Bhashya
विज्ञान यज्ञ तनुते, विज्ञानवान्हि यज्ञ तनुते श्रद्धापू- र्वकम्, अतो विज्ञानस्य कर्तृत्वं तनुत इति ।कर्माणि च तनुते ।यस्माद्विज्ञानकर्तृकं सर्वम्, तस्माद्युक्तं विज्ञानमय आत्मा ब्रह्मेति ।किंच, विज्ञान ब्रह्म सर्वे देवा इन्द्रादय ज्येष्ठम्, प्रथमजत्वात्, सबवृत्तीना वा तत्पूर्वकत्वात्प्रथमज विज्ञान ब्रह्म उपासते ध्यायन्ति, तस्मिन्विज्ञानमये ब्रह्मण्यभिमान कृत्वा उपासत इत्यर्थ ।तस्मात्ते महता ब्रह्मणा उपासनात् ज्ञानैश्वर्यवन्तो भवन्ति ।तच्च विज्ञान ब्रह्म चेत् यदि वेद विजानाति , न केवल वेदैव, तस्मात् ब्रह्मणा चेत् न प्रमाद्यति , बाह्येष्वनात्मस्वात्मा भावित , तस्मात्प्राप्त विज्ञानमये ब्रह्मण्यात्मभावनाया प्रमदनम्, तन्निवृत्त्यर्थ-मुन्यते— तस्माच्चेन्न प्रमाद्यतीति ।अन्नमयादिष्वात्मभाव हित्वा केवले विज्ञानमये ब्रह्मण्यात्मत्व भावयन्नास्ते चेदि-त्यर्थ ।तत किं स्यादिति, उच्यते— शरीरे पाप्मनो हित्वा , शरीराभिमाननिमित्ता हि सर्वे पाप्मान , तेषा च विज्ञान मये ब्रह्मण्यात्माभिमानात् निमित्तापाये हानमुपपद्यते, छत्रा-पाय इव च्छायाया ।तस्मात् शरीराभिमाननिमित्तान्स-र्वान पाप्मन शरीरप्रभवान् शरीरे एव हित्वा विज्ञानमय ब्रह्मस्वरूपापन्न तस्थान् सर्वान् कामान् विज्ञानमयेनैवा-माने आनन्दमये आत्मनि ब्रह्मणि नास्ति ब्रह्मेत्याशङ्काभा-वात् 'असन्नेव स भवति असद्ब्रह्मेति वेद चेत्'इति मन्त्रोदाहरणमुपपद्यते ।'ब्रह्म पुच्छं प्रतिष्ठा' इत्यपिचानुपपन्नं पृथग्ब्रह्मण प्रतिष्ठात्वेन ग्रहणम् ।तस्मात्कार्यप-तित एवानन्दमय, न पर एवात्मा ।आनन्द इति वि-द्याकर्मणो फलम्, तद्विकार आनन्दमय ।स च विज्ञा-नमयादान्तर, यज्ञादिहेतोर्विज्ञानमयादस्यान्तरत्वश्रुते ।ज्ञानकर्मणोर्हि फल भोक्तृत्त्वादान्तरतम स्यात्, आन्तरत-मश्च आनन्दमय आत्मा पूर्वेभ्य ।विद्याकर्मणो प्रियाद्यर्थ-त्वाच्च ।प्रियादिप्रयुक्ते हि विद्याकर्मणी, तस्मात्प्रियादीना फ-लरूपाणामात्मसन्निकर्षात् विज्ञानमयादस्याभ्यन्तरत्वमुपपद्य-ते, प्रियादिवासनानिर्वर्तितो ह्यात्मा आनन्दमयो विज्ञानम-याश्रित स्वप्ने उपलभ्यते ।तस्य आनन्दमयस्यात्मन इष्टपु-त्रादिदर्शनज प्रिय शिर इव शिर, प्राधान्यात् ।मोद इतिप्रियलाभनिमित्तो हर्ष ।स एव च प्रकृष्टो हर्ष प्रमोद ।आनन्द इति सुखसामान्यम् आत्मा प्रियादीना सुखावयवा-नाम्, तेष्वनुस्यूतत्वात् ।आनन्द इति पर ब्रह्म, तद्विशुभकर्मणा प्रत्युपस्थाप्यमाने पुत्रमित्रादिविषयविशेषो-पाधौ अन्त करणवृत्तिविशेषे तमसा अप्रच्छाद्यमाने प्रसन्नेअभिव्यज्यते ।तद्विषयसुखमिति प्रसिद्धं लोके ।तद्वृ-त्तिविशेषप्रत्युपस्थापकस्य कर्मणोऽनवस्थितत्वात् सुखस्य क्ष-णिकत्वम् ।तद्यदन्त करण तपसा तमोघ्नेन विद्ययाब्रह्मचर्येण श्रद्धया च निर्मलत्वमापद्यते यावत्, तावत्विविक्ते प्रसन्ने अन्त करणे आनन्दविशेष उत्कृष्यते विपुलीभवति ।वक्ष्यति च—' रसो वै स , रसग्ँ ह्येवायं लब्ध्वा-नन्दी भवति, एष ह्येवानन्दयाति, एतस्यैवान्दस्यान्यानिभूतानि मात्रामुपजीवन्ति ' इति श्रुत्यन्तरात् ।एव च का-मोपशमोत्कर्षापेक्षया शतगुणोत्तरोत्तरोत्कर्ष आनन्दस्य व-क्ष्यते ।एव च उत्कृष्यमाणस्य आनन्दमयस्यात्मन पर-मार्थब्रह्मविज्ञानापेक्षया ब्रह्म परमेव यत्प्रकृतं सत्यज्ञानानन्त-लक्षणम् , यस्य च प्रतिपत्त्यर्थं पञ्च अन्नादिमया कोशा उप-न्यस्ता , यच्च तभ्य आभ्यन्तरम् , येन च ते सर्वे आत्मवन्त ,तत् ब्रह्म पुच्छं प्रतिष्ठा ।तदेव च सर्वस्याविद्यापरिकल्पितस्यद्वैतस्य अवसानभूतमद्वैतं ब्रह्म प्रतिष्ठा, आनन्दमयस्यएकत्वावसानत्वात् ।अस्ति तदेकमविद्याकल्पितस्य द्वैतस्या-वसानभूतमद्वैतं ब्रह्म प्रतिष्ठा पुच्छम् ।तदेतस्मिन्नप्यर्थे एषश्लोको भवति ॥
In plain words
Knowledge carries out the sacrifice, and the wise one performs it with reverence; thus both knowledge and action expand. Because all action originates from the intellect, it is fitting to recognize the intellect-sheath as Brahman. All the shining deities, headed by Indra, worship this primordial consciousness as Brahman because it is the elder source from which all mental functions arise. Through this profound worship, they attain supreme wisdom and majesty. If one truly realizes this consciousness as Brahman—not merely as a concept, but without ever lapsing into the illusion of identifying with external non-selves—one avoids the pitfalls of forgetfulness. By abandoning the false sense of self in the gross physical sheaths and resting steadfastly in the pure intellect, all evils rooted in bodily identification fall away naturally, just as a shadow vanishes when the umbrella is removed. Leaving all such defilements behind and realizing the essence of the intellect-sheath, one rests in the ultimate bliss-self, knowing that Brahman is indeed the supreme foundation and the non-dual termination of all illusion.
Close to the Sanskrit
Knowledge performs the sacrifice, and he who possesses knowledge performs the sacrifice with reverence; therefore they two expand knowledge, and actions as well. Since everything has knowledge as its agent, it is appropriate that the intellect-consisting self is Brahman. Furthermore, all deities like Indra worship consciousness as Brahman because it is the elder due to first-born status, or because all mental functions have it as their prior. Therefore, through worship of that great Brahman, they attain the splendor of wisdom. And if one knows that consciousness as Brahman—not merely knowing theoretically, but without lapsing from Brahman by projecting the self into external non-selves—then to remove any lapse from the meditation of the self as that intellect-consisting Brahman, it is said: 'If one does not lapse from that.' Abandoning the sense of self in the food-sheath and others, if one remains contemplating the self exclusively in that intellect-consisting Brahman, what follows? It is said: abandoning evils in the body. For all evils arise from bodily identification; when the cause is removed through realization of the self in the intellect-consisting Brahman, the cessation of evils naturally follows, like the shadow when the umbrella is removed. Therefore, leaving all evils born of the body right within the body, having attained the nature of the intellect-consisting Brahman, and resting therein, all desires—because there is no doubt that Brahman does not exist in the bliss-consisting innermost Self, as supported by the mantra example: 'He becomes as if non-existent, who knows Brahman as non-existent'—the description 'Brahman is the tail, the foundation' becomes fully appropriate. Otherwise, taking Brahman separately as a foundation would be unjustified. Therefore, the bliss-consisting sheath falls into the category of effect, not the supreme Self itself. Bliss is the fruit of knowledge and action, and the bliss-consisting entity is its modification. It is subtler than the intellect-consisting sheath, as the scripture declares its inwardness relative to the intellect-consisting sheath, which is the result of sacrifices and the like. For the fruit of knowledge and action, being of the nature of an experiencer, is innermost, and the bliss-consisting self is innermost relative to the previous ones. Moreover, because knowledge and action have dear and other pleasant things as their goal, and because those pursuits are prompted by such pleasant experiences, the bliss-consisting entity—which is formed from the subtle impressions of dear things and is found in dreams supported by the intellect-consisting sheath—is more interior than the intellect sheath. Of that bliss-consisting self, 'dear' (seeing a beloved son or the like) serves as the head due to its primary prominence. 'Modo' (rejoicing) is intense joy arising from obtaining what is loved. 'Ānanda' (bliss) is general happiness. The Self is the core of those dear and other constituent parts of happiness, because it permeates them completely. 'Ānanda' also signifies the supreme Brahman, which is manifested when the mental modification conditioned by specific objects like sons and friends—brought about by meritorious deeds and unclouded by the darkness of ignorance—becomes serene. This is well known in the world as object-happiness. Because the action bringing about that mental state is unstable, worldly happiness is fleeting. But when the inner instrument is purified through austerity, knowledge destroying darkness, celibacy, and faith to whatever extent, to that extent a special, vast bliss is exalted and grows within the tranquil and purified mind. As another scriptural text declares: 'Brahman is essence; having attained this very essence, a man becomes blissful. For this very one bestows bliss; other beings live upon a mere fraction of this bliss.' Thus, a hundredfold progressive increase of bliss is described in relation to the cessation of desires. And when the bliss-consisting self is thus magnified, supreme Brahman—which is the subject under discussion, characterized as truth, knowledge, and infinity, for the sake of realizing which the five sheaths beginning with food were introduced, which is subtler than them all, and by which they are all endowed with reality—is that very Brahman which is the tail and foundation. That very Brahman is the non-dual foundation and termination of all duality imagined by ignorance, because the bliss-consisting entity culminates in absolute unity. There indeed exists that single, non-dual Brahman, the foundation and tail, which is the final resting place of duality imagined by ignorance. Regarding this very meaning, there is this verse.