Those who, endowed with austerity and faith, dwell in the forest, peaceful, wise, living by mendicancy — through the door of the sun they depart stainless toward where that immortal Being is, of immutable nature.

Contrast with the ritualists: renunciants reach a superior destiny.

Tapaḥ-śraddhe — austerity and faith. The combination of rigorous practice and inner confidence.

Araṇye upavasanti — dwell in the forest. Retreat from worldly life for intensive practice.

Śāntāḥ — peaceful, serene. Inner peace as a result of retreat.

Vidvāṃsaḥ — wise, knowing. Not merely scholars but realized beings.

Bhaikṣya-caryāṃ — living by mendicancy. Dependence on the divine, not on one’s own production.

Sūryadvāreṇa — through the door of the sun. The path of light (arcirādi-mārga), the path of the gods.

Virajāḥ — stainless, pure. Purity as a requirement for the final journey.

Avyayātmā — of immutable nature. The goal beyond all change.