Svetasvathara Upanishad – 15

  Chapter 5 (Mantras 8 to 14(end))

Mantra 5-8

angushthamatro ravitulyarupah sankalpahamkarasamanvito yah I

buddhergunenatmagunena chaiva aragramatropyavaro'pi drshtah II 5.8 II

The Jiva (Self), small as a thumb, bright as the sun, is associated with sankalpa and egoism, and also with the intellect and a body.  Therefore, He is seen as another entity (different from Brahman) and as fine as the point of a needle.

            The Jiva is in reality none other than the Brahman and the various phenomenal characteristics, such as desire, will of its own, egoism, and intellect are only illusory superimpositions due to avidya.  Due to avidya, Jiva is regarded as separate from Brahman. The size of the Jiva is given as the fine point of a needle only to explain Jiva’s subtleness.  Bhagvad Gita (15.10) states:

utkraamantam sthitam vaapi bhunjaanam vaa gunaanvitam

vimoodhaa naanupashyanti pashyanti jnaanachakshushah //

The ignorant do not see Him (Jiva) departing from or residing in (the body) or experiencing the objects of the senses in association with the gunas.  Only those with eye of knowledge (Self-knowledge) behold Him.

            Jiva, the Self, is knowable by the eye of knowledge only. The ignorant and deluded do not see Him because of their complete pre-occupation with the sense-objects. But those who have acquired the inner eye of Self-knowledge realise the Jiva as entirely distinct from the body. 

Mantra 5-9

valagrasatabhagasya satadha kalpitasya cha I

bhago jivah sa vijneyah sa chanantyayakalpate II 5.9 II

Jiva is very small, as small as the hundredth part of the point of a hair divided again by a hundred; and yet Jiva is infinite.

            The subtlety of Jiva is again elaborated here. It is described as small as the hundredth part of the tip of hair that has been divided again into a hundred parts. This is just a simile and not to be taken literally. Even though it is so subtle, jiva is infinite as well.  The implication is that although Brahman (Cosmic Self) is infinite and is permeating the entire universe, it gets individualized and appears small or big because of the attributes, when it is associated with the physical bodies. 

Mantra 5-10

naiva stri na puman esha na chaivayam napumsakah I

yadyacchariramadatte tena tena sa yujyate II 5.10 II

Jiva is neither female nor male, and it is not a eunuch either. Whatever body it takes; with that it becomes united.

Jiva in reality is neither male nor female nor a eunuch also. Whatever body Jiva assumes, the gender of that body becomes its gender. Jiva is undifferentiated and is devoid of all attributes.

Mantra 5-11

sankalpanasparsanadrshtimohair grasambuvrshtyatmavivrddhijanma I

karmanugany anukramena dehi sthaneshu rupany abhisamprapadyate II 5.11 II

By means of desires, contact, attachment and delusion, the embodied Jiva assumes, successively, diverse forms in various places, according to its deeds, just as the body grows when food and drink are poured into it.

            First there arises a desire for an object and then the sense organs come in contact with it, next the embodied Jiva grows attached to the objects and lastly it falls a victim to the delusion created by attachment. Just as food and water nourish the body, so also karma nourishes the individual self.  The embodied Jiva performs various actions, righteous and unrighteous, and as a result assumes different kinds of bodies, one after the other. 

Mantra 5-12

sthulani sukshmani bahuni chaiva rupani dehi svagunair vrnoti I

kriyagunair athmagunais cha tesham samyogahetur aparo'pi drshtah II 5.12 II

The embodied Jiva assumes many forms, gross and fine according to its past work and mental qualities.  (In every birth) by virtue of its (past) actions and also of such characteristics of the mind as knowledge and desire, it assumes a different body for the enjoyment of suitable objects

            The embodied Jiva assumes various gross and subtle forms, from those of insects to gods, according to its past work and mental qualities (gunas). The subtle tendencies created by the embodied Jiva’s actions in its previous life are the cause of its union with its present body.

Mantra 5-13

anadyanantam kalilasya madhye visvasya srashtaram anekarupam I

visvasyaikam pariveshtitaram jnatva devam muchyate sarvapasaih II 5.13 II

Realizing Him who is without beginning or end, who creates the cosmos in the midst of chaos, who assumes many forms, and who alone envelops everything, and who is one without a second, one becomes free from all bonds.

            The embodied Jiva identifying itself with the body becomes individualized, and acting under the weight of avidya-propelled desires is caught up in the cycle of birth and death and assumes many forms, human, sub-human and super-human. At a certain stage, seeking liberation, the embodied Jiva engages in spiritual studies and sadhanas under the guidance of a guru and realises its essential oneness with the immortal Supreme Brahman, who is eternal, infinite, and non-dual and becomes free of all bondages.

Mantra 5-14

bhavagrahyam anidakhyam bhavabhavakaram sivam I

kalasargakaram devam ye vidus te jahus tanum II 5.14 II

That Supreme Brahman can be realized only by the pure mind.  He is without form and is the cause of both creation and destruction.  He is all good and luminous and is the source of all arts and sciences.   Realising Him, one is freed from embodiment.

            This Mantra concludes the chapter by recalling how to attain Liberation.  The Supreme Brahman, Himself without a support, is the cause of creation, preservation and dissolution. He can be known by the pure in heart. Through knowledge of the essential oneness of one’s Self with Him one attains Liberation. The one who has attained Self-knowledge is not born again.

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