vedartha sangraha of Ramanuja 8. The nature of eesvara.

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8. The nature e of Eesvara

 

atha eesvarasvaroopam uchyathe. evam viDha chidhachidhaathmaka

prapanchasya udhbhava sThithi pralaya samsaaranivarthanaika hethu bhoothaH.

Samastha heya prathyaneekathayaa ananthakalyaaNaikathaanathayaa cha

svaitharasamasthavasthuvilakshaNa svaroopaH anavaDhika athisaya asankhyeya

kalyaaNa guNa gaNaH sarvaathmaparabrahma parajyothiH parathathava paramaathma

sadhaadhi Sabdha bhedhaiH nikhilavedhaanthavedhyaH bhagavaan naaraayaNaH

purushotthamaH ithi antharyaami svaroopam.

 

asya cha vaibhavaprathipaadhanaparaaH SruthayaH svaitharasamastha

chaidhachithvasthujaathaanthraathmathayaa nikhila niyamanam thath Sakthi

thadhamSa thadhvibhoothi thadhroopa thathSareera thatthanuprbhrthibhiH sabdhaiH

thathsaamaanaaDhikaraNyena cha prathipaadhyanthi

 

aTha eesvara roopam uchyathe- Then the nature of the Supreme Self

is described thus:

 

evam viDha chidhachidhaathmaka prapanchasya udhbhava sThithi pralaya

samsaaranivarthanaika hethu bhoothaH

 

1. Esvara is the sole cause of

creation, sustenance and annihilation and also of the liberation from

samsara, of the world of sentient and

insentient beings. This denotes His being the uppaya and upeya, both the means

and the goal.

 

The word ekahethuH, sole cause, of creation sustenance and annihilation of the

universe comprising of sentient and insentients

beings, means that the Brahman is both material as well as instrumental

cause of the universe. This is discussed in later passages in detail.

 

2. Samastha heya

prathyaneekathayaa ananthakalyaaNaikathaanathayaa cha

svaitharasamasthavasthuvilakshaNa svaroopaH. anavaDhika athisaya asankhyeya

kalyaaNa guNa gaNaH

 

 

He is of the nature distinct from

all else because He is free from all defects being the sole abode of eternal

bliss, and possessed of unlimited,anavaDhika,

wonderful, adhbutha, innumerable,

asankhyeya, auspicious, kalyaaNa,

qualities guNagaNaH, .

 

The svethara smastha vasthu vilakshanathva, being distinct from

everything else consists in His being the counter-correlate of all

imperfections such as sorrow, ignorance, delusion etc. because of His anantha

kalyana ekathaanthaa, being the abode of eternal bliss.

 

3. sarvaathmaparabrahma parajyothiH parathathava paramaathma sadhaadhi

Sabdha bhedhaiH nikhilavedhaanthavedhyaH

 

He is the inner Self of all, the

Supreme Brahman,parabrahma, the Supreme light, parmajyothiH, the Supreme Self ,

paramaathmaa, and the Supreme Being, sath. Thus He is expaline in the vedantic

texts by different terms.

 

bhagavaan naaraayaNaH purushotthamaH ithi antharyaami svaroopam.

 

He is the Lord Narayana, the

Supreme Purusha , the indweller of all as the inner Self.

 

The above passage denotes the

transcendence and immanence of the Lord.

 

asya cha vaibhavaprathipaadhanaparaaH SruthayaH- The sruthi texts

expounding His glory,

 

svaitharasamastha chaidhachithvasthujaathaanthraathmathayaa nikhila

niyamanam

 

as the controller of all, sentient and insentient

as their inner self, (denotes immanence)

thath Sakthi thadhamSa

thadhvibhoothi thadhroopa thathSareera thatthanuprbhrthibhiH sabdhaiH

 

and describe all beings as His

power, His part, His splendour, His form, His body and His limbs etc.( denotes

the transcendence )

 

thathsaamaanaaDhikaraNyena cha

prathipaadhyanthi

 

and also their oneness with Him

thorough the principle of coordinate predication, saamaanaaDhikarNya.

 

The principle of

saamaanadhikaraNya through which Ramanuja explains the unity as opposed to that

of advaita is explained later in the work.