Kathopanishad- Verse 8 - kathopanishad-2-2-8-ya eṣa supteṣu

Kathopanishad – Part 2 – Canto 2 – Verse 8 « »

य एष सुप्तेषु जागर्ति कामं कामं पुरुषो निर्मिमाणः ।
तदेव शुक्रं तद्ब्रह्म तदेवामृतमुच्यते ।
तस्मिँल्लोकाः श्रिताः सर्वे तदु नात्येति कश्चन । एतद्वै तत् ॥ ८॥

ya eṣa supteṣu jāgarti kāmaṃ kāmaṃ puruṣo nirmimāṇaḥ .
tadeva śukraṃ tadbrahma tadevāmṛtamucyate .
tasmim̐llokāḥ śritāḥ sarve tadu nātyeti kaścana . etadvai tat .. 8..

8 He, the Purusha, who remains awake while the sense-organs are asleep, shaping one lovely form after another, that indeed is the Pure, that is Brahman and that alone is called the Immortal. All worlds are contained in Him and none can pass beyond. This, verily, is That.

Table of Contents

Sri Shankara’s Commentary (Bhashya) translated by S. Sitarama Sastri

What was pledged in ‘I will explain the secret Brahman’ is now explained. This Purusha who wakes, i.e., does not sleep, when all, i.e., when prâna and the rest are asleep, creating by ignorance whatever was desired, i.e., objects of perception, such as woman and the rest, is certainly pure; and that is the Brahman. There is no other secret Brahman. It is that alone which is said to be immortal, i.e., deathless in all the sâstrâs. Moreover, the worlds, earth and the rest, all depend on the Brahman, that being the cause of all worlds. None passeth beyond that, etc., as already explained.

Commentary by Swami Krishnananda of the great Divine Life Society

Ya eṣa supteṣu jāgarti kāmam kāmam puruṣo nirmimāṇaḥ tad eva śukraṁ tad brahma tad evāmṛtam ucyate, tasmin lokāḥ śritāḥ sarve, tad u nātyeti kaś cana: etad vai tat (2.2.8). Here, the Upanishad shifts its emphasis to another aspect. While the soul is reincarnated in different bodies, it can also liberate itself, if it is honest. For this purpose, it has to investigate itself deeply. Just as there is sensation behind the awareness of objects, thinking behind ordinary sensation, there is consciousness behind thoughts. This consciousness is not the same as sensation; one is not the other. Sensation is to be separated from the awareness of objects, thought from sensation, and consciousness from thought.

Consciousness is not mind, mind is not sensation, sensation is not object. Yet due to a mix-up of character, one gets superimposed on the other. This mutual super-imposition is ananya-adhyasa, and when we investigate it, the independence of consciousness will be realised. This is easily done by analysing the three states of waking, dream and deep sleep. In this mantra, a hint at it is given. Even when we are fast asleep, we may slip into the world of dream. The various experiences we have there are similar to the waking condition. As far as their structure is concerned, these two states are the same.

Just as the consciousness that animates mentation, etc., is different from it, consciousness is different from sensation and objects both in waking and in dream. Consciousness exists even in deep sleep, on account of which we remember previous experiences. This shows that consciousness stands as a witness of all the states. That consciousness is Brahman; that is the immortal Atman. That which stands separated from all phenomena—physical, mental, etc.—is Brahman. That consciousness is the witness of the desire-filled activities in waking, etc. “All the worlds hang on this pure Atman in its universal nature. No one can go beyond this. Transmigration ends here. This verily is That,” says Yama.

Links
Various resources on the Kathopanishad
Upanishad Series – Katopanishad Commentary by Swami Chinmayananda

Kathopanishad – Verse 8 – kathopanishad-2-2-8-ya eṣa supteṣu – In Sanskrit with English Transliteration, Meaning and Commentary by Adi Shankaracharya (Sankara Bhashya) – Katha-2-2-8