वेदान्त पारिजात सौरभ (भगवद् निम्बार्काचार्य - द्वैताद्वैत वेदान्त ब्रह्मसूत्र भाष्य सटीक)

[sū. 4. 3. 2.
ADH. 2.] VEDĀNTA-KAUSTUBHA 839
or immediately after the year, the stage which is indicated above, and
before the sun. If it be suggested On the ground of the order of
textual sequence. "Having reached this path of gods, he comes to the
world of fire to the world of air" (Kauṣ 1.3), as well as the proximity
between the effect and the cause ¹ being reasonable, the knower goes
to the air immediately after fire,—
We reply: "To the air from the fire". The knower enters the
air immediately after the year and before the sun. Why? "On
account of non-specification and specification." Although in the
Kauṣītakī-text· "He comes to the world of fire, to the world of air"
(Kauṣ. 1.3), the air is mentioned immediately after the fire, yet the
priority or posteriority of the air in the successive order of progress
is not specifically known therefrom, but the air is taught non-speci-
fically. Just as from the statement: 'A student, having come out of
the house of the teacher, goes to the house of Caitra, to the house of
Maitra to ask for alms', no specific order can be ascertained, viz that
he goes to the house of Maitra immediately after the house of Caitra,—
so is the case here. On the other hand, in the Bṛhadāraṇyaka-text:
"When, verily, a person departs from this world, he comes to the air.
There it makes way for him like hole of a chariot-wheel. Through it
ascends higher up. He comes to the sun" (Bṛh. 5.10.1), the air is
taught specifically as prior to the sun. On account of these non-
specification and specification—this is the sense.²
The words 'world of gods', mentioned in the Bṛhadāraṇyaka-
text quoted above, mean 'air', i e. the world or the dwelling place of
gods (viz. air). The compound 'world of air', mentioned in the
Kauṣītakī-text, is to be explained as a Karmadhāraya ³, since it has
been said by the author of the aphorisms too: "To the air from the
year", and since there is the scriptural statement· "He comes to the
air" (Bṛh. 5.10 1). The air can be appropriately viewed as a world,
since it is the dwelling-place of gods, in accordance with the scriptural
text: "He who blows is, forsooth, the cave of gods". Hence it is
¹ I.e fire arises from air. Vide Br Sū. 2.3.7.
² Thus, secondly, we get the following order, light, day, bright fortnight,
the six months of the northern progress of the sun, year, world of gods, air, sun.
This explains away the apparent inconsistency between Bṛh. 6.2 15, Chānd.
4.15.5, Bṛh 5.10.1, and Kauṣ. 1.3. The words 'world of fire' in Kauṣ. 1.3
means light It will be shown just below that the world of gods = air.
³ That is, 'world of air'= the world that is air = air.