The Philosophy of the Upanishads c10.s3.t2.5

c10.s3.t2.5

a poetical echo of passages of this kind seems to be before us. In Chând. 1. 9. 1 it is said of the âkâś'a (ether, space, as the symbol of Brahman) :—“It is the âkâś'a whence all these creatures proceed, and into which they again descend.” And in Taitt. 3. 1 a distinctive mark of Brahman is given :—“That in truth out of which these beings arise, by which they when they have arisen live, into which they at death again enter, that seek to know, that is Brahman.” In all these passages the reference is solely to the descent of individual beings into Brahman, not to that of the universe. So also in Muṇḍ. 1. 1. 7, where Brahman is compared to the spider, which sends forth the threads and draws them in again; and in Muṇḍ. 2. 1. 1, where living beings in their numerous kinds issue forth from the imperishable and enter into him again. In the same sense it is said of the âtman in Mâṇḍ. 1. 6 :—“He is the cradle of the universe, for he is the creation and the end of living beings”; and in Nârây. 1 of Nârâyaṇa :—“All gods, all ṛishis, all metres, and all creatures originate solely from Nârâyaṇa, and are lost in Nârâyaṇa.” We may compare also the beautiful verses of C'ûlikâ 17–18 :—