Bhagavad Gita · Chapter 15: The Supreme Person
Bhagavad Gita 15.6
न तद्भासयते सूर्यो न शशाङ्को न पावकः ।
यद्गत्वा न निवर्तन्ते तद्धाम परमं मम ॥
na tadbhāsayate sūryo na śaśāṅko na pāvakaḥ | yadgatvā na nivartante taddhāma paramaṃ mama ||
The sun does not light it, nor the moon, nor fire. Those who reach it do not return. That is my supreme abode.
Modern context
The supreme abode is not lit by sun, moon or fire. It is its own light. Every other light needs something to see by; this light is what all seeing depends on. The image echoes the Upanishads, which say that everything shines by its light. In our own experience, awareness itself is like this: it lights everything we know, and needs nothing to light it.