Ishavasya Upanishad Sloka 4 | Translation and Interpretation | Upanishad Series

  Sloak 4:

            

अनेजदेकं मनसो जवीयो नैनद्देवा आप्नुवन्पूर्वमर्षत् ।
तद्धावतोऽन्यानत्येति तिष्ठत्तस्मिन्नपो मातरिश्वा दधाति ॥

" It is motionless, one, faster than mind; and the Devas (the senses) could not overtake it which ran before.  Sitting, it goes faster than those who run after it. By it, the all pervading air supports the activity of all living beings. "

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    The Paradox of the Atman

Have you ever seen the ignorant chase after fleeting pleasures, only to find themselves trapped in the cycle of rebirth? Conversely, those who truly understand the nature of the Atman, the immortal Self, break free from this endless loop. They are not slayers of the Atman, for it is ever-constant, a point of unwavering stability amidst the constant motion of existence.

But how can something be both unchanging and swifter than the mind, a whirlwind of desires and thoughts? This seeming contradiction is a truth waiting to be unveiled. The Atman can be understood in two ways: conditioned and unconditioned. In its unconditioned state, it is a constant, an unshakeable foundation.

The mind, for all its swiftness, is a mere traveler. Bound to the body, it flits from desire to doubt, yet with a single spark of will, it can traverse vast distances to celestial realms. Yet, upon arrival, it finds the intelligent Atman already present, as if it had traversed the journey before. This is the true speed of the Atman – ever-present, all-encompassing, like the boundless sky.

The senses, those gateways to perception, are too sluggish to grasp the Atman. Even the mind, swift as it is, cannot fully perceive it. For the Atman is everywhere and nowhere, like the air (Akas), preceding even the mind's fleeting thoughts.

This all-pervading essence, untouched by the limitations of samsara, the cycle of rebirth, appears to undergo its endless transformations. Yet, in truth, these changes are mere illusions superimposed upon its unchanging core. Though one, it appears diverse to the ignorant, seemingly trapped within each body.

Though it seems to exist beyond the reach of thought, speech, and senses, these limitations are simply illusions. The Atman, ever-present, sustains them all. Like air (Matarisva), it is the lifeblood of existence, the thread upon which all cause and effect hang. This air governs the workings of fire, sun, and clouds, just as it allows all living beings to experience the fruits of their actions (Karma).

While the world around us may be a whirlwind of change, the Atman, the intelligent source of all, endures eternally. It is the stable ground beneath the ever-shifting sands of existence.