3
Macrocosm and Microcosm
WHEN THE universe is identified with the Cosmic Being, it is not the physical universe only that is meant but the entire universe with its mind, its guiding energies, the laws which rule its development, and the consciousness which pre-exists its appearance. The perceptible world of forms is no more the whole of the cosmos than his visible limbs and organs are the whole of a man.
"Those who consider the sun merely as a sphere and know nothing of the life that animates it, those who see the sky and the earth as two worlds but do not know their presiding consciousness, possess, indeed, a limited knowledge. A science which studies only the inanimate part of things and does not reach their inner life, their presiding consciousness, is incomplete and leads to no stable knowledge." (Vijayānanda Tripāṭhī, "Devatā tattva," Sanmārga, III, 1942, 682.)
There is an inner life, an inner consciousness, ruling every aspect of existence, every form of Nature (prakṛti). Different deities, which are aspects of the cosmic consciousness, govern the movements of the stars as well as the functioning of our bodies. The technique of introspection known as yoga appears to have been a remarkable instrument for the investigation of what we may call the cosmic world. Yet the yogi is not usually able to translate his vision in terms of words. The obstacle to any attempt at describing the cosmos is not merely a difficulty of experience but one of expression.
In the state of suprasensorial identification reached through the practice of yoga, the adept can passively witness worlds different from his own, but may not have the means of elaborating mentally or describing with word-symbols based on human experience things for which he has no terms of comparison. Imprisoned in his body, man has no other means of reference than comparison with the impressions his senses and his mind convey to him. Yet sensorial impressions are fragmentary and delusive. His inner universe alone is really within man's reach. Only by analogy with its own forms can the mind depict what lies beyond itself. The outward world is but an appearance, a reflected image; the only thing real is the mirror. This is why the formulation of knowledge can go only as far as the seeker possesses an articulate knowledge of his own self.
Because of this limitation of all knowledge to the limits of the knowledge the knower has of himself, there appears to be a strict equivalence at every stage between the structure of man himself and the structure of the universe as he can perceive or conceive it. It is therefore but logical to depict the universe as a greater man with a body, subtle 'faculties, and a guiding spirit. The Upaniṣads describe the Cosmic Being as a man with eyes and ears and a mind and a life breath. This may be a mere analogy, but we have no means of ever devising a more accurate one. On the other hand, we can picture our own being as a miniature universe, and find within our body the "sun," the "moon," the "earth," the "elements." Any conception we can have of man and of the universe is but a reciprocal reflection of one upon the other.
Man is the fragmentary-universe (vyaṣṭi) or microcosm (kṣudra brahmāṇḍa) (literally, the "small egg of the Immensity"), and the Cosmic Being is the universe-totality (samaṣṭi), the macrocosm or "Egg of the Immensity" (brahmāṇḍa).
Man and the universe appear as two parallel beings similar to one another. The Vedas, as interpreted by tradition, compare them to a pair of birds.
"Two birds, beautiful of wing, inseparable friends, dwell together on the same tree (the universe). One of them (the individual being) eats the fruit [of action], the other (the universal Being) looks on but does not eat." (Ṛg Veda 1.164.20; Muṇḍka Upaniṣad 3.1.1; Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 4.6. [63])
Like the Total Being, the living being is eternal, "unborn, everlasting, abiding, ancient, not slain though the body be slain" (Bhagavadgītā 2.20 [64]).
Man's body is "a city with eleven doors, in which dwells the faultless Consciousness, the Unborn. He who rules over it is free from pain and, when he leaves it, attains liberation" (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 5.1 [65]).
Man, as seen by himself, occupies a central place in creation, for he is alleged to be the only being morally responsible for his actions, a responsibility which neither angels nor beasts have to bear. The state of man is thus called the "womb of action" (karma-yoni), and man's actions and thoughts have a creative power similar to that of the actions and thoughts of the Divine. In this respect also man is likened to the Cosmic Being. "That which is I is he, that which is he is I." [66]
The potentiality of the whole is contained in each fragment. Hence, "They are in me and I in them" (Bhagavadgītā 9.29 [67]).
All the higher stages of being can be reached through either of the two parallel orders of manifestation, the macrocosm or the microcosm.
"What is here is there, what is there is here; he wanders from death to death who sees a difference." (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 4.10. [68])
The Cosmic Being, totality of all beings, is itself a being. Its constituent elements, its intellect, its mind, work like those of individual beings. It dies and is reborn. It is the universe, and the universe is its form. The Cosmic Being is not a personal deity who creates out of nothingness. It creates and destroys because that is its nature, its life, just as man's blood creates new cells, his hair grows, or his stomach digests other forms of life.
As a spider emits and draws in its thread,
as plants grow upon the earth,
as the hairs of the head and body spring forth on a living being,
so from the Imperishable arises everything here.
(Muṇḍka Upaniṣad 1. 1.7. [69])
The manifestation of the Cosmic Being appears, from the point of view of man, to take place within three distinct yet correlated orders. One is a successive order implying some form of duration; the second is a matter of relative location implying some form of space; the third is an order of perception implying degrees of consciousness and therefore stages of manifestation.
Cosmic Duration
THE COSMiC-PERSON (puruṣa) is the inactive or male aspect of a duality. It is through his active or female counterpart, spoken of as his Nature (prakṛti), that he manifests himself. Person and Nature are inseparable complements of one another, and every form of creation will bear the sign of this duality.
A person is an entity which lasts through different stages of development. The person, puruṣa, is therefore dependent upon the substratum of duration.
From the point of view of duration, the Total Being, or Cosmic Whole, can be divided into three sections, called the "Impermanent," the "Enduring," and, further beyond time, the "Changeless."
The Impermanent includes the perceptible and the subtle worlds. The Enduring is the body of permanent laws which rule the appearance, existence, and end of the Impermanent. The Changeless is the substratum beyond manifestation, beyond change, beyond particularized existence.
The Impermanent aspect of the Cosmic Being is known as the Destructible-Person (kṣara puruṣa); the Enduring, or permanent, aspect is the Indestructible-Person (akṣara puruṣa); the substratum is the Changeless-Person (avyaya puruṣa).
To these three persons are related the three constituent elements of existence: substance (artha), activity (kriyā), and perception (jñāna).
"The Changeless Person is the shelter of all that exists but remains itself beyond activity and beyond substance. It is not the world nor its creator but the common origin of both, the source of both the efficient and the immanent causes of manifestation." (Giridhara Sarmā Caturvedi, "Śiva mahimā," Kalyāṇa, Siva aṅka, p. 46.)
"Do not think of me as the creator [of this and other worlds]. I am changeless and create nothing." (Bhagavadgītā 4.13. [70]) "In me all beings stand; I am not within them and they are not in me." (Ibid. 9.4–5. [71])
"He is not their cause nor their effect." (Svetāśvatara Upaniṣad 6.8. [72])
The permanent body of universal laws by which all the forms of manifestation are ruled is called the Indestructible Person. It is the permanent frame within which the universe develops. This power that plans the future course of the planets as well as the growth of a blade of grass before their coming into existence can be identified with the primordial energy, the universal motor, or with manifest Divinity (Īśvara). This power is the Transcendent-Nature (parā prakṛti) of the Changeless Person and is represented as its life-breath (prāṇa).
Each attempt at understanding the nature of the universe is a search for the Indestructible Person. The mere observation of changing forms cannot constitute knowledge. Knowledge is the perception of the changeless, permanent laws which rule the forms' evolution.
"He who looks for that which evolves cannot see the higher nature of things. Like a child, he does not understand. The man of [higher] vision understands easily." (Mahābhārata 12.215.26. [73])
The Indestructible Person is the power (bala) that appears when the latent energies of the Changeless Person bind themselves together. As such, it is the first individuality, for an individuality is a point where different forms of energy are tied together. From the point of view of perception this relationship appears to be inverted and we have the notion of a "Self endowed with power" (ātmaśakti) rather than a "power endowed with individuality."
This power of the Indestructible Person is the efficient cause of the universe. It appears under three forms, energy, life, and action. Potential power, that is, power as it exists in the state of deep sleep, is energy; active power, power ready to act, as it exists in thought or dream, is life (prāṇa); applied power, that is, power as used in the state of being awake, is action (kriyā). Thus, we live in dream but do not act, we exist in dreamless sleep but do not live.
The Indestructible Person can further be divided into five main constituent aspects, known as the inner impulse, the indweller, the heart, the outer impulse, and the transmigrant self.
The inner-impulse (antaścara) is a tendency toward self-expression, toward manifestation. It corresponds to the revolving tendency and is thus a form of Brahmā, the Immense Being.
The indweller (antaryāmin) represents the cosmic power latent in all forms of existence. It corresponds to the cohesive or centripetal tendency and is thus a form of Viṣṇu, the Pervader.
The heart (hṛdaya) is the center from which emanate the natural laws that rule all things. It corresponds to Indra, the heavenly ruler.
The outer-impulse (bahiścara), the perceptible activity found in all individual-bodies (piṇḍa), takes the form of a combustion identified with Agni (Fire ).
The transmigrant-self (sūtrātman) is the substance consumed by activity. It is identified with Soma, the offering, the seed.
The three last aspects of the Indestructible Person, when envisaged together, are called Maheśvara (the transcendent Lord) or Siva, the lord of sleep. They are the forms of the disintegrating or centrifugal tendency (tamas).
The transient outward form of the universe is the Destructible-Person (kṣara puruṣa). This aspect of the Cosmic Being is also known as "that which evolves" (vikāra) or as the "moving universe" (jagat). This is the nontranscendent-Nature (aparā prakṛti) of the Changeless Person. It is fivefold: the life breath (prāṇa), the primeval-waters (ap), the word (vāc), the devouring (annāda), and the devoured (anna). These five aspects of the Destructible Person are the outer expression of the five entities constituting the Indestructible Person.
Thus the life breath is the manifestation of the inner impulse, that is, of the Creator, Brahmā.
The primeval waters pervading all substance are the manifestation of the indweller, of the all-pervading Viṣṇu.
The word is the manifestation of the heart, where lies the Law or its personification, the ruler Indra.
The devouring is the manifestation of the outer impulse, that is, Fire (Agni).
The devoured is the manifestation of the transmigrant self or life-monad, which is Soma, the offering, the victim, the seed of life.
Cosmic Location
FROM THE point of view of location, the Cosmic Being appears to manifest itself on three planes, in three orders of things, corresponding to the different channels through which it is perceived. These three planes are called the celestial or angelic (ādhidaivika), the individual or subtle (ādhyātmika), and the elemental or sensorial (ādhibhautika) planes.
These three planes coexist and interpenetrate one another. Each is divided into five concentric spheres (maṇḍala).
On the spiritual plane the five spheres are known as:
1. The Self-born (svayambhū), which is the creative aspect of the Changeless Person.
2. The Supreme-Ruler (parameṣṭhin), that is, the Nature (prakṛti) of the Self-born.
Taken together, the Self-born and the Supreme Ruler constitute the lord-of-progeny (Prajāpati), who is equivalent to the Driver or Herdsman (Paśupati) of Śaivism.
3. The sun (sūrya), the origin of all evolution, source of all that exists in a given universe, is the fiery principle.
4. The moon (candra), the end of all evolution, is the offering (soma). It is the devoured, the substance on which the fiery solar principle lives.
Taken together, the sun and the moon constitute the cosmic sacrifice; their relationship is the nature of all the forms of life. They are considered the spatial equivalent of the Indestructible Person and are spoken of as the "reins" (pāśa) in Śaivite philosophy.
5. The earth (pṛthivī) is the substance, the driven-animal (pāśu), the spatial aspect, of the Destructible Person.
The cosmic spheres are alternately of the nature of Agni and Soma, devouring and being devoured, consuming and being consumed. The Self-born is fiery, hence the Supreme Ruler is fuel, the sun is fiery, the moon is fuel, the earth is fiery.
In each of the spheres one of the five components of the Indestructible Person is predominant and the sphere is called the "dwelling place" of that particular aspect.
In the sphere of the Self-born dwells Brahmā, the Creator. In the sphere of the Supreme Ruler dwells Viṣṇu, the Pervader. In the solar sphere dwells Indra, the celestial ruler. In the earthly sphere rules Agni, the lord of fire. In the lunar sphere is Soma, the offering.
Each of the spheres is an emanation from the previous one. In the order of creation the moon is the last born, although from the point of view of reintegration, the point of view of man, the lunar sphere is between the earth and the sun.
On the individual (ādhyātmika) plane, the five spheres are:
1. The nonevolved (avyakta), that is, consciousness.
2. The transcendent-principle (mahat), that is, intellect.
These two form the Herdsman (Paśupati), who controls the herd of manifest beings, and are aspects of the Changeless Person.
3. Mental-knowledge (vijñāna).
4. Intuitive-knowledge (prajñāna).
These two form the "reins" (pāśa) which control all life, and are aspects of the Indestructible Person.
5. The body (Sarlra) is the driven-animal (paśu), the individual form of the Destructible Person.
On the elemental (ādhibhautika) plane the five spheres are related to the five elements:
1. The cave (guhā) is the space within which a given universe develops. Because space is a quality of ether (ākāśa), and wherever there is ether there is space and the possibility of physical location, ether-space is the first condition for the manifestation of existence. Only within ether are things called "real" (satya). The cave, the space that is inside the heart, is the dwelling place of consciousness. Ether is the sphere-of-perception of the sense of hearing. The cave is thus the center of hearing and consequently of knowledge revealed.
2.The primeval-waters (ap) form the causal substance, the nature of which is intellect. This is the realm of Varuṇa, the sphere of the gods, associated with the element air. Air is the sphere-of-perception of the sense of touch. Earthly waters are fundamentally distinct from the primeval waters, sphere of the sense of touch.
The cave and the primeval waters are the forms of the Changeless, the Herdsman.
3. Light (jyotis) is the principle of sight, that is, of mental perception, associated with fire, the third element.
4. Feeling (rasa), that is, emotional perception, is the prototype of the sense of taste and as such is connected with water, the fourth element.
Mental perception and feeling are the "reins" which control all physical life.
5. The seed-of-life (amṛta), that is, perpetuation of life or physical immortality, is the physical manifestation of the Destructible Person, ever dying and ever reborn. It is connected with the element earth, with the sense of smell, and with physical sensation.
The Nature of Manifestation
THE FIRST plan of a universe is built within a consciousness, within a sphere of pure thought. It remains unmanifest, a mere idea, so long as no independent center of perception has been evolved to grasp it as a reality. Manifestation thus implies the existence of an individual independent perceiver. Being the meeting point of two forms of consciousness, it has of necessity the character of a limit. Manifestation can appear only in a definite location, at the junction between two forms of thought, between two orders of things. There must be a moment when a thing is going to exist and yet has not begun to exist; the point where it will appear must exist before it appears. It must thus have a position, though as yet it may have no extension. The place where manifestation will appear is determined by the first contact of the macrocosm and the microcosm, but even then the manifest form has as yet no extension. This first moment ofcontact is known as the point-limit, the bindu. To one such point-limit can be traced the origin of all the forms of manifest existence. This point, in which all future developments are potentially implied, is sometimes identified with the Self, the Ātman.
From the point-limit is issued the transcendent-principle-of-manifestation (mahat-tattva), which is universal Intellect (buddhi). After the principle of manifestation we meet another limit, that is, the principle-of-individuality (aham-tattva), the first form of differentiated existence. Only then can the mind exist and work within an individualized consciousness. From the mind arise, gradually, in order of subtlety, all the elements or spheres of perception.
Thus,
Beyond the senses are their objects.
Beyond the objects of the senses is the mind (manas).
Beyond the mind is intellect (buddhi).
Beyond intellect is the transcendent Self, the Soul (or point-limit).Beyond the Transcendent is the Unmanifest (avyakta).
Beyond the Unmanifest is the Person.
There is nothing beyond the Person.
That is the limit, the highest that may be reached.
(Kaṭha Upaniṣad 3.10–11. [74])
The Appearance of the Universe
IN ACCORDANCE with this hierarchy, the birth of the universe can be compared to the growing of a plant.
"The first dormant stage of the seed is the theoretical potentiality known as māyā, the power of illusion. The Nonevolved (avyakta) is the stage of germinating-potentiality (ucchūnāvastha), intermediary between that of the seed and that of the sprout, when the seed gets ready to develop at the first contact with warmth and moisture. The sprouting of the seed is the resulting-stage (kāryāvasthā), which includes all the developments from the point-limit onward.
"In man we may take the state of sleep as the seed stage; consciousness, yet devoid of analytical faculty, as the universal principle of manifestation. It is from this first principle, and from the principle of individuality which springs from it, that the multiplicity of the perceptible resulting world arises." (Karapātrī, "Ahamartha aur ātmā," Siddhānta, II, 1941–42,67.)
The Nonevolved, the universal principle of manifestation, and the principle of individuality, taken together, form the subtle body of the universal Man.
When these all-pervading entities happen to be tied together at a particular point, just as different strings happen to form a knot, this constitutes an individuality. If all of the causal entities are involved in this knot, the individuality is called a universe. If only fractions of these entities are tied together, the individuality is an individual being. The individual being is thus a smaller replica of the universal Being. The individual ātman is a fragment of the universal Ātman, the individual intellect a part of the universal Intellect, and so on. The body and the mind, also, are but parts of the universal Substance and Mind. Each of these elements will return to its own store of substance once the individual knot is undone and the individual being ceases to exist. Matter returns to matter, the mind to the universal Mind, the faculties to universal Faculties, etc., from which they were never really separated.
The undoing of the knot of individuality may, however, be progressive, that is, accomplished by stages; when the outer envelopes are first released, some of the more subtle elements may remain tied together. Thus is formed the transmigrant body, the part of the individual being which remains united and in existence as a distinct unit after death. These transmigrant bodies can again become involved in a new knot with physical substance, an occurrence known as rebirth; or they may, on the contrary, further dissociate, and this is the final liberation, in which the individual being completely ceases to exist and dissolves into universal Being and, ultimately, into non-Being.
"As the rivers that flow toward the sea, on reaching the sea, disappear, their name and form destroyed, and are just called the sea, so, too, this individual spectator, made of sixteen components, on reaching the Cosmic Person disappears. His name and form are destroyed, and he is called simply 'the Person.' Having attained knowledge and being without parts, he becomes immortal. Hence the Scripture says:
Know that he in whom all components are firmly set,
like the spokes on the hub oja wheel,
is the Person to be Known.
Knowing this, you will not fear death."
(Praśna Upaniṣad 6.5–6. [75])
Cosmic Consciousness
FROM THE point of view of consciousness the Cosmic Being has a triple form, causal, subtle, and gross. These forms correspond to the manifestation of the three fundamental qualities (see pp. 22 ff.) and are as such the cosmic equivalent of the trinity. In any form of manifestation there are of necessity a causal, a subtle, and a physical aspect. The causal body is unmanifest, undistinguishable from the substratum. It is spoken of as the being-of-consciousness or of knowledge, made of tamas, the centrifugal tendency, and realized in the state of deep sleep.
The subtle body is activity, that is, intellect (buddhi). It originates from sattva, the cohesive or centripetal tendency, and is realized in the state of dream.
The gross body, which includes the mental and whose nature is substance, originates from rajas, the revolving tendency, realized in the state of wakefulness.
In the Cosmic Being, the gross body, totality of all gross bodies, is called "the Glorious" (virāṭ) and forms the perceptible universe. It is ruled by Brahmā, the lord of vastness.
The subtle body, totality of all subtle bodies, is called "the Golden Embryo" (hiraṇya-garbha). It is ruled by the Pervader, Viṣṇu.
The causal body is known as "the All-knowing" (sarvajña) and is ruled by Śiva, the lord of sleep.
These divisions of the macrocosm correspond to those of the microcosm. The individual living-being (jīva) as an individual (vyaṣṭi) gross body experienced in the state of wakefulness (jāgrat) is called "the Envelope" (viśva). As an individual subtle body experienced in the state of dream (svapna), it is called "the Fiery" (taijasa). As an individual causal body, the living being is known as "the Conscious" (prājña) or "the Unmanifest" (avyākṛta), an aspect of existence experienced in dreamless sleep.
In the state of dreamless sleep the universal Being and the individual being are not really distinct. They appear to dissolve in the unmanifest substratum, in the experience of pure joy. There is therefore no real difference between the All knowing (sarvajña) and the Conscious (prājña). The macrocosm and microcosm have here become one. This state can be realized, with the help of the practice of yoga, through the absolute silencing of all mental activity. A distinction is, however, sometimes made between the individual-consciousness (prājña) and the universal Consciousness (sarvajña). The universal Consciousness is then spoken of as the Fourth stage, the unmanifest stage, of consciousness.
All existence is conditioned by the three fundamental qualities of Nature (prakṛti) and the three deities which are their personifications. From the point of view of location, that is, of manifestation or creation, rajas (Brahmā) is the causal or the more abstract stage, and tamas (Siva) appears as the lower or physical stage. From the point of view of consciousness (which is that of liberation), tamas, that is, Śiva, is the highest stage and rajas, that is, Brahmā, appears as the most manifest one. Sattva (Viṣṇu) is in every case the middle stage. Duration, that is, the basis of existence, corresponds to another dimension and operates across location and consciousness (see accompanying diagram). Thus we can see that creation and liberation are two contrary processes dependent at all stages on duration.
The co-ordinates of duration and location are not always at the same stage of manifestation. Hence prāṇa (life), a form of the Impermanent from the point of view of duration, is related to the Self-born, the Nonevolved, the cave, which are forms of the Changeless from the point of view of location.
Through this ambivalence of the nature of everything, contacts are made possible between different orders of being. We can reach the principle of duration through ritual, the principle of consciousness through introspection, the principle of location through the evolution of life. But at all stages we can, through a more manifest, perceptible aspect of the world of forms, experience a more subtle, less manifest one.
The Personification and the Description of the Cosmic Being
"THE GLORIOUS" (virāṭ), the perceptible form of the Cosmic Being, is the entity pictured in all attempts at representing divinity. There are numerous descriptions of the Cosmic Being either in its totality or in its manifestations. The Upaniṣads depict him as a gigantic microcosm.
"He has, verily, eyes on all sides, mouths on all sides, arms on all sides, and feet on all sides. He is the Progenitor, the only Lord, and upholds with his arms the falling heaven and earth." (Śvetā śvatara Upaniṣad 3.3; Mahānārāyaṇa Upaniṣad 1.14. [76])
"Within this universal Man the three worlds [earth, space, and sky] appear. The earthly world, supporting all, is called his feet; because it is highest, the sky-world (dyu-loka) is his head; the sphere of space, because of its depth, is his navel; the sun, the giver of vision, is his eye, air his nostril, the directions his ears; the lord-of-progeny (Prajāpati) is his organ of generation, and the lord-of-death (Yama) his brow, Destruction his anus. The world's-guardians (Lokapālas), who are the regents of the eight directions, are his arms. The moon is his mind; shame is his upper lip and greed his lower lip; moonlight is his teeth, illusion his smile, all that grows upon the earth his body hairs." (Karapātrī, "Śrī Viṣṇu tattva," Siddhānta, V, 1944–405, 73.)
The main Vedic deities rule over the various regions of the cosmic body and over the corresponding parts of the human body:
Mitra, the spirit that personifies the day, is his inward breath (prāṇa),
Varuṇa, the spirit personifying the night, is his outward breath (apāna),
Aryaman, embodiment of the sun, is his eye,
Indra is his power [his arms],
Bṛhaspati [the teacher of the gods] is his intellect and his speech,
Viṣṇu, the Pervader, whose stride is great, is [the directions and] his feet.
(Śaṅkarācārya, Commentary on the Taittirīya Upaniṣad 1.1. [77])
"[From] his outward breath [spring forth] the Vedas, [from] his sight the five elements, [from] his smile all the moving and unmoving universe, [from] his sleep the great destruction." (Bhāmatī, Commentary on Śaṅkara's Brahmā Sūtra Bhāṣya 1.1.1. [78])
In the Bhagavadgītā, Arjuna has a vision of Viṣṇu as the personified Cosmic Being, the sum of all existence, of all life and death.
He had countless visages and countless eyes,
countless astonishing forms decked with divine ornaments,
countless arms with weapons ready to strike.
He was garlanded with celestial flowers,
anointed with exquisite perfumes; he wore splendid garments.
This divine, eternal form of the Cosmic Man
was the sum of all wonder.
A thousand divine suns, suddenly risen together,
could perhaps equal the splendor of this great spirit.
Struck with wonder, his hair raised on end,
the conqueror of wealth
bowed before this divine being,
and spoke to him with folded hands.
"O Resplendent! Within Thee I behold
all the gods and all the beings assembled.
I see the Creator on his lotus throne
and the King of Heaven
and the sages and celestial serpents.
"Thou hast no beginning, no middle, no end.
Thy strength is unrivaled, and Thine arms countless.
"The sun and moon are as Thine eyes,
and I can see Thy glorious visage
burning the worlds with its shining ray
as the sacred fire devours the victims.
"O powerful arm! Thy form appears immense
with all these limbs and all these eyes,
all these faces and all these forms,
all these bellies and all these fearful teeth.
Seeing Thee, the worlds shudder,
and I tremble myself.
Seeing Thee touching the sky,
resplendent, many-hued,
with open jaws, vast shining eyes,
my soul is perturbed.
I lose courage and all peace of mind.
"I can see Thy jaws with their teeth sharpened,
shining like the flames of Time.
I know not where I am, I cannot be calm.
Have pity on me. Lord of gods!
Thou art the refuge of the worlds!
"I see among other kings
the sons of King Dhṛtarāṣṭra
and Bhīṣma and Droṇa, [Karṇa] the son of the Charioteer,
and the great warriors of our side
"running into Thy mouth,
awesome with its fearful teeth.
I see the heads being crushed,
remaining stuck between Thy jaws.
"I can see these great heroes running toward Thy flaming mouths
as rivers run to the sea with all the thrust of their flow.
"Like insects that fly with all their strength
toward the flames of lamps but to find their death,
the worlds roll toward Thy mouth
as if seeking their end.
"All-Pervader! Thou dost seize with thy burning teeth and devour
all the assembled spheres.
Thy spreading flames cover the world
and burn it to ashes.
"All-Powerful, O Fearful Form!
Tell me who Thou art.
I lie prostrate at thy feet.
Be pacified. Best of gods!
I have wanted to know Thy true form,
but Thy deeds are beyond my understanding."
( Bhagavadgītā 11.10–31 passim. [79])