________________
348
VEDÂNTA-SOTRAS.
stands in the middle of the Self' (II, 4, 12), and the passage.The Person of the size of a thumb, the inner Self' (II, 6, 17), we meet with the text whatever there is, the whole world, when gone forth, trembles in its breath. A great terror, a raised thunderbolt ; those who knew it became immortal. From fear of it fire burns, from fear the sun shines, from fear Indra and Väyu, and Death as the fifth run away' (II, 6, 2; 3). This text declares that the whole world and Agni, Sarya, and so on, abiding within that Person of the size of a thumb, who is here designated by the term 'breath,' and going forth froin him, tremble from their great fear of him.
What will happen to us if we transgress his commandments ? '--thinking thus the whole world trembles on account of great fear, as if it were a raised thunderbolt. In this explanation we take the clause "A great fear, a raised thunderbolt,' in the sense of '(the world trembles) from great fear,' &c., as it is clearly connected in meaning with the following clause : 'from fear the fire burns,' &c.Now what is described here is the nature of the highest Brahman; for that such power belongs to Brahman only we know from other texts, viz. : 'By the command of that Imperishable, O Gârgi, sun and moon stand apart' (Bri. Up. III, 8, 9); and 'From fear of it the wind blows, from fear the sun rises; from fear of it Agni and Indra, yea Death runs as the fifth' (Taitt. Up. II, 8, 1). — The next Sätra supplies a further reason.
41. On account of light being seen (declared in the text).
Between the two texts referring to the Person of the size of a thumb, there is a text declaring that to that Person there belongs light that obscures all other light, and is the cause and assistance of all other light; and such light is characteristic of Brahman only. The sun does not shine there, nor the moon and the stars, nor these lightnings, and much less this fire. After him, the shining one, everything shines; by his light all this is lighted' (Ka. Up. II, 5, 15). This very same sloka is read in the Atharvana (i.e.
Digitized by
Digized by Google