गोविन्द भाष्य (श्रील बलदेव विद्याभूषण - अचिन्त्यभेदाभेद वेदान्त ब्रह्मसूत्र भाष्य सटीक)

The statement about a difference is given in the following words:
anyaj jñānaṁ tu jīvānāṁ
anyaj jñānaṁ parasya ca
nityānandāvyayaṁ pūrṇaṁ
paraṁ jñānaṁ vidhīyate
"The knowledge possessed by the individual spirit souls is one thing and the
knowledge possessed by the Supreme Personality of Godhead is another. The
perfect, complete, blissful, and immutable knowledge possessed by the Supreme
Personality of Godhead is higher."
The bliss and other attributes described in these statements are not at all like
the ordinary bliss and other attributes found in this world.
Here someone may object: Still, what is described with the word "jar" cannot
really be different from a jar.
To answer this objection the author of the sūtras speaks the following words.
Sūtra 33
sāmānyāt tu
sāmānyāt—because of resamblance; tu—but.
But because of a common quality.
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
The word "tu" (but) is used here to dispel doubt. As the word "jar" is used to
describe many different kinds of jars, which all have a single quality of "jarness" in
common, so the word "bliss" describes many different kinds of ordinary and
extraordinary blisses, which all have a single quality of "blissness" in common.
However the different kinds of bliss and other attributes are not alike in all
respects. Therefore it is said:
para-jñānamayo 'sadbhir

nāma-jāty-ādibhir vibhuḥ
na yogavān na yukto 'bhūn
naiva pārthiva yokṣyati
"The Supreme Personality of Godhead has the highest transcendental
knowledge. He never is, was, or will be touched by the temporary names and
forms of the material world."
It this way it is demonstrated that the knowledge possessed by the Supreme
Personality of Godhead is superior to the knowledge possessed by the individual
spirit souls.
Here someone may object: If the Supreme Personality of Godhead is actually
superior to the individual spirit souls and to the inanimate material world, then
why does the Chāndogya Upaniṣad (3.14.1) declare:
sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma taj jalān iti śānta upāsīta
"Everything is the Supreme. Everything is manifested from Him. A peaceful
sage should worship Him."
In the following words the author of the sūtras answers this objection.
Sūtra 34
buddhy-arthaḥ pāda-vat
buddhi—of understanding; arthaḥ—for the purpose; pāda—foot; vat—like.
It is for understanding, like the word "foot".
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
This teaching is meant to increase understanding. The understanding here is
that everything belongs to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is like the
explanation of the word "foot" in the scriptures. In the Ṛg Veda (10.90.3) it is said:
pādo 'sya viśvā bhūtāni

"पादोऽस्य सर्वा भूतानि त्रिपादस्यामृतं दिवि।"
"समग्र जड़-प्रपञ्च उस परमेश्वर का केवल एक पाद (चरण) मात्र है।"
यह सम्यक् बोध होने पर कि यह सम्पूर्ण जड़ जगत् परमेश्वर का केवल एक ही पाद है, साधक किसी से भी द्वेष नहीं करता,
और तदनन्तर उसका हृदय श्रीभगवान् के प्रति अनन्य प्रेम-भक्ति में समर्पित हो जाता है।
तथापि इसका अर्थ यह कदापि नहीं है कि मनुष्य प्रत्येक वस्तु में आसक्त हो जाए, क्योंकि ऐसा करने से बुद्धि मोहग्रस्त हो जाती है।
॥ अधिकरणम् १६ ॥
परमेश्वरस्य वैचित्र्यविशिष्टत्वम् (भगवान् वैचित्र्य-विहीन नहीं हैं)
श्रीमद्-बलदेव-विद्याभूषण-विरचिता भूमिका (गोविन्दभाष्य-अवतरणिका):
अथ नानाविधप्रेमानुरूपं भजनीयस्य नानाविधत्वं दर्शयति—
अब यह तथ्य प्रतिपादित किया जाता है कि भगवान् के प्रति भक्तों के नानाविध प्रेम और भाव-वैचित्र्य के अनुरूप ही,
उपास्य परमेश्वर श्रीहरि भी अनेक प्रकार के दिव्य विग्रहों (स्वरूपों) को स्वीकार करते हैं।
यदि ऐसा न हो, तो भक्तों के नानाविध प्रेम-वैविध्य का प्रयोजन ही व्यर्थ सिद्ध होगा।
भगवान् के ये अनन्त रूप अनादि एवं नित्य हैं। जैसा कि श्रुति-शास्त्र में वर्णित है:
"एकोऽपि सन् बहुधा योऽवभाति"
(यद्यपि वे एक ही हैं, तथापि वे अनेक रूपों में प्रकाशित होते हैं।)
इस प्रकार, वे एक ही अद्वितीय परमपुरुष नित्य रूप से विभिन्न धामों एवं रूपों में युगपत् आविर्भूत रहते हैं।
संशयः (सन्देह)—किं तेषु रूपेषु तारतम्यं (न्यूनाधिकभावः) अस्ति न वेति?
संशय (हिन्दी)—क्या भगवान् के इन विभिन्न स्वरूपों में परस्पर कोई उच्च-नीच अथवा न्यूनाधिक भेद का तारतम्य है अथवा नहीं?
पूर्वपक्षः—सर्वसाम्यात् परमात्मस्वरूपाणां परस्परं तारतम्यं नास्तीति।
पूर्वपक्ष (हिन्दी)—चूँकि ये समस्त स्वरूप एक ही पूर्णब्रह्म परमेश्वर के हैं, अतः वे सभी सर्वथा समान हैं और उनमें कोई भेद या तारतम्य नहीं है।
सिद्धान्तः—अत्रोच्यते, सूत्रकारः स्वसिद्धान्तं प्रकटयति—
सिद्धान्त (हिन्दी)—इसके उत्तर में सूत्रकार महर्षि बादरायण निम्नलिखित शब्दों द्वारा अपने सिद्धान्त का प्रतिपादन करते हैं:
॥ सूत्रम् ३५ ॥
उपपत्तेश्च ॥ ३५ ॥

sthāna-viśeṣāt prakāśādi-vat
sthāna—of places; viśeṣāt—from the variety; prakāśa—light; ādi—beginning
with; vat—like.
Like light and other things, so He also is different in different places.
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
Although the Supreme Personality of Godhead is one, nevertheless, in different
places and before different devotees He manifests different kinds of opulence,
power, and sweetness. In this way, in the presence of devotees in the various
mellows, such as the mellows of peacefulness, servitude, and friendship, the Lord
manifests many different kinds of forms. He does this in the same way as light or
other things also manifest many different kinds of forms. As the light of a lamp
appears clear or red when reflected from crystals or rubies set in a temple's walls,
and as sound, although originally one, appears different when sounded by a
conchshell, mṛdaṅga, flute, or other musical instrument, so the Supreme
Personality of Godhead manifest sweetness and other attributes according to the
different circumstances. That is the meaning. When the Lord manifests His great
opulence, He is worshiped by the rules and regulations of vidhi-bhakti. That
manifestation is compared to the light reflected from crystal. When the Lord
manifests His great sweetness, He is worshiped by the spontaneous love of ruci-
bhakti. That manifestation is compared to the light reflected from rubies. In this
way the Lord's many manifestations in different abodes and in relation to the
different kinds of devotion of different kinds of devotees, are basically of these two
kinds (opulence and sweetness).
Sūtra 36
upapateś ca
upapateḥ—because of reasonableness; ca—also.
Also because it is reasonable.
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa

छान्दोग्योपनिषदि (३.१४.१) अपि तथैव वर्णितम्—
"यथाक्रतुरस्मिँल्लोके पुरुषो भवति तथेतः प्रेत्य भवति" इति।
(अर्थात्: जैसा मनुष्य का इस लोक में संकल्प या श्रद्धा होती है, परलोक में वह वैसा ही फल प्राप्त करता है।)
नैतदन्यथा भवति। यथैकस्मिन् परमेश्वरे नानाविधानुरागाः सन्ति, तथैव स एक एव प्रभुर्बहुधा रूपैरात्मानं विस्तारयति।
॥ अथ सप्तदशं पराधिकरणम् ॥ (अधिकरणम् १७)
विषयः: परमेश्वरस्यैव सर्वोत्कृष्टत्वम् (भगवान् ही सर्वोपरि हैं)
श्रीमद्बलदेवविद्याभूषणविरचिता भूमिका (अवतारणिका):
इदानीं परमेश्वरस्यैव सर्वोपरित्वरूपं सत्यं प्रतिपाद्यते। यदि परमेश्वरादपि कश्चिद् उत्कृष्टः स्यात्, तदा तस्मिन् प्रेमाभक्तिभावस्य विकास एव न सम्भवेत्।
श्वेताश्वतरोपनिषद् (३.४) स्पष्टमेव कथयति यत् स एव प्रभुः सर्वमहान्।
किन्तु श्वेताश्वतरोपनिषदि (३.१०) परमेश्वरादपि परं किमपि तत्त्वमस्तीति वर्णितमिव प्रतिभाति।
संशयः: किं समाराध्यतम-परमेश्वरादपि उत्कृष्टतरः कश्चिद् व्यक्तिर्वा तत्त्वं विद्यते, उत नास्ति?
पूर्वपक्षः: परमेश्वरादपि परं किमपि श्रेष्ठतरं तत्त्वमस्ति, यतः श्वेताश्वतरोपनिषदि (३.१०) "ततो यदुत्तरतरं तदरूपमनामयम्" इति स्पष्टं वर्णितम्।
सिद्धान्तः: अस्मिन् विषये सूत्रकारः श्रीवेदव्यासः स्वसिद्धान्तं प्रतिपादयति—
॥ ब्रह्मसूत्रम् ॥
तथान्याप्रतिषेधात् ॥ ३.२.३७ ॥
पदच्छेदः एवं शब्दार्थः:
तथा — तथा एव (परमेश्वर एव सर्वोत्कृष्टः);
अन्य — अन्यस्य (परमेश्वरात् परस्य श्रेष्ठतरस्य);
प्रतिषेधात् — निषेधदर्शनात् (श्रुतिभिः खण्डितत्वात्)।
सूत्रार्थः (हिन्दी अनुवाद):
वैसा ही है (अर्थात् परमेश्वर ही सर्वोपरि तत्त्व हैं), क्योंकि श्रुतियों द्वारा उनसे श्रेष्ठ किसी भी अन्य तत्त्व का स्पष्ट निषेध किया गया है।

Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
Nothing is greater than the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Why is that? The
sūtra explains: "for another is denied." In the Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad (3.9) it is said:
yasmāt paraṁ nāparam asti kiñcid
yasmān nāṇīyo na jyāyo 'sti kiñcit
"There is no truth superior to that Supreme Person because He is the
supermost. He is smaller than the smallest, and He is greater than the greatest."*
In this way the scriptures deny the existence of anything greater than the
Supreme Lord. That is the meaning here. In Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad (3.8) it is said:
vedāham etaṁ puruṣaṁ mahantam
āditya-varṇaṁ tamasaḥ parastāt
tam eva viditvāti mṛtyum eti
nānyaḥ panthāḥ vidyate 'yanāya
"I know that Supreme Personality of Godhead who is transcendental to all
material conditions of darkness. Only he who knows Him can transcend the bonds
of birth and death. There is no way for liberation other than knowledge of that
Supreme Person."*
After thus teaching that no path but knowledge of the Supreme Person leads to
liberation, the Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad (3.9) explains:
yasmāt paraṁ nāparam asti
"There is no truth superior to that Supreme Person."
In this way is proved that there is no truth superior to the Supreme Lord. In
Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad (3.10) it is said:
tato yad uttarataraṁ
tad arūpam anāmayam
ya etad vidur amṛtās te bhavanty
athetare duḥkham evāpi yānti

"They who know that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is greater than the
greatest, and has no material body and no faults, become immortal. They who do
not know Him suffer."
In this way the scriptures declare that there is no truth superior to the Lord. In
this way the false idea of our opponent is disproved. In Bhagavad-gītā (7.7), the
Supreme Lord Himself declares:
mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat
kiñcid asti dhanañjaya
"O conqueror of wealth, there is no truth superior to Me."*
Adhikaraṇa 18
The Lord is All-pervading
Introduction by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
Now, to show that the object of worship is always nearby, the truth that the
Supreme Lord is all-pervading will be described. Otherwise, if the Supreme Lord
were not always nearby, then there would not be enthusiasm to love the Lord, and
love for the Lord would become slackened. In the Gopāla-tāpanī Upaniṣad it is
said:
eko vaśī sarva-gaḥ kṛṣṇa īḍyaḥ
"Lord Kṛṣṇa, the supreme controller and the supreme object of worship, is
present everywhere."
Saṁśaya (doubt): Is Lord Hari, the supreme object of meditation, all-pervading,
or does He stay only in one place?
Pūrvapakṣa (the opponent speaks): Because the Lord is of moderate height, and
because He stays aloof from the material world, the Lord cannot be everywhere
and does not go to every place. Therefore the Lord is not all-pervading.
Siddhānta (conclusion): In the following words the author of the sūtras gives

His conclusion.
Sūtra 38
anena sarvagatatvam āyāma-śabdādibhyaḥ
anena—by Him; sarva—everywhere; gata—going; tvam—the state of being;
āyāma—all-pervasiveness; śabda—Śruti-śāstra; ādibhyaḥ—beginning with.
He is everywhere, for the Śruti-śāstra and other scriptures declare that He is all-
pervading.
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
Even though His form is of a moderate height, the Supreme Personality of
Godhead is all-pervading. Why is that? The sūtra explains: "the Śruti-śāstra and
other scriptures declare that He is all-pervading." Here the word "āyāma" means
"all-pervading". The word "ādi" (beginning with) here means "because He has
inconceivable potencies".
In the Gopāla-tāpanī Upaniṣad it is said:
eko vaśī sarva-gaḥ kṛṣṇa īḍyaḥ
"Lord Kṛṣṇa, the supreme controller and the supreme object of worship, is
present everywhere."
In the Taittirīya Āraṇyaka it is said:
yac ca kiñcij jagat sarvaṁ
dṛśyate śrūyate 'pi vā
antar bahiś ca tat sarvaṁ
vyāpya nārāyaṇaḥ sthitaḥ
"Lord Nārāyaṇa is present everywhere. He is within and without everything. He
is within everything that has ever been seen or heard."
In this way it is declared that, even though He has a form of moderate height,
the Supreme Personality of Godhead is certainly all-pervading. Because of His
inconceivable potencies the Lord is greater than all and present everywhere, even

though His form is of a moderate height. In Bhagavad-gītā (9.4 and 5), the
Supreme Lord Himself declares:
mayā tatam idaṁ sarvaṁ
jagad avyakta-mūrtinā
mat-sthāni sarva-bhūtāni
na cāhaṁ teṣv avasthitaḥ
na ca mat-sthāni bhūtāni
paśya me yogam aiśvaram
"By Me, in My unmanifested form, this entire universe is pervaded. All beings
are in Me, but I am not in them. And yet everything that is created does not rest in
Me. Behold My mystic opulence!"*
Because the Supreme Lord is different from matter does not mean that He
cannot be all-pervading within the material world, for the Śruti-śāstra clearly
declares that He is certainly present within and without. The scriptures also affirm
that as oil is present in sesame seeds and as butter is present in yogurt, so the
Supreme Lord is present everywhere. In this way it is proved that worshipable
Lord Hari is present everywhere. This is clearly shown in His Dāmodara pastime.
Even though He was a small child, still He displayed His power of being all-
pervading.
Adhikaraṇa 19
The Supreme Lord Awards the Fruits of Action
Introduction by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
Now will be described the truth that the Supreme Lord awards all the fruits of
action. Otherwise, if He did not award the fruits of action, or if He awarded only
some of the fruits of action, because of His miserliness it would be difficult to
develop love for Him. In the Praśna Upaniṣad (3.7) it is said:
puṇyena puṇyaṁ lokaṁ nayati
"The Supreme Lord takes the pious to the world of the pious."

संशयः — क्या स्वर्गलोक-प्राप्ति आदि पुण्य-फल यज्ञादि कर्मों के अनुष्ठान से स्वतः प्राप्त होते हैं, अथवा वे परमेश्वर के विधान (स्वीकृति) द्वारा प्राप्त होते हैं?
पूर्वपक्षः — ये समस्त फल यज्ञादि कर्मों के सम्पादन से ही उत्पन्न होते हैं; इसमें परमेश्वर की कोई भूमिका नहीं है।
सिद्धान्तः — इसके समाधान में सूत्रकार भगवान् बादरायण अपना निश्चित मत (सिद्धान्त) प्रस्तुत करते हैं—

सूत्र ३९

फलमत उपपत्तेः ॥ ३९ ॥
पदच्छेदः एवं शब्दार्थः
फलम् — कर्मफल; अतः — उस परमेश्वर से ही; उपपत्तेः — क्योंकि यही युक्तिसंगत (उपपन्न) है।
सूत्रार्थः कर्मों का फल उस परमेश्वर से ही प्राप्त होता है, क्योंकि यही युक्तियुक्त है।
श्रील बलदेव विद्याभूषण विरचित गोविन्दभाष्य (तात्पर्य)
स्वर्गलोक की प्राप्ति तथा अन्य पुण्य-फल, जो यज्ञादि सद्धर्मों के अनुष्ठान से साध्य हैं, वस्तुतः स्वयं परमेश्वर द्वारा ही प्रदान किए जाते हैं।
ऐसा क्यों? इस पर सूत्रकार कहते हैं—"उपपत्तेः" (क्योंकि यही तर्कसंगत है)।
नित्य, सर्वज्ञ, सर्वशक्तिमान् एवं परम उदार परमेश्वर की जब यज्ञादि कर्मों द्वारा आराधना की जाती है,
तब वे ही कालान्तर में उन सत्कर्मों का अभीष्ट फल प्रदान करते हैं।
कर्म तो स्वतः अचेतन (जड़) हैं तथा उत्पन्न होकर क्षणमात्र में विनष्ट हो जाते हैं; अतः वे विनष्ट होकर कालान्तरभावी फल देने में असमर्थ हैं। यही इसका तात्पर्य है।
अग्रिम सूत्र में सूत्रकार इसका श्रुति-प्रमाण प्रस्तुत करते हैं—

सूत्र ४०

श्रुतत्वाच्च ॥ ४० ॥
पदच्छेदः एवं शब्दार्थः
श्रुतत्वात् — श्रुति-शास्त्र में ऐसा ही प्रतिपादित होने के कारण; च — तथा / भी।
सूत्रार्थः तथा श्रुति-शास्त्र द्वारा प्रमाणित होने के कारण भी (वही फलदाता सिद्ध होते हैं)।

Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
In the Bṛhad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣad (3.9.28) it is said:
vijñānaṁ ānandaṁ brahma rātir dātuḥ parāyaṇaṁ
"The Supreme Personality of Godhead is full of knowledge and bliss. It is He
who gives the fruits of actions to they who perform yajñas."
In the Bṛhad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣad (4.4.24) it is also said:
sa vā eṣa mahān aja ātmā annādo vasu-dānaḥ
"The unborn Supreme Personality of Godhead gives the fruits of work."
These two passages explain that the Supreme Lord gives the fruits of action.
The word "dātuḥ" means "of the performer of yajña", and "rātiḥ" means “the giver
of the results".
Sūtra 41
dharmaṁ jaiminir ata eva
dharmaṁ—piety; jaiminiḥ—Jaimini; ataḥ—from Him; eva—indeed.
Jaimini affirms that piety comes from Him.
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
Jaimini holds that piety comes from the Supreme Lord. The pious deed that
gives an auspicious result itself comes from the Supreme Lord. In the Kauṣītaki
Upaniṣad (3.8) it is said:
eṣa eva sādhu karma kārayati

"The Lord engages the living entity in pious activities."*
According to Jaimini, the Supreme Lord does not give the results of actions,
either directly or indirectly. The Lord creates only the actions themselves and the
results are given by the actions.
Here someone may object: Is it not so that actions are over in a moment,
whereas there is often a great lapse of time before actions bear their karmic result?
If the actions quickly cease to exist they cannot create the karmic results, for
something that has ceased to exist cannot create something new.
To this objection Jaimini may reply: No. It is not so. Even though the action
itself comes to an end, it leaves behind a potential result. Only when this result is
fulfilled is the action actually completed. Even if there is a considerable lapse of
time, the action itself gives the result to the person, a result appropriate to that
particular action. Thus actions are the givers of results.
In the following words Śrīla Vyāsadeva, the author of the sūtras, gives His
opinion.
Sūtra 42
pūrvaṁ tu bādarāyaṇo hetu-vyapadeśāt
pūrvaṁ—previous; tu—but; bādarāyaṇaḥ—Vyāsadeva; hetu—of the cause;
vyapadeśāt—from the description.
But Vyāsadeva holds the previous view, for the Lord is described as the cause.
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
Here the word "tu" (but) is employed to dispel doubt. Vyāsadeva holds the
previous view, that the Supreme Personality of Godhead awards the fruits of
action. Why so? The sūtra explains: "for the Lord is described as the cause". In the
Praśna Upaniṣad (3.7) it is said:
puṇyena puṇyaṁ lokaṁ nayati pāpena pāpam
"The Supreme Lord takes the pious to the world of the pious and the sinful to
the world of the sinful."

In this way the scriptures teach that the Supreme Lord awards the results of
action. That is the meaning. Because they already have ceased to exist, the actions
themselves cannot be the cause of the karmic results. Also, it is the Supreme Lord
Himself who is the creator of karma, for the scriptures say:
dravyaṁ karma ca kālaś ca
"The Supreme Personality of Godhead is creator of matter, karma, and time.
In this way it is proved that the Lord is the creator of karma. The idea that
actions leave behind a potential result is a lame and foolish idea. Actions are
inanimate and unconscious. They are like a block of wood or a stone, and
therefore they have no power to award the results of actions. Also, the Śruti-śāstra
never describes them as awarding the results of actions.
Here someone may object: Is it not so that the demigods are worshiped in the
performance of yajñas and it is the demigods themselves who give the results of
these yajñas.
If this is said, then I reply: It is by the sanction of the Supreme Lord that the
demigods are able to give these results. This is clearly described in the Antaryāmī
Brāhmaṇa. Therefore the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself awards the
results of actions. The lotus-eyed Supreme Lord Himself affirms this in the
following words (Bhagavad-gītā 7.21-22):
yo yo yāṁ yāṁ tanuṁ bhaktaḥ
śraddhayārcitum icchati
tasya tasyācalāṁ śraddhāṁ
tām eva vidadhāmy aham
"I am in everyone's heart as the Supersoul. As soon as one desires to worship
some demigod, I make his faith steady so he can devote himself to that particular
deity.*
sa tayā śraddhayā yuktas
tasyārādhanam īhate
labhate ca tataḥ kāmān
mayaiva vihitān hi tān
"Endowed with such a faith, he endeavors to worship a particular demigod and
obtain his desires. But in actuality these benefits are bestowed by Me alone."*

In this way worshiped by the performance of yajña, the Supreme Lord Himself
gives the auspicious results to the worshiper. When He is thus pleased by
devotion, the Supreme Lord will give everything, even Himself to His devotee. This
will be described later on with quotes from the Śruti-śāstra.
Thus, in these two padas has been seen: 1. the fault of the material world,
which is an abode of many sufferings, beginning with repeated birth and death, 2.
the faultless glories of the Lord, 3. the Lord's being the controller of all, 4. the
Lord's form of pure spirit, and 5. the Lord's being not different from His attributes.
By hearing of these things one develops a great thirst to attain the Lord's
association and a great disgust for all that is far from the Lord. In this way one
comes to attain the Lord. That is what was revealed in these two padas.
Pada 3
Introduction by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
parayā nirasya māyāṁ guṇa-
karmādīni yo bhajati nityam
devaś caitanya-tanur manasi
mamāsau parisphuratu kṛṣṇaḥ
May Lord Kṛṣṇa, who with the aid of His transcendental potency pushes aside
the influence of māyā, who has a host of transcendental virtues eternally, who
enjoys eternal transcendental pastimes, and who has now appeared as Śrī Caitanya
Mahāprabhu, appear in my heart.
In this pada will be revealed the way of worshiping the Lord's transcendental
attributes. As in a vaidūrya jewel many splendid colors are always manifest, so in
the Supreme Personality of Godhead many different transcendental forms, all
perfect and without beginning, are also manifest eternally. Understanding that the
Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is supremely perfect, complete, and pure,
has many different forms, a devotee becomes attracted to one of the Lord's forms
and directs his worship to that form. If the various scriptures describe
transcendental virtues present in that form of the Lord, all those virtues may also
be ascribed to that single chosen form. Thus a person who worships the Supreme
Personality of Godhead as present in His powers and opulences, such as the mind
and the other powers of the world, should review the scriptures' descriptions of
the various qualities of these forms, but not of other forms of the Lord.

Others, however, speak in the following way: The one Supreme Personality of
Godhead assumes different forms as an actor assumes different roles on the stage.
In this way the Lord has many different names and abodes. For this reason all the
qualities and pastimes of the different forms of the Lord, as described in the
scriptures, may be ascribed to any one of the Lord's forms.
Here someone may object: Is it not so that many of the qualities of many of the
Lord's forms, qualities described in the scriptures, cannot be properly ascribed to
all of the Lord's forms? Is it not so that sweetness, opulence, peacefulness,
austerity, ferociousness, and other qualities may be mutually contradictory, and it
may also be contradictory to ascribe the features of having a horn, tail, mane, tusk,
or other features appropriate to the Lord's forms like Varāha and others to the
Lord's humanlike forms, which carry a flute, conchshell, bow, arrows, and other
paraphernalia? Therefore in the Mahābhārata it is said:
yo 'nyathā santam ātmānam
anyathā pratipadyate
kiṁ tena na kṛtaṁ pāpaṁ
caureṇātmāpahāriṇā
"A person who ascribes to the Supreme Lord qualities that the Lord does not
actually possess is a thief who robs himself. Does he not sin with his words?"
Therefore, because of both the injunction of Smṛti-śāstra and the experience of
the wise sages, one should not ascribe the qualities of one of Lord's forms to
another of the Lord's forms.
If this is said, then the following reply may be given: The qualities of one of
Lord's forms may be ascribed to another of the Lord's forms only when the
qualities are appropriate to that particular form. Ascribing the qualities of one of
Lord's forms to another of the Lord's forms is of two kinds: 1. cintana, and 2. dhī-
mātra. They who perform this first kind of meditation are called sva-niṣṭha, and
they who perform the second kind of meditation are called ekāntī. In the next
pada three kinds of wise devotees, headed by the sva-niṣṭha devotees, will be
described. The sva-niṣṭha devotees have equal love for all the Lord's forms. They
see all the qualities of all the Lord's forms present equally in each of the Lord's
forms. They do not see anything improper in ascribing many contradictory
qualities to each of the Lord's forms. They consider that the Lord by His great
potency may possess many mutually contradictory qualities, just as a vaidūrya
jewel may display many different colors.
The ekāntī devotees, who are divided into two groups: pariniṣṭhita and
nirapekṣa, do not have equal love for all the Lord's forms. They meditate only on
the qualities of one form the Lord, the form they have chosen. They see the
qualities of this form alone. Even though they are well aware of the Lord's other
forms, they do not meditate or gaze upon them. On His part, the Lord generally
does not reveal His other forms to these devotees. This will be reveled in another
adhikaraṇa. As for the passage quoted from the Mahābhārata, its true meaning is

that it is a rebuke hurled at the impersonalists, who claim that the Supreme is
consciousness and nothing else. The truth that the Supreme certainly does have
qualities, and therefore the Lord's qualities should be sought out by they who seek
liberation, is described in Chāndogya Upaniṣad (8.1.1-6). It is also said, in thw
Taittirīya Upaniṣad (2.4.1):
ānandaṁ brahmaṇo vidvān
na bibheti kutaścana
"He who knows that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is full of bliss never
fears anything."
This means that they who understand the qualities of the Supreme become free
of fear. In this way the scriptures affirm that the Supreme certainly does have
qualities. The impersonalists claim that the Lord's qualities are either falsely
ascribed to Him or else are accepted only because of the material traditions of this
world. However, because many of these qualities are present in the Lord alone and
no one else, it cannot be said that these qualities are falsely ascribed to the Lord,
and because the revelation of scripture does not describe them as such, it also
cannot be said that the qualities of the Lord are accepted only because of the
material traditions of this world. They who claim that the qualities of the Lord are
imagined to facilitate worship of the Lord, as in the statement, "Imagining the
goddess of speech to be a cow, one should worship her", are all fools. Their idea is
destroyed by the simple statement of the scriptures:
satyam etyopāsīta
"Approaching the Supreme Reality, one should worship Him."
Even the impersonalists, in their commentaries on sūtras 3.3.12 and 3.3.38,
affirm that the Supreme is bliss and there is no difference between the individual
souls and the Supreme. In this way they accept the idea that the qualities of the
worshipable Supreme are real and not metaphors. When the scriptures say that the
Supreme has no qualities (nirguṇa), the intention is that He has no material
qualities. Because it is clearly stated that the Lord is not different from His
qualities, this objection of the impersonalists should not be taken seriously. For
the purpose of meditation the Lord's qualities should be understood to be of two
kinds: aṅgi-niṣṭha (general qualities) and aṅga-niṣṭha (features of the Lord's form).
It is said that one may collect from all the different parts of the Vedas descriptions
of the Lord's qualities.

Adhikaraṇa 1
The Lord Should Be Sought
Introduction by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
Viṣaya (the subject to be discussed): To understand the Lord's qualities one
should search all the texts of the Vedas.
Saṁśaya (doubt): Should one learn about the Supreme by studying the branch
(śākha) of Vedic texts in one's own community, or should one study all the
branches of the Vedas?
Pūrvapakṣa (the opponent speaks): Because all the branches of the Vedas are
different, one should study only one's own branch of the Vedas.
Siddhānta (conclusion): In the following words the author of the sūtras gives
His conclusion:
Sūtra 1
sarva-vedānta-pratyayaṁ codanādy-aviśeṣāt
sarva—all; veda—Vedas; anta—end; pratyayam—meaning; codana—
injunctions; ādi—beginning with; aviśeṣāt—because of not being different.
Because the Vedic injunctions and all other sources of real knowledge are not
genuinely different, therefore knowledge of Him is the conclusion of all the Vedas.
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
The word "anta" (end) here means "conclusion". The word "anta" is also used
in this way in Bhagavad-gītā (2.16):
ubhayor api dṛṣṭo 'ntaḥ
"This they have concluded by studying the nature of both."*

Thus knowledge of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the final conclusion
taught by all the Vedas. Why is that? The sūtra explains: "because the Vedic
injunctions and all other sources of real knowledge are not genuinely different."
The "other sources of real knowledge" here refers to logic. In the Bṛhad-āraṇyaka
Upaniṣad (1.4.7) it is said:
ātmety evopāsīta
"One should worship the Supreme."
These words, as well as the promptings of logic, confirm the truth that these
statements and many others like them in passages of all the Vedas, all describe the
same Supreme Lord. The same Supreme Lord is described in the same way in the
Kaṇva, Mādhyandina, and other recensions of the Vedas.
Here someone may object: In one part of the Vedas (Bṛhad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣad
3.9.28) it is said:
vijñānam ānandam brahma
"The Supreme is knowledge and bliss."
However, in another part of the Vedas (Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad 1.1.9) it is said:
yaḥ sarva-jñaḥ sarva-vit
"The Supreme knows everything."
Because in this way each branch of the Vedas speaks differently of the Supreme,
they do not all describe the same object as the Supreme.
If this is said, the author of the sūtras gives the following reply.
Sūtra 2
bhedād iti cen naikasyām api
bhedāt—because of difference; iti—thus; cet—if; na—not; ekasyām—in one;
api—also.

If it is said, "because they are different," then I reply, "It is not so, for it is also
in one".
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
It is not so. That is so because these differences are seen even within the same
branch of the Vedas. An example of this is the Taittirīya Upaniṣad, which gives the
following two statements.
satyaṁ jñānam anantaṁ brahma
"The limitless Supreme is both knowledge and truth."
ānando brahma
"The Supreme is bliss."
In this way the many different branches of the Vedas describe the same form
of the Supreme Lord. They do not contradict each other at all.
Sūtra 3
svādhyāyasya tathātvena hi samācāre 'dhikārāc ca
svādhyāyasya—of Vedic study; tathātvena—by being so; hi—indeed;
samācāre—in Vedic rituals; adhikārāt—because of being qualified; ca—also.
Because of being qualified to study the Vedas and to perform rituals.
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
In the Taittirīya Āraṇyaka (2.15) it is said:

svādhyāyo 'dhyetavyaḥ
"One should study the Vedas."
In this way one is ordered to study all the Vedas. In the Smṛti-śāstra it is said:
vedaḥ kṛtsno 'dhigantavyaḥ sa-rahasyo dvijanmanā
"A brāhmaṇa should study the entire Veda, including even its confidential
portions."
The word "samācāre" in this sūtra means "because all are qualified to perform
all pious rituals". The Smṛti-śāstra confirms this in the following words:
sarva-vedokta-mārgeṇa
karma kurvīta nityaśaḥ
ānando hi phalaṁ yasmāc
chākhā-bhedo hy aśakti-jaḥ
sarva-karma-kṛtau yasmād
aśaktāḥ sarva-jantavaḥ
śākhā-bhedaṁ karma-bhedaṁ
vyāsas tasmād aciklpad
"Following the path of all the Vedas, one should regularly perform pious
rituals. Bliss is the result attained by this. The Veda was divided into different
branches because the people were not able to perform all the pious deeds described
in the Veda. That is why Vyāsa divided the Veda into many branches and the one
collection of pious rituals into many collections."
Therefore, if a person is able to do so, he may understand the Supreme by
performing all the spiritual practices described in all the branches of the Vedas. In
the next sūtra the author gives an example of indirect reasoning leading to the
same conclusion.
Sūtra 4
sava-vac ca tan niyamaḥ
sava—yajñas; vat—like; ca—and; tat—that; niyamaḥ—rule.