Vijñāna Bhairava / Bhairava answers (उत्तर) / 9
9
Vijñāna Bhairava (विज्ञान भैरव)
तदसारतया देवि विज्ञेयं शक्रजालवत् ।
मायास्वप्नोपमं चैव गन्धर्वनगरभ्रमम् tad asāratayā devi vijñeyaṃ śakrajālavat |
māyāsvapnopamaṃ caiva gandharvanagarabhramam
The line
That, O Goddess, is to be known by its lack of essence: like Indra (इन्द्र)'s net, like a dream in māyā (माया), like the mirage-city of the gandharvas (गन्धर्व).
नेपालीमा
हे देवी, त्यो सारहीन भनेर चिन्नुपर्छ। इन्द्रजाल जस्तो, मायाको सपना जस्तो, गन्धर्वनगरको भ्रम जस्तो।
Where it sits
These similes belong to the part-filled forms of 8. 15 will name the state he does call Bhairava (भैरव).
Split: tad (तद्) + asāratayā (असारतया) + devi (देवि) + vijñeyam (विज्ञेयम्) + śakrajālavat (शक्रजालवत्) + māyāsvapnopamam (मायास्वप्नोपमम्) + ca (च) + eva (एव) + gandharvanagarabhramam (गन्धर्वनगरभ्रमम्)
Sanskrit, in depth
The words
| Word | Grammar | Sense |
|---|---|---|
| tad (तद्) | nominative singular, neuter | that. The form of 8. |
| asāratayā (असारतया) | instrumental singular, feminine | by its lack of essence. asāratā (असारता) is essencelessness. |
| devi (देवि) | vocative singular, feminine | O Goddess. |
| vijñeyam (विज्ञेयम्) | nominative singular, neuter | to be known. Gerundive of vi (वि) and jñā (ज्ञा). |
| śakrajālavat (शक्रजालवत्) | indeclinable in vat (वत्) | like Indra (इन्द्र)'s net. śakra (शक्र) is Indra (इन्द्र). jāla (जाल) is a net. vat (वत्) means like. |
| māyāsvapnopamam (मायास्वप्नोपमम्) | nominative singular, neuter | comparable to a dream of māyā (माया). upama (उपम) is a comparison. |
| ca (च) | indeclinable | and. |
| eva (एव) | indeclinable | indeed. |
| gandharvanagarabhramam (गन्धर्वनगरभ्रमम्) | accusative or nominative singular, neuter | the whirling that is a city of the gandharvas (गन्धर्व). A city that appears and is not a city. |
The phrases
tad (तद्) carries the form forward. Three images say how it is to be known: a net, a dream, a city in the air. The verse itself prints māyā (माया) as the dream in the comparison.
Sanskrit in this line
śakrajālavat (शक्रजालवत्) is not a noun in a case. vat (वत्) freezes it as 'like.'
Say it back
Give his three comparisons, in the verse's words.