AVG 2.5

Chapter 2 (The Seekers Joy at Self-Cognizance): Verse 5
तन्तुमात्रो भवेदेव पटो यद्वद्विचारतः ।
आत्मतन्मात्रमेवेदं तद्वद्विश्वं विचारितम् ॥ २-५॥

PURPORT:
Just as fabric, when examined,
assuredly is made of yarn;
thus so, the universe,
appropriately considered
is merely of the self-model.

TRANSLITERATION:
तन्तुमात्रः भवेत् एव पटः यद्वत् विचारतः ।
tantumātraḥ bhavet eva paṭaḥ yadvat vicāratā ।
आत्मतन्मात्रम् एव इदम् तद्वत् विश्वम् विचारितम् ॥ २-५॥
ātmatanmātram eva idam tadvat viśvam vicāritam ॥ 2-5॥

MEANING:
tantumātraḥ (तन्तुमात्रः) = just the thread (compound of tantu (तन्तु) meaning 'yarn/fiber/thread' and mātraḥ (मात्रः) meaning just/only)
bhavet (भवेत्) = is/it is
eva (एव) = certainly/assuredly
paṭaḥ (पटः) = piece of cloth/fabric
yadvat (यद्वत्) = just as/like
vicāratā (विचारतः) =  examined/pondered।
ātmatanmātram (आत्मतन्मात्रम्) = nothing but the self-model (compound of ātma (आत्म) meaning 'self-model' and tanmātram (तन्मात्रम्) meaning 'merely that/just that trifling amount/the mere rudimentary essence')
eva (एव) = certainly/only
idam (इदम्) = this
tadvat (तद्वत्) = that way/thus so
viśvam (विश्वम्) = universe
vicāritam (विचारितम्) =  considered ॥ 2-5॥

COMMENTS:
Janaka's metaphor comparing the universe as a vast bolt of fabric and each sentient being akin to a strand within the fabric perceiving the universe based upon our bespoke self-models is indeed a beautiful turn of verse here. To be noted is the fact that the universe and the entities within have no absolute existence, but, appear to arise and exist through dependencies, relations between dependencies and conditions* supporting the manifestation of phenomena in the universe. While the entities themselves are made manifest through these relations, it is understood that the number of relations that interact in a dependent manner amongst entities are indeed incalculable. Just as the yarn inter-twined gives rise to the dependently designated entity called fabric, so too is the universe inter-twined when considered appropriately via the lens of our individual self-models says Janaka joyfully. It is seen that once the dependencies, the relations between dependencies and the conditions themselves are peeled back, the universe as designated and interpreted by our senses starts to fall away - just as in an illusion**.

*A note clarifying the difference between the word condition as opposed to a cause: A condition is a cause which is necessary but not sufficient for an entity or a phenomenon to be manifest. A condition is that thing(s) which collaborates, participates and conspires for some phenomena in the universe to arise and manifest, but is not the sole reason for its arising and manifestation. Along the same lines, a cause can be construed as an event or a state that has within itself a 'power' to bring about its effect and has that 'power' as part of its essence or inherent nature. If one thus understands causes as self-inhering to bring about incipient effects, then one understands that pure causes do not exist whereas the existence of a variety of conditions will exist as conditions are events, states or processes that can be called upon to explain another event, state or process in a progressively iterative manner.

**It is interesting to note another aspect of the illusory nature of the universe in the following excerpt from Wittgenstein's Tractatus (6.371 - 6.372): "The whole modern conception of the world is founded on the illusion that the so-called laws of nature are the explanations of natural phenomena. Thus people today stop at the laws of nature, treating them as something inviolable, just as God and Fate were treated in past ages. And in fact both are right and both are wrong: though the view of the ancients is clearer in so far as they have a clear and acknowledged terminus, the modern system tries to make it look as if everything were explained."