श्रीराम उवाच । एवं चेत् तत्कथं ब्रह्मन् सुघनप्रत्ययं वद । इदं दृश्यविषं जातमसत्स्वप्नानुभूतिवत् ॥ २१ ॥
śrīrāma uvāca | ēvaṁ cēt tatkathaṁ brahman sughanapratyayaṁ vada | idaṁ dṛśyaviṣaṁ jātamasatsvapnānubhūtivat || 21 ||
Translation
Rāma said: If it is so, O Brahman, then tell me how this poison of the seen has come to be held so firmly, when it is as unreal as an experience in a dream.
Word by word
- ēvaṁ
- so
- cēt
- if (it is)
- tat
- then
- kathaṁ
- how
- brahman
- O Brahman
- su
- very
- ghana
- firm
- pratyayaṁ
- held with conviction
- vada
- tell (me)
- idaṁ
- this
- dṛśya
- of the seen
- viṣaṁ
- poison
- jātam
- has come to be
- asat
- unreal
- svapna
- in a dream
- anubhūti
- an experience
- vat
- like
Meaning
The commentary sets out Rāma's doubt: the world appears with great firmness, while a dream appears only softly, never fully manifest; there is a gulf between them, as between sky and the underworld. And there is a second point to consider: the relation of seer and seen is natural, so removing it is not merely difficult but impossible, and so release is impossible. If, Rāma says, this poison of the seen is false like a dream, how has it gained so firm a conviction, sughana-pratyaya, that until the dissolution no disorder enters our dealings with it? Another commentary: why is it held firmly enough for undisputed use until the end of a kalpa, when no dream is held so? The "poison" names the seen as what binds and harms.