ment
therefrom, i.e. from that pradhana, 'the source of all beings' must mean
the highest Lord.--A further argument in favour of the same conclusion
is supplied by the next Sutra.

23. And on account of its form being mentioned.

Subsequently to the passage, 'Higher than the high Imperishable,' we
meet (in the passage, 'From him is born breath,' &c.) with a description
of the creation of all things, from breath down to earth, and then with
a statement of the form of this same source of beings as consisting of
all created beings, 'Fire is his head, his eyes the sun and the moon,
the quarters his ears, his speech the Vedas disclosed, the wind his
breath, his heart the universe; from his feet came the earth; he is
indeed the inner Self of all things.' This statement of form can refer
only to the highest Lord, and not either to the embodied soul, which, on
account of its small power, cannot be the cause of all effects, or to
the pradhana, which cannot be the inner Self of all beings. We therefore
conclude that the source of all beings is the highest Lord, not either
of the other two.--But wherefrom do you conclude that the quoted
declaration of form refers to the source of all beings?--From the
general topic, we reply. The word 'he' (in the clause, 'He is indeed the
inner Self of all things') connects the passage with the general topic.
As the source of all beings constitutes the general topic, the whole
passage, from 'From him is born breath,' up to, 'He is the inner Self of
all beings,' refers to that same source. Similarly, when in ordinary
conversation a certain teacher forms the general topic of the talk, the
phrase, 'Study under him; he knows the Veda and the Veda@ngas
thoroughly,' as a matter of course, refers to that same teacher.--But
how can a bodily form be ascribed to the source of all beings which is
characterised by invisibility and similar attributes?--The statement as
to its nature, we reply, is made for the purpose of showing that the
source of all beings is the Self of all beings, not of showing that it
is of a bodily nature. The case is analogous to such passages as, 'I am
food, I am food, I am the eater of food' (Taitt. Up. III, 10,
6).--Others, however, are of opinion[151] that the statement quoted does
not refer to the source of all beings, because that to which it refers
is spoken of as something produced. For, on the one hand, the
immediately preceding passage ('From him is born health, mind, and al