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: