Satprakashananda on Maya, Brahman, and Isvara

1. Potentiality of Māyā

“The term māyā applies to world-appearance in all its stages of development. It includes all diversities. The entire relative existence is the domain of māyā.

“The origin of the universe can be traced at best to Brahman associated with māyā in its potential state. Beyond māyā is the absolute Nondual Brahman without time, space, and causation.

“Māyā in its potential state is the beginning of the manifest universe, just as the seed is the beginning of the tree. It is the causal state in which all diversities remain latent. We cannot go beyond that.”

2. Beginninglessness of Māyā

“Absolute beginning of anything is illogical. Like the rotation of seed and sprout the universe revolves from the latent to the manifest state and from the manifest to the latent state. So māyā is beginningless (anādi).

“But though without beginning, it is not without end (ananta). It ends with the realization of the absolute Brahman, just as the snake disappears when the rope mistaken for it is found. Māyā has no existence apart from Brahman.”

3. Brahman with Maya

"Brahman associated with māyā is the origin, the support, and the goal of the universe. This is called Saguņa Brahman, who is immanent in the universe as the Supreme Self and acts as Iśvara, the Supreme Ruler, the dynamic God. He controls the universe from within.

"Iśvara with māyā as His power causes the projection, the Preservation, and the dissolution of the universe. In the development of the universe all transformations are in mayā, the source of all appearance; there is no change in Brahman, in Reality Itself. 

"Any transition from the potential to the actual is a transformation (pariņāma) of māyā and an apparent modification (vivarta) of Brahman. But māyā in itself has no essence of being. So Brahman associated with maya, the principle of appearance, is the material as well as the efficient cause of the universe."

4. Isvara with Maya

Saguna Brahman, because of His association with the phenomenal world, is conditioned, so to speak. He is Self-aware. He knows Himself as the Master of māyā.

He is not Pure Consciousness, the same at every point of existence, like Nirguna (attributeless) Brahman. There is no distinction of substance and attribute in Nirguna Brahman, but Saguna Brahman is possessed of attributes (guņas).

As Iśvara He is the Personal God. The term Personal is used to indicate that He has attributes. It does not mean that He has a form like a human being. He possesses all excellences in the highest degree. He is the repository of all greatness and goodness. He is All-knowing, All-powerful, All-embracing.

~Satprakashananda