There is a seeker who, ever steadfast in truth and austerity, comes to perceive within himself the presence of the great Self—an existence distinct from his own limited individuality. It is this Self, the Lord, who, with the goddesses of sovereignty and by His own wondrous powers, weaves the intricate net of creation. Alone, Rudra exists; there is no second. He creates the worlds and, as their protector, ultimately draws them all back into Himself. This Lord is present everywhere: with eyes, faces, arms, and feet in all directions, He pervades all things. He is the one great Lord who brought forth heaven and earth, and from Him all the gods have their origin. It is He who gave rise to Hiraṇyagarbha, the first among the gods; yet Rudra, as the sacred tradition proclaims, surpasses all. “I know this Supreme Person,” declares the wise, “great, immortal, and unchanging, radiant as the sun and beyond all darkness, firmly established as the Lord.” There is nothing higher or lower than this Supreme Self, nothing smaller or greater; by Him, the entire universe is filled. He is the Lord who has all faces, heads, and necks, dwelling in the secret cave of every being, pervading all—thus, Shiva is present everywhere. With hands and feet, eyes, heads, mouths, and ears in every place, He envelops the whole world. He appears as the qualities of all the senses, yet is Himself without senses; He is the Lord, ruler, refuge, and friend of all. Though He has no eyes, He sees; though He has no ears, He hears. He knows everything, but none truly knows Him. Thus is He called the Supreme Person. Subtler than the subtlest, greater than the greatest, imperishable, He is hidden in the cave of the heart as the great Lord. One who is free from sorrow, by the Creator’s grace, beholds that Lord—actionless, yet the source of all actions, endowed with supreme greatness. “I know this ancient, ageless, all-pervading mighty One, whose freedom from birth is proclaimed by the knowers of Brahman.” Though He is one, by the union of His powers, He manifests the three worlds in manifold ways. She, the supreme, wondrous creative power of Shiva—unborn, red, white, and black—is the mother and bearer of the universe, the progenitor of all. The unborn Lord abides with the Mother, delighting in His own form, while another, also unborn, departs, seeking enjoyment among devotees. Two birds, close companions, perch upon the same tree: one eats the sweet fruit, while the other, not tasting, simply watches. On this tree, the individual, hidden and immersed, grieves; but when he beholds the other, the Lord—the supreme cause—he finds satisfaction. Knowing His greatness, the seeker becomes free from sorrow and attains happiness, recognizing that the Vedas, sacrifices, seasons, and all that has been and will be are, in truth, that very Lord. Abiding in all, the Lord creates the universe by His power of illusion—illusion is nature itself, and the wielder of illusion is the Great Lord. By His very being, all the world is pervaded; subtler than the subtlest, the Lord is present even within the embryo. Knowing Shiva alone as the creator and enveloping Lord of the universe, one attains supreme peace. He alone is time itself, the protector, ruler, and master of all; knowing this Lord, one is freed from the noose of death. Knowing the subtle Lord, hidden like the finest essence beyond even clarified butter, abiding within 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 distinctions vanish—neither day nor night, neither being nor non-being—then only Shiva remains, the source from whom ancient wisdom springs. No one has grasped Him above, across, or in the middle; He has no likeness, and His name is of great renown. The wise and fearless know Him as unborn; seeking protection, they approach the auspicious right side of Rudra. Two imperishable syllables are spoken of as the supreme, infinite Brahman; within them, knowledge and ignorance are both concealed, as in a secret place. Ignorance is perishable, knowledge is immortal; the Great Lord is He who rules over both. He, making each being manifold like a net yet remaining one, after creating all, exercises supreme lordship over all things with His power. Shining by Himself, He illumines all directions—above, below, and across; though without inherent nature, He alone, the excellent, abides. Transforming all that is called by its own nature and all that is denoted, as well as qualities, in the enjoyer and the enjoyed, He pervades the universe. The gods and great sages know that supreme Brahman, the source of Brahma and the world, hidden in the secret Upanishad. Those who know Shiva as the one who is realized through experience, desireless, who brings about both existence and nonexistence, and who creates the divisions of time, abandon the body. Some, deluded, regard nature as ultimate; others, time. But it is truly the greatness of the Lord by which the world is made to revolve. By Him, all is ever enveloped; His essence is beyond time and its measure; through Him, action is performed, and with the elements, the world is transformed. Having repeatedly performed that action and then ceasing from it, one attains union with the principle, together with its own essence, through yoga.