[Advaita-l] All the three states are dream alone: Aitareya Upaniṣad

[V Subrahmanian]

All the three states are dream alone: Aitareya Upaniṣad

In the Aitareya Upaniṣad occurs this mantra: 1.3.12

स एतमेव सीमानं विदार्यैतया द्वारा प्रापद्यत । सैषा विदृतिर्नाम
द्वास्तदेतन्नान्दनम् । तस्य त्रय आवसथास्त्रयः स्वप्ना
अयमावसथोऽयमावसथोऽयमावसथ इति ॥ १२ ॥

Here, for the last portion, Shankara comments thus:

 त्रयः स्वप्ना जाग्रत्स्वप्नसुषुप्त्याख्याः । ननु जागरितं प्रबोधरूपत्वान्न
स्वप्नः । नैवम् ; स्वप्न एव । कथम् ? परमार्थस्वात्मप्रबोधाभावात्
स्वप्नवदसद्वस्तुदर्शनाच्च । अयमेव आवसथश्चक्षुर्दक्षिणं प्रथमः । मनोऽन्तरं
द्वितीयः । हृदयाकाशस्तृतीयः । अयमावसथः इत्युक्तानुकीर्तनमेव । तेषु
ह्ययमावसथेषु पर्यायेणात्मभावेन वर्तमानोऽविद्यया दीर्घकालं गाढं प्रसुप्तः
स्वाभाविक्या, न
प्रबुध्यतेऽनेकशतसहस्रानर्थ-संनिपादजदुःख-मुद्गराभिघातानुभवैरपि ॥

The three states, waking, dream and sleep, are three dreams. But then, the
waking is of the nature of being fully conscious and cannot be a dream. Not
so, even the waking is also a dream alone. How? Since there is no awareness
of the ultimate, true state, of the self. And since in the waking too, like
dreams, the non-existent alone is perceived. .... In these three states the
jīva exists experiencing them one after the other as though it is real. He
is, owing to ignorance, deep asleep for a very long time, as though it is
his nature, and does not wake up to the Truth despite being battered by the
onslaughts of the vagaries of samsāra.

What is interesting is Shankara says the waking objects are also
'asadvastu.'  Sri SSS in his translation of the bhāṣyam says:

Question: eccharavu arivina rUpavAgiruvadarinda kanasalla.valla?
Answer: hAgaalla, adU kanasE
Question: adu hEge?
Answer: (hEgendare alli) paramArtavAgiruva tanna Atmana arivu iruvadilla
mattu kanasinante (alliyU) husitorikeya vastuvanne   kANuttiruttAne.

The Kannada translation for the bhāṣya word 'asadvastu' is: husitorikeya
vastu.  In the BGB 2.16 too the word 'husiyAgi' was used meaning that the
objective world is only a false appearance.

regards
subrahmanian.v