उपदेशसाहस्री (आदि शङ्कराचार्य - गद्य व पद्य भाग)

256 A THOUSAND TEACHINGS [CHAP. XVIII 125. The possibility of a void comes in owing to the witness being unknown ¹ if the non-Self be meant to be negated by means of the evidence of words.² चेतनस्त्वं कथं देह इति चेन्नाप्रसिद्धितः । चेतनस्यान्यतः सिद्धावेवं स्यादन्यहानतः ॥ १२६ ॥ 126. (Objection). ‘You are a conscious being, how³ can you be the body?’ (Reply). It cannot be so proved as the Self is not known (from any other evidence). It might be proved by negating the non-Self if Pure Conciousness were known to exist through an evidence. अध्यक्षः स्वयमस्त्येव चेतनस्यापरोक्षतः । तुल्य एवं प्रबोधः स्यादन्यस्यासत्त्ववादिना ॥ १२७ ॥ 127. (Objection). The Self is self-existent as Pure Consciousness is immediately known. (Reply). The knowledge of the Self (according to you) then becomes similar⁴ to that of the void assumed by the Nihilist. अहमज्ञासिषं चेदमिति लोकस्मृतेरिह । करणं कर्म कर्ता च सिद्धास्त्वेकक्षणे किल ॥ १२८ ॥ 128. (Objection). That the agent, the object and instrument are known to exist simultaneously is proved by memory, (e.g., when one says) ‘I⁵ knew it.’ ¹ By any other evidence. ² The Srutis. ³ The idea is that the Self and the non-Self being contradictory to each other, the former is left over when the latter is negated. ⁴ As regards the want of an evidence. ⁵ The objector tries to prove the independent existence of the Self by showing that there must be a Self-evident principle through which the three things are known simultaneously. And that is the Self.