Shloka 37
Jarā-Mṛtyu-anatikrama: Janaka–Pañcaśikha-saṃvāda
Aging and Death Cannot Be Overstepped
आत्मानं बहुधा कृत्वा येयं भूयो युनक्ति माम् । इदानीमेष बुद्धो5स्मि निर्ममो निरहंकृत:
ātmānaṃ bahudhā kṛtvā yeyam bhūyo yunakti mām | idānīmeṣa buddho 'smi nirmamo nirahaṅkṛtaḥ ||
Vasiṣṭha said: “Though this power of delusion and attachment repeatedly takes on many forms and again tries to bind me in union, now I have become fully awake. Therefore I stand free from possessiveness and from the sense of ‘I’.”
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even when binding forces (desire, delusion, attachment) return in many disguises, liberation is maintained by wakeful discernment and the abandonment of ‘mine’ (mamatā) and ‘I’ (ahaṅkāra).
Vasiṣṭha describes an inner struggle: a recurring tendency that tries to reattach him to identification and bondage. He declares that he is now vigilant and therefore remains free from possessiveness and ego.