Verse 1.126

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of verse 1.126:

सैषा संसारिणां संज्ञा बहिरन्तश्च वर्तते ।
तन्मात्रामव्यतिक्रान्तं चैतन्यं सर्वजातिषु ॥ १२६ ॥

saiṣā saṃsāriṇāṃ saṃjñā bahirantaśca vartate |
tanmātrāmavyatikrāntaṃ caitanyaṃ sarvajātiṣu || 126 ||

126. The consciousness of all beings going through transmigration is in the nature of the word; it exists within and without. The consciousness of all types of beings does not go beyond this essence.

Commentary

It is because consciousness is of the nature of the word that the distinction between sentient and insentient is made in the world.¹ It has been said—

It is the word which urges all beings towards purposeful activity. If that were absent, everything would be insentient like a piece of wood or a wall.”

The experience of pleasure and pain in the case of those whose consciousness is turned inward is possible only as long as consciousness is of the nature of the word. As for those whose consciousness is external, their transactions in the world are dependent upon that and would, in the absence of that, cease to be. There is no kind of being endowed with consciousness who knows or causes others to know without the association of the word.² Therefore, there is no activity of consciousness which is not closely linked with the powers of the word. Others go to the extent of saying that the activity of consciousness is the principle of the word itself. For it has been said—

“The word which has been taught in all the Sciences as the ultimate source assumes form through the appearance of differences.”

The divisions of this word, cows and the like, made known through the words,³ having their source in the word, are not beyond the unity of the ultimate even though they appear to be different,”

They conquer death who know the word which has six doors, six bases, six forms of knowledge and six eternals.⁴

Notes

1. Saṃjñā, sasaṃjña, visaṃjña, antaḥsaṃjña, bahiḥsamjna, these five allied expressions are found in this verse and the Vṛtti thereon. Visaṃjña is also found in the verse quoted in the Vṛtti. Sasaṃjña and Visaṃjña mean sentient and insentient respectively. A piece of wood is given as an example of what is Visaṃjña. Antaḥsaṃjña and Bahiḥsaṃjña seem to stand for different states of beings: when consciousness is withdrawn from external objects it is antaḥsaṃjñā, when it is turned outwords, it is bahiḥsaṃjñā.

2. Svaparasaṃbodhaḥ. Whatever has consciousness is capable of svasaṃbodha or both svasaṃbodha and parasaṃbodha—whatever is sthāvara, stationary, like a tree has only svasaṃbodha. Men and other animals have both, according to Vṛṣabha: svasaṃbodhānugama eva sthāvareṣu, ubhayānugamo jaṅgameṣu manuṣyādiṣviti. ‘Parasambodha’ can mean both knowledge of others and making others know.

3. Vāṅnetrāḥ vāṅnibandhanāḥ. Things consisting of objects and words, are brought to the mind through words (vacanān nīyante—Vṛ.). So they are called vāṅnetrāḥ. In other words, we see everything through the word.

4. The word is said to have four sets of six things. What they stand for is not clear. Vṛṣabha explains them on the basis of the six kinds of Pratibhā mentioned in Vāk. II, 154. due to (1) svabhāva; (2) caraṇa; (3) abhyāsa; (4) yoga; (5) adṛṣṭā; (6) viśiṣtopanatā. They are the means (dvāra) of attaining the ultimate word, the six meanings which figure in them are its basis (adhiṣṭhāna), the six kinds of cognitions which result from them lead to it and the six relations with the six meanings are eternal (avyaya).