Pippalayana Yogi

1
Pippalayana Yogi’s teaching in Bhagavatam 11th canto, 3rd Chapter:
Here, in this Nava Yogi upadesha of Vedanta, we find a fine discourse of the Advaita Tattva that
clearly says the ‘true nature of Brahman is Pure Consciousness’. The relevant shloka-s along with
Sridhara Swamin’s commentary is given below. The purport of these also follows.
Translation
Brahman, the eternal soul, was never born and will never die, nor does it
grow or decay. That spiritual soul is actually the knower of the youth, middle
age and death of the material body. Thus the soul can be understood to be
pure consciousness, existing everywhere at all times and never being
destroyed. Just as the life air within the body, although one, becomes
manifest as many in contact with the various material senses, the one soul
appears to assume various material designations in contact with the material
body.
The word to convey Pure Consciousness nature of Atman is: upalabdhimAtram.
The analogy for the undiminishing Pure Consciousness across

the changing conditions is given below:
Translation
The spirit soul is born in many different species of life within the material
world. Some species are born from eggs, others from embryos, others from
the seeds of plants and trees, and others from perspiration. But in all species
of life the prāṇa, or vital air, remains unchanging and follows the spirit soul
from one body to another. Similarly, the spirit soul is eternally the same
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despite its material condition of life. We have practical experience of this.

When we are absorbed in deep sleep without dreaming, the material senses
become inactive, and even the mind and false ego are merged into a dormant
condition. But although the senses, mind and false ego are inactive, one
remembers upon waking that he, the soul, was peacefully sleeping.
Sridhara Swamin:
The word to convey Pure Consciousness nature of Atman is: upalabdhimAtram.
The Nirvikaaratva of Atman is stated with the analogy.
Sridhara Swamin cites a very crucial mantra from the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad to state that this is
the Advaitic Brahman, nothing second of any kind :
यद्वै तन्न पश्यतत पश्यन्वै तन्न पश्यतत न हि द्रष्टु र्दृ ष्टेर्वृपरिल ेप े र्वद्यतेऽर्वन शित्व त् । 4.3.23
3
23. "And when it appears that in deep sleep it does not see, yet it is seeing
though it does not see; for there is no cessation of the vision of the seer,
because the seer is imperishable. There is then, however, no second thing
separate from the seer that it could see.
[One can read Shankaracharya’s Bhashya for this mantra which is very
reavealing.]
The term ‘upalabdhimAtram’ of the Bhagavatam is a compound word consisting two words:
upalabdhi and mAtram. The second word only indicates that ‘it is of the nature of’. The term
‘upalabhdi’ itself is given the meaning of Consciousness, Pure Knowledge, etc. in various
authoritative texts:
Amarakosha:
बद्धु िर्मनीषा धिषणा िीीः प्रज्ञा शेर्ष

ु ी र्त ीः।
प्रेक्षोपलब्धिब्चित्संद्धित्प्रत पत्ज्ञब्त िे ना॥
Mahabharata:
http://www.sanskrit-linguistics.org/dcs/index.php?contents=texte&PhraseID=301309
buddhiḥ prajñopalabdhiśca saṃvit khyātir dhṛtiḥ smṛtiḥ /

(39.1) Par.?
paryāyavācakaiḥ śabdair mahān ātmā vibhāvyase // (39.2) Par.?
Also here in MB:

http://www.sanskrit-
linguistics.org/dcs/index.php?contents=texte&PhraseID=315984
same as above.
There is a Brahmasutra itself with this word, in this very meaning:
BSB 3.3.54 Sutra: व्यततिे कस्तद्भ व भ र्वत्व न्न तूपलब्धिवत् ॥ ५४

॥ Bhashya: उपलब्धिस्वरूप एव च न आ त्मेतत आ त्मन े देिव्यततरिक्तत्वम् । तनत्यत्वं च उ
पलधिेेः, एेकरूप्य त् ,
In the following Bhashya, Shankara says that Atman is of the

eternal consciousness nature:
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BSB 2.3.40 तनत्य प

े लब्धिस्वरूपत्व त् ।
Kenopanishad vakya bhashyam 1.2
उदकस्येव दग्िृत्वमतनत्यं हि तत्र तत् । यत्र तु तनत्यमुपलधिृत्वमग्न र्वव ैष्ण्यं स

तनत्य प
े लब्धिस्वरूपत्व त् दग्िेव ेपलधि ेच्यते । श् ेत्र ददषु श् ेतृत्व द्युपलब्धिितनत्य , तनत्य च त्मतन ।
आतेः श् ेत्रस्य श् ेत्रममत्य द्यक्षि ण मर् ृनुगम दुपपद्यते तनर्वृिेषस्य ेपलब्धिस्वरूपस्य त्मन े
मनआ ददप्रवृत्तितनममित्वममतत । मनआ ददष्णवेवं यर् ेक्तम् । व च े ि व चं प्र णस्य प्र ण इतत
र्वभमक्तद्वयम् । सवृत्रैवं हि द्रष्टव्यम् । कर्म् प पृष्टत्व त् स्वरूपतनदेृिेः । प्रर्मयैव च तनदेृिेः ।
तस्य च ज्ञेयत्व त्कमृत्वममतत हद्वतीय । आत े व च े ि व चं प्र णस्य प्र ण इत्यस्म त्सवृत्रैव
र्वभमक्तद्वयम् । यदेतच्छ् ेत्र द्युपलब्धितनममिं श् ेत्रस्य श् ेत्रममत्य ददलक्षणं तत् तनत्य ेपलब्धिस्वरूपं
तनर्वृिेषम त्मतत्त्वं बुद्ध्व आततमुच्य आनवब ेितनममि ध्य ि ेर्पत द्बद्ध्य
ु ददलक्षण त्संस ि न्म ेक्षणं कृत्व
िीि ेः िीमन्तेः प्रेत्य आस्म त्………
The above idea beautifully composed in the Hastamalakiya:
तनममिं मनश्चक्षुि ददप्रवृि ैतनिस्त िलल ेप ििि क िक्पेः । िर्वल ेृकचेष्ट तनममिं यर् येःस
तनत्य प
े लब्धिस्वरूप ेऽिम त्म ॥ १ ॥
Hastamalaka स तनत्य ेपलब्धिस्वरूप ेऽिम त्म
Thus, the Bhagavatam very clearly says, with analogy and reasoning,
that the Atman is of the nature of Eternal, Unchanging, Pure
Consciousness. Surely, such Atman has no attributes and is the same
in every being. This statement of the Bhagavatam also implies that
there is no Atma-bheda. In other words, there is no pramana for two
consciousnesses in one jiva/body and this one and only Atman that is
to be realized for moksha is the same in every body/jiva.
The Navayogi exposition has this very important discourse, of

Pippalayana Yogi who expounds the Vedantic Brahman that is called
Narayana/Vishnu, etc. Surely this ‘upalabhdimaatram’ Brahman is not
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of any form. This is what is stated by Sayanacharya in the Narayana

Suktam bhashyam:
"आपो नारा इत प्रोक ाीः आपो िै नरसूनिीः । अयनं स्य ाीः प्रोक ास् न
े नारायणीः स्र् ृ ीः"
'नारायणीः पर एिात्र्ा, न ु अपरो र्ूत द्धम िशेषीः ।’
Thus,Sayanacharya’s statement that this Para Brahman, Narayana, is not apara-Brahman and
therefore, is not any particular formed deity by default. One can see that Veda Vyasa, the
foremost Vedantin has been the inspiration for Shankaracharya and all other Vedantins down
the line.
Om Tat Sat

Pippalayana Yogi

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1

Pippalayana Yogi’s teaching in Bhagavatam 11th canto, 3rd Chapter:

The analogy for the undiminishing Pure Consciousness across

despite its material condition of life. We have practical experience of this.

The word to convey Pure Consciousness nature of Atman is: upalabdhimAtram.

The Nirvikaaratva of Atman is stated with the analogy.

बद्धु िर्मनीषा धिषणा िीीः प्रज्ञा शेर्ष

buddhiḥ prajñopalabdhiśca saṃvit khyātir dhṛtiḥ smṛtiḥ /

Also here in MB:

There is a Brahmasutra itself with this word, in this very meaning:

BSB 3.3.54 Sutra: व्यततिे कस्तद्भ व भ र्वत्व न्न तूपलब्धिवत् ॥ ५४

In the following Bhashya, Shankara says that Atman is of the

BSB 2.3.40 तनत्य प

Kenopanishad vakya bhashyam 1.2

उदकस्येव दग्िृत्वमतनत्यं हि तत्र तत् । यत्र तु तनत्यमुपलधिृत्वमग्न र्वव ैष्ण्यं स

The above idea beautifully composed in the Hastamalakiya:

Hastamalaka स तनत्य ेपलब्धिस्वरूप ेऽिम त्म

The Navayogi exposition has this very important discourse, of

of any form. This is what is stated by Sayanacharya in the Narayana

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