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

[sū. 2. 1. 27. ADH. 9.] VEDĀNTA-KAUSTUBHA 311 The second "and" ("ca") is indicative of 'how much more'? (i e. obviousness).¹ To begin with, the forms of swans and the rest, assumed by indivi- dual souls, are well-known in Scripture.² The following Smṛti passages are indicative of the power of the king of gods: 'Now he changes into those particular forms repeatedly. He becomes a bearer of the crest and the thunder-bolt, armed with a bow, and wearing the ear-rings, then in an instant, he comes to look like a Caṇḍāla ³ Then, again, my son, he comes to be clad in bark, with a tuft of hair on the top of his head and matted hair Then he comes to have a large body, becomes fine, likewise stout or thin. Again he changes himself as fair, dark, likewise black, ugly or hand- some, likewise young or old; learned, dull or ignorant, likewise short or long. Then the performer of a hundred sacrifices becomes a high caste or a low caste. He assumes the forms of a parrot or a crow, man or cuckoo, and again assumes the forms of a lion, a tiger or an elephant', and so on The Smṛti passages concerned with power of the sun are as follows: 'The abode of many wonders is the revered Sun, from whom arise all beings, honoured in the three worlds', and so on. Similarly, the creative power of other gods may be known from Scripture itself. The following Smṛti passage is indicative of the power of gods: 'They may make a non-god god, and a god non-god When incensed, they may create rulers of worlds and other worlds'. The following Smṛti passage designates the power Cyavana: 'O, the power of the Brahma-sage Cyavana, the great-soul! The ascetic can create other worlds, simply by wishing, through the power of austerities'. The following Smṛti texts refer to the power of Vasiṣṭha's cow, viz. 'The cow, with her head and neck raised, look terrific, her eyes reddened with anger, and lowing repeatedly. Her body, blazing with anger, shone like mid-day sun. The cow created the Palhavas from her tail in great frequency in the form of the piling up of the ¹ I.e if individual souls are capable of assuming various forms without themselves undergoing modifications, how much more so this must be the case with the Lord, the omnipotent Being. Kaimutyaka-nyāya. ² Vide, e.g. Chānd. 4 1.2, where certain divine sages are said to have assumed the form of swans. For fuller account of this story see V.K. 1.3.34. ³ An outcaste, born from a Śūdra father and a Brāhmaṇa mother.