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

Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
The Bṛhad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣad (5.1.1) explains:
oṁ pūrṇam adaḥ pūrṇam idaṁ
pūrṇāt pūrṇam udacyate
pūrṇasya pūrṇam ādāya
pūrṇam evāvaśiṣyate
"The Personality of Godhead is perfect and complete, and because He is
completely perfect, all emanations from Him, such as this phenomenal world, are
perfectly equipped as complete wholes. Whatever is produced of the complete
whole is also complete in itself. Because He is the complete whole, even though so
many complete units emanate from Him, He remains the complete balance."*
This verse explains that that which is pūrṇa (perfect and complete), enters into
itself. This cannot be said of that which is not perfect and complete. If the
Supreme Brahman described in the scriptures were a product of the modes of
material nature, then it would merge into the Supreme and not into itself. In this
way it could not be described as truly perfect and complete. In this verse the word
adaḥ (this) refers to the aprakaṭa (not manifested in the material world) form of
the Supreme Lord, which is the root from which the various prakaṭa forms of the
Lord emanate. Both aprakaṭa and prakaṭa forms of the Lord are perfect and
complete. The Lord expands from His aprakaṭa form and appears in the material
world in His prakaṭa form, displaying His rāsa-līlā and other transcendental
pastimes. When the prakaṭa form of the Lord leaves the material world and enters
the aprakaṭa form of the Lord, the Lord remains unchanged, eternally perfect and
complete. That the Lord is untouched by the modes of material nature, and that
He expands into many forms, are confired by the following statement of smṛti-
śāstra:
sa devo bahudhā bhūtvā
nirguṇaḥ puruṣottamaḥ
ekī-bhūya punaḥ śete
nirdoṣo harir ādi-kṛt
"The Supreme Personality of Godhead is faultless. Even though He is the
original creator of the material world, He remains always untouched by matter. He
expands in innumerable viṣṇu-tattva incarnations, and then these incarnations
enter Him and He again becomes one."
At this point someone may raise the following objection: There are actually two

kinds of Brahman: Saguṇa Brahman (Brahman enmeshed in the modes of material
nature), and Nirguṇa Brahman (Brahman untouched by the modes of material
nature). The first, or Saguṇa Brahman, has a form constructed of the mode of
material goodness. This Saguṇa Brahman is the omnisicent, all-powerful creator of
the material universes. The second, or Nirguṇa Brahman, is pure transcendental
existence only. This Nirguṇa Brahman is pure, perfect, and complete. The Saguṇa
Brahman is the śakti (potency) described by the Vedas, and the Nirguṇa Brahman
is the tātparya (meaning) of the Vedas.
Śrīla Vyāsadeva refutes this argument by explaining, in the next sūtra:
Sūtra 10
gati-sāmānyāt
gati—the conception; sāmānyāt—because of uniformity.
(This is not so) because the Vedas describe only one kind of Brahman.
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
In this sūtra the word gati means "conception." The Vedic literatures describe
Brahman as full of transcendental knowledge, omniscient, omnipotent, perfect,
complete, pure, the all-pervading Supersoul, the original creator of the material
universes, the object of worship for the saintly devotees, and the bestower of
liberation. The Vedas do not describe two kinds of Brahman: Nirguṇa and Saguṇa.
Rather, the Vedas describe only one kind of Brahman. This one Brahman is
described by Lord Kṛṣṇa in the following words (Bhagavad-gītā 7.7):
mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat
kiñcid asti dhanañjaya
mayi sarvam idaṁ protaṁ
sūtre maṇi-gaṇā iva
"O conqueror of wealth, there is not truth superior to Me. Everything rests
upon me as pearls strung on a thread."*
Thus the Vedic literatures describe only one kind of Brahman: Nirguṇa
Brahman. Śrīla Vyāsadeva describes this Nirguṇa Brahman in the next sūtra:

Sūtra 11
śrutatvāc ca
śrutavāt—because of being described in the Vedas; ca—and.
(There is only one kind of Brahman: Nirguṇa Brahman), because Nirguṇa
Brahman is described throughout the Vedic literatures.
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
Nirguṇa Brahman is described in the following statement of Śvetāśvatara
Upaniṣad (6.11):
eko devaḥ sarva-bhūteṣu gūḍhaḥ
sarva-vyāpī sarva-bhūtāntarātmā
karmādhyakṣaḥ sarva-bhūtādhivāsaḥ
sākṣī cetā kevalo nirguṇaś ca
"The Supreme Personality of Godhead manifests Himself as the all-pervading
Supersoul, the witness present in the hearts of all living entities. He witnesses all
activities of the living entity. He is the supreme living force. He is transcendental
to all material qualities."
In this way Nirguṇa Brahman is described in the śruti-śāstra. The śruti-śāstra
does not say that it is impossible to describe Brahman. Some say that Brahman may
be understood not from the direct statements of the Vedic literatures, but merely
indirectly, or from hints found in the Vedic texts. This is not the correct
understanding, for if the Vedic scriptures had no power to directly describe
Brahman, then naturally they would also not have any power to indirectly describe
Him or hint about Him. The Vedic literatures may say that Brahman has no
contact with guṇas (either qualities, or the three modes of material nature), and He
cannot be seen by material eyes (adṛśya), still it does not say that the words of the
Vedas have no power to describe Him.
At this point someone may raise the following objection: Is it not said in the
Vedas that Brahman has no guṇas (qualities)? Your statement that Brahman has
qualities contradicts the description of the scriptures.
To this I reply: This is not true. You can only say this because you do not

understand the confidential meaning of the word nirguṇa. Because the Supreme
Brahman is all-knowing and possess many transcendental qualitites, when the
scriptures say that He is nirguṇa, it should be understood to mean that He has no
(niḥ) contact with the three modes of material nature (guṇa).
This is confirmed by the following statements of smṛti-śāstra:
sattvādayo na śāntīśe
yatra cāprakṛtā guṇāḥ
"The Supreme Personality of Godhead, who possesses numberless
transcendental qualities, is eternally free from the touch of the three modes of
material nature: goodness, passion, and ignorance."
samasta-kalyāṇa-guṇātmako 'sau
"The Supreme Personality of Godhead possesses all auspicious qualities."
For all these reasons it should be accepted that the Vedic literatures have the
power to describe the perfect, pure, complete Supreme Brahman. When it is said
by the scriptures that the Supreme Brahman has no names, forms, or qualities it
should be understood that the Supreme Brahman has no material names, forms, or
qualities, and that His names, forms and qualities are limitless and beyond the
counting of limited spirit souls.
At this point someone may object, saying that the literal interpretation of the
Vedic statements is that Brahman is without qualities (nirguṇa), and your
interpretation of the word nirguṇa is wrong.
To this objection I reply: Does this description that Brahman has no qualities
help to positively undertand Brahman? If you say yes, then you have to admit that
the Vedas do have the power to describe Brahman; and if you say no, then you
have to admit that your careful studies of the Vedic literature have been a great
waste of time, and as a result you remain wholly ignorant of Brahman's real nature.
Adhikaraṇa 6
The Supreme Brahman is Full of Bliss
Introduction by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
śabdā vācakatāṁ yānti

yantrānandamayādayaḥ
vibhum ānanda-vijñānaṁ
taṁ śuddhaṁ śraddadhīmahi
Let us place our faith in the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is supremely
pure, all-powerful, all-knowing, and full of transcendental bliss. He is perfectly
described in the ānandamaya-sūtra and the other statements of Vedānta-sūtra.
From the 12th Sūtra (ānandamaya) to the end of this First Chapter, Śrīla
Vyāsadeva will prove that the statements of the Vedic literatures are intended to
describe Brahman. In the First Pada, Śrīla Vyāsadeva discusses those words of the
Vedic literatures, which, taken by themselves, whould not necessarily refer to
Brahman, but which, in their Vedic context, certainly do refer to Brahman.

1. Viṣaya (Statement): In the passages from Taittirīya Upaniṣad beginning
   brahma-vid āpnoti param and sa vā eṣa puruṣo 'nna-rasamayaḥ, we find a
   description of the annamaya, prāṇamaya

The word ānandamaya (full of bliss) used in the Vedic literatures must refer to
the Supreme Brahman, for it is repeatedly used to describe Him.
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
The Supreme Brahman is the ānandamaya described in Vedic literature. Why do
we say so? Because the word ānandamaya is repeatedly used to describe the
Supreme Brahman. Directly following the description of ānandamaya in the
Taittirīya Upaniṣad (2.6.1), we find the following statement:
asann eva saṁbhavati
asad brahmeti veda cet
asti brahmeti ced veda
santam enaṁ tato viduḥ
"One who thinks, The Supreme Brahman does not exist' becomes a demonic atheist, and one who thinks, The Supreme Brahman does exist' is known as a
saint."
In this passage the word Brahman was repeated. This repetition is called
abhyāsa. In the previous quotation from Taittirīya Upaniṣad, the word Brahman
appeared in the word brahma-puccham, but in that case the word only occurred
once, and therefore there was no abhyāsa.
The four verses of Taittirīya Upaniṣad beginning with the verse annād vai prajāḥ
prajāyante describe the annamaya, prāṇamaya, manomaya, and vijñānamaya levels
of existence. Each of these levels is progressively higher than the preceding one,
and after them the ānandamaya level, which is different in quality, is the highest of
all. This will be more elaborately explained in the passage following the sūtra:
priya-śiras tv ādya-prāpter (3.3.13) of this book.
At this point someone may raise the following objection: These stages of
existence describe the conditioned souls who have fallen into the raging river of
material suffering. Why has the stage of blissfulness (ānandamaya) been made the
chief of these stages of suffering?"
To this objection I reply: There is no fault in this. The all-blissful Personality of
Godhead is pesent in the hearts of all the suffering conditioned souls, and
therefore it is perfectly appropriate to mention them together.
The Vedic literatures speak in this way to make a difficult subject-matter
intelligible for the unlettered common man. Just as one may point out the small,
difficult-to-see star Arundhatī by first pointing to a nearby large easy-to-see star,
and then lead the viewer from that reference-point to the tiny Arundhatī, in the
same way the Vedic literatures first describe the suffering-filled life of the
conditioned souls, and then from that reference point teach about the all-blissful

Supreme Personality of Godhead.
At this point someone may raise the following question: Is it, then, that the
Vedic literatures mostly describe topics other than the Supreme Brahman, (because
mostly they describe these "reference-points" to lead the reader to the Supreme),
or do they mostly describe Brahman directly?"
I answer this question: Brahman is directly described in the Vedic literatures.
For example, in the next chapter of Taittirīya Upaniṣad, Varuṇa, upon being asked
by his son to teach him about Brahman, explained to him that Brahman is the
original creator, maintaner, and destroyer of the material universes. He further
explains that the annamaya, prāṇamaya, manomaya, and vijñānamaya stages of
existence, one by one, are all Brahman. Then he explained that the ānandamaya
stage is the final Brahman. After explaining this, Varuṇa concluded his teaching by
confirming that he has spoken a true description of the Supreme Personality of
Godhead. He said:
etam ānandamayam ātmānam upasaṅkramya imān lokān kāmānī kāma-rūpy
anusañcarann etat sama gāyann āste
"After leaving his material body, one who understands the supreme
ānandamaya person leaves this material world and enters the spiritual world. All
his desires become fulfilled, he attains a spiritual form according to his own wish,
and he dedicates himself to glorifying that supreme ānandamaya person."
That the ānandamaya person in the Vedic literatures is actually the Supreme
Brahman is also described in the following statement of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
(10.87.17):
puruṣa-vidho 'nvayo 'tra caramo 'nnamyādiṣu yaḥ
sad asataḥ paraṁ tvam atha yad eṣv avaśeṣāmṛtam
"O Lord, of these persons beginning with the annamaya-puruṣa, You are the
Supreme."
We may note in this connection that it is not contradictory or illogical to say
that the Supreme Brahman has a form. The form of the Supreme is described in the
Vedic literatures. For example, the Bṛhad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣad (3.7.3) explains:
pṛthivī śarīram
"The material universe is the body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead."
It is because the Supreme Personality of Godhead has a form (śarīra), that this

book, the Vedānta-sūtra, is also called Śārīraka-sūtra (sūtras glorifying the Supreme
Personality of Godhead, who has a form). Some may say that the word
ānandamaya does not refer to the Supreme Brahman, and that only the word
brahma-puccham refers to Brahman. This proposal is not very intelligent. Some
others may say that the word ānandamaya does not refer to Brahman because the
word maya means "transformation". These persons say the word ānandamaya
(transformation of bliss) cannot refer to the Supreme Brahman, for Brahman is
naturally full of bliss, and not a transformation of some pre-existing state of
happiness. For this reason the word ānandamaya must refer to the individual spirit
soul, and not Brahman. In order to refute this argument, Śrīla Vyāsadeva speaks
the following sūtra:
Sūtra 13
vikāra-śabdān neti cen na pracuryāt
vikāra—transformation; śabdāt—from the word; na—not; iti—thus; cet—if; na—
not; pracuryāt—because of abundance.
If (someone argues that the Supreme Brahman cannot be the same as the
ānandamaya person described in the Vedas) because the affix maya means
"transformation", (and the Supreme Brahman is not a transformation of ānanda, or
bliss, then I reply by saying that) because the affix maya used here means
"abundance", this interpretation is not correct, (and therefore the word
ānandamaya should be understood to mean "He who is filled with limitless bliss").
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
The word ānandamaya does not mean "he who is a transformation of bliss."
Why? Because the affix maya here means "abundance", and therefore the word
ānandamaya means "He who is filled with limitless bliss." The rules of Sanskrit
grammar state that the affix maya may not be used to mean "transformation" in
vaidika words of more than two syllables. The word ānanda has three syllables, and
therefore when the word ānandamaya appears in the vaidika text of the Taittirīya
Upaniṣad, it cannot be interpreted to mean "he who is a transformation of bliss."
The Supreme Brahman, therefore, is not only free from all suffering, but filled
with limitless bliss. This is confirmed by the following statements of Vedic
scripture:
eṣa sarva-bhūtāntarātmāpahata-pāpmā divyo deva eko nārāyaṇaḥ

"There is one Supreme Personality of Godhead: Lord Nārāyaṇa. He is the
transcendental Supersoul in the hearts of all living entities, and He is completely
free from all sin."
—Subala Upaniṣad
parāḥ parāṇāṁ sakalā na yatra
kleśādayaḥ sānti parāvareśaḥ
"Suffering is not experienced by the Supreme Personality of Godhead."
When the affix maya means "abundance", it also implies the meaning "essential
nature." Therefore, when we use jyotirmaya (full of light) to mean the sun, the
affix maya can also be understood to mean "essential nature". In this way the word
jyotirmaya means "that of which the essential nature is light." In this way the word
ānandamaya may also be interpreted to mean "He whose essential nature is full of
bliss." From all this it may be understood that the word ānandamaya clearly refers
to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It does not refer to the individual spirit
soul.
Sūtra 14
tad-hetu-vyapadeśāc ca
tat—of that; hetu—the origin; vyapadeśāt—because of the statement; ca—also.
Because the Vedic literatures declare that the ānandamaya person is the source
of bliss for others, (it should be understood that the ānandamaya person is the
Supreme Personality of Godhead, and not the individual spirit soul).
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
This is confirmed by the following statement of Taittirīya Upaniṣad (2.7):
ko hy evānyat kaḥ prāṇyāt yady eṣa ākāśa ānando na syāt. eṣa evānandayati.

"Who is that person, without whom the living entities cannot feel happiness?
That is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who delights the individual spirit
souls."
This passage explains that the Supreme Brahman is the origin of happiness for
the individual spirit souls. From this we may understand that the cause of
happiness (the Supreme Personality of Godhead), and the receiver of happiness
(the individual spirit soul) must be different persons. They cannot be indentical.
Therefore the word ānandamaya refers to the Supreme Personality of Godhead
only. We may also note that the word ānanda used in this passage of Taittirīya
Upaniṣad (is identical with the word ānandamaya..
Sūtra 15
mantra-varṇikam eva ca gīyate
mantra—by the mantra portion of the Vedas; varṇikam—described; eva—certainly;
ca—also; gīyate—is described.
(The same Supreme Personality of Godhead) described in the mantra-portion of
the Vedas is also described (as the ānandamaya-person in the text of the Taittirīya
Upaniṣad).
Purport by Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
The same Supreme Brahman described in the Vedic mantra, Satyam jñānam
anantam brahma (the Supreme Brahman has no limits. He is eternal and full of
knowledge), is also described in the Taittirīya Upaniṣad by the word ānandamaya.
In this way the above sūtra explains that the word ānandamaya does not refer to
the individual living entitiy. Further, the Taittirīya Upaniṣad explains:
brahma-vid āpnoti param
"One who understands the Supreme Brahman attains the Supreme Brahman."
This sentence explains that the individual living entity worships the Supreme
Brahman and then attains the association of that Supreme Brahman. This is the
same Supreme Brahman previously described in the mantra, satyam jñānam
anantam brahma. This is the Supreme Brahman described by the word

ānandamaya. This is the Supreme Brahman described in the Taittirīya Upaniṣad in
the passage begining with the words tasmād vā etasmāt. Because the Supreme
Brahman is the object of attainment for the individual spirit soul, and because the
object of attainment and the attainer must be two distinct entities, and they cannot
be identical, therefore the Supreme Brahman and the individual living entities
must be distinct persons, and therefore the word ānandamaya refers only to the
Supreme Personality of Godhead and not to the individual living entites.
At this point someone may raise the following objection: If the Supreme
Brahman described in the Vedic mantras were different from the individual living
entity, then the individual living enitites could not be the ānandamaya person
described in the scriptures. The actual fact is that the Supreme Brahman and the
individual living entities are identical. The Vedic mantras state that when the
individual spirit soul is free from ignorance and liberated from material bondage,
then he become identical with the Supreme Brahman.
To answer this objection, Śrīla Vyāsadeva speaks the following sūtra.
Sūtra 16
netaro 'nupapatteḥ
na—not; itaraḥ—the other; upapatteḥ—because it is illogical.
The other person (individual living entity) is not described (in the mantra
"satyaṁ jñānam anantam brahma"), because such an interpretation of the mantra
is illogical.
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
The itara (other person) mentioned in this sūtra is the individual living entity.
This sūtra, therefore, states that the individual spirit soul, even in the liberated
condition, cannot be the Supremem Person described in the mantra, satyam
jñānam anantam brahma. This is confirmed by the following statement of Vedic
literature:
so 'śnute sarvān kāmān saha brahmaṇā vipaścitā
"The liberated soul enjoys the fulfillment of all his desires in the company of
the omniscient Supreme Brahman."

॥ श्रीब्रह्मसूत्रम् — आनन्दमयाधिकरणम् ॥
पूर्वप्रसङ्गः (सूत्र १६ शेष — श्रीगोविन्दभाष्यम्):
तैत्तिरीयोपनिषदि (२।१।१) "सोऽश्नुते सर्वान् कामान् सह ब्रह्मणा विपश्चिता" इत्यत्र मुक्तजीवस्य परब्रह्मणा सहभावश्रवणात् तयोर्भेदः स्पष्टः।
'विपश्चित्' शब्दस्य व्युत्पत्तिः—विविधं पश्यतीति विपश्चित्; पाणिनिसूत्रेण "पृषोदरादीनि यथोपदिष्टम्" (६।३।१०९) इति रूपसिद्धिः।
अनेन विविधदिव्यानन्दानुभवचतुरेण परब्रह्मणा सह मुक्तजीवः स्वकामान् समश्नुते।
'अश्नुते' इति पदे 'अश भोजने' इत्यस्मात् धातोः परस्मैपदित्वेऽपि "व्यत्ययो बहुलम्" (पाणिनि ३।१।८५) इति छान्दसादात्मनेपदप्रयोगः।
परब्रह्म परमेश्वरः स्वतः परमभोक्ता, जीवश्च तदधीनभोक्ता; तथापि भगवान् स्वभक्तानां माहात्म्यं ख्यापयन् आह—
स्मृति-प्रमाणम् (श्रीमद्भागवतम् ९।४।६३):
वशे कुर्वन्ति मां भक्ताः सत्स्त्रियः सत्पतिं यथा ॥
(यथा साध्व्यः स्त्रियः स्वपतिं वशीकुर्वन्ति, तथा अनन्यभक्ता मां वशीकुर्वन्ति।)
॥ सूत्रम् १७ ॥
भेदव्यपदेशाच्च ॥ १।१।१७ ॥
पदच्छेदः — भेद-व्यपदेशात्, च।
अन्वयः — (जीवात् ब्रह्मणः) भेदव्यपदेशात् च (अयमानन्दमयो न जीवः, अपि तु परं ब्रह्मैव)।
पदविभागार्थः — भेद (जीव-ब्रह्मणोः भेदस्य), व्यपदेशात् (श्रुतिषु प्रतिपादनात्, कथनात्), च (अपि च)।
सूत्रार्थः — श्रुतौ जीव-ब्रह्मणोः परस्परं भेदकथनाद् अपि आनन्दमयः जीवो न भवति, किन्तु ब्रह्मैव।
श्रील-बलदेवविद्याभूषण-विरचितं श्रीगोविन्दभाष्यम्:
तैत्तिरीयोपनिषदि (२।७।१) श्रूयते —
"रसो वै सः। रसं ह्येवायं लब्ध्वानन्दी भवति ॥" इति।
पूर्वपक्षः — विकारप्रवाहे पठितत्वात् आनन्दप्रचुरः संसारी जीव एव आनन्दमयपदेन ग्राह्यः।
सिद्धान्तः — नायं जीवः, कुतः? भेदव्यपदेशात्। अत्र लब्धव्यस्य रसस्वरूपस्य ब्रह्मणः, लब्धुश्च जीवस्य भेदः स्पष्टतया व्यपदिश्यते।
भाष्य-विवरणम् — 'अयम्' इति प्रत्यगात्मा जीवः, 'रसो वै सः' इति तु परमात्मा ब्रह्म; अतः प्राप्य-प्रापकयोः लब्धव्य-लब्ध्रोश्च भेदात् आनन्दमयो ब्रह्मैव।
हिन्दी-अनुवादः:
तैत्तिरीय श्रुति के वचन "सह ब्रह्मणा विपश्चिता" में मुक्त आत्मा और परब्रह्म के मध्य का भेद वर्णित है।
'विपश्चित्' का अर्थ है जो विविध वस्तुओं का साक्षात् दर्शन करता है (पृषोदरादि गण से व्युत्पन्न)।
इस प्रकार मुक्त आत्मा विविध दिव्य आनन्द के भोक्ता भगवान् का सान्निध्य प्राप्त कर अपनी सभी इच्छाओं को पूर्ण करता है।
'अश्नुते' पद में 'अश भोजने' धातु से उपभोग अर्थ है; छान्दस नियम "व्यत्ययो बहुलम्" से यहाँ आत्मनेपद हुआ है।
यद्यपि भगवान् स्वतः परम भोक्ता हैं, फिर भी वे भक्तों के वशीभूत होकर कहते हैं: "जैसे पतिव्रता स्त्री अपने पति को वश में करती है, वैसे भक्त मुझे वश में कर लेते हैं।"
सूत्र १७ हिन्दी-भावार्थ: "भेदव्यपदेशाच्च" — वेद में जीव और ईश्वर का भेद स्पष्ट रूप से बतलाए जाने के कारण आनन्दमय जीव नहीं, बल्कि परब्रह्म है।
उपनिषद्-प्रमाण (तैत्तिरीय २।७।१): "वह परमात्मा ही रस-स्वरूप है; यह जीव उस रस को पाकर ही आनन्दित होता है।"
निष्कर्ष: प्राप्त करने योग्य रस (ब्रह्म) और उसे पाकर आनन्दित होने वाला (जीव) दोनों में भेद होने से आनन्दमय परब्रह्म ही सिद्ध होता है।

"When one understands the Personality of God, the reservoir of pleasure,
Kṛṣṇa, he actually becomes transcendentally blissful."*
This passage clearly shows the difference between the liberated individual spirit
soul and the Supreme Personality of Godhead, whom the Vedic mantras describe
as ānandamaya, and who is the transcendental nectar attained by the individual
spirit soul. This difference is also described in the following statement of Bṛhad-
āraṇyaka Upaniṣad (4.4.6):
brahmaiva san brahmāpnoti
"After becoming Brahman, the individual spirit soul attains Brahman."
This statement does not mean that after liberation the individual spirit soul
becomes non-different from the Supreme Brahman, but rather the liberated soul
becomes similar to Brahman and in this condition meets Brahman and attains His
association. This is confirmed by the folllowing statementof Māṇḍukya Upaniṣad
(3.1.31):
nirañjanaḥ paramaṁ sāmyam upaiti
"This liberated soul becomes like the Supreme Personality of Godhead."
Also, in the Bhagavad-gita (14.2), the Supreme Personality of Godhead declares:
idaṁ jñānam upāśritya
mama sādharmyam āgatāḥ
"By becoming fixed in this knowledge, one can attain to the transcendental
nature, which is like My own nature."*
In this way the Vedic literatures teach us that the liberated souls become like
the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
At this point someone may raise the following objection: Is it not so that the
pradhāna feature of the mode of material goodness (sattva-guṇa) is the actual
origin of the ānandamaya person?
Śrīla Vyāsadeva answers this objection in the following sūtra.
Sūtra 18

सूत्रम्: कामाच्च नानुमानापेक्षा ॥ १८ ॥
पदविभागः एवं शब्दार्थ: कामात् — (परमात्मा की) इच्छा (संकल्प) होने से; च — और; न — नहीं; अनुमान — आनुमानिक (सांख्य-कल्पित प्रधान/प्रकृति) की; अपेक्षा — सम्बन्ध अथवा अपेक्षा।
सूत्रार्थ: आनन्दमय पुरुष प्रकृति या सत्त्वगुण का विकार (प्रधान) नहीं हो सकता; क्योंकि प्रधान अचेतन और इच्छारहित है, जबकि आनन्दमय परमेश्वर संकल्प अथवा कामना से युक्त है।
श्रील बलदेव विद्याभूषणकृत गोविन्दभाष्य-तात्पर्य:
तैत्तिरीयोपनिषद् में कहा गया है —
श्रुति-वाक्य: «सोऽकामयत बहु स्यां प्रजायेयेति»
हिन्दी अनुवाद: "उस परम पुरुष (आनन्दमय) ने संकल्प (इच्छा) किया — 'मैं बहुत हो जाऊँ, मैं विविध रूपों में उत्पन्न होऊँ'।"
इस प्रकार श्रुति-शास्त्र यह प्रतिपादित करता है कि इस विश्व-ब्रह्माण्ड की सृष्टि आनन्दमय परम पुरुष की इच्छा से हुई है।
चूंकि वह आनन्दमय पुरुष इस प्रकार संकल्प-इच्छा से पूर्ण है, अतः जड़, अचेतन तथा इच्छारहित 'प्रधान' (प्रकृति का सत्त्वगुण) वह आनन्दमय पुरुष कदापि नहीं हो सकता।
सूत्र १९: अस्मिन्नस्य च तद्योगं शास्ति ॥ १९ ॥
पदविभागः एवं शब्दार्थ: अस्मिन् — इस आनन्दमय पुरुष (परमात्मा) में; अस्य — इस (जीवात्मा) का; च — भी; तत्-योगम् — उस (अभय/आनन्द) के सम्बन्ध (योग) को; शास्ति — श्रुति-शास्त्र उपदेश देता है।
सूत्रार्थ एवं व्याख्या: आनन्दमय पुरुष प्रधान अथवा प्रकृति से सम्भूत नहीं हो सकता; क्योंकि श्रुति-शास्त्र यह उपदेश करता है कि इस आनन्दमय परमात्मा के साथ सम्बद्ध (युक्त) होने पर ही जीवात्मा को अभय (और आनन्द) की प्राप्ति होती है।

Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
The śruti-śāstra teaches that by taking shelter of the ānandamaya person, the
individual spirit soul attains fearlessness, and by declining to take shelter of Him,
the soul becomes plagued with fears. This confirmed by the Taittirīya Upaniṣad
(2.7.2) in the passage beginning with the words yadā hy eva.
On the other hand, contact with the material nature brings fear to the
individual spirit souls. The material nature does not bring a condition of
fearlessness to the living entities, and for this reason it is not possible that the
pradhāna mode of material goodness is the ānandamaya person. Therefore, the
ānandamaya person is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hari. The ānandamaya
person is not the individual spirit soul or the material nature.
Adhikaraṇa 7
The Nature of the Person Within

1. Viṣaya (Statement): The Chāndogya Upaniṣad explains:
   atha yā so 'ntar ādityo hiraṇmayaḥ puruṣo dṛśyate hiraṇya-śmaśrur hiraṇya-keśa
   aprāṇakhāt sarva eva suvarṇas tasya yathā kapyāsaṁ puṇḍarīkam evam ak\śiṇi
   tasyodeti nāma sa eṣa sarvebhyaḥ pāpmābhyaḥ udita udeti hā vai sarvebhyaḥ
   pāpmābhyo ya evaṁ veda tasya ṛk sāma ca gesnau tasmād udīgīthas tasmāt tv
   evodgataitasya hi gāthā sa eṣa ye cāmuṣmat parañco lokas teṣāṁ ceṣṭe deva-kāmānāṁ
   cety adhidaivatam. . . athādhyātmam atha ya eṣo 'ntar-ak\śiṇi puruṣo dṛśyate saiva ṛk
   tat sāma tad ukthaṁ tad yajus tad brahma tasyaitasya tad eva rūpaṁ yad amuṣya
   rūpam. yāv amuṣya gesnau tau gesnau yan nāma tan nāma.
   "Within the sun-globe is a golden person, with golden hair, a golden beard, and
   a body golden from His fingernails to all His limbs. His eyes are like lotus flowers.
   He is above all sin. One who understands Him also becomes situated above all sin.
   The Ṛg and Sāma Vedas sing His glories. From Him the highest spiritual planets,
   where the demigods desire to go, have become manifested. This is the golden
   person present among the demigods. . . Now I shall describe the person within the
   human mind and heart. Within the eyes a wonderful person may be seen. The Ṛg,
   Sāma, and Yajur Vedas glorify Him. He is identical with the golden person who
   resides in the sun."
2. Saṁśaya (doubt): "Is this an individual spirit soul who by great piety and
   spiritual knowledge has attained this exalted position, or is this the Supreme
   Personality of Godhead, who appears as the all-pervading Supersoul?"
3. Pūrvapakṣa (the opposing argument): Because this person has a form and
   various humanlike features, He must be a pious spirit soul. By his piety and

spiritual knowledge he has become able to become the great controller of
demigods and human beings, who fulfills their desires, and grants them the results
of thier actions.
4. Siddhānta (Conclusion): Śrīla Vyāsadeva addresses these views in the
following sūtra.
Sūtra 20
antas tad-dharmopadeśāt
antaḥ—within; tat—of Him; dharma—nature; upadeśāt' because of the instruction.
The person within (the sun and the eye is the Supreme Personality of Godhead),
because the Vedic literatures explain that His nature fits the description of the Lord.
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
The person within the sun and the eye is the Supreme Personality of Godhead,
who is present everywhere as the Supersoul. This person is not the individual
spirit soul. Why? Because the Vedic literatures describe Him as being sinless and
possessing all the qualities of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. For example,
He is free from all sin and all karma. The slightest fragrance of karma cannot touch
Him. This is not possible for the individual spirit souls, who remain subject to the
laws of karma. In many other ways also the individual spirit soul does not fit the
description of this perosn within the sun and the eye. For example: the individual
spirit soul is not the fulfiller of the desires of the living entities, nor is he the
awarder of the fruits of action, nor is he the object of the worship of the living
entities.
At this point someone may raise the following objection: Because the person
within the sun and the eye is described as having a body, therefore He must be an
individual spirit soul, for the Supreme Brahman has no body.
To this objection I reply: This is not necessarily so. The puruṣa-sūkta prayers
(Ṛg Veda 10.90) and many other Vedic verses describe the transcendental body of
the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad also describes the
Supreme Lord's transcendental body in the following words:
vedhāham etaṁ puruṣaṁ mahāntam
āditya-varṇaṁ tamasaḥ parastāt

"I know that Supreme Personality of Godhead, whose form is transcendental to
all material conceptions of darkness."*
Sūtra 21
bheda-vyapadeśāc cānyaḥ
bheda—difference; vyapadeśāt—because of the statement; ca—also; anyaḥ—
another.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead is different from the individual spirit soul
because this doctrine is taught in all Vedic literatures.
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
The golden person within the sun is not the individual spirit soul who is the
solar diety and who thinks the sun-planet is his own body, but rather that golden
person is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Supersoul who is present in
every atom. This is confirmed by the following statement of the Bṛhad-āraṇyaka
Upaniṣad:
ya āditye tiṣṭhann ādityād antaro yam ādityo
na veda yasyādityaḥ śarīraṁ ya ādityam antaro
yamayaty eṣa ta ātmāntaryāmy amṛtaḥ
"That person situated within the sun, who is not the sun-god, whom the sun-
god does not know, who manifests the sun-planet as His own body, who controls
the sun-planet from within, that person is the immortal Supreme Personality of
Godhead, who is present within the heart of every living entity as the Supersoul."
From this description we may understand that the golden person within the
sun is not the individual spirit soul who is the sun-god, but the Supreme
Personality of Godhead. Both this passage and the previous quoted passage from
the Chāndogya Upaniṣad agree on this point.
Adhikarana 8
The Word "Ākāśa" Refers to Brahman

1. Viṣaya (Statement): The Chāndogya Upaniṣad states:
   asya lokasya kā gatir iti ākāśa iti hovāca
   sarvāṇi ha vā imāni bhūtāny ākāśād eva
   samutpadyante. ākāśaṁ pratyastaṁ yānty ākāśaḥ
   parāyaṇam iti.
   "He asked: What is the ultimate destination of all living entities? He replied:
   Ākāśa is the ultimate destination. All living entities and all material elements have
   emanated from ākāśa, and they will again enter into ākāśa."
2. Saṁśaya (doubt): What is the meaning of the word ākāśa here? Does it mean
   the element ether, or does it mean the Supreme Brahman?
3. Pūrvapakṣa (the opposing argument): The word ākāśa here means "the
   element ether", because air and the other elements evolve from it. Indeed, ether is
   the origin of all the other elements.
4. Siddhānta (Conclusion): Śrīla Vyāsadeva refutes this argument in the
   following sūtra.
   Sūtra 22
   ākāśas tal-liṅgāt
   ākāśaḥ—the word ākāśa; tat—of Him; liṅgāt—because of the qualities.
   The word "ākāśa" in the Vedic literature refers to the Supreme Brahman, for the
   description of "ākāśa" aptly fits the description of the qualities of Brahman.
   Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
   The word ākāśa here refers to Brahman and not the material element ether.
   Why? Because the ākāśa described here has alll the characteristics of Brahman.
   The ākāśa described here is the source from which the material elements emanate,
   the maintainer who sustains them, and the ultimate refuge into which they enter at
   the time of comsic annihilation. That is Brahman. The scriptures explain: sarvāṇi
   ha vā imāni bhūtāni (All material elements have emanated from ākāśa). Because
   ether is one of the material elements, it is included in the word sarvāṇi (all the
   elements). It is not the independent origin of the causal chain, but merely one of

the links. For this reason it cannot be the ākāśa that is the source of all the
elements (including ether). The use of the word eva (certainly) in this context
reinforces the interpretation that ākāśa refers to Brahman because eva implies
"there is no other cause". For this reason ākāśa cannot refer to the material
element ether. For example, clay is the origin from which clay pots are produced,
and other material substances are the origins of other objects, but all these
"origins" are not primal origins, but merely intermediate steps in a great causal
chain. By using the word eva (the sole cause) the text clearly refers to the primal,
uncaused cause, Brahman, and not ether or any other particular intermediate stage
in the causal chain. The Vedic literatures describe Brahman as the master of all
potencies and the source of all forms, and therefore, because the ākāśa is described
(eva) as the "sole cause", it can refer only to the primal cause Brahman and not the
material element ether. Although the word ākāśa generally means "ether" in
ordinary usage, in this context the secondary meaning "Brahman" is far more
appropriate.
Adhikaraṇa 9
The Word "Prāṇa" Refers to Brahman

1. Viṣaya (Statement): The Chāndogya Upaniṣad explains:
   katama sa devateti. prāṇa iti hovāca. sarvāṇi hā vai imāni bhūtāni prāṇam
   evābhisamviśanti prāṇam abhyujjīhate.
   "They asked: Who is this deity of whom you speak? He replied: It is prāṇa.
   From prāṇa all the material elements have emanated, and into prāṇa they enter at
   the end."
2. Saṁśaya (doubt): Does the word prāṇahere refer to the breath that travels in
   and out of the mouth, or does it refer to the Supreme Personality of Godhead?
3. Pūrvapakṣa (opposing argument): The ordinary meaning of the word prāṇa is
   "the breath that travels in and out the mouth." That meaning is intended here.
4. Siddhānta (Conclusion): Śrīla Vyāsadeva refutes this view by speaking the
   following sūtra.
   Sūtra 23
   ata eva prāṇaḥ
   ataḥ eva—therefore; prāṇaḥ—the word prāṇa.

The word "prāṇa" in the Vedic literatures refers to the Supreme Brahman, for
the same reasons expressed in the previous sūtra.
Purport by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
The word prāṇa in this passage from Chāndogya Upaniṣad refers to the Supreme
Personality of Godhead, and not to the transformations of air. Why? Because this
text describes prāṇa as the original cause from which the material elements have
emanated, and into which they enter at the end. These are the characteristics of the
Supreme Brahman, and not the material element air.
Adhikarana 10
The Word "Jyotis" Refers to Brahman
Introduction by Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa
The Chāndogya Upaniṣad (3.13.7) states:
atha yad ataḥ paro divo jyotir dīpyate viśvataḥ pṛṣṭheṣu sarvataḥ pṛṣṭheṣv
anuttameṣūttameṣu lokeṣu idaṁ vāva tad yad idam asminn antaḥ puruṣe jyotiḥ
"Jyotis shines in the spiritual world, above all the material planets. Jyotis forms
the background on which all material universes and all material planets, from
lowest to highest, rest. This jyotis is present in the heart of every living being."
2. Saṁśaya (doubt): What is the jyotis described here? Is it the light of the sun
and other luminous objects, or is it the Supreme Brahman?
3.Pūrvapakṣa (the opposing argument): Because there is no mention of
Brahman in this passage, the word jyotis in this text must refer to the light of the
sun and other luminous objects.
4. Siddhānta (Conclusion): Śrīla Vyāsadeva replies in the following sūtra.
Sūtra 24
jyotiś-caraṇābhidhānāt