The Serpent Power — Arthur Avalon (Sir John Woodroffe) (1924)
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throat issuing from the mouth. This is Virāt Shabda. Vaikharī Shabda is therefore language or gross lettered sound. Its corresponding Artha is the physical or gross object which language denotes. This belongs to the gross body (Sthūla sharīra). Madhyamā Shabda is mental movement or ideation in its cognitive aspect, and Madhyamā Artha is the mental impression of the gross object. The inner thought-movement in its aspect as Shabdārtha, and considered both in its knowing aspect (Shabda) and as the subtle known object (Artha), belong to the subtle body (Sūkshma sharīra). The cause of these two is the first general movement towards particular ideation (Pashyantī) from the motionless cause, Parashabda, or Supreme Speech. Two forms of inner or hidden speech, causal and subtle, accompanying mind movement, thus precede and lead up to spoken language. The inner forms of ideating movement constitute the subtle, and the uttered sound the gross, aspect of Mantra, which is the manifested Shabdabrahman.
The gross Shabda, called Vaikharī or uttered speech, and the gross Artha, or the physical object denoted by that speech, are the projection of the subtle Shabda and Artha through the initial activity of the Shabdabrahman into the world of gross sensual perception. Therefore in the gross physical world Shabda means language—that is, sentences, words, and letters, which are the expression of ideas and are Mantra. In the subtle or mental world Madhyamā Shabda is the mind which “names” in its aspect as cogniser, and Artha is the same mind in its aspect as the mental object of its cognition. It is defined to be the outer in the form of the mind. It is thus similar to the state of dreams (Svapna): as Parashabda is the causal dreamless (Sushupti) and Vaikharī the waking (Jāgrat) state. Mental Artha is a Sangskāra, an impression left on the
p. 91
throat issuing from the mouth. This is Virāt Shabda. Vaikharī Shabda is therefore language or gross lettered sound. Its corresponding Artha is the physical or gross object which language denotes. This belongs to the gross body (Sthūla sharīra). Madhyamā Shabda is mental movement or ideation in its cognitive aspect, and Madhyamā Artha is the mental impression of the gross object. The inner thought-movement in its aspect as Shabdārtha, and considered both in its knowing aspect (Shabda) and as the subtle known object (Artha), belong to the subtle body (Sūkshma sharīra). The cause of these two is the first general movement towards particular ideation (Pashyantī) from the motionless cause, Parashabda, or Supreme Speech. Two forms of inner or hidden speech, causal and subtle, accompanying mind movement, thus precede and lead up to spoken language. The inner forms of ideating movement constitute the subtle, and the uttered sound the gross, aspect of Mantra, which is the manifested Shabdabrahman.
The gross Shabda, called Vaikharī or uttered speech, and the gross Artha, or the physical object denoted by that speech, are the projection of the subtle Shabda and Artha through the initial activity of the Shabdabrahman into the world of gross sensual perception. Therefore in the gross physical world Shabda means language—that is, sentences, words, and letters, which are the expression of ideas and are Mantra. In the subtle or mental world Madhyamā Shabda is the mind which “names” in its aspect as cogniser, and Artha is the same mind in its aspect as the mental object of its cognition. It is defined to be the outer in the form of the mind. It is thus similar to the state of dreams (Svapna): as Parashabda is the causal dreamless (Sushupti) and Vaikharī the waking (Jāgrat) state. Mental Artha is a Sangskāra, an impression left on the
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