Why do You contradict Vyaasa in saying that the soul is different from God?

Even sage Vyāsa says that the soul itself is God (Brahmātmaikatva lakṣaṇam). Then why do You say that the soul is different from God? [This question is part of a mahā satsaṅga or a great spiritual discussion between Swami and several devotees who had come from various places, seeking the clarification of their doubts.]

Swami replied: O Learned and Devoted Servants of God! The same sage Vyāsa also wrote several sutras, one after the other, in the very first pāda of the first adhyāya of the Brahma Sūtras proving that the soul is not God (Netaronupapatteḥ etc.,). A soul, along with its external body, can become God when God merges with it to become an Energetic or Human Incarnation. Souls possessing energetic bodies (angels) can become Energetic Incarnations and souls possessing physical human bodies (human beings) can become Human Incarnations. Every soul has an equal opportunity to become God just as every student in the class has an equal opportunity to become the gold medalist. Here, in the case of the soul becoming God, not only is the effort of the soul required but also the willingness of God, which, in fact, is more important. The effort of the soul is in eradicating its aspiration to become an Incarnation and in keeping oneself constantly in the position of a servant of God. Even after becoming an Incarnation, the energetic being-component or the human being-component in the Incarnation must constantly maintain the attitude that it is only a servant of God. It is this attitude alone that ensures that God still remains merged with that soul and the soul continues to be an Incarnation. Merely reading scriptures, without having the knowledge of the existence of the unimaginable God, at the fundamental level, will only lead a person to confusion (Avijñāte paretattve, śāstrādhītistu niṣphalā—Śaṅkara). You must be alert in carefully recognizing the context, to understand whether the scripture is speaking about the Incarnation or about an ordinary soul. Otherwise, one context will be mistaken to be the other context, resulting in wrong knowledge.

| Shri Dattaswami | Netaronupapatteh Avijnaate paretattve shaastraadhiitistu nishphalaa Shankara Brahmaatmaikatva lakshanam Brahma Sutras paada Adhyaaya