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

[sū. 1. 2 25. ADH 7.] VEDĀNTA-KAUSTUBHA 133 this food that is eaten is digested. Its noise is that which one hears on covering the ears. When one is on the point of departing one does not hear this sound' (Bṛh 5 9 1); because it is applied also to the elemental fire, as in the passage: 'For the whole world, the gods made Agni Vaiśvānara a sign of the day' (Ṛg. V. 10.88.12 ¹); because it is applied to the fire-god too, as in the passage: 'May we be in the favour of Vaiśvānara, for verily, he is the king of the worlds, bliss, lustrous' (Ṛg V 1.98.1 ²); and because it is applied to the Highest Self, as in the passages 'He threw it in the self, indeed, in the heart, in Agni Vaiśvānara' (Tait. Br 3 1 8 7 ³). 'This Vaiśvā- nara arises as having all forms, as the vital-breath, as fire' (Praśna 1 7) With regard to it, we reply: Vaiśvānara is the Highest Person alone. Why? "On account of the distinctive attributes of the common word", i e because there are distinctive attributes for taking the common term 'Vaiśvānara',—applied, equally, to the gastric fire, the elemental fire, the fire-god and the Highest Self,—as denoting specifically the Highest Self alone. The sense is that the distinctive attributes by reason of which the Highest Person alone may be taken as the primary meaning of the word 'Vaiśvānara', are present here, as we know them from the text: 'Of this Vaiśvānara Self, the head indeed is the brightly shining (heaven)' (Chānd. 5 18 2) and so on. Hence, the word 'Vaiśvānara', though commonly applicable to all (the four), here denotes the Highest Self (alone), on account of such distinctive attributes. The gastric fire and the rest cannot possibly have limbs, like the heaven, and the rest down to the earth,—since they are not the soul of all, and since in this section, the common term is qualified by the special attributes of the Lord, such as, 'being the soul of all' and the rest, mentioned in the introductory text: " 'Who is our soul? What is Brahman?'" (Chānd. 5.11.1). 1 P. 347, lines 7-8 2 P 81, lines 3-4. 3 P. 265, lines 3-4, (vol 3). Correct quotation: 'Tad . . . hṛdaye agnau vaiśvānare prāsyat'.