Page:Bengal Vaishnavism - Bipin Chandra Pal.djvu/20

 Faith or the Bhakta. Brahman, Paramatman and Bhaghvan, these are three terms representing not three persons but the Absolute in three different aspects. Brahman represents the highest generalisation of cosmic experience and the final question regarding the origin, existence and dissolution of the universe. Brahman is the Unity that explains the infinite net of relations constituting this world of men and matter. Paramatman is the same Unity that explains the multiplicity and changes of our inner life, Who, as the Indweller, holds together the thread of our inner life and relations. But the cosmic life and the individual or personal life do not stand isolated but these are also bound up in a net of intimate relations. And the question is, who joins our personal consciousness to the outer objects in the universe and also to the similar personal consciousness of other individuals ? In short, who is the link between our senses and their objects in the cosmic creation, and who is the link that joins us to other human beings in bonds of love and service ? The answer to this question, according to Bengal Vaishnavism, is Bhagavan. Brahman is impersonal. Paramatman is the basis of our individual personality.