From that one source alone arises the great and abiding peace, whose very essence is pure awareness. This awareness, vibrating naturally, is known as the **jīva**, the living being. Within the supreme mirror of consciousness-space—whose nature is to experience—all these unreal sequences of world-appearances are reflected, shimmering like images in a flawless mirror. Whatever faint radiance emerges from Brahman, tranquil as a windless ocean or a lamp undisturbed by breeze, know, O Raghava, that this gentle glow is the very **jīva**. When tranquility departs from the clear expanse of consciousness, the natural radiance—taking the form of mind and perception—manifests as the jīva of consciousness-space. Just as movement is inherent to wind, heat to fire, and coldness to snow, so too is the state of being a jīva to the Self. From the Self, whose nature is consciousness, the first glimmering of self-awareness arises naturally as mind; this is remembered as the jīva. That dense awareness gradually takes on the sense of “I,” just as a spark, when fed with fuel, becomes a bright flame. In the same way that a bluish hue appears in the sky at the birth of stars, so too does the notion of “I am” arise in this empty being. Through the play of imagination, or by its own density, the individual soul takes on the form of egoity, just as the sky appears blue though truly colourless. The sense of “I” is marked by distinctions of space and time; abiding in space, it vibrates under the influence of thought, like the wind’s movement. Thus inclined toward conceptualization, it becomes known by many names: ego, mind, individual soul, thought, illusion, or nature. This mind, whose essence is conceptualization, imagines the elements as its own form. By this very imagination, it assumes their state, and from this, it eventually dissolves. Taking the form of the five subtle elements, the mind becomes like a particle of light, just as a faint star appears in the unborn sky. Through imagining these subtle elements, the mind attains the state of a shining particle, and from its own vibration, it gradually becomes like a seed sprouting. This particle of radiance—called the “cosmic egg”—by mere imagination, attains the form of an egg; within it, Brahma appears, just as water forms a bubble. By the power of imagination, some swiftly take on the form of a body and so on; but these forms, arising from delusion, are not their true nature, like the illusory wealth conjured by a celestial being’s wish. Some attain the state of the immobile; some, the state of the mobile. Some, by their own will, take on the forms of sky, air, or water, each according to their own kind. At the beginning of creation, the primordial body arises from the resolve of the living being, and gradually attains the station of Brahma, creating the world. The self-born, whose essence is imagination, instantly perceives as already arisen whatever he imagines, compelled by the force of his own nature. From the nature of consciousness arises his own Brahmahood, the cause of all; in the cycle of transmigration, karma is then fashioned and established as the cause. The mind arises from the nature of consciousness, like foam from water; afterwards, it is bound by actions, like a drum held tight by its cords. Imagination is the seed of action, and the living being is of its very nature; action then gives rise, in due course, to the sequence of non-action. The seed, first enveloped by its own sprout, retains its seed-nature; later, it assumes diversity through the illusion of leaves, shoots, and fruits. Other beings, dwelling in the sky, likewise take on such forms; when the world arises earlier, they attain a state based on the elements. By their own actions, which become causes for birth and death, they proceed upward or downward; action is the vibration of consciousness. This vibration becomes action; that itself is destiny, that itself is mind, and it is both auspicious and inauspicious. Thus, worlds and universes arise, and beings emerge swiftly, like flowers blossoming from a tree. For this reason, the mind arises first in this way; its nature is thinking and enjoyment, and it attains a state corresponding to that. Because of its oscillation between more and less, being and non-being, this creation is observed. It appears both real and unreal, just as a city appears in the wishes of a celestial musician. No real distinction exists; duality and unity are but imagined. The views of Brahman, the individual soul, mind, illusion, agent, action, and the world are all mere appearances. With the playful movement of the boundless waters of consciousness, the Self alone expands as the single, infinite ocean of awareness. Unreality arises from instability, while reality appears from one’s own perception. Just as in a dream, so in the mind, the world is both existent and non-existent. This is neither truly existent nor non-existent; it is born from the confusion of the waking mind, arising like an illusion from the mixing of herbs. A long dream, having gained duration, is called “worldly existence” by the power of the mind. Through mistaken perception, belief in a fixed object is vain, like mistaking a stump for a man in the twilight. Because the Self is not seen, the mind grieves, thinking itself to be the mind; like a child imagining fear from a phantom, it suffers from its own imagined terrors. Because of its tendency toward objects, mind arises from the transcendent totality, the unnameable true nature; and from mind comes the notion of living. From this notion arises the sense of “I”; from the sense of “I” comes mind; from mind arise the senses and so forth, and from that, the delusion of body and other things. From delusion about body and so forth, heaven and hell, liberation and bondage arise. Like seed and sprout, the beginning and growth of actions related to the body become established. Just as there is no duality between the essence of consciousness and the Self, so too there is no difference between the living being and the mind; likewise, there is no difference between body and action. Action itself is the body, and the body is the mind; that alone is the sense of “I,” and thus the living being. This living being, shaped by the Lord, is the self; all of this arises from Shiva, from the one foundation. Thus, O Rama, the supreme reality is one, though it appears as many. It seems to become manifold, just as a hundred lamps are lit from a single lamp.