In the text of some, viz. the Kânvas, where food is not mentioned, the
five-people are recognised to be the five senses, owing to the phrase
'of lights' which is met with in another complementary passage. In the
mantra, 'him the gods worship as the light of lights,' which precedes
the mantra about the 'five-people,' Brahman is spoken of as the light of
lights, and this suggests the idea of certain lights the activity of
which depends on Brahman. The mantra leaves it undetermined what these
lights are; but from what follows about the 'five-people,' &c., we learn
that what is meant are the senses which light up as it were their
respective objects. In 'the breath of breath' the second 'breath' (in
the genitive case) denotes the sense-organ of touch, as that organ is
connected with air, and as the vital breath (which would otherwise
suggest itself as the most obvious explanation of prâna) does not
harmonise with the metaphorical term 'light.' 'Of the eye' refers to the
organ of sight; 'of the ear' to the organ of hearing. 'Of food'
comprises the senses of smell and taste together: it denotes the sense
of smell on the ground that that sense is connected with earth, which
may be 'food,' and the sense of taste in so far as 'anna' may be also
explained as that by means of which eating goes on (adyate). 'Of mind'
denotes mind, i. e. the so-called internal organ. Taste and smell thus
being taken in combination, we have the required number of five, and we
thus explain the 'five-people' as the sense-organs which throw light on
their objects, together with the internal organ, i.e. mind. The meaning
of the clause about the 'five-people' therefore is that the senses--
called 'five-people'--and the elements, represented by the Ether, have
their basis in Brahman; and as thus all beings are declared to abide in
Brahman, the five 'five-people' can in no way be the twenty-five
categories assumed by the Sânkhyas.--The general Conclusion is that the
Vedânta-texts, whether referring to numbers or not, nowhere set forth
the categories established in Kapila's system.
14. And on account of (Brahman) as described being declared to be the
cause with regard to Ether, and so on.
Here the philosopher who holds the Pradhâna to be the general cause
comes forward with another objection. The Vedânta-texts, he says, do not
teach that creation proceeds from one and the same agent only, and you
therefore have no right to hold that Brahman is the sole cause of the
world. In one place it is said that our world proceeded from 'Being',
'Being only this was in the beginning' (Ch. Up. VI, 2, 1). In other
places the world is said to have sprung from 'Non-being', 'Non-being
indeed this was in the beginning' (Taitt. Up. II, 7, i); and 'Non-being
only was this in the beginning; it became Being' (Ch. Up. III, 19, 1).
As the Vedânta-texts are thus not consequent in their statements
regarding the creator, we cannot conclude from them that Brahman is the
sole cause of the world. On the other hand, those texts do enable us to
conclude that the Pradhâna only is the universal cause. For the text
'Now all this was then undeveloped' (Bri. Up. I, 4, 7) teaches that the
world was merged in the undeveloped Pradhâna. and the subsequent clause,
'That developed itself by form and name,' that from that Undeveloped
there resulted the creation of the world. For the Undeveloped is that
which is not distinguished by names and forms, and this is none other
than the Pradhâna. And as this Pradhâna is at the same time eternal, as
far as its essential nature is concerned, and the substrate of all
change, there is nothing contradictory in the different accounts of
creation calling it sometimes 'Being' and sometimes 'Non-being'; while,
on the other hand, these terms cannot, without contradiction, both be
applied to Brahman. The causality of the Undeveloped having thus been
ascertained, such expressions as 'it _thought_, may I be many,' must be
interpreted as meaning its being about to proceed to creation. The terms
'Self' and 'Brahman' also may be applied to the Pradhâna in so far as it
is all-pervading (atman from âpnoti), and preeminently great (brihat).
We therefore conclude that the only cause of the world about which the
Vedânta-texts give information is the Pradhâna.
This view is set aside by the Sûtra. The word _and_ is used in the sense
of _but_. It is possible to ascertain from the Vedânta-texts that the
world springs from none other than the highest Brahman, which is all-
knowing, lord of all, free from all shadow of imperfection, capable of
absolutely realising its purposes, and so on; since scripture declares
Brahman as described to be the cause of Ether, and so on. By 'Brahman as
described' is meant 'Brahman distinguished by omniscience and other
qualities, as described in the Sûtra "that from which the origination,
and so on, of the world proceed," and in other places.' That Brahman
only is declared by scripture to be the cause of Ether, and so on, i.e.
the being which is declared to be the cause in passages such as 'From
that Self sprang Ether' (Taitt. Up. II, 1); 'that sent forth fire'(Ch.
Up. VI, 2, 3), is none other than Brahman possessing omniscience and
similar qualities. For the former of these texts follows on the passage
'The True, intelligence, infinite is Brahman; he reaches all desires
together with the intelligent Brahman,' which introduces Brahman as the
general subject-matter--that Brahman being then referred to by means of
the connecting words 'from that.' In the same way the 'that' (in 'that
sent forth fire') refers back to the omniscient Brahman introduced in
the clause 'that thought, may I be many.' This view is confirmed by a
consideration of all the accounts of creation, and we hence conclude
that Brahman is the sole cause of the world.--But the text 'Non-being
indeed this was in the beginning' calls the general cause 'something
that is not'; how then can you say that we infer from the Vedânta-texts
as the general cause of the world a Brahman that is all-knowing,
absolutely realises its purposes, and so on?--To this question the next
Sûtra replies.