Listen to this profound teaching, as the nature of existence is revealed. Prakṛti, the material principle, is called the perishable, while the soul is known as the imperishable. Yet beyond both stands the Supreme Lord, who impels and governs them. The question arises: what truly is this prakṛti, who is the soul, how are they connected, and who is the impelling Lord? It is explained that māyā, the cosmic illusion, is designated as prakṛti. The soul, enveloped by māyā, is bound through primordial action. Śiva, the auspicious one, is the impelling Lord. But what is māyā, and what is its nature? How does one become enveloped by it, and from where does it arise? What is the essence of Śivatva, and whence comes Śiva? Māyā is the power of Maheśvara, the great Lord. One who is enveloped by māyā remains of the nature of consciousness, but this consciousness is veiled by mala, the innate impurity. Innate purity, however, is Śivatva, the state of being Śiva. How does māyā cover the all-pervading soul, and why does this occur? What is the purpose of this covering in a person, and by what means can it be removed? Although the soul is all-pervading, concealment happens because karma alone—arising from kalā and its associated principles—serves as the cause for experience. This karma ceases when impurity is destroyed. What are kalā and the rest? What is karma, and how is it described? What is its beginning and end, its fruit, and its support? By whose experience is what enjoyed, and what is the means for that enjoyment? What destroys impurity, and what is the nature of the person whose impurity is destroyed? Kalā, knowledge, attachment, time, and order—these are the principles known as kalā and the rest. The experiencer is called the person. Karma, consisting of merit and demerit, yields pleasure and pain as its fruit. It is said to have no beginning, ends only when impurity is exhausted, and is rooted in ignorance. Experience exists for the destruction of karma. The unmanifest is called the field of experience, and the body, through its external and internal organs, is the means by which experience occurs. Impurity is destroyed by the special grace received through the excellence of one’s inner states. When the impurity of the self is destroyed, the person becomes equal to Śiva. What is the karma of the five principles beginning with kalā, and how is it distinguished? Who is the experiencer, and who is the person by whom the self is designated? What is the nature of the unmanifest, and how is it experienced? What is its refuge in experience, and what is called the body? Knowledge reveals direction and action; time initiates attachment and serves as the delimiter, while order regulates everything. The unmanifest, possessing the three qualities, is the cause, the source and dissolution of all. It is called the primary substance and nature by those who contemplate the principles. From kalā arises that which is manifest, characterized by the unmanifest, consisting of pleasure, pain, and delusion. These are experienced in threefold ways by those possessing the qualities. Sattva, rajas, and tamas are the three qualities arising from nature, existing in subtle form within it, like oil in sesame seeds. Happiness and its cause are generally considered sāttvika; their opposites are rājasa, while inertia and delusion are tāmasa. Upward movement is sāttvika, downward movement is tāmasa, and movement in between is rājasika. Enumerated are the five subtle elements, five gross elements, five organs of knowledge, and five organs of action. The four—primary substance, intellect, ego, and mind—together comprise the unmanifest and its modifications. When in the state of cause, it is called unmanifest; when in the state of effect, it is called manifest, like a pot or a body. Just as a pot is not entirely different from clay, so too the body and other manifest things are not entirely distinct from the unmanifest. Therefore, the unmanifest alone is the single cause; the instruments and the body are its support, and what is to be experienced by it—not anything else. What real existence could there be, separate from intellect, senses, and body, for that which is denoted by the word ‘self’? Yet, there is certainly some distinction of the self from intellect, senses, and body for the all-pervading one, though the reason for this is extremely difficult to grasp. The wise do not accept the identity of self with intellect, senses, or body, because memory, knowledge, and other faculties are uncertain and last only as long as bodily awareness. Therefore, that which is the inner witness of all remembered and experienced things, and the field of all knowables, is called the ‘Inner Controller’ in the Vedas and Vedānta. This Inner Controller pervades all things, abiding everywhere eternally, yet he is not clearly seen by anyone. He cannot be grasped by the eye or any other senses. He is neither woman nor man, nor neuter; he is not above, nor across, nor below, nor from anywhere. Without a body, yet present in bodies, moving and unmoving, imperishable—the wise perceive him always through inner reflection. Why speak at length? The person is distinct from the body; those who do not see this distinction hold an incorrect view. This body, which is said to belong to the person, is impure, powerless, painful, and impermanent; it is not the true self. Joined with the seed of misfortune, the person becomes happy, unhappy, or deluded, according to his own actions. Just as a field watered by water produces a sprout, so too, action moistened by ignorance gives rise to the body. Abodes of extreme happiness and deaths that are final—both those yet to come and those past—his bodies are thousands in number. Coming and going, as bodies are worn out, the embodied one does not attain any permanent abode anywhere. Thus, the cycle of experience continues, until the grace of the Lord and the destruction of impurity bring liberation and unity with Śiva.