Panchadasi-Chapter 1-Verses 40 and 41

Hari Aum

Prostrations to my Guru. Prostrations to All.

Sloka 40:

tad vivekaad viviktaaH syuH koshaaH praaNa mano dhiyaH .
te hi tatra guNaavasthaa bheda maatraat pR^ithak kR^itaaH .. 40..

By discriminating of the subtle body (and recognition of its variable, transient character), the sheaths of the mind, the intellect, and vital airs are understood to be different from the Self, for the sheaths are conditions of the three gunas, and differ from each other (qualitatively and quantitatively).

Sloka 41:

sushhupty abhaane bhaana.n tu samaadhaav aatmano .anvayaH .
vyatirekas tu aatma bhaane sushhupty anavabhaasanam.h .. 41..

Similarly, in the state of deep sleep, the subtle body is not perceived, but the Self invariably witnesses that state. While the Self persists in all states the subtle body is not perceived in deep sleep and it is called variable factor.

In the previous sloka through the logic of Anvaya and vyathireka the subtle is proved to be different from the Self. The subtle body consists of seventeen parts which include 5 organs of perception, 5 organs of action, 5 pranas, mind and intellect. Since the entire subtle body itself is proved to be different from the Self, the parts in the subtle are also different from the Self.

In the next sloka the analysis of causal body is made. In the waking the mind and the sense organs seem to exist. In dream state only mind seem to exist. But in deep sleep state the mind merges into the cause. The ignorance which is the causal body exists during the deep sleep. In deep sleep there is only Bliss but ignorance is still there. In Nirvikalpa Samadhi, there exist only Self and the person experiences Bliss with awareness. The Bliss that was unaware in the deep-sleep is experienced during Samadhi. Thus we can say that the Self exist when there is no causal body which is ignorance. When we wake up from deep sleep the knowledge that we didn’t know anything during deep sleep is also illumined by the Self and hence Self existed during the deep sleep. Self exists when there is no ignorance.

Anvaya: when ignorance is not there, the Self is there
Vyathireka: The Self is present, the Self is there even when there is no ignorance

Thus we can infer that the Self is different from the physical body, subtle body and ignorance which is the cause for the other two bodies.
We thus infer that the Self is only a witness all the three states (waking, dream and deep sleep) and hence is different from all the five sheaths.

Prostrations to all

Hari Aum

Thanks,
Rajesh