सर्वात्मकतया द्रष्टुर्दृश्यत्वमिव युज्यते । दृश्यत्वं द्रष्टृसद्भावे दृश्यताऽपि न वास्तवी ॥ ३२ ॥
sarvātmakatayā draṣṭurdṛśyatvamiva yujyatē | dṛśyatvaṁ draṣṭṛsadbhāvē dṛśyatā’pi na vāstavī || 32 ||
Translation
Because the seer is the Self of all, its being seen is fitting, as it were; but being seen exists only where there is a seer, and so the seen is not real.
Word by word
- sarvātmakatayā
- because of being the Self of all
- draṣṭur
- (draṣṭuḥ) of the seer
- dṛśyatvam
- being seen
- iva
- as it were
- yujyatē
- is fitting
- draṣṭṛ
- of a seer
- sadbhāvē
- where there is
- dṛśyatā
- the seen
- api
- so
- na
- not
- vāstavī
- real
Meaning
The commentary: as a snake is seen in a rope by error, so the world and the seer who is the Self of all appear as the falsely seen; but when inquiry ends the error, one no longer takes the whole of the seen as real. Since the seer, which is awareness, is the Self of all, its seeming to be seen is not unreasonable; it follows. Yet the state of being seen shows itself only within the seer's own nature, and therefore it is not real. Another commentary argues it from both sides: if the seer fell from its nature to become the seen, there would be no seer left to establish anything; if it does not fall, its seeming to be seen is like the rope seen as a snake.