Chandogya Upanishad 6.5
beginner
यथा सोम्यैकेन लोहमणिना सर्वं लोहमयं विज्ञातं स्याद्वाचारम्भणं विकारो नामधेयं लोहमित्येव सत्यम्॥
yathā somyaikena lohamaṇinā sarvaṃ lohamayaṃ vijñātaṃ syādvācārambhaṇaṃ vikāro nāmadheyaṃ lohamityeva satyam ||
""Just as, my dear, by knowing one nugget of gold, everything made of gold becomes known - the modification being only a name arising from speech, while the reality is just gold...""
What This Means:
Similarly, know gold and you know all gold ornaments. Ring, chain, crown - just names. The reality is gold.
Going Deeper:
A second analogy reinforces the teaching: variations in form are nominal, the substance is constant.
How To Apply This:
See past the surface forms. What is the one substance appearing as many?
#gold analogy#ornaments#one substance#names