2.1
Upadeśasāhasrī / 2. Pratiṣedha (प्रतिषेध) / 2.1
प्रतिषेद्धुमशक्यत्वान् नेति नेतीति शेषितमिदं नाहमिदं नाहमित्यद्धा प्रतिपद्यते
pratiṣeddhum aśakyatvān neti netīti śeṣitam idaṃ nāham idaṃ nāham ity addhā pratipadyate
The line
Because it cannot be negated, what is left is 'not this, not this.' One then knows for certain, 'I am not this, I am not this.'
नेपालीमा
निषेध गर्न नसकिने भएकाले बाँकी रहने नेति नेति नै हो। त्यसपछि निश्चय हुन्छ, म यो होइन, म यो होइन।
Where it sits
Prakaraṇa (प्रकरण) 1 ended by deriving the word upaniṣad (उपनिषद्). Prakaraṇa (प्रकरण) 2 is the practice of the negation. Verse 2.2 will say the 'this'-thought does not become a pramāṇa (प्रमाण) again, once its claim to be the self has been refused.
Split: pratiṣeddhum (प्रतिषेद्धुम्) + aśakya-tvāt (अशक्य-त्वात्) + na (न) + iti (इति) + na (न) + iti (इति) + iti (इति) + śeṣitam (शेषितम्) + idam (इदम्) + na (न) + aham (अहम्) + idam (इदम्) + na (न) + aham (अहम्) + iti (इति) + addhā (अद्धा) + pratipadyate (प्रतिपद्यते)
Sanskrit, in depth
The words
| Word | Grammar | Sense |
|---|---|---|
| pratiṣeddhum (प्रतिषेद्धुम्) | infinitive | to negate, to cancel. |
| aśakya-tvāt (अशक्य-त्वात्) | ablative singular, neuter | because of being impossible. a-śakya (अ-शक्य) is 'not able to be done.' |
| na (न) | indeclinable | not. |
| iti (इति) | indeclinable | thus. |
| na (न) | indeclinable | not. |
| iti (इति) | indeclinable | thus. neti neti (नेति नेति) again. |
| iti (इति) | indeclinable | closing the quotation. |
| śeṣitam (शेषितम्) | nominative singular, neuter | left as the remainder, the method that is left. |
| idam (इदम्) | nominative singular, neuter | this. |
| na (न) | indeclinable | not. |
| aham (अहम्) | nominative singular | I. |
| idam (इदम्) | nominative singular, neuter | this. |
| na (न) | indeclinable | not. |
| aham (अहम्) | nominative singular | I. The sentence is said twice: idaṃ nāham (इदं नाहम्). |
| iti (इति) | indeclinable | thus. |
| addhā (अद्धा) | indeclinable | surely, for certain. |
| pratipadyate (प्रतिपद्यते) | present, third person singular, middle | one understands, one arrives at the knowledge. |
The phrases
The self cannot be the thing you negate. Negate the self and there is nobody left to know the negation. So the method that remains is neti neti (नेति नेति), applied as idaṃ nāham (इदं नाहम्): whatever shows up as a 'this' is not I.
The file marks this verse SamUpad_I,2,1 (समुपद्_इ,2,1), with a comma. It is 2.1.
Sanskrit in this line
The infinitive pratiṣeddhum (प्रतिषेद्धुम्) plus the ablative aśakyatvāt (अशक्यत्वात्) is 'because negating is impossible.' śeṣitam (शेषितम्) is what the impossibility leaves you with.
Say it back
Why is the method neti neti (नेति नेति), and not a negation of the self?