Shloka 15
यजुर्वेदशाखाः, याज्ञवल्क्य–वैशम्पायनसंवादः, सूर्यस्तुतिः
Yajurveda branches and Yājñavalkya’s solar revelation
याज्ञवल्क्यो ऽपि मैत्रेय प्राणायामपरायणः तुष्टाव प्रणतः सूर्यं यजूंष्य् अभिलषंस् ततः
yājñavalkyo 'pi maitreya prāṇāyāmaparāyaṇaḥ tuṣṭāva praṇataḥ sūryaṃ yajūṃṣy abhilaṣaṃs tataḥ
O Maitreya, Yājñavalkya too—steadfast in the discipline of prāṇāyāma—bowed in reverence and praised the Sun-god; for he longed to obtain the Yajus mantras, and through that devotion he sought them.
Sage Parāśara (addressing Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: How Yājñavalkya obtained a new recension of Yajus through worship of Sūrya
Teaching: Devotional
Quality: revealing
Concept: Through disciplined breath-control and reverent praise, Yājñavalkya seeks divine illumination (via Sūrya) to obtain sacred knowledge.
Vedantic Theme: Moksha
Application: Combine steady practice (discipline, breath, focus) with sincere devotion; approach learning as grace received through purified effort.
Vishishtadvaita: Divine knowledge is accessed through grace responding to disciplined devotion—effort (upāya) is real, yet fruition depends on higher divine bestowal, resonant with Viśiṣṭādvaita’s śeṣatva and prapatti-bhāva.
Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman
Bhakti Type: Shanta
FAQs
Here Sūrya is approached as a luminous source of ordered power and revelation; Yājñavalkya’s praise shows that disciplined devotion can become a conduit for receiving Vedic mantras within dharma.
By presenting Yājñavalkya as “prāṇāyāmaparāyaṇaḥ,” Parāśara frames yogic restraint as a preparatory purity that supports focused worship and the successful attainment of desired Vedic formulas.
Even when a deity like Sūrya is praised, the Purāṇic framework treats such powers as operating within the supreme sovereignty of Vishnu—so the acquisition of Vedic knowledge ultimately aligns with Vishnu’s cosmic order and sustaining reality.