Article XXIII: Samsara and Reincarnation

Amritabindu Upanishad
14: When various forms like the jar are broken again and again the Akasha does not know them to be broken, but He (the ever-manifest, all-knowing, blissful Self) knows perfectly.

Continuing with the jar analogy from Article XXII, here the Self is differentiated from akasha in the analogy. The Self is beyond akasha, the space, ether, or medium of the universe. The akasha is limited by space, time and causation whereas the Self is beyond space, time and causation. The "forms like the jar," "broken again and again," represent the physical body, which ultimately must become devoid of life. This analogy alludes to the concepts of samsara and reincarnation. When the physical body dies, the Self goes on to another body again and again until moksha occurs, freeing the Self from maya. This cycle of reincarnation of the Self from body to body is known as samsara. The akasha, or ether, is unaware of this process, but the Self is the ultimate witness to the cycle of reincarnation and "knows perfectly" the ultimate consciousness. (Note that ether is being used here as space or the medium of the universe, which is different from the concept of ether that was disproved by modern physics.)