Shloka 22
Īśvara-gītā (Adhyāya 2) — Ātma-svarūpa, Māyā, and the Unity of Sāṅkhya–Yoga
नित्यः सर्वत्रगो ह्यात्मा कूटस्थो दोषवर्जितः / एकः स भिद्यते शक्त्या मायया न स्वभावतः
nityaḥ sarvatrago hyātmā kūṭastho doṣavarjitaḥ / ekaḥ sa bhidyate śaktyā māyayā na svabhāvataḥ
آتما ابدی اور ہمہ گیر ہے، کُوٹستھ اور عیب سے پاک۔ وہ ایک ہی ہو کر بھی شکتی—مایا—کے سبب منقسم سا دکھائی دیتا ہے، اپنی فطرت سے نہیں۔
Lord Kurma (Vishnu) teaching the Ishvara Gita doctrine
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
It defines the Ātman as eternal, all-pervading, immutable, and दोष-वर्जित (free from any limitation or defect). Any perceived multiplicity is only an appearance, not a real change in the Self.
The verse supports discriminative contemplation (viveka) central to Pāśupata-oriented and Ishvara Gita teachings: meditate on the kūṭastha, faultless Self and recognize sensory-mental plurality as Māyā’s projection rather than the Ātman’s nature.
By grounding liberation in the one, defectless Ātman beyond Māyā, the text aligns Shaiva and Vaishnava approaches in a shared non-dual metaphysics: the supreme reality taught by Kurma (Vishnu) is the same transcendence upheld in Shaiva doctrine.