Tantraloka, Vol. 1 with Jayaratha's Commentary

१७

Verse 3 ] The First Daily Lesson

original: "icchatvaṃ tasya sā devi sisṛkṣoḥ pratipadhyate"

By such statements, it is shown that this Intuition Pratibhā|the creative flash of divine insight is composed of consciousness. I bow to that Goddess who, in her nature as the "original emergence" original: 'ādyocchalattā'—the first vibration of divine consciousness toward manifestation, possesses a natural desire to shimmer outward. She is called a "Goddess" because She shines as the very form of cognition, serving as the "place of rest" even for the individual subject.

Therefore, even in the external world, the knower, the means of knowledge, and the object of knowledge are the "spokes" or components of Her Trident śūla|the three-pronged power of Shiva: Will, Knowledge, and Action. She has "made her seat" upon the lotuses of the trans-mental state aunmanasa|the highest state of consciousness, 'unmanā', which is beyond the reach of the ordinary mind, appearing even as She transcends them. "I bow" original: 'naumi' means: "I enter into Her true nature" by subordinating the limited identity of the body, the breath, and other worldly attributes. // 2 //

Having spoken thus of the nature of the Supreme Goddess, the author does not yet describe the nature of the Immanent Aparā|the goddess in her manifest, 'lower' form. Because it is difficult to express the nature of the "Supreme-Immanent" Parāparā|the intermediate goddess who bridges unity and diversity which consists of both, the author skips the Supreme-Immanent Goddess for now and first turns his attention to the Immanent Goddess:

I bow to the Goddess dwelling in the body of the dancing Bhairava,

shining like a streak of lightning in the sky thick with the clouds of the monsoon. // 3 //

Line 2: In manuscript 'kha', the word "Intuition" prajñā is absent.
Line 6: In manuscript 'ka', the reading is "the parts are atom-like" aṇurūpā bhāgā.
Line 8: In manuscript 'kha', the reading is "identity with the breath" prāṇābhimātṛ-rūpa.
Line 11: In manuscript 'ka', the reading is "the nature of the Supreme-Immanent" parāparasvarūpasya.
Line 12: In manuscript 'ka', the reading is "to the Supreme-Immanent Goddess" parāparadevīm.