अतः समुद्रा गिरयश्च सर्वेऽस्मात्
स्यन्दन्ते सिन्धवः सर्वरूपाः ।
अतश्च सर्वा ओषधयो रसश्च
येनैष भूतैस्तिष्ठते ह्यन्तरात्मा ॥ ९॥
ataḥ samudrā girayaśca sarve’smāt
syandante sindhavaḥ sarvarūpāḥ .
ataśca sarvā oṣadhayo rasaśca
yenaiṣa bhūtaistiṣṭhate hyantarātmā .. 9..
From Him come all the oceans and the mountains; from Him flow rivers of every kind; from Him have come, as well, all plants and flavours, by which the inner self subsists surrounded by the elements.
Commentary:
This inner Atman, appearing as Brahman outside and the kutastha tattva inside us, is the cause of even the mighty oceans and the towering Himalayan mountains. The rivers flow in a particular direction only, and not in another direction. The Sun rises only in one direction, and not elsewhere. The stars scintillate and maintain their positions not in any other manner, only because of terror of the operation of the system of law and order of Brahman tapas. All the trees and plants grow only because of the will of that tapas. There cannot be a breeze moving, wafting through the leaves of trees in the thick of the forest, unless that tapas operates. Do you believe that such a thing is possible, that even an atom cannot vibrate and act in the manner it does unless the central will is there operating at the nucleus of that atom?
Atas samudrā: Even the oceans are created by Him. Is it not a picturesque description? Girayaś ca sarve: The mountains, oceans and rivers cannot be there but for the will of That—asmāt syandante sindhavas sarva-rūpāḥ. The author of this Upanishad must have been a great poet like Kalidasa, who beautifully presents before us the forte of all the values applied as emanating from one single point.
Yenaiṣa bhūtais tiṣṭhate hy antar-ātmā: Through all these manifestations mentioned in various ways, this inner Atman rejoices and glories in itself. It plays in the form of this universe. Lokavattu lilakaivalyam (2.1.33), says the Brahma Sutra. Why does the Supreme Brahman manifest itself? Why does it do tapas and concentrate, and become all these things in this way? Why do children play? Why do they create mud houses, and then in the evening kick them apart and return home? Why to they skip and dance? There is no reason for that. So is the reasonless sport of Brahman in the form of this picturesque manifestation.