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

[sū. 1. 1. 1. ADH. 1 ] VEDĀNTA-KAUSTUBHA 11 Salvation means attaining the nature of the Lord, resulting from the cessation of the bondage of matter in its causal ¹ and effected forms,² as known from the scriptural text: ‘Having attained the form of supreme light, he is completed in his own form” (Chānd. 8 3.4 ; 8.12.2, 3); as well as from the aphorisms ‘Because release is taught of him who takes his stand upon it’ (Br. Sū. 1.1.7), ‘And (Scripture) teaches in it the union of this with that’ (Br Sū 1.1.20) and so on, and from the Smṛti passage, viz : ‘The attainment of the Lord, characterized by a feeling of unsurpassed joy and happiness, exclusive and absolute, is supposed to be an antidote (to the disease of transmigratory existence)’, ‘ “Many people, purified by the penance of knowledge have come to attain my nature” ’ (Gītā 4.10) and so on. The word ‘nature’ ³ has been explained by the Lord Himself in the passage ‘ “Resorting to this knowledge, they have come to have similarity with me” ’ (Gītā 14.2). This we shall expound more clearly in the chapter dealing with the fruit.⁴ Then, in answer to the enquiry :—Of what nature is the individual, desiring salvation ? Of what nature is his bondage ?—the scriptural truth is being considered now, in order that those who desire for salvation may have an easy access to Scripture. Now, there are three kinds of reality, distinguished as the sentient, the non-sentient and Brahman, because in the aphorisms as well, a trinity of reals has been mentioned, viz. the object to be enquired into (i.e. Brahman), the enquirer (i.e. the sentient), and māyā (i.e. the non-sentient) which consists in the three guṇas and is the original cause of his (viz. the enquirer's) nescience, as otherwise the very enquiry will be impossible; and also because of the following scriptural and Smṛti texts, viz. ‘By knowing the enjoyer, the object enjoyed and the Mover, everything has been said. This is the three-fold Brahman’ (Śvet. 1.21). ‘Perishable are all beings, the changeless is called the Imperishable’ (Gītā 15.16), ‘But the Highest Person is another, declared to be the supreme self’ (Gītā 15.17) and so on. Among these, the sentient substance is different from the class of non-sentient substances; is of the nature of knowledge; possessed of the attributes of being a knower, being an agent and so on, of the ¹ I.e. pradhāna, the primal matter. ² I.e. the body, an effect of pradhāna. ³ Bhāva. ⁴ Viz. the fourth chapter.