the Divinity conceived as the Guru of Gurus,--which serves as the text upon which the devotee may meditate in the calm moments of his daily life. The Vartikakara has explained the meaning of this Ode in his work called Manasollasa, 'brilliant play of thought,' which renders explicit all that lies implicit in the hymn. Both these works have been literally translated into English in the present volume, elucidative notes being added whenever necessary.

26. It may be of some help to the beginner to show briefly the process by which Suresvaracharya has established the non-duality of Atman. Closely following the most fundamental principle of Mimamsa that the Veda teaches nothing which can be otherwise known, the Vedantin of the Advaita school has picked out the four following sentences from the Upanishads,--one from each Veda,--as embodying the one grand truth which the Sruti alone can teach:

"PRAJNANA (CONSCIOUSNESS) IS BRAHMAN." (Aitareyopanishad).

"I AM BRAHMAN." (Brihadaranyaka-Upanishad).

"THAT THOU ART." (Chhandogya-Upanishad).

"THIS SELF IS BRAHMAN." (Mandukya-Upanishad).

These four sentences clearly signify the absolute unity of the Self and Brahman. Indeed

this truth cannot be arrived at by the intellect and the senses which, by a long-acquired tendency, always look outwards for light and knowledge; and it is apparently a truth which is opposed to all human experience. At first sight it seems beyond all power of human comprehension to realise that the human Ego whose knowledge and power are so miserably limited is identical with the Omniscient and Omnipotent Brahman. Still, evidently for that very reason,--for the reason that Revelation is intended to enlighten man on truths which cannot be known by unaided intellect,--it should be regarded as the main truth inculcated in the Upanishad, striking the key note as it were of the Vedanta doctrine. The whole system of Advaita is only an attempt to read human experience in the light of this grand revealed truth. All the writings of Sankaracharya and Suresvaracharya have this one great purpose in view, namely to show that the Revealed Truth does not stultify human understanding, when properly investigated and explained.

27. With a view to establish this identity of Isvara and the Self, the Advaita-Vadin tries to show that all that goes to distinguish Jiva and Isvara is due to something which is outside their essential nature, to an upadhi or medium through which they are manifested. When manifested through Maya which is pure in itself, the One Existence and Light is regarded as the Isvara,