Iyengar: Mistaking the transient for the permanent, the impure for the pure, pain for pleasure, and that which is not the self for the self: all this is called lack of spiritual knowledge, avidya
Taimni: Avidya is taking the non-eternal, impure, evil and non-Atman to be eternal, pure, good and Atman (the individual self) respectively.
Carrera: Ignorance is regarding the impermanent as permanent, the impure as pure, the painful as pleasant, and the non-Self as the Self.
This sutra defines avidya and Iyengar gives a example of avidya. Iron are coal are different but when they are heated they look the same – red hot material. The body and the eternal Self are distinct entities but they may seem the same. Iyengar says “Taking pride in the body as the Self is also avidya”.
Iyengar also says we all make mistakes but if we fail to learn from those mistakes, they become habit.
Taimni describes a V-shaped evolution of consciousness. It identifies itself as matter and begins fuller and fuller with this identification until there is a turning point and it starts moving in the opposite direction. In this direction, consciousness extricates itself from matter. He also points out that Avidya has nothing to do with intellectual knowledge, but is an awareness of the illusion of the intellect. The word “pure” in this sutra refers the consciousness unmodified by the outside world or matter.
Carrera discusses that in life, we think “name, fame, romance, beauty, youth, and financial stability” will bring us happiness. But the joy these things bring is almost always fleeting and are not sources of “unshakable happiness”. He also discusses the painful as pleasant. For example, a secure job, supportive relationship, or a rich meal can lead to unemployment, divorce, and indigestion.
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