The Fourth chapter of the Swetaswatara Upanishad refers to the indestructible Being in the Rig Veda in which all Gods reside! There is no use of reading the Rig Veda if one doesn't understand and know that Being! He would become Immortal by knowing it! The Vedas, sacrifices , rituals and the three divisions of time issue forth from the Creator! The soul is enveloped in Maya in this. Nature is declared as Maya and it is the great Lord that does it. All creatures in the universe are parts of Him. He is the single cause of everything. All meet in Him and again separate from him! He is the bestower of blessings and adorable God. By discerning Him one becomes Immortal.The Upanishad declares that this support and source of Gods is none other than Rudra Himself who saw the world soul when it was born!
The Upanishad wants all to offer worship to the Lord, the ruler of all the bipeds and quadrupeds. What is his nature? The Upanishad declares that he is subtler than the subtle! Out of the chaos He has brought into being manifold forms and envelopes them! He is Himself the guardian of this world but none can see Him! He is hidden in all things.The great seers of Brahman merge into Him. Knowledge of Him releases one from the cords of death! He is very delicate like the film over melted butter! He releases one from all bonds! This God is the great Self, the dweller in the innermost recess of heart! He is under the limitations of understanding and mind.
There was a time when darkness disappeared and neither day or night or being or non being existed! Who was present at that time? The Upanishad declares that it was the blessed Lord Siva alone who was present. It was the adorable light of the Savior from which our ancient wisdom emerged!
Has anyone understood or known Him? None have grasped His nature that has no beginning , middle or end! He is incomparable! The Upanishad calls Him the “Great Glory”! He is invisible as the naked eye cannot spot Him! He transcends all senses! Blessed are those who realize Him through their knowledge, understanding and mind. They attain immortality! One approaches Him trembling, saying “ Thou art the unborn--O Rudra may thy gracious face protect me forever”! The Katha Upanishad declares, “ The knowing Self is never born, nor does it die. It sprang from nothing, and nothing sprang from it. It is unborn, eternal, everlasting and primeval. It is not slain when the body is slain.”
The references to Rudra, and Siva in the Swetaswatara Upanishad were significant for Saiva Siddhanta and Saivism. The word Siva, it is said, is mentioned as an adjective seven times in the Swetaswatara Upanishad! The Upanishad plays “the same historic role for Saivism as the Bhagavad-Gita for Vaishnavism”!
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