Brahma-Sūtra 3.3.47 (correct conclusion, continued)

English of translation of Brahmasutra 3.3.47 by Roma Bose:

“And on account of the greater force of direct scriptural statement and the rest, (there is) no setting aside.”

Nimbārka’s commentary (Vedānta-pārijāta-saurabha):

“On account of the greater force” of the direct scriptural statement”, viz.: “For they are piled up by the mind alone” (Śatapatha-brāhmaṇa 10.5.3, 12^[1]); of the indicatory mark; “All beings at all times pile up (those fires) for him who knows thus, even while he sleeps” (Śatapatha-brāhmaṇa 10.5.3, 12^[2]); and of the syntactical connection: “For through knowledge alone these are piled up for one who knows thus” (Śatapatha-brāhmaṇa 10.5.3, 12^[3]), there is “no setting aside” of the fact that these fires are subsidiary parts of a sacrifice consisting in meditation.

Śrīnivāsa’s commentary (Vedānta-kaustubha)

To the objection, viz. to say that those fires piled up by the mind and so on are here subsidiary parts of a sacrifice consisting in meditation, does not stand to reason. As in the text: “With mind they were placed” (Śatapatha-brāhmaṇa 10.5.3, 3) there is no mention of an injunctive word, and as we do not perceive their connection with a fruit, so the fact of their being subsidiary parts of a sacrifice consisting in meditation is set aside by the context, concerned with a sacrifice consisting in action, and suggested to the mind by fires piled up by bricks—(the author) replies:

There is “no setting aside”, by the context, of the fact of their being subsidiary parts of a sacrifice consisting in meditation. Why? “On account of the greater force of direct scriptural statement and the rest” than the context. By the words “and the rest”, indicatory mark and syntactical connection are to be understood. The direct scriptural text is: “For these are piled up by knowledge alone” (Śatapatha-brāhmaṇa 10.5.3, 12). The indicatory mark is: “All beings at all times pile up these for him who knows thus, even while he sleeps” (Śatapatha-brāhmaṇa 10.5.3, 12). The syntactical connection is: “For by knowledge alone these are piled up for one who knows thus” (Śatapatha-brāhmaṇa 10.5.3,12).

Comparative views of Baladeva:

This is sūtra 50 in his commentary. Here he concludes the section about vidyā being the only means to salvation. It may be objected that some texts speak of karma as the means to salvation, while some texts again speak of the combination of karma and vidyā as such a means. The answer is: “And on account of the greater force of Scripture and so on (there is) no setting aside (of our view).” That is, the scriptural texts quoted by us in support of our view that vidyā alone is the cause of release is of a far greater authority than the Smṛti texts quoted by the prima facie objector to prove his case.^[4]

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

P. 798, line 14. Quoted by Śaṅkara, Rāmānuja, Bhāskara and Śrīkaṇṭha.

[2]:

P. 798, lines 14-15. Quoted by Śaṅkara, Rāmānuja, Bhāskara and Śrīkaṇṭha.

[3]:

P. 798, line 15. Quoted by Śaṅkara, Rāmānuja, Bhāskara and Śrīkaṇṭha.

[4]:

Govinda-bhāṣya 3.3.50.