७

The Light of the Tantras

His body original: 'tanuḥ' is "filled," meaning his very nature is full. He is independent svatantra|The sovereign power of the Absolute to act without external influence because he does not look toward anything other than himself—this is the point. Precisely because of this, he is filled by five faces original: 'pañcabhiḥ mukhaiḥ' consisting of the powers of Consciousness, Bliss, Will, Knowledge, and Action.

As it is said:

"The Power of Shiva Śakti is here called the 'Face'."

By this statement, we see that his desire original: 'ruchiḥ'—which is his "interest" or "shining forth"—is protected original: 'guptā' or fully pervaded by these powers. Since no specific object is mentioned, this desire refers to the Five-fold Cosmic Act kṛtya-pañcakam|The five operations of the Divine: creation, maintenance, dissolution, concealment, and grace. The meaning is that he is the one who eternally performs these five acts.

As it has been stated:

"The Lord who is the creator of both emission sṛṣṭi/creation and withdrawal saṃhāra/destruction, who causes concealment vilaya and maintenance sthiti, the God who bestows grace anugraha and destroys the suffering of those who bow to Him."

Thus, by the nature of the expansion of emission visarga|The 'outpouring' or 'overflow' of divine consciousness that results in the manifestation of the universe, that which is the "unnameable" reality has been invoked here to destroy the host of obstacles. This reality is the seed of the world’s diversity, known as the Supreme Triad Para-trika|The 'Highest Three'; the core doctrine of this school involving the union of the Subject, the Object, and the means of Knowledge (or Shiva, Shakti, and the Individual), which is the union of Shiva and Shakti.

As it is said:

"Even there, the Great Lord, full of His own Self, when He attains union saṅghaṭṭa with His Power Śakti, enters the supreme state of mystical immersion."

Line 7: Manuscript K reads "the specific five-fold act" original: 'pañcaka-viśeṣa'.

Line 15: Manuscript K reads: "even there, the Great Lord, through the power of his own Self, is free from the mortal realm." Manuscript Kh shows an original reading: "even there, devoid of Power."