Vignaana Nouka - Sloka 3

Introduction

Adi Sankara composed vignaana nouka (the boat of knowledge) with 8 slOkas -- as ashtapadi. Swami Sundara Chaitanyaananda translated the slOkas to Telugu. I translated the relevant portions. Enjoy!

Sloka#3

yadaananda roopam prakaasa swaroopam
nirasta prapancham paricchEda Soonyam
aham brahma vruttyaika gamyam tureeyam
param brahma nityam tadE vaaha masmi

yadaananda roopam=the blissful form
prakaasa swaroopam=the resplendent form
nirasta prapancham=the one that refutes universe as non-uniform in form and shape
paricchEda Soonyam=the one that is not limited by space and time
aham brahma vruttyaika gamyam=the goal of the conception as "I am brahman"
tureeyam=transcending wakefulness, dreams and deep sleep
param=exalted
nityam=ever present
yat=(conjunction)
brahma=the brahman
tadEva=such brahman 
aham=I
asmi=thus I exist

Literal Translation

The one being the nature of bliss refutes the world as non-uniform and non-homogenous nor limited by time and space; cognizes oneself as brahman; attains tureeyam by transcending wakeful, dream and deep sleep; is what I call my existence.

Prologue

A guru teaches about aatma when a disciple is dejected with

• karma and its fruits
• dharma-artha-kaama or worldly pursuits
• bondage and relationships
• heaven and its comforts and pleasures

Blissful Form

We think in order for aatma to be blissful, it must be devoid of dukha or sadness. Bliss is not an object that can be traded or stored in manas or mind. aatma doesn't need a crutch as it is self-supporting and ever happy. It provides the experience of bliss just by meditation. It doesn't change in form and content like objects in the world that are evanescent.

Effulgent Form

For aatma the pramaana or proof is vEda. We think aatma exists because vEdas say so. Some say aatma is swataha or cognized without logic, even though our senses cannot grasp it. We experience its effulgence when the stream of thoughts seizes to exist because aatma is the witness to all of our thoughts. All thoughts originate from it and are cognized by it.

Refutation of the World

Some think aatma and world have a mutual dependence and co-existence. This can lead to a logical contradiction as both may not exist at some point. Hence we have to conclude that the world is mithya or hallucination. Like in rajju-sarpa (rope-snake) drushtaanta we can understand that the world is a projection of Brahman and it has no independent existence.

Thou Art Brahman

When we attain the realization that Brahman, which is the ultimate reality and existence, and jeeva (sentient being) are one and the same, we have reached the culmination of gnaana or scriptural knowledge. It is unlike the worldly knowledge that is transient and subject to modification. As such scriptural knowledge elevates us to omnipresence and omniscience, it is worth knowing. Such a state is called tureeyam in vEdaas.