SrI: SrImathE satakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImadh varavaramunayE nama:
sUthram 8
அஜடமாகையாவது – ஜ்ஞாநத்தை யொழியவும் தானே தோற்றுகை
(ajadamAgaiyAvadhu – gyAnaththai ozhiyavum thAnE thORRugai)
Meaning: The self is not inert. It reveals itself without requiring another act of knowledge to make it known.
What is meant by “ajadam”?
In the previous sUthram, it was established that the self is distinct from the body and all material entities.
The commentator now explains another characteristic of the self:
அஜடம்
(ajadam)
“Not inert.”
What does this mean?
It means that the self is not like material objects that require something else to reveal them.
Rather, the self is self-revealing.
What is inertness?
The commentator defines inertness as:
அந்யாதீநப்ரகாசத்வம்
(anyAdhIna-prakASathvam)
“Being dependent on something else for manifestation.”
An inert object cannot reveal itself.
A pot, for example, cannot make itself known.
It must be illuminated by something else before it can be perceived.
Thus, inert objects depend upon another source for their manifestation.
What is meant by “ajadam”?
The opposite of this is:
ஸ்வயம் ப்ரகாசத்வம்
(svayam-prakASathvam)
“Self-luminosity” or “self-revelation.”
The commentator explains this through the example of a lamp.
A lamp does not require another lamp in order to shine.
It reveals itself and, at the same time, reveals other objects.
Similarly, the self does not require another act of knowledge to make it known.
It is self-revealing.
The self reveals itself
Therefore the commentator says:
ஜ்ஞாநத்தை யொழியவும் தானே தோற்றுகை
(gynAnaththai ozhiyavum thAnE thORRugai)
The self does not need another cognition to reveal its existence.
Whenever knowledge arises, the self is already present as the knower.
We do not first know a separate cognition and then discover the self through it.
The self is immediately evident.
Thus the self reveals itself.
Scriptural support
The commentator supports this with scriptural statements.
The light within the heart
The scripture says:
हृदयान्तर्-ज्योतिः पुरुषः
(hrudhayAnthar-jyOthi: purusha:) [bruhadhAraNya upanishadh]
“The purusha is the light within the heart.”
The self is described as an inner light.
Just as a light illuminates, the self reveals itself and serves as the basis of all experience.
The self is self-luminous
Another scripture declares:
अत्रायं पुरुषः स्वयंज्योतिर्भवति [bruhadhAraNya upanishadh]
(athrAyam purusha: svayamjyOthir bhavathi)
“Here, this purusha is self-luminous.”
This directly teaches that the self does not depend upon another illuminator.
Its nature is to reveal itself.
The self is a mass of knowledge
Scripture also describes the self as:
विज्ञानघनः [bruhadhAraNya upanishadh]
(vigyAna ghana:)
“A mass of knowledge.”
And:
आत्मा ज्ञानमयः[bruhadhAraNya upanishadh]
(AthmA gyAnamaya:)
“The self is characterized by knowledge.”
These statements show that consciousness is inseparably associated with the self.
Therefore the self cannot be compared to inert objects.
Knowledge reveals the self
The commentator further cites:
तच्च ज्ञानमयं व्यापि स्वस्मै वेद्यमनूपमम् । आत्मसंवेद्यं तत् ज्ञानम् ॥ [SrIvishNu purANam]
(thach cha gyAnamayam vyApi svasmai vedhyam anUpamam | Athma samvEdhyam thath gyAnam ||)
“That knowledge-filled reality is all-pervading, incomparable, and known to itself. Its knowledge is self-aware.”
The purpose of this citation is to show that self-awareness belongs naturally to the self.
The self does not require another knower to know it.
Why is this important?
Everything else becomes known through something else.
A pot is known through light.
A sound is known through the ear.
A form is known through the eye.
But the self does not become known through another self or another cognition.
Its existence is immediately evident.
Whenever a person says:
“I know,”
“I see,”
“I remember,”
the self is already manifest as the subject of those experiences.
Thus, the self is not inert.
Conclusion
The self is called அஜடம் (ajadam) because it is not dependent on anything else for its manifestation.
Inert objects require another source to reveal them.
The self does not.
Like a lamp that shines by itself, the self reveals itself and serves as the basis of all experience.
Therefore, the self is self-luminous (svayam-prakASa) and not inert.
adiyen vAsudhEva rAmAnuja dhAsan
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