PURUS'A

official source: Subha's'ita Sam'graha Part 12

cross-references: none

this version: is the printed Subha's'ita Sam'graha Part 12, 1st edition, version 
	(spelling mistakes only may have been corrected). I.e., this is the most 
	up-to-date version as of the present Electronic Edition. Words in square 
	brackets [   ] are corrections that did not appear in the printed version.

	The subject of today's discourse is 'Purus'a'.  Let us first see what is the derivation of the word Purus'a.  One interpretation of the word is Pure shete yah sah Purus'ah, "the Entity which lies covert in the microcosmic structure is Purus'a or the Cognitive Principle."  And the second interpretation is Puras'i shete yah sah Purus'ah.  Now, what is pura?  In Sam'skrta  pura means a place where people live together, where there are many dwellings.  In the Hindi language that type of place is known as haveli.

	The physical structure of the microcosms has some limitations.  The Entity which lies covert in this physical structure is called Purus'a.  Puras'i means 'in front', shete means 'lies covert.'  Now, in both these interpretations of the word, Purus'a means the Cognitive Faculty. But if this Purus'a is the Cognitive Faculty and if He remains as the knowing or witnessing Entity, then how can this universe be created?  By whom will the actional flow of creation, preservation and destruction in the universe be brought about?  In Sam'khya philosophy the word Janya-Iishvara has been used for this Entity; but the Purus'a of our discussion is not that Entity.  Then what is the Cognitive Faculty in reality?

	If we study the annals of ancient history we notice that after the first sprouting of human civilization, the first person who developed philosophy was Mahars'i Kapila, about 3500 years ago.  But Mahars'i Kapila's interpretation regarding Purus'a as the Cognitive Faculty was not very clear, because he believed in the doctrine of the plurality of Purus'as.  According to him, there are as many Purus'as as there are a'tmans (souls), and thus in each and every unit consciousness there is a Purus'a or Cognitive Faculty.  Then what is the difference between the Janya Iishvara as described by Mahars'i Kapila and the other Purus'as?  This question remained unanswered.  In the Purus'a Su'kta of the Rg Veda it is said:

            Sahasra' shiirsa' Purus'ah sahasra'ks'ah sahasrapa't
		Sah bhumim' vishvato vrtva' atya'tis't'had dasa'ungulam.

	This Purus'a is not only the Cognitive faculty, it is something more than that.  In the 'A'nanda Su'tram' it has been said, Purus'a akarta' phalasa'ks'iibhu'tah bha'vakendrastitah gun'ayantrakashca.  Let us analyse this particular su'tra more deeply.  Is Purus'a only the Cognitive Entity or is He something more than that?  Here it is said, Purus'a akarta' - the one who is not karta' is akarta'; karta' means one who is engaged in some action or activity.  Action means the relative change in the position of an object.  In Sam'skrta the root verb kr is used in this sense.  Suppose there is a book somewhere; if we remove it and put it another place, that is, if we change its position, then we have performed some action.  Thus the relative change of place of any entity is termed as krya' or action.  But Purus'a is akarta' - he does not do any action by himself.

	In this universe there is always a change of place of different objects; but Purus'a has no role in this change.  He does not do anything Himself; Prakrti, the Supreme Operative Principle, does everything according to His dictates.  Thus he is the creator, the maintainer, and the destroyer, all in one.  But still he is akarta', for He does not play any direct role in creating, preserving and destroying; according to His will Prakrti performs all those duties.  Prakrti does not do anything according to her own will - she must act according to the direction of Purus'a.

	Phalasa'ks'iibhu'tah:  When I first wrote A'nanda Sutram, the word was krya'sa'ks'iibhu'tah.  Later I replaced the word kriya' by another word, phala: because although Purus'a does not do anything by Himself, there is no doubt that He is the Witnessing Entity.  Hence it is more appropriate to refer to Him as phalasa'ks'iibhu'tah rather than kriya'sa'ks'iibhu'tah.

	What is phala or 'fruit?'  If the first stage of an action, which we can consider as the crest of the wave, is accepted as the original action, then the next stage, which is the trough of the wave, should be termed as the 'fruit' or result of the action.  That is, the original action is the first stage, then the result will be the final stage.  The Entity who is Witness of the final stage and according to whose will the action is performed, is the Purus'a.

	This kaleidoscopic vibrational expression of the Macrocosm is what we call the creation (srs't'i). The stage of the maintenance of that creation is called stitih, and the final stage of its dissolution is termed as laya.  All these three - the creation of the universe, its maintenance, and its dissolution - are all of macro-psychic nature.  If you consider the Purus'a of this vast creation to be only the Cognitive Faculty, that will be incorrect, because in that case the field of macrocosmic activity becomes greatly limited.  Thus Parama Purus'a is not merely Cognition: he is something more than that as well; and the totality of Purus'a as creator plus Purus'a as Witnessing Entity constitutes the Macrocosmic ectoplasmic scope.  The original form of this Macrocosmic ectoplasm is philosophically termed as bha'va.

		Shuddhasatta' vishes'a'tma' premasu'rya'ungsu sa'myabha'k
		Rucibhishcittama'srn'ya kridasao bha'va ucyate.

	Out of this Macrocosmic ectoplasm, the infinite takes its expression, and out of this Macrocosmic expression which is called citta - the micropsychic structures have emerged.  Purus'a is the hub or the nucleus of the ultimate cause of creation, and thus he controls the Macrocosmic ectoplasmic scope.

	Although Purus'a Himself does not do all the phenomenal activities in the physical world, he gets them all performed by Prakrti.  Because He is located in the Macrocosmic Nucleus, he is radiating all the vibrations directly.  So how can we declare this Purus'a' to be the same as the Purus'a of the Sam'khya philosophy, and how can we say that this Purus'a is a mere Witnessing Entity or Cognitive Faculty?  Rather His scope of activities is very, very vast, indeed it is infinite.

	Now the question is, what other things does the macrocosmic nucleus do?  In A'nanda Su'tram it has been said that Purus'a is gun'ayantrakashca.  What is gun'a?  When an unmanifested entity in the course of evolution, comes within the scope of limitations, it is called gun'a.  The collective name of the three gun'as, sattva (sentient), rajas (mutative), and tamah (static) is Parama Prakrti.  But although these gun'as are infinite, they are undergoing constant erosion.  In, this regard one particular term should be used: sa nityanivrtta'.  For instance, if ghee or clarified butter comes in contact with fire, the ghee gradually melts, and more and more ghee has to be poured into the fire, otherwise the fire will be extinguished.  In the same way, Prakrti is constantly undergoing depletion.  Why?  Because due to the constant ideation of Purus'a, She is gradually merging in Purus'a.  As Prakrti is infinite, although She undergoes this constant depletion, She is never totally exhausted.  And when She merges into Purus'a, She becomes transformed into Purus'a.  Thus Brahma is one without any second.  This is a very subtle philosophical concept.  Although Prakrti is infinite, yet Her infinitude is slightly impaired due to her contact with Purus'a.

	Gun'ayantrakashca:  Purus'a is the controller of the three gun'as.  That is, between the Cognitive Faculty and the Operative Principle there is a relation of subordinated cooperation, not coordinated cooperation.  The Operative principle is bound to act according to the will of the Cognitive Faculty.  Purus'a is akarta', no doubt, but how can He be said to be only the Cognitive Faculty?  For this reason Purus'a is not merely the Citishakti or Cognitive Principle - he is something more than that.  But it is not possible to describe this aspect of Purus'a which is beyond Cognition itself.

	It has been said regarding Purus'a in the tenth man'd'ala of the Rg Veda,

	Sahasrashiirs'a' Purus'ah sahasra'ks'ah sahasrapa't
	Sa' bhu'mim' vishvato vrttva' atya'tis't'hadda'sha'ungulam.

	Regarding the witnesship of Purus'a, it is unlimited.  Then what is the difference between the Macrocosm and the microcosm?  The microcosm is sustained by its inherent properties.  We say that a certain substance is oxygen because it has a particular property.  We say that another substance is fire because it has certain innate characteristics.  Another substance is air because it has certain innate characteristics.  Another substance is air because it has another property.  All objects and living beings are characterised by their respective innate properties.  If fire ceases to burn, we cannot call it fire any longer.  If air stops blowing, it ceases to be called air.  In Sam'skrta, there are two words, nila and niila.  Niila means "blue colour," and nila means 'fixed.'  If air ceases to blow, if it becomes stationary or immobile, it is nila, it no longer remains anila.  Thus all the entities, organic or inorganic, animate or inanimate, living or non-living, are distinguished by their innate characteristics.

	What is the Cognitive faculty in the case of the microcosm?  It is the crude individual form of the Macrocosm.  Thus whatever quality or essence lies in Parama Purus'a is equally present in the five fundamental factors; in this way human beings and other creatures evolved in the quinquelemental world, within which the Witnessing Entity continues to function.  Something cannot emerge from nothing.  Thus the infinite capacity of Parama Purus'a has been transferred in a limited way to each microcosm.  Only a microscopic fraction of the infinite Cognitive Faculty of Parama Purus'a has been transferred to the microcosms, and that is why their individual consciousness is limited.  Moreover, all the microcosms existing within the vast Macrocosmic Mind are functioning within a very limited fraction of the infinite cognitive power.  Thus the description of Purus'a in the Purus'a Su'kta of the Rg Veda is justified.

This Purus'a possesses infinite knowledge:  He knows the inner essence of every mind of all living beings.  Even the most hidden thoughts of an individual are known to Him, for the thinking power of all creatures comes from Him, and without His energy they cannot think anything, even for a single moment.  Whenever human beings think something, He immediately knows it.  Thinking is actually like talking within: that inner vibration of mind is immediately caught by Parama Purus'a'  Not only one's thoughts, but all the inferences you perceive - sound, touch, form, taste and smell - and whatever actions you perform, are immediately known by Him.  Without vibration, no sensation can be perceived and on action can be performed; and all these vibrations are within His infinite body.  Everything in this universe is vibrational, and all the vibrations first emanate from Him and finally merge in Him.  Thus He comes to know of everything - and without having any Intelligence Agency to inform Him!

Whenever someone says something in the external world, there are some preliminary vibrations in the mind.  Human beings see external objects with their eyes, but if one deeply analyses the matter, one will realise that no one really sees anything.  What is actually happening is that a vibration is arising in the optical nerves which vibrates the mind, and then people think that they are seeing a certain object.  But human beings have only two physical eyes, whereas Parama Purus'a has countless eyes.

Sahasrapa't:  Each and every microcosm is bound by spatial, temporal and personal bondages.  Thus people have to make a special effort to move from one place to another.  Moreover, they have to struggle against temporal bondages also.  While moving forward, they have to struggle against the gravitation of the earth.  Due to these spatial bondages, people suffer from various limitations.  (In all these situations, the mind remains the witness.  All objects and actions emanate vibrations, which are perceived by the human mind, which then forms an idea about those objects or actions.  The difference between the Macrocosm and the microcosms is that the microcosms are under spatial bondage, whereas the Macrocosm is free from all bondages.  Thus it is quite justifiable to use the epithet sahasrapa't ('thousand-footed') to describe Parama Purus'a.

Sah bhu'mim' vishvato vrtva' atayatis'thatddasha'un'gulam:  Parama Purus'a is not only the Cognitive faculty, He is more than that.  He exits not only in the manifested world, but in the unmanifested world as well.  Here, the "manifested world" means that part of the Creation which is vibrated by the three gun'as or binding principles; but the remaining portion of the creation which is not vibrated by the gun'as is also within His mind.  Thus Parama Purus'a is equally present both in the manifested and unmanifested worlds.  Philosophy is completely silent regarding the presence of Parama Purus'a in the unmanifested world: it is only able to comment on Parama Purus'a in the manifested world.  So if philosophy says that He is only the Cognitive Faculty, that applies only to the manifested world, not to the unmanifested one.  Thus it is mere foolishness to consider Parama Purus'a [to be only the Cognitive Faculty. One will have] to bear in mind that He is not at all limited to the periphery of the quinquelemental world.

	Purus'a evedam' sarvamyad bhu'tam' yacca bhavyam.  He is no doubt the Cognitive faculty:  He knows whatever has been created, and He will know what will be created in the future.  He formulates the penal code in order to make people aware to make them conscious.  If he gives a little punishment or scolding to human beings, it is only for their welfare.  Thus He should do so - and He does.

	Yad bhu'tam':  Whatever lies in the future, He knows it all, and accordingly He takes action.  The entire living world is very dear to Him.  Thus He always cautions people, "Oh human beings, be careful, otherwise you will be in danger".  So what has been said in A'nanda Su'tram in this regard is quite logical.

	Uta'mrtatvasyesha'no:  Parama Purus'a is not merely the Cognitive Faculty, He is also Iishvra, which means "Controller."  It is not enough just to create something - one will have to control it also.  Parama Purus'a is that Controller.  Just as He gets this manifested universe of seven layers or lokas - bhu, bhuvah, svah, mahah, janah, tapah, satya - created by Prakrti, He gets it controlled by Prakrti also.  The movement  of human beings towards the world of immortality is controlled by Parama Purus'a.  Human beings will have to move along the path which leads to this immortal realm, not along the sinful path which leads toward worldly objects.  The seven lower realms of crudity - the seven "hells" are tala, atala, tala'tala, vitala, pa'ta'la, atipa'ta'la and rasa'tala.

	The negative movement towards crudity is also within the control of Parama Purus'a.  Whenever a person sinks to the nadir point of degradation, we often say, "Such-and-such a person has gone to rasa'tala...to hell."  'Whenever people become crude and are immersed in wrong actions which are contrary to the spiritual code, they become totally inert.  In utter defiance of the moral code, they involve themselves in many vicious activities, goaded by the lure of power, position, prestige, name and fame, and monetary gain, and thus they invariably move toward rasa'tala, the lowest 'hell', the most degraded state.  Such people, instead of moving towards the abode of nectar, move towards degradation.  But the controller of this path, too, is the same Parama Purus'a: the same Entity who controls the higher seven realms, controls the seven lower realms as well.

	Uta'mrtatvasyesha'no:  If a person is degraded due to sinful deeds, performed consciously or unconsciously, and is born as an insect in hell, in that case, will Parama Purus'a forget him or her?  No, not at all.  The living entity who suffers in hell is also a creation of Parama Purus'a, and He will do whatever is necessary for such a person.  Thus it is said that Parama Purus'a certainly loves those who are truly honest and virtuous, but He does not hate those who are wicked or degenerated due to their misdeeds.  Even for such persons Parama Purus'a is the only hope, the supreme shelter.  Thus he is not a mere Witnessing Entity, He is much greater than that.

	Yadanye na'tirohati:  There is no one who can dictate to Him.  Some people may argue: sinful persons are like the most abominable insects of hell - then how can Parama Purus'a remain with them?  The answer is that even the most infernal creatures are also His favourites.  When people degrade themselves through wicked actions Parama Purus'a becomes sad, but He never hates them.  For such degraded people, the only safe shelter is Parama Purus'a.  Thus it is said that He is not merely the knowing or Cognitive Faculty.  He is much more than that.  In this regard it is said in the Bhagavad Giita':

	Api cet sudura'ca'ro bhajate ma'mananyabha'k
	So'pi pa'pavinirmukto mucyate bhavabandhana't.

	Even if those extremely wicked persons - whom even wicked people hate - worship me with undivided attention, they are liberated from all their worldly bondages, they are freed from all their sins.  Thus the same Parama Purus'a is the shelter of both the virtuous and the wicked, the liberated and the bound.  Whatever might be the standard or position of a person, no one should ever be anxious in any circumstances.  Parama Purus'a is ever ready to help all the microcosms of the creation equally, whether they are good or bad.

12 July 1979, Jaipur