52 PRASNOPANISHAD-BHASHYA [V. 7. and according to the principle expressed in the text (Ch. Up. III. 14) According as the man's thought is in this world,' what is reached by the devotee is the object of meditation, and more over' the object of both the verbs is identical namely the highest person at both places."
- The doubt here presents itself whether the highest
Person in this text be the so-called four faced Brahmā, the Lord of the mundane egg, who represents the individual souls in their collective aspect, or the supreme Person who is the Lord of all. The Pūrvapakṣin maintains the former view. For, he argues, on the introductory question, 'He who here among men should meditate until death on the syllable Om, what would he obtain by it?, the text first declares that he who meditates on that syllable with one mātrā' obtains the world of men; and next, that he who meditates on it with two mātrās obtains the world of atmosphere. Hence the Brahman-world which the text after that represents as the object reached by him who meditates on Om with three moments must be the world of Brahma Caturmukha who is constituted by the aggregate of ivdividual souls. What the soul having reached that world sees, therefore is the same Brahma Caturmukha'. And thus only the attribute etasmāj. jivaghanāt parāt param is to be explained, for the collective soul i.e., Brahma Caturmukha, residing in the Brahman- world is higher (para) than the distributive or discrete soul jiva) which is concreted (ghani-bhuta) with the body and sense-organs, and at the same time is higher (para) than these. The highest person mentioned in the text, therefore, is Brahma Caturmukha ; and the qualities mentioned further 5 I. ibid: read instead of that in line 7 and 8, thus and moreover the object of both verbs is identical, namely the highest person at both places.. 2. 3 & 4. wherever there occur as having read instead with 5. Thibaut here suddenly translates' mātra' a8 syllable instead of leaving it as it is as in previous passages. It has to be rendered as moment. 6. ibid. p. 812 line 26. Full stop after Catarmukha. New senteuco starts with Aud
