TEXT 37
यत् तद् अग्रे विषम् इव
परिणामे ऽमृतोपमम् ।
तत् सुखं सात्त्विकं प्रोक्तम्
आत्मबुद्धिप्रसादजम् ॥ ३७ ॥
yat tad agre viṣam iva
pariṇāme 'mṛtopamam
tat sukhaṁ sāttvikaṁ proktam
ātma-buddhi-prasāda-jam
SYNONYMS
yat—which; tat—that; agre—in the beginning; viṣam iva—like poison; pariṇāme—at the end; amṛta—nectar; upamam—compared to; tat—that; sukham—happiness; sāttvikam—in the mode of goodness; proktam—is said; ātma—in the self; buddhi—of intelligence; prasāda-jam—born of the satisfaction.
TRANSLATION
That which in the beginning may be just like poison but at the end is just like nectar and which awakens one to self-realization is said to be happiness in the mode of goodness.
PURPORT
In the pursuit of self-realization, one has to follow many rules and regulations to control the mind and the senses and to concentrate the mind on the self. All these procedures are very difficult, bitter like poison, but if one is successful in following the regulations and comes to the transcendental position, he begins to drink real nectar, and he enjoys life.
