Sri Vedanta-sutra, Part 107
BY: SUN STAFF
Jun 18, 2021 — CANADA (SUN) — Sri Vedanta-sutra - Volume Six by Srila Baladeva Vidyabhushana, Translated by Sriman Kusakratha dasa.
Adhikarana 11
The Supreme Personality of Godhead Protects and Maintains the Nirapeksha Devotee
Introduction by Srila Baladeva Vidyabhushana
In the previous passages the nirapeksha devotees disinterest in the pleasures available in Brahmaloka and the other higher worlds was described. Now will be described the nirapeksha devotees' disinterest in the pleasures presently available in this world. In the Taittiriya Aranyaka (3.14.1) it is said:
bharta san bhriyamanam bibharti
"The Supreme Lord maintains His devotees."
Samsaya (doubt): Does the Supreme Personality of Godhead personally maintain the nirapeksha devotees, or must the devotees struggle to maintain themselves?
Purvapaksha (the opponent speaks): The Lord does not maintain His devotees. The devotees must struggle to maintain themselves.
Siddhanta (conclusion): In the following words the author of the sutras gives His conclusion.
Sutra 44
svaminah phala-sruter ity atreyah
From the Lord come results, for that is heard in the Sruti-sastra. That is Dattatreya's opinion.
Purport by Srila Baladeva Vidyabhushana
The bodily needs of the devotee are supplied by the Supreme Personality of Godhead (svaminah). Why is that? The sutra explains, "phala-sruteh" (for that is heard in the Sruti-sastra). In Taittiriya Aranyaka (3.14.1) the Supreme Personality of Godhead is described as the maintainer of the devotees. This is also the opinion of Dattatreya Muni. In Bhagavad-gita (9.22), Lord Krishna Himself declares:
ananyas cintayanto mam
ye janah paryupasate
tesham nityabhiyuktanam
yoga-kshemam vahamy aham
"But those who always worship Me with exclusive devotion, meditating on My transcendental form, to them I carry what they lack, and I preserve what they have."*
In the Padma Purana it is said:
darsana-dhyana-samsparsair
matsya-kurma-vihangamah
svany apatyani pushnanti
tathaham api padmaja
"By vision, by meditation, and by touch only do the fish, the tortoise, and the birds maintain their offspring. So do I also, O Padmaja."*
The devotees do not wish to trouble the Lord for their maintenance. Still, because the Lord's every desire is automatically fulfilled, He maintains His devotees without any trouble on His part. Thus, when the devotees serve the Lord they are automatically maintained by the Lord. This is explained in Taittiriya Aranyaka (3.14.1).
In the next sutra the author gives an example to show that the Lord is determined to maintain His devotees.
Sutra 45
artvijyam ity audulomis tasmai hi parikriyate
Audulomi says He is like a ritvik priest. He sells Himself for that.
Purport by Srila Baladeva Vidyabhushana
The word "iti" is used in the sense of similarity. Thus the Supreme Personality of Godhead acts like a ritvik priest, for the Lord maintains the nirapeksha devotees. Because He has been purchased by their devotional service, the Lord fulfills the bodily needs of His devotees. In the Vishnu-dharma it is said:
tulasi-dala-matrena
jalasya culukena ca
vikrinite svam atmanam
bhaktebhyo bhakta-vatsalah
"The Supreme Personality of Godhead, who dearly loves His devotees, sells Himself to them in exchange for a tulasi leaf and palmful of water."
The ritvik priests are purchased for a certain task by the yajamana's payment of dakshina. Being an impersonalist, Audulomi equates devotional service with buying and selling. For these reasons the nirapekshas are the best of the devotees.
Sutra 46
srutes ca
From the Sruti-sastra also.
Purport by Srila Baladeva Vidyabhushana
In the performance of yajna the ritvik priest gives his blessing to the performer of the yajna (yajamana). In the Chandogya Upanishad (1.7.8-9) it is also said:
tasmad u haivam-vid udgata bruyat kam te kamam agayani
"Then the learned udgata priest says: Of what desire shall I sing?"
In this way the ritvik priest gives the result of the yajna to the yajamana. As the ritvik priest thus maintains the yajamana, so the Supreme Personality of Godhead maintains His devotee.
