[Advaita-l] nAsadIya sUkta in the taittirIya brAhmaNa - part 5

[Venkatraghavan S]

अथ पञ्चमीमाह - The fifth rca says:

तिरश्चीनो वितते रश्मिरेषाम् |
अधस्विदासीदुपरि स्विदासीत् |
रेतोधा आसन्महिमान आसन् |
स्वधा अवस्तात्प्रयति: परस्तात् |
इति

*रश्मि*: सूर्यरश्मिसमान: कस्चित्स्वयंप्रकाशचैतन्यपदार्थ: | here "rashmi" is
referring to self-effulgent consciousness, somewhat like the all-pervading
rays of the sun

*एषां* भूतभौतिकरूपाणाम् जगद्वस्तूनाम् मध्ये *तिरश्चीन*स्तिर्यग्वर्तमानो
*विततो* व्याप्त: स चैतन्यरूप: परमात्माऽमीषां पदार्थाना*मधो*भागेऽवस्थित: |
"eShAm", the objects of the bhUtabhautika world were "vitata:", completely
pervaded by consciousness, "tirashcIna" across the middle. The supreme
Atma, of the nature of consciousness, illuminated the "adha", the bottom.

किं *वोपरि*भागेऽवस्थित: | Or did he illuminate the top?

*स्विच्छ*ब्दौ विकल्पितपक्षद्वयसूचनार्थौ | the word "svit" is to indicate
these  two possibilities

प्लुतिर्विचारद्वयद्योतनार्था | The elongated svara (in the intonation of
this mantra), pluti, is to indicate that an inquiry into these two
alternatives is being made

अयमभिप्राय: | The following is the intended meaning for this:

सोऽयं प्रकाश: कस्चिच्चैतन्यपदार्थ: सर्वेषां वस्तूनां मध्ये पर्यालोच्यमानो
दीर्घतन्तुवत्तिर्यग्भूतो व्याप्यावभासते | The vedA is wondering, whether
this light, of the nature of of consciousness, pervades all the objects in
the middle like a long piece of string tied horizontally?

अध: पर्यालोच्यमानस्तत्राप्यवभासते | Or, the veda wonders, does it also
illuminate objects pervading them from below?

उपरि पर्यालोच्यमानस्तत्राप्यावभासते | Or, it is being asked, does it also
illuminate objects by pervading them from the top?

तस्मादध ऊर्ध्वे मध्ये च भासमानत्वादेकत्रैवावस्थित इति वक्तुमशक्य: |
Therefore, because objects in the top, middle, or bottom are illuminated,
it is impossible to say that consciousness pervaded only one portion of the
object

यथा घटस्योपादानभूतो मृत्पिण्डो घटस्याधऊर्ध्वमध्यभागेषु सर्वेष्वनुवर्तते,
एवं तत्तत्पदार्थोपादानानि तत्तत्कार्येषु व्याप्यैव वर्तन्ते | like the
material cause of a pot, the lump of clay pervades the top, middle and
bottom of the top, so do the material causes of all objects pervade the
entire objects

एवमयं परमात्माऽपि स्वकार्येषु व्याप्य वर्तमान: सन्नध आसीदित्येव
वोपर्यासीदित्येव वा निश्चेतुमशक्य इति | Similarly, it is impossible to say
whether the supreme Atma was present prevading the top, the middle or the
bottom of all objects in creation

(Side note: In this mantra in the taittirya brAhmaNa version of the
nAsadIya sUkta, sAyaNAchArya is focusing on objects being fully pervaded by
consciousness, as the cause fully pervades the effect. For the same mantra
occurring in the rig samhitA, sAyaNAchArya focuses on the speed of
creation. There he says, creation happens so quickly, like a flash of
lightning, it becomes difficult to conclude whether objects on the top were
created first, or those in the middle / the bottom were created first -
विद्युत्प्रकाशवत् सर्गस्य शीघ्रव्यापनेन तस्य क्रमस्य दुर्लक्षणत्वादेतेषु
त्रिषु स्थानेषु प्राथम्यं कुत्रेति विचार्यते.)

सर्व एते पदार्था भूतभौतिकरूपा: पूर्वोक्तस्य विततरश्मिरूपस्य
स्वप्रकाशचैतन्यस्य *रेतोधा:*साररूपधारिण *आसन्* | all these products of
creation, of the nature of elements and elementals, were "rethodhA", wear
bearing the essence of  self effulgent consciousness, that was previously
described as all extending rays of consciousness

तत्र चिदेकरसस्य हि वस्तुन: सद्रूपं सारं तच्च सर्वे पदार्था धारयन्ति,
अस्तित्येवं स्वरूपेणैव सर्वेषामवभासमानत्वात् | There, all the objects of
creation, bear the nature of existence, the essence of the one homogenous
consciousness - by appearing to exist (the object "is", we say)

ते च सद्रूपधारिण: सर्वे *महिमानो* गिरिनद्यादिरूपेण महान्त *आसन्* | They,
the bearers of existence, were "mahimAna", great objects such as mountains,
rivers etc.

एवं *स्वधा* शब्दवाच्यमायाविद्यादिशब्देनाभिधीयमाना पारमेश्वरी शक्तिरव
*स्तादधमं* कारणम् | Thus, "svadhA", Ishvara's shakti, known by words such
as mAya, avidyA etc. is the inferior cause (of creation)

*प्रयति:* | सा शक्ति: प्रयतते यस्मिन्परमात्मनि सोऽयं शक्तिप्रयत्नाधार:
परमात्मा प्रयति: | prayati: means the one who wields, or exerts the shakti,
the paramAtma, who happens also to be its AdhAra, the locus of the shakti

स च परस्तात्परममुत्तमं कारणम् | That paramAtma is "parastAt", the superior
cause (of creation)

तावेतौ शक्तिपरमात्मानावेव जगत्कारणभूतौ प्रकृतिपुरुषाविति शास्त्रेषु
व्यपदिश्येते | These two, shakti and paramAtma, being the dual causes of
the world, are known in the shAstras as puruSha and prakriti