शेषेत्मना निजसुखानुभवो निरीहः ।
योगेन मीलितदृगात्मनिपीतनिद्र
स्तुर्ये स्थितो न तु तमो न गुणांश्च युङ्क्षे ॥३२॥
nyasyedam Ätmani jagad vilayÄmbu-madhye
Å›eá¹£etmanÄ nija-sukhÄnubhavo nirÄ«haḥ
yogena mÄ«lita-dá¹›g-Ätma-nipÄ«ta-nidras
turye sthito na tu tamo na guṇÄmÅ› ca yuá¹…ká¹£e
1 times this text was mentioned in purports to other texts: LSB(1)
nyasya - throwing; idam - this; Ätmani - in Your own self; jagat - cosmic manifestation created by You; vilaya-ambu-madhye - in the Causal Ocean, in which everything is preserved in a state of reserved energy; Å›eá¹£e - You act as if sleeping; ÄtmanÄ - by Yourself; nija - Your own personal; sukha-anubhavaḥ - experiencing the state of spiritual bliss; nirÄ«haḥ - appearing to be doing nothing; yogena - by the mystic power; mÄ«lita-dá¹›k - the eyes appearing closed; Ätma - by a manifestation of Yourself; nipÄ«ta - prevented; nidraḥ - whose sleeping; turye - in the transcendental stage; sthitaḥ - keeping (Yourself); na - not; tu - but; tamaḥ - the material condition of sleeping; na - nor; guṇÄn - the material modes; ca - and; yuá¹…ká¹£e - do You engage Yourself in.
O my Lord, O Supreme Personality of Godhead, after the annihilation the creative energy is kept in You, who appear to sleep with half-closed eyes. Actually, however, You do not sleep like an ordinary human being, for You are always in a transcendental stage, beyond the creation of the material world, and You always feel transcendental bliss. As KÄraṇodakaÅ›ÄyÄ« Viṣṇu, You thus remain in Your transcendental status, not touching material objects. Although You appear to sleep, this sleeping is distinct from sleeping in ignorance.
As explained very clearly in the Brahma-saá¹hitÄ (5.47):
yaḥ kÄraṇÄrṇava-jale bhajati sma yoga-
nidrÄm ananta-jagad-aṇá¸a-sa-roma-kÅ«paḥ
ÄdhÄra-Å›aktim avalambya parÄá¹ sva-mÅ«rtiá¹
govindam Ädi-puruá¹£aá¹ tam ahaá¹ bhajÄmi
“I worship the primeval Lord Govinda, who lies down in the Causal Ocean in His plenary portion as MahÄ-Viṣṇu, with all the universes generating from the pores of hair on His transcendental body, and who accepts the mystic slumber of eternity.†The Ädi-puruá¹£a, the original Supreme Personality of Godhead — Kṛṣṇa, Govinda — expands Himself as MahÄ-Viṣṇu. After the annihilation of this cosmic manifestation, He keeps Himself in transcendental bliss. The word yoga-nidrÄm is used in reference to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One should understand that this nidrÄ, or sleep, is not like our nidrÄ in the mode of ignorance. The Lord is always situated in transcendence. He is sac-cid-Änanda — eternally in bliss — and thus He is not disturbed by sleep like ordinary human beings. It should be understood that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is in transcendental bliss in all stages. ÅšrÄ«la MadhvÄcÄrya concisely states that the Lord is turya-sthitaḥ, always situated in transcendence. In transcendence there is no such thing as jÄgaraṇa-nidrÄ-suá¹£upti — wakefulness, sleep and deep sleep.
The practice of yoga is similar to the yoga-nidrÄ of MahÄ-Viṣṇu. YogÄ«s are advised to keep their eyes half closed, but this state is not at all one of sleep, although imitation yogÄ«s, especially in the modern age, manifest their so-called yoga by sleeping. In the Å›Ästra, yoga is described as dhyÄnÄvasthita, a state of full meditation, but this is meditation upon the Supreme Personality of Godhead. DhyÄnÄvasthita-tad-gatena manasÄ: the mind should always be situated at the lotus feet of the Lord. Yoga practice does not mean sleeping. The mind should always be actively fixed at the lotus feet of the Lord. Then one’s practice of yoga will be successful.
