“How can the same thing be yellow and not yellow—bright and dark—at the same time? These qualities are not in harmony; the whole theory is confused, it is as if one were trying to mix up the immiscible. Again, how did the primordial atoms begin to unite to produce diatoms or triatoms? Was it of their own accord? (which is impossible because, they are insentient) or by God’s will? (Then the action is God’s and not of the atoms. Otherwise it would be like a king in his palace who, by merely willing to kill the enemy, sent his weapons flying about in the act of destruction.) (It has already been pointed out that God cannot be supposed to operate atoms for the purpose of creation, as a potter does with clay.)
Note: Thus the idea of the beginning of creation is altogether refuted.
“It is also absurd to say that the insentient atoms of matter began creation when the equilibrium of the three forces Satva, Rajas and Tamas, was disturbed. (One of the systems of philosophy believes that three qualities, brightness, activity and darkness, are always there in equilibrium. When disturbed, creation begins; when they revert to equilibrium, the universe is dissolved.) How are the changes in the state of equilibrium brought about? Change is not possible without an intelligent cause. So none of the systems can satisfactorily account for creation. Scriptures alone are the guide for comprehending the metaphysical and the transcendental. The rest are not authoritative because of the individual’s limitations, the absence of reliable tests for their accuracy, and of the repeated failures of attempts which ignore God. The universe must have a Creator, and He must be an intelligent principle, but He cannot be of any known type because of the vastness of the creation. His power is past understanding and is dealt with in the Scriptures, whose authority is incontrovertible. They speak of the unique Creator, the Lord who was before creation, being self-contained. He created the universe by His own power. It is in its entirety and all its details, a picture on the screen of His Self like the dream world on the individual consciousness. The individual encompasses his own creation with his ego (as ‘I’); so does the Lord play with the universe. Just as the dreamer is not to be confounded with the dream so is the Lord not to be confounded with the creation. Just as a man survives his dream, so does the Lord survive the dissolution of His creation. Just as you remain ever as pure consciousness apart from the body, etc., so is the Lord, unbounded consciousness apart from the universe, etc. Is it not after all only a picture drawn by Him on His Self? How can this unique creation be apart from Him?
There can indeed be nothing but consciousness. Tell me of any place where there is no consciousness; there is no place beyond consciousness. Or can any one prove in any manner anything outside consciousness? Conciousness is inescapable.
31-32. “Moreover, this consciousness is the only existence, covering the whole universe, and perfect all through. Just as there cannot be breakers apart from the ocean and light without the Sun, so also the Universe cannot be conceived without consciousness. The Supreme God is thus the embodiment of pure Consciousness.
33-34. “This whole universe consisting of the mobile and the immobile, arises from, abides in, and resolves into Him. This is the final and well-known conclusion of the Scriptures; and the Scriptures never err. The guide by which one can comprehend the metaphysical and transcendental matters is Scripture alone.
35. “Miraculous powers possessed by gems and incantations cannot be denied, nor can they be fathomed by a man of limited knowledge.
36-40. “Because the scriptures proceed from the all-knowing Lord, they partake of His omniscient quality. The Being mentioned in them is eternally existing even before the birth of the universe. His creation has been without any material aids. Therefore God is supreme, perfect, pure and self-contained. The creation is not an object apart; it is a picture drawn on the canvas of supreme consciousness, for there cannot possibly be anything beyond Perfection. Imagination on the contrary, is impractical. The universe has thus originated only as an image on the surface of the mirror of the Absolute. This conclusion is in harmony with all the facts.
41-45. “Creation is like a magician’s trick, and is a city born of divine imagination. O! Parasurâma, you are aware of the mental creations of day-dreamers which are full of people, life and work, similar to this. There are also doubts, tests, discussions and conclusions—all imaginary arising in the mind and subsiding there. Just as castles in the air are mental figments of men so also is this creation a mental figment of Siva. Siva is absolute Awareness, without any form. Sri Tripura is Sakti (energy) and Witness of the whole. That Being is perfect all round and remains undivided.
46-47. “Time and space are the factors of division in the world; of these, space refers to the location of objects and time to the sequence of events. Time and space are themselves projected from consciousness, how then would they divide or destroy their own basis and still continue to be what they are?
48-51. “Can you show the time or place not permeated by consciousness? Is it not within your consciousness when you speak of it? The fact of the existence of things is only illumination of them, and nothing more. Such illumination pertains to consciousness alone. That alone counts which is self-shining. Objects are not so, for their existence depends upon perception of them by conscious beings. But consciousness is self-effulgent—not so the objects, which depend on conscious beings for being known.
52-54. “If on the other hand, you contend that objects exist even if not perceived by us, I tell you—listen! There is no consistency in the world regarding the existence or non-existence of things. Their cognition is the only factor determining it. Just as reflections have no substance in them, outside of the mirror, so also the things of the world have no substance in them outside of the cognising factor, viz. , Intelligence.
The detail and tangibility of things are no arguments against their being nothing but images.
55-63. “Those qualities of reflected images depend on the excellence of the reflecting surface, we can see in the case of water and polished surfaces. Mirrors are insentient and are not self-contained. Whereas, consciousness is always pure and selfcontained; it does not require an external object to create the image. Ordinary mirrors are liable to be soiled by extraneous dirt whereas consciousness has nothing foreign to it, being always alone and undivided; and therefore its reflections are unique. Created things are not self-luminous and are illumined by another’s cognitive faculty. Cognition of things implies their images on our intelligence. They are only images. The creation therefore is an image. It is not self-shining; and thus it is not selfaware, but becomes a fact on our perception of it. Therefore I say that the universe is nothing but an image on our consciousness. Consciousness shines notwithstanding the formation of images on it; though impalpable, it is steadily fixed and does not falter. Just as the images in a mirror are not apart from the mirror, so also the creations of consciousness are not apart from it.
64. “Objects are necessary for producing images in a mirror; they are not however necessary for consciousness because it is self-contained.
65-66. . . . “O Parasurâma! note how day-dreams and hallucinations are clearly pictured in the mind even in the absence of any reality behind them. How does it happen? The place of objects is taken up by the peculiar imaginative quality of the mind. When such imagination is deep, it takes shape as creation; consciousness is pure and unblemished in the absence of imagination.
67. “Thus you see how consciousness was absolute and pure before creation and how its peculiar quality or will brought about this image of the world in it.
68-69. “So the world is nothing but an image drawn on the screen of consciousness; it differs from a mental picture in its long duration; that is again due to the strength of will producing the phenomenon. The universe appears practical, material and perfect because the will determining its creation is perfect and independent; whereas the human conceptions are more or less transitory according to the strength or the weakness of the will behind them.
70. “The hampering of l
imitations is to some extent overcome by the use of incantations, gems and herbs, and an unbroken current of ‘I’ is established.
71. “With the aid of that pure yoga, O Rama, observe the creation manifested by one’s will like the hallucinations brought about by a magician.
Note: There are said to be some live gems which have extraordinary properties. They are lustrous even in the dark and do not take on different lustres according to the background. They also illumine the objects close to them. One kind is said to be cool to touch and it does not become warm even on contact with the body; another is said to sweat in moonlight; still another makes the owner prosperous; yet another ruins him (e.g., the ‘Hope’ diamond), and so on.
A vivid account is given of a magician’s performance in Ranjit Singh’s court. He threw a rope into the air which stood taut. A man climbed up the rope and disappeared.
72. “Objects in the world can be handled and put to use, while mental creations (e.g. , dreams) present the same phenomenon.
73. “A magician’s creations are only transitory; a yogi’s creations may be permanent; both are external to the creator, whereas the divine creation cannot be apart from the omnipresent Lord.
Note: Visvamitra, a great Rishi, is reputed to have created a duplicate Universe, a part of which consists of the constellations composing Scorpio, Sagittarius, and the Southern Cross. Some trees, plants and herbs in imitation of well-known species (e.g., palmyra corresponding to cocoanut, jungle potatoes and onions insipid to taste and useless, etc.) are among his creations.
74. “Because the Lord of consciousness is infinite, the creation can remain only within Him and the contrary is pure fancy.
75. “Since the Universe is only a projection from and in the mirror of consciousness, its unreal nature can become clear only on investigation, and not otherwise.
76. “Truth can never change its nature, whereas untruth is always changing. See how changeful the nature of the world is!
77-78. “Distinguish between the changeless truth and the changeful untruth and scrutinise the world comprised of these two factors, changeful phenomena and changeless subjective consciousness, like the unchanging light of the mirror and the changing images in it.
79. “The world cannot stand investigation because of its changing unreal nature. Just as the owl is dazzled, and blinded by bright sunlight, so the world parades in glory before ignorance and disappears before the right analysis.
Note: The man sees by sunlight and is helpless in its absence. The owl sees in darkness and is blinded in sunlight. Whose sight is the better of the two? This cannot be determined satisfactorily so the investigation becomes lame.
80-84. “What is food for one, is poison for another (e.g., decomposed food for worms and men). What is one thing to yogis and celestials, is another to others. A long distance by one vehicle is short by another.
“Long intervals of space reflected in the mirror are themselves in it and yet unreal.
“In this way, investigation becomes indeterminate by itself. Investigation and the object investigated are both indeterminate, and the only constant factor underlying both is consciousness. Nothing else can stand beside it.
85. “That which shines as ‘Is’ is Her Majesty the Absolute Consciousness.
“Thus the universe is only the Self—the One and one only.”
Thus ends the Chapter XI on the Ascertainment of Truth in Tripura Rahasya.
Chapter XII
The Appearance of the Reality of the Universe
Depends on the Strength of Will of Creation
1. Even after listening to Dattatreya patiently, Parasurâma was still perplexed and asked:
2. “O Lord, what you have said so far about the Universe is the truth.
3. “Even so, how is it that it appears to be real to me and to others who are both intelligent and shrewd?
4. “Why does it continue to seem to be real to me even though I have heard you say otherwise? Please prove to me its unreality and remove my present illusion.”
5. Thus requested, Dattatreya, the great sage, began to explain the cause of the illusion which makes one believe the world to be real.
6. “Listen, Rama! This illusion is very old, being no other than the deep-rooted ignorance which mistakes one thing for another.
7. “See how the true Self has been ignored and the body has become identified with the Self. Consider this foul body comprised of blood and bones beside that unblemished, pure intelligence!
8. “Even the gross body becomes mistaken for crystal-clear consciousness by mere force of habit.
9. “So also the universe has repeatedly been taken to be real so that it now looks as if it were actually real. The remedy lies in a change of outlook.
10. “The world becomes for one whatever one is accustomed to think it. This is borne out by the realization of yogis of the objects of their long contemplation.
11-12. “I shall illustrate this point by an ancient and wonderful incident. There is a very holy town, Sundara, in the country of Vanga. Here once lived a very wise and famous king, Susena by name. His younger brother, Mahasena, was his loyal and dutiful subject.
13. “The king ruled his kingdom so well that all his subjects loved him. On one occasion he performed the horse-sacrifice.
Note: This sacrifice can be performed only by the most powerful kings. A horse chosen and dedicated for sacrifice is allowed to roam wherever it pleases. The sacrificer or his lieutenant or group of lieutenants, follows the horse at a distance. The horse is a challenge to the kings in whose country it roams, so that battles are fought until the horse is successfully brought back and the sacrifice performed.
14. “All the most valiant princes followed the horse with a great army.
15. “Their course was victorious until they reached the banks of the Irrawaddy.
16. ‘They were so elated that they passed by the peacefully sitting royal sage, Gana, without saluting him.
17. “Gana’s son noticed the insult to his father and was exasperated. He caught the sacrificial horse and fought the heroes guarding it.
18-23. “They surrounded him on all sides but he together with the horse entered a hill, Ganda, before their eyes. Noticing his disappearance in the hill, the invaders attacked the hill. The sage’s son re-appeared with a huge army, fought the enemy, defeated them and destroyed Susena’s army. He took many prisoners of war, including all the princes and then re-entered the hill. A few followers who escaped fled to Susena and told him everything. Susena was surprised and said to his brother:
24-30. “‘Brother! go to the place of the sage, Gana. Remember that penance doers are wonderfully powerful and cannot be conquered even by gods. Therefore take care to please him so that you may be allowed to bring back the princes and the horse in time for the sacrifice which is fast approaching. Pride before sages will always be humbled. If enraged, they reduce the world to ashes. Approach him with respect so that our object may be fulfilled.’
“Mahasena obeyed and immediately started on his errand. He arrived at Gana’s hermitage and found the sage seated peacefully like a rock, with his senses, mind and intellect under perfect control. The sage, who was immersed in the Self, looked like a calm sea whose waves of thought had quieted down. Mahasena spontaneously fell prostrate before the sage and began to sing his praises, and here he remained for three days in reverential attitude.
31-46. “The sage’s son who had been watching the new visitor was pleased, and coming to him said, ‘I am pleased with the respect you show for my father, tell me what I can do for you and I will do it at once. I am the son of this great Gana, the unique hermit. Prince, listen to me. This is not the time for my father to speak. He is now in kevala nirvikalpa samâdhi and will come out of it only after twelve years, of which five have already passed and seven yet remain.’
“‘Tell me now what you desire from him and I will do it for you. Do not underestimate me and think that I am only a headstrong youth not worthy of my fath
er. There is nothing impossible for yogis engaged in penance.’
“After hearing him, Mahasena, being wise, saluted him with clasped hands and said: ‘Oh child of the sage! If you mean to fulfil my desire I want to make a short request to your wise father when he has come out of his samâdhi. Kindly help me to that end if you please.’ After he had thus requested, the sage’s son replied: ‘King, your request is hard to grant. Having promised fulfilment of your desire, I cannot now go back on my word. I must now ask you to wait an hour and a half and watch my yogic power. This, my father, is now in transcendental peace. Who can wake him up by external efforts? Wait! I shall do it forthwith by means of subtle yoga.’
“Saying so, he sat down, withdrew his senses, united the ingoing and out-going breaths, exhaled air and stopped motionless for a short time; in this way he entered the mind of the sage and after agitating it, re-entered his own body. Immediately the sage came to his senses and found Mahasena in front of him, prostrating and praising him. He thought for a moment taking in the whole situation by his extraordinary powers.
47-49. “Perfectly peaceful and cheerful in mind, he beckoned to his son and said to him: ‘Boy, do not repeat this fault. Wrath wrecks penance. Penance is only possible and can progress without obstruction because the king protects yogis. To interfere with a sacrifice is always reprehensible and never to be countenanced by the good. Be a good boy and return the horse and the princes immediately. Do it at once so that the sacrifice may be performed at the appointed hour.’
50. “Directed thus, the sage’s son was immediately appeased. He went into the hill, returned with the horse and the princes and released them with pleasure.
51-53. “Mahasena sent the princes with the horse to the town. He was surprised at what he saw and saluting the sage asked him respectfully: ‘Lord, please tell me how the horse and the princes were concealed in the hill.’ Then the sage replied:
Tripura Rahasya Page 9