வானிலே வான் பெற்ற ஊனிலே ஊன்பெற்ற
மாமணியி னுள்ளுறையிலே
நானிலே நான் பெற்ற நலிவிலே நலிவற்ற
நடையிலே கடையிலேதான்
தானிலே தானற்ற தனியிலே தனியுற்ற
தவமிலாத் தவநெறியிலே
மீனிலிே மின்னிலே மின்னிலா வெளியிலே
வெளியிலாக் களியினுள்ளே
vaanilE vaan peRRa oonilE oonpeRRa
maamaNiyi nuLLuRaiyilE
naanilE naan peRRa nalivilE nalivaRRa
nadaiyilE kadaiyilEthaan
thaanilE thaanaRRa thaniyilE thaniyuRRa
thavamilAth thavanNeRiyilE
meenilE minnilE minnilaa veLiyilE
veLiyilaak kaLiyinuLLE
In the sky where the sky is obtained; in the flesh where the flesh is obtained—
within the inner chamber of the great jewel.
In the “I” where the “I” is obtained; in debility where there is no debility—
in walking, in the marketplace indeed.
In the self where there is no self; in aloneness where aloneness is attained—
on a way of tapas that has no tapas.
In the fish; in the lightning; in the lightning-less expanse—
within a bliss that is outside/without expanse.
The Siddhar points to an attainment that is found right where one already stands: the vast is realized in the vast, the embodied is realized in the body, inside the “jewel-cave” of inner awareness. The sense of “I” is seen through within the very “I”; weakness is transcended amid weakness; even while walking and trading in the world. One comes to a selfless self, a solitude within all conditions, and a discipline that is not forced austerity. In the movements of life-force (fish), in the flash of awakening (lightning), and even in the space where no flash appears, there is an unbounded delight beyond ordinary space.
The verse is built from paradoxical pairings (“in X, X is attained; in X, X is absent”), a typical Siddhar strategy: it refuses outward-seeking and forces attention back to the locus of experience.
1) “Sky in sky / flesh in flesh” suggests macrocosm–microcosm identity: the same vastness one searches in ‘outer space’ is to be known as inner space; the same “body” one treats as limitation is the very field where realization stabilizes. Siddhar traditions often treat the body as a temple-laboratory (yogic and alchemical), not merely an obstacle.
2) “Inside the inner chamber of the great jewel” is intentionally cryptic. “Jewel” (maṇi) can indicate: (a) the heart-cave (hṛdaya-guhā) where awareness is recognized; (b) a subtle center (a chakra or ‘mani’ locus); (c) the “gem” of consciousness itself. The “inner chamber” implies an interiorization beyond thought and sensory outwardness.
3) “In the ‘I’ where the ‘I’ is obtained” can be read as turning inquiry back onto the ego-sense: by entering the very feeling of “I,” one discovers what is prior to it. The following phrase “in debility where debility is absent” implies that the realization is not dependent on bodily strength, mood, or circumstance; it is found even amid frailty.
4) “In walking, in the marketplace” clearly signals sahaja (natural) samādhi: not a trance confined to caves and ritual frames, but a recognition that persists in ordinary activity and social entanglement. Liberation is tested in the bazaar.
5) “In the self where self is absent” points to non-duality: the ultimate ‘self’ is not an object or a personal entity; it is selfless presence. “Aloneness where aloneness is attained” suggests a solitude that is not isolation—an inner independence that can coexist with crowds.
6) “A way of tapas without tapas” critiques mere mortification or performative austerity. The ‘heat’ of transformation here is inward: a silent, effortless discipline—attention, integration of breath/mind, or abidance—rather than external hardship.
7) “Fish / lightning / lightning-less expanse / bliss beyond expanse” uses layered imagery for subtle yogic phenomena. “Fish” can gesture toward prāṇa’s movement (slippery, darting) or the mind that swims in sensations; “lightning” often denotes a sudden flash of insight or kuṇḍalinī-like surge; “lightning-less expanse” indicates a deeper stabilization where even extraordinary experiences subside. The final “bliss outside/without expanse” implies that true joy is not a spatial ‘inside’ or ‘outside’ but a non-local, conditionless clarity—hence the repeated negations.
Overall, the verse teaches that realization is neither elsewhere nor dependent on special states. It is recognized in the very sites where one habitually assumes limitation: body, ego-sense, weakness, and worldly movement—yet it culminates in a ‘space’ that is not space, and a ‘self’ that is not a self.