Section 4.3 (third khaṇḍa) (eight texts)

Upaniṣad text:

Air indeed is the Absorbent; when Fire goes out, it goes into Air; when the Sun sets, it goes into Air; when the Moon sets, it goes into Air.—(1)

Commentary (Śaṅkara Bhāṣya):

Air indeed is the Absorbent;—The ‘Air’ meant here is the external (Physical) air;—‘Vāva’ has the restrictive force;—Absorbent,—so called because it absorbs, swallows or merges in itself, the Air is called the ‘absorbent’ because it absorbs the Fire and other deities mentioned below into itself. So that the quality named ‘absorbence’ is to be meditated upon like the Air; that such is the meaning is indicated by the example of the winning of the Kṛtāya dice (described before).—The text proceeds to show in what way Air is the Absorbent.—When—at which time—Fire goes out—becomes extinguished,—then it—the Fire—goes into Air,—that is, becomes of the nature of Air.—Similarly, when the Sun sets, it goes into Air; when the Moon sets, it goes into Air.—

Question—“As a matter of fact, the Sun and the Moon continue to exist in their own forms; how then can they be said to go into Air I”—

Answer—This does not vitiate the doctrine. Because when on setting, the Sun and Moon become invisible, what makes them invisible is Air; it is Air by which the Sun is carried to setting, because every movement is the effect of Air. Or, the meaning may be that when, at Dissolution, the physical forms of the Sun and Moon perish, and they become dissolved into Light, they go into Air only,—(1)

Upaniṣad text:

When Water dries up, it goes into Air. For Air indeed absorbs them all.—This is with reference to the Deities.—(2)

Commentary (Śaṅkara Bhāṣya):

Similarly, when Water dries up—reaches evaporation,—it goes into Air; because it is Air that absorbs all these extremely powerful elements Fire and the rest. For this reason Air is to be meditated upon as endowed with the quality of absorbence.—This is with reference to Deities,— i.e. the doctrine of Absorption as applied to Deities.—(2)

Upaniṣad text:

Now with reference to the Body. Breath indeed is the Absorbent. When one sleeps, Speech goes into Breath, the Eye goes into Breath, the Ear goes into Breath, the Mind goes into Breath. For Breath indeed absorbs all these.—(3)

Commentary (Śaṅkara Bhāṣya):

Now, next, follows the doctrine in reference to one’s own body.—Breath—the principal Life-breath—indeed is the Absorbent. When—at the time that—one,—the man—sleeps, Speech goes into Breath,—just as Fire goes into Air;—the Eye goes into Breath; the Ear goes into Breath;— the Mind goes into Breath. For Breath indeed absorbs all these—Speech and the rest.—(3)

Upaniṣad text:

These two indeed are the two Absorbents, Air among the Deities and Breath among the Organs.-(4)

Commentary (Śaṅkara Bhāṣya):

These two are the two absorbents,—endowed with absorbent properties. Air is the Absorbent among Deities, and Breath the principal Life-breath—is the Absorbent among the Organs—Speech and the rest.—(4)

Upaniṣad text:

Once, while Śaunaka-Kāpeya and Abhīpratārin [Abhipratārin?] Kākṣaseni were being served with food, a Religious Student begged of them; and they did not give to him anything.—(5)

Commentary (Śaṅkara Bhāṣya):

This story is introduced for the purpose of eulogising these two (Air and Breath).—The particle ‘ha’ indicates that the story is current among people.—‘Śaunaka the son of Śunaka—‘Kāpeya’—who belonged to the Kapigotra;—‘Abhipratārin’—by name—‘Kākṣaseni’ the son of Kakṣasena;—when these two were seated at their meals, and were being served with food,—by the cooks,—a Religious Student,—proud of his knowledge of Brahman—begged of them—asked for food.—Those two understood that the Religious Student was proud of his knowledge of Brahman, and hence, with a view to test him, did not give to him anything,—just waiting to see what he was going to say.—(5)

Upaniṣad text:

He said—‘The one Deity, Prajāpati, swallowed up the four High-souled Ones,—He, the protector of the universe. Him, O Kāpeya, mortals do not perceive, though O Abhipratārin,—He dwells in many ways. He for whom all this food is,—to him it has not been given.’ -(6)

Commentary (Śaṅkara Bhāṣya):

He—the Religious Student—said: ‘The four High-souled Ones,—this is to be construed as the Accusative plural,—the one deity Prajāpati, swallowed up’, Vāyu (Air swallowing Agni (Fire) and the rest, and Prāṇa (Breath) swallowing Vāk (Speech) and the rest.—Or, as some people explain this latter part of the sentence—‘Kaḥ sa jagāra’, ‘who was it that swallowed up?’—He the protector of the universe,—the term ‘bhuvana’ stands for the whole Universe consisting of the Earth and other regions, in the sense that ‘all living beings live (bhavanti) therein—of this whole universe,—He is the protector, the saviour,—Him—this Prajāpati—O Kāpeya, mortals—people prone to death, lacking in discrimination,—do not perceive—know;—though, O, Abhipratārin,—He dwells in many ways,—spiritual, divine and material (related to the Body, to the Deities and to the Elemental Substances).—He for whom all this food is— prepared day by day, for whose Eating,—to Him—Prajāpati—it has not been given.—(6)

Upaniṣad text:

Thereupon, Śaunaka-Kāpeya, reflecting, approached him (and said)—‘It is the Self, the generator of the Deities and of Beings, He with golden teeth, the Devourer, Not-unintelligent. They describe his greatness as very great; without being Himself eaten, He eats even what is not food. We, O Religious Student, meditate upon this’.—[Then he said to the servants] ‘Give him food’.—(7)

Commentary (Śaṅkara Bhāṣya):

Thereupon, Śaunaka-Kāpeya, reflecting— pondering in his mind, over the words of the Religious Student, approached him—the Religious Student; and having approached him, said—‘He whom, you have said, mortals do not perceive,—Him we do perceive.’—How so?—‘It is the Self—of all things, animate and inanimate;—further, it is He who absorbs within Himself and swallows Agni and other Deities and produces them again; He, in the form of Vāyu, is the generator of Agni and other Deities, in reference to the Divine form; and in reference to the Body also, He, in the form of Prāṇa, is the generator of Speech and the other organs.—Or, the Self is the generator of the Deities, Agni, Vāk (Speech) and the rest, as also of beings—animate and inanimate.—He is with golden teeth, i.e. His teeth are imperishable, never broken—He is the Devourer,—prone to devour things.—Not unintelligent—‘Sūri’, is intelligent, ‘asuri’, is unintellgent, and ‘anasūri’ is not-unintelligent, i.e. intelligent. His (Prajāpati’s)—greatness,—magnificence,—they—who know Brahman,—decscribe as very great—very large, immeasurable;—as without being Himself eaten— devoured.—by others—He eats what is not food,—i.e. Agni-Vāk and the other deities.—The particle Vā’ is meaning, less. We, O, Religious Student, meditate upon this Brahman as described (in this interpretation the construction is ‘Brahmacārin ā idam vayam upāsmahe’);—others however construe the sentence differently (as ‘Brahmacārin naidam vayam upāsmahe) to mean that ‘we do not meditate upon this Brahman that has been described, but upon the Supreme Brahman’.—Thereupon Śaunaka told the servants to ‘give him food’.—(7)

Upaniṣad text:

They gave it to him. Now these five and the other five, becoming ten, constitute the Kṛta (Dicecast). Therefore in all quarters those ten are the food and the Kṛta-cast. This is Virāṭ the Eater of Food. By this all this becomes seen. One who knows thus sees all this and becomes an eater of food,—yes, one who knows this.—(8)

Commentary (Śaṅkara Bhāṣya):

They gave food to him.

Now these five—the five, Agni, and the rest, which are swallowed, and the Vāyu that swallows them,—these are five; these are the five, distinct from Speech and the rest > and these, Speech and the rest, along with Breath are the other five; thus making up the number Ten’, and becoming Ten, they constitute the Kṛta-cast;—the Ekāya-cast with four marks, swallows four numbers; then the Dice with three marks swallows three numbers the dice with two marks swallows two numbers, and there is one more; thus there are Ten making up the Kṛta-cast.—And because all this is so, therefore in all ten quarters, Agni and the rest and Vāyu and the rest are the food, because of the number Ten being the common factor. As says the Śruti-text—

‘The Virāṭ is ten-lettered,—Virāṭ is food,’ Hence all this is food, being ten in number. Hence these ten are the Kṛta-cast; because they are included in the Kṛta-cast which in. eludes all four casts,—as we have already explained above.

This Virāṭ—being ten in number—is Food, and also the Eater of food, in the form of the Kṛta-cast. The number Ten is included in the Kṛta-cast, hence it is Food, and also the Eater of food.—So also the man who knows this, becoming unified with the ten deities, and hence being Virāṭ, through the number ten, becomes food,—and by the number of the Kṛta-cast, he becomes the Eater of food.—By this,—‘food and Eater of food’—all this—universe situated in the ten quarters,—becomes seen,—i.e. perceived, by its forming the number of the Kṛta-cast. One who knows this, assumes the number of the Kṛta-cast and as such comes to perceive all things connected with the ten quarters. Further, one who knows this—perceives what has been said above, and becomes an eater of food.

The repetition is meant to indicate the end of the description of this particular form of meditation.—(8)

End of Section (3) of Discourse IV