A Poem on Self-realisation from the Dnyaneshwari, chapter 16

Sant Dnyaneshwar also referred to as Jnaneshwar, Jnanadeva, Dnyandev or Mauli (1275–1296)^[2][3] was a 13th-century Indian Marathi saint, poet, philosopher and yogi of the Nath Vaishnava tradition. In his short life of 21 years, he authored Dnyaneshwari (a commentary on the Bhagavad Gita) and Amrutanubhav. These are the oldest surviving literary works in the Marathi language, under the patronage of the Yadava dynasty of Devagiri, and these are considered to be milestones in Marathi literature.

Blavatsky calls the Dnyaneswari ‘’that king of mystical works’’. A wonderfully profound, poetic and lyrical commentary on the Bhagavad Gita, in the western world, the work probably does not have the exalted stature that is has in India or that of the Bhagavad Gita in the west, although it has been translated into English several times. I think it would be seriously neglectful if a post on the Dnyaneswari was not part of the Theosophical Project, and so we give you the wonderful poem on Self-realisation that prefaces chapter 16, translated by M.R. Yardi.

1-Hail to the Guru, that resplendent sun which has risen, dispelling the illusion of the universe and causing the lotus of non-duality to unfold its petals!

2- He swallows up the night of ignorance, removes the illusion of knowledge and ignorance, and brings in the day of enlightenment for the wise.

3- At the dawning of the day, the eyes of Self-knowledge are opened, and birds in the form of individual souls leave their nests of identification with the body.

4-As he rises, the bee of Consciousness, held in the lotus of the subtle body, gains its freedom.

5- On the opposite banks of the river of duality, which springs from conflicting teachings of the scriptures, intellect and understanding cry out like a pair of geese in the distress of their separation.

6- The light of the world, set in the firmament of Consciousness, brings to them the consolation of union.

7- At the rising of the sun, the dark night of thieves passes away, and travelling yogis set out on the path of spiritual experience.

8- Touched by its rays of discrimination, the sparks of the sun-crystal of intellect burst into flames and consume the forests of worldly existence.

9- His scorching rays settle in the desert of the Self, and the mirage of psychic powers arises.

10- When the sun reaches its zenith of Self-knowledge and shines in the noontide of union with God, it hides itself in the shadow of delusion concerning the nature of the individual soul.

11- When the night of illusion has faded away, who will remember the sleep of wrong understanding, with its dreamlike delusions of the universe?

12- In the city of unity-awareness, the marker is surfeited with bliss, and then dealings in worldly pleasure fall away.

13- His glory gives perpetual light to the experience of the highest bliss of a liberated being.

14- When this great sovereign of the sky rises forever, the cycle of rising and setting disappears along with the four quarters of the earth.

15- Both appearance and disappearance vanish, and God, who was concealed beneath outer forms, is revealed. What more is there to say? This dawn is beyond description.

16- Who can see that sun of knowledge which is beyond day and night, which is self-illumined and sheds abundant light?

17- To Nivritti, that sun of Consciousness, I bow again and again. There are no words which can express his praises.