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I ADHYAYA, 3 PÂDA, 39.
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held, since knowledge in all cases brings about its fruit. Smriti, moreover, declares that all the four castes are qualified for acquiring the knowledge of the itihâsas and purânas; compare the passage, 'He is to teach the four castes' (Mahâbh.).—It remains, however, a settled point that they do not possess any such qualification with regard to the Veda.
39. (The prâna is Brahman), on account of the trembling (predicated of the whole world).
The discussion of qualification for Brahma-knowledgeon which we entered as an opportunity offered—being finished we return to our chief topic, i.e. the enquiry into the purport of the Vedânta-texts. We read (Ka. Up. II, 6,2), 'Whatever there is, the whole world when gone forth trembles in the prâna. It (the prâna) is a great terror, a raised thunderbolt. Those who know it become immortal".'
-This passage declares that this whole world trembles, abiding in prâna, and that there is raised something very terrible, called a thunderbolt, and that through its knowledge inmortality is obtained. But as it is not immediately clear what the prâna is, and what that terrible thunderbolt, a discussion arises.
The pûrvapakshin maintains that, in accordance with the ordinary meaning of the term, prâna denotes the air with its five modifications, that the word 'thunderbolt' also is to be taken in its ordinary sense, and that thus the whole passage contains a glorification of air. For, he says, this whole world trembles, abiding within air with its five forms --which is here called prâna-and the terrible thunderbolts also spring from air (or wind) as their cause. For in the air, people say, when it manifests itself in the form of Parganya, lightning, thunder, rain, and thunderbolts manifest themselves.-Through the knowledge of that air immortality
As the words stand in the original they might be translated as follows (and are so translated by the purvapakshin), Whatever there is, the whole world trembles in the prâna, there goes forth (from it) a great terror, viz. the raised thunderbolt.'
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