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CHAPTER VIII
THE CONSTRUCTIN AND THE DESTRUCTION OF THE COSMOS
This description in the Dasabodha given by Samartha Ramadasa
is based on this idea. Bnt it must not be forgotten that by the
union of five ( pancikarana ) only gross objects or gross bodies
come into existence, and this gross body must become united
first with subtle organs and next with the Atman or the Spirit
before it becomes a living body. I must also make it clear here that this union of five,
which has been described in the later Vedanta works, is not to
he found in the ancient TJpanisads. In the Chandogyopanisad,
these Tanmatras or primordial elements are not considered to
be five; but brilliance, water and food (earth) are the only three
which are considered as subtle fundamental elements, and the
entire diverse universe is said to have come into existence by the
mixture of these three, that is, by 'trivrtkarana' ; and it is stated
in the Svetasvataropanisad that: "ajam ekam lohitasuklakrsnam
bahvih prajah Srjamanam sarupah" ( Sveta. 4. 5 ), i. e., "this
she-goat (aja) is red, or of the nature of fire ; and white, or of the
nature of water; and black, or of the nature of earth ; and is thus
made of three elements of three colours, and from it all creation
(praja) embodied in Name and Form has been created. In the
6th chapter of the Chandogyopanisad has been given the
conversation between Svetaketu and his father. In it, the
father of Svetaketu clearly tells him : "O, my son I in the
commencement of the world, there was nothing except 'ekam
evadvitlyam sat' (single and unseconded sat), that is to say,
nothing else except one homogeneous and eternal Parabrahman.
How can 'sat' (something which exists) come into existence
out of 'asat' (something which does not exist) ? Therefore, in
the beginning sat pervaded everything. Then that sat
conceived the desire of becoming multifarious, that is,
heterogeneous, and from it grew one by one, brilliance ftejas)
water (apa) and food (prithvi) in their subtle forms. Then, after
the Parabrahman had entered these three elements in the form
-of Life, all the various things in the universe which are
identified hy Name and Form came into existence as a result
of the union of those three (trivrtkarana).
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