Ignorance-Knowledge: 19

Ego is false "I-ness"—taking the body to be "I" instead of the soul; attachment is false "mine-ness"—considering the transient world as one's own property. Both these sway the soul in ignorance's oscillation; and when knowledge dawns, it becomes clear—the soul is neither doer nor enjoyer; nothing is "mine," all is but reflection of that one Brahmic consciousness. Then ego and attachment vanish of their own accord, as mist disappears when the sun rises.

Due to ignorance, the boundary between consciousness and matter becomes blurred, and we think ourselves to be what we are not. Knowledge alone is that light which breaks this superimposition and separates truth—where the seer is merely the eternal witness, and the seen merely its reflected shadow.

Vision-contact is thus not mere seeing, but consciousness's inner arrangement—on one hand the birthplace of knowledge, on the other the root of bondage. As long as we see the seer and the seen as one, ignorance remains; but when it is known that the seer (soul) and the seen (world) are actually separate, then the connection breaks—and that very state is liberation, establishment in the seer's true nature. This is that subtle moment of consciousness where the infinite soul sees its own reflection, namely the world. And self-knowledge means the severing of that connection, where seeing, seer, and seen—the distinction between these three dissolves into one consciousness-filled unity.

Kṛkara sub-prāṇa is active in the mouth and throat region. It is connected with hunger, thirst, and sneezing. When the body experiences disturbance or unwanted substances enter, kṛkara causes their expulsion—like sneezing, coughing, or vomiting. It is part of the body's defense system.

Devadatta sub-prāṇa is the force that helps give rest to the body during fatigue. It controls yawning, the onset of sleep, and bodily relaxation. When mind and senses are weary, devadatta sub-prāṇa turns the body toward sleep.

Dhanañjaya sub-prāṇa is the most enduring; it remains in the body for some time even after death. Its function is to maintain the body's form and limbs, to control the body's odor and the pace of decay. Dhanañjaya stays in the body even after death, so the body does not immediately perish.

In the foundational texts of Ayurveda, Charaka Saṃhitā and Aṣṭāṅga Hṛdayam, we find—"Dhanañjaya mṛtyuttaraṃ dehe tiṣṭhati"—Dhanañjaya remains in the body after death. Here the word "Dhanañjaya" refers to a particular sub-type of "vāyu." In Ayurveda, vāyu or "prāṇavāyu" is divided into five parts—prāṇa, apāna, udāna, vyāna, samāna. Along with these, another special vāyu is mentioned called dhanañjaya vāyu, which remains stable in the body for some time even after death.

In Charaka Saṃhitā, Sūtrasthāna (Chapter 12, verses 8-9) it is said—"Prāṇa, apāna, udāna, vyāna, samāna—these are the five main divisions of vāyu. Besides these there is another special vāyu, whose name is dhanañjaya; it remains in the body even after death." That is, dhanañjaya vāyu stays in the body in the post-mortem state, and as long as this vāyu remains present in the body, the body does not completely dissolve.

In Aṣṭāṅga Hṛdaya Sūtrasthāna also (Chapter 12, verses 9-10) the same thing is said—"Dhanañjaya vāyu resides in the heart and temple regions; it remains in the body even after death and sustains the body for some time." Here "temple region" refers to the junction of ear and throat.

According to Ayurvedic explanation, dhanañjaya vāyu works in the body's heart and chest region, and even after death this vāyu's activity does not completely cease. The pulsation, expansion, or decay process seen in the body for some time after death is due to this dhanañjaya vāyu. Charaka says, when this vāyu leaves the body, only then does complete dissolution of the body occur.

In Vedantic explanation too this concept has been used in a symbolic sense. There it is said that as long as the last remnant of life-force remains present in the body, the connection between soul and body is not completely severed. When that prāṇavāyu or life-force finally decays, only then does consciousness leave the body and the body becomes completely lifeless.

Dhanañjaya vāyu remains stable in the body for some time even after death; this vāyu keeps the body alive for a brief period and the body's natural dissolution process proceeds under its control. According to Ayurveda, the departure of this vāyu is the final phase of death.

Philosophically these five sub-prāṇas show—life is not merely breathing, but countless subtle coordinated activities. Just as the main life-force maintains the life-stream in the body, so these sub-prāṇas control all the body's minutest actions—from the blinking of eyes to the subtle coordination of breath. When their balance is disturbed, both body and mind become unharmonious.

Sub-prāṇa means those subtle branches of the life-current that keep every minute activity of the body well-coordinated. Only when these sub-prāṇas maintain equilibrium are health established in the body, stability in the mind, and peace in consciousness.

Apāna is life-force flowing downward. It is connected with elimination processes—such as waste elimination, urination, childbirth, etc. It is active in the region below the navel, around the anus and genitals. Apāna maintains balance by removing unnecessary substances from the body. In Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad (1.5.3) it is said—"Apānena hi pacati yat khādati"—by apāna indeed what is eaten (food) is digested.

Udāna is upward-moving life-force, which works through the throat and head. It controls speech-expression, enthusiasm, memory, consciousness, and the soul's upward movement at death. The Gītā (8.12) says—"Mūrdhnyādhāya ātmanaṃ prāṇam"—at the time of death the practitioner establishes prāṇa in the brain through udāna vāyu. Thus udāna vāyu is connected with consciousness's upward flow and liberation.

Samāna is the equally-distributing force, located in the navel region. It controls digestion, metabolism, and equal distribution of food essence. It maintains warmth and energy balance in the body, working as an aid to fire. In Praśna Upaniṣad (3.5) it is said—"Samāno'gnimadhyasthaḥ, pacati annaṃ"—samāna vāyu, residing in the midst of fire, digests food.

Vyāna is the all-pervading life-current. It moves throughout the entire body and connects all the vāyus—prāṇa, apāna, udāna, samāna. It maintains blood circulation, nervous functions, and bodily coordination. In Praśna Upaniṣad (3.6) it is said—"Vyāno hi etān prāṇān anyat ca preṣayati"—vyāna indeed connects all the life-forces and creates coordination.

That is, prāṇa awakens life-energy upward, apāna causes downward elimination, udāna directs upward, samāna maintains balance, and vyāna spreads kinetic energy everywhere. Within these five prāṇas pulses life's subtle rhythm—they are the five streams of the subtle body, whose coordination keeps the connection between body, mind, and soul stable.

This gross body remains active in the waking state. When through the senses we experience the external world, see, hear, touch, then this body is the vehicle for that experience. In Māṇḍūkya Upaniṣad (2) it is said—"In the waking state the soul is known by the name Vaiśvānara—who is outward-facing consciousness, the gross enjoyer with twenty-one limbs." That is, when the soul is in the waking state, it receives experience of the gross world through the senses, but actually that is not the soul's own action—this happens at the level of body and senses.

The soul is not this body. Due to ignorance man thinks—"I am the body, I see, I walk, I work." In reality the soul is merely witness and illuminator. Just as the sun illuminates the earth but does not mix with the soil, so the soul gives consciousness to the body, but itself participates in none of the body's activities. In Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad (4.3.7) it is said—"The soul does not see through the eye, but gives the power of seeing to the eye itself." That is, the soul is not any organ of the body, but the conscious principle behind body and senses. In the thirteenth chapter of the Gītā (13.3) Śrī Kṛṣṇa says—"Kṣetrajñaṃ cāpi māṃ viddhi sarvakṣetreṣu bhārata"—know that consciousness which exists in every body as the soul, and it is one and identical in every body, not different according to bodily differences.

The word 'kṣetrajña' is formed from the Sanskrit roots "kṣetra" and "jña." Kṣetra means body, mind, senses and intellect along with all changeable phenomena—which is consciousness's support, which is seen, known, experienced. Jña means knowing or knower. Therefore kṣetrajña means that consciousness who knows, witnesses this field of body-mind-intellect, but is not himself changed.

In the thirteenth chapter of Bhagavad Gītā Śrī Kṛṣṇa says—"Kṣetrajñaṃ cāpi māṃ viddhi sarvakṣetreṣu bhārata" (Gītā, 13.3)—that is, O Bhārata, in all fields I alone am the field-knower. Here kṣetra means every being's body and kṣetrajña means that consciousness who resides as knower within the body. Śrī Kṛṣṇa is explaining that the consciousness active within every being is one and all-pervading; that supreme consciousness or soul is Brahman.

Body, mind, and intellect are changeable—they are sometimes sick, sometimes happy, sometimes sad. But the one who sees, knows, experiences that, remains unchanged himself. This unchanging conscious presence is kṣetrajña. Just as body is seen, mind is felt, so the steady consciousness that exists as witness to all these experiences is kṣetrajña.

Śaṅkarācārya says in his Gītā commentary—kṣetrajña is the witness of the body-sense-aggregate, immutable and consciousness-filled. That is, he never changes, he only knows. Just as body is born and destroyed, mind fluctuates, but consciousness always remains the same, so kṣetrajña is merely witness to all these changes.

In Kaṭha Upaniṣad it is said—"Eko cetanaḥ" (Kaṭha Upaniṣad, 2.2.13)—that is, that one consciousness is reflected in many bodies, but in essence it is one. Just as the sun's light is reflected in countless waters yet the sun is one and indivisible, so kṣetrajña, though manifested within many beings, is undivided and all-pervading soul.

The root of this concept lies in Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad (3.7.23)—"Yaḥ sarvāṇi bhūtānyantaro yamayati, na tu yamayyo, yasya bhūtāni śarīram, yaḥ bhūtānāmantara ātmā, tamātmānaṃ viddhi." That is—he who, remaining inherent within all beings, controls them, yet is himself controlled by none—he is called the inner soul, kṣetrajña or witness-consciousness.

In Advaita Vedanta kṣetrajña means the soul—who resides in every body, but is independent of body. He is the source of direct knowledge, the eternal witness. Kṣetra i.e. body, mind and senses which are changeable, that is inert. Kṣetrajña i.e. consciousness, which knows but does not change, that is eternally conscious. Kṣetra is the place of enjoyment, kṣetrajña is the witness. Kṣetra is limited, kṣetrajña is infinite.

The person who understands this distinction between the two within himself—kṣetra and kṣetrajña—is truly wise. This realization itself is self-knowledge, which ultimately leads man toward liberation.

In the second chapter of Bhagavad Gītā (2.23-24) regarding the soul's indestructibility Śrī Kṛṣṇa says—"Weapons cannot cut the soul, fire cannot burn it, water cannot wet it, wind cannot dry it." That is, the soul can never be cut, burned, wetted, or dried; it is above the gross body's changes, eternal and immutable. In the next verse he says—"The soul is uncuttable, unburnable, unwettable, undryable; it is eternal, all-pervading, steady, immovable and beginningless." Through this teaching the Gītā clearly states that the soul is not changeable like the body—it is eternal being, which no physical element can touch.