In the beginning, there is only the supreme power—pure consciousness, radiant with self-awareness. This consciousness, though truly one and without a second, shines forth as a vast network of appearances. These manifestations, though unreal in their essence, seem real to those who perceive them, glowing with an apparent reality. This consciousness is the very seed from which the tree of intention springs. Within it, the subtle essence of ego stirs, acting like a wind that sets everything into vibration. As consciousness becomes tinged with ego, it begins to contemplate the subtle element of sound within space. Through this process, consciousness gradually condenses, giving rise to the subtle element of space itself. From this subtle space, destined to become the objects of experience, emerges the seed of the tree of countless sounds. These sounds transform into words, sentences, meters, and the manifold divisions of the Vedas. Out of this, the entire world arises in the form of sound, spreading forth as the variety of objects shaped by the multitude of sounds. This consciousness, together with its retinue of qualities, is known as the jīva, the individual soul. Through the network of future objects of sound, it becomes the seed of the tree that bears the multitude of elements. From this, the fourteenfold class of living beings takes form, enveloped in space, and spreads as the mechanisms and forms within the womb of the world. Before names and forms arise, this consciousness shines simply as living existence. In an instant, by the notion of touch, it becomes the subtle element of touch. The wind principle expands, becoming the seed of the tree whose sole branch is touch, and from this, the pulse of all beings’ activities spreads forth. Wherever consciousness, by its playful movement, manifests as illumination through experience, it becomes the subtle element of fire. This fire gives rise to the meanings of names yet to come. Through the expansion of the sun and other luminous bodies, this becomes the seed of the tree whose branches are light, from which the world unfolds in countless forms. From the existence of the fourfold group—arising as if from the real and unreal—the taste called the subtle element of flavor comes forth. This flavor is the seed of the tree of taste, the essence of the future play of water. Through mutual tasting, the world spreads forth from this. The conception of fragrance is of the nature of imagination, and this imagination bestows the subtle element of fragrance along with its qualities. From this seed, as the potential of the future world-sphere, the tree of forms arises, and thus, from the universal substratum, the cycle of worldly existence spreads forth. These subtle elements, when conceived by consciousness, continuously transform among themselves, just as water changes within itself. Thus, these mixed and distinct elements are never found pure again, except when all dissolves completely into the One. Existing as nothing but pure consciousness within the expanse of the sky, these elements are like clusters of banyan trees contained within the tiny space of a seed. They witness the process of manifestation, branching out into hundreds, remaining as subtle atoms within, and in an instant, expanding to fill the vastness of an aeon. They move about as transformations, while some remain untransformed; all are known by consciousness and become compacted in a single moment. This group of subtle elements is indeed consciousness itself, formed by its own resolve. At the moment of perception, it sees the multitude of atoms, though it itself remains formless. Truly, the seed in all worlds is this fivefold subtle element. Its supreme cause is the transcendent power of consciousness, which is both primary and remote. Whatever arises from that is always experienced as the one, unborn, original consciousness, and from that, the glory of the world emerges. In the supreme, all-pervading Brahman—uniform and equally poised—there is no arising of space, fire, darkness, or qualities like sattva. First, within this expanse, the notion of “objectness” arises from the awareness of a particular aspect of cognition. Then, from the power of consciousness itself, arises the sense of “mindness.” From that, the notion of individuality appears, nourished by the cognized objects. The sense of “I-ness” arises through exclusive identification with what is perceived. From that, intellect emerges as a transformation of “I-ness,” and this alone is called by such names as mind, along with the subtle elements and their effects. From the absence of voidness and through the contemplation of other subtle elements, the forms of the elements arise. Thus, in this way, the great thicket—the origin of the world—comes into view. Suddenly, in succession, the world appears, like a city in a dream, continually arising and perishing in the vast expanse of space and the great forest of existence. This is the seed, born of consciousness, of the groves and clusters of the world. It does not depend at all on earth, water, wind, or anything else. Being of the nature of consciousness, it later produces earth and the other elements. Just as a city in a dream is made only of pure consciousness, so too is this world. Wherever it is, it releases the sprout of the world—the fivefold subtle elements—while imperishable consciousness is the seed of this fivefold. As is the seed, so is the fruit; therefore, the world is of the nature of Brahman. Thus, at the beginning of creation, this group of five arises in the great space. The fivefold—consisting of consciousness, space, and the elements—is only imagined, not truly real. By this imagination, whatever spreads out here attains expansion. That too, being of the nature of space and conceptual essence, is not truly existent; nothing is ever established by that which is itself unestablished. How can that which is only space and conceptualization attain reality? But if the fivefold is Brahman, then by its Brahman-nature, this fivefold, matured by the rule of the five, is Brahman alone—the illusion of the three worlds. As it flashes forth at the beginning of creation, so does this fivefold arise. In the same way, at the very beginning, it itself becomes the cause in the state of the elements. Thus, nothing is ever truly born, yet the world appears as if born. Like a city seen in a dream or in imagination, the unreal is experienced as real. The space of Brahman, the outer space, and the space of the individual soul are all within oneself. Thus, the pure-minded one knows that earth and the other elements do not truly arise. This is how the individual soul is described: as the essence of space, as previously explained. Now, hear how the space-like soul acquires this body: the soul-space is itself space, and it exists in the supreme expanse.