Kaśyapa's Song of Forgiveness

Kaśyapa’s “Song of Forgiveness” is a beautiful teaching to meditate on the power and importance of forgiveness in Vedic culture. This is a variant reading based off of Kisari Mohan Ganguli's translation that I put together quickly for my own reflection and thought to share. 

36 kṣamā dharmaḥ kṣamā yajñaḥ

Forgiveness is dharma; forgiveness is sacrifice/ritual/prayer,

kṣamā vedāḥ kṣamā śrutam

forgiveness is the Vedas, forgiveness is the sacred transmission.

yas tām evaṃ vijānāti sa sarvaṃ kṣantum arhati

He that knows this is capable of forgiving everything.

37 kṣamā brahma kṣamā satyaṃ kṣamā bhūtaṃ ca bhāvi ca

Forgiveness is God; forgiveness is truth; forgiveness is well-being

kṣamā tapaḥ kṣamā śaucaṃ kṣamayā coddhṛtaṃ jagat

forgiveness is tapas; forgiveness is purity, forgiveness upholds the world.

38 ati brahmavidāṃ lokān ati cāpi tapasvinām

ati yajñavidāṃ caiva kṣamiṇaḥ prāpnuvanti tān

The regions obtainable by those that know god or who have done great austerities,

or who know how to perform rituals are obtained by those who are forgiving.

39 kṣamā tejasvināṃ tejaḥ kṣamā brahma tapasvinām

Forgiveness is the fire of the inner purifying one,

[or forgiveness is the power of the powerful, or forgiveness is the might of the mighty]

forgiveness is the divinity of the inner purifying one.

kṣamā satyaṃ satyavatāṃ kṣamā dānaṃ kṣamāyaśaḥ

Forgiveness is the truth of the truthful,

Forgiveness is the donation of the patient.

40 tāṃ kṣamām īdṛśīṃ kṛṣṇe katham asmadvidhas tyajet

“Can one like us abandon forgiveness, which is such,”

yasyāṃ brahma ca satyaṃ ca yajñā lokāś ca viṣṭhitāḥ

and in which are established God, truth, ritual and the worlds?

bhujyante yajvanāṃ lokāḥ kṣamiṇām apare tathā

41 kṣantavyam eva satataṃ puruṣeṇa vijānatā

“The man of wisdom should ever forgive,

yadā hi kṣamate sarvaṃ brahma saṃpadyate tadā

for when he is capable of forgiving everything, he attains to God.

42 kṣamāvatām ayaṃ lokaḥ paraś caiva kṣamāvatām

The world belongs to those that are forgiving; the other world is also theirs.

iha saṃmānam ṛcchanti paratra ca śubhāṃ gatim

The forgiving acquires honours here and a state of blessedness hereafter.

43 yeṣāṃ manyur manuṣyāṇāṃ kṣamayā nihitas tadā

Those men that ever conquer their wrath by forgiveness,

teṣāṃ paratare lokās tasmāt kṣāntiḥ parā matā

obtain the higher regions, therefore has it been said

that forgiveness is the highest” thought/intention.

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This is a sloppy variant translation to ruminate deeper on forgiveness.

Sanskrit from https://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/mbs/mbs03030.htm

Original translation of Kisari Mohan Ganguli from http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/m03/m03029.htm [suggestions welcome.]