Ashtavakra Gita · Verse 3.2 · Ashtavakra speaks
Alas, as greed arises from the illusion of silver caused by the ignorance of mother-of-pearl, even so arises the attachment to the objects of illusory perception from the ignorance of the Self.
Word by word
आत्माज्ञानात्
ātmājñānāt
from ignorance of the Self
compound noun, ablative singular
Ātmājñāna here means ignorance of the Self (ātmā + ajñāna). All attachment to sense-objects is rooted in not knowing that the Self alone exists. When the Self is known, objects lose their seeming independence.
अहो
aho
alas, how strange
interjection
प्रीतिः
prītiḥ
attachment, fondness
noun, feminine, nominative singular
विषयभ्रमगोचरे
viṣayabhramagocаre
in the range of illusory sense-objects
compound noun, masculine, locative singular
Viṣaya — sense-objects; bhrama — illusion/error. The compound stresses that sense-objects are not merely impermanent but are themselves misperceptions overlaid on the one Self.
शुक्तेः
śukteḥ
of mother-of-pearl
noun, feminine, genitive singular
अज्ञानतः
ajñānataḥ
from ignorance
noun, ablative (used adverbially)
Ajñāna — ignorance, the root cause of all bondage in Advaita Vedanta. Here used in the classic silver-in-shell (rajata-śukti) analogy: just as ignorance of shell creates the illusion of silver, ignorance of Self creates the illusion of a separate world.
लोभः
lobhaḥ
greed, craving
noun, masculine, nominative singular
यथा
yathā
just as
correlative adverb
रजतविभ्रमे
rajatavibhrame
in the illusion of silver
compound noun, masculine, locative singular