[Advaita-l] Does one really have to come back from the Brahmaloka?

[sidha at omkarananda-ashram.org]

Does one really have to come back from the Brahmaloka?

In the BhagavadGita Lord Shri Krishna says (8-16), "All worlds, including
BrahmaLoka, have the feature of recurrence, O Arjuna! but on reaching Me,
there is no more rebirth."

To me this particular statement of Lord Shri Krishna seems to be against
the Shruti. Can anyone clarify this doubt? How to reconcile both
statements?

Let me tell you the stand of the Shruti on this!
Chandogya Upanishad finishes with the following statement (8-15-1), "He
reaches BrahmaLoka, He never comes back, He never comes back".
The double statement emphasizes that HE NEVER COMES BACK.

In one other place Chandogya Upanishad mentions (4-15-5), "A super-human
takes them to BrahmaLoka, this is the Divine path (devapatha), this is the
greatest path (brahmapatha), whoever tread this path, never come back to
this human body, they never come back."
As you can see, here also the Shruti emphasizes the phrase "they never
come back" by saying it twice.
The last Sutra in the BrahmaSutra "anaavrittih shabdaadanaavrittih
shabdaat" also very clearly proves that there is no coming back from the
BrahmaLoka.

Even in the Rig-veda it is mentioned (8-48-3), "We have imbibed Soma (the
divine nectar of knowledge given by the Holy Teacher), we became immortal,
we obtained light (of self-realization), thus we came to all the radiant
beings (Devas, sine they are just various manifestations of that Divine
Light which we have obtained). How can now my enemies (lust, anger, hatred
etc.) harm me anymore?"

For me this statement is a "vedaanuvacana", a statement of bliss that
occurs after one imbibes the Divine Nectar of knowledge and enters the
trance of Self-realization.
Let me also make it clear that "Soma" had a very mystical and spiritual
significance in the Rig-veda, it was very clearly not a plant, as
understood by the Yajnikas. This is very very clearly stated in the
following Mantra of the Rigveda (10-85-3), "Some people think they have
drank Soma after they grind a plant and drink its juice, but the Soma
which is known to the Mantras (or the seers of the Rig-veda), isn't
imbibed by anybody".
Shatapatha Brahmana provides a very clear spiritual interpretation of
"Soma", "All this is my own self, this realization is called Soma" (sva
vai ma eSha iti tasmaat somo naama, Shatapatha Brahmana)

In this case how does Bhagavan Shri Krishna say that one has to come back
from the BrahmaLoka?
Love and respect,
Siddhartha Krishna