From Sri Tripura Rahasya Chapter 11 verses 41 to 85

41-45. "Creation is like a magician's trick, and is a city born of divine imagination. O Parasurama, you are aware of the mental creations of day-dreamers which are full of people, life and work, similar to this. There are also doubts, tests, discussions and conclusions - all imaginary arising in the mind and subsiding there.

Just as castles in the air are mental figments of men so also is this creation a mental figment of Siva. Siva is absolute Awareness, without any form. Sri Tripura is Sakti (energy) and Witness of the whole. That Being is perfect all round and remains undivided.

Note: Siva and Shakti are referred to here because the listener believes in them, but in reality those two terms or names are simply ways of speaking about the Consciousness.

46-47. "Time and space are the factors of division in the world; of these, space refers to the location of objects and time to the sequence of events. Time and space are themselves projected from consciousness, how then would they divide or destroy their own basis and still continue to be what they are?

Note: See last weeks post for an explanation of the existence of gods in relation to Time.

48-51. "Can you show the time or place not permeated by consciousness? 

Is it not within your consciousness when you speak of it? The fact of the existence of things is only illumination of them, and nothing more.

Such illumination pertains to consciousness alone.

That alone counts which is self-shining.

Objects are not so, for their existence depends upon perception of them by conscious beings. But consciousness is self-effulgent - not so the objects, which depend on conscious beings for being known.

52-54. "If on the other hand, you contend that objects exist even if not perceived by us, I tell you - listen! There is no consistency in the world regarding the existence or nonexistence of things. Their cognition is the only factor determining whether they exist or not.

Just as reflections have no substance in them, outside of the mirror,
so also the things of the world have no substance in them
outside of the cognizing factor, viz., Intelligence.

The detail and tangibility of things are no arguments against their being nothing but images.

55-63. "Those qualities of reflected images depend on the excellence of the reflecting surface, we can see in the case of water and polished surface. Mirrors are insentient and are not self-contained. Whereas, consciousness is always pure and self-contained; it does not require an external object to create the image. Ordinary mirrors are liable to be soiled by extraneous din whereas consciousness has nothing foreign to it, being always alone and undivided; and therefore its reflections are unique. Created things are not self-luminous and are illumined by another's cognitive faculty. Cognition of things implies their images on our intelligence. They are only images. The creation therefore is an image. It is not self-shining; and thus it is not self-aware, but becomes a fact on our perception of it. Therefore I say that the universe is nothing but an image on our consciousness. Consciousness shines notwithstanding the formation of images on it; though impalpable, it is steadily fixed and does not falter. Just as the images in a mirror are not apart from the mirror, so also the creations of consciousness are not apart from it.

64. "Objects are necessary for producing images in a mirror; they are not however necessary for consciousness because it is self-contained.

65-66 .... "O Parasurama! note how day-dreams and hallucinations are clearly pictured in the mind even in the absence of any reality behind them. How does it happen? The place of objects is taken up by the peculiar imaginative quality of the mind. When such imagination is deep, it takes shape as creation; consciousness is pure and unblemished in the absence of imagination.

67. "Thus you see how consciousness was absolute and pure before creation and how its peculiar quality or will brought about this image of the world in it.

68-69. "So the world is nothing but an image drawn on the screen of consciousness; it differs from a mental picture in its long duration; that is again due to the strength of will producing the phenomenon. The universe appears practical, material and perfect because the will determining its creation is perfect and independent; whereas the human conceptions are more or less transitory .according to the strength or the weakness of the will behind them.

70. "The hampering of limitations is to some extent overcome by the use of incantations, gems and herbs, and an unbroken current of 'I' is established.

71. "With the aid of that pure yoga, O Rama observe the creation manifested by one's will like the hallucinations brought about by a magician.

Note. - There are said to be some live gems which have extraordinary properties. They are lustrous even in the dark and do not take on different lustres according to the background. They also illumine the objects close to them. One kind is said to be cool to touch and it does not become warm even on contact with the body; another is said to sweat in moonlight; still another makes the owner prosperous; yet another ruins him (e.g., the 'Hope' diamond), and so on.

A vivid account is given of a magician's performance in Ranjit Singh's court. He threw a rope into the air which stood taut. A man climbed up the rope and disappeared.

72. Objects in the world can be handled and put to use, while mental creations (e.g., dreams) present the same phenomenon.

73. "A magician's creations are only transitory; a yogi's creations may be permanent; both are external to the creator, whereas the divine creation cannot be apart from the omnipresent Lord.

Note. - Visvamitra, a great Rishi, is reputed to have created a duplicate Universe, a part of which consists of the constellations composing Scorpio, Sagittarius, and the Southern Cross. Some trees, plants and herbs in imitation of well-known species (e.g., palmyra corresponding to cocoanut, jungle potatoes and onions insipid to taste and useless, etc.) are among his creations.

74. "Because the Lord of consciousness is infinite, the creation can remain only within Him and the contrary is pure fancy.

75. "Since the Universe is only a projection from and in the mirror of consciousness, its unreal nature can become clear only on investigation, and not otherwise.

76. "Truth can never change its nature, whereas untruth is always changing. See how changeful the nature of the world is!

77-78. "Distinguish between the changeless truth and the changeful untruth and scrutinize the world comprised of these two factors, changeful phenomena and changeless subjective consciousness, like the unchanging light of the mirror and the changing images in it.

79. "The world cannot stand investigation because of its changing unreal nature. Just as the owl is dazzled and blinded by bright sunlight, so the world parades in glory before ignorance and disappears before right analysis.

Note. - The man sees by sunlight and is helpless in its absence. The owl sees in darkness and is blinded in sunlight. Whose sight is the better of the two? This cannot be determined satisfactorily so that investigation becomes lame.

80-84. "What is food for one, is poison for another (e.g., decomposed food for worms and fresh food for men). What is one thing to yogis and celestials, is another to others. A long distance by one vehicle is short by another.

Long intervals of space reflected in the mirror are themselves in it and yet unreal.

In this way, investigation becomes indeterminate by itself. Investigation and the object investigated are both indeterminate, and the only constant factor underlying both is consciousness. Nothing else can stand beside it.

85. That which shines as 'Is' is Her Majesty the Absolute Consciousness.

Thus the universe is only the Self - the One and one only.

Thus ends Chapter XI on the Ascertainment of Truth in Tripura Rahasya