His powers are truly without limit—will, knowledge, action, and countless others—all arise from him as sparks leap from a blazing fire. From his power, beginning with māyā, the great creative force, there emerged Sadāśiva, Īśvara, and other divine forms, as well as Vidyeśvara, lord of knowledge, and Avidyeśvara, lord of ignorance. From her, too, came the Purushas—the conscious beings—and the supreme Prakriti, the primal nature. All things, from the highest principle down to the smallest particular, and even those that begin with non-being—whatever exists in this vast creation—all are her manifestations, without doubt. She is the all-pervading power, subtle and filled with the essence of awakening itself. The one who possesses this power is called the god Shiva, adorned with the crescent moon. Shiva is both the knowable and the knowledge itself—he is wisdom, revelation, and tradition. She, his power, is firmness, stability, and steadfastness, and she embodies the energies of knowledge, will, and action. From her arise command, the supreme Brahman, the twofold knowledge—higher and lower—pure wisdom, and pure art; all these flow from her power. Māyā, nature, the individual soul, transformation and modification, the real and the unreal—whatever exists, all is pervaded by her. By her māyā, this goddess effortlessly veils the entire universe, both moving and unmoving, in delusion, and through her divine play, she also grants liberation. With her, the Lord of all, manifesting in twenty-seven forms, pervades and abides in the universe; thus, liberation is found here. Once, a group of sages, seekers after liberation and teachers of Brahman, found themselves gripped by doubt. They pondered deeply: "What is the cause of all? From where are we born? By whom do we live? What is our foundation? By whom are we established?" They asked themselves, "By whom do we continue to exist, in pleasure or otherwise, day and night? And by whom is the unbreakable order of the universe set in motion?" They considered whether the cause might be time, destiny, chance, the elements, the primal source, the individual self, or the supreme yogi. But time and the rest are insentient, they reasoned, and even though the self is conscious, pleasure and pain arise from the elements and from lack of mastery. Then, through meditation and yoga, they perceived that divine power—hidden, yet endowed with her own qualities—which, when attained, cuts the bonds of the soul. By her grace, their bonds were cut, and with divine sight they beheld the great Lord, the possessor of power, the very cause of all causes. He, together with time and the self, upholds all causes, leaving nothing out; immeasurable, he governs all by this very power. Thus, by the union of grace and supreme yoga, and by the yoga of devotion that is seen, the sages attained the divine state. Therefore, those who, with that power, behold Shiva in their hearts—eternal peace is theirs, and not of others, as revelation declares. There is never any separation between the possessor of power and the power itself; from their unity, liberation arises for both. The sequence of knowledge and action intended for liberation is firmly established; when grace dawns, that form appears as if held in the palm of the hand. Whether god, demon, animal, bird, parrot, or even a worm—by that grace, any of these may be liberated. Whether in the womb, being born, a child, youth, old person, one who is dying, or dwelling in heaven or even in hell—whether fallen, righteous, learned, or ignorant—when grace is received, liberation is instant and certain. Out of compassion, the Supreme Lord bestows grace even on unfit devotees, removing their many impurities. Devotion arises only from grace, and grace is born of devotion; the wise, seeing the differences in state, are not confused by this. This grace, which bestows both enjoyment and liberation, is not easily gained by humans in a single birth. The Great Lord is gracious to those who, perfected through many births, follow the teachings of the Vedas and Smriti, who are detached and awakened. When the Lord of gods is gracious, even in an animal there arises the thought, "There is a Lord, He is mine," and a little devotion accompanied by understanding. Through various Shaiva austerities and righteous actions, a person is united with him; there, through the practice of yoga, supreme devotion arises. By that supreme devotion, the highest grace is obtained; from grace comes freedom from all bonds, and for the liberated, perfect peace. Even a small measure of this devotion, in a mortal, after three births, certainly prevents suffering in lower wombs—of this there is no doubt. Service, whether with or without external elements, is called devotion; it is further divided threefold—by mind, speech, and body. Contemplating the form of Shiva is known as mental service; recitation and the like are verbal service; ritual worship and similar acts are bodily service. This threefold service is called the practice of Shiva’s dharma; but it is said by the Supreme Self, Shiva, to be of five kinds: austerity, action, recitation, meditation, and knowledge. Ritual worship and similar acts are actions, while austerities include observances like Chandrayana. Recitation is threefold; the practice of Shiva, contemplation is meditation on Shiva; knowledge as taught in the Shiva scriptures is called knowledge here. These teachings were spoken by Shiva through Shrikantha, and the Shiva scriptures are for Shiva’s devotees; out of compassion, they are the sole means to the highest good. Therefore, a wise person seeking the highest good should increase devotion to Shiva, the supreme cause, and abandon attachment to sense objects. Hearing all this, the devotee humbly speaks: "O Lord, I wish to hear the knowledge of Shiva, as spoken by Shiva himself, which is the very essence of the Vedas and grants liberation to those who take refuge in him.