LEGEND: Ga - Gambhirananda; Ni - Nikhilananda;
Ch - Chinmayananda; Sw - Swartz; Sa - Sarvipriyananda
One: Not the Knower (I minus Avidya)
1. nantah-prajnam:
not conscious of the internal world ~Ga
not that which is conscious of the inner (subjective) world ~Ni
not that which is conscious of the internal subjective world ~Ch
not consciousness turned inward ~Sw
not the dreamer ~Sa
Notes:
Na-antaḥ prajñam – Not that which is conscious of the internal subjective world:- By saying so, the śruti is pointing out to us that the turīya is not the dream. Taijasa has already been described as that Consciousness which is awareful of a world within, a world of dream objects. By negating thus the inner awareness, the ṛṣi is pointing out to us that Ᾱtman or the life force in man is not the dreamer. ~Ch
THAT WHICH IS CONSCIOUS OF THE INNER WORLD: Turiya is not to be identified with Taijasa, the perceiver of the dream, or inner, world. ~Ni
Nantapragyam - This means inward directed consciousness - the dreamer. It says you are not the dreamer. You, the Turiya, the fourth one, is not the dreamer. ~Sa
2. na bahis-prajnam:
nor conscious of the external world ~Ga
nor that which is conscious of the outer (objective) world ~Ni
nor that which is conscious of the extenal world ~Ch
not outward-moving consciousness ~Sw
not the waker ~Sa
Notes:
Na bahiṣ-prajñam – Not that which is conscious of the external objective world:- It means that the fourth plane of Consciousness is not the waking state ego, the vaiśvānara. The ‘waker’, we have seen, is fully aware of the external world of objects. ~Ch
Nor... OUTER worip: Turiya is not to be identified with Viéva, or the self that functions in the waking state ~Ni
Nabahishpragyam - You are not the waker. Your real nature is not the waker, which we all imagine as our reality. For example, I think I am Swami Sarvapriyananda standing here in this lecture hall number three in IIT Kanpur - this is my reality. The mantra says you are the consciousness illuminating this temporary appearance in your consciousness. ~Sa
3. na ubhayatah prajnam:
nor conscious of both the worlds ~Ga
nor that which is conscious of both ~Ni, Ch
not consciousness moving in any direction ~Sw
not an in-between state ~Sa
Notes:
Na ubhayataḥ prajñam – Nor that which is conscious of both:- When we negate, as we have done, the first two phases, both the waking state and the dream state, the obvious doubt that would arise in the mind of the disciple would be that the Ᾱtman might be a state in between the waking and the dream, a state wherein you are conscious slightly of both the outer world and the inner world; such moments are lived by almost all of us frequently. After heavy lunch, when we are just preparing for our dull forty-winks, there is a misty moment when neither are we fully aware of the external world nor are we totally unconscious of the world of dreamy nothingness in ourselves. Even this state is negated by the term now under discussion. ~Ch
Nor... Conscious of Both: It is denied that Turiya is an intermediate state between waking and dreaming. The reference is to a sort of day-dream when one is half dreaming and half waking. ~Ni
Nobhayatapragyam - Anything in between waking and dreaming. You are not some in between state (like coma, drug-induced state etc). ~Sa
4. na prajnana ghanam:
nor a mass of consciousness ~Ga
nor that which is a mass of consciousness ~Ni, Ch
It is not a mass of consciousness ~Sw
not the deep sleeper ~Sa
Notes:
Na prajñāna ghanam – Nor that which is a mass of Consciousness:- When we have thus negated the vaiśvānara, the taijasa and the state in between them, the thought would, at once, run of the seeker that it must be then the prājña, the ego in the deep sleep state. We have already discussed earlier, in the mantra describing the prājña, wherein we found that prājña is a state in which the entire Consciousness of the being is withdrawn from the gross body and the subtle body and the entire lot of it has come to lie coiled itself upon itself into homogeneous mass. Thus, by the expression under discussion, the ṛṣi is negating that, in turīya, there is no prājña even. ~Ch
Nor... A MASS OF conscrousness: The association of Turiya with deep sleep is denied. In deep sleep consciousness is devoid of specific characteristics and remains as a general awareness. It is a causal state in which the experiences of the two other states lose all their distinctive features. ~Ni
Napragyaanaghanam - who is pragyaanaghanam? - the deep sleeper. You, the Turiya, are not pragyaanaghanam. ~Sa
5. na prajnam:
nor conscious ~Ga
it is not simple consciousness ~Ni
nor that which is simple Consciousness ~Ch
nor all-knowing consciousness ~Sw
not the all-knower ~Sa
Notes:
Na prajñam – Nor that which is simple Consciousness:- The entire gamut of negation should naturally leave the student with only one possibility. He must certainly understand then that the Ᾱtman is his simple consciousness. But those daring great thinkers of the Hindu philosophy uncompromisingly stood on the platform of their realised knowledge, walled round so well with their ruthless logic and sturdy reason and declared that the Self in us cannot be described by the simple term ‘Consciousness’. This negation is only due to the fact that to describe the Reality as having a property would be to make the Infinite, a finite substance. ~Ch
Nor simpie consciousness: It is implied that Turiya does not, like God, who is omniscient, cognize simultaneously the entire phenomenal world. ~Ni
na pragyam here the word pragyam is interpreted as - are you God, all knowing? You are not that also. ~Sa
6. na aprajñam:
nor unconscious ~Ga
nor is It unconsciousness ~Ni
nor is it unconscious ~Ch
it is not unconscious either ~Sw
not unconscious ~Sa
Notes:
Na aprajñam – Nor is it insentient:- Here now we have in this term, a negation of the only proposition possible in the permutation and combination of the possible terms. If all the previously explained five negations be true then the only loophole through which the finite human intellect could perceive and feel the Reality would be through the definition that it is insentient. For, we have been told by the Master that the Ᾱtman is neither aware of the outer world, nor of the inner world, nor is it conscious of the both, nor is it a mass of Consciousness nor is it a simple Consciousness. Therefore, the only possibility is that It can be only insentient. Even this negative idea is negated by the ṛṣis when they say that it is (na aprajṅam) not that which is insentient. ~Ch
Nor... unconsciousness: That is to say, Turiya is not imsentient matter. ~Ni
na apragyam - means you are not unconscious. ~Sw
Two: Not the Known (That minus Maya)
7. adrstam
which is unseen ~Ga
it is unperceived ~Ni
it is unseen by any sense organ ~Ch
it is beyond perception ~Sw
the Self is invisible ~Sa
Notes:
Adṛṣṭam – Unseen:- The Self is explained here as that which is not seen by the sense organs. By the term unseen, it is not only meant that the Self has no form but the word is used in its amplest implication negating in it the services of all other sense organs. Self is not an object capable of being perceived by any of the five sense organs of knowledge that human beings are provided with. ~Ch
Unperceived: Turiya is the negation of all attributes, including the attribute of non-being. One cannot make It an object of perception. ~Ni
Adrishyam - This literally means invisible, but it also means something that you cannot be seen, you cannot be heard, you cannot be touched, you cannot be smelt. The Self is not an object of our five sense organs. Sometimes people say if God exists or aatma exists, why can’t I see it? It’s like saying if the Higgs Boson exists, why can’t I see it? This is because it is not yogya, it is not an object of your normal vision. Consciousness is not something that you can see or smell or touch, it is adrishyam. ~Sa
8. avyavaharyam:
beyond empirical dealings ~Ga, Ch
unrelated ~Ni
beyond all kinds of transactions ~Sw
not transactable ~Sa
Notes:
Avyavahāryam – Not related to anything:- By this term it is indicated that the Self is an all-pervading factor and that it is not related with other things of the world. In the world, all the things and beings have their vyavahāra (व्यवहार) only in the Self. As an analogy we may take space. Space is not related with anything and yet, no relationship can exist except in space. Similarly the Reality, eternal and immortal, is the medium in which all names and forms of the world function in their delusory dealings with one another. ~Ch
Avyavahaaryam - It is not within transaction. Transaction means usable. What we can see and feel and touch, what we can speak about, what we can manipulate, that is vyavahaaryam. Pure consciousness is not an object which can be manipulated, seen, felt and used. But remember - it is the ground and the source of all vyavhaara. None of this - waking, dreaming and deep sleep - can exist without the pure consciousness which is illumining all this. But pure consciousness is itself avyavahaaryam. ~Sa
9. agrahyam:
beyond the grasp (of the organs of action) ~Ga
incomprehensible ~Ni
incomprehensible by the mind ~Ch
ungraspable ~Sw
not graspable ~Sa
Notes:
Agrāhyam – Incomprehensible:- The above two terms and their meanings clearly give this import that the Self cannot be comprehensible by the mind. The mind can comprehend that which is reported to it through any one or more of the sense organs. In order that it may be perceived by the sense organs, the Self must be any one of the five sense objects. Sense organs of eyes, ears, nose, tongue and skin can perceive only their respective objects of shape, sound, smell, taste and touch. Since the Self is not a sense object and since it has no relationship with anything else, it can never be comprehended by the mind. ~Ch
Agraahyam - It cannot be grasped, which means it is not an object of the organs of action - not a vishaya of the pancha karmendriya. You cannot hold it with your hands, you cannot walk to it. On pilgrimage, you can walk to Badrinath or Kedarnath, but you cannot walk to Turiya. ~Sa
10. agrahyam:
uninferable ~Ga, Ni, Ch, Sw
cannot be inferred ~Sa
Notes:
Alakṣaṇam – Uninferable:- If we cannot perceive a thing through direct experience, then the other channel of ordinary knowledge that is open to us is inference. Whenever there is fire in the kitchen, we have noticed smoke also. Thus, we have derived a knowledge through our direct perception that wherever there is smoke, there is fire too. Later on when we see the effect, namely, the smoke, we infer and derive the knowledge that there is fire although we may not actually see the fire in the distant smoky ranges.
Here the inferential knowledge of the existence of fire is arrived at because of its effect, the smoke, which we had actually observed. This effect is called in Sanskrit terminology as lakṣaṇa. Since the Ᾱtman has no such effects from which we could infer its existence, the Self is defined by the great Masters of the Upaniṣad as alakṣaṇam (uninferable). ~Ch
Uninferable: Such attributes as existence, knowledge, and infinity are not positive attributes of Turiya. They only serve a negative purpose, indicating that Brahman is other than non-existence, non-consciousness, and non-infinity. Besides, to draw an inference one requires a common feature, which always presupposes more objects than one. But Turiya is one and without a second; hence It is uninferable. There is nothing in the phenomenal world through which Turiya can be inferred. ~Ni
Alakshanam - This is a technical term which means Turiya cannot be inferred. lakshanam here means the sign by which you infer something. For example, you see the road is wet, so what do you infer from this? You infer that there was rain earlier. In Indian philosophy, the classic example is, there is fire on the hill because I can see the smoke. Here there is a relation between smoke and fire. If I see the smoke I can infer there is fire. Inference is crucial in the field of science. But in the case of Turiya, it cannot be inferred because there is no sign by which you can infer it. ~Sa
11. acintyam:
unthinkable ~Ga, Ni, Ch
beyond thought ~Sa
Notes:
Acintyam – Unthinkable:- From the above explanation, it is self-evident that if there is a factor which is unseen, incomprehensible and uninferable then, naturally, that factor must certainly be unthinkable. ~Ch
Unthinkable: The predicates by which one can think about an entity are absent in Turiya. ~Ni
Achintyam - You cannot think about it. If you have thought about it, it would be an object -then it is not Turiya. You cannot think about it, but remember the opposite also holds. Whatever you think about is illumined by this Turiya. The fact that we are having a conscious experience is because of the Turiya. But it is not an object of thought. ~Sa
12. avyapadesyam:
indescribable ~Ga, Ni, Ch, Sw
beyond language ~Sa
Notes:
Avyapadeśyam – Indescribable;- It is logical that in these circumstances the Ᾱtman cannot be described since descriptions are but expressions of our experiences either through the sense organs or the mind or the intellect. ~Ch
Indescribable: What one cannot think about cannot be expressed in words. ~Ni
Three: The Knowledge: Ayam Atma Brahma
13. eka-atma-pratyaya-saram
whose valid proof consists in the single belief in the Self ~Ga
the essence of the Consciousness manifesting as the self [in the three states] ~Ni
essentially of the Self alone ~Ch
always experienced as the unbroken “I-sense” ~Sw
the essence of the “I-sense” ~Sa
Notes:
Eka-ātma-pratyaya-sāram – Either we know of a sound or such other sense perceptions or of our feelings or of our thoughts but we do not know the knowledge by which we perceive, by which we understand our feelings, by which we know our ideas. Here the Master insists that the Reality is Knowledge as such, wherein it has no objects to qualify. It is pure Awareness in the light of which all other sense organs go about their routine work of illuminating their individual objects. ~Ch
THE ESSENCE ETC: The elimination of all attributes may make Turiya appear to be a void. Therefore the Upanishad describes It as a positive existence which can be realized, by pointing It out as the changeless and constant factor in the three states. The states, no doubt, change, but an awareness underlies them in the form of the self or as expressed in the judgement “I am the perceiver.” Or the phrase may mean that through the consciousness of the self alone, which forms the basis of the three states, one can contemplate the transcendental Turiya. In other words, because of Turiya, which is changeless and constant, one is aware of self-consciousness in the three states. ~Ni
Ekaatmapratyayasaaram - eka or one, atma or Self, pratya or recognition, saaram or the essence. If you follow this Self - the 'I' feeling, you will come to Turiya. This is exactly what Ashtavakramuni told Raja Janaka: in the dream state, were you there? Dream is false no doubt, but were you there? Yes, I was there. In this waking state now are you there? Yes, I am here. That is the ekaatmapratyayasaaram, the presence of the 'I' feeling. The consciousness which is illuminating even the blankness of deep sleep, that consciousness is in and through all these three states, just like gold is in and through all the ornaments, and that consciousness is the Turiya. Ekaatmapratyayasaaram is a very extraordinary word. When you follow that 'I' feeling, you intuitively realize that you are Turiya. This is the famous 'Who am I?' inquiry taught by Ramana Maharshi. ~Sa
14. prapancopasamam
in which all phenomena cease ~Ga
the cessation of all phenomena ~Ni
negation of all phenomena ~Ch
free from the world ~Sw
the quiescence of the universe ~Sa
Notes:
Prapañcopaśamam – Negation of all phenomenon:- The turīya state is the realm into which the world of finitude and its imperfect experiences have no admission. It is only upto the gate of turīya that we have the plurality and the experience of the plurality. Prapañca, which is constituted of the pluralistic world of mortality, is experienced only in the waking state, the dream state and the deep sleep state. Once these three states are transcended, we enter into the world of Reality and there at turīya, the worlds of finitude and change, mortality and sorrow, imperfections and deceits, limitations and tears have no entry. ~Ch
Prapanchopashamam - This means the universe is an appearance. Turiya - the Self - alone is the reality. The three worlds - waking, dream and deep sleep - are appearances in consciousness. ~Sa
15. santam:
which is unchanging ~Ga
all peace ~Ni
the peaceful ~Ch
tranquil ~Sw
peace itself ~Sa
Notes:
Śāntam – Peaceful:- In our earlier talks, we have found that aśānti or agitations are caused in us because of our desires, likes and dislikes, and so on. Once we have retired from the world of duality into the realm of Self, we are entering the temple of peace, eternal and perfect. ~Ch
ALL PEACE: That is to say, free from attachment and aversion. ~Ni
Shaantam - absolutely peaceful, ever undis-turbed. Turiya is completely untouched by the trouble and sorrows and the limitations of the three states. There is no world there to disturb you even when all three states are arising and disap-pearing. That is your reality. ~Sa
16. sivam:
auspicious ~Ga
all bliss ~Ni
the auspicious ~Ch
auspicious ~Sw
bliss itself ~Sa
Notes:
Śivam – All-auspiciousness:- The peaceful is the blissful; Śānti itself is sukha. Happiness is but the mental condition of poise, and as such that which is all-peaceful must necessarily become all-blissful. And inauspiciousness can come only in the world of plurality. As such the only way we can signify the turīya state is by the term of auspiciousness. ~Ch
Shivam - This means aananda or full of joy (more precisely, Turiya is bliss itself). ~Sa
17. advaitam:
non-dual ~Ga, Ni, Ch, Sw, Sa
Notes:
Advaitam – Non-dual:- When the superimposed ghost retires at the vision of the post, all superimpositions upon it have retired and – ‘the One without a second’ – the reality of the post alone exists. The world of duality is available for our experience only in the worlds of the waking and the dream states. In the deep sleep state there is, in fact, an experience of something homogeneous; only we are not aware of it at the time of experiencing it. But in the world of Reality, when we enter the zone of turīya, there the pluralistic world rolls away and the experience of the non-dual Reality alone remains as eternally true. ~Ch
18. caturtham manyante:
this is what is known as the Fourth (Turiya) ~Ni, Ch
thought to be the fourth ~Sa
19. sa atma sa vijneyah:
That is the Self, and That is to be known ~Ga
This is Ātman, and this has to be realized. ~Ni
This is the Ᾱtman and this is to be realised. ~Ch
It is the Self. It is to be known. ~Sw
That is the Self to be realized. ~Sa
Full translations here:
Ten Translations of Mandukya 7 (plus one on Sankara's commentary) on Turiya
My Mandukya 7
Not inner consciousness nor outer consciousness nor consciousness in-between. Not a mass of consciousness nor omniscient consciousness nor unconsciousness either.
Imperceptible, unrelatable, unreachable, uninferable, unthinkable, indescribable.
That intuitive endless I-essence. Cessation of the world's appearances. Peaceful. Blissful. Nondual. What is known as the Fourth. That is the real self. That is to be realized.
