[b]II, 17 drastri drishyayoh sanyogah heyahetuh
The cause of that
avoidable pain
is the illusory union
of the Seer with the seen,
so that one does not possess
discriminative knowledge of
the True Self.[/b]
M. Stiles
Iyengar explains that powers of discrimination pierces through the veils of illusion and disengages the True Self from the ego. ?The seat of the ego or small self is the seat of the brain, and the seat of the great Self is in the spiritual heart. Though intelligence connects the head and the heart, it oscillates between the two. The oscillation ceases through right knowledge and understanding. Intelligence is then transformed: free from polarity, pure and unbiased. This is true meditation, in which ego dissolves, allowing the great Self (purusha) to shine in its own glory.? (p. 117-118 )
Swami Satchidananda says that ?The Purusha is the true Self. It is the Purusha who sees. The Prakriti is everything else. All other things besides you are the seen. But it seems that we always identify ourselves with what is seen, with what we possess. This is why we say, ?my body, my language, my knowledge… The identification with the other thing is the cause of all pain.? (p. 103)
Iyengar, B.K.S., Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. New Delhi, India: Harper Collins Publications India. 1993
Swami Satchidananda. The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. Buckingham, VA: Integral Yoga Publications. 2004
Stiles, M. Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. Boston, MA: Red Wheel/Weiser LLC. 2002
