Verse 2.407

Sanskrit text and transliteration:

व्यावहारिकमेवात्र सत्यं स्यादधिकारतः ।
पारमार्थिकसत्यस्य वाक्यान्ते समुदीरणात् ॥ ४०७ ॥

vyāvahārikamevātra satyaṃ syādadhikārataḥ |
pāramārthikasatyasya vākyānte samudīraṇāt || 407 ||

English translation of verse 2.407:

The word satyam (which occurs at the beginning of the sentence) means empirical truth because of the context and also because of the fact that the absolute truth is spoken of at the end of the sentence.

Notes:

This verse explains the meaning of the text satyaṃ cānṛtaṃ ca satyamabhavat. The word satyam occurs twice in this text. In deciding the meaning of the word satyam which occurs first in the text, we have to take into consideration the context in which it occurs. Since it occurs in the context of the explanation of the gross and subtle forms, it must refer only to the empirical truth, i.e., relative truth as found in the empirical world. Further, it occurs in close proximity to the word anṛta which means the false, the unreal. There is also another reason to be considered here. In the same sentence the word satyam occurs once again at the end. The śruti text says that satyam became the true and the false. And this satyam, it is obvious, refers to Brahman, the absolutely real, the absolute truth (paramārtha-satyam). Hence the word satyam which occurs first in the sentence refers to the relative truth in the empirical world.