The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad

by Swami Krishnananda

Chapter III

Ninth Brahmana: Many Gods and One Brahman (Continued)

21. kiṁ-devato'syāṁ dakṣiṇāyāṁ diśy asīti. yama-devata iti sa yamaḥ kasmin pratiṣṭhita iti. yajña iti. kasmin nu yajñaḥ pratiṣṭhita iti. dakṣiṇāyām iti. kasmin nu dakṣiṇā pratiṣṭhitā iti. śraddhāyām iti. yadā hy eva śraddhatte atha dakṣiṇāṁ dadāti; śraddhāyām hy eva dakṣiṇā pratiṣṭhitā iti. kasmin nu śraddhā pratiṣṭhitā iti. hṛdaye iti. hovāca hṛdayena hi śraddhāṁ jānāti, hṛdaye hy eva śraddhā pratiṣṭhitā bhavatīti. evaṁ evaitat, yājñavalkya.

Kiṁ-devato'syāṁdakṣiṇāyāṁ diśy asīti: "Which is the deity that rules the southern direction?" Yājñavalkya says: "Yama is the deity." Yama represents the deity of justice. We call him Dharmaraja. And Dharma is connected with the principle of Yajña. Yajña is not, as we have already observed, a mere external performance in the sacred fire, but an alienation of the lower part of one's own self. In other words, self-sacrifice is Yajña. And it is a self-sacrifice of different intensities and grades that constitutes Dharma, ultimately. The essence of Dharma is sacrifice of self. Thus Dharmaraja, the ultimate deciding factor of all canons of Dharma, or virtue, or righteousness, has something to do with Yajña, or self-sacrifice. So, a question was further put as to where Yama is founded, or what is the principle which Yama follows? The answer is "Yajña it is; sacrifice is the principle." Kasmin nu yajñaḥ pratiṣṭhita iti: "How do you decide the factor of Yajña? Where is it founded?" Dakṣiṇayam iti: "The hope of reward that will accrue out of the sacrifice is the propeller of all sacrifices." Here, Dakṣiṇa means a reward, whatever it be. And so, the impulse behind any kind of sacrifice is the reward that accrues out of it. The reward may be a lower one or a higher one, it may be a temporal one or a spiritual one. Irrespective of the nature of the reward, it is that which impels the conduct of a sacrifice. Kasmin nu dakṣiṇā pratiṣṭhitā iti: "Now, what is the principle that becomes responsible for this hope itself?" How do you entertain a hope for reward out of the sacrifice? How do you know that a reward will come at all? When you perform a sacrifice or do an action, perhaps no result may follow. What makes you feel convinced that every action, every sacrifice must bear a fruit or yield a result? Śraddhāyām iti: You have got a faith. "The faith that reward will accrue out of every action or sacrifice is therefore the foundation of the hope for reward." Yadā hy eva śraddhatte atha dakṣiṇāṁ dadāti; śraddhāyām hy eva dakṣiṇā pratiṣṭhitā iti. kasmin nu śraddhā pratiṣṭhitā iti: "Now, where is this faith founded? From where does this faith come?" "It is in your heart"—hṛdaye iti. So, ultimately it is your heart that decides everything. Feeling is not the only function of the heart. It is a huge reservoir of various inscrutable factors. Understanding, feeling and various other psychological functions are, no doubt, included in the character of the heart, but the heart is something indescribable. Here, by heart we do not mean the fleshy counterpart that we call the heart, but the essence of the human being, the central part of human nature, the quintessence of what we are in our principality. That is what is called the heart. And so, it is the heart that is responsible for the hope that you entertain, the faith that you have, and the sacrifice that you perform. If the heart is not to be connected with your feeling, with your actions, then there would be no sense conveyed by the attitude or the conduct that you have in life, or the actions that you perform.

The heart really means your own self. In a particular form, your self assumes an association with the target or the goal of your actions. It is something very inscrutable again, this point as to how your self is connected with a goal that is very remote in the future—maybe after death, after several years. But the self of the human being, which is the agent of action and which is the impulse behind all feelings, is inwardly connected with even the remotest goal or reward that may come even after millions of years. Some say, the heart is a very subtle connecting link between the individual and the Ultimate Reality. So Yājñavalkya says that justice, law, sacrifice, hope for reward, faith—all these are ultimately manifestations of the functions of the heart which is a subtle shape that is taken by the essence of the human being, namely, the Ātman itself. So, Hṛdaya is the ultimate root of all things.

"Well; that is very good," said Śākalya. "Your answer is fine. Now, I ask you another question."

22. kiṁ-devato'syām pratīcyāṁ diśy asīti. varuṇa-devata iti, sa varuṇaḥ kasmin pratiṣṭhita iti. apsv iti. kasmin nv āpaḥ pratiṣṭhitā iti. retasīti, kasmin nv retaḥ pratiṣṭhitam iti. hṛdaye iti, hovāca; tasmād api pratirūpaṁ jātam āhuḥ, hṛdayād iva sṛptaḥ, hṛdayād iva nirmita iti, hṛdaye hy eva retaḥ pratiṣṭhitam bhavatīti. evam evaitat, yājñavalkya.

Kiṁ-devato'syāmpratīcyāṁ diśy asīti: "In the western direction, which is the deity that rules?" Varuṇa-devata iti: "Varuna is the deity. The Lord of waters is Varuna, which is the deity that rules the western direction." Sa varuṇaḥ kasmin pratiṣṭhita iti: "What is the foundation for Varuna?" How does it function? Apsv iti: "The principle of water." You may say the subtle constituent principles of water, or the Prakriti of water, which becomes later on the gross visible water—that is the basis of the function of Varuna. Kasmin nv āpaḥ pratiṣṭhitā: "Where is water founded?" What is the foundation for the principle of water? Retasīti, kasmin nv retaḥ pratiṣṭhitam iti: Here, Retas means the vitality of the individual, or vitality of anyone for the matter of that. It is believed that the water principle and the vital force in every being are interconnected, and the vital energy is regarded as the essence of water. Water is the gross form; the vital energy is the subtle form. So the subtle form is the foundation for the gross form. Hence, "Retas is the foundation for water." "But where is Retas founded?" Again he says: "It is in the heart"—hṛdaye iti, hovāca; tasmād api pratirūpaṁ jātam āhuḥ, hṛdayād iva sṛptaḥ, hṛdayād iva nirmita iti, hṛdaye hy eva retaḥ pratiṣṭhitam bhavatīti. evam evaitat, yājñavalkya: "It is the heart of a person that is reborn in the child that is the replica of the individual." "This means the essence of the being, the quintessence of an individual is represented by the heart. So, again we have to say here that heart does not mean the physical substance. It is an inscrutable deciding factor of the total personality of the individual that is called the heart. It is the vitality of the individual, and therefore we call it the heart. And so, anything that is of moment or consequence in life, anything that is worthwhile and carrying tremendous effect, must have some connection with the heart. You know very well that any word that you utter from the bottom of your heart, any action that you do propelled by the heart, and any feeling that you entertain rising from the depths of the heart, must produce a corresponding effect. But if it is not connected to the heart, the result may not follow. So it is said that the heart, again in this context, should be regarded as the central foundation for all other emanations thereof."

23. kiṁ-devato'syām udīcyāṁ diśy asīti. soma-devata iti. sa somaḥ kasmin pratiṣṭhita iti. dīkṣāyām iti. kasmin nu dīkṣā pratiṣṭhitā iti. satya iti. tasmād api dikṣitam āhuḥ, satyaṁ vada iti: satye hy eva dīkṣā pratiṣṭhitā iti. kasmin nu satyam pratiṣṭhitam iti. hṛdaye iti hovāca, hṛdayena hi satyaṁ jānāti, hṛdaye hy eva satyam pratiṣṭhitam bhavatīti. evam evaitat, yājñavalkya.

Then Śākalya asks: "What is the deity of the northern direction?"—kiṁ-devato'syām udīcyāṁ diśy asīti. soma-devata iti. sa somaḥ kasmin pratiṣṭhita iti. Now, here the answer is, in some way, connected with the ancient system of the ritualistic sacrifice. "The deity of the northern direction," Yājñavalkya says, "is Soma." Soma means the particular sacred juice which the ancients utilised for the purpose of various sacrifices, especially Soma-Yagna. And the deity of this particular sacred plant called Soma is supposed to be the moon. Therefore the moon is also called Soma. And inasmuch as it is the sacrifice that is here referred to as the connecting link with the deity of the northern direction, the foundation for this deity is supposed to be the discipline that is followed in the sacrifice. The deity of a sacrifice will not manifest itself unless the discipline thereof is properly followed. There are certain techniques of sacrifice; the sacrifices are not merely external offerings made into the sacred fire, but are coupled with chants of Mantras, and also a more important factor—meditations. So, the meditations, the chants and the actual performance—these three are the essential disciplines of a sacrifice. There are certain other minor factors, also. These disciplines are responsible for the manifestation of a deity, the vision of a deity, and the grace that is bestowed by the deity in the particular sacrifice. "So, Dīksā is the foundation for the deity." Dīksā is discipline, the sacred vow that one observes in the context of the performance of a sacrifice. Without this discipline, the fruit of the sacrifice will not be made visible, which means to say that there will not be a vision of the deity connected with the sacrifice. So, the discipline of the sacrifice is the foundation, the deciding factor of the manifestation of the deity—dīkṣāyām iti. kasmin nu dīkṣā pratiṣṭhitā iti: "What is this discipline founded upon?" Satya iti: "Truth is the foundation for the discipline followed in the sacrifice." This is a very difficult term. Here, truth means many things. It is the inner connection that obtains between the actual performance of an action and the result that deals with the remote future. In certain schools of thought, this connection is called Apurva, a special technical term implying the potency invisibly produced by an action, carrying its effect in some distant future. This is called Satya. It has also some connection with the Ultimate Reality, because the capacity of an action to produce a result in the remote future is due to the constituent nature of the Ultimate Reality itself. Otherwise, how can there be any connection between the present and the future, especially when the future is far, far away from the present, in the passage of time? Whatever be the distance between the present time and the future time, the connection is not broken. It is maintained, so that if you do an action today, its result is not destroyed. Its fruit cannot be regarded as nullified merely because of the fact that it is a small action. Even if it is the smallest action, it will produce a result.

Sometimes very weak actions produce results after many, many years. Strong actions produce results immediately. Many years, it may even be millions of years before weak actions produce their results. You may have to take many births in order to enjoy the fruit thereof, but the fruit will be there. Just as even one penny that you credit in your bank account is still there, notwithstanding the fact that it is so little, even the smallest of actions produces a result. And the possibility of the production of a result from an action, even in a distant future, is the justice of the Law of the universe, so that we may say that the universal Law is ultimately just and impartial. There is no one who will be excluded from reward. There is nothing which will be kept out of the sight of the ultimate Law of the universe. Hence it is said that this discipline of the sacrifice which yields fruit in the distant future is founded on Ultimate Truth which is Satya—tasmād api dikṣitam āhuḥ, satyaṁ vada iti.

Satye hy eva dīkṣā pratiṣṭhitā iti: "All religious vows are ultimately based on Truth. Kasmin nu satyam pratiṣṭhitam iti: Where is truth founded?" Very difficult questions, and Yājñavalkya says again: "It is in the heart of a being." Here, when he says that the heart is the foundation for truth, he means relative truth as well as Absolute Truth. There are degrees of reality, and all these are comprehended in the feelings of the heart. When it is the feeling that functions, the goal of the feeling is a tentative or a relative truth, but this relative truth is somehow or the other connected with the Absolute Truth. The materialisation of a result of an action, which proceeds out of the heart of an individual, is, to repeat what I have already mentioned to you, the consequence of the universality of Law. And so, the heart of an individual which performs actions, which propels feelings, and is the reaper of the fruits of actions, is connected with the Truth which is from all points of view relative, but from its own point of view Absolute—hṛdayena hi satyaṁ jānāti, hṛdaye hy eva satyam pratiṣṭhitam bhavatīti. evam evaitat, yājñavalkya. Śākalya agrees Yājñavalkya's answer is correct and proceeds with his questions.

24. kiṁ-devato'syāṁ dhruvāyāṁ diśy asīti. agnī-devata iti. so'gniḥ kasmin pratiṣṭhita iti. vāci iti. kasmin nu vāk pratiṣṭhitā iti. hṛdaye iti. kasmin nu hṛdayam pratiṣṭhitam iti.

Now, Śākalya asks: "Which is the deity of the direction which is above?" He (Yājñavalkya) has given the description of the various deities and their foundations in respect of the four quarters. "Now, kiṁ-devato'syāṁ dhruvāyāṁ diśy asīti, the direction that is overhead, the top, is also presided over by a divine principle, what is that?" Agnī-devata iti: "It is the brilliance of the sun that can be regarded as the presiding deity of the central direction which is above." The comparison is because of its brilliance. The fixed direction overhead is presided over by the fire principle whose obvious physical manifestation is the sun. So'gniḥ kasmin pratiṣṭhita iti: "Where is the fire founded?" "The speech of the Supreme Being." The Virāt Puruṣha is always mentioned in the Upaniṣhad as the cause of the manifestation of Agnī Devata, as we have already studied earlier. Kasmin nu vāk pratiṣṭhitā iti: "Now again, speech is to be founded on something." "It is in the heart." Yājñavalkya comments upon all these things by saying that everything is ultimately in your heart. Whether it is an action that you perform, or a speech that you utter, a feeling that occurs to you, or the nature of the reward of the action that accrues out of your actions, whatever be the thing that is connected with you—all this is founded in your central being, you very self, your own Hridaya, your own heart. Kasmin nu hṛdayam pratiṣṭhitam iti. Now, Śākalya asks: "Where is the heart founded?"

25. ahallika iti hovāca yājñavalkyaḥ, yatraitad anyatrāsman manyāsai, yaddhy etad anyatrāsmat śyāt, śvāno vainad adyuḥ vayāṁsi vainad vimathnīrann iti.

Yājñavalkya says: "You are a foolish man. You are asking me, where the heart is founded? Don't you know where the heart is? You want a foundation for the heart! If the heart is not in your own self, if it be anywhere else, what will happen to you? Dogs will eat you, and vultures will tear you to pieces. What a question you ask! The heart cannot be anywhere other than in your own self." So, the question is futile, and an answer, therefore, is not called for in connection with such a stupid question as to where the heart is founded. But Śākalya is not deterred by this repulsive answer of Yājñavalkya. He further raises a question.

The Self

26. kasmin nu tvaṁ cātmā ca pratiṣṭhitau stha iti. pkasmin nu tvaṁ cātmā ca pratiṣṭhitau stha iti. prāṇa iti. kasmin nu prāṇaḥ pratiṣṭhita iti. apāna iti. kasmin nv apānaḥ pratiṣṭhita iti. vyāna iti. kasmin nu vyānaḥ pratiṣṭhita iti. udāna iti. kasminn ūdānaḥ pratiṣṭhita iti. samāna iti. sa eṣa, na iti. na ity ātmā, agṛhyaḥ na hi gṛhyate, aṣīryaḥ, na hi śīryate, asaṅgaḥ na hi sajyate, asito na vyathate, na riṣyati. etāny aṣṭāv āyatanāni, aṣṭau lokāḥ, aṣṭau devāḥ, aṣṭau puruṣāḥ. sa yas tān puruṣān niruhya pratyuhyātyakrāmat, taṁ tvā aupaniṣadam puruṣam pṛcchāmi. tam cen me na vivakṣyasi mūrdhā te vipatiṣatīti. taṁ ha na mene śākalyaḥ, tasya ha mūrdhā vipapāta, api hāsya parimoṣiṇo'sthīny apajahruḥ, anyan manyamānāḥ.

Kasmin nu tvaṁcātmā ca pratiṣṭhitau stha iti: "Yourself and your body, where are they founded?" Prāṇaiti: The body of an individual may be said to be founded on the Prāṇa, the vital breath, because it is the vital breath that sustains the body. The Prāṇa is a particular function of the vital force by which we breathe out. When we exhale, when we expire, it is the Prāṇa functioning. And when we inhale, the Apāna functions. So, Prāṇa, in its principal form, may be said to be the foundation for the body, the personality of the individual. "Where is the Prāṇa founded?" "In the Apāna"—apānaḥ pratiṣṭhita. If the Apāna is not to work in the opposite direction, the Prāṇa would go out. It has to be held in check by the counteracting force of the Apāna. While the Prāṇa is trying to go up, the Apāna is trying to go down. If the Prāṇa is not to be filled up, the Apāna will go down, and will no longer be inside the body. It will go down by the gravity of the earth. And if the Apāna is not to go down, the Prāṇa will go up. So the two, moving up and down, are thus themselves held in position. So, "Prāṇa is founded in Apāna." Its function, its existence within the body, is due to the work of the Apāna that goes downwards in the counter direction. "Now, where is Apāna founded?" Vyāna iti: Vyāna is the force that operates throughout the body, due to which there is circulation of blood. The blood moves equally throughout the veins and arteries etc. in the body on account of the Vyāna Prāṇa, a particular function of Prāṇa known as Vyāna. The Prāṇa and Apāna work in this manner, in the upward and downward directions, on account of the controlling activity of the Vyāna which is spread throughout the body. If the Vyāna is not to be there, the Prāṇa and the Apāna will not be held in position, or harmony. Thus Vyāna is the support of Apāna itself. Kasmin nu vyānaḥ pratiṣṭhita iti: "Where is Vyāna founded?" Udāna iti: "Udāna is the support for Vyāna." Udāna is a very peculiar function of the vital energy. It is like a post to which animals are tied. The animals try to go this way and that in various directions, but are not allowed to go according to their own whim and fancy, as they are tethered to a post. Likewise, the Udāna is a principle of Prāṇa whose seat is supposed to be the throat, to which the other functions of the Prāṇa are tied as to a post, as it were. And so, Udāna is the support for the operation of the other aspects of the vital energy, namely, Prāṇa, Apāna and Vyāna. If the Udāna is not to be there as an inviolable reality of the Prāṇa, the other functions will not perform their duties as expected. Kasminn ūdānaḥ pratiṣṭhita iti: "On what is Udāna founded?" Sāmana iti: Sāmana is the subtlest form of vital force. Its seat is in the navel. It digests food, and it is the cause of the heat that you feel inside the body. It is the subtlest form of Prāṇa, and these gross forms which are mentioned are ultimately resolvable into this subtlest form, namely, Sāmana. "So, Sāmana is the ultimate support for all these functions."

This subtle Being, which is hidden behind even the Sāmana, is your real Self, on account of whose presence these Prāṇas are operating in a systematic manner. Why should the Prāṇa move in this way, and the Apāna that way, and Vyāna and Udāna and Sāmana in different ways, as if they are following some law, or system, or order? Who is this Justice or Judge who dispenses the law in the case of the function of all these vital energies? "That is something superior to even the Sāmana, and no one can know what it is. You can only say, 'what it is not'. You cannot say, 'what it is'. It is not the body; it is not the senses; it is not any one of the Prāṇas; it is not even the mind; it is not the intellect." What else it is? You do not know. If anyone asks you, what is this essential Self in you, you can only say, 'it is not this'; 'it is not this'. But you cannot say, 'what it is', because to characterise it in any manner would be to define it in terms of qualities that are obtainable in the world of objects. The world of objects can be defined by characters perceivable to the eyes or sensible to the touch, etc. But the Ātman is the presupposition and the precondition of every kind of perception. It is the proof of all proofs. Everything requires a proof, but the Ātman does not require a proof because it is the source of all proofs. And therefore, no one can define it; no one can say, 'what it is'. It can only be inferred, because if it were not to be, nothing else could be. So, it can be said to be capable of definition only in a negative manner as 'not this, not this, neti neti ātmā'. This Ātman is defined as 'not this, not this, or not that, not that, not in this manner, nothing that is known, nothing that is sensed, nothing that is capable of being expressed by words, nothing that is definable, nothing of this sort', etc.  What it is, no one can say! It is impossible to grasp it through either the power of speech, or the power of the senses, or the power of the mind. Na ity ātmā, agṛhyaḥ na hi gṛhyate: "It is impossible to grasp it. It is ungraspable. That is the Ātman. Aṣīryaḥ, na hi śīryate: It is undiminishable." It neither grows nor does it become less in its capacity. It is, a sage says, like the immeasurable ocean. Asaṅgaḥ na hi sajyate: "It does not come in contact with anything." It is impossible to conceive of its adherence to anything. There is nothing second to it. Asito na vyathate: "It cannot be affected by anything outside it." Nothing outside it exists. So it is unmodifiable. So it has no sorrow or grief of any kind. Na riṣyati: "It never comes down in its status."

Etāny aṣṭāv āyatanāni, aṣṭau lokāḥ, aṣṭau devāḥ, aṣṭau puruṣāḥ. sa yas tān puruṣān niruhya pratyuhyātyakrāmat: Now, we have described in the earlier section the various deities, etc., the perfections, and the abodes. We have already heard all these things—the deities, their abodes, the various forms of perfection of the deities etc., divinities from earth onwards up to the last deity in the earlier section. "Now, these deities, these abodes, these perfections, and these results of sacrifice, etc., are all projected, as it were, from something and withdrawn, as it were, into something which is neither known to any of these deities, nor known to any individual, yet which must exist." It is the Supreme Being. Yājñavalkya questions Śākalya: "Do you know what is this Supreme Being I am referring to? The great Being that is sung in the Upaniṣhads—taṁ tvā aupaniṣadam puruṣam pṛcchāmi—I ask you, what is this great Puruṣha, the great Being sung of in the Upaniṣhads, in the sacred texts, the one Being due to whose existence itself, these deities function and perform their duties in a systematic manner? If you cannot tell me who this Being is, sung of in the Upaniṣhads, your head will fall!" And Śākalya did not know who this Puruṣha was—taṁ tvā aupaniṣadam puruṣam pṛcchāmi. tam cen me na vivakṣyasi mūrdhā te vipatiṣatīti. taṁ ha na mene śākalyaḥ.

Śākalya the poor man who put so many questions to Yājñavalkya and received so many fantastic answers, could not answer this single question: 'Who is this Puruṣha that is sung of in the Upaniṣhads?' And Yājñavalkya had already cast an imprecation: 'You have tired me very much by querying so much. Now, I put one question only to you. You tell me, who is this Being, otherwise your head, down it would fall.' And it fell. In the presence of King Janaka, this catastrophe took place. Because of the imprecation of Yājñavalkya's words and the impossibility of Śākalya to answer this question, the head fell. Tasya ha mūrdhā vipapāta, api hāsya parimoṣiṇo'sthīny apajahruḥ, anyan manyamānāḥ: His disciples were grieved. 'Oh, my Guru has fallen down,' they cried. So they took the body and wanted to cremate it. They were carrying the load. On the road, some robbers observed some load being carried, and they thought that some treasure was being taken. So they attacked these disciples and took away the load. So, even the bones were not available for the disciples. They lost the whole person. This is a pitiable tragic conclusion of the great Bahu-Dakṣiṇa Yajña which Janaka performed and the seminar which he held, the conclusion of which was that many wonderful questions were raised, very interesting answers were given, and knowledge bloomed forth in the court of Janaka, but one man lost his head.

Man Compared to a Tree

27. atha hovāca, brāhmaṇā bhagavanto, yo vaḥ kāmayate sa mā pṛcchatu, sarve vā mā pṛcchata, yo vaḥ kāmayate, taṁ vaḥ pṛchāmi, sarvān vā vaḥ pṛcchamīti. te ha brāhmaṇā na dadhṛṣuḥ.

Now Yājñavalkya says: "If any one of you wants to put more questions, let him come forward." Nobody dared to open his mouth afterwards. They all wanted to know whether it could be possible for them to get away from that place, because the head is very dear. Atha hovāca, brāhmaṇā bhagavanto, yo vaḥ kāmayate sa mā pṛcchatu: "Learned men! If any one of you can stand up and ask me any more questions, I am ready to answer. Sarve vā mā pṛcchata, yo vaḥ kāmayate, taṁ vaḥ pṛchāmi, sarvān vā vaḥ pṛcchamīti: Or, all of you can put questions to me at one stroke; I am ready to answer. Or, I may question you, if you like, singly. Or, I may question all of you." When this was told by Yājñavalkya, everyone kept quiet. Te ha brāhmaṇā na dadhṛṣuḥ: Everyone was frightened of this consequence of Śākalya's head falling off, and so they kept their mouths closed and did not put any further questions.

28. tān haitaiḥ ślokāiḥ papraccha:

1. yathā vṛkṣo vanaspatiḥ, tathaiva puruṣo'mṛṣā tasya lomāni parṇāni, tvag asyotpāṭikā bahiḥ.
2. tvaca evāsya rudhiram prasyandi, tvaca utpaṭaḥ; tasmāt, tad ātṛṇṇāt praiti, raso vṛkṣād ivāhatat.
3. māṁsāny asya śakarāṇi, kināṭaṁ snāva, tat sthiram; asthīny antarato dārūṇi, majjā majjopamā kṛtā.
4. yad vṛkṣo vṛkṇo rohati mūlān navataraḥ punaḥ, martyaḥ svin mṛtyunā vṛkṇaḥ kasmān mūlāt prarohati.
5. retasa iti mā vocata; jīvatas tat prajāyate; dhānāruha iva vai vṛkṣaḥ añjasā pretyasambhavaḥ.
6. yat samūlam āvṛheyuḥ vṛkṣam, na punar ābhavet, martyaḥ svin mṛtyunā vṛkṇaḥ kasmān mūlāt prarohati.
7. jāta eva na jāyate, konvenaṁ janayet punaḥ; vijñānam ānandam brahma, rātir dātuḥ parāyaṇaṁ, tiṣṭhamānasya tadvidaḥ.

Then Yājñavalkya speaks independently, without being put any question. Yathā vṛkṣo vanaspatiḥ, tathaiva puruṣo'mṛṣā: "Friends! The human being is something like a tree. There is some similarity between a tree and a human being. The hair on the body of a human being may be compared to the leaves on the tree. Just as leaves grow on the tree, hair grows on the body." Tasya lomāni parṇāni, tvag asyotpāṭikā bahiḥ: "The bark of a tree and the skin of the human being may be compared likewise. Just as there is bark outside the tree, there is skin on the outside of the body." Tvaca evāsya rudhiram prasyandi: "From the bark, the juice of the tree exudes. Likewise, blood can exude from the skin of a body." Tvaca utpaṭaḥ; tasmāt, tad ātṛṇṇāt praiti, raso vṛkṣād ivāhatat: "When you cut a tree, its essence exudes. Likewise, an injured person exudes blood from the body." Māṁsāny asya śakarāṇi, kināṭaṁ: "The inner bark of the tree may be compared to the flesh in the body of a human being." Kināṭaṁ snāva, tat sthiram: "The sinews inside the flesh of the human body may be compared to the innermost bark of the tree." Asthīny antarato dārūṇi: "The bones inside the body may be compared to the pith of the wood inside the tree." Majjopamā kṛtā: "The marrow inside the bones may be compared to the marrow inside the pith of the tree."

Yad vṛkṣo vṛkṇo rohatimūlān navataraḥ punaḥ: Now, the question of Yājñavalkya comes. He puts a question. "If a tree is cut, it grows again; it does not perish. A new tree, as it were, grows from the stem which remains even after the tree is cut. Now I ask you a question, my dear friends. What is the thing which enables the human being to grow even after death?" Martyaḥ svin mṛtyunā vṛkṇaḥ kasmān mūlāt prarohati: "If death is to snatch away the body of an individual, from which root does he grow again into new birth?" You know how the tree grows even if it is cut. But, how does the human being grow? He is killed by death, and his body is no more. When there is nothing which can be called remnant of the individual after the death of the body, what is the seed out of which his new body is fashioned? What is the connection between the future birth of an individual and the present state of apparent extinction at the time of death? Retasa iti mā vocata: "Do not tell me that the man is born out of the seed of the human being. No; because the seed can be there only in a living human being. A dead person has no seed. So the man is dead. What is it that becomes the connection between the present annihilation and the future birth? It is not the seed; it is something else." Jīvatas tat prajāyate; dhānāruha iva vai vṛkṣaḥ añjasā pretyasambhavaḥ: "The tree grows out of the seed. If the seed is not there, how can the tree grow? Something vital must be there in the tree in order that the trunk, at least, may grow. But if nothing is there, suppose you pluck out every root of the tree itself, there would be no further growth of the tree." Yat samūlam āvṛheyuḥ vṛkṣam, na punar ābhavet: "If the root of a tree is pulled out, the tree will not grow. So, if the root of a person is pulled out at the time of death, what is it that grows after death?" Martyaḥ svin mṛtyunā vṛkṇaḥ kasmān mūlāt prarohati: "You cannot conceive of any root for the individual being. There is no root if everything is destroyed. The body has gone. He does not leave a seed behind him, nor is there a root left. Even the root has gone. So, what is the answer to this question?"

Jāta eva na jāyate,konvenaṁ janayet punaḥ: "You may say; he is born and he is dead." The matter is over. Where is the question of his rebirth? Who tells you that there is rebirth? So, why do we not say that the matter is very simple. Something has come; something has gone; the matter is over. So, there is no question of there being a connection between the present state of annihilation and the future birth. "No," says Yājñavalkya. "It is not possible because—konvenaṁ janayet punaḥ na jāyate—if there is not to be rebirth, there would be an inexplicability of the variety of experiences in the present individuals." You will find that there is no answer to the question as to why there is variety of constitutions. One can enjoy what one does not deserve, and one can suffer the consequences of actions which one has not done. If there is not going to be any connection between the past and the future, anyone's actions can bear fruit in any other individual. If I do good, you may get the reward, or I may do bad, you may suffer for it. If this is not to take place, there should be some connection between the present condition of the individual and the future condition. The impossibility or the unjustifiability of someone enjoying what he does not deserve, or another suffering that which is not the consequence of his actions, is called Akritābhyasma and Prītināṣa in Sanskrit.

Yājñavalkya says, there is nothing conceivably left of the individual when he perishes in his physical body, but there is something which connects him with even the remotest form of life. He can be born in the most distant regions, not necessarily in this world. After the death of the body, rebirth can take place, not necessarily in this world but in most distant regions. What is it that carries you to that distant region? Vijñānam ānandam brahma, rātir dātuḥ parāyaṇaṁ: "It is the Absolute that is responsible for it, ultimately. He is the bestower of the fruits of all actions." And actions yield fruit only on account of the existence of the Absolute. If it were not to be, actions will not produce any result, and no cause will be connected to any effect. So, ultimately it is the Consciousness-Bliss which is the Supreme Brahman that is the root of the individual. Vijñānam ānandam brahma, rātir dātuḥ parāyaṇaṁ, tiṣṭhamānasya tadvidaḥ: "It is the support of not only the individual in future birth, but also the ultimate support of one who is established in It, by knowing It." So, the Supreme Being, the Absolute, is the support not only of the individuals that transmigrate in the process of Samsāra, but also the ultimate resort of the liberated soul who knows It and becomes It by self-identification. So, it is the goal not only relative to all the Jīvas, but also absolute to the Ātman in all the Jīvas. Yājñavalkya closes his discourse and the audience disperses. The Supreme Brahman is the source of all. Every value, visible or perceivable in life, is due to Its Being. It functions not as individuals do. It acts not, but Its very existence is all action. Its very Being is all value, and the goal of the lives of all individuals is the realisation of this Brahman.