Anugita (English translation)
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Volume 8, The Sacred Books of the East. This part Contains the english translation of the Anugita (a portion of the Ashvamedhika Parva from the Mahabharata)....
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Chapter XXVI
Brahman said:
That Mahat which was first produced, is (afterwards) called egoism; when it is born as (the feeling itself)[1] I, that is said to be the second creation. That egoism is stated to be the source of all entities[2], that from which the changes take place[3]; it is full of light, the supporter of consciousness; it is that from which the people are produced, the 笔谤补箩腻辫补迟颈. It is a deity, the producer of the deities, and of the mind; it is the creator of the three worlds. That which feels[4] thus--'I am all this'--is called (by) that (name). That eternal world is for those sages who are contented with knowledge relating to the self, who have pondered on the self, and who are perfected by sacred study and sacrifice. By[5] consciousness of self one enjoys the qualities; and thus that source of all entities, the producer of the entities, creates (them); and as that from which the changes take place, it causes all this to move; and by its own light, it likewise charms the world.
Footnotes and references:
[1]:
I. e. when the Mahat develops into the feeling of self-consciousness--I--then it assumes the name of egoism.
[2]:
See on this S膩峁卥hya-s膩ra. Hall's Introd. p. 31, note.
[3]:
So Arjuna Mi艣ra. N墨laka峁囜弓ha says it means 'born from the change, or development, viz. Mahat.' The S膩峁卥hya-s膩ra, p. 17, however, shows it means 'appertaining to the quality of goodness.' See also S膩峁卥hya-k膩rik膩 25, and commentary there, which is of great help here. The sense is this: Egoism is of three descriptions; it appertains to the quality of goodness, and as such is the creator of the deities and mind, the deities being those presiding over the ten senses (cf. S膩峁卥hya-s膩ra, p. 17); it is full of light, or appertains to the quality of passion (cf. ibid.), and as such imparts to the other two qualities their virtue of activity (cf. S膩峁卥hya- k膩rik膩 commentary, p. 91, T膩r膩n膩th's ed.); it is also of the quality of darkness, and as such the producer of the: triple world (see ibid.) See S膩峁卥hya-s奴tra II, 17, 18, and comment, where a view somewhat different in one or two details is stated.
[4]:
S膩峁卥hya-s膩ra, p. 16; S膩峁卥hya-k膩rik膩 24, p. 89 (T膩r膩n膩th's ed.)
[5]:
Arjuna Mi艣ra says that the words Aha峁卥膩ra &c. are here explained; qualities here means objects, as at G墨t膩, p. 55. The meaning of the first clause is, that the feeling that the objects are for oneself, and therefore enjoying them, gives the name of Aha峁卥膩ra to the principle in question, its creation of all the elements gives it the name of Bh奴t膩di. It is called Vaik膩rika, as the cause of the various activities and developments going on. The last clause seems to be an explanation of the epithet Taijasa, also applied to egoism.