जिव जबतें हरितें बिलगान्यो। तबतें देह गेह निज जान्यो॥ मायाबस स्वरूप बिसरायो। तेहि भ्रमतें दारुन दुख पायो॥ पायो जो दारुन दुसह दुख, सुख-लेस सपनेहुँ नहिं मिल्यो। भव-सूल, सोक अनेक जेहि, तेहि पंथ तू हठि हठि चल्यो॥ बहु जोनि जनम, जरा, बिपति, मतिमंद! हरि जान्यो नहीं। श्रीराम बिनु बिश्राम मूढ़! बिचारु, लखि पायो कहीं॥ १॥ आनँद-सिंधु-मध्य तव बासा। बिनु जाने कस मरसि पियासा॥ मृग-भ्रम-बारि सत्य जिय जानी। तहँ तू मगन भयो सुख मानी॥ तहँ मगन मज्जसि, पान करि, त्रयकाल जल नाहीं जहाँ। निज सहज अनुभव रूप तव खल! भूलि अब आयो तहाँ॥ निरमल, निरंजन निरबिकार, उदार सुख तैं परिहर्यो। निःकाज राज बिहाय नृप इव सपन कारागृह परयो॥ २॥ तैं निज करम-डोरि दृढ़ कीन्हीं। अपने करनि गाँठि गहि दीन्हीं॥ ताते परबस परयो अभागे। ता फल गरभ-बास-दुख आगे॥ आगे अनेक समूह संसृत उदरगत जान्यो सोऊ। सिर हेठ, ऊपर चरन, संकट बात नहिं पूछे कोऊ॥ सोनित-पुरीष जो मूत्र-मल कृमि-कर्दमावृत सोवई। कोमल सरीर, गँभीर बेदन, सीस धुनि-धुनि रोवई॥ ३॥ तू निज करम-जाल जहँ घेरो। श्रीहरि संग तज्यो नहिं तेरो॥ बहुबिधि प्रतिपालन प्रभु कीन्हो। परम कृपालु ग्यान तोहि दीन्हों॥ तोहि दियो ग्यान-बिबेक, जनम अनेककी तब सुधि भई। तेहि ईसकी हौं सरन, जाकी बिषम माया गुनमई॥ जेहि किये जीव-निकाय बस, रसहीन, दिन-दिन अति नई। सो करौ बेगि सँभारि श्रीपति, बिपति महँ जेहि मति दई॥ ४॥ पुनि बहुबिधि गलानि जिय मानी। अब जग जाइ भजौं चक्रपानी॥ ऐसेहि करि बिचार चुप साधी। प्रसव-पवन प्रेर्यो अपराधी॥ प्रेर्यो जो परम प्रचंड मारुत, कष्ट नाना तैं सह्यो। सो ग्यान, ध्यान, बिराग, अनुभव जातना-पावक दह्यो॥ अति खेद ब्याकुल, अलप बल, छिन एक बोलि न आवई। तव तीब्र कष्ट न जान कोउ, सब लोग हरषित गावई॥ ५॥ बाल दसा जेते दुख पाये। अति असीम, नहिं जाहिं गनाये॥ छुधा-ब्याधि-बाधा भइ भारी। बेदन नहिं जानै महतारी॥ जननी न जानै पीर सो, केहि हेतु सिसु रोदन करै। सोइ करै बिबिध उपाय, जातें अधिक तुव छाती जरै॥ कौमार, सैसव अरु किसोर अपार अघ को कहि सकै। ब्यतिरेक तोहि निरदय! महाखल! आन कहु को सहि सकै॥ ६॥ जोबन जुवती सँग रँग रात्यो। तब तू महा मोह-मद मात्यो॥ ताते तजी धरम-मरजादा। बिसरे तब सब प्रथम बिषादा॥ बिसरे बिषाद, निकाय-संकट समुझि नहिं फाटत हियो। फिरि गर्भगत-आवर्त संसृतिचक्र जेहि होइ सोइ कियो॥ कृमि-भस्म-बिट-परिनाम तनु, तेहि लागि जग बैरी भयो। परदार, परधन, द्रोहपर, संसार बाढ़े नित नयो॥ ७॥ देखत ही आई बिरुधाई। जो तैं सपनेहुँ नाहिं बुलाई॥ ताके गुन कछु कहे न जाहीं। सो अब प्रगट देखु तनु माहीं॥ सो प्रगट तनु जरजर जराबस, ब्याधि, सूल सतावई। सिर-कंप, इंद्रिय-सक्ति प्रतिहत, बचन काहु न भावई॥ गृहपालहूतें अति निरादर, खान-पान न पावई। ऐसिहु दसा न बिराग तहँ, तृष्णा-तरंग बढ़ावई॥ ८॥ कहि को सके महाभव तेरे। जनम एकके कछुक गनेरे॥ चारि खानि संतत अवगाहीं। अजहुँ न करु बिचार मन माहीं॥ अजहुँ बिचारि, बिकार तजि, भजु राम जन-सुखदायकं। भवसिंधु दुस्तर जलरथं, भजु चक्रधर सुरनायकं॥ बिनु हेतु करुनाकर, उदार, अपार-माया-तारनं। कैवल्य-पति, जगपति, रमापति, प्रानपति, गतिकारनं॥ ९॥ रघुपति-भगति सुलभ, सुखकारी। सो त्रयताप-सोक-भय-हारी॥ बिनु सतसंग भगति नहिं होई। ते तब मिलें द्रवै जब सोई॥ जब द्रवै दीनदयालु राघव, साधु-संगति पाइये। जेहि दरस-परस-समागमादिक पापरासि नसाइये॥ जिनके मिले दुख-सुख समान, अमानतादिक गुन भये। मद-मोह लोभ-बिषाद-क्रोध सुबोधतें सहजहिं गये॥ १०॥ सेवत साधु द्वैत-भय भागै। श्रीरघुबीर-चरन लय लागै॥ देह-जनित बिकार सब त्यागै। तब फिरि निज स्वरूप अनुरागै॥ अनुराग सो निज रूप जो जगतें बिलच्छन देखिये। संतोष, सम, सीतल, सदा दम, देहवंत न लेखिये॥ निरमल, निरामय, एकरस, तेहि हरष-सोक न ब्यापई। त्रैलोक-पावन सो सदा जाकी दसा ऐसी भई॥ ११॥ जो तेहि पंथ चले मन लाई। तौ हरि काहे न होहिं सहाई॥ जो मारग श्रुति-साधु दिखावै। तेहि पथ चलत सबै सुख पावै॥ पावै सदा सुख हरि-कृपा, संसार-आसा तजि रहै। सपनेहुँ नहीं सुख द्वैत-दरसन, बात कोटिक को कहै॥ द्विज, देव, गुरु, हरि, संत बिनु संसार-पार न पाइये। यह जानि तुलसीदास त्रासहरन रमापति गाइये॥ १२॥
Since the soul became separated from Hari, it took body and home to be its own. Subject to Maya, it forgot its true nature, and through that delusion suffered terrible pain. You gained unbearable misery and not even a trace of happiness in a dream; obstinately you kept walking the very road that brought the pangs of becoming and countless sorrows. Dull-witted one, through many births, old ages, and calamities you did not know Hari. Fool, reflect: without Shri Rama, where have you ever found rest? (1) Your dwelling is in the midst of the ocean of bliss; not knowing this, why do you die of thirst? Taking a mirage’s water as real, you plunged into it and thought yourself happy. You sink there and drink, though no water has existed there in past, present, or future. Wretch, forgetting your own innate, directly experienced nature, you have now come to this. You abandoned stainless, taintless, changeless, generous joy—like a king needlessly forsaking his realm and falling into a prison in a dream. (2) You yourself made the cord of karma firm and tied its knot with your own deeds. Therefore, luckless one, you fell into dependence, and its next fruit was the pain of dwelling in the womb. You knew that host of afflictions while enclosed in the belly: head downward, feet above, in a distress about which no one asks. Covered with blood, excrement, urine, filth, worms, and mire, your tender body lay in grave pain, beating its head and weeping. (3) Where your own net of karma enclosed you, Shri Hari did not abandon your company. The Lord preserved you in many ways; supremely compassionate, he gave you knowledge. He gave you knowledge and discernment, and then you remembered many births: “I take refuge in that Lord whose formidable Maya is made of the qualities. By it he has subjected multitudes of creatures, tasteless yet ever new from day to day. May Shripati, who gave me understanding amid calamity, quickly rescue me.” (4) Then, feeling many forms of remorse within, you resolved, “Now I shall enter the world and worship the Discus-bearer.” You had scarcely formed this thought and fallen silent when the guilty wind of birth drove you out. Propelled by that exceedingly fierce wind, you suffered many pains, and the fire of torment burned away that knowledge, meditation, dispassion, and direct experience. Overwhelmed by anguish, with little strength, you could not utter a word even for an instant. No one knew your acute suffering; all the people sang in delight. (5) The sufferings you endured in childhood were measureless and cannot be counted. Hunger, illness, and affliction became severe, but your mother did not know the pain. The mother did not understand why the infant cried; she tried various remedies that made your breast burn still more. Who can tell the boundless misery of infancy, childhood, and adolescence? Apart from you, pitiless and utterly wicked one, say who else could endure it? (6) In youth you became absorbed in the colors of a young woman; then you were intoxicated with immense delusion and pride. Because of that you abandoned the bounds of dharma and forgot all your former grief. You forgot the anguish and danger of embodiment; your heart did not break on understanding it. You did whatever would bring you once more into the womb’s whirl and the cycle of becoming. For a body whose end is worms, ashes, or excrement, you made the world your enemy—intent on others’ wives, others’ wealth, and malice, making worldly bondage ever new. (7) As you watched, that adversary came whom you had not summoned even in a dream. Its qualities cannot be fully told; now see it manifest in your body. Subject to old age, the body is visibly worn out; disease and stabbing pain torment it. The head trembles, the powers of the senses are checked, and no one likes its speech. It receives deep disrespect even from the keepers of the household and does not obtain food and drink. Even in such a state dispassion does not arise; the waves of craving increase. (8) Who can recount your vast worldly becoming? Only a few events of one birth have been counted. You have continually plunged into the four modes of birth, yet even now you do not reflect within. Reflect even now, abandon your disorders, and worship Rama, giver of joy to his servants. Worship the Discus-bearer, leader of the gods and ship upon the hard-to-cross ocean of becoming: causelessly compassionate, generous, deliverer across boundless Maya, Lord of liberation, Lord of the world, Lord of Rama, Lord of life, and cause of the path. (9) Devotion to Raghupati is accessible and joy-giving; it removes the three afflictions, sorrow, and fear. Without the company of saints there is no devotion, and saints are met only when he melts with compassion. When the compassionate-to-the-poor Raghava melts, one gains saintly company; sight, touch, fellowship, and the like with saints destroy the heap of sins. Meeting them, pain and pleasure become equal, virtues such as freedom from self-regard arise, and pride, delusion, greed, grief, and anger depart naturally through right understanding. (10) By serving a saint, fear born of duality flees and love fastens upon Shri Raghubira’s feet. One abandons all body-born disorders and then again loves one’s own true nature—that nature, unlike the world, which is seen as contented, even, cool, always self-restrained, and not reckoning itself an embodied being. Stainless, free from affliction, and of one essence, it is pervaded by neither elation nor grief. One whose state has become such is ever the purifier of the three worlds. (11) If one follows that path with the mind intent, why should Hari not become one’s helper? All who walk the road shown by scripture and saint obtain happiness. By Hari’s grace one gains lasting joy and lives having abandoned hope in the world. There is no happiness, even in a dream, in the vision of duality—what can millions of words add? Without brahmin, deity, guru, Hari, and saint, one cannot cross the world. Knowing this, says Tulsidas, sing of the Lord of Rama, remover of fear. (12)