संत साहित्य
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संत साहित्य · Jñāneśvarī · Adhyāya 13

Cluster 0468 — BG-13.13 — Śvetāśvatara-3.16-Echo: VIŚVA-BĀHU + VIŚVATAḤ-CAKṢU + VIŚVATAḤ-MUKHA + VIŚVATAḤ-ŚRUTI

BG-13.13

Sanskrit

सर्वतः पाणिपादं तत्सर्वतो ~ क्षिशिरोमुखम् । सर्वतः श्रुतिमल्लोके सर्वमावृत्य तिष्ठति ॥१३॥

Translation

sarvataḥ pāṇi-pādam tat (THAT having HANDS-and-FEET on ALL-SIDES) sarvataḥ-akṣi-śiro-mukham (with EYES-HEADS-FACES on ALL-SIDES) sarvataḥ-śrutimat loke (HAVING-EARS on ALL-SIDES in the WORLD) sarvam āvṛtya tiṣṭhati (COVERING-EVERYTHING IT STANDS).

Function

BG-13.13 is the ICONIC ŚVETĀŚVATARA-3.16-ECHO verse — Krishna directly quotes (with negligible variation) the foundational Vedic-Upaniṣadic SAHASRA-AṄGA cosmic-body shruti, here re-deployed to render the JÑEYA-brahma's omnipresent-body. The verse opens the JÑEYA-DEFINITION block (BG-13.12-17) with kataphatic affirmation immediately after BG-13.12's apophatic na sat tan nāsad ucyate at cluster 0467 — together forming the precise apophatic-kataphatic pedagogical-pair that opens the jñeya-block.

The verse's pedagogical-architecture is precise: 3 sarvataḥ-clauses enumerating 5 organ-classes (HANDS-FEET + EYES-HEADS-FACES + EARS) + 1 closing sarvam āvṛtya tiṣṭhati (covering-everything-IT-STANDS) clause. Krishna's purpose: having ruled out sat-asat categorization at BG-13.12, deploy the canonical omnipresent-body image to render the jñeya's POSITIVE pervasion-aspect.

Jñāneśvar's 18-ovi Treatment

The 18-ovi treatment (13.874-13.891) renders the verse in 5 precise organ-class sub-blocks followed by a 7-ovi PEDAGOGICAL-DISCLAIMER and a transition-ovi:

(i) 13.874-13.875 — VIŚVA-BĀHU (Omnipresent-Hands)

The KRIYĀ that operates in all DEŚA-KĀLA, not-separate from DEŚA-KĀLA, in the GROSS-and-SUBTLE — THAT-VERY-KRIYĀ is HIS HANDS. He is VIŚVA-BĀHU because sarvaci sarvapaṇē sarvadā karī (does everything in every-way always). Hand RE-INTERPRETED as action-as-such.

(ii) 13.876 — VIŚVA-AṄGHRI (Omnipresent-Feet)

Because He has ARRIVED at ALL PLACES at ONE TIME, the name VIŚVA-AṄGHRI. Foot-as-locomotion RE-INTERPRETED as simultaneous-ubiquity.

(iii) 13.877-13.878 — VIŚVATAḤ-CAKṢU (Omnipresent-Eye)

The precise iconic SAVITṚ-no-separate-eye simile — paim savitayā ānga ḍōḷē — nāhīmta vēgaḷē vēgaḷē — taisēm sarva-draṣṭē sakaḷēm — svarūpēm jēm (the SUN's BODY and EYES are NOT-SEPARATE-SEPARATE — SO is the all-seer in its-own-FORM). Then the precise iconic shruti-pedagogy-disclaimer: mhaṇauni viśvataścakṣu — hā acakṣūcyā ṭhāyīm pakṣu — bōlāvayā dakṣu — jāhalā vēdu (THEREFORE the VEDA, becoming SKILLED to SPEAK in the case of the EYE-LESS, took the SIDE of VIŚVATAḤ-CAKṢU) — the Veda speaks of eyes precisely because the jñeya has none.

(iv) 13.879 — VIŚVA-MŪRDHĀ (Omnipresent-Head)

That which DWELLS ALWAYS on the HEAD of ALL, in EVERY-WAY of ALL — on THAT BASIS He is called VIŚVA-MŪRDHĀ. Head RE-INTERPRETED as crowning-presence over all heads.

(v) 13.880-13.881 — VIŚVATAḤ-MUKHA (Omnipresent-Mouth/Face)

The precise iconic AGNI-mūrti-mukha simile — paim gā mūrti tēmci mukha — hutāśanā jaisēm dēkha — taisēm sarvapaṇēm aśēkha — bhōktē jē (just as the WHOLE-FIRE-BODY ITSELF IS the MOUTH — HUTĀŚANA the OBLATION-EATER — SO that which is BHOKTĀ in EVERY-WAY without REMAINDER). The designation VIŚVATAḤ-MUKHA has come into the vāk-patha (speech-path) of the SHRUTI.

(vi) 13.882-13.883 — VIŚVATAḤ-ŚRUTI (Omnipresent-Ear)

The precise iconic GAGANA-samlagna simile — āṇi vastu-mātrīm gagana — jaisēm asē samlagna — taisēm śabda-jātīm kāna — sarvatra jayā (just as the SKY is SAṂLAGNA — intimately-attached to every-substance — SO is HIS EAR SARVATRA in every ŚABDA-CLASS). Therefore WE call Him SARVATRA-ĀIKATĒṀ — THUS He EXISTS COVERING-EVERYTHING (āvarūni-asē rendering sarvam āvṛtya tiṣṭhati).

(vii) 13.884-13.890 — The 7-Ovi PEDAGOGICAL-DISCLAIMER Block

The precise iconic disclaimer-block immediately following the kataphatic-recitation:

  • 13.884: ēṛhavīm tarī mahāmati — viśvataścakṣu iyā śrutī — tayāciyā vyāptī — rūpa kēlēm (OTHERWISE, O MAHĀMATI — the SHRUTI 'VIŚVATAḤ-CAKṢU' has made a FORM of HIS VYĀPTI) — the shruti's organ-language is VYĀPTI-RŪPA-KARAṆA (making-form-of-pervasion).

  • 13.885: vāmcūni hasta nētra pāyē — hēm bhāṣa tētha kēm āhē? — sarva śūnyācā na sāhē — niṣkarṣu jēm (OTHER THAN THAT — where would HAND, EYE, FOOT-language be? — That which TOLERATES NO FINAL-EXTRACTION of SARVA-ŚŪNYA).

  • 13.886: the iconic KALLOḶA-grasping-KALLOḶA paradox — paim kallōḷātēm kallōḷēm — grasijata asē aisēm kaḷē — parī grasitēm grāsāvēgaḷēm — asē kāī? (that a WAVE is GRASPED by a WAVE — this is KNOWN — but is the GRASPER SEPARATE from the GRASPED?).

  • 13.887: taisēm sācaci jēm ēka — tētha kēm vyāpya-vyāpaka? — parī bōlāvayā nāvēka — karāvēm lāgē (SO that which is TRULY ONE — where could VYĀPYA-VYĀPAKA be? — BUT for SPEAKING it must be MOMENTARILY MADE).

  • 13.888: the iconic ŚŪNYA-needs-BINDU pedagogy — paim śūnya jaim dāvāvēm jāhalēm — taim binduḷēm ēka pāhijē kēlēm — taisēm advaita sāngāvēm bōlēm — taim dvaita kījē (when SHŪNYA has to be SHOWN — ONE BINDU has to be MADE — SO when ADVAITA has to be TOLD in SPEECH — DVAITA must be MADE).

  • 13.889: the precise iconic pedagogical-necessity argument — ēṛhavīm tarī pārthā — guru-śiṣya-sat-pathā — āḍaḷu paḍē sarvathā — bōla khuṇṭē (OTHERWISE the GURU-ŚIṢYA-SAT-PATH would be OBSTRUCTED — SPEECH would STOP).

  • 13.890: the precise iconic crowning-formula — mhaṇauni gā śrutī — dvaita-bhāvē advaitīm — nirūpaṇācī vāhatī — vāṭa kēlī (THEREFORE the SHRUTI has MADE a FLOWING-PATH of NIRŪPAṆA into ADVAITA via DVAITA-BHĀVA).

(viii) 13.891 — Transition to BG-13.14

tēmci ātām avadhārīm — iyē nētra-gōcarē ākārīm — tēm jñēya jayāparī — vyāpaka asē (THE-SAME NOW LISTEN — IN THIS EYE-VISIBLE FORM — HOW that JÑEYA is VYĀPAKA) — explicit bridge to BG-13.14's sarvendriya-guṇābhāsam indriya-guṇa-ābhāsa pervasion-elaboration.

Significance

Cluster 0468 is among the most-philosophically-precise advaita-disclaimers in the entire Bhāvārtha-Dīpikā. Krishna directly echoes Śvetāśvatara-Upaniṣad 3.16 — the foundational SAHASRA-AṄGA omnipresent-body shruti — but Jñāneśvar's 18-ovi treatment immediately deconstructs the kataphatic-image as a VYĀPTI-RŪPA-KARAṆA. The cluster's pedagogical-payload — dvaita-bhāvē advaitīm nirūpaṇa-vāṭa at 13.890 — is the foundational principle authorizing the entire upadeśa-tradition: without provisional-dvaita the GURU-ŚIṢYA-SAT-PATH would collapse (13.889, bol-khuṇṭē — speech would stop).

The cluster pairs with cluster 0467 (BG-13.12 na sat tan nāsad ucyate) as the precise apophatic-kataphatic pedagogical-pair opening the JÑEYA-block: 0467 = NEGATION, 0468 = AFFIRMATION — together demonstrating Jñāneśvar's signature dual-method in operation. The 3 organ-class similes — SAVITṚ-no-separate-eye (13.877) + AGNI-mūrti-mukha (13.880) + GAGANA-samlagna (13.882) — each render the jñeya's pervasion via a natural substance whose body IS its function. The 2 disclaimer-similes — KALLOḶA-grasps-KALLOḶA (13.886) + ŚŪNYA-needs-BINDU (13.888) — render the non-different vyāpya-vyāpaka and the pedagogical-necessity of provisional-dvaita.

Cross-cultural parallel: the Puruṣa-sūkta (Ṛgveda 10.90 sahasra-śīrṣā puruṣaḥ sahasrākṣaḥ sahasrapāt), the Pseudo-Dionysian via-eminentiae/via-negativa pairing, and the Sufi tashbīh-tanzīh polarity all deploy the same dual-method of POSITIVE-AFFIRMATION immediately DISCLAIMED-as-CONCESSION.