धूमो रात्रिस्तथा कृष्णः षण्मासा दक्षिणायनम् ।तत्र चान्द्रमसं ज्योतिर्योगी प्राप्य निवर्तते ॥
dhūmo rātris tathā kṛṣṇaḥ ṣaṇmāsā dakṣiṇāyanam | tatra cāndramasaṃ jyotir yogī prāpya nivartate ||
- धूमः · dhūmaḥ
- smoke
- रात्रिः · rātriḥ
- night
- कृष्णः · kṛṣṇaḥ
- the dark fortnight
- षण्मासाः · ṣaṇmāsāḥ
- the six months
- दक्षिणायनम् · dakṣiṇāyanam
- of the sun's southern course
- चान्द्रमसम् ज्योतिः · cāndramasam jyotiḥ
- the lunar light, the moon's realm
- योगी · yogī
- the yogi
- प्राप्य · prāpya
- having reached
- निवर्तते · nivartate
- returns
“Smoke, night, the dark fortnight, the six months of the sun's southern course — reaching the lunar light by that way, the yogi returns.”
— Original plain-language translation
The path of darkness mirrors the first in every detail, sign by sign. Its destination is the moon's realm, from which return follows. Tradition reads these as the ways of knowledge and of meritorious works respectively.
— Reader's notes (original)