All knowledge, too, moves only at the command of Maheśa, the Great Lord. It is by my will alone that the entire universe is set in motion, and into me alone does it ultimately dissolve. I am the Supreme Self, the highest Brahman—apart from me, nothing else is truly known. Whoever realizes this is freed from the bondage of birth and the cycle of worldly existence. To know me is to be liberated, never again to fall into the snares of worldly life. My supreme abode is eternal, filled with bliss, and utterly without distinction. I am that ancient and imperishable Lord—Hari, the wielder of māyā. Among the Ādityas, I am Viṣṇu; among the Vasus, I am Pāvaka, the fire. Among lordly elephants, I am Airāvata; among wielders of weapons, I am Rāma. Among all artisans, I am Viśvakarman, the divine architect; among the foes of the immortals, I am Prahlāda, the devoted. Among heroes, I am Vīrabhadra; among the perfected sages, I am Kapila. Among weapons, I am the thunderbolt; among vows, I am truth itself. Of all the stages of life, I am the householder; among lords, I am the great Lord. Among the Yakṣas, I am Kubera, the lord of wealth; among the leaders of the Gaṇas, I am Vīraka. Among those possessing strength, I am the wind; among all islands, I am Puṣkara. Of the Vedas, I am the Sāma Veda; among Yajur texts, I am the Śatarudriya. Among hymns, I am the Puruṣa Sūkta; among the Sāma chants, I am the Jyeṣṭha Sāman. Among all lands, I am Brahmāvarta; among sacred fields, I am Avimuktaka. Among all beings, I am space itself; among living creatures, I am death. Among all paths, I am liberation; among the highest, I am the Supreme Lord. Know that all these manifestations are but my own radiance. Of them all, I am the Lord, remembered by the wise as Paśupati. The knowers of the Veda proclaim me alone as the liberator of all beings. Apart from me, the Supreme Self, the imperishable Lord of beings, there is none. These are the bonds of Paśupati—afflictions that bind beings. There are eight primal natures, and other modifications as well. The anus, the generative organ, the two hands, the two feet, and speech together are considered the tenth. These, altogether twenty-three, are known as the primary principles of nature. The beginningless, middleless, and endless cause—this is the supreme cause of the world. When all these principles are in a state of perfect balance, it is called the unmanifest, the primal nature. The wise understand that all diversity among qualities arises from differences in understanding. Actions offered to me can lead either to bondage or to liberation. The bonds, known as afflictions, are the fetters that bind the self. The root-prakriti, the unmanifest, is the power that abides in me. The evolutes, beginning with the great principle, belong to the eternal Lord of gods. He is called the supreme, primeval Person. By him, a creature crosses the dreadful ocean of worldly existence. He alone is the blessed one, the sole, supreme Lord. The root, known as māyā, is the source from which this world arises. From it are born the subtle elements, the great elements, and the senses themselves.