THE MODE OF SUPREME
(“Daiva Paddhati”)
BHARTRUHARI
Despite the mighty forces; Jupiter as leader;
the Deities
As militia; Thunderbolt the weapon; Heaven
the fortress;
Iravatha to guard; Vishnu to favour;
Indra, by enemies
Was defeated. Without Divine help what for human efforts?
Making a bore for food to the chest of a
snake,
Got in a rat. The despaired snake in it that did lie
In fear, had it for food and through bore did
make
Its way out. So growth and decay, in Him doth lie.
Fallen though from rank by chance a noble,
Like a ball of rubber, again he doth rise;
But thumps like a clump of clay an ignoble,
And because of his lowness, he never doth
rise.
Scorched by the summer sun a bald-headed one
Seeking shelter under a palm soon he did run;
But the direct fall of the fruit, his head
bruised.
Follow the calamities, wherever goes the
unblessed.
Be caged, the elephants, serpents and birds
by men;
And teased by the two planets, the sun and
the moon;
And suffered by poverty,
the good-minded one.
On this I assess, how powerful the Fate doth
seem!
Creating a man with faculties bright,
Sends forth to earth as gift a great,
The Creator, if takes him back soon,
How unwise and unkind of Him it is seen!
The Moon; though Lord of herbs; for Manna a
mine;
A jewel for Siva; and followed by men of
medicine;
Yeas, be made to suffer from decaying line.
How can anyone escape ill-fate's cruel line?
Like a skilled potter, the cruel Fate, making
the mind
A clump of clay, struck with force with
curses lined,
And round and round turns the cycle of
sorrows.
What purpose doth He intend of that, whoever
knows?
Oh! idiotic Fate! seekest thou to extinct the
boldness
Of the great causing them dangers? This
wickedness
Leave off! see, how
stately stand the seas seven
And the mighty mountains at the end of the
ages even!
On earth what hath been set to lot by the
powerful Fate
The one geteth with
no effort, but not of his noble state,
Just from the thick clouds that rain for all,
fall
In water cuckoo's
throat just one or two drops small.
– Translated from Sanskrit by Inguva
Raghava Rao