The Jiiva is defined in Panchadas'i 4.11 thus:- The substratum or the pure consciousness, the subtle body, and the reflection of pure consciousness in the subtle
body together constitute the jiiva. Panchadas'i 3.41-Brahman when looked upon as associated with the five sheaths (kos'as) is known as the jiiva, just as a man is called
a father or a grandfather in relation to his son or grandson. Verse 42 says-As a man
is neither a father nor a grandfather when considered apart from his son or grandson,
so Brahman is neither iis'vara nor jiiva when not considered as associated with
maayaa or the five sheaths.

    MaaNDuukya Kaarikaa 1.16--- When the jiiva who is sleeping under the influence
of beginningless maaya is awakened, he realizes the birthless, sleepless, dreamless, non-dual (Brahman). The waking and dream states are both considered to be only
dream, because, in both states the Reality is not known and only what is unreal is experienced and is looked upon wrongly as real. In sleep there is ignorance of the
Reality, though there is no projection of what is unreal. Both dream and deep sleep
in this sense are absent in Brahman.

    So it is said that Brahman is dreamless and sleepless. By saying that Brahman is birthless it is implied that it does not undergo any of the changes which everything in
this world is subject to. When the jiiva becomes free from nescience or maayaa, he
ceases to be a jiiva and realizes his real nature as Brahman. Br.up.2.5.15.S.B.
-puurvamapi brahmaiva sat----sarvaH saH sarvam abhavat. Even before
realization one was always Brahman, but through ignorance one considered
oneself different from Brahman; one has always been all, but through ignorance
one considered oneself otherwise. By getting rid of this ignorance through the
knowledge of Brahman, the knower of Brahman, who has always been Brahman,
is said to have `become' Brahman. Having always been all, he is said to have
'become' all.

    The idea is that every individual, even when he considers himself as a
transmigrating entity, is really Brahman alone. He has only to realize this
truth. Bondage being not real, but only the result of ignorance of this truth, it
can be removed only by the knowledge of the truth. If a thorn has actually pierced
the skin of a person, the pain caused can be removed only by the action of
removing the thorn. But if one's suffering is due to having mistaken a rope for a
snake, that suffering can be removed only by the knowledge that there is only a
rope and not a snake and not by any action. So also, bondage, which is only due
to wrongly considering oneself as the body, mind and organs, can be eradicated
only by the realization that one is the Self which is beyond all suffering. jiiva and saakshii--difference

    When the self is looked upon as qualified by the internal organ , that is to say,
when the self and the internal organ are considered as inseparable, the self is called
jiiva. So the jiiva is described as antaHkaraNa-vis'ishTa-chaitanyam. The jiiva is
therefore looked upon as an agent and enjoyer, by attributing the qualities of the
internal organ to it. When the internal organ is considered as merely an adjunct
(upaadhi) of the self, the self is known as saakshii or witness.

    In such a concept, the agency and enjoyment as well as the various changes of
the internal organ do not at all affect the self, which is a mere witness to them.
The self is, in this case, known as saakshii or antaHkaraNa- upahita- chaitanyam
or the self with the internal organ as the upaadhi. Both these terms apply only
in the empirical stage, when there is nescience. The self becomes a seer only
when it is qualified by the internal organ. It becomes a witness only in the presence
of the internal organ. By itself, the self is neither a seer, hearer, etc, nor a witness. B.S.2.3.17.S.B-It is pointed out here that the jiiva has no birth or death. The s'ruti
clearly denies birth to the jiiva -"Unborn, eternal" (kaTha. 1.2.18). "This great
birthless self" (Br.up.4.4.25). It is Brahman, the one without a second, that enters
the intellect and appears as the jiiva. The taitt.up.2.6 says-"Having created it,
Brahman entered into it". B.S.2.3.18.S.B.-The Vais'eshikas say that consciousness
is not the very nature of the jiiva, because it is not found to be conscious in deep
sleep. This is refuted by this suutra by saying that it is Brahman itself that, being
limited by the body-mind complex, appears as the jiiva. Therefore consciousness
is its very nature and is not destroyed even in sleep.

    B.S.2.3.29.S.B.-This suutra refutes the view that the jiiva is atomic. Since the jiiva is none other than the supreme Brahman, it is also infinite. B.S.2.3.40.S.B.--- The Nyaaya view that agency of the jiiva is real is refuted here and it is said that agency is only
superimposed on the jiiva. The s'ruti says-"This aatmaa is unattached" (Br.up.4.3.15).
All scriptural injunctions are with reference to the conditioned aspect of the self which
is due to nescience. In its essential nature the jiiva is actionless, but appears to act
only because of association with the upaadhi in the form of the body-mind complex. B.S.2.3.43.S.B.-Here it is clarified that the statements in the scriptures describing
the jiiva as a spark from a fire mean only that it is identical with Brahman and not a
part of Brahman in the literal sense, since Brahman cannot have any parts.

    B.S.2.3.46.S.B.-Though the jiiva is described as a part of Brahman or God, God
does not experience pleasure and pain like the jiiva, who, on account of ignorance of his real nature, attributes to himself the joys and sorrows of the body and mind. If the jiiva realizes that he is different from the body and mind, he will also have no suffering. God is beyond the control of maayaa or nescience and does not identify Himself with the bodies.
He does not therefore experience any suffering. This point has been dealt with in
the Bhaashya on B.G. 13.2 also, in a very elaborate manner.

    B.S.2.3.49.S,B.--- It may be thought that since the same Brahman dwells in all bodies, everyone may have to experience the results of the actions of everyone else. This
suutra dispels this doubt. A particular jiiva is connected only with a particular body-mind
complex and so the jiivas are different from one another(as jiivas). B.S.2.3.50.S.B.-
The jiiva is only a reflection of Brahman in the internal organ (mind). The reflections
in different minds are different, like the reflections of the sun in different vessels
of water. Therefore, just as the trembling of a particular reflection of the sun cannot
cause any disturbance to the other reflections, so also the experiences or the
karma of any particular jiiva cannot affect other jiivas. iis'vara's creation and
jiiva's creation

    In Panchadas'i-4.17to 4.40 a distinction is made between God's creation and creation
by the individual souls. Though all objects in the world are created by God, their
enjoyment and the reaction of each individual towards a particular object depend on
his karma and the vaasanas in his mind. A gem, which is a creation of God, may produce different reactions in different persons. One man may feel happy on having got the gem, while another man is unhappy because he has not been able to get it. Another person
may not be interested at all in the gem and so may not feel either joy or sorrow on
seeing it.(Verses20 and 21). The Jiiva creates these three feelings of happiness, disappointment and indifference with regard to the gem, but the nature of the gem as created by God remains the same. Verse 31 says that every object has two aspects,
the material and the mental. The material aspect always remains the same, but the
mental aspect varies according to the mental make-up of the person who sees it.

    Moreover, though God has created all objects, the extent to which each individual is
able to get them is dependent on his karma. It is therefore said in verse 19 that for the
actual enjoyment of objects it is the modifications or functions of the mind of the jiiva
that are responsible. An example is given in verses 34 and 35 to show that the cause
of a man's bondage and suffering is his own mental world. When a man was told by someone that his son who was in a far-off place was dead, he began to cry, though the
news was not true. But even if the son had actually died, but he had not received the
news, he would have felt no grief. In a dream, even though no objects are actually
present, a person feels joy and sorrow, but in deep sleep, no joy or sorrow is felt, even
if there are objects around (verse 33). Verse 42 says that the world of duality created
by God is rather a help than an obstacle to the realization of non-duality.

    It is the creation of the jiiva that is the cause of suffering. By controlling the mind
one can ultimately attain realization of the non-dual Brahman (verse 64). Different
theories about the nature of jiiva and iis'vara Among Advaitins there are three
different theories on this point. These are described in Vichaara saagara, ch.6,
para 449 onwards. 1. aabhaasavaada (Semblance theory)-This is is the vaada or
theory adopted in Panchadas'i. According to this, the jiiva is an aabhaasa or semblance
of Brahman in the internal organ which is an effect of avidyaa. This reflection or
semblance is mithyaa or illusory. In B.S.2.3.50.S.B it is said-- The jiiva is an aabhaasa
or semblance of the supreme Self, like the semblance of the sun in water. The jiiva
is not the Self itself, nor is it something different.

    In the Bhaashya on Ch.up.6.3.2 S'rii S'ankara says that the jiiva is an aabhaasa or semblance of the supreme Being. 2. pratibimbavaada (Reflection theory)-This is the
theory adopted by the author of VivaraNa, Prakaas'aatma Muni. According to this, jiiva
is the reflection of iis'vara who is the bimba or the original in avidyaa. iis'vara, according
to this theory, is Brahman or pure consciousness itself. Omniscience, etc, are not His natural qualities. But in relation to jiiva who has limited knowledge, power, etc, the
qualities of being a bimba, iis'vara, etc, are superimposed. In this theory, the
reflection, jiiva, is not mithyaa, but real. This theory is expressed in Amr.tabindu upanishad,12- The one Self appears as different in different beings. It appears as
one and as many, like (the reflection of) the moon in water.

    See also B.S.3.2.18.S.B. 3. avachchhedavaada (Limitation theory)-This is the view
of the author of Bhaamatii, Vaachaspati Mis'ra. In this theory the jiiva is a delimitation
of consciousness by the internal organ, while iis'vara is not so limited. This theory is employed by GauDapaada and S'ankara in MaaNDuukya Kaarikaa, 3.3 to 7. It is said in the Bhaashya on 3.3:- The Self is subtle, partless and all-pervasive like space. The Self is spoken of as existing in the form of jiivas in the same way as space is referred to as existing in the form of spaces circumscribed by pots. The idea implied is that the emergence of jiivas from the supreme Self is comparable to the emergence of the spaces
in different pots from the same all-pervading space. Trees also have consciousness Ch.up.6.11.2.S.B-vr.kshasya rasasravaNa----- That a tree is also a jiiva is indicated
by such signs as exudation and drying up of sap. From the illustration in the S'ruti
that non-moving beings also have consciousness, the view of the Buddhists and the Vais'eshikas that these have no consciousness is proved to be wrong.