Gyaneshwari -Sant Gyaneshwar
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Chapter-15
The Supreme Person
Could anyone break the stalk of the flower of the sky? So how could the world-tree have a beginning, when it does not exist (231-235)? The earthen pitcher has no existence before it is made, so is this entire world-tree, without beginning. This is how, O Arjuna, this tree has neither beginning nor end and its intermediate state is also illusory. Though (like the river Godavari) it starts from the Brahmagiri, (mountain of Brahman) it does not join the sea, but is like a mirage in the middle. So it has neither a beginning nor an end nor is it real in any state. But see how marvelous it is! Although unreal, it seems real. Like a multicoloured rainbow, this world-tree appears charming, to an ignorant person (236-240). The world-tree, by its illusory appearance, deludes the vision of an ignorant person, like a skilful actor who attracts the minds of people, by assuming different roles. The sky appears to be blue although it is devoid of colour, but the colour appears blue for a moment, and then vanishes. If the unreal things seen in a dream are held to be real, is it possible to maintain oneself on them? In the same way this world appearance is momentary and without real substance. Though it appears as real, one cannot grasp it, just as a monkey, which sees its reflection in the water, cannot catch hold of it. The world comes into being and perishes so fast, that it surpasses the quick movements of the ripples in the sea or of the lightning in the sky (241-245). |
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