A.-God is the efficient cause of this universe, but the material cause is prakriti - the primordial elementary matter.

"He who has created this multiform universe, and is the cause of its sustenance as well as dissolution, the Lord of the universe in whom the whole world exists, is sustained and then resolved into elementary condition, is the Supreme Spirit. Know Him, O man, to be your God and believe in no other as the Creator of the Universe." RIG VEDA 10: 126, 8.

"In the beginning the whole was enveloped in utter darkness. Nothing was discernible. It was like a dark night, Matter was in its very elementary form. It was like ether. The whole universe, completely overspread by darkness, was insignificantly small compared with the Infinite God who thereafter, by His omnipotence, evolved this cosmic world - the, effect - out of the elementary matter - the cause.* RIG VEDA 10: 129, 3

"Love and worship that Supreme Spirit, O men, Who is the support of all the luminous bodies (such as the sun), the one Incomparable Lord of the present as

*It is remarkable that modern science is slowly but surely coming round to what the Vedas teach. The atomic theory is losing ground and the Vedic doctrine gaining ground day by day. Mark what one of the modern most scientists, M. Bernard Brunlhes says:- "Matter which seems to give us the imaage of stability and repose only exists, then, by reason of the rotatory movement of its particles so that when atoms have radiated all their energy in the form of luminous, calorific, electric and other forms of vibrations, they return to the primitive ether." Rama Deva.

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well as of the future worlds, Who existed even before the world came into being, and has created all things that exist in space between the earth and heaven.*"RIG VEDA 10:121, 1.

A.- No, it is beginningless.

"O Men, that All-pervading Being alone is the Lord of the imperishable prakriti - the material cause of the world - and of the soul and is yet distinct from both. He is the Creator of universe - the past, present and the future." YAJUR VEDA 21: 2

"That Supreme Spirit, form Whom all things proceed and in Whom they live and perish, is the All-pervading God. Aspire, O men, to know Him." TAITREYA UPANISHAD BHRIGU, 1.

"That Great God should be sought after, Who is the cause of the creation, the sustenance and dissolution of the universe." VEDAANT SHAASTRA I. 1,2.

A.- Three - God, the soul, and the prakriti (matter).
Q.What are your authorities for this statement?

A.- "Both God and the soul are eternal, they are alike in consciousness and such other attributes. They are associated together - God pervading the soul - and are mutual companions. The prakriti (matter), which is

*Literally the sun. -Tr.

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Likened to the trunk of a tree whose branches are the multiform universe which is resolved into tis elementary condition at the time of dissolution is also eternal. The natures, attributes and characters of these three are also eternal. Of the two - God and the soul - the latter alone reaps the fruits of this tree of the universe - good or evil - whilst the former does not. He is the All-glorious Being who shines within, without and all around." RIG VEDA I, 164, 20.

"The Great God - the King - revealed all kinds of knowledge to the human soul - His eternal subjects - through the Veda." YAJUR VEDA, 50, 8.

"The prakriti, the soul and God, all of them, are uncreated. They are the cause of the whole universe. They have no cause of the whole universe. They have no cause and have been existing eternally. The eternal soul enjoys the eternal matter and is wrapped up in it whilst God neither enjoys it, nor, is He wrapped up in it." SHWETA SHWATER UPNISHAD, 4: 5.

The attributes of God and the soul have been described iin the last chapter. Here we shall treat of the properties of prakriti (matter).
"That condition of matter in which the intellect-promoting (satva - high), passion-exciting (rajas - medium) and stupidity producing (tamas - low)qualities are found combined in equal proportions is called prakriti. From prakriti emanated the principle of wisdom (Mahaatava), and from the latter proceeded the principle of Individuality (Ahakaara) from which emanated the five subtle entities and the ten principles of sensation and action, and the manas, i.e., the principle of attention. From the five subtle entities issued forth the five gross entities, such as

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solids, liquids, etc. These twenty-four entities and the purush, i.e., the spirit - human and Divine - form a group of twenty-five noumena." SANKYA SHASTRA,1: 61.

Of all these twenty-four, the prakriti is uncreated, the principle of wisdom, the principle of Individuality, and the five subtle entities are the products of the prakriti and are in their turn the cause of the ten principles of sensation, and action and of the principle of attention. The purush - i.e., the spirit - is neither the cause (material) nor the effect of anything.

But it is said in the Chhaandoya Upanishad, "Before Creation the universe was existent"; whilst the Taitreya Upanishad says, " It was non-existent or nothing." Again the Vrikadaaranyaka Upanishad (Chapt. I,4,1) says "It was all spirit" and lastly the Shatapatha Brahmanad (Chapt. 11: 1, 11, 1) says, "It was all God (Brahma)" and again "by His Own will the Great God transformed Himself into this multiform universe." In another Upnishad it is written "Sarvam Khalu, etc.", which means "Verily this whole universe is God, all other things are nothing but God."

A._ Why do you pervert the meanings of these quotations? For those very Upanishads it is said "Oshwetketo, proceed thou from effects to causes and learn that prithivi (solids) proceed from liquids, apah (liguids) from teja - that condition of matter whose properties are heat and light, ectc., - and teja from the uncreated prakriti. This prakriti - the true existence - is the source, abode and support of the whole universe." What you have translated

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As "this universe was non-existent" means that it was non-existent as universe in their gross physical and visible form. But it existed in essence or in elementary form as the eternal prakriti. It was not nothing, God and the soul also were existent. Your quotations which begins with "Sarvam khualu" is nothing but a pot-pouri, for, you have taken parts of two verses from two different Upanishads and put them together and formed them into one sentence. "Sarva Khalu", etc., is tiken form the Chhaandogya Upanishad ( chapt III: 14, 1) and Nehanaanaaa, from the Katha Upnishad (chapt. II:4,11).

Just as the limbs of the body are of use only so long as they form part of it, but become useless as soon as they are separated or cut off form it, similarly you can get sense out of words or sentences when in their proper places in conjunction with what has gone before and what follows them, but they become meaningless as soon as they are dislocated from their proper places and joined to others.

Now mark carefully the true meaning of the above quotation. "Worship, thou, O soul, that Great Being Who is the Creator, the Support, and the Life of the Universe. It is by His power that the whole universe come into being and is sustained, and it is in Him that it exists, Worship Him alone and no other. He is an Indivisible, Immutable, Conscious Being. There is no admixture of different things in Him, though all things with their distinct individual existence have their being in Him and are sustained by Him."

A.- Three - The efficient , the material and the common. The efficient cause is the one by whose directed activity a thing is made, and by the absence of whose directed activity nothing is made. It does not change itself, though it works changes in other things. The material cause is one without which nothing can be made. It undergoes changes, is made and un-made.
The common cause is one that is an instrument in the making of a thing, and is common to many things. The efficient cause is of two kinds:-
The Primary efficient cause is the Supreme Spirit - the Governor

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Of all, Who creates the universe out of the prakriti (matter), sustains it, and then resolves it into its elementary form.

The secondary efficient cause is the soul. It takes different materials out of the universe created by God and moulds them into different shapes.

The material cause is the prakiti which is the material used in the making of the universe. Being devoid of intelligence it can neither make nor unmake itself, but is always mad or unmade by a conscious intelligent being; though here and there even one kind of dead matter (but those changes are never ordered). Let us take an illustration. God made seeds (of different kinds), when they fall into a suitable soil and get the prper amount of water and nourishment, they develop into trees; but if they come in contact with fire they perish. All ordered changes in material things depend for their occurrence on God and the soul.

All such means as knowledge, strength and hands, and instruments, time and space, that are required for the making of thing constitute its common cause.

Now take for illustration a pot. The potter is its efficient cause clay its material cause, whilst the rod, the wheel and other instruments, time, space, light, eyes, hands (of the pttter), knowledge and the necessary labour, etc., constitute its common cause. Nothing can be made or unmade without these three causes.

The Neo-Vedantists* look upon God as the efficient as well as the material cause of the universe, but they are absolutely in the wrong. "Just as a spider does not take in anything from outside, but draws out filaments from its body with which it spins its web and sports about in it, so does God evolve the world out of His Own self, becomes metamorphosed into it, and enjoys Himself." MUNDAKA UPANISHAD, I:1, 7.

*i.e., the modern exponents of the Vedaant Philosophy. -Tr.

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"So Brahma desired and willed 'Let me assume diverse forms, in other words, become metamorphosed into the universe' and by the mere act of willing He became transformed into the universe."THE TAITREYA UPANISHAD, BRAHM, 6.

It is said in the Metrical Commentary of Gaurpaada (on the Vedant Aphorisms). "Whatever did not exist in the beginnning and will cease to exist in the end, does not exist in the present age." THE GAURPA DHEYA KARIKA, 31.
In the beginning the world did not exist but Brahma did. After the dissolution the world will no longer exist, but Brahma will. Therefore, the world does not exist even in the present, it is all Brahma. Why is not the universe Brahma then?

A.- If, as you say, Brahma (God) were the material cause of the universe, He would become transformable, conditioned and changeable. Besides, the natures, attributes and characteristics of a material cause are always transmitted to its effect. Says the Vaisheshika Darshana. I: 1,24 "The effect only reveals whatsoever pre-existed in the (material) cause." How could then Brahma and the material world be related as (material) cause and effect? They are so dissimilar in their natures, attributes and characteristics. Why! Brahma is the Personification of true existence, consciousness and bliss, whilst the material universe is ephemeral, inanimate and devoid of bliss.

Brahma is Uncreated, Invisible, whilst the material world is created, divisible and visible. Had the material objects, such as solids, bee evolved out of Brahma He would possess the same attributes as the material objects. Just as solids and other material things are dead and inert, so would Brahma be, or the material objects would possess consciousness just as Brahma does. Moreover the illustration of a spider and its web does not prove your contention. Instead it disproves it, because the material body of the spider is the material cause of the filaments, whilst the soul within is the efficient cause.* In the same way, the All-pervading

*It also illustrates the wonderful creative power of God that the soul cannot draw out filaments from the bodies of other creatures.

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God has evolved this gross visible universe out of the subtle, visible prakriti that resided in Him. He pervades the universe and witness all, and is perfect bliss. The text you have translated into "God desired and willed 'Let me assume diverse forms, etc.," really means that God mentally saw, contemplated and willed 'Let me create the multiform universe and become revealed'; because it is only after the world has been created that God becomes contemporaneous with the various gross physical objects and is revealed to the human souls in their meditations, thoughts, knowledge, preachings and hearings.

At the same time of Dissolution no one except Himself and the emancipated souls know Him. The aphorism, you have quoted, is erroneous; because, though it is true that before Creation, the universe did not exist in this gross visible condition, nor will it exist in this form the Dissolution onwards till the beginning of the next creation, yet it was not nothing, nor will it be. Before Creation it existed in a subltel invisible elementary form, so will it be after Dissolution.

Says the Rig Veda:-
"In the beginning it was all darkness", the whole universe was enveloped in utter darkness." RIV VEDA10: 126,3. Again says Manu, " In the beginning this universe was enshrouded in darkness. It was neither definable, nor discoverable by reason. Neither did it possess any physical signs, nor was it, therefore, perceptible by the senses." MANU 1: 5. Nor shall it be after the beginning of, or, during the period of dissolution. But the present time it is definable, possessed of visible signs and characteristics, and therefore perfectly discernable by the senses, and yet that commentator declared the non-existence of the world in the present, which is absolutely invalid. Because whatever a person knows on the authority of direct cognition and other evidences cannot be nothing.

A.- What object could He have in not creating it?

Q.Had He not created it, He would have lived in happiness? Besides, the souls would have remained free from pleasure and pain and the like.

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A.- These are the ideas of the lazy and the indolent, but not of men of energetic and active habits. What happiness could the souls enjoy during the period of Dissolution? If the happiness and misery of this world were compared, it will be found that the happiness is many times greater than the misery. Besides, many a pure soul that adopts the means of obtaining salvation attains final beatitude; whilst during the period of Dissolution the souls simply remain idle as in deep sleep. Moreover had He not created this world, how could He have been able to award souls their deserts, and how could they have reaped the fruits of their deeds - good and evil - done in the previous cycle of Creation.*

If you were asked what is the function of the eyes, you can only say 'sight of course'. In the same way of what use could the knowledge, activity, and power of creating the world be in God other than that of creating? Nothing else. The attributes of God, such as justice, mercy, the power of sustaining the world, can have significance only when He makes the world. His Infinite power bears fruit only when it is applied to the creation, sustenance, government and dissolution of the universe. Just as sight is the natural function of the eye, so are the creation of the world, the free gift of all things to the souls and promoting the well-being of all the natural attributes of God.

A.- The seed; because, the seed, cause, Hetu (source), Nidaana Mimitta (origin), etc., are all synonymous terms. The cause, being also called the see, must precede the effect.

Q - God being Omnipotent, He can also create prakriti - the primordial matter - and the soul. If He cannot, He cannot be called Omnipotent.

A.- We have explained the meaning of the word Omnipotent before. But does Omnipotent mean one who can work even the impossibilities. If there be one who can do even such impossible things as the prduction of an effect without a cause, then can He make another God, Himself die, suffer pain, become dead and inert, inanimate, unjust, impure and immoral or not? Even God cannot change the natural properties of things as heat of the fire,

*That is, one preceding the last Creation.

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Fluidity of liquids and inertness of earth, etc. His laws being true and perfect, He cannot alter them. Omnipotence, therefore, only means that He possesses the power of doing all His works without any help.

Q. Is God formless or embodied? If He be formless, how could He create the world without bodily organs? Of course an objection like this cannot be urged if He be embodied.

A.- God is formless. He cannot be God who possesses a body; because he would then have finite powers, be limited by time and space, be subjected to hunger and thirst, heat and cold, wounds and injuries, pain and disease. Such a being may possess the attributes or powers of the soul, but no Divine attributes could be ascribed to him; since incarnate God could never grasp and control the primordial elementary matter - prakriti - atoms and molecules, nor could he create the world out of those subtle elements, just as we, being embodied in flesh, cannot grasp or control them.

God does not possess a physical body of bodily organs, such as hands and feet, though he does possess Infinite power, Infinite energy and Infinite activity, by virtue of which He does all those works that neither matter nor the soul can do. It is only because He is even more subtle than the soul and the prakriti, and pervades them, that He can grasp them and transform them into this visible universe.

Q - If God be formless, this world created by Him should also be formless, just as in the case of other living beings, such as men, - children have bodies like their parents. Had they been formless, their children would have been the same. A.- What a childish question! We have already stated that God is not the material cause of the universe. He is only its efficient cause. It is prakriti and paramanus - the premordial elementary matter and atoms, - which are less subtle than God, that are the material cause of the world. They are not altogether formless but are subtler than other material objects, while less subtle as compared to God.

A.-No; because that which does not exist (in any form) cannot be called into existence. It is absolutely impossible. It is as

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much as impossible for an effect to be produced without its cause as the story of a man, who would brag in the following way, to be true. "I saw a man and a woman being married whose mothers never bore any children. They had boys made of human horns, and wore garlands of ethereal flowers. They bathed in the water of mirage and lived in a town of angels where it rained without clouds, and cereals and vegetables grew without any soil, etc.," or " I had neither father nor mother and yet came into being. I have no tongue in my mouth and lo! I can speak. There was no snake in the hole and yet one came out of it. I was nowhere, nor were these people, and yet we are all here." Only lunatics can believe and say such things.

Q. If there can be no effect without a cause, what is the cause of the first cause then?

A.- Whatsoever is an absolute cause, can ever be an effect of another, but that which is the cause of one and the effect of another is called a relative cause. Take an example. The earth is the cause of a house but an effect of liquids (Liquids are the causes of solids as they precede them in the order of formation. The earth is solid), but the first cause, prakriti (matter) has no other cause, viz., it is beginningless or eternal. Says the Saankhya Darshana, 1: 67 "The first having no cause is the cause of all effects." Every effect must have three causes before it comes into existence; just as before a piece of cloth can be made, it must have three things - the weaver, the thread and machinery, in the same way the creation of the world pre-supposes the existence of God, the prakriti, the souls, time and space which are all uncreated and eternal. There would be no world if even one ot them were absent.

The various objections of atheists are answered below:

(i) Shoonya (nought or nothing) is the one true reality. In the beginning there was nothing but nothing, and nothing will survive in the end; because whatever now exists will cease to exist and become nothing.

*quids are the causes of solids as they precede them in the order of formation. The earth is a solid.

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A.- The ether, an invisible substance (such a prakriti), the space and a point are also called nothing. It is inanimate and all things invisibly exist in it. Lines are made up of points, while circle, squares, etc., are made of lines. Thus has God, by the might of His creative power, evolved the earth, mountains and objects of all other shapes and forms out of a point or nebula - nothing. Besides, He who knows nothing cannot be nothing. [Hence shoonya (nothing) does not here mean nothing put a point or a nebula.]

(ii) Q. Something can come out of nothing , just as a seed does not germinate and send forth a sprout until it is split, but when you break a seed an look into it, you do not find any sprout in it. It is clear then that the sprout comes out of nothing.

A.- That which splits a seed before it germinates, must have already been present in the ee, otherwise what causes the see to split? Nor would it have come out had it not been there.

(iii) Q.> It is not true 'As you sow so shall you reap,' Many an act is seen that does not bear fruit; therefore it is right it infer that it entirely rest with God to punish or reward a man for his deeds. It absolutely depends upon His wish.

A.- If it were so, why does not God reward or punish a man for deeds he has never done? It follows, therefore, that God gives every man his due according to the nature of his deeds. God does not reward or punish men according to the caprice of his Will. On the other hand, He makes a man reap only what he has sown.

(iv) Q. Effects can be produced without a cause just as the sharp thorns of Acacia Arabica spring out of the branches that are not at all sharp and pointed but are soft and smooth. It is clear from this illustration, therefore, that in the beginning of Creation all material objects and bodies of living beings come into being without (first) cause.

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A.- Whatever a thing springs from, is its cause. Thorns do not come out of nothing. They come out of a thorny tree, therefore, that tree is their cause. Hence the world was not created without a cause.

(v) Q. All things have been created and are liable to decay. They are all ephemeral. The Neo-Vedantis put forward objections like this, because they say, "Thousands of books support the doctrine that Brahma alone is the true reality., the world is a delusion and the soul is not distinct from Brahma (God). All else is unreal."

A.- All can not be unreal if the fact of their being unreal is real.

Q. Even the fact of their being unreal is unreal. Just as fire not only burns other things and thus destroys them, but is itself destroyed after others have been destroyed.

A.- That which is perceptible by the senses cannot be unreal or nothing, nor can the extremely subtle matter - the material cause of the world - be unreal or perishable. The Neo-Vedantis hold Brahma as the (material) cause of the universe; He - the cause - being real, the world - the effect - cannot be unreal. If it were said that the material world is only a material conception and, therefore, unreal like the objects seen in a dream or life a piece of rope seen in the dark and mistaken for a snake, it cannot be true; because a conception or an idea is something abstract which cannot remain apart from the noumenon wherein it resides.

When one that conceives (viz., the soul) is real, the conception cannot be unreal, otherwise you will have to admit that the soul is also unreal. You cannot see a thing in a dream unless you have seen or heard of it in the wakeful state, in other words, when the various objects of this world come in contact without senses, they give rise to percepts called knowledge by direct cognition - which leave impressions on our souls, it is these impressions which are recalled by, and become vivid to the soul in dreams. If it be possible for a man to dream of things of which he has had no impressions in his mind, a man born blind, should dream of colours which is not the

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case. It follows, therefore, that in the mind are retained impressions and ideas of external things that exist in the outside world. And just as external things continue to exist even after a man ceases to have any consciousness of them as in sound sleep, so does prakriti- the material cause of the world - continue to exist ever after Dissolution.

As the external objects pass out of our consciousness in slumber and those seen in a dream in the state of profound sleep, i.e., perish as far as we are concerned, in the same way why not believe that the external things seen in the wakeful state are also unreal?

A.- No, we cannot believe that; because both in slumber and profound sleep the external objects only pass out of our consciousness. They do not cease to exist, just as different things lying behind us are simply invisible to us but are there, and have not ceased to exist. Therefore, what we have said before, that God , the soul and the prakriti - the material cause - are real entities, is alone true.

(vi)Q. The five bhuts - five states of matter as Prithivi (solids), Apah (liquid) etc., - being eternal, the whole world is eternal or imperishable.

A.- No, it is not true; because if all those objects, the cause of whose formation or disintegration is seen every day, be eternal, the whole material visible world with all such perishable things as the bodies of men and animals, houses, and their furniture and the like would be eternal, which is absurd. Therefore, the effects can never be eternal.

(vii)Q. All things are distinct from each other, There is no unity in them. Whatever we see precludes another.

A.-The whole exists in its parts. Time, ether, space, God, and Order and Genus, though separate entities, are yet common to all. There is nothing that can exist separate from or without them. Hence all these are not separate from each other, though they are different by nature. Thus there is unity in variety.

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(viii) Q. All things exclude each other, and are therefore non-existent, just as a cow is not a horse, nor is a horse a cow. Therefore, both the horse and the cow are non-existent. Similarly, all things are as if non-existent.

A.- Though it is true that the 'relation of one thing excluding others does exist in all things, but a thing does not exclude itself. For example, a cow is not a horse, nor is a horse a cow; but a cow as a cow and a horse as a horse do exist. If things were non-existent how could you ever speak of this Itretaraabhaava relation i.e., 'the relation of one thing excluding others from itself'. [Hence the world and things contained therein do exist. They are not non-existent.]

(ix)Q. The world comes into being by virtue of the fact that it is in the nature of things to combine together and produce different things. Just as maggots are produced the coming together of food, moisture and by decomposition setting in; or as vegetables begin to grow when the seed, water, and soil are brought together under favourable conditions; or as the wind blowing on the sea is the cause of waves that in turn produce merchaum, which mixed with turmeric, lime and lemon juice forms what is called concrete, so does this world come into being by virtue of the natural properties of the elements. There is no Creator.

A.-If formation be the natural property of matter, there would be no dissolution or disintegration; and if you say that disintegration is also a natural property of matter, there could then be no formation. But if you say that both formation and disintegration are the natural properties of matter, there could then be neither formation nor disintegration. If you say that an efficient agent is the cause of the creation and dissolution of the world, it must be other than and distinct from the objects that are subject to formation and disintegration.

If formation and disintegration be the natural properties of matter, they may happen at any and every moment. Besides, if there is no Maker and the world came into being by virtue of the natural properties inherent in matter, why do not other earths, suns and moons come into existence near our earth? Moreover, whatever now grows or comes into being, does so by virtue of the combination of different substances - made by God. Just as plants grow wherever the water,

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soil and the seed come in contact under favourable conditions, and not otherwise; in the same way in the manufacture of concrete its components such as turmeric, lime, lemon juice and merchaum do not come together by themselves, but are mixed up together by some one, nor dot hey produce concrete unless mixed in their right proportion. Similarly, the prakriti and atoms, until they are properly combined by God with the requisite knowledge and skill, cannot by themselves produce anything. It follows, therefore, that the world did not come into being by itself, i.e., by virtue of the natural properties of matter, but was created by God.

Q. This world has had no Creator, nor is there one at present, nor, shall there ever be one. It has been eternally existing as such. It was never created nor shall it ever perish.

A.- No action or thing - which is the product of action - can ever come into existence without an agent. All objects to this world such as the earth, are subject to the processes of formation, that is, are the product of definite combination. They can never be eternal, because a thing which is the product of combination can never exist after its component parts come as under. If you do not believe it, take the hardest rock or a diamond or a piece of steel and smash it into pieces, melt or roast it and see for yourself if it is composed of separate particles, called molecules and atoms, or not. If it is, then surely a time will come when those molecules will come apart.

Q. There is not Eternal God, on the other hand a highly exalted soul, that by the practice of yoga attains such power as the control of atoms, etc., and omniscience, becomes God.

A.- Had there been not Eternal God, the Creator of the universe, Who would have made the bodies, the sense organs and all objects of this world, the very support and means of subsistence of the yogi, by means of which he comes to possess such wonderful powers? Without their help no one can endeavour to accomplish anything. The endeavour being impossible how could he have acquired those wonderful powers? Whatsoever efforts a man may make, whatsoever means he may employ, whatsoever powers he may acquire, he can never equal God in His natural - in contradistinction to the soul's acquired - Everlasting or Eternal powers which are infinite and manifold; because, the knowledge of

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the soul, even if it were to go on improving till eternity, will still remain finite and his powers limited. Its power and knowledge can never become infinite. Mark, no yogi has ever been able to subvert the laws of nature as ordained by God, nor ever shall. God - the Eternal Seer - possessed of wonderful powers has ordained that eyes shall be the organs of sight, and ears the organs of hearing. The human soul can never become God.

Q. In different cycles of Creation does God make the universe of a uniform or a different character?

A.- Just as it is now, so was it in the past, so will it be in the future. It is said in the Veda, "Just as God created the sun, the earth, the moon , the electricity, the atmosphere in the previous cycles, so has He done in the present and so will He do in the future." RIG VEDA 10: 190, 3. God's works, being free from error or flaw, are always of uniform character. It is only the works of one who is finite and whose knowledge is subject to increase or decrease that can be erroneous or faulty, not those of God.

Q. Do the Vedas and the Shastras harmonize with or contradict one another on the subject of creation?

A.- They harnonize.

Q.If they harmonize, why is it that in the TAITREYA UPANISHAD BRAHMANAND 1, creation is described in the following manner? Out of prakriti - elementary material cause of the world - God first created Akasha.* Then was evolved Vayu - gaseous or vaporous condition of matter; out of Vayu proceeded Agni - matter which gives out

*A'kaasha is here said to be created, it only means that by the gathering together of all the pervading elements A'kaasha as well as space becomes manifest. In reality A'kaasha is never created, because of there were no A'kaasha and space, wherein could the prakriti exist?

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heat, light and electricity - out of Agni proceeded Liquids; and out of liquids came solids (such as earth); out of solids issued forth vegetables which yielded food. Food produced the reproductive element which is the cause of the physical body and bodily organs." In Chhaandoyga it is written that Creation begins with Agni, in the Aitreya Upanishad that it begins with Liquids. In the Veda itself in some places Purush (God), while in others Hiranyagarbha (God) has been described as the cause of the Universe; whilst in the mimaansaa action or application, in Vaisheshika time, in Niyaaya paramaanus (atoms) in Yoga conscious exertion, in Sankhya prakriti - the primordial elementary matter, - Vedaanta, God. Now out of all these which is right and which is wrong?

A.- They are all right, not one of them is wrong. He is in the wrong who misunderstands them. God is the efficient cause and prakriti the material cause of the universe. After Mahaapralaya - Grand dissolution - the next Creation starts A'kaash. In Minor dissolution (cycles) when disintegration does not reach the stage of Vaayu (gas) and A'kash but reaches only that of Agni (electricity or fire) the next creation begins with Agni. But when after dissolution in which even agni - electricity - is not disintegrated, the next creation begins with Liquids.

In other words the next Creation starts at where the previous dissolution ends. Purush and Hiranyagarbha, as we have described in the first chapter, are names of God. Nor is there contrariety in the description of creation given in the six Shaastraas, because what is contrariety but contradiction of statements when the subject under discussion is the same. Now mark how the descriptions of the six shaastraas harmonize with each other.

• The Mimaansaa says, "Nothing in this world can be produced without proper application."
• TheVaisheshika says, "Nothing can be done or made without the expenditure of time."
• The Niyaaya says, "Nothing can be produced without the material cause."
• The Yoga says, "Nothing can be made without the requisite skill, knowledge and thought."
• The Saankhya says, "Nothing can be made without the definite combination of atoms."
• The Vedaanta says, "Nothing can be made without a Maker."

This shows that the Creation of the world requires six different causes which have been described separately one by each separate Shaastra. There is no contradiction in these descriptions. The six Shaastras together serve to explain the phenomenon of Creation in the same way as six men

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Would help each other to put a thatch on the roof of a house. A man took six men - five of them blind an the sixth possessed of dim sight - and showed them each a different part of the body of an elephant. And then asked them what they thought the animal was like. The first one answered 'like a pillar', the second 'like a fan', the third 'like a big pestle', the fourth 'like a broomstick', the fifth 'like somethingflat', and the sixth one said 'something dark like four pillars supporting the body of a buffalo'. Similar to these six men is the condition of those men who, instead of studying the books of rishis - the true seers of nature - read the current Sanskrit or vernacular books written by narrow-minded men of little understanding who malign each other and wrangle over triflings. Why should they not suffer who are the blind followers of the blind? The lives of half-educated, selfish, sensual and ease-loving men of to-day help to ruin and debase the world.

A.~ O ye simple bretheren! Why do you not use your common sense a little? Mark, there are only two things in this world, a cause and an effect. Whatsoever is a cause (absolute) can never be an effect; and whatsoever is an effect can never be a cause at the same time. As long as a man does not thoroughtly understand the science of Creation, he can never have a true conception of the universe.

"That condition of matter in which intellect-promoting (satva), passion -exciting (rajas) and stupidity-producing (tamas) qualities are found combined in equal proportions is the uncreated, imperishable prakriti. The first combination of the highly subtle, indivisible separately-existing particles called paramanus (atoms or electrons) derived from the prakriti, is called the Beginning (of Creation). The various combinations of atoms in different proportions and ways give rise to various grades and conditions - subtle and gross - of matter till it reaches the gross visible multiform stage called srishti - the universe."

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Now that which enters into the first combination and brings it about, existed before the combination, and shall exist after the component parts are pushed as under is called the cause. Whilst that which comes into existence after the combination, and ceases to exist after it has come to an end is called the effect. He who wants to know the cause of a cause, the effect of an effect, the maker of maker, the agent of an agent, the act of an act, is blind though he sees, is deaf though he hears, and ignorant though well-read. Can ther ever be the eye of an eye, the lamp of a lamp, and the sun of a sun? That out of which something is made is called a cause. Whatever is made from another is called an effect. Whoever produces an effect out of a cause is called the maker.

"Nothing can ever become something, nor can something ever become nothing. These two principles have been rightly ascertained by the true seers of nature." GITA 2: 16. How can prejudiced, sophisticated, insincere, and ignorant minds understand them so easily? He who is neither well-read nor associate with the good and the learned, nor meditates on these abstruse subjects with profound attention, remains immersed in doubt and ignorance. Blessed are they who studiously endeavour to understand the principles of all sciences and having mastered them, teach others honestly.

It is clear, therefore, that he who believes this world to have been created without a cause really knows nothing.

When the time of Creation comes, God gathers those extremely subtle particles (called Paramaanus). The first principle that is produced out of the highly subtle elementary prakriti, is called Mahaatatva - theprinciple of wisdom - which is one degree less subtle than the prakriti. Out of the Mahaatatva is evolved Ahankaara - the principle of individuality - which is still less subtle and in its turn gives rise to the five subtle principles, called Bhuts, besides the five principles of sensation and five principles of action and the principle of attention

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which are all a little less subtle than the principle of individuality. The five subtle bhuts, by passing through various stages of less subtle conditions of matter, are finally transformed into five least subtle states of matter, such as solids, liquids, etc. From the latter spring up various kinds of trees, plants, etc., which are the source of food, and out of food is produced the reproductive element which is cause of the body.

But the first creation (of bodies) was not the result of sexual intercourse; because it is only after the male and female bodies have been created by God and souls put into them that the Maithuni (sexual intercourse) creation begins.

Behold the wonderful organization of the body!
How the learned are wonder-struck with it? First there is the osseous frame-work girt with a net-work of vessels - veins, arteries and nerves, etc., - invested with flesh and the whole covered by skin with its appendages - nails and hairs. Then how beautifully are the different organs, such as the heart, the liver, the spleen and the lungs - ventilating apparatus - laid out. The formation of the brain, of the optic nerve with the most reticulate formation of the retina, the demarking of the paths of indryas - the principles of sensation and action - , the linking of the soul with the body, the assigning of definite places to it for wakeful state, slumber and deep sleep, the formation of different kinds of dhaatus - tissues and secretions, such as muscle, bone-marrow, blood, reproductive elements - and the construction of various other wonderful structures and mechanisms in the body who but God could have caused.

The earth studded with various kinds of precious stones and metals, the seeds of trees of a thousand different kinds* with their wonderful exquisite structures, leaves with myriads of different colours** and shades, flowers, fruits, roots, rhizomes and cereals with various scents and flavours*** none but God could create. Nor could any one except God create myriads of earths, suns, moon and other cosmic bodies, and sustain, revolve the regulate them.

An object when perceived produces two kinds of knowledge in the mind of the observer, viz., of the nature of the object itself and of its maker. For example, a man found a beautiful ornament in a jungle. On examination he saw that it was made of gold and that

*Such as Banyan tree, etc.
**Such as maroon, white , yellow, dark, be-spotted and other mixed colours.
***Such as sweet, alkaline, saltish, bitter, astringent, sharp and acid.

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it must have been made by a clever goldsmith. In the same way, the wonderful workmanship and execution of this wonderful universe prove the existence of its Maker

Q.What was first created, man or earth, etc.?

A.~ The earth, etc., because without them where could man live and how could he maintain his life?

A.~ More than one; because souls, that on account of their previous good actions deserve to be born in the Aishwari - not the result of sexual intercourse - Creation, are born in the beginning of the world. It is said in the Yajur Veda, "(In the beginning) there were born many men as well as rishis, i.e.., learned seers of nature. They were progenitors of the human race." On the authority of this Vedic text it is certain then that in the beginning of Creation hundreds and thousands of men were born. By observing nature with the aid of reason we come to the same conclusion, viz., that men are descended from many fathers and mothers (i.e., not from one father and one mother).

A.~ They were adults, because had God created them as children they would have required adults to bring them up, and had created them as old men, they would not have been able to propagate the race, therefore He created them adults.

A.~ No; just as the night follows the day and the day follows the night, the night precedes the day and day precedes the night, so does Creation follows Dissolution and Dissolution follows Creation, Dissolution precede Creation, and Creation precede Dissolution. This alternate process has been eternally going on. It has neither a beginning, nor an end, but just as the beginning and end of a day or of a night are seen, so do Creations and Dissolutions have beginnings as well as ends. God, the soul and prakriti - the primordial elementary matter - are eternal by nature, whilst Creation, and Dissolution are eternal by pravah -i.e., they follow each

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other in alternate succession - like the flow of a river which is not continuous throughout the whole year. It dries up and disappears in summer, and reappears in the rainy season. Jus as the nature, attributes, and character of God are eternal, so are His works - the Creation, Sustenance, and Dissolution (of the world).

God put some souls in human bodies, while others he clothed with bodies of ferocious animals such as tigers, others with those of cattle, such as cows, others with those of birds and insects, other still with those of plants. Does not this belief impute partiality to God?

A.~ No, it does not impute any partiality, because He put souls into the bodies they deserved according to deeds done in the previous birth. Had He done so without any consideration as to the nature of their deeds, He would have been unjust indeed.

A.~ In Trivishtap otherwise called Tibet. Q. Were all men of one class or divided into different classes at the time of Creation?

A.~ They all belonged to one class, viz., that of man, but later on they were divided into two main classes, - the good and the wicked. The good were called Aryas and the wicked Dasyus. Says the Rig Veda, "Do ye know (there are) two classes of men - Aryas and Dasyus." The good and learned were also called Devaas, while the ignorant and wicked, such as dacoits (robbers), were called Asura. TheAryas were again divided into four Classes, viz., Braahmana (teachers), Kshatriya (rulers or protectors), Vaishya (merchants) and Shuudra (labourers). Those who belonged to the first three classes being educated and bearing good character, were called Dwijas - twice born; whilst the fourth Class was so named because of being composed of ignorant and illiterate persons. They were also called Anaryas - not good. This division into Aryas and Shudras is supported by the Atharva Veda wherein it is said "Some are Aryas, others Shuudras.

A.~ When the relations between the Aryasand Dasyus, or between Devas and Asuraas, (i.e., between the good and learned, and the ignorant and wicked) developed into a constant state of

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warfare, and serious troubles arose, the Aryas regarding this country as the best in the whole earth emigrated her and colonized it. For this reason it is calledAryavarta - the abode of the Aryas.

Q. What are the boundaries of Aryavarta?

A.~ "It is bounded on the North by the Himalayas, on the South by the Vindyachal mountains, on the East and West by the sea. It has also on its West the Sarasvati River (Sindh or Attock) and on the East the Dhrisvati river also called the Brahmaputra which rises from the mountain east of Nepal, and passing down to the east of Assam and the west of Burma, falls into the Bay of Bengal in the Southern Sea (Indian Ocean). All the countries included between the Himalaya on the North and Vindhyachal mountains on the south as far as Rameshwar are called Aryavarta, because they were colonized and inhabited by Devas (the learned) and Aryas - the good and the noble." Manu 2: 22, 17.

Q. What was the name of this country before that , and who were its oboriginal inhabitants?

A.~ It had no name, nor was it inhabited by any other people before the Aryas(settled in it) who sometime after creation came straight down here from Tibet and colonized this country.

Q. Some people say that they came from Iran (Persia) and hence they were called Aryas. Before the Aryas came to this country it was inhabited by savages whom the Aryas called Asuraas and Raakshasas as (demons), while they called themselves Devatas (gods). The wars between the two were called by the name Devaasura Sangraam as in the historical romances. Is this true?

A.~ It is absolutely wrong. The Veda declares what we have already repeated, i.e., "The virtuous, learned, unselfish, and pious men are called Aryas, while the men of opposite character such as docoits, wicked, unrighteous and

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A.~ One billion, nine hundred sixty millions and some hundred thousand years have passed since the creation of the world and the revelation of the Vedas. For detailed exposition of this subject the readers should consult our book called "An introduction to the Exposition of the Vedas." (1,960,852,999 years old).