so 'vyān naḥ sad-asat-paraḥ
ya eko manasā saha
anāma-rūpaś cin-mātraḥ
so 'vyān naḥ sad-asat-paraḥ
May the Lord who is one entity with no form, who is pure consciousness, who is the cause of the material world and unapproachable by words and mind protect us!
In this verse he offers respects to the impersonal feature of the Lord.
|| 6.16.22 ||
yasminn idaṁ yataś cedaṁ
tiṣṭhaty apyeti jāyate
mṛṇmayeṣv iva mṛj-jātis
tasmai te brahmaṇe namaḥ
We offer respects to Brahman from whom the universe arises, in whom it remains and into whom it dissolves, just as earth is the cause of clay pots.
He offers respects to the Lord as the cause of the universe. The universe resides in the Lord, arises from him and dissolves into him, just as earth is the cause of clay pots.
|| 6.16.23 ||
yan na spṛśanti na vidur
mano-buddhīndriyāsavaḥ
antar bahiś ca vitataṁ
vyomavat tan nato 'smy aham
I offer respects to the Lord who spreads inside and outside like the air, and whom the mind, intelligence, senses and life airs cannot touch or know.
He offers respects to the Lord how is beyond the senses. He cannot be touched by the action senses or known by the knowledge senses. “Well, that is because he is far away.” No, he is within all bodies. But he is also outside.
|| 6.16.24 ||
dehendriya-prāṇa-mano-dhiyo 'mī
yad-aṁśa-viddhāḥ pracaranti karmasu
naivānyadā lauham ivāprataptaṁ
sthāneṣu tad draṣṭrapadeśam eti
Only when endowed with consciousness by the Lord do the body, senses, life airs and intelligence move to their objects, just as unheated iron cannot burn. Without the influence of the Lord they do not move. The Lord allows the jīva, who can see in waking and dream states, to see him--by endowing him with cit-śakti.
The cause of the jīva’s ignorance of the Lord is explained. When a portion of the Lord’s consciousness enters (yad aṁśa-viddhāḥ), body, senses, life airs and intelligence can move towards their sense objects (karmaṣu), when a person is awake or dreaming, but not in other states (anyadā) such as deep sleep and fainting. Iron which is not heated does not burn.
There is another meaning. Just as iron which has become a burning agent by the energy of fire does not burn fire itself, so the body and sense activated to their sense objects by the energy of Brahman do not touch Brahman. They do not know Brahman. “If the jīva is a seer why can he not know Brahman?” The Brahman makes the jīvas accomplish his seeing. And by giving the jīva a small portion of his consciousness in order to perfect the jīva’s seeing power, the jīva achieves the Lord. Some persons even say that the jīva is insentient like the mind.
There is another meaning. The Brahman (tat) knows (eti) the jīva but the jīva does not know Brahman. It has been said in the Haṁsa-guhya prayers:
deho 'savo 'kṣā manavo bhūta-mātrām
ātmānam anyaṁ ca viduḥ paraṁ yat
sarvaṁ pumān veda guṇāṁś ca taj-jño
na veda sarva-jñam anantam īḍe
The body, life airs, senses, internal senses, gross elements and sense objects do not know themselves or other things or the jīva. The jīva knows all of these items and the guṇas which cause them. He also knows Paramātmā, but does not know the omniscient Lord. I worship that Lord with infinite qualities. SB 6.4.25
|| 6.16.25 ||
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