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IV ADHYAYA, 4 BRAHMANA, 4.
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vital spirits (prânas) depart after it. He is conscious, and being conscious he follows and departs.
Then both his knowledge and his work take hold of him, and his acquaintance with former things ?'
3. 'And as a caterpillar, after having reached the end of a blade of grass, and after having made another approach (to another blade) 3, draws itself together towards it, thus does this Self, after having thrown off this body and dispelled all ignorance, and after making another approach (to another body), draw, himself together towards it.
4. 'And as a goldsmith, taking a piece of gold, turns it into another, newer and more beautiful shape, so does this Self, after having thrown off this body
1 This is an obscure passage, and the different text of the Mâdhyandinas shows that the obscurity was felt at an early time. The Mâdhyandinas read: Samgñânam anvavakrâmati sa esha gñah savigñâno bhavati. This would mean, Consciousness departs after. He the knowing (Self) is self-conscious.' The Kânvas read: Savigñâno bhavati, savigñanam evânvavakrâmati. Roer translates : "It is endowed with knowledge, endowed with knowledge it departs ;' and he explains, with Sankara, that the knowledge here intended is such knowledge as one has in a dream, a knowledge of impressions referring to their respective objects, a knowledge which is the effect of actions, and not inherent in the self. Deussen translates : "Sie (die Seele) ist von Erkenntnissart, und was von Erkenntnissart ist, ziehet ihr nach.' The Persian translator evidently thought that self-consciousness was implied, for he writes: Cum quovis corpore addictionem sumat .... in illo corpore a ham est, id est, ego sum.'
2 This acquaintance with former things is necessary to explain the peculiar talents or deficiencies which we observe in children. The three words vidyâ, karman, and pûrvapragnâ often go together (see Sankara on Brih. Up. IV, 3, 9). Deussen's conjecture, apūrvapragnâ, is not called for.
3 See Brih. Up. IV, 3, 9, a passage which shows how ,difficult it would be always to translate the same Sanskrit words by the same words in English ; see also Brahmopanishad, p. 245.
* See Brih. Up. IV, 3, 9, and IV, 3, 13.
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