body is associated with #t, though negativey.
A such Guaifications of the Sef =or Sou> are denied in this as we
as in other verses.
Three states, etc. % the wa"ing state, the dream state, and the deep
seep state5 the ordinary conditions of individuas when they are
ignorant of their true nature, which is usuay caed the fourth
or transcendenta state.
To name the transcendenta state as the fourth is itsef an error,
as such a designation, which ma"es it a correative of the other
three states, is inappicabe to the absoute Sef.
/0. # am not bound, # am not, indeed, iberated %
# am not different from Brahman.
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9either doer nor en)oyer %
# am devoid of the distinctions of the pervaded
and the pervader.
&iberated % The Sef cannot be @iberated@, since it was never bound.
'ervaded, etc. % The Sans"rit words for pervaded and pervader
are vyapya and vyapa"a, meaning the particuar and the universa.
The particuar is pervaded by or constituted of the universa.
The Sef can be neither particuar nor universa, as both these
designations impy distinction, division, and imitation.
/+. As water, when water has been poured into water, has
no distinctions, so purusa and pra"rti appear nondifferent to me.
'urusa, etc. % 'urusa5 Sou. 'ra"rti5 1osmos. 6rdinariy considered
to be opposite principes, conscious and unconscious,
they are here recogni3ed as identica in the highest spiritua e7perience.
/;. #f indeed you are never bound or iberated,
how then can you thin" yoursef with form or as formessA
*ith form, etc. % The Sef, of course, is without form,
but saying so impies recognition of form4
therefore even the idea of the formessness
of the Sef is repudiated.
/<. # "now your supreme -orm to be directy perceivabe, i"e the s"y.
# "now your ower form to be as water in a mirage.
&i"e the s"y % without division or distinction, with%out change.
&ower, etc. % apparent form
/,. # have neither teacher nor instruction, imiting ad)unct nor activity.
!now that # am by nature pure, homogenous, bodiess, i"e the s"y.
&imiting, etc. % any Guaification.
//. (ou are pure, you are without a body,
your mind is not higher than the highest.
(ou need not be ashamed to say,
@ # am the Sef, the supreme Truth.@
.ind, etc. % The mind is not the Sef.
/C. *hy are you weeping, 6 mindA
Do you the Sef, be the Sef by means of the Sef.
Drin", my chid, the supreme nectar of 9onduaity,
transcending a divisions.
.eans, etc. % 6ne cannot attain to Sef % "nowedge
e7cept through the Sef itsef.
How can the mind, which is not% Sef, revea the SefA
/D. There is neither "nowedge nor ignorance
nor "nowedge combined with ignorance.
He who has aways such "nowedge is himsef !nowedge.
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#t is never otherwise.
!nowedge % The Absoute is spo"en of as 87istence,
!nowedge, and Biss.
/E. There is no need of "nowedge, reasoning, time, space,
instruction from a teacher, or attainment of Samahdi.
# am naturay the perfect 1onsciousness, the $ea, i"e the s"y,
Spontaneous and steady.
Samahdi % See verse ;<. Dattatreya maintains
that the practice of Samahdi is not necessary
because, according to him, the Sef has never been bound
and hence does not reGuire to practice anything
to gain "nowedge of #tsef.
The Sef, which is 1onsciousness #tsef,
can never ose consciousness of #ts true nature
and therefore Samahdi is superfuous.
/F. # was not born nor have # death. # have no action, good or evi.
# am Brahman, stainess, without Guaities.
How can there be bondage or iberation for meA
C0. #f God pervades a, if God is immovabe, fu, undivided,
then # see no division.
How can He have e7terior or interiorA
How, etc. % 87terior or interior cannot be spo"en of
He is indivisibe and infinite.
C+. The whoe universe shines undivided and unbro"en.
6h, the maya, the great deusion % the imagination
of duaity and nonduaityB
.aya % ignorance.
C;. Aways @not this, not this@ to both the formess and the formed.
6ny the Absoute e7ists, transcending difference and non difference.
@9ot this@, etc. % 9o formed or formess ob)ect can be considered
to be the utimate $eaity.
C<. (ou have no mother, no father, no wife, no son, no reative, no friend.
(ou have no i"es or disi"es.
*hy is this anguish in your mindA
C,. 6 mind, for you there is no day or night, rising or setting.
How can the wise imagine an embodied state for the bodiessA
C/. The Sef is neither divided nor undivided %
nor has #t sadness, happiness, and the i"e,
nor is #t a or ess than a.
!now the Sef to be immutabe.
CC. # am not the doer or en)oyer.
*or" have # none, now or formery.
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# have no body nor am # bodiess.
How can # have or not have a sense of @my%ness@A
CD. # have no faut such as passion and the i"e %
nor have # any sorrow arising from the body.
!now me to be the one Sef, vast and i"e the s"y.
CE. -riend mind, of what use is much vain ta"A
-riend mind, a this is mere con)ecture.
# have tod you that which is the essence5
(ou indeed are the Truth, i"e the s"y.
A, etc. % *ords and ideas, being finite and reated to finite ob)ects,
can never revea Truth competey.
CF. #n whatever pace yogis die, in whatever state,
there they dissove, as the space of a )ar dissoves into the s"y.
Dissove, etc. % become identified with the Sef.
D0. Giving up the body in a hoy pace or in the house of a candaa,
the yogi, even if he has ost consciousness, becomes identified
with the Absoute as soon as he is free of the body.
1andaa % one beonging to the owest stratum %
considered uncean and impure % of Hindu society.
&ost, etc. % that is to say, apparenty so.
The inward awareness of the yogi can never be couded.
D+. The yogis consider duty in ife, pursuit of weath, en)oyment of ove,
iberation, and everything movabe or immovabe such as man and so on
to be a mirage.
D;. This is my certain perception5
# neither perform nor en)oy past action, future action,
or present action.
D<. The avadhuta aone, pure in evenness of feeing,
abides happy in an empty dweing pace.
Having renounced a, he moves about na"ed.
He perceives the Absoute, the A, within himsef.
Avadhuta % a iberated sou, one who has @passed away from@
or @sha"en off@ a wordy attachments and cares,
and has reai3ed his identity with God.
D,. *here there are neither the three states of consciousness
nor the fourth, there one attains the Absoute in the Sef.
How is it possibe to be bound or free %
where there is neither virtue nor viceA
D/. The avadhuta never "nows any mantra in Vedic metre nor any tantra.
This is the supreme utterance of the avadhuta, purified by meditation
and merged in the sameness of infinite Being.
.antra % a hymn or a sacred prayer.
The Avadhoota Gita
14
Tantra % system of rites and ceremonies.
This % the truth as enunciated in the whoe discourse.
DC. There e7ists neither compete void nor voidessness,
neither truth nor untruths of the scriptures,
has uttered this spontaneousy from his own nature.
Truth % 1ompete Truth does not e7ist in the pane of reative e7istence.
Chapter 2
+. 6f the teacher%even if he be young iiterate, or addicted to the
en)oyment of sense ob)ects, even if he be a servant or a househoder
%none of these shoud be considered. Does anyone shun a gem that
has faen in an impure paceA
#iterate here refers to one who is not versed in the scriptures.
Addicted =apparenty so.>
;. #n such a case one shoud not consider even the Guaity
of schoarship. A wordy person shoud recogni3e ony the essence.
Does not a boat. though devoid of beauty and vermiion paint
nevertheess ferry passengersA
8ssence,etc.% The essentia Guaification of the teacher
is not inteectua immanence, but capacity to impart
spiritua iumination.
<. The unmoving 6ne, who without effort
possesses a that is movabe and immovabe, is
consciousness, naturay cam, i"e the s"y.
,. How can He, the 6ne and A%pervading,
who moves effortessy a that is movabe and immovabe,
be differentiatedB To me He is nondua.
/. # am veriy supreme since # am the Absoute,
more essentia than a essences,
since # am free from birth and death,
cam and undifferentiated.
C. Thus #, free from a components,
am worshipped by the gods, but
being fu and perfect,
# do not recogni3e any distinctions such as gods and the i"e.
-ree, etc.%not made up of parts4 indivisibe.
*orshipped, etc.%because the true Sef is the highest Divinity.
$ecogni3e, etc.%#n the highest spiritua reai3ation
no distinctions and differences are perceived.
D. #gnorance does not create any doubt. *hat sha # do, being endowed
with modifications of the mindA
The Avadhoota Gita
15
They arise and dissove i"e bubbes in water.
#gnorance, etc.%The man of the highest spiritua perception,
after reai3ing his Divine identity, may ive on the reative pane
and thus appear enveoped by ignorance, but even then he is never
unaware of his Divinity.
*hat, etc.%Thought the man of highest spiritua perception appears to thin",
wi, etc., yet, as the pure witness,
he remains competey separate from menta activities.
E. Thus am # ever pervading a e7istence beginning with cosmic
inteigence%pervading soft, hard, sweet, and pungent substances.
F. As pungency, codness, or softness is nondifferent from water,
so pra"rti is nondifferent from purusa%thus it appears to me.
'ra"rti%nature4 reative e7istence.
'urusa%spirit, the Absoute.
+0. The &ord of the universe is devoid of a names. He is subter than
the subtest, supreme, He is spotess,
beyond the senses, mind, and inteect.
&ord, etc.%the Sef.
++. *here there is such a natura Being, how can there be @#@, how can
there be even @you@, how can there be the wordA
9atura%e7isting in its natura =i.e., pure> state.
+;. That which has been described as being i"e ether is indeed
&i"e ether. That is 1onsciousness%bameess, omniscient, and perfect.
+<. #t does not move about on the earth or dwe in fire. #t is not
bown by the wind or covered by water.
+,. Space is pervaded by #t, but #t is not pervaded by anything.
#t is e7isting within and without. #t is undivided and continuous.
+/. 6ne shoud successivey ta"e recourse to the ob)ects of
concentration, as mentioned by the yogis,
in accordance with their subtety, invisibiity,
and attributeessness.
Ta"e, etc.%#n order to attain to the Absoute =or dissoution in the
Absoute, as is said in the ne7t verse>, one has to reach the state
of infinite and undifferentiated 1onsciousness by eiminating a menta
differentiation or movements.
The method of this eimination is to ma"e consciousness dwe on one
ob)ect continuousy by obstructing its restess tendency to dwe on
mutifarious ob)ects.
But the ob)ect of concentration has to be chosen carefuy.
The beginner chooses a gross ob)ect.
The Avadhoota Gita
16
*hen he has dwet on it continuousy for some time, his consciousness
becomes subte and steady.
He then chooses a subte ob)ect to concentrate on.
Graduay he reaches a high state of concentration, but some differentiations
in his consciousness sti remain%there is the consciousness of himsef as
the concentrator, of the ob)ect on which he is concentrating, and of the
process of concentration. 9e7t even these differentiations vanish.
-or the ob)ect of concentration dissoves, and there remains ony the pure,
undifferentiated 1onsciousness, the Absoute.
+C. *hen through constant practice one2s concentration becomes ob)ectess,
then, being divested of merits and demerits, one attains the state of
compete dissoution in the Absoute through the dissoution of the ob)ect
of concentration, but not before then.
+D. -or the destruction of the terribe poisonous universe, which
produces the unconsciousness of deusion, there is but one infaibe
remedy%the nectar of naturaness.
?nconsciousness, etc.%deusion which ma"es one unconscious of the Divine
$eaity.
9aturaness%the state of pure 87istence4 Divine #dentity.
+E. That which has form is visibe to the eye, whie the formess is perceived
mentay. That =the Sef>, being beyond e7istence and non%e7istence,
is caed intermediate.
#ntermediate%neither materia nor menta, i.e., beyond both.
+F. The e7terna e7istence is the universe, the inner e7istence is
caed pra"rti. 6ne shoud try to "now That which is more interior
than the inner e7istence, That which is i"e water within the "erne
of the coconut.
'ra"rti%in its subte aspects5 cosmic inteigence, cosmic mind, etc.
;0. #usory "nowedge reates to what is outside, correct "nowedge to
what is inside. Try to "now That which is more interior than the inside,
That which is i"e water within the "erne of the coconut.
;+. There is ony one very cear moon on the fu moon night. 6ne shoud
perceive That =the Sef> i"e the moon seeing duaity is perversion.
;;. #t is indeed in this way that inteigence becomes divided and ceases
to be a%comprehending. A giver attains to wisdom and is sung with
miions of names.
This, etc.%by seeing duaity =aso, of course, puraity>.
Divided%perceiving many ob)ects separated from one another, as in
ordinary e7perience. #nteigence shoud, if it is not couded with
ignorance, perceive ony unity%the whoe of $eaity%at once.
The Avadhoota Gita
17
Such perception, according to Vedanta, is the ony true perception of $eaity.
Giver%ma"er of charity.
The second part of this verse, and, as a matter of fact, the whoe verse,
is a itte obscure. 6ur transation of the second part is itera.
The probabe meaning is5 *hen a person gives away a attachment thereby
attaining perfect renunciation, being free of a grasping he attains
the "nowedge of the Sef.
The Sans"rit data for the word @giver@ aso means teacher.
;<. *hoever, whether he be ignorant or earned, attains to the fu
awareness of Truth through the grace of a teacher2s wisdom, becomes
detached from the ocean of wordiness.
#gnorant%devoid of schoarship. =earned in the scriptures>
;,. He who is free from attachment and hatred, devoted to the good of
a beings, fi7ed in "nowedge and steady sha attain to the supreme state.
;/. As the space within a pot dissoves in the universa space when the
pot is bro"en, so a yogi, in the absence of the body, dissoves into the
supreme Sef, which is his true being.
;C. #t has been said that the destiny of those devoted to action is the
same as their thought at the end, but it has not been said that the destiny
of those estabished in yoga is the same as their thought at the end.
8nd%the dying moment.
The beief in #ndia, ceary e7pressed in the Bagavad Gita, is that the
ast thought in the mind of the dying person indicates the nature of his
future e7istence.
This is not true, however, of one who has attained to the "nowedge of the
Sef.
;D. 6ne may e7press the destiny of those devoted to action with the
organ of speech, but the destiny of the yogis can never be e7pressed,
because it is transcendenta
;E. !nowing this, one never says that the yogis have any particuar
path. -or them it is the giving up of a duaity, The supreme
attainment comes of itsef.
'articuar, etc.%Departing sous reach their destined words foowing
either pitr%yana, the path of the fathers or deva%yana, the path of the
gods.
The yogi, after death, does not trave aong any path having aready
attained the Highest, which has nothing to do with any particuar pace
or time, he has no word to reach.
Supreme, etc.%The supreme Truth which the yogi attains after transcending
The Avadhoota Gita
18
a duaity is ever present, eterna, and absoute, so cannot be spo"en of
in terms of reative e7istence or reative truth.
*hen the sense of duaity is destroyed, this Truth at once reveas itsef,
even as the sun is seen shining when couds disperse.
;F. The yogi, having died anywhere, in a hoy pace or in the house of
an untouchabe, does not see the mother2s womb again%he is dissoved in
the supreme Brahman.
?ntouchabe%#n #ndia because of the cast system, there is a cass of peope
caed untouchabe because they are considered impure.
Does not, etc.%is not reborn.
<0. He who has seen his true Sef, which is innate, unborn, and
incomprehensibe, does not, if anything desired happens to him,
become tainted. Being free from taint, he never performs any action.
The man of sef%restraint or the ascetic, therefore, is never bound.
Desired, etc.%ony apparenty desired by him who possesses Sef%"nowedge.
*hen one has attained to the "nowedge of the Sef one may sti continue to
ive in the body and appear to be activey see"ing desired ob)ects.
This, however, is ony in sembance.
Being free from the taint of ignorance, which ma"es the average man see"
desirabe ob)ects and avoid undesirabe ones, he is reay inactive.
<+. He attains to the supreme Sef, who is eterna, pure, fearess,
formess, and supportess, who is without body, without desire, beyond
the pairs of opposites, free from iusion and of undiminished power.
'airs, etc.%such as heat and cod, pain and peasure, ignorance and "nowedge,
ife and death, which are a reative.
<;. He attains to the supreme, eterna Sef, in whom e7ists no Veda, no
initiation, no tonsure, no teacher, no discipe, no perfection of symboic
figures, no hand%posture or anything ese.
Symboic, etc.%#n rituaistic worship geometrica figures drawn on meta,
stone, etc., are sometimes used as symbos of Divinity.
Hand%posture%caed mudra, used as art of rituaistic worship.
<<. He attains to the supreme, eterna Sef, in whom is neither
sambhavi, nor sa"ti, nor anavi initiation4
neither a sphere, nor an image, nor a foot, nor anything ese4
neither beginning, nor ending, nor a )ar, etc.
Sambhavi, etc.%Tantri"a te7ts spea" of three "inds of initiation.
Sambhavi initiation, which is very rare, is that in which the teacher
by a mere word, oo", touch, or by wi imparts the highest "nowedge
of God to the discipe instanty.
Sa"ti initiation is that in which the teacher instis into the discipe a
The Avadhoota Gita
19
great spiritua power which wi of itsef, within a reasonabe time, bring
about the discipe2s spiritua emancipation. The discipe does not have to
e7ert himsef for this reai3ation. Such initiation aso is e7ceptiona.
Anavi or mantri initiation is that in which the teacher, on an auspicious day,
instructs the discipe concerning the method of spiritua practice he shoud
foow,
gives him a word or a phrase =caed mantra> to repeat, and offers other
necessary
instructions.
The discipe must practice according to these instructions
to gain spiritua "nowedge.
Sphere%a round symbo made of stone, etc.
-oot% Sometimes either an image of a foot or a footprint is used
as a symbo of worship.
Beginning, etc.%ceremonia beginning and ending of worship.
:ar%Sometimes a )ar fied with water is used as a symbo of the
a%pervading Divinity.
<,. He attains to the supreme, eterna Sef, from whose essence the
universe of movabe and immovabe ob)ects is born, in whom it rests,
and into whom it dissoves, even as foam and bubbes are born of the
transformation of water.
</. He attains to the supreme, eterna Sef, in whom is no cosing of
nostri nor ga3ing nor posture, and in whom is neither "nowedge nor
ignorance nor any nerve%current.
1osing, etc.%#n the practice of pranayama or breath contro,
each nostri in turn is cosed with a finer in order to breathe
ony with the other nostri.
Ga3ing%fi7ing the eyes on a certain point to induce concentration.
'osture%a particuar way of sitting which aows the body to be most
comfortabe and yet conduces to the practice of menta concentration.
9erve%current%The reference is to the three nerves mentioned in (oga
te7ts%ida, pingaa and susumna aong which thought%currents are made
to fow in order to reai3e higher states of consciousness.
<C. He attains to the supreme, eterna Sef, who is devoid of
manifodness, oneness, many%and%oneness, and otherness4
who is devoid of minuteness, ength, argeness, and nothingness4
who is devoid of "nowedge, "nowabeness, and sameness.
<D. He attains the supreme, eterna Sef whether he has perfect
sef%contro or not, whether he has withdrawn his senses we or not,
whether he has gone beyond activity or is active.
Has, etc.%whether he appears to have sef%contro or not.
The Avadhoota Gita
20
<E. He attains the supreme, eterna Sef who is not mind, inteigence, body,
senses, or egoism4 who is neither the subte eements nor the five gross
eements nor of the nature of space.
<F. *hen in)unctions cease and the yogi attains to the supreme Sef,
his mind being void of differentiations, he has neither purity nor impurity4
his contempation is without distinguishing attributes4
and even what is usuay prohibited is permissibe to him.
#n)unctions%prescriptions given by the scriptures to a spiritua aspirant
in regard to what he shoud practice.
The yogi who has attained to the Highest is beyond the need of such
prescriptions.
1ontempation, etc.%The spiritua aspirant is prohibited from doing
certain things, )ust as he is en)oined to do other things4
but upon attaining the Highest he goes beyond a in)unctions
and prohibitions.
$eai3ing himsef as the Absoute, he may act in even an apparenty
evi way, )ust as God does some apparenty evi things in His creation.
,0. *here mind and speech can utter nothing, how can there be
instruction by a teacherA To the teacher%ever united with Brahman
who has said these words, the homogeneous Truth shines out.
Chapter 3
+. The distinction of Guaity and absence of Guaity
does not e7ist in the east. How sha # worship Siva The Absoute
who is devoid of attachment and detachment
who is of the form of ether, omniform, beyond iusion
and a pervadingA
This Siva coud then be said to be i"e space, or void
yet beyond both.
;. Siva =The Absoute> is ever without white and other coors.
This effect and cause are aso The Supreme Siva.
# am thus the pure Siva, Devoid of a doubt.
6h beoved friend, how sha # bow to The Sef in mysefA
#n that # do not e7ist in reaity, # mysef, am no Sef
yet there is awareness of Sef as awareness in itsef
# am thus nothing at a but pure consciousness
e7isting as awareness. But the evidence of my e7istence
is not "nown unti there is consciousness.
The ob)ective 1osmos, is nothing at a
yet when @#@, =as awareness> become aware of the consciousness
There is then the 1osmos, e7isting in awareness.
The Avadhoota Gita
21
Here it can be seen, that the 1osmos and 1onsciousness
are non%different because a that is "nowabe as e7isting
in 1osmos is "nown to e7ist ony by The 1onsciousness.
However, 'ure Awareness e7ists in itsef of itsef.
there is no ob)ect there, thus it is non%differentiated infnity.
Time then and with it space, are transcended.
<. # am devoid of root and rootessness
and am ever manifest. # am devoid of smo"e and
smo"eessness and am ever manifest. # am devoid of ight
and the absence of ight and am ever manifest.
# am the nectar of "nowedge,
homogenous e7istence i"e the s"y.
Because # e7ist, that which is "nowabe is "nown4
the "nowabe being that which 1onsciousness is conscious of
can ony be "nown in the awareness .
This is not to say that there is a "nower who "nows
But that there is awareness that "nows the consciousness
as we as "nowing the "nower at the same time.
The "nown being "nown ony in the awarenes, by 1onsciousness
cannot otherwise be "nown or said to e7ist at a.
The "nown therefore depends upon the fact that
awareness is aware of that of which the mind is conscious.
,. How sha # spea" of desireessness and desireA
How sha # spea" of non%attachment and attachmentA
How sha # spea" of Him as devoid of substance
and insubstantiaityA
homogenous e7istence, i"e the s"y.
Because the "nowedge of a that e7ists,
depends upon the pre%e7istence of a consciousness
which can come to "now the "nown, even the "nowing
consciousness is preceeded by 'ure Awareness.
Thus it foows that # am the source of e7istence
yet in mysef # am without form, yet a form fows from me4
as does the e7istence of the consciousness.
/. How sha i spea" of the whoe, which is non%duaA
How sha i spea" of the whoe
which is of the nature of duaityA
How sha # spea" of the whoe, which is eterna
and non%eternaA # am the nectar of "nowedge,
homogenous e7istence i"e the s"y.
C. #t is neither gross nor subte. #t has neither
come nor gone. #t is without beginning, midde and end.
#t is neither high nor ow.
# am truy decaring the highest reaity %
The Avadhoota Gita
22
D. !now a instruments of perception to be
i"e etherea space. !now a of perception to be
i"e etherea space. !now this pure one as neither bound
nor free. # am the nectar of "nowedge,
E. .y chid, # am not difficut to comprehend,
nor am i hidden in consciousness.
.y chid, # am not difficut to perceive,
nor am # hidden in the perceptibe.
.y chid, # am not hidden in the forms
immediatey near me.
F. # am the fire that burns the "arma of one
who is beyond a "arma. # am the fire that burns
the sorrow of one beyond a sorrow.
# am devoid of body.
+0. # am the fire that burns the sin of one
who is siness. # am the fire that burns
the attributes of one who is without attributes.
# am the fire that burns the bondage of one
who is without bondage.
++. .y chid, # am devoid of non%e7istence
and of e7istence. .y chid, # am not devoid of
unity and the absence of unity.
.y chid # am not devoid of mind and absence of mind.
+;. #t is not my ignorance that the one beyond
#usion seems to be positioned in iusion.
#t is not my ignorance that the griefess
one appears to be positioned in grief.
#t is not my ignorance that the greedess one
appears to be positioned in greed.
There are many many references in scripture to the concepts of which
Dattareya spea"s in this Avadhuta Gita. The above
references are incuded to get the reader started.
+<. The creeper i"e growth of wordy e7istence
is never mine. The )oy of e7tended contentment
is never mine. This bondage of ignorance is never mine.
+,. The activity invoved in the e7tension of reative e7istence
The Avadhoota Gita
23
is not a modification of mysef.
The goom which is the e7pansion of grief
is not a modification of mysef.
The tranGuiity which produces one2s reigious merit
is not a modification of mine.
+/. # have never any action which is the cause
of regret and misery. .ine is never a mind
which is the product of misery.
Since egoism never is mine.
+C. # am the death of the movement of
the unmoving 6ne. # am neither decision nor indecision.
# am the death of seep and wa"efuness.
# am neither good nor evi,
neither moving nor unmoving,
# am neither substance nor insubstantia.
+D. This sef, "nowabe nor the instrument of "nowing.
#t is neither reason nor the one to be reasoned about.
#t is beyond the reach of words.
#t is neither mind nor inteigence.
How can # spea" this truth to youA
+E. The supreme $eaity is devoid of the undivided and the divided.
The supreme truth is in no way within or without.
#t is beyond causation. #t is not attached %
nor is it any substance.
+F. # am veriy the reaity %
free of such bemishes as attachment.
# am veriy the reaity %
free of the grief caused by transmigratory e7istence.
;0. #f there are no three panes of e7istence %
how can there be a fourthA #f there are no three times %
how can there be GuartersA The Supreme reaity
is the state of the highest serenity.
;+. # have no such divisions as ong or short.
# have no such divisions as wide or narrow.
# have no such divisions as anguar or circuar.
The Avadhoota Gita
24
;;. # never had a mother, -ather, Son or the i"e.
# was never born and never did # die.
# never had a mind.
The supreme reaity is undistracted and cam.
;<. # am pure, very pure %
beyond reason and of infinite form.
# am non%attachment and attachment %
# am undivided and divided %
;,. #f the supreme reaity is ony one and stainess
How can there be here and the hosts of gods
beginning with Brahma, and how can there be here%
the words of habitation, such as heavenA
;/. How sha #, the pure 6ne, the @not this @
and yet the not @not this@, spea"A
How sha #, the pure 6ne, The endess and the end, spea"A
How sha #, the pure 6ne, attributeess and attribute, spea"A
;C. # ever perform the supreme action which is non%action.
# am supreme :oy, devoid of attachment and detachment.
# am everasting :oy, devoid of body and absence of body.
;D. The creation of the iusory universe is not my modification.
The creation of deceit and arrogance is not my modification.
The creation of truth and fasehood is not my modification.
;E. # am devoid of time, such as twiight %
# have no dis)unction. # am devoid of interiorness
and awa"ening. # am neither deaf nor mute. # am thus devoid of iusion.
# am not made pure by moods of mind.
;F. # am without a master and the absence of a master %
# am unperturbed. # have transcended mind and absence of mind %
# am unperturbed. !now me as unperturbed and transcendent of a.
The Avadhoota Gita
25
<0. How sha # say that this is a forest or a tempeA
How sha # say that this is proved or doubtfuA
#t is thus uninterrupted homogenous cam 87istence.
<+. The Sef devoid of ife and ifeessness %
shines forever. Devoid of seed and seedessness %
of iberation and bondage, it shines forever.
<;. #t shines forever, devoid of birth %
mundane e7istence and death.
<<. Thou hast no name and form %
even to the e7tent of ausion, nor any substance %
differentiated or undifferentiated.
*hy dost thou grieve, 6 Thou shameess mindA
<,. *hy weepest thou friendA
Thou hast no misery of birth.
why weepest thou friendA
There is no change for thee.
</. *hy dost weep thou friendA
Thou hast no natura form.
*hy dost thou weep friendA
Thou hast deformity.
Thou hast no age.
<C. *hy dost thou weep friendA
Thou hast no age.
thou hast no mind.
Thou hast no senses.
<D. *hy dost thou weep friendA
Thou hast no ust.
Thou hast no greed.
Thou hast no deusion.
The Avadhoota Gita
26
<E. *hy dost thou desire affuenceA
Thou hast no weath.
*hy dost thou desire affuenceA
Thou hast no wife.
*hy dost thou desire affuenceA
Thou hast none that is thine own.
<F. Birth in this universe of fase appearances
is neither thine nor mine.
This shameess mind appears differentiated.
This, Devoid of difference and non%difference,
is neither mine nor thine.
,0. Thou hast not the nature of nonattachment in the sightest
nor hast thou in the sightest the nature of attachment.
Thou hast not even the sightest nature of desire.
,+. #n thy mind there is neither the meditator %
meditation, nor the ob)ect of meditation.
Thou hast no samadhi. There is no region outside thee %
nor is there any substance of time.
,;. # have tod thee a that is essentia.
there is neither thou, nor anything for me %
or for a great one. nor is there any teacher or discipe.
The supreme reaity is natura and e7ists in its own way.
,<. #f #, the supreme, of the nature of the s"y,
aone e7ist, how can there be here the supreme truth %
which is bissfu reaity, how can there be here the supreme truth
which is not of the nature of biss, and how can there be here
the supreme truth of the nature of "nowedge and intuitionA
,,. !now the one who is 1onsciousness and devoid of fire and air.
!now the one of the nature of consciousness %
who is devoid of earth and water.
!now the one of the nature of consciousness%
who is devoid of coming and going.
,/. # am neither of the nature of the void %
nor of the nature of non%void.
# am neither of pure nature nor of impure nature.
# am neither form nor formessness.
# am the supreme reaity of the form of its own nature.
,C. $enounce the word in every way.
The Avadhoota Gita
27
$enounce renunciation in every way.
$enounce the poison of renunciation and non%renunciation.
The sef is pure, immorta, natura and immutabe.
Chapter 4
+. There is neither invitation nor casting off4
How can there be fowers, eaves,
meditations and recitation of sacred te7ts,
and how can there be worship of Siva %
which is identity in non%differenceA
;. The absoute is not iberated from bondage and obstruction.
The absoute is not purified, ceansed and reeased.
The absoute is not iberated by union or separation.
# am indeed the free 6ne, i"e the s"y.
<. # have deveoped no fase notion
that a this reaity come into e7istence
or that a this unreaity comes into e7istence.
# am free from disease % my form has been e7tinguished.
,. Stained, stainess, divided, undivided %
differentiated, none of these appear to me.
/. #t has not yet happened that #, the ignorant one %
have attained to "nowedge, nor has it happened
that # have become of the nature of !nowedge.
And how can # say that # have both ignorance and "nowedgeA
C. #t =The Sef> does not appear to me as virtuous or sinfu
as bound or iberated, nor does it appear to me %
as united or separated.
D. # never have the high, ow, or midde state.
# have no friend nor foe. How sha # spea" of good and eviA
E. # am not the worshipper or of the form of the worshipped.
# have neither instruction nor practice.
How sha # spea" of mysef %
who am of the nature of 1onsciousnessA
F. There is nothing here which pervades or is pervaded.
There is no abode nor is there the abodeess.
How sha # spea" of void and non%voidA
+0. There is no one to understand and nothing
The Avadhoota Gita
28
indeed, to be understood. # have no cause and no effect.
How sha # say that # am conceivabe or inconceivabeA
++. There is nothing dividing, nothing to be divided.
# have nothing to "now with and nothing to be "nown.
How sha # then spea" of coming and goingA
+;. # have no body or bodiessness %
nor have # inteigence, mind or senses.
How sha # spea" of attachment and detachmentA
+<. The Sef is not separate or high %
and it has not disappeared even to the e7tent of ausion.
-riend, how can # spea" of it as identica or differentA
+,. 9either have # conGuered the senses %
nor have i not conGuered them.
Sef%restraint or discipine never occurred to me.
-riend how can # spea" of victory and defeatA
+/. 9ever have # form or absence of form,
9ever any beginning, midde, or end.
-riend how can # spea" of strength and wea"nessA
+C. 9ever did # have death or deathessness %
poison or poisonessness. How can # spea"
of pure and impureA
+D. 9ever have # seep or awa"ening.
9ever do # practice concentration or hand%posture.
-or me there is neither day nor night.
How can i spea" of the transcendenta and reative statesA
+E. !now me as free from a and form the detais composing the a.
# have neither iusion nor freedom from iusion.
How sha # spea" of such rituas as morning and evening devotionsA
+F. "now me as endowed with a concentration.
!now me as free from any reative or or utimate aim.
How sha # spea" of union and separationA
;0. # am neither ignorant nor earned,
# observe neither sience nor absence of sience.
How sha # spea" of argument and counter argumentA
The Avadhoota Gita
29
;+. 9ever do # have father, mother, famiy, caste, birth and death.
How sha # spea" of affection and infatuationA
;;. 9ever do # disappear % # am ever manifest.
9ever so # have effugence or absence of effugence.
How sha # spea" of such rituas as morning and evening devotionsA
;<. !now me beyond a doubt to be boundess.
!now me beyond a doubt to be undivided.
!now me beyond a doubt to be stainess.
;,. The wise give up a meditations4
they give up a good and evi deeds
and drin" of the nectar of renunciation.
;/. There is veriy no versification where one "nows nothing.
The supreme and free one absorbed in the consciousness
of the homogenous being and pure of thought,
prattes about the truth.
Chapter 5
+. The word 6m is i"e the s"y,
it is not the discernment of the essence of high or ow.
How can there be enunciation of the point of the word 6m
which annus the manifestation of the unmanifestA
;. The srutis % such as @That thou art@ %
prove to thee thou art indeed @That@
devoid of ad)uncts and the same in a.
*hy dost thou, who art the identity in a,
grieve in thy heartA
<. #f thou art identity in a,
if thou art devoid of above and beow, within and without
and of even the sense of unity, then %
,. There is no discrimination of rues and precepts%
there is no cause or effect.
That which is the identity in a
is without words and the coection of words.
/. There is no "nowedge or ignorance
and no practice of concentration.
There is no space and the absence of space
and no practice of concentration.
The Avadhoota Gita
30
C. There is no pot, no individua body or individua.
There is no distinction of cause and effect.
D. There is ony the state of freedom
which is the A and undifferentiated,
which is devoid of the distinction of short and ong
of round and anguar.
E. Here is the ony 6ne %
without void and absence of void,
without purity and impurity %
without the whoe and the part.
F. There is no distinction %
of the different and the non%different.
There is no distinction of within and without %
or the )unction of the two.
#t is the same in a% devoid of friend and foe.
+0. #t is not of the nature of discipe or non%discipe4
nor is it the discernment of the difference
between the iving and the non%iving.
There is ony the state of freedom %
The A % The undifferentiated.
++. #t is without form and formessness.
#t is without difference and non%difference.
#t is without manifestation and evoution.
+;. There is no bondage %
due to fetters of good and evi Guaities.
How sha # perform the actions reated to death and ifeA
There is ony the pure stainess Being %
the same in a..
+<. Here is the Being devoid %
of e7istence and non%e7istence%
of desire and desireessness.
Here is veriy the highest consciousness %
identica with freedom.
The Avadhoota Gita
31
+,. Here is the truth undifferentiated by truths %
devoid of )unction and dis)unction.
Since it is the same in a and devoid of a %
+/. Here is the Supreme %
devoid of association and disassociation %
uni"e a house cottage or sheath.
Here is the Supreme, devoid of "nowedge and ignorance.
+C. 1hange and changeessness
the definabe and the indefinabe are untrue.
if the truth is in the Sef aone %
+D. Here veriy is the conscious Being
who is competey the A.
Here is the conscious Being
who is the a%comprehensive and undivided.
Here is the conscious Being, aone and immutabe.
+E. #t is ignorance to see difference in the undifferentiated.
Doubt in what is beyond doubt is ignorance.
#f there is ony the one undivided consciousness
then why dost thou, who art the identity in a,
+F. There is no state of iberation %
no state of virtue, no state of vice.
There is no state of perfection
and no state of destitution.
;0. #f the homogenous Being is devoid of cause and effect %
division and subdivision, coor and ac" of coor %
;+. The sef is here in the universa consciousness
which is the A and undivided.
#t is here in the universa consciousness
which is absoute and immovabe.
#t is here in the universa consciousness
which is devoid of men and other beings.
The Avadhoota Gita
32
;;. The Sef transcends a,
is indivisabe and a%pervading.
#t is free from stain of attachment,
immovabe and a%pervading.
#t is without day and night and a%pervading.
;<. There is no coming of bondage
and freedom from bondage.
There is no coming of union and separation.
There is no coming of reasoning and disputation.
;,. Here is negation of time, untime
and even the atom of fire %
but no negation of the absoute truth.
;/. Here is the Sef devoid of body and disembodiment.
Here is veriy the supreme 6ne %
devoid of dream and deep seep.
Here is the supreme 6ne devoid of name and in)unctions.
;C. 'ure, vast and homogenous i"e the s"y,
the Sef is the same in a and devoid of a.
#t is the homogenous Being divested of essence
and non%essence and change.
;D. Here is the Sef %
which is more than dispassionate to virtue and vice
to substance and nonsubstance %
to desire and desireessness.
;E. Here is the Sef, the same in a %
which is without grief and greifessness.
Here is the Supreme, without happiness and sorrow.
The Supreme Truth is devoid of teacher and discipe.
;F. Veriy there is no offshoot %
essence or absence of essence.
9either is there movabe nor immovabe %
sameness nor variety.
The Sef is devoid of reason and unreason.
The Avadhoota Gita
33
<0. Here is the essence %
the concentration of a essences %
which is said to be different %
from ones individua consciousness.
To be the instrument of perception of ob)ects is unrea.
<+. Since the Vedas have decared variousy
that this universe made of ether and the i"e
is i"e a mirage, and since the Sef is one %
indivisabe % and the same in a,
<;. *here one "nows nothing,
there is veriy no versification.
The Supreme and free 6ne %
pure of thought, absorbed in the consciousness
of the homogenous being,
Chapter 6
+. The srutis decare in various ways that this %
the ether and its i"e, and we ourseves are i"e a mirage.
#f there is ony one indivisibe, a%comprehensive Absoute %
how can there be the comparabe and comparisonA
;. The supreme is without divisibiity and in%divisibiity.
The Supreme is without activity and changeabiity.
#f there is ony one indivisibe, a%comprehensive absoute
how can there be worship % how can there be austerityA
<. The mind is veriy supreme, undivided %
a%pervasive and devoid of argeness and smaness.
The mind is indeed the indivisibe,
a%comprehensive absoute.
How can we do anything with the mind and speechA
,. The Sef is the negation of
the distinction between night and day.
The Sef is the negation of
the risen and the not%risen.
how can there be the Sun., moon and fireA
/. The Sef is that from which
the distinction of desire and desireessness
of action and inaction are gone.
The Avadhoota Gita
34
how can there be consciousness
differentiated by e7terior and interiorA
C. #f the Sef is devoid of essence and ac" of essence,
if it is without void and nonvoid,
how can there be a first, how can there be a astA
D. #f the Sef is the negation of difference and nondifference
if it is the negation of the "nower and the "nowabe,
how can there be the third, how can there be the fourthA
E. The spo"en and the unspo"en are not the truth,
the "nown and the un"nown are not the truth.
how can there be ob)ects, senses, mind and inteectA
F. 8ther and air are not the truth4
8arth and fire are not the truth.
how can there be coud, how can there be waterA
+0. #f the Sef is the negation of imagined words,
if it is the negation of imagined gods,
how can there be discriminating consciousness of good and eviA
++. The Sef is the negation of death and deathessness.
#t is the negation of action and inaction.
how can one spea" of coming and goingA
+;. 96 such distinctions e7ist as pra"rti and purusa.
There is no difference between cause and effect.
how can one spea" of Sef and not%sefA
+<. There is no coming of the third "ind of misery
or the second "ind of misery due to the gunas.
how can there be and od man, a young man and in infantA
+,. The Supreme is without caste and stage of ife
without cause and agent.
how can there be consciousness of the destroyed and the undestroyedA
+/. The destroyed and the undestroyed are both fase.
The born and the unborn are both fase.
how can there be the perishabe and the imperishabeA
+C. The Sef is the annihiation of the mascuine and the nonmascuine.
#t is the annihiation of the feminine and the nonfeminine.
how can there be consciousness of )oy and ac" of )oyA
The Avadhoota Gita
35
+D. #f the Supreme is free of deusion and sorrow, doubt and grief
how can there be # and mineA
+E. The supreme is the destruction of virtue and vice.
#t is the destruction of bondage and freedom form bondage.
How can there be here any consciousness of sorrow
and the absence of sorrowA
+F. 9o distinction of sacrificer and sacrifice e7ists.
9o distinction of fire and ingredients e7ists.
how can there be any fruits of wor"A
;0. The Sef is veriy free from sorrow and absence of sorrow.
The Sef is free from pride and the absence of pride.
how can there be consciousness of attachment and nonattachmentA
;+. 9o such change as iusion and freedom from iusion e7ists.
9o such change as greed and freedom from greed e7ists.
how can there be consciousness of discrimination
and ac" of discriminationA
;;. There are never any @you@ and @#@.
The discrimination of famiy and race is fase.
# am indeed the Absoute and the Supreme Truth.
#n that case how can # ma"e sautationA
;<. The Sef is that in which
the distinction of teacher and discipe disappears
and in which the consideration of instruction aso disappears.
#n that case how can i ma"e sautationA
;,. There is no imagined division of bodies.
There is no imagined division of words.
;/. The Sef, never endowed with passion or devoid of it,
is veriy spotess, immovabe and pure.
;C. 9o distinction such as body and bodiessness e7ists,
nor is it true that there is fase action.
;D. *here one "nows nothing, there is veriy no versification.
The Supreme 6ne, pure of thought, absorbed in the consciousness
of the homogenous being % prattes about the truth.
The Avadhoota Gita
36
Chapter 7
+. The enightened one nude
or cad in a patched garment of rags gathered from roads
foows the path which is devoid of virtue
and stays in an empty abode %
absorbed in the pure, stainess homogenous Being.
;. The enightened one %
aims at that which is without any mar" or mar"essness.
He is s"ifu, being devoid of right or wrong.
He is the absoute truth, stainess and pure.
How can the iberated on engage in discussion
and disputationA
<. -ree from entrapment in the snares of hope
and devoid of purificatory ceremonies,
The enightened one is ever absorbed in the absoute.
Thus having renounced a
He is the truth, pure and stainess.
,. How can there be any discussion here
of the body and disembodiment
of attachment and detachmentA
Here is the truth itsef
in its spontaneous natura form%pure,
immovabe i"e the s"y.
/. *here the truth is "nown,
how can there be form and formessnessA
*here there is the Supreme, whose form is i"e the s"y,
how is perception of any ob)ect possibeA
C. The Supreme Sef is indivisibe %
of the form of the s"y.
#t is the truth, pure and stainess.
Thus how can there be here
difference and nondifference %
bondage and freedom from bondage %
transformation and divisionA
D. Here is ony the Absoute Truth
indivisibe and the A.
How can there be here union, disunion, or prideA
#f thus there is here ony the Supreme %
the indivisibe and the A %
how can there be here any substance or absence of substanceA
E. Here is the absoute Truth
indivisibe and pure, stainess and the A
of the form of the s"y.
Thus how can there be here association and dissociationA
F. The enightened one is a yogi devoid yoga
and the absence of yoga. He is an en)oyer,
devoid of en)oyment and absence of en)oyment.
Thus he wanders eisurey, fied with
The Avadhoota Gita
37
the spontaneous )oy of his own mind.
+0. #f the yogi is aways reated
to "nowedge and perception, to duaity and unity
how can he be free hereA How can a yogi be natura
and free from attachment hereA
He is the en)oyer of the pure, stainess
and homogenous Being.
++. The Sef is destruction,
devoid of the destroyed and the undestroyed.
The Sef is the auspicious moment,
Devoid of the auspicious and inauspicious time.
Thus, how can there be here substance
and the absence of substanceA
The truth which is homogenous
is of the form of the s"y.
+;. -orever divested of a
and united to the Sef %
the enightened one is the A %
free and devoid of truth.
Thus, how can there be here ife and deathA
and how can there be any accompishment
through meditation and ac" of mediationA
+<. A this is magic, i"e a mirage in the desert.
6ny the absoute Sef, of indivisibe
and impenetrabe form e7ists.
+,. To a things %
from the practice of reigious aws and duties to iberation,
we are competey indifferent.
How can we have anything to do with attachment or detachmentA
6ny the earned imagine these things.
+/. *here one "nows nothing,
there is veriy no versification.
The Supreme 6ne, 'ure of thought,
absorbed in the consciousness of the homogenous being
Chapter 8
+. By ma"ing my pigrimage to Thee
Thy a%pervasiveness has been destroyed by me.
*ith my meditation, Thy transcendence
of the mind has been destroyed.
Thy transcendence of speech
has been destroyed by my singing Thy 'raise.
8ver forgive me these three sins.
;. A sage is one whose inteigence is unsmitten by usts %
who is sef%controed, gente and pure %
The Avadhoota Gita
38
who possesses nothing, who is indifferent %
who eats moderatey %is Guiet and steady
and has ta"en refuge in me.
<. The sage is vigiant and resoute %
has a profound mind and has conGuered the si7 bondages4
he is not proud, but gives honour to others4
he is strong, friendy to a
compassionate and wise.
,. The sage is mercifu, non%vioent and enduring of a.
He is pure hearted and is the essence of truth4
he is the same to a and beneficent to a.
/. The sign of an Avudhuta shoud be "nown by the bessed ones,
by those who "now the truth of the significance
of the etters of the Vedas and who teach Veda and Vedanta.
C. The significance of the etter @A@
is that the Avudhuta is free from the bondage of hopes
is pure in the beginning, midde and end
and dwes ever in )oy.
D. The syabe @VA@ is indicative of him
by whom a desires have been renounced
whose speech is whoesome
and who dwes in the present.
E. The syabe @DH?@ is a sign of him
whose imbs are grey with dust %
whose mind is purified%
who is free from a diseases %
and who is reeased from the practice
of concentration and meditation.
F. The syabe @TA@ is significant of him
by whom the thought of Truth has been made steady
who is devoid of a thoughts and efforts
and who is free from ignorance and egoism.
+0. This Gita or song is composed by
Dattatreya Avadhuta who is the embodiment of biss.
*hoever reads or hears it has never any rebirth.
6ne who has reai3ed the Sef is never reborn.
6m Tat Sat
The Avadhoota Gita
39
Dattaatreya Upanisad - from the Atharvaveda
6nce Brahma the creator as"ed &ord 9arayana about the efficacy of the
taara"a%mantra to which the atter repied5
@Aways thin" of .e and .y gory, and be in commune with .e in the attitude
2# am Datta, the great &ord.2 Such ones who medidate thus do not swir in the
ver%recurring course of wordy e7istence.@
Accordingy, after meditating on &ord Vishnu =Dattatreya>, Brahma said5 @(es.
The Brahman that is the infinite and peeress aone remains as the residuum
after negation of everything ese.@
The one%, si7%, eight%, tweve%, and si7teen%syabed mantras of Dattaatreya
The taara"a monosyabe is 2Daam2. He is the ha.sa estabished in a beings.
2Daam2 in the engthened form is the 'aramaatman. The si7 syabed one is
26m, Shriim, Hriim, !iim, Gaum, Draam.
The eight%syabed one is 2Dram2 or 2Draam2 and then adding to it the syabes
2Dat, taa, tre, yaa, na, maaH.@ The portion 2Dattatreya2 is of the character of
"nowedge, e7istence, and biss, and that of namah is of fu% bown biss.
The tweve%syabed formua is 26m, Aam, Hriim, !rom, ehi Dattatreya
svaahaa.2 The si7teen%syabed formua is 6m, Aim, !rom, !iim, 1uum,
Hraam, Hriim, Hruum, Saum =nine> and the five syabes constituting
Dattaatreyaaya, and the twin syabe svaahaa. The whoe formua is 26m, Aim,
!rom, !iim, 1uum, Hraam, Hriim, Hruum, Saum Dattaatreyaaya svaahaa.2
The anushhtubh%mantra of Dattaatreya
A the portions of the mantra are said to be in the vocative forms right
through as 2Dattaatreya Hare !rshna unmataananda%daaya"a, digambara,
mune, baaa, pishaaca, )nIaana saagara.2
The mooa%mantra of Dattaatreya
This is then given as5
26. namo bhagavate Dattaatreyaaya, smarana%maatra%samtushhtaaya
6. sautations unto &ord Dattatreya who is propitiated by remembrance
=devotion>,
mahaa%bhaya%nirvaanaaya, mahaa%gyaaana%pradaaya, cidaanandaatmane
that is the dispeer of great fears, who bestows the highest character of
sentience and biss
baaonmatta%pishaaca%veshaaya2
who is in the guise of a chid, a mad%man, a devi, thus5
mahaa yogine avadhuutaya, anasuuyaananda%vardhanaayatri%putraya
a great yogin, is the enhancer of the biss of Anasuya =His mother>, is the son
of the sage Atri,
The Avadhoota Gita
40
sarva%"aama%phaa%pradaaya, bhava%bandha%mocanaaya,
who bestows the fruits of a the desires of the devotee2s heart, the redeemer
of the bonds of wordy e7istence,
sa"aa%vibhuuti%daaya saadhya"arshhanaaya sarva%manah%"shhobhanaaya,
ciram% )iivane vashi%"uru, vashi%"uru, aa"arshhaya%a"arshhaya, vidveshhaya,
vidveshhaya, uccaataya%uccaataaya, stambhaya%stambhaya, maaraya%
maaraya namah, sampannaaya, namaH sa.pannaaya, svaahaa poshhaya,
poshhaya, para%mantra para%yantra para tantraa.shh ccindhi, ccindhi4
grahaan nivaaraya4 nivaaraya4 vyaadhiin nivaaraya, nivaaraya4 duh"ham
haraya, haraya4 daaridryam vidraavaya, deha. poshhaya, poshhaya4 citttam
toshhaya, toshhaya5
Do thou counteract the maignant infuences of the panets, cure the aiments,
drive off anguish, met away a penury, fi the mind with )oy
sarva mantra sarva yantra sarva tantra sarva paava svaruupaaya iti 6m
namah shivaaya. 6m
.unto Thee of the rea form of incantations, a mystic symbos and powers,
etc. 6. sautationsB
6. sautations unto &ord Dattatreya who is propitiated by remembrance
=devotion>, that is the dispeer of great fears, who bestows the highest
character of sentience and biss and who is in the guise of a chid, a mad%
man, a devi, a great yoin, is the enhancer of the biss of Anasuya =His
mother>, is the son of the sage Atri, who bestows the fruits of a the desires of
the devotee2s heart, the redeemer of the bonds of wordy e7istence, ..Do thou
nourish my body, counteract the maignant infuences of the panets, cure the
aiments, drive off anguish, met away a penury, fi the mind with )oy...unto
Thee of the rea form of incantations, a mystic symbos and powers, etc. 6.
sautationsB
He who "nows a about this vidyaa and practices this becomes hoy, and he
attains the fruits of having muttered the Gayatri, the .aharudra, and the
'ranava innumerabe times, and he is absoved of a his sins.
Thus ends Dattatreya ?panisad.
6m Tat Sat
The Avadhoota Gita

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