There exists a being, the Lord, whose abode is filled with endless and delightful qualities. He is the creator of the universe, the one who liberates cattle from their fetters. Without His presence, this creation could not be; for both the cattle and their bonds are insentient and ignorant, incapable of acting on their own. Indeed, whatever is devoid of consciousness—from primal matter down to the smallest atom—acts only when guided by an intelligent cause. This world, being an effect, depends upon a doer and is made of many parts. Thus, the role of doer belongs to the Lord, not to the cattle or their fetters. Even the actions of the cattle occur only through the prompting of the Lord, just as a blind person’s movement depends on the guidance of another. When one recognizes the self as distinct from the prompter and is thus favored by Him, then one becomes fit for immortality. There is a supreme state for the cattle, the fetters, and the Lord. Knowing this, the knower of Brahman becomes freed from the cycle of rebirth. This pair—the perishable and the imperishable, the manifest and the unmanifest—are united, sustained by the Lord, the liberator of the universe. The enjoyer, the enjoyed, and the prompter—these three are to be understood; beyond them, there is nothing else to be known by those who truly understand. Just as oil is hidden within sesame seeds, clarified butter within curds, water pervades a stream, and fire is latent in wood, so too the great Self is perceived within oneself, distinct from the individual self, by one who is ever engaged in truth and austerity. It is He alone, the Lord, who weaves the net of creation, together with the goddesses of sovereignty, by His own powers. Then, only Rudra exists; there is no second. Having created the universe of worlds, He, the protector, withdraws them back into Himself. With eyes everywhere, faces everywhere, arms everywhere, and feet everywhere, He is present throughout all. The one great Lord, having generated heaven and earth, is also the source and origin of all the gods. He generates Hiraṇyagarbha, the first among the gods, yet Rudra is greater than all, as the sacred tradition declares. I know this supreme Person—great, immortal, unchanging, radiant like the sun, beyond all darkness, established as the Lord. There is nothing higher or lower than this Supreme Self; nothing smaller nor greater. By Him, this universe is filled. He is the Lord with all faces, heads, and necks, dwelling in the cave of all beings, pervading every corner; thus, Shiva is present everywhere. With hands and feet everywhere, with eyes, heads, mouths, and ears everywhere in the world, He stands, enveloping all. He appears as the qualities of all the senses, yet is devoid of all the senses; the Lord, ruler of all, refuge and friend of all. Though without eyes, He sees; though without ears, He hears. He knows everything, but none knows Him—He is called the Supreme Person. Subtler than the subtle, greater than the great, imperishable, hidden in the cave of the heart of every living being, He is the great Lord. One who is free from sorrow, by the grace of the creator, beholds that Lord who is actionless yet the source of all actions, endowed with supreme greatness. I know this ageless, ancient, all-pervading, mighty One, whose cessation of birth is declared by the knowers of Brahman. Though one, by the union of His powers, He manifests these three worlds in manifold ways. She, called the bearer of the universe and unborn, is the supreme, wondrous, creative power of Shiva—unborn, red, white, and black, she alone is the progenitor. The unborn one lies with the mother, enjoying her own form; but the other, though also unborn, abandons her, seeking the enjoyment of devotees. Two birds, united and close, perch upon the same tree; one eats the sweet fig, while the other, not eating, simply looks on. On this tree, the person, immersed and hidden, grieves; but when he beholds the other, the Lord, the supreme cause, he is satisfied. Then, knowing His greatness, he becomes free from sorrow and attains happiness; the Vedas, sacrifices, seasons, all that has been and will be, are indeed that. The Lord, abiding in this, creates the universe by His power of illusion; know that illusion is nature, and the wielder of illusion is the Great Lord. By His very limbs, this entire world is pervaded; the Lord, subtler than the subtlest, is present even in the midst of the embryo. Knowing Shiva alone as the creator and enveloping Lord of the universe, one attains supreme peace. He alone is time, the protector, the ruler and master of the universe; knowing that Lord of all, one is freed from the noose of death. Knowing the subtle Lord, hidden like the finest essence beyond clarified butter, abiding in all beings, one is freed from all sins. He alone is the supreme God, the maker of the universe, the Great Lord; knowing Him, established in the heart, one partakes of immortality. When all is neither day nor night, neither being nor non-being, then only Shiva alone exists, from whom ancient wisdom arises. No one has grasped Him above, across, or in the middle; He has no likeness, whose name is of great renown. Some wise and fearless ones know Him as unborn; seeking protection, they approach the auspicious right side of Rudra.