21. The possessor of qualities like invisibility and subtle omnipresence is Brahman on account of its characteristics being mentioned.

“That which cannot be seen nor seized, which is without origin, eternal, all pervading, omnipresent, extremely subtle, the source of all beings, which the wise behold.”

The Being which is the source of all beings is not the Pradhāna but Brahman, for qualities like all knowingness and all perceiving intelligence are true only of Brahman and not of the non intelligent Pradhāna. Obviously it cannot refer to the individual soul, as it is limited.

22. The other two, namely the individual soul and the Pradhāna, are not referred to in the passage, because the characteristics of Brahman and the difference from the other two are clearly mentioned.

“That heavenly person is without body, comprises the external and the internal, is birthless, without the vital force and without mind, pure, higher than the high Imperishable.”

Epithets like heavenly, birthless, and pure apply only to Brahman and not to the individual soul, which thinks of itself as limited, impure, and embodied. The phrase “higher than the high Imperishable” also shows that the source of all beings is different from and superior to the Pradhāna.

23. Also because its form is mentioned, the passage refers to Brahman.

Subsequent to the previous text comes the declaration, “The Person indeed is all this—sacrifice, knowledge, and all existence.” This shows that the source of all beings under discussion is none other than the Supreme Lord, because it is the Self of all beings.