असत्यां सत्यसंकाशां ब्रह्माऽऽस्ते जीवशब्दवत् । इत्थं स जीवशब्दार्थः कलनाकुलतां गतः ॥ ३३ ॥
asatyāṁ satyasaṁkāśāṁ brahmā’’stē jīvaśabdavat | itthaṁ sa jīvaśabdārthaḥ kalanākulatāṁ gataḥ || 33 ||
Translation
Brahman abides, unreal yet looking real, like the word "jīva"; thus he, the meaning of the word "jīva", has come to be troubled by conceptions.
Word by word
- asatyāṁ
- unreal
- satya
- real
- saṁkāśāṁ
- looking
- brahma
- Brahman
- āstē
- abides
- jīva
- jīva
- śabda
- word
- vat
- like
- itthaṁ
- thus
- sa
- (saḥ) he
- śabdārthaḥ
- the meaning of the word
- kalanā
- by conceptions
- ākulatāṁ
- troubled
- gataḥ
- has come
Meaning
The commentary: Brahman, imagining grossness in that spark in the way described, stands as the meaning of the word jīva; so the meaning of the word jīva, which is that same Self of awareness, has become full of many imaginings that are untrue yet seem true. "Like the word": the jīva is as real as a word is, a name that points to something; what it names is Brahman.