In the beginning, through the subtle unity of the elements, the many streams and reservoirs of creation flowed together, intermingling and growing dense as they converged. Some streams remained distinct and eventually dissolved apart, while others united, joining to form the vast cosmic eggs—the seeds of universes. Within these eggs, countless thousands existed, each nestled within another, yet each remaining unattached, separate. This immense expanse is called the forest of Brahman. Among these cosmic eggs, when a formation becomes dense but does not merge with others, it perceives only what is established within itself, blind to anything beyond. Through the power of present thoughts and imaginings, the successive generations of living beings merge and blend, giving rise to the established patterns of creation. The body’s existence feels firmly real, while the absence of the body is forgotten—this is due to the deep-rooted identification with the body and the forgetting of one’s true self within the vast space of consciousness. Just as pure vital air, when struck by another’s breath, perceives the realm of the one who struck it, so too do the worlds, residing within human beings, become known. For all living beings, the three states of consciousness—waking, dreaming, and deep sleep—are experienced, and in these, the body is not the cause. The sense of being alive within oneself, arising from these three states, fluctuates as the condition of embodiment, much like the restless movement of waves in water heated by fire. When the soul reaches the dwelling place of the spark of consciousness and stands at the threshold of deep sleep, the awakened soul withdraws inward, while the deluded soul becomes absorbed in the act of creation. When purity of nature arises in a being, friendship manifests; it appears as a unity of two, revealed by the sign of mutual goodwill. Some ignorant souls, upon awakening from deep sleep, become creators of their own worlds; while, because consciousness is all-pervading, others are swept along by the creations of others. In each creation, distinct forms appear, and intermediate creations also arise; within these, inner streams of creation dwell, layered one within another, like the layers inside the stem of a plantain tree. The fullness of these inner creations is like the abundant, rounded leaves of the plantain; the pavilion of Brahman, cool by nature, is likened to the plantain leaf itself. Yet, just as there is no real difference among the hundreds of leaves of a plantain, so too, in the essence of Brahman, there is no difference among the countless creations. Just as a fruit arises from a seed and, through its essence, becomes seed again, so too does Brahman become mind and, through awakening, return again to Brahman. The seed, which is the cause of the fruit, expands into the fruit’s form; likewise, the individual soul, whose cause is Brahman, expands into the form of the world. It is not proper to ask what is the cause of the essence, for its nature is undifferentiated; nothing lies beyond it. Nor can non-existence ever be asserted of that which is all; in that which is without cause, there is neither a cause nor anything prior, nor is there a first cause beyond it. A seed, having abandoned its own form, is seen as the fruit; Brahman, having abandoned its own form, is established as both the fruit and the seed. All forms arise from the formless seed, and thus, that supreme state is formless. It cannot be compared to anything, and so, O auspicious one, there is no true analogy for it. Space alone appears as space, never otherwise; therefore, know that the world is either unborn or born from Brahman-space. While one perceives the visible, one does not perceive oneself as the seer; whose own state arises when consciousness is filled with manifestation? If the illusion of water in a mirage is taken as real, what cleverness is there? But when true understanding dawns, what becomes of that mirage? The witness, pure as space and all-pervading, does not see itself—just as the eye cannot see itself when it becomes the object of vision. Ah, what a wonder this delusion is! Even with effort, Brahman, pure as space, cannot be attained; when the visible is seen as merely visible and not as the seer, its attainment is exceedingly distant. Where something gross like the body is not seen without attention, the subtle seer’s visibility is cast far away. The seer remains only as the seer and never becomes the seen; and it is the seer that sees the seen. Thus, O Rama, the seer is never seen. Only the seer truly exists; there is no seen here at all. If the seer is all, and the seen is established within that, what remains to be seen? Whatever is accomplished, in whatever way, by an all-powerful king, so it becomes at once; he alone appears in that form. Just as a barren tree, by the delight of sweetness, becomes radiant and, without losing its essence, rises up with fruit, flowers, and leaves, so too, by the delight of consciousness, the living being becomes embodied, yet never abandons its pure consciousness, being made only of the vision of awareness. Just as the taste of the earth arises from countless, unique clusters of roots, so too does the sense of ‘I’ arise from various delusions within one’s own consciousness. The trees of consciousness, radiant with the sap of awareness, are adorned with hundreds of visible branches; yet, their full extent within the self cannot be discerned here. Just as each root individually savors the delight of taste within itself, so does this consciousness separately perceive the cycles of existence. Whatever form of individual existence arises, in whatever way, from the power of life, that very state is assumed by consciousness within itself, establishing the existence of worlds and beings. Some cycles of individual existence dissolve into one another; after moving about in the world on their own, they eventually come to rest. With this subtle, supreme vision, one can see one’s own self, as well as thousands of networks of worlds, even within the tiniest atoms. Just as oil exists in every sesame seed, so too do the marks of worldly existence exist in a wall, in the sky, in stone, in flame, in wind, and in water. When the mind attains purity, the individual becomes pure consciousness; and since that consciousness is all-pervading, there is mutual merging of all into the One.