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A Story of Three Friends

Once a sub-atomic particle was resting in the womb of Primordial Vastness. The atmosphere was luminous all around. The effulgence was glorious and the mood blissful. The Vastness was in the State of Meditation. The peace and the quietude were absorbingly pleasing. The sub-atomic particle was very happy.

Then something happened to disturb the peace and tranquillity of this particle. A wave of disturbance lashed at the root of its calmness. The joyous and serene state wavered and trembled, and the particle got tossed up and down, hither and thither against the boundaries of Vastness. Another particle had entered the scene. The first-one was unable to think clearly about this intrusion. It did not know how the other particle had joined its company. Had it desired a company because it felt lonely?

"Hello," said the other, "Will you join me for fun?" and without conscious knowledge, these two infinitesimal particles joined hands together to become active friends. They ran here and there, jumped up and down, laughed and cried, and embraced each other. The effulgence dimmed to some extent. Still the visibility was good. The tired particle duo relaxed and went into a slumber. God knows how and when they were joined by a darkish, thickish, and lazy looking third friend. But now both the particles found themselves helpless to reject his company. The first one was baffled and was unable to determine whether other two had sprung from his own or that they were his new friends.

These three friends inhabited Vastness of Space. Sometimes they quarrelled, at times they enjoyed life together by creating new toys of various shapes, for their recreation. Sometimes they switched the light on, at other time they loved darkness. The effulgence and the darkness combined nicely to form various shades of grey and white to their likes and dislikes. The first said, "Wipe that colour out, its not to my liking." The other laughed and said, "You fool, this is the best one and you should admire it."

The third one was indifferent, and inertly lay in dark corner of Vastness. But he did a trick. He placed a prism in front of the shaded object and inquired, "How do you like it now?" The object changed its colour in many; it became multicoloured. The shades multiplied, and every shade was tinged now with darkness of the third particle. The colours and the shapes went on changing and multiplying putting the first two particles into total confusion, as more and more prisms were added.

Each time sattva tried to raise an objection; rajas created din and noise, to drown the wise advice of his first friend. The original sweet humming music got mixed with the rapacious sound of triumph and pride. Imperceptibly rajas created noises of anger, pride, and anxiety. The Vastness, which was filled with tranquillity, was now compartmentalised into various chambers of despair and restlessness. Again, said the first, "You shut up all these noises. Let me meditate. I want peace." The second one replied, "You idiot, don't you enjoy the drums and trumpets of war and victory, lectures and discourses of politicians and artists, cries of suffering children and the widows? Give up this mild murmur of defeat. Look at me: I am the voice." Tamas was all smiles. At the sad plight of the first two, he had nothing but a scornful laugh.

The multifarious samsara (world) was thus created. Its purity and originality was diluted and obscured by the tricky infatuating tamas. The restless rajas did not agree to the wise counsel of the sattva to remove the prisms and go back to the original Oneness. The sattva got its punishment for desiring a company.
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c s shah

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