And here are the two birds of the Upanishad. “Two birds, beautiful of wings, close companions, cling to one common tree: of the two one eats the sweet fruit of the tree, the other eats not but watches his fellow. The soul is the bird that sits immersed on the common tree; but because he is not lord he is bewildered and has sorrow. But when he sees that other who is the Lord and the beloved, he knows that all is His greatness and his sorrow passes away from him. When, a seer, he sees the Golden-hued, the maker, the Lord, the Spirit who is the source of Brahman, then he becomes the knower and shake from his wings sin and virtue; pure of all stain he reaches the supreme identity.” In this exquisite translation of the Sanskrit text describing the two birds, Sri Aurobindo has also revealed the esoteric contents of the original verses. The Sanskrit compound brahmayoni admits two alternative meanings to be perfectly valid: Brahman is the Womb or Source of the Spirit or else the Spirit as the Womb or Source from which comes Brahman. In contrast to Shankara, Sri Aurobindo fixes the second alternative to be appropriate, the Spirit as the Source of everything, include-ing Brahman. This makes the Purusha, the Lord, the Spirit more fundamental; from it issues out this entire manifestation.

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