A Mysterious Tree

Swami Sivananda Saraswati

Lord Krishna declares in the Bhagavad Gita that the Supreme Being is the source of all existence, and refers allegorically to this phenomenal universe as being like an inverted tree whose roots are in Para Brahman, and whose spreading branches and foliage constitute all things and factors that go to make up this vast and variegated created phenomena.

This is a very mysterious “Tree” which is very difficult to understand, being a product of His inscrutable power of Maya: and hence it has a marvellous apparent appearance without having actual reality. One who fully understands the nature of this Samsara-Tree goes beyond Maya. To be attached to it is to be caught in it. The surest way of “cutting down” this Samsara is by the excellent weapon of non-attachment and dispassion.