साऽबुद्धैव भवत्येवं भवेद् ब्रह्मैव बोधतः । अबोधः प्रेक्षया याति नाशं न तु प्रबुद्ध्यते ॥ २४ ॥
sā’buddhaiva bhavatyēvaṁ bhavēd brahmaiva bōdhataḥ | abōdhaḥ prēkṣayā yāti nāśaṁ na tu prabuddhyatē || 24 ||
Translation
Unawakened, it becomes thus; by awakening it becomes Brahman itself. Unknowing, looked into, goes to destruction; it is never awakened.
Word by word
- sā
- it
- abuddhā
- unawakened
- ēva
- just; itself
- bhavati
- becomes
- ēvaṁ
- thus
- bhavēd
- (bhavet) it becomes
- brahma
- Brahman
- bōdhataḥ
- by awakening
- abōdhaḥ
- unknowing
- prēkṣayā
- looked into
- yāti
- goes
- nāśaṁ
- to destruction
- na
- not
- tu
- but
- prabuddhyatē
- is awakened
Meaning
The commentary: so its unfolding is by ignorance alone; and by knowledge of its own nature it becomes Brahman. But when ignorance is destroyed in what form does it remain? Not as knowledge, for knowledge is not ignorance's cause, and the two are opposed; not as anything else either, for nothing else remains. The answer is in the next verse. Ignorance does not wake up and become knowledge; it simply is not there when looked for.