। ॥ २९५ ॥
In plain words
But what the word 'I' truly points to is the witness behind the ego and everything else — eternal, because its presence can be found even in deep, dreamless sleep. Scripture itself says exactly this: 'unborn, eternal.' That is the innermost Self, beyond the usual categories of being and non-being.
Close to the Sanskrit
But the true referent of [the word] 'I' is the witness of the ego and so forth, eternal, because of the observation of [its] presence even in deep sleep. Indeed, the Śruti itself declares, 'unborn, eternal' — that is the inmost Self, distinct from [both] being and non-being.