Shloka 23
Adhyaya 43 — Portents of Death (Ariṣṭa-lakṣaṇas) and the Yogin’s Response; Alarka Renounces Kingship
दीपगन्धं न यो वेत्ति त्रस्यत्यह्नि तथा निशि ।
नात्मानं परनेत्रस्थं वीक्षते न स जीवति ॥
dīpagandhaṃ na yo vetti trasyatyahni tathā niśi / nātmānaṃ paranetrasthaṃ vīkṣate na sa jīvati
Wer den Geruch der Lampe (von Öl oder Rauch) nicht wahrnimmt, wer bei Tag und bei Nacht erschrickt und das eigene Selbst (Ātman) nicht sieht, als wäre es in den Augen eines anderen—der lebt nicht.
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FAQs
Loss of ordinary perception and pervasive fear are treated as grave warnings; the counsel implied is grounding the mind in dharma and seeking refuge in higher remembrance.
Ancillary omen-knowledge; not a direct expression of the five defining Purāṇic topics.
Not sensing the lamp’s smell suggests pratyāhāra-like withdrawal or failing senses; ‘seeing oneself in another’s eyes’ points to dissociation/other-worldly perception—signs of the jīva preparing to depart the body.