Tripura Rahasya

Sage Dattatreya

Absolute Consciousness and space resemble each other in being perfect, infinite, subtle, pure, unbounded, formless, immanent in all, yet undefiled within and without. But space differs from the other, in it being insentient. In fact, the conscious Self is space. This being so, they are not different from one another. Space is Self; and Self is Self. It is the ignorant who see the Self as space alone owing to their delusion, just as the owls find darkness in dazzling sunlight. The wise however find in space the Self, the Abstract Intelligence.

Her Transcendental Majesty, stainless and self-contained, irradiates diversity in Her Self like an individual in the state of dream. This diversity in the shape of men, animals and other phenomena, does not delude the Self in its purity, but does delude aberrations of the Self, namely, the individual egos.

Her Majesty, the Absolute, remains always aware of Her perfection and oneness. Though Herself immutable, She appears mutable to Her own creatures just as a magician beguiles the audience with his tricks but remains himself undeceived. She is light - One without a second; and yet She appears divided to Her own creatures, because of the veil of illusion.