Summary:

Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 4, Verse 6: We spoke of the 3 orders of reality to reconcile Krishna's statement “I am unborn (line 1), and yet I am born (in line 2)”. 

3 Orders of Reality: Vedanta distinguishes between three levels of reality to explain our experience: Pratibhasika is the subjective reality. Vyavaharika is the transactional or empirical reality. Paramarthika is the absolute, non-dual reality (Brahman), which is the only permanent truth that pervades and supports the other two levels.

Satyam (Existence): Satyam defines Existence not as a temporary attribute of things, but as the fundamental, unchanging substance of reality itself. It is the “Is-ness” that remains constant through the past, present, and future, unlike the changing forms of the world which appear and disappear.

Jñānam (Knowledge): This refers to Pure Consciousness or Awareness, rather than intellectual data or mental thoughts. It is the eternal “witness” that illuminates the changing states of the mind and ego, just as light makes objects visible without being the objects themselves.

Anantam (Limitless): Anantam signifies that Existence-Consciousness is infinite and free from the limitations of space, time, and other objects. There is no second thing outside of it to create a boundary, thus it is advaitam (without a second).

The Clay-Pot Metaphor: This analogy illustrates that while a “pot” is just a name and form, the “clay” is the only true reality that pervades and sustains it. Just as the clay remains unaffected if the pot breaks, Existence is the limitless truth behind all changing objects.

The Light Metaphor: Just as a light illuminates a room's contents without being affected by them, Consciousness reveals the knower, the known, and thoughts – while remaining distinct. 

The Purpose of Avatāra: Unlike ordinary beings born compelled by past karma, the Avatāra appears voluntarily through the power of Māyā to answer the collective prayers of the suffering. The Lord assumes a form specifically to restore harmony and remind humanity of right living during times of crisis.

Why Krishna Was Not Liked: Krishna faced hostility because his truth acted as a mirror, forcing people to confront their own negligence and inner wounds. Egos like Duryodhana's rejected him because accepting his guidance would require admitting their own failures and dismantling their pride.

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Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 4, Verse 6:

अजः अपि सन् अव्यय-आत्मा भूतानाम् ईश्वरः अपि सन् ।
प्रकृतिम् स्वाम् अधिष्ठाय सम्भवामि आत्म-मायया ॥ ४-६॥
ajaḥ api san avyaya-ātmā bhūtānām īśvaraḥ api san ।
prakṛtim svām adhiṣṭhāya sambhavāmi ātma-māyayā ॥ 4-6॥

Even though, being one who is unborn, one whose knowledge does not wane, and also being the Lord of all living beings, still, wielding My own prakṛti, I, ‘as though,’ come into being by My own creative power.

This final session of verse 6, focuses on the second line…

“Wielding My Own Prakṛti (māyā), I Come Into Being by My Own Creative Power”

How can all-pervasive reality “come into being”, when he said in line 1, “I am unborn”?

To understand who is speaking as “I” in this statement and how Īśvara can appear to be born, need to examine 3 orders of reality…

REALITY 1: Pāramārthika (Final/Ultimate Reality)

Its nature is satyam-jñānam-anantam (Existence – Awareness – Limitless). These are the 3 best words to help the seeker understand pāramārthika. 

A) Satyam (Existence):

We often use the word “exist” casually. We say a car exists, a thought exists, or a feeling exists. But in the philosophy of Vedanta, “existence” isn't referring to some existent object. Rather, existence is the very substance of reality itself.

This concept is called Satyam.

To understand Satyam, we have to shift our perspective from seeing a world full of “existing things” to seeing “Existence” appearing as things. Here is the logic behind why Existence is the only true Reality…

Existence is a Noun, Not an Adjective

In everyday language, we treat existence as an adjective. We say, “The brown table exists.” We treat the table as the main subject and “existence” as a quality it possesses.

However, Vedanta flips this. Existence is the substantive – the noun. It is the fundamental “stuff” of the universe. It is not that the table has existence; it is that Existence has taken the form of a table.

Adi Shankara defines the Real (Satyam) as that which cannot be negated in the past, present, or future. Objects come and go. Forms appear and disappear. But the “Is-ness” underneath them remains constant.

The Logic of Cause and Effect: The Clay and the Pot

The Chandogya Upanishad offers a famous analogy to explain this: the relationship between clay and a pot.

Imagine a clay pot. We give it a name (“pot”) and a function (holding water). But if you break the pot, the clay remains. If you melt the clay down and reshape it into a plate, it is still clay. The “pot” was just a name and a form superimposed onto the clay. The pot has no independent existence apart from the clay.

This logic applies to the entire universe. The universe is a collection of names and forms (effects), but the cause – the substance – is Existence itself. When you look at a mountain, a river, or your own body, you are looking at Satyam appearing in different shapes. The reality is the “Clay” (Existence), not the “Pot” (the object).

The Logic of Continuity: What Stays and What Goes?

How do we distinguish the Real from the unreal? We use a method called Anvaya-Vyatireka, or distinguishing the constant from the variable.

Think about your own mind. Your thoughts are constantly changing variables.

• • • • • • Thought A: “I am confused.” (Arises and passes away).
          • Thought B: “I understand now.” (Arises and passes away).
          • Thought C: “I am hungry.” (Arises and passes away).

These thoughts are mutually exclusive; you cannot hold Thought A and Thought B at the exact same time. They cancel each other out. However, there is a constant thread running through all of them: the existence of the thought.

Whether the mind claims knowledge or ignorance, the existence of that mental state is undeniable. The content of your experience changes every second, but the fact of Existence never changes. That constant thread is who you actually are.

The Impossibility of Non-Existence

We often fear death because we equate it with non-existence. But logically, absolute non-existence is an impossibility for the Self.

Try to imagine a time or place where you do not exist. To even make the statement “I did not exist at that time,” you – the conscious witness – must be present to witness that absence. You cannot report on your own non-existence.

Even if you try to visualize a total void or empty space, you are still objectifying it. You are saying, “There is a void.” Existence pervades even the concept of nothingness.

You Are Not Your Parts

We tend to localize our existence within the body, specifically the heart or the brain. We fear the stopping of the heart because we think it generates our existence.

Consider this: If you lose a hand in an accident, the hand is gone, but You – the sense of existing – remain complete. The hand and the heart are made of the exact same material (matter/atoms). If losing the hand doesn't end your existence, why would the stopping of the heart end it?

Existence is not a product generated by the parts of the body. It is the Vivarta Upadana Karana – the Non-Transforming Material Cause. This means it is the pure ‘is-ness' that never undergoes any intrinsic change, no matter what form it appears as. For instance, gold pervades every part of a ring; while the shape of the ring may be modified, the gold itself remains changeless and identical. Similarly, Existence pervades every cell of the body – indivisible and all-pervading – but is never limited or altered by the body.

In contrast, as we've already spoken about in previous two sessions, Ishvara (and now 2nd line adds two more words “Maya/Prakrti” – which are referring to unmanifest all-knowledge-power, while “Ishvara” refers to manifest all-knowledge-power) is the Parinami Upadana Karana – the Transforming Material Cause. This is the aspect that is constantly reshuffling and reorganizing its knowledge-power to assume the changing appearance of the world, cycling eternally between the manifest and unmanifest states.

The Screen Behind the Movie

Every experience you have involves three components, known as the Triputi:

1. 1. 1. 1. 1. 1. The Knower: The subject (You).
               2. The Known: The object (The world).
               3. The Knowledge: The mental thought connecting them.

Usually, we get lost in these three distinct roles. But Satyam is the substratum that supports all of them.

Think of a movie screen. The screen supports the hero (the knower), the villain (the known), and the action (the knowing). The characters on the screen are different from one another, but they are all just light projected on the same white sheet.

Existence is that screen. It is the common ground where the knower, the known, and the knowledge (thoughts) all “stand.” It is the one reality appearing as the three.

B) Jñānam (Knowledge): The Light of Awareness

When the Upanishads define Reality as Jñānam (or jñaptiḥ), we must be very careful with our English translation. We usually translate this as “Knowledge,” but it does not mean “having information”. 

This “jnanam” does NOT refer to Ishvara's “all-knowledge” (data, facts, blueprint how the universe is to function). It also  does NOT refer to vritti jñānam (data about the world in your mind; for instance knowledge about various foods around the world).

Jñānam is Pure Consciousness (Cit)

In the context of Satyam Jñānam Anantam Brahma (Taittiriya Upanishad 2.1.1) – Jñānam refers to Pure Consciousness/Awareness.

Adi Shankara clarifies that this knowledge is not an action (it is not the act of knowing something); it is the eternal nature of the Self.

Think of it as the difference between the illuminated objects and the light itself.

• • • • • • Information (Maya/Prakrti): The furniture in the room (physics, history, your memories).
          • Jñānam (Brahman): The light that makes the furniture visible.

The Unchanging, Awareful “I”

You can validate this in your own experience. Your personality – the “costume” you wear – constantly shifts, but the Awareness behind it never does.

• • • • • • There is the “Bold I (ego)” when you are confident with friends.
          • There is the “Uninhibited I (ego)” when you are intoxicated or spontaneous.
          • There is the “Cautious I (ego)” when you are walking alone at night.

Who is the one aware of all these shifting roles? The “Bold I (ego)” comes and goes, but the Awareness (Cit) that illuminates the boldness remains constant. That Awareness is Jñānam.

Therefore, Jñānam is the witness that lights up the silence between your thoughts just as clearly as it lights up the thoughts themselves.

C) Anantam (Limitless):

The third definition in the famous Taittiriya definition is Anantam. This translates to “Limitless” or “Infinite.”

This isn't just a third attribute sitting next to the others; it is the adjective that qualifies both Satyam (Existence) and Jñānam (Knowledge). It tells us how this Existence and Consciousness exist. They exist without boundaries.

According to Adi Shankara, for something to be truly infinite, it must be free from three specific types of limitations (paricchedas):

1. Freedom from Spatial Limitation (Desha Pariccheda): Most things are “here” but not “there.” If a pot is on the table, it is not in the car. It is limited by space. Anantam means Brahman is all-pervasive. There is no location where Existence-Consciousness is absent. It is the very fabric of space itself.

2. Freedom from Temporal Limitation (Kala Pariccheda): Everything we know has a birthday and a death day. A mountain is old, but it wasn't there a billion years ago. It is limited by time. Anantam means Brahman is outside of time. It was never born, it will never die, and it does not change. It is the eternal “Now.”

3. Freedom from Object Limitation (Vastu Pariccheda): This is the subtlest one. Usually, “I am me, and the chair is the chair.” The chair limits me (body-mind) because I stop where the chair begins. We are two different objects. Anantam means there is nothing other than Brahman to limit it. If there were a second thing, Brahman would stop where that thing began. Therefore, Anantam establishes Advaitam (Non-duality).

The Grand Equation

When you put it all together, Satyam Jñānam Anantam shows:

• • • • • • If Reality were only Satyam (Existence), it could be inert matter (like a rock).
          • If it were only Jñānam (Consciousness), it could be a momentary thought.
          • But because it is Anantam, it is Infinite Existence-Consciousness.

It is not a “part” of the universe. It is the screen upon which the movie of the universe – space, time, and objects – is projected. You are not a tiny being looking at the infinite; you are the Infinite expressing itself through a form.

Metaphor:

1. 1. 1. The Clay Analogy: 
         • Consider the analogy of clay: countless pots exist, yet the word “clay” does not refer to any specific pot (jñeya or the known object), nor to the potter (jñātā or the knower), nor even to the specific thought or concept of a “pot” (jñānam or vṛtti). The pots are limited by their fragile shapes; the potter is limited by his skill or mood; and the thought of the pot is limited because it comes and goes. However, the clay itself remains the limitless (anantam) substance that pervades and sustains them all, indifferent to the breakage of the pot or the changing mind of the potter.
         • Similarly, Satyam-Jñānam (Existence-Consciousness) is the fundamental reality that is free from the limitations of this triad (tripuṭi). It is not the limited ego (jñātā) that feels insecure or bold; it is not the inert object in the world (jñeya); and it is not the fleeting mental modification or thought (vṛtti) about those objects. Just as clay is the truth of every pot without being confined by the pot's form, Satyam-Jñānam-Anantam is the limitless “Existence-Consciousness” that illuminates the knower, the known, and the thought, while remaining eternally free from their boundaries.
      2. The Light Analogy:
         • Consider a single light bulb illuminating a room containing a book, a pot, and a person observing them. The light itself is distinct from the book or pot (the jñeya or known objects), distinct from the observer’s eye (the jñātā or knower), and distinct from the visual act of seeing (the vṛtti or jñānam). If the book burns, the light does not burn; if the observer closes their eyes or even dies, the light remains unaffected; and if the act of seeing stops, the light continues to shine. The light is the independent, changeless principle that makes the entire scene possible without being entangled in it.
         • In the same way, Satyam-Jñānam is the pure “Light of Consciousness” that illuminates the entire triad: it lights up the ego (jñātā), reveals the external objects (jñeya), and enlivens the mental thoughts (vṛtti) about them. While the knower may change, the object may perish, and the thought may fade, this Consciousness remains the eternal, witnessing Light – free, unaffected, and limitless.

REALITY 2: Vyāvahārika (Empirical, Transactional Reality)

This is the order of reality of our shared, waking experience – the “public” world. It encompasses everything from the vast cosmos (space, time, elements, and celestial bodies) to the intimate details of your life (your physical body, senses, mind, and the fluctuating situations of joy and sorrow).

In Vedanta, this reality is the manifestation of Īśvara, the transforming material cause (pariṇāmi-upādāna-kāraṇa), which we've spoken about in prior two sessions. Because it is constantly changing and modifying, it is distinct from the changeless Absolute (pāramārthika).

What is the relationship between vyāvahārika and pāramārthika?

Consider a clay pot. It possesses a unique status called Mithyā (dependent reality).

It is Functional: You cannot dismiss the pot as a hallucination. It exists objectively; you can touch it, see it, and use it to fetch water. It follows the laws of physics. This is the “transactional” (vyāvahāra) aspect.

It is Dependent: However, the pot has no independent existence. It is merely a name and form (nāma-rūpa) imposed upon clay. If you remove the clay, the pot disappears. The pot “borrows” its existence entirely from the clay (compared to pāramārthika).

Similarly, the world is functionally real – fire burns, water quenches thirst, and actions have consequences. We must respect its laws while we live in it, whether you're a jñāni or ajñāni. Yet, like the pot, the world (vyāvahārika) is not independently real; it borrows its existence from the Absolute Reality (pāramārthika).

 

REALITY 3: Prātibhāsika (Subjective Reality)

This is the reality that exists solely within the perception of the individual observer. Unlike the empirical world, which is publicly shared and validated by others, Prātibhāsika is a private experience. It exists only as long as you perceive it; the moment the perception ends, the reality vanishes.

This category includes dreams, hallucinations, and cognitive errors.

The Rope-Snake Analogy (Rajju-Sarpa Nyāya):

Shankara’s most famous illustration for this is the man who sees a snake on a dim path at twilight.

The Experience: The man sees a snake. His heart races, he sweats, and he runs away in fear. For him, at that moment, the snake is absolutely real. It produces real physiological and emotional effects.

The Correction: When a light is brought, he realizes it was never a snake; it was always just a rope.

The Insight: The snake did not exist in the rope (vyāvahārika). It existed only in your mind, projected due to ignorance of the rope's true nature.

Dream State:

In a dream, you might feel hungry, eat a feast, and feel full. The hunger and the food are real to the dreamer during the dream. But upon waking, you realize the entire scenario – the subject, the object, and the transaction – was projected by your own mind.

Conclusion:

Vyāvahārika (the world) is a projection of Īśvara. Prātibhāsika is a projection of the individual mind.

Resolving the Contradiction in the Verse

Now that we know the three orders of reality, we can resolve Krishna saying two contradictory statements in Verse 6.

In line 1 he says “I (paramarthika) am unborn”.

Then in line 2 he says, “I (vyavaharika body born in prison, playing flute) come into being; am born”. 

What is special about Avatāra’s birth?

Born for a specific purpose: Prakṛti / māyā (both words mean “unmanifest all-knowledge-power”, while Ishvara is a name give to the same all-knowledge-power when it's manifesting the world we experience) is the cause that governs who gets born when, with whom, where, and under what circumstances, according to jīva’s past karma-phala. The jīva has no control over this process, thus remains under boss’ governance, ie: māyā. However Krishna is born, not because māyā compels him due to some past karma-phala, but appears for a specific purpose.

What Does “as though born” Mean?

When Īśvara assumes a body, He is only “as though” born, which indicates (a) it’s not a birth originating from sancita-karma and avidyā, and (b) it reminds us that all-pervasive God can’t be born, since God is unborn and the only reality there is.

Why is Avatara Born?

• Possibility 1: Collective petitions reach the Lord through prayers from good people: “O Lord, please do something! Please come and remedy this situation. The tyranny of these people exceeds our capacity to bear.” These prayers themselves become the cause for the Lord to introduce Himself in particular body form.
• Possibility 2: To remind people what clean living is about, to restore harmony. Avatara’s or any wise person’s words are only truly relevant and efficacious in dire need amidst crises.

If Avatara isn’t born of karma-phala (unfinished business), why did Krishna have a difficult life, people getting angry with him, etc?

• Reason 1: People are set in their old ways
  • Conflicts are inevitable as it’s not easy to penetrate a negligent, shallow mind established in old thinking. Most already have a set idea of “truth”, thus in confirmation bias, rejecting contrary ideas.
• Reason 2: Pride
  • Krishna was showing people that until you recognize you have to deliberately change, things won’t get better. Pointing this out is met with opposition, as it’s easier to write others off when they reflect a better version of yourself, then to engage in self-reflection. Accepting that a change is needed would imply “I’ve failed thus far”, which one's pride won’t accept.
  • Example: Duryodhana was happy seeing Pandavas receive a barren desert. But when it grew into a prosperous kingdom, once again Duryodhana got triggered. He couldn’t stand seeing Pandavas as they were reflecting back his inner wounds. Or Gandhari blaming Ishvara (Krishna), saying it was his fault. Krishna empathized, saying he did his best, but then asked Gandhari, “What part did you play then just support your son in whatever he did?”.

NEXT VERSE: Krishna specifically says when avatara comes, when there is decline in right living…

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Course was based on Swami Dayananda (Arsha Vidya) home study course.

Recorded 30 Nov, 2025