Parātrīṃśikā Vivaraṇa (Part 131): The Lunar and Solar Powers of Icchā and Jñāna

Mahadeva with closed eyes, moon and sun, and a central flame-like axis, evoking Soma and Sūrya as the lunar and solar powers of Bhairava’s unfolding Śakti.

The previous chunk revealed a as the first pulse of Parameśvara’s icchā-śakti: will before object, freedom before formed intention, the supreme beginning to lean toward manifestation without yet leaving itself. Abhinava showed that this is not ordinary desire. It is Bhairava as Śakti-bearing Vimarśa, the self-recognitive fullness of consciousness already trembling as Spanda.

Now he follows that first pulse into the unfolding of the vowels.

The movement begins with ā, the further expansion of Ānanda-śakti. Then i appears as complete icchā. Then ī shows icchā becoming more directed, seeking to grasp through the future power of knowledge, taking the form of Īśana. Then u and ū unfold as forms of Jñāna-śakti, where the desired beings begin to emerge, first as opening, then as a more clearly carried mass of possible manifestation.

So this chunk is not merely phonetic explanation. Abhinava is showing how the vowel-body becomes the first subtle drama of manifestation: bliss expands, will becomes full, will leans toward knowledge, knowledge opens, and the beings to be manifested begin to appear within consciousness.

Then he gathers this into two great Śaktis of Bhairava. The first is lunar: Soma, icchā, mahāsṛṣṭi, the full bliss-resting power of creation. The second is solar: Sūrya, jñāna, mahāsaṃhāra, the power that illumines, spreads, empties, and reabsorbs the mass of beings. These are not external moon and sun. They are inner modes of Bhairava’s own freedom: the lunar fullness of will and the solar power of knowledge.

The subtlety is that these powers can also appear reversed, because each reflects upon the previous expansion. Creation contains reabsorption; reabsorption contains creation. Soma and Sūrya are distinct in function, but not sealed off from one another. Again Abhinava refuses dead categories. The vowel-sequence is a living current, not a chart.

So this part shows the first unfolding of manifestation through the vowels: ā, i, ī, u, ū as the expansion of bliss, will, and knowledge. The world has not yet become gross. But the powers by which it will appear — delight, will, grasping, knowing, creation, and reabsorption — are already stirring inside Bhairava’s own self-recognition.

Ānanda-śakti expands again as “ā”

punaḥ prasarantī ānandaśaktiḥ ā iti prasṛtā |

“Again, as Ānanda-śakti expands, she is extended as ā.”

Abhinava now moves from a, the first pulse of icchā, into ā, the expansion of Ānanda-śakti. This is not merely a phonetic lengthening. The short a was the first opening of Parameśvara’s freedom as will, before the object of manifestation had emerged. Now that same current expands, lengthens, deepens into ā.

The word prasarantī is important. Ānanda-śakti is spreading, flowing outward, extending herself. The long vowel ā is therefore not just “a plus duration.” It is a becoming spacious, full, resonant. The first pulse of Anuttara begins to taste itself as expansion.

This fits the inner movement perfectly. Icchā is not born from lack; it arises from fullness. And fullness has its own delight. When that delight begins to expand, ā appears. So ā is the vowel-form of bliss extending from the first will. It is the supreme not merely touching itself as “I may manifest,” but swelling with the joy of that possibility.

The movement is subtle but living: a is the first seed of will; ā is that seed breathing wider as bliss. The universe is still not grossly unfolded, but the power of manifestation has become more spacious, more resonant, more full of its own taste. Ānanda is not an emotion added to consciousness. It is consciousness’s own fullness beginning to expand as Śakti.

Complete icchā is “i”

paripūrṇecchā i iti |

“Complete icchā is i.”

Abhinava now moves from ā, the expansion of Ānanda-śakti, to i, the state of paripūrṇa-icchā — complete will. The first will marked by a was the supreme’s free inward pulse before manifestation had opened. Ā was that pulse expanding as bliss. Now, in i, icchā becomes full.

This is still not ordinary desire. Ordinary desire moves because it lacks. It wants an object because it is incomplete without it. But paripūrṇa-icchā is the opposite: will that arises from fullness, not poverty. It is the supreme’s power to incline toward manifestation without losing its own completeness.

So i marks a more concentrated and complete form of will. Ānanda has expanded, and now that expansion gathers into a full intentional potency. The world is still not fully disclosed, but the power to manifest is no longer merely the first tremor. It has become a complete inward readiness.

This is a difficult point because the mind usually thinks will means movement toward something absent. Abhinava is showing another kind of will: the will of fullness. It is not “I need this.” It is “I am so complete that manifestation can arise from my own freedom.” Here icchā is not bondage. It is Śakti as the fullness of creative capacity.

Icchā seeking to grasp through future Jñāna-Śakti becomes “ī”

icchaiva bhāvijñānaśaktyātmakasvātantryeṇa jighṛkṣantī īśanarūpā ī iti |

“Icchā itself, seeking to grasp through the freedom whose nature will become Jñāna-Śakti, takes the form of Īśana and is called ī.”

Abhinava now shows icchā becoming more directed. In i, will was complete but still inwardly full. Now, in ī, that same icchā begins to lean toward grasping — jighṛkṣantī, seeking to take hold, to apprehend, to gather what is to appear.

This is still not ordinary grasping. It is not the ego reaching out to possess an object. The object has not yet fully emerged. Rather, the will of the supreme begins to prepare itself for knowledge. Icchā starts to become linked with bhāvi-jñāna-śakti, the future Jñāna-Śakti. The power that was pure willing now begins to carry within itself the coming power of knowing.

That is why this state is īśana-rūpā — it takes the form of Īśana, lordly direction. Will is no longer only fullness turned toward expression; it is becoming the power that can govern, grasp, and illuminate what will arise. The current becomes more pointed. The first soft pulse of manifestation starts taking on sovereignty.

So the movement from i to ī is the lengthening and intensification of will into lordly grasp. Icchā is still rooted in Anuttara, but now the coming universe is closer. It is not yet fully known, but the power of knowing is already stirring inside will. The supreme begins to lean toward its own manifestation as something it will grasp, illumine, and govern.

Jñāna-Śakti opens as the emergence of all desired beings

unmiṣantī tu jñānaśaktiriṣyamāṇasakalabhāvonmeṣamayī u iti |

“But Jñāna-Śakti, opening forth as the emergence of all the beings that are willed, is called u.”

Abhinava now moves from ī into u. In ī, icchā had begun to lean toward grasping through the future power of knowledge. Now that future knowledge-power begins to open. Jñāna-Śakti becomes unmiṣantī — opening her eyes, unfolding, beginning to reveal what was only intended in will.

This is a decisive shift. Icchā was the will toward manifestation before the object was clear. Jñāna is the power by which the willed begins to become visible to consciousness. The iṣyamāṇa-sakala-bhāva, all the beings that were willed, begin to emerge. The world is still subtle, still not grossly external, but it is no longer only the inward pressure of will. It has begun to open as knowable form.

The word unmeṣa is important. It literally suggests opening, like the opening of an eye. Creation here is not yet action in the gross sense. It is first a disclosure. The beings to be manifested begin to appear within consciousness as knowable. Jñāna-Śakti does not make them external objects yet; she opens them as luminous possibilities in the field of awareness.

So u is the vowel-form of this first opening of knowledge. The supreme has willed; now the willed begins to show itself. Icchā becomes Jñāna not by abandoning itself, but by letting the content of will begin to appear. The hidden universe starts to open its eyes inside consciousness.

As this opening deepens, beings appear indistinctly within contracted Anuttara-consciousness

unmiṣattaiva unmimiṣatāmapi antaḥprāṇasarvasvarūponmeṣottaraikarūpairapi antaḥkaraṇavedyadeśīyāsphuṭaprāyabhedāṃśabhāsamānabhāvarāśibhiḥ saṃkocavaśena ūnībhūtānuttarasaṃvitsarvabhāvagarbhīkāreṇa anaṅgadhainavīrūpaparadevatāyā

“This very opening, even while continuing to open, contains masses of beings whose differences appear mostly indistinct, almost like objects of the inner organ, though they are still internally vital and still of the nature of the whole. Through contraction, Anuttara-consciousness becomes as though diminished, while containing all beings within itself, in the form of the supreme deity called Anaṅgadhainavī.”

Abhinava now slows down inside the movement of u, the opening of Jñāna-Śakti. The willed beings have begun to emerge, but they are not yet grossly manifest. They are not yet clear external objects. They appear as asphuṭa-prāya-bhedāṃśa — with their differences mostly indistinct. Difference has begun, but it is still blurred, inward, subtle, not yet hardened into the visible world.

This is the stage where the universe is becoming knowable, but still inwardly held. The beings are described almost like objects of the antaḥkaraṇa, the inner organ — not fully external, not yet solid, but present as subtle inner differentiations. It is like a world beginning to form inside consciousness before it becomes a world outside consciousness.

The phrase saṃkoca-vaśena ūnībhūta-anuttara-saṃvit is powerful. Through contraction, Anuttara-consciousness becomes as though “lessened.” Not truly diminished — that would be impossible — but appearing as if narrowed enough to contain the emerging field of beings in a more limited way. The supreme fullness begins to hold manifestation in a contracted mode.

Yet even here, it is still sarva-bhāva-garbhīkāra — the containing of all beings in the womb. This is not full external creation. It is gestation. The universe is in the womb of consciousness. The differences are there, but still unborn, still inward, still wrapped in the subtle body of Jñāna-Śakti.

So this point shows the middle density between pure will and fully clear knowledge. Icchā has leaned toward manifestation; Jñāna has opened; but the beings are still womb-held, dim, inwardly breathing. The cosmos is not yet spread outside. It is still a hidden pregnancy inside Anuttara, a contraction of fullness that allows the many to begin appearing without yet breaking into gross distinction.

Expanded Jñāna-Śakti carrying the whole mass of beings is “ū”

ūdhorūpā ūḍhasakalabhāvarāśiḥ susphuṭāprasṛtā jñānaśaktiḥ ū iti |

“Jñāna-Śakti, in the form of ūḍha, bearing the entire mass of beings, clearly present yet not fully spread forth, is called ū.”

Abhinava now moves from u to ū. In u, Jñāna-Śakti had begun to open; the willed beings were starting to emerge. In ū, that opening has deepened. The mass of beings is now ūḍha — carried, borne, held within her. The universe is not yet fully spread outward, but it is no longer merely the first indistinct stir. It is more clearly gathered inside Jñāna-Śakti.

The phrase ūḍha-sakala-bhāva-rāśiḥ is important: she bears the whole heap, the entire mass, of beings. This is still a womb-state, but a more developed one. The beings are present as a total carried content inside consciousness. They have not yet become grossly external; they have not yet fully entered manifest spread. But the knowledge-power now holds them more distinctly.

That is why Abhinava says susphuṭā-aprasṛtā — clearly present, yet not expanded outward. This is a very delicate middle condition. If u was the opening of the eye, ū is the eye holding the full vision inwardly before releasing it into external display. The universe has become clear enough to be known, but not yet dispersed into gross manifestation.

So ū is Jñāna-Śakti in a fuller form: not merely beginning to open, but carrying the whole field of possible beings within herself. She is knowledge as inwardly complete vision, before full outward spread. The many are now held in clarity, but still inside the womb of consciousness.

Thus the first two Śaktis of Bhairava are icchā and jñāna

tadevamete parameśvarasya bhairavasya dve śaktī

“Thus, in this way, these are the two Śaktis of Parameśvara Bhairava.”

Abhinava now gathers the vowel-unfolding into a clearer structure. From ā through ū, we have not been watching isolated letters. We have been watching the first two Śaktis of Bhairava unfold: icchā and jñāna.

First there was the expansion of Ānanda-śakti as ā. Then complete icchā as i. Then icchā stretching toward grasping, already carrying the future power of knowledge, as ī. Then Jñāna-śakti opening as u, and finally deepening as ū, bearing the whole mass of beings clearly but still inwardly, not yet spread into full manifestation.

So the sequence is not merely phonetic. It is the first inner anatomy of manifestation. Will and knowledge are beginning to differentiate inside Bhairava’s own freedom. But they are not separate powers standing apart from Him. They are Parameśvara Bhairava’s own Śaktis, the first modes by which His self-recognition turns toward manifestation.

This is important because Abhinava is still protecting the supreme from blankness. Bhairava is not a silent absolute with no inner dynamism. His freedom contains will; His will opens into knowledge; His knowledge begins to hold the world. The universe is still not grossly unfolded, but the powers that will make it possible are already alive within Him.

So this short line marks a transition. The individual vowel-powers are now being recognized as two great currents: the lunar fullness of icchā and the solar illumination of jñāna.

The first Śakti is lunar, full, resting in bliss, and called icchā-kalanā / mahāsṛṣṭi

prathamā svarūpaparipūraṇārūpatvāt pūrṇā cāndramasīśaktyavyatirekācca sahomayā vartata iti somarūpā svānandaviśrāntibhāvā icchākhyā kalanā mahāsṛṣṭivyapadeśyā

“The first Śakti, because she has the nature of completing her own form, is full. And because she is not separate from the lunar Śakti, she exists together with Umā and is Soma-formed. She rests in her own bliss, is called icchā-kalanā, and is designated as mahāsṛṣṭi, the great creation.”

Abhinava now gathers the first current — the movement from ā through ī, from Ānanda into full icchā and lordly grasp — and names its nature. This first Śakti is pūrṇā, full, because her movement is not toward something lacking. She is the self-completion of Bhairava’s own form, svarūpa-paripūraṇa. Icchā here is not poverty seeking an object; it is fullness thickening into the power to manifest.

She is also Soma-rūpā, lunar in form. This does not mean merely “moon” as an external celestial body. Soma here is cooling, nourishing, bliss-resting, inwardly full. The lunar Śakti is not separate from her, and she is said to exist sahomayā, together with Umā. The current of icchā is therefore soft in one sense, but not weak: it is the fullness of Śakti resting in her own bliss before the world has fully opened.

The phrase svānanda-viśrānti-bhāva is central. This Śakti rests in her own bliss. She does not create from agitation. She does not reach outward because something is missing. Her will is born from repose. This is a very different vision of creation from any model based on lack, command, or external necessity. Creation begins as the overflow of bliss that is already complete.

And this is why she is called icchākhyā kalanā — the kalana named icchā. She is the first articulating power as will, the first measure or differentiation inside fullness. But because this differentiation still arises from bliss-fullness, it is called mahāsṛṣṭi, great creation. Not ordinary limited production, but the great creative stirring in which the whole universe is still held in Soma-like fullness.

So the first Śakti is lunar will: full, bliss-resting, nourishing, creative, and inwardly complete. She is the Goddess as the first overflowing desire of Bhairava’s freedom — not desire as need, but desire as fullness wanting to taste its own manifestation.

The second Śakti is solar Jñāna-Śakti, the power of illumination and great reabsorption

dvitīyā tu tatsvarūpabhāvarāśirecanānupraveśodriktā tadrecanādeva kṛśā bhāvamaṇḍalaprakāśanaprasāraṇavyāpārā sūryarūpā svarūpabhūtā kulasaṃvitsaṃjihīrṣātmikā mahāsaṃhāraśaktirjñānākhyā

“The second Śakti, however, is intensified by entering the emptying-out of the mass of beings contained in that first nature. Precisely because of that emptying, she is lean; her activity is the illumination and expansion of the circle of beings. She is solar in form, belonging to the very nature of the Self, and is the great power of reabsorption, whose nature is the desire to gather Kula-consciousness back in. She is called Jñāna.”

Abhinava now turns from the first, lunar Śakti of icchā to the second, solar Śakti of jñāna. The first Śakti was full, Soma-like, resting in her own bliss, called mahāsṛṣṭi, the great creation. This second Śakti has a different movement. She is connected with recana, emptying out, pouring forth, releasing the mass of beings contained in the first fullness.

This is subtle. The first Śakti holds the whole in the fullness of blissful will. The second Śakti illumines and spreads that held content. She makes the circle of beings shine forth: bhāva-maṇḍala-prakāśana-prasāraṇa-vyāpāra. Her work is not merely to “know” in a passive way. Jñāna here is illumination that extends, reveals, clarifies, and opens the field of beings.

Because of this emptying-out, she is called kṛśā, lean or empty. Not poor, not deficient, but emptied in the sense that what was held in fullness is now being released into manifestation and illumination. The first Śakti was Soma: full, nourishing, bliss-resting. The second is Sūrya: bright, revealing, extending, drying, clarifying, drawing things into visibility.

And yet Abhinava also calls her mahāsaṃhāra-śakti, the great power of reabsorption. This may look paradoxical: why would the power that illumines and spreads beings also be the power of reabsorption? Because true knowledge does not merely display things outwardly; it gathers them back into their source by revealing their nature. Jñāna illumines the bhāva-maṇḍala, the circle of beings, and by illumining it, it can also withdraw the illusion of their separateness.

That is why she is kulasaṃvit-saṃjihīrṣātmikā — having the nature of the desire to gather Kula-consciousness back in. Kula is the field of manifestation, articulation, Śakti, multiplicity. Jñāna does not hate Kula; it reveals Kula and draws it back into recognition. The sun illumines the world, and by illumination it also removes the darkness in which the world seemed separate.

So the second Śakti is solar knowledge: revealing, spreading, clarifying, and reabsorbing. She is not the opposite of the first Śakti. She is the second movement of the same freedom: what Soma holds in blissful fullness, Sūrya illuminates and gathers back through knowledge.

Soma and Sūrya can appear reversed in creation and reabsorption

tatrāpi ca prasaratprāktanarūpaparyālocanāvaśāt svātmani yathākramaṃ somasūryarūpatāyugalakabhāvena svasaṃvidātmakaṃ bhāvākhyaṃ ca rūpamavekṣya viparyayo'pi somasūryātmakasṛṣṭisaṃhṛtikalanayoḥ

“And even there, because each looks back upon the previously expanded form, each sees within itself, in due order, both the Soma-Sūrya pair and the form called ‘being,’ which is made of its own consciousness. Therefore, even a reversal of the creation-and-reabsorption kalanās, whose nature is Soma and Sūrya, is possible.”

Abhinava now adds a subtle correction to the distinction between the two Śaktis. The first Śakti is lunar, Soma-like, full, bliss-resting, creative, called icchā and mahāsṛṣṭi. The second is solar, Sūrya-like, illuminating, spreading, reabsorptive, called jñāna and mahāsaṃhāra. But even this distinction must not become rigid.

Each Śakti reflects upon what has already expanded before it. The second does not simply replace the first; it carries the earlier form within itself. Jñāna looks back upon icchā. Sūrya contains Soma. Reabsorption contains creation. And because each is ultimately svasaṃvidātmaka, made of its own consciousness, their relation cannot be reduced to a dead opposition.

This is why Abhinava allows viparyaya, reversal. Soma and Sūrya, creation and reabsorption, fullness and emptying, lunar and solar powers — these can invert depending on the standpoint. Creation may contain the seed of reabsorption; reabsorption may reveal the hidden fullness of creation. The same Śakti-current can be read from different directions.

This continues the mirror-logic we have seen repeatedly. The order is real, but not rigid. The functions are distinct, but not isolated. Soma and Sūrya are not two external forces fighting. They are paired modes of Bhairava’s own freedom, each capable of reflecting the other within itself.

So the chunk closes not by fixing the two Śaktis into a simple chart, but by keeping them alive. Icchā and jñāna, Soma and Sūrya, mahāsṛṣṭi and mahāsaṃhāra — each has its own function, yet each is inwardly threaded with the other because both are forms of one self-recognizing consciousness.