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

[SŪ. 4. 1. 1. 782 VEDĀNTA-PĀRIJĀTA-SAURABHA ADH. 1.] The doubt is as to whether the means leading to a direct vision of Brahman, mentioned in scriptural texts like: "‘ "O ! the self is to be seen, to be heard, to be thought, to be meditated on. ‘It is to be sought for, it is to be enquired into’ " ’ (Bṛh. 2.4.5, 4.5.6), "Knowing him alone, one passes beyond death, there is no other way to salvation" (Śvet. 3.8, 6.15), "The knower of Brahmar attains the highest" (Tait. 2.1) and so on, are to be practised once, or are to be repeated more than once. With regard to it, the prima facie view is that they are to be performed once, there being no evidence for a repetition more than once. With regard to this, we reply: "Repetition", i.e. there must be a repetition, more than once, of the means leading to a direct vision of Brahman. Why? "On account of teaching," i.e. on account of the teaching of meditation, the means to a direct vision of Brahman, which teaching is preceded by that of hearing of and reflecting on the scriptural texts. The purport is this: The real knowledge of the meaning of texts cannot be attained, through a mere hearing of the scriptural texts only once, even on the part of men like Śvetaketu, the meaning of the Vedānta-texts being very difficult to be under- stood; otherwise, the repetition of the text: "Thou art that" (Chānd. 6.8.7, etc. 1) would have been meaningless. For this very reason, texts like: "Whom they do not know, though hearing" (Kaṭha 2.7 2) and so on are not without meaning. For this very reason, considering that no understanding of the meaning of the Vedānta-texts is possible through a mere hearing of those texts in accordance with the injunc- tion about Vedic study, His Holiness composed this treatise. Thus, in the text: "‘ "O ! the self is to be seen’ " ’ (Bṛh. 2.4.5, 4.5.6) the teaching: 'to be heard', aiming at a direct vision of Brahman, indicates that there is hearing more than once. If the direct vision of Brahman be attainable through a mere hearing of the scriptural texts about Brahman, celebrated in the passages: "From whom, verily, all these beings arise" (Tait. 3.1), "Brahman is truth, knowledge, infinite" (Tait. 2.1) and so on, then the teaching "should be heard" (Bṛh. 2.4.5, 4.5.6) becomes futile. Exactly similar is the teaching: "Should be thought" (Bṛh. 2.4.5, 4.5.6), i.e. the teaching about thinking which means 1 Repeated nine times. Vide Chānd. 6.8.7 ff. 2 Correct quotation: "Śṛṇvanto' pi vahavo yaṃ na vidyuḥ". Vide Kaṭha, pp. 35-36.