Day 223 - The Story of the Wood-Apple

Day 223 - The Story of the Wood-Apple

A Parable of Infinite Consciousness

Vasistha continued: "O Rama, let me share with you an instructive parable.

The Eternal Wood-Apple

An Immeasurable Fruit

"There is a wood-apple fruit, unimaginably large, that never decays or perishes despite existing for countless ages. It is the source of the nectar of immortality and indestructibility, and it is the abode of sweetness. Although ancient, it is ever new, like the new moon. It is the heart of the universe, unmoving and unshaken even by cosmic dissolution. This immense wood-apple fruit is the original source of creation.

Eternally Ripe

"Even when fully ripe, this fruit never falls from its place, nor does it become overripe. Not even Brahma, Vishnu, Rudra, or other gods know its origin. No one has seen its seed or the tree it grows on. It simply exists, without beginning, middle, or end, without change or modification. Inside this fruit, there is no diversity; it is completely full, without emptiness. It is the fountain-source of all joys and delights, from an ordinary man's delight to that of the highest divinities. Thus, this fruit is a manifestation of the energy of infinite consciousness.

The Energy of Infinite Consciousness

Creation by Will

"This energy of infinite consciousness manifests creation without abandoning its true nature, merely by willing it in its intelligence. In truth, even this willing is not real! The egosense implied in such willing is itself unreal, but from it have emerged all elements and their corresponding senses. In reality, this energy is space, time, natural order, thought expansion, attraction, repulsion, 'I-ness', 'you-ness', 'it-ness', above, below, other directions, mountains, the firmament, stars, knowledge, and ignorance—everything that is, was, or will be. All of it is nothing but the energy of infinite consciousness.

One and Many

"Though it is one, it is conceived as diverse beings; it is neither one nor many. It is not even 'it'! It is established in reality and is of the nature of supreme, all-inclusive peace. It is the one immeasurably great cosmic being or self, the cosmic energy of the nature of cosmic consciousness."

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aegle_marmelos