Shloka 31
स भिद्यते वेदमयः स वेदं करोति भेदैर् बहुभिः सशाखम् शाखाप्रणेता स समस्तशाखा ज्ञानस्वरूपो भगवान् अनन्तः
sa bhidyate vedamayaḥ sa vedaṃ karoti bhedair bahubhiḥ saśākham śākhāpraṇetā sa samastaśākhā jñānasvarūpo bhagavān anantaḥ
He whose very essence is the Veda appears as the Veda’s differentiation; by countless distinctions He fashions the one Veda into many branches and lineages. He is the promulgator of the Vedic schools, yet He Himself is the totality of all schools—Bhagavān Ananta, Knowledge embodied.
Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Why one Veda appears as many śākhās and how the Lord is both the divider and the totality of Vedic schools
Teaching: Philosophical
Quality: authoritative
Concept: The one Veda, whose essence is the Lord, manifests as many branches; the same Bhagavān Ananta is the author, the plurality, and the totality—knowledge itself.
Vedantic Theme: Brahman
Application: Hold sectarian/scriptural differences as complementary śākhās while seeking their unified intent—devotion to and knowledge of the same Lord.
Vishishtadvaita: Presents Bhagavān as jñāna-svarūpa and as the organizing source of śāstra plurality, supporting a harmonizing, theistic Vedānta rather than reduction to impersonal abstraction.
Vishnu Form: Hari (name)
Bhakti Type: Shanta
Jagat Karana: Yes
FAQs
This verse states that Vishnu is not merely the revealer of scripture but its very essence—He is the one Veda and also the power by which it appears as many Vedic branches.
Parāśara presents the diversity of Vedic schools as a deliberate differentiation performed by the Lord Himself—one Veda expressed through many divisions for transmission and practice.
Vishnu is affirmed as the infinite Bhagavān who is knowledge itself and the sovereign source of all revelation—supporting a Vaishnava view where scripture and its meanings ultimately rest in Him.