12.195
Manu said.
From the imperishable arises space, then air; from air comes light, then water. From water, earth is produced, and in the earth, the world comes into being.
These (beings), having reached water through their bodies, from water (become) fire, then air, then ether. From ether, indeed, they return; those not destined do not. Those who are destined attain the supreme.
It is neither hot nor cold, neither soft nor sharp; neither sour, astringent, sweet, nor bitter. It does not possess sound, nor smell, nor form; that is its supreme nature.
The body perceives touch, the tongue taste, the nose smells, the ears sounds, and the eyes forms; but those men who are ignorant of the Self do not grasp that Supreme Reality.
Having withdrawn the tongue from tastes, the nose from smells, the ears from sounds, the body from touch, and the eye from the quality of form, then one perceives one's own true nature beyond.
That from which one acts and what one does; that in which one undertakes activity. That in which, what, by which, and who is the doer; that is called the cause, that is said to be the means.
That which overcomes, accomplishes, and pervades; which is praised in the world like a mantra. He who is the cause of all and acts for the highest purpose—whatever else exists, that is the cause and the effect.
Just as a person, through good deeds, attains good and bad results due to the absence of opposition, so too, in various bodies, both good and bad, this knowledge is bound by one's own actions.
Just as a lamp, when lit in front, shines and gives light to another, so here, those who are illuminated by the lamp of knowledge among the five-sense trees truly benefit others.
Just as many ministers of a king, each wise, express their own opinions separately, so too in the body there are five (senses); but knowledge is the supreme among them all.
Just as flames of fire, gusts of wind, rays of the sun, and waters in rivers go and return, being stretched out, so too do the bodies of embodied beings.
Just as a person, taking an axe, does not see smoke or fire in wood, so too, after cutting off the body, abdomen, hands, and feet, they do not perceive that which is other (the true self) thereafter.
Just as, by churning those very sticks, one sees smoke and fire arise from their union, so too, a person of good intellect, having controlled the senses equally, perceives his own true nature, the supreme, as the wise one.
Just as one sees a fallen limb of oneself on the earth in a dream, so too, endowed with senses, good mind, and intellect, the subtle self moves from one subtle body to another.
The supreme soul is not bound by creation, growth, decay, or conjunctions. However, through this subtle body, the unseen soul moves to another subtle body at the time of rebirth due to the connection formed.
He does not perceive the form of the self with his eyes, nor does he come into contact with anything. Nor does he perform any action with them; they do not see him, but he sees them.
Just as the burning fire in a lamp acquires a certain form due to heat, but does not possess an inherent quality of form within; in the same way, that form of this is perceived.
Just as a man, after leaving his body, enters another visible form, so too, after abandoning the great body among beings, he assumes another form that is its support.
The embodied soul pervades space, air, fire, water, and earth in all directions. The five senses, each with their own qualities and functions, exist in their respective organs such as the ear, and operate through various actions.
The ear is associated with space; the nose with earth; form is composed of fire, and digestion as well; sweat is said to reside in water, as is taste; the quality of touch is produced by air.
Five (subtle elements) dwell in the great elements; the five objects of sense reside in the senses likewise. All these follow the mind; the mind follows the intellect; the mind is by nature connected to the intellect.
Whatever auspicious or inauspicious actions a person performs, he receives the results of those very actions in his own body. The mind follows both the higher and the lower, just as aquatic creatures follow the current when it is favorable.
Just as the moving (mind) goes beyond the field of vision, the subtle rushes towards the great form. One contemplates both one's own form and the form; likewise, the supreme transcends the path of intellect.
