Mundaka Upanishad 4.11

The Two BirdsAtharva Veda

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Mundaka Upanishad 4.11Famous
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न तत्र सूर्यो भाति न चन्द्रतारकं नेमा विद्युतो भान्ति कुतोऽयमग्निः। तमेव भान्तमनुभाति सर्वं तस्य भासा सर्वमिदं विभाति॥

na tatra sūryo bhāti na candratārakaṃ nemā vidyuto bhānti kuto'yamagniḥ | tameva bhāntamanubhāti sarvaṃ tasya bhāsā sarvamidaṃ vibhāti ||

"There the sun does not shine, nor moon and stars, nor lightning, much less this fire. When He shines, everything shines after Him; by His light all this is illumined."

What This Means:

In that realm of Brahman, sun, moon, stars, lightning, and fire don't shine. All of them shine only because Brahman shines first.

Going Deeper:

This famous verse (also in Katha and Shvetashvatara) shows Brahman as the source of all light - physical and metaphysical.

How To Apply This:

Every light derives from one source. Seek that original light - pure consciousness.

#source of light#Brahman shines#all illumined