Death praises Nachiketas
स त्वं प्रियान्प्रियरूपांश्च कामान्
अभिध्यायन्नचिकेतोऽत्यस्राक्षीः ।
नैतां सृङ्कां वित्तमयीमवाप्तो
यस्यां मज्जन्ति बहवो मनुष्याः ॥ ३॥
sa tvaṃ priyānpriyarūpāṃśca kāmān
abhidhyāyannaciketo’tyasrākṣīḥ .
naitāṃ sṛṅkāṃ vittamayīmavāpto
yasyāṃ majjanti bahavo manuṣyāḥ .. 3..
O Nachiketa, after pondering well the pleasures that are or seem to he delightful, you have renounced them all. You have not taken the road abounding in wealth, where many men sink.
Commentary:
Yama says, “Nachiketas, you are a very good student. Considering the defect of all forms of sensory enjoyment, you have rejected all of them though I offered every one of them in abundance. You carefully bestowed thought on the defective character of even the best joys of this world and you abandoned all of them unceremoniously, though they were there at your disposal in the largest measure conceivable. People get sunk in the mire of wealth. They go deep into this quagmire of the desire for material riches. You did not want it. I offered you a garland of treasures; you were not willing to accept it because it was connected with wealth, and you are far from it.”
Swami Vivekananda Says —
I praise you, Nachiketas; you have not asked for desire. In various ways I tempted you towards the path of enjoyment; you resisted them all, you have known that knowledge is much higher than a life of enjoyment.[Source] “O Nachiketas, having thought upon the things which are only apparently desirable, thou hast wisely abandoned them.”[Source]
“Neither through wealth, nor through progeny, but by giving up alone that immortality is to be reached.” That is the dictate of the Indian books.[Source]
Death then proceeded to teach Nachiketas.[Source]