Prashna Upanishad – I – Spiritual paths of the Moon and Sun – 12   «   »

Prashna Upanishad – I – Spiritual paths of the Moon and Sun – 12   «   »

मासो वै प्रजापतिस्तस्य कृष्णपक्ष एव रयिः शुक्लः प्रणस्तस्मादेत
ऋषयः शुक्ल इष्टं कुर्वन्तीतर इतरस्मिन् ॥ १.१२॥
māso vai prajāpatistasya kṛṣṇapakṣa eva rayiḥ śuklaḥ praṇastasmādeta
ṛṣayaḥ śukla iṣṭaṃ kurvantītara itarasmin .. 1.12..
Translation by Swami Sivananda
12 The month, verily, is Prajapati. Its dark half, verily, is food, rayi; its bright half, the eater, prana. Therefore some rishis perform sacrifice in the bright half, some in the other half. 

Translation by Max Mueller
12. The month is Prajapati; its dark half is matter, its bright half spirit. Therefore some Rishis perform sacrifice in the bright half, others in the other half.

deity_Prashna

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

Com.—The lord of creation, i.e., the year, in which this universe inheres, ends in its component part, the month. The month, indeed, the lord of creation above described, is also in the nature of a pair; of the lord of creation, i.e., the month, one portion, i.e., the dark half, is food, i.e., the moon. The other part, i.e., the light half, is the sun, the eater, the fire. Because, they see everything as prâna, marked by the light half; therefore, these seers who see the prâna, though performing sacrifices in the dark half, perform them, only in the light half, as they do not see the dark half, as distinct from prâna (the light half). But others see not the prâna and only see the unseeing dark half. Those others perform sacrifices, only in the dark half, though they do them in the light half.

Links
Various resources on the Prashnopanishad
Upanishad Series – Kena Upanishad Commentary by Swami Chinmayananda

Prashna Upanishad – 12 – Prashna-1-12-māso vai – In Sanskrit with English Transliteration, Meaning and Commentary by Adi Shankaracharya (Sankara Bhashya) – Prashna-1-12