| 17. But distinct
is the Highest Spirit spoken of as the supreme Self, the: indestructible
Lord who penetrates and sustains the three worlds.But the Highest Spirit
is quite distinct from the two. He is the Supreme Self. He is Supreme as
compared with the other selves set up by avidya, such as the physical body
; and He is the Self as constituting the unfailing Inner Consciousness of
all beings. He is therefore known as the Supreme self in the Vedantas (Upanishads).
The Highest Spirit is further specified thus: He is the Eternal Omniscient
Lord, Narayana, who penetrates by His Vital Energy (Bala Sakti) the three
worldsthe Earth (Bhuh), the Midregion (Bhuvah) and Heaven (Suvah)and supports
them by His mere existence in them.Purushottama, the Highest Spirit, is
a well known name of the Lord described above. Now the Lord, while showing,
by a declaration of the etymology of the word, that the name is significant,
shows what He reality is, I am the unsurpassed Lord. |
