आदावेव हि यन्नाऽस्ति वर्तमानेऽपि तत्तथा । भातं वाऽभातमेवाऽतो मृगतृष्णाम्बुवज्जगत् ॥ १० ॥
ādāvēva hi yannā’sti vartamānē’pi tattathā | bhātaṁ vā’bhātamēvā’tō mṛgatṛṣṇāmbuvajjagat || 10 ||
Translation
For what is not at the very beginning is not so in the present either; whether it shines or does not shine, the world is therefore like the water of a mirage.
Word by word
- ādāv
- (ādau) at the beginning
- ēva
- very
- hi
- for
- yan
- (yat) what
- na
- not
- asti
- is
- vartamānē
- in the present
- api
- either
- tat
- it
- tathā
- so
- bhātaṁ
- shines
- vā
- or
- abhātam
- does not shine
- atō
- (ataḥ) therefore
- mṛgatṛṣṇā
- of a mirage
- ambuvaj
- (ambuvat) like the water
- jagat
- the world
Meaning
The commentary: being unreal, the world for us is like mirage water when it appears and like the hare's horn when it does not; for what was not at first is not now either. This is the principle that carries the whole teaching: what did not exist before and will not exist after does not exist in between.