Sūtra 1.33

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of Sūtra 1.33:

मैत्रीकरुणामुदितोपेक्षाणां सुखदुःखपुण्यापुण्यविषयाणां भावनातश् चित्तप्रसादनम् ॥ १.३३ ॥

maitrīkaruṇāmuditopekṣāṇāṃ sukhaduḥkhapuṇyāpuṇyaviṣayāṇāṃ bhāvanātaś cittaprasādanam || 1.33 ||

maitrī—friendliness, karuṇā—compassion, mercy, muditā—gladness, complacency, upekṣā—indifference of all these. sukha—happiness. duḥkha—misery, puṇya—virtue. apuṇya—vice. viṣayāṇām—regarding the subjects, towards the subjects (respectively), bhāvanātaḥ—by cultivating habits, by constant thinking, citta—of the mind. prasādanam—purification.

33. By cultivating habits of friendliness, compassion, complacency and indifference towards happiness, misery, virtue and vice (respectively) the mind becomes pure.

The Sankhya-pravachana commentary of Vyasa

[English translation of the 7th century commentary by Vyāsa called the Sāṅkhya-pravacana, Vyāsabhāṣya or Yogabhāṣya]

[Sanskrit text for commentary available]

How is the embellishment of the permanent mind taught by this science, secured? ‘The mind becomes pure by cultivating habits of friendliness, compassion, complacency and indifference towards happiness, misery, virtue and vice.’ Let him cultivate in his mind the habit of friendliness towards all those who are found in the enjoyment of pleasure; compassion towards those who are suffering from pain; complacency towards those who are virtuous,; indifference towards the vicious. By thus habituating the mind to these notions, the white characteristic makes appearance. Thence the mind becomes pure. Having become pure, it becomes one-pointed and attains the state of steadiness.—33.

The Gloss of Vachaspati Mishra

[English translation of the 9th century Tattvavaiśāradī by Vācaspatimiśra]

Now the author begins to lay down the means of purifying the mind, which are contrary to such vices as jealousy, because trance and the means of its achievement cannot appear in a mind, unembellished and full of jealousy, &c.‘How is the embellishment, &c.’

Whoever shows friendliness, i.e., a heart ready to help, towards the happy, the dirt of envy leaves him. When the mind shows compassion, i.e., the wish to remove the miseries of others as if they were his own, towards those who are suffering, the dirt of the desire to do evil by others is removed. Whoever shows complacency, i.e., pleasure towards virtuously inclined beings, the dirt of envy is removed from his mind. Whoever shows indifference, the taking of the middle path and not taking sides, towards the viciously inclined, the dirt of impatience is removed from his mind.

By this removal of the characteristics of the qualities of disturbing energy (rajas) and inertia (tamas), the white characteristic of essential purity (sattva) manifests itself. He becomes possessed of a very high manifestation of essential purity. His mind becomes inclined to the side of the restraint of mental modifications, because this enlightenment is natural to that state. When the mind becomes pure, it attains the state of steadiness and becomes one-pointed by the means to be described. If friendliness, &c., are not cultivated, the means cannot lead to steadiness.—33.