Adhyaya 3 Pada 3 AdhikaraNa 14
The Individual Spirit Soul Performs Actions
Introduction by shrIla Baladeva VidyAbhUShaNa
Now the author of the sUtras will consider another point. In
the TaittirIya UpaniShad (2.5.1) it is said:
vij~nAnaM yaj~naM tanute. karmANi tanute .api ca.
"Consciousness performs yaj~nas.
Consciousness performs actions."
SaMshaya (doubt): Does the individual soul, indicated in this
passage by the word "consciousness", perform actions or
not?
PUrvapakSha (the opponent speaks): In the KaTha UpaniShad
(2.18) it is said:
hantA cen manyate hantuM
hatash cen manyate hatam
ubhau tau na vijAnItau
nAyaM hanti na hanyate
"Neither he who thinks the living entity the slayer
nor he who thinks it slain is in knowledge, for the self slays
not nor is slain."*
These words clearly declare that the individual spirit soul
never performs actions. In the Bhagavad-gItA (3.27) it is said:
prakR^iteH kriyamANAni
guNaiH karmANi sarvashaH
aha~NkAra-vimUDhAtmA
kartAham iti manyate
"The spirit soul bewildered by the influence of
false-ego thinks himself the doer of activities that are in
actuality carried out by the three modes of material nature."*
In the Bhagavad-gItA (13.21) it is also said:
kArya-kAraNa-kartR^itve
hatuH prakR^itir ucyate
puruShaH sukha-duHkhAnAM
bhoktR^itve hetur ucyate
"Nature is said to be the cause of all material
causes and effects, whereas the living entity is the cause of the
various sufferings and enjoyments in this world."*
Therefore the individual spirit soul does not perform
actions. When a person understands the truth he understands that
all actions are actually performed by the material energy and the
individual spirit soul is merely the person who experiences the
fruits of action.
SiddhAnta (conclusion): In the following words the author of
the sUtras gives the proper conclusion.
SUtra 31
kartA shAstrArthavat-tvAt
kartA - the doer; shAstra - of the scriptures;Artha - meaning;
vat - possessing; tvAt - because of having the nature.
He performs actions. This is so because the scriptures are
meaningful.
Purport by shrIla Baladeva VidyAbhUShaNa
It is the individual spirit soul who performs actions, not
the modes of material nature. Why is that? The sUtra explains:
"Because the scriptures are meaningful." In the
scriptures it is said:
svarga-kAmo yajeta
"A person who desires Svargaloka should perform
yaj~nas."
and
AtmAnam eva lokam upAsIta
"One should worship the Supreme Personality of
Godhead."
These statements have meaning only if the individual spirit
soul does actually perform actions. If all actions are performed
by the modes of nature and the individual spirit soul never does
anything, these statements of the scriptures are meaningless.
These statements of scripture are intended to motivate the
individual spirit soul to act in a certain way so he can enjoy
the results of his actions. It is not even possible in this way
to try to motivate the inert material modes to act in any way at
all.
That the individual spirit soul does actually perform
actions is also confirmed in the next sUtra.
SUtra 32
vihAropadeshAt
vihAra - of pastimes; upadeshAt - because of the teaching.
Because of the teaching about pastimes.
Purport by shrIla Baladeva VidyAbhUShaNa
The ChAndogya UpaniShad (8.12.3) describes the activities of
the liberated souls:
sa tatra paryeti jakShan krIDan ramamANaH
"In the spiritual world the individual spirit soul
eats, plays, and enjoys."
Therefore action by itself does not brings pain and
unhappiness to the soul, rather it is the bondage of the three
modes of nature that brings unhappiness. This is so because the
three modes of nature obscure the reality of the soul.as spiritual
nature.
SUtra 33
upAdAnAt
upAdAnAt - because of taking.
Because of taking.
Purport by shrIla Baladeva VidyAbhUShaNa
In the BR^ihad-AraNyaka UpaniShad (2.1.18) it is said:
sa yathA mahA-rAjaH . . . evam evaiSha etAn prANAn
gR^ihItvA sve sharIre yathA-kAmaM parivartate
"In the dreaming state the individual spirit soul
acts like a king. The soul grasps the life-airs and does as it
wishes."
In the Bhagavad-gItA (15.8) it is also said:
gR^ihItvaitAni samyAti
vAyur gandhAn ivAshayAt
"The living entity in the material world carries his
different conceptions of life from one body to another as the air
carries aromas. Thus he takes one kind of body and again quits it
to take another."*
In these passages it is seen that the individual spirit soul
does perform actions, for the soul moves the life-airs as a
magnet moves iron. The life-airs may move many things, but it is
the individual spirit soul who moves the life-airs. Nothing else
moves them.
In the following words the author of the sUtras now gives
another reason.
SUtra 34
vyapadeshAc ca kriyAyAM na cen nirdesha-viparyayaH
vyapadeshAt - because of designation; ca - and; kriyAyAm - in
action; na - mpt; cet - if; nirdesha - grammaticalconstruction;
viparyayaH - different.
Also because of the name in the action. If this were not so
the grammatical structure would be different.
Purport by shrIla Baladeva VidyAbhUShaNa
In the TaittirIya UpaniShad (2.5.1) it is said:
vij~nAnaM yaj~naM tanute. karmANi tanute .api ca.
"Consciousness performs yaj~nas.
Consciousness performs actions."
These words clearly show that the individual spirit soul is
the primary performer of Vedic and ordinary actions. If the word
"vij~nAnam" is interpreted to mean not the individual
spirit soul, but the intelligence, then the grammatical structure
of the sentence would be different. Then the word
vij~nAna" would be in the instrumental case, for the
intelligence would be the instrument by which the action is
performed. However, the word is not in the instrumental case. If
the intelligence were the performer of the action here, then
another word must be given in the instrumental case to show with
what instrument the intelligence performs the action, for there
must be an instrument in every action. However, if the individual
spirit soul is the performer of the action there is not need for
another word in the instrumental case to show the instrument
used, for in that situation the individual spirit soul is both
the performer of the action and the instrument employed.
Here someone may object: Is it not so that the individual
spirit soul, being independent and able to act as he likes, will
naturally act for his own welfare and will not perform actions
that bring him harm?
To this I reply: No. It is not like that. The individual
spirit soul desires to benefit himself, but because his past
karma acts against him, he sometimes creates his own misfortune.
For these reasons it is clear that the individual spirit soul
certainly performs actions. When the scriptures sometimes say
that the individual spirit soul does not perform actions, the
meaning is that the soul is not independent and free to do
exactly everything he wishes.
Here someone may object: It is not possible that the
individual spirit soul is the performer of actions, for it is
clearly seen that these actions often bring him suffering.
To this I reply: No. It is not so. If the individual spirit soul is notthe performer of actions, then the scriptural
descriptions of the darsha, paurNamas_sa, and other yaj~nas
would not make any sense.
In the following words the author of the sUtras refutes the
idea that material nature is the real performer of actions.
SUtra 35
uplabdhi-vad aniyamaH
uplabdhi - consciousness; vat - like; aniyamaH - uncertainty.
As in the situation of consciousness, it would be
indefinite.
Purport by shrIla Baladeva VidyAbhUShaNa
In previous sUtras it was shown that if the individual
spirit soul were all-pervading, then consciousness would be vague
and indefinite. In the same way if all-pervading material nature
were the sole performer of all actions, then all actions would
bring the same result to all spirit souls simultaneously. Clearly
this is not so. Also, it could not be said that the individual
spirit soul would need to be near the place where a certain
action was performed in order to experience the result of that
action. The sa~Nkhya philosophers cannot say this, for in their
theory each individual spirit soul is all-pervading and is thus
already near the places where all actions are performed.
SUtra 36
shakti-viparyayAt
shakti - of power; viparyayAt - because of difference.
Because the power is changed.
Purport by shrIla Baladeva VidyAbhUShaNa
If the material nature is the performer of actions, then
material nature must also experience the good and bad results of
those actions. However, the shvetAshvatara UpaniShad (1.8) affirms:
bhoktR^i-bhAvAt
"The individual spirit soul enjoys the good and bad
results of actions."
In this way the idea that the material nature is the
performer of actions is refuted. Because the individual spirit
soul enjoys the good and bad results of actions, the individual
spirit soul must also be the performer of those actions.
SUtra 37
samAdhy-abhAvAc ca
samAdhi - of liberation; abhAvAt - because of the non-
existence; ca - also.
Also because there is no liberation.
Purport by shrIla Baladeva VidyAbhUShaNa
Actions are meant to bring one to liberation from the
material world. Because it is not possible for the material
nature to act in such a way and attain such a goal, the idea that
the material nature is the performer of actions cannot be
entertained. Liberation means understanding the truth "I
am different from matter". Because it is unconscious, and also
because it really is matter, it is not possible for the material
nature to come to this understanding. In this way it is proved
that the individual spirit soul is the performer of actions.
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