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

[SŪ. 1. 1. 1. 6 VEDĀNTA-KAUSTUBHA ADH. 1.] that the knowledge of Brahman has a fruit which is unsurpassed and endless is ascertained from the following scriptural and Smṛti passages : ‘Knowing him alone, one surpasses death, there is no other road to salvation’ (Śvet. 3 8.), ‘When men will roll up the sky like a piece of leather, then there will be an end of misery, (even) without knowing the Deity’ ¹ (Śvet. 6.20), ‘Knowing the Deity, they are free from all fetters’ (Śvet. 1.8; 2 15), ‘He who, having searched the self, knows it, attains all the worlds and all objects of desires’ (Chānd. 8.7 1.3), ‘The person, of the size of a thumb only, abides in the self’ (Katha 4.12), ‘Knowing him one surpasses death, there is no other path to salvation’, ‘ “Many people, purified by the penance of knowledge, have come to be of my nature” ’ (Gītā 4.10), ‘He who possesses knowledge attains me’ (Gītā 7.19), ‘ “Knowing me one attains peace” ’ (Gītā 5.20) and so on; and, finally, because we find that one who is unacquainted with the self has been censured in Scripture as a wretched fellow and a self-killer, in the passages : ‘Verily he who, O Gārgī, departs from this world, without knowing this Imperishable, is a vile and wretched creature’ (Bṛh. 3.18.10) ; ‘Those worlds are said to be sunless, surrounded by blind darkness. To them they go, after death, whosoever are destroyers of the self.’ (Īśā. 3) and so on.² Anticipating the question: By whom (is this enquiry to be undertaken) ? (we reply) : By one, who has grown indifferent to the fruits of works and so on because of those reasons (stated above); who, on hearing that the direct vision of the Lord is the special cause of salvation, has come to be seized with a strong inclination to have such a direct vision, which inclination is generated by proper discrimination, itself generated through it (viz. hearing); who is desirous of the grace of the Highest Person alone; who looks upon the spiritual preceptor as the only God; who has approached the spiritual teacher; who has whole- hearted devotion for the spiritual teacher; and who is desirous of final ¹ I.e. When the impossible will be possible, the sense being that the knowledge of Brahman is the only means of putting an end to miseries. ² That is, the enquiry into Brahman is to be undertaken because of three reasons, viz. : (1) because the fruits of works are not lasting and unsurpassed, (2) because the knowledge of Brahman leads to infinite bliss, i.e. salvation, and (3) because those who do not know Brahman, their self, are censured as worthless creatures. The word “atah” (=therefore) in the sūtra implies these three reasons.