Mandukya_Upanishad

which Is, the General Existence, sattā-sāmānya,ekatmapratyayasaram. This is Brahman.Prapancopaśamam: Here all samsāra, all this tumult ofcreation, subsides, like waves sinking into the ocean, asdream is withdrawn into waking consciousness. Theuniverse, in all its conditions – gross, subtle and causal –ceases here. In this state, there is neither the Virāt, norHiraṇyagarbha, nor Īsvara; because, there is no creation.This is the Ātman where there is neither waking, nordreaming, nor sleep. Thus, it is called prapancopaśamam.It is not a condition; it is beyond all conditions. It is not astate of affairs. We do not know what it is. It is a mystery.Wonder of all wonders is this: Wonderful is that disciplewho can comprehend it from the wonderful teacher whocan teach this wonderful Being. Āścaryavat paśyati, vadati,ṣrinoti, says the Kaṭha Upanishad. What a glorious Being isit! The prapanca, this vast cosmos, ceases there, and Thatalone is, shining as the glorious Sun of all suns. It is śāntam:Peaceful is that state. No worries, no anxieties, no pains, nosufferings, no births and deaths, no agonies of any kind canbe there. It is not the peace born of the absence of sound orthe absence of contact with things. It is the peace which ispositive in its nature. We say we are peaceful when nobodytalks to us, none disturbs us, and we have everything thatwe want. This is not the peace of the Ātman, because ourconcept of peace in the world is purely negative and, again,relational. The Ātman is non-relational peace that cannotbe put an end to by the passage of time. Our peace on earthhas a beginning and an end. Today we are peaceful,tomorrow we are not. We cannot afford to be always106