"Yudhishthira said, 'If any person, desiring to accomplish acts (of
charity and sacrifices), fails to find (the necessary) wealth, and thirst
of wealth overwhelms him, what is that which he must do for obtaining
happiness?'

"Bhishma said, 'He that regards everything (viz., joy and sorrow, honour
and insult, etc.,) with an equal eye, that never exerts himself (for
gratifying his desire for earthly possessions), that practises
truthfulness of speech, that is freed from all kinds of attachment, and
that has no desire for action, is, O Bharata, a happy man. These five,
the ancients say, are the means for the acquisition of perfect
tranquillity or emancipation. These are called Heaven. These are
Religion. These constitute the highest happiness. In this connection is
cited the old narrative of what Manki had sung, when freed from
attachments, Listen to it, O Yudhishthira! Desirous of wealth, Manki
found that he was repeatedly doomed to disappointments. At last with a
little remnant of his property he purchased a couple of young bulls with
a yoke for training them (to agricultural labour). One day the two bulls
properly tied to the yoke, were taken out for training (in the fields).
Shying at the sight of a camel that was lying down on the road, the
animals suddenly ran towards the camel, and fell upon its neck. Enraged
at finding the bulls fall upon its neck, the camel, endued with great
speed, rose up and ran at a quick pace, bearing away the two helpless
creatures dangling on either side of its neck. Beholding his two bulls
thus borne away by that strong camel, and seeing that they were at the
point of death, Manki began to say, 'If wealth be not ordained by
destiny, it can never be acquired by even a clever man exerting himself
with attention and confidence and accomplishing with skill all that is
necessary towards that end. I had, before this, endeavoured by diverse
means and devotion to earn wealth. Behold this misfortune brought about
by destiny to the property I had! My bulls are borne away, rising and
falling, as the camel is running in an uneven course. This occurrence
seems to be an accident.The verses are said to be old. Nilakantha accordingly supposes that it was not Sampaka who recited them to Bhishma, but some one else. I follow the commentator; but the grammar of the concluding verse of this section must have to be twisted for supporting him. Alas, those dear bulls of mine are dangling
on the camel's neck like a couple of gems! This is only the result of
Destiny. Exertion is futile in what is due to Chance. Or, if the
existence of anything like Exertion (as an agent in the production of
results) be admitted, a deeper search would discover Destiny to be at the
bottom.Kakataliyam is, literally, 'after the manner of the crow and the palmyra fruit.' The story is that once when a crow perched upon a palmyra tree a fruit (which had been ripe) fell down. The fruit fell because of its ripeness. It would be a mistake to accept the sitting of the crow as the cause of the fall. The perching was only an accident. Yet men very frequently, in tracing causes, accept accidents for inducing causes. Such men are said to be deceived by 'the fallacy of the crow and the palmyra fruit.' Hence, the person that desires happiness should renounce all
attachment. The man without attachments, no longer cherishing any desire
for earning wealth, can sleep happily. Ho, it was well said by Suka while
going to the great forest from his father's abode, renouncing
everything!Exertion to be successful must depend on circumstances. The combination of circumstances is destiny. —Amongst these two, viz., one who obtains the fruition
of all his wishes, and one who casts off every wish, the latter, who
renounces all, is superior to the former who obtains the fruition of all.
No one could ever attain to the end of desire.It is difficult to resist the belief that many of the passages of the Santi are later additions. Suka was the son of Vyasa. To quote a saying of Suka (or, as he was called Sukadeva Goswamin), if Vyasa was the real writer of this passage, is rather suspicious. Only he that is
destitute of knowledge and judgments feels an avidity for protecting his
body and life.—Forbear from every desire for action. O my Soul that art
possessed by cupidity, adopt tranquillity by freeing thyself from all
attachments! Repeatedly hast thou been deceived (by desire and hope). How
is it that thou dost not still free thyself from attachments? If I am not
one that deserves destruction at thy hands, if I am one with whom thou
shouldst sport in delight, then, O my wealth-coveting Soul, do not induce
me towards cupidity. Thou hast repeatedly lost thy hoarded wealth. O my
wealth-coveting and foolish Soul, when wilt thou succeed in emancipating
thyself from the desire of wealth? Shame on my foolishness! I have become
a toy of thine! It is thus that one becomes a slave of others. No one
born on earth did ever attain to the end of desire, and to one that will
take birth will succeed in attaining to it. Casting off all acts, I have
at last been roused from sleep. I am now awake. Without doubt, O Desire,
thy heart is as hard as adamant, since though affected by a hundred
distresses, thou does not break into a hundred pieces! I know thee, O
Desire, and all those things that are dear to thee! Seeking what is dear
to thee, I shall feel happiness in my own Self.i.e., arrive at such a point that nothing was left for him to desire. O Desire, I know thy
root. Thou springest from Will.i.e., with, the view of doing thee good, I shall emancipate myself from all attachments and enjoy the blessedness of tranquillity. —I shall, therefore, avoid Will.
Thou shalt then be destroyed with thy roots. The desire for wealth can
never be fraught with happiness. If acquired, great is the anxiety that
the acquirer feels. If lost after acquisition, that is felt as death.
Lastly, respecting acquisition itself, it is very uncertain. Wealth
cannot be got by even the surrender of one's person. What can be more
painful than this? When acquired, one is never gratified with its
measure, but one continues to seek it. Like the sweet water of the
Ganges, wealth only increases one's hankering. It is my destruction. I am
now awakened. Do thou, O Desire, leave me! Let that Desire which has
taken refuge in this my body,—this compound of (five) elements,—go
whithersoever it chooses and live happily whithersoever it likes.Here the theory of desire seems to be reversed. Desire is mere wish after anything. When its gratification is sought, the form it assumes is that of determination or will. If, however, Kama be taken as the formulated desire after specific objects, then, perhaps, the Will may be regarded as its foundation, at least, in respect of the distress and difficulties that come in its train. Ye
all that are not of the Soul, I have no joy in you, for ye follow the
lead of Msire and Cupidity! Abandoning all of you I shall take refuge in
the quality of Goodness.I think the Bombay reading of this verse is incorrect. Bhuttagramah (nom. sing.) should be Bhutagramam (accusative sing.). The Yah is Kamah. It is Desire that is exhorted to go away whithersoever it chooses. If the elements be thus exhorted, then it is death that the speaker desires. This would be inconsistent with the spirit of the passage. Beholding all creatures in my own body and
my own mind, and devoting my reason to Yoga, my life to the instructions
of the wise, and soul to Brahma, I shall happily rove through the world,
without attachment and without calamities of any kinds, so that thou
mayst not be able to plunge me again into such sorrows!The use of the plural Yushmashu might lead at first sight to take it as standing for the elements. It is plain, however, that it refers to all attributes that are founded on Rajas and Tamas. If I
continue to be agitated by thee, O Desire, I shall necessarily be without
a path (by which to effect my deliverance). Thou, O Desire, art always
the progenitor of thirst, of grief, and of fatigue and toil. I think the
grief that one feels at the loss of wealth is very keen and far greater
than what one feels under any other circumstances. Kinsmen and friends
disregard him that has lost his wealth. With various kinds of humiliation
that number by thousands, there are many faults in property that are more
painful still. On the other hand, the very small happiness that resides
in wealth is mingled with pain and sorrow.Beholding all creatures in my own body and mind i.e., identifying myself with all creatures or never taking them as distinct and separated from me: in other words, professing and practising the principle of universal love. Robbers slay, in the
sight of all, the person that is possessed of wealth, or afflict him with
various kinds of severity, or always fill him with fear. At last, after a
long time, I have understood that the desire for wealth is fraught with
sorrow. Whatever the object, O Desire, upon which thou settest thy heart,
thou forcest me to pursue it! Thou art without judgment. Thou art a fool.
Thou art difficult of being contented. Thou canst not be gratified. Thou
burnest like fire. Thou dost not enquire (in pursuing an object) whether
it is easy or difficult of attainment. Thou canst not be filled to the
brim, like the nether region. Thou wishest to plunge me into sorrow. From
this day, O Desire, I am incapable of living with thee! I who had felt
despair, at first, at the loss of my property, have now attained to the
high state of perfect freedom from attachments. At this moment I no
longer think of thee and thy train. I had, before this, felt great misery
on thy account. I do not (now) regard myself as destitute of
intelligence. Having adopted Renunciation in consequence of loss of my
property, I can now rest, freed from every kind of fever. I cast thee
off, O Desire, with all the passions of my heart. Thou shalt not again
dwell with me or sport with me. I shall forgive them that will slander or
speak ill of me. I shall not injure even when injured. If anybody from
aversion speaks disagreeable words of me, disregarding those words I
shall address him in agreeable speeches. In contentment of heart and with
all my senses at case, I shall always live upon what may be got by me. I
shall not contribute to the gratification of the wishes entertained by
thee that art my foe. Freedom from attachment, emancipation from desire,
contentment, tranquillity, truth, self-restraint, forgiveness, and
universal compassion are the qualities that have now I come to me.
Therefore, let Desire, cupidity, thirst, miserliness avoid me. I have now
adopted the path of Goodness. Having cast off Desire and Cupidity, great
is my happiness now. I shall no longer yield to the influence of Cupidity
and no longer suffer misery like a person of uncleansed soul. One is sure
to obtain happiness according to the measure of the desires he may be
able to cast off. Truly, he who yields himself up to Desire always
suffers misery. Whatever passions connected with Desire are cast off by a
person, all appertain to the quality of Passion. Sorrow and shamelessness
and discontent all arise from Desire and Wealth. Like a person plunging
in the hot season into a cool lake, I have now entered into Brahma, I
have abstained from work. I have freed myself from grief. Pure happiness
has now come to me. The felicity that results from the gratification of
Desire, or that other purer felicity which one enjoys in heaven, does not
come to even a sixteenth part of that which arises upon the abandonment
of all kinds of thirst! Killing the principle of desire, which with the
body makes an aggregate of seven, and which is a bitter foe, I have
entered the immortal city of Brahma and shall pass my days there in
happiness like a king!' Relying upon such intelligence, Manki freed
himself from attachments, casting off all desires and attaining to Brahma
that abode of the highest felicity. Indeed, in consequence of the loss of
his two bulls Manki attained to immortality. Indeed, because he cut the
very roots of desire, he attained, through that means, to high felicity.'"