eṣa sarveśvara eṣa sarvajña eṣo 'ntaryāmy eṣa yoniḥ sarvasya prabhavāpyayau hi bhūtānām ||
"This (Prajna) is the Lord of all. This is the all-knowing. This is the inner controller. This is the source of all — the origin and dissolution of all beings."
What This Means:
The state of deep sleep (Prajna) is described as the Lord of all, the all-knowing, the inner controller. It's the womb from which waking and dreaming emerge, and into which they dissolve.
Going Deeper:
Why is deep sleep called "all-knowing"? Because in that state, there is no ignorance about separate objects — there are no separate objects. The undifferentiated consciousness of deep sleep is the source-state from which differentiated experience arises. It's compared to the unmanifest seed from which the tree grows.
How To Apply This:
The source of your waking life isn't in the world "out there" — it's in the depths of your own awareness, which you visit every night in deep sleep. Understanding this shifts where you look for truth and peace.
Key Sanskrit Terms: