Verse 2.338

Sanskrit text and transliteration:

ब्रह्मताऽऽनन्दरूपस्य केन वा प्रतिषिध्यते ।
निरस्ताशेषभेदस्य रूपं तत्परमात्मनः ॥ ३३८ ॥

brahmatā''nandarūpasya kena vā pratiṣidhyate |
nirastāśeṣabhedasya rūpaṃ tatparamātmanaḥ || 338 ||

English translation of verse 2.338:

Who can deny that bliss is of the nature of Brahman? That bliss which is free from all difference constitutes the nature of the supreme Self.

Notes:

It was argued earlier that the term ānanda as used in the text, “He knew bliss as Brahman,” (ānando brahmeti vyajānāt) could be interpreted as referring to the conditioned self and not to the supreme Brahman. Even if it is explained as standing for the supreme Brahman, there is no inconsistency. This explanation also is tenable, because ānanda by its very nature is free from differentiating characteristics such as joy, enjoyment, and the like, which are mentioned as limbs of the ānandamaya-kośa. Though it is quite justifiable to explain ānanda as Brahman, we cannot say that the ānandamaya is Brahman. It is true that, just as the ānandamaya is the fifth in the series, the ānanda spoken of in the Bhṛguvallī is also fifth in the series. But it is no argument to say that because of the fifth place (sthāna) the ānanda must be construed, like the ānandamaya-kośa, as the conditioned self. Śruti specifically declares here that Bhṛgu knew bliss as Brahman. Of śruti and sthāna, the former is more authoritative than the latter. So the ānanda spoken of m the Bhṛguvallī stands for Brahman.