Summary:

Chapter 2, Section 1, Verse 2: Brahman is self-shining consciousness that requires no external illumination to reveal its presence, demonstrated through the bhāti-anubhāti analysis where objects need light, sun needs eyes, eyes need mind, mind needs consciousness, but consciousness is self-evident. Consciousness is to be understood as obtaining in everything as the “is-ness” of a thing, rather than being found in any one particular form. Consciousness is all-pervasive, existing both inside and outside, free from dependence on energy (nothing else is energizing it). Consciousness is pure and untouched by your mind's likes-dislikes, or good/bad results of past actions. The teaching “All This is Brahman” reveals two orders of reality where the world is mithyā – dependent on Brahman like clay sustaining a pot. “This” in the statement, also includes your mind, made to perform four functions.

CH 2, SECTION 1, VERSE 2: Absolute Nature of Brahman

दिव्यः हि अमूर्तः पुरुषः
स-बाह्य-अभ्यन्तरः हि अजः
अप्राणः हि अमनाः शुभ्रः
हि अक्षरात् परतः परः (२.१.२)
divyaḥ hi amūrtaḥ puruṣaḥ
sa-bāhya-abhyantaraḥ hi ajaḥ
aprāṇaḥ hi amanāḥ śubhraḥ
hi akṣarāt parataḥ paraḥ (2.1.2)

That Brahman is self-shining, formless, all-pervasive, unborn, free from the prāṇa, free from the mind, pure and which is the truth of māyā.

Defining words of Brahman (Awareness, Self):

Self-shining consciousness (divyaḥ):

1. Self-shining (svayam-prakāśa), or self-revealing (svataḥ-siddha) for everyone. Unlike anything in the world, awareness doesn’t need anything else to reveal its presence.
2. Let's Demonstrate the Self-Shining Nature of Awareness Using Bhāti–Anubhāti–Prakriyā:
   1. The Cup is seen (anubhāti) because it is revealed by sunlight (bhāti). The cup does not shine by itself – it is revealed when sunlight falls on it.
   2. The Sun is revealed (anubhāti) because it is seen by the eyes (bhāti). Even though the sun illuminates other objects, it becomes known only when perceived by the eyes. Shows the sun isn’t all-pervading (sarvagatam), else should shine even to a blind person.
   3. The Eyes are known (anubhāti) because they are lit by the mind (bhāti). The eyes themselves are inert unless the mind engages them – only then they function as instruments of knowledge.
   4. The Mind is known (anubhāti) because it is illumined by Consciousness (bhāti). The mind becomes active and capable of registering perceptions only in the presence of Consciousness.
   5. But Consciousness is not known by anything else – it is self-shining (svayam-prakāśa). You never need a separate means to know “I am.” It is self-evident. It does not require light or perception – it is the light by which everything else is known.

Formless (amūrtaḥ):

The shine (is-ness) is not present in only one thing, but in everything – thus Brahman isn’t any one particular form. Everything has a “shine” to it (reveals itself).

Inside and Outside – All-pervasive (sa-bāhya-abhyantaraḥ):

Suppose you say, “I didn’t find happiness outside, so I’m searching for happiness inside”. Is Brahman inside? No. It’s outside and inside.

Free from prāṇa (aprāṇaḥ):

It’s not energized by prana (energy) or some external lifeforce.

Free from mind (amanāḥ):

Not limited by thought, emotions, doubts, memory, or ego. They are all upadhis. EG: Ignorant cup takes self (all-pervading space) to have boundaries as big as the cup, but also thinks it’s polluted by contents inside the cup.

Pure (śubhraḥ):

Self is free from rāga-dveṣa, personality, and results of past actions. Self is the illuminator of purity/impurity, of knowledge/ignorance. Just as sun takes no merit for virtuous acts performed under its rays, nor gathers sin from murder committed under it’s rays.

Higher than the high (akṣarāt parataḥ paraḥ):

This self-revealing “I am” is not isolated to just you, it’s the truth of the whole universe and annam (maya). Another name for Brahman is Kūṭastha (derived from kūṭa meaning “anvil“) which remains unchanged even though everything beaten upon it changes shape.

“All This is Brahman”

This verse says that Brahman is truth of māyā (or anna in this Upanishad) and the world. A simpler way to say it is, “All This is Brahman” (sarvam khalu idam brahma, C.U. 3.14.1).

The statement reveals two orders of reality. Like saying “this pot (idam) is clay (sarvam)” – the pot doesn't disappear but is recognized as having no reality apart from clay. Thus maya/world is mithyā – not independently real, but dependent on Brahman for its existence.

“All this” Includes Your Mind (Subtle-Body) Which Has 4 Functions:

1. Mind (manas): Doubts, desires, emotional responses. EG: “Should I go or stay?”, “I feel anxious.”
2. Intellect (buddhi): Cognitive faculty that engages in analysis, discernment, and decision-making. EG: “This is the right choice.”, “I understand this teaching.”
3. Memory: Past experiences, traumas, and buried memories can influence current reactions and decisions.
4. I-sense (Ahamkara / Ego):
   1. “Mine”: It gives an impression that everything that happens to manas/buddhi/citta – is happening to Me (the all-pervading One) – over here. EG: Hand is grabbing juice-bottle, tongue enjoys taste. But we say “I am tasting and drinking”. Then legs walk, and we say “I am walking”. Then eyes read and intellect thinks, and we say “I am reading and thinking”.
   2. Ahamkara = roles played: Thus ahamkara gives impression that “I” is changing roles all the time. EG: You’re telling yourself “I am intelligent”, someone is saying “I am slow”, because role is different, but “I am” is the same. If “I” was a role like a “guard”, then when one gets drunk and forgets their “guard” role, the “I” would cease – but it doesn’t!
   3. What should be your relationship to the Ahamkara?
      • Ahamkara is an empirical reality. It generates a sense that, “I am over here, and you are over there. I am an not you, and you are not me. I am an individual”. This is a universal experience for everyone. Then this sense of individuality gets further loaded by subjectivities. For example, “I am different from you, and I am worthless“. The “worthless” is a personal opinion. The purpose of self-growth is to undo these opinions about your individuality, while leaving empirical-ness alone. Once enough opinions about the ahamkara (individual) have been removed, then one is free to inquiry into ahamkara's truth, which is Awareness.
      • Can’t disown: Just as you don’t disown your emotions or intellect, you don’t disown the ego-function – it’s an instrument.
   4. Distinguishing Ahamkara from Brahman: You are the consciousness in whose presence the changing roles (knower, doer, experiencer) are known. You can say consciousness is the witness (sakshi), as long as “witness” refers to that which remains in deep sleep.
   5. Before and After Knowledge:
      • Before: When say, “I am 40”, that 40 was an attribute of “I”.
      • After: When say “I am 40”, the 40 is an attribute belonging to incidental body, while “I” is the shining presence in that statement, and continues to shine after that sentence is finished.

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Recorded 10 July, 2025