तत्र स्वात्मदेवताया एव सर्वत्र कारणत्वं सुखोपायप्राप्यत्वं महाफलत्वं च अभिव्यङ्क्तुमाहचितिः स्वतन्त्रा विश्वसिद्धिहेतुः ॥ १ ॥विश्वस्य - सदाशिवादेः भूम्यन्तस्य सिद्धौ - निष्पत्तौ प्रकाशने स्थित्यात्मनि परप्रमातृविश्रान्त्यात्मनि च संहारे पराशक्तिरूपा चितिः एव भगवती स्वतन्त्रा - अनुत्तरविमर्शमयी शिवभट्टारकाभिन्ना हेतुः - कारणम् ।अस्यां हि प्रसरन्त्यां जगत् उन्मिषति व्यवतिष्ठते च निवृत्तप्रसरायां च निमिषति - इति स्वानुभव एव अत्र साक्षी ।अन्यस्य तु मायाप्रकृत्यादेः चित्प्रकाशभिन्नस्य अप्रकाशमानत्वेन असत्त्वात् न क्वचिदपि हेतुत्वम् प्रकाशमानत्वे तु प्रकाशैकात्म्यात् प्रकाशरूपा चितिरेव हेतुः न त्वसौ कश्चित् ।अत एव देशकालाकारा एतत्सृष्टा एतदनुप्राणिताश्च नैतत्स्वरूपं भेत्तुमलम् - इति व्यापक-नित्योदित-परिपूर्णरूपा इयम् ।इत्यर्थलभ्यमेव एतत् ।ननु जगदपि चितो भिन्नं नैव किञ्चित् अभेदे च कथं हेतुहेतुमद्भावः ? उच्यते ।चिदेव भगवती स्वच्छस्वतन्त्ररूपा तत्तदनन्तजगदात्मना स्फुरति - इत्येतावत्परमार्थोऽयं कार्यकारणभावः ।यतश्च इयमेव प्रमातृ-प्रमाण-प्रमेय-मयस्य विश्वस्य सिद्धौ - प्रकाशने हेतुः ततोऽस्याः स्वतन्त्रापरिच्छिन्नस्वप्रकाशरूपायाः सिद्धौ अभिनवार्थप्रकाशनरूपं न प्रमाणवराकमुपयुक्तम् उपपन्नं वा ।तदुक्तं त्रिकसारेस्वपदा स्वशिरश्छायां यद्वल्लङ्घितुमीहते ।पादोद्देशे शिरो न स्यात्तथेयं बैन्दवी कला ॥इति ।यतश्च इयं विश्वस्य सिद्धौ पराद्वयसामरस्यापादनात्मनि च संहारे हेतुः तत एव स्वतन्त्रा ।प्रत्यभिज्ञातस्वातन्त्र्या सती भोगमोक्षस्वरूपाणां विश्वसिद्धीनां हेतुः ।इति आवृत्त्या व्याख्येयम् ।अपि च विश्वं - नील-सुख-देह-प्राणादि तस्य या सिद्धिः - प्रमाणोपारोहक्रमेण विमर्शमयप्रमात्रावेशः सैव हेतुः - परिज्ञाने उपायो यस्याः ।अनेन च सुखोपायत्वमुक्तम् ।यदुक्तं श्रीविज्ञानभट्टारकेग्राह्यग्राहकसंवित्तिः सामान्या सर्वदेहिनाम् ।योगिनां तु विशेषोऽयं संबन्धे सावधानता ॥इति ।चितिः - इति एकवचनं देशकालाद्यनवच्छिन्नताम् अभिदधत् समस्तभेदवादानाम् अवास्तवतां व्यनक्ति ।स्वतन्त्र-शब्दो ब्रह्मवादवैलक्षण्यम् आचक्षाणः चितो माहेश्वर्यसारतां ब्रूते ।विश्व इत्यादिपदम् अशेषशक्तित्वं सर्वकारणत्वं सुखोपायत्वं महाफलं च आह ॥ १ ॥
In plain words
To make plain, then, that the divinity who is one's own Self is alone the cause in every case, that she is reached by an easy means, and that her fruit is great, he says: Citi, free, is the cause of the accomplishment of the universe. Of the universe, that is, of everything from Sadāśiva down to earth; in its accomplishment, that is, in its coming forth, in its shining, which is its maintenance, and in its withdrawal, which is its coming to rest in the supreme knower: citi alone, the Blessed One, whose form is the supreme Śakti, free, that is, made of unsurpassed vimarśa and not different from Lord Śiva, is the cause, that is, the one who brings it about. For when she flows forth, the world opens its eyes and stands, and when her flow ceases, it closes its eyes. One's own experience alone is the witness here. But nothing else, māyā, prakṛti or the like, taken as separate from the prakāśa of cit, can be a cause anywhere at all, since what does not shine does not exist. And if it does shine, then, being one with prakāśa, it is citi herself, whose form is prakāśa, that is the cause, and not that other thing at all. For this very reason space, time and form, which she has emanated and to which she gives life, cannot divide her nature. So it follows from the meaning itself that she is all-pervading, ever arisen and wholly full. But the world, too, is nothing at all apart from cit; and where there is no difference, how can there be a relation of cause and effect? The answer is this. Cit herself, the Blessed One, whose form is clear and free, shines forth as each of these endless worlds. That much is the true meaning of this relation of cause and effect. And since she alone is the cause of the accomplishment, that is, of the shining, of the universe made of knower, means of knowing and known, no poor means of knowing, whose work is to bring a new object to light, is of any use, or even possible, for establishing her, whose form is free, unbounded and self-luminous. As it is said in the Trikasāra: "As one who tries to step with his own foot over the shadow of his own head finds that the head is never where the foot comes down, so it is with this kalā of the bindu." And because she is the cause of the accomplishment of the universe, and of its withdrawal, which brings it to one savour in the supreme non-duality, for that very reason she is free. When her freedom is recognised, she is the cause of all accomplishments, whose forms are enjoyment and liberation. The sūtra is to be explained this way too, by reading it a second time. Further: the universe is blue, pleasure, body, prāṇa and the rest. Its accomplishment, that is, entry into the knower made of vimarśa by stages of ascent through the means of knowing, is itself the cause, that is, the means, by which she is fully known. By this the ease of the means is stated. As it is said in the Vijñānabhaṭṭāraka: "Awareness of perceived and perceiver is common to all embodied beings. The yogins have this distinction: attentiveness to the relation between them." The singular in "citi" declares that she is not divided by space, time and the rest, and so shows that every doctrine of difference is unreal. The word "free" marks the difference from the doctrine of Brahman and states that the essence of cit is the sovereignty of the Great Lord. The words beginning with "universe" declare that she holds every power, that she is the cause of all, that the means to her is easy, and that her fruit is great.