Gita 8.18
Aksara Brahma Yoga
अव्यक्ताद्व्यक्तयः सर्वाः प्रभवन्त्यहरागमे । रात्र्यागमे प्रलीयन्ते तत्रैवाव्यक्तसंज्ञके ॥
avyaktād vyaktayaḥ sarvāḥ prabhavanty ahar-āgame rātry-āgame pralīyante tatraivāvyakta-saṁjñake
In essence: At cosmic dawn, all beings burst forth from the unmanifest; at cosmic night, they dissolve back into that same formless source.
A conversation between a seeker and guide to help you feel this verse deeply
Sadhak-Guru Dialogue
Sadhak: "So everything we see - stars, planets, people - all emerged from nothing?"
Guru: "Not from nothing - from the unmanifest. There is a crucial difference. Nothing means absence. The unmanifest is presence without form - like a song before it is sung."
Sadhak: "And at cosmic night, everything dissolves back. Does that mean everything is destroyed?"
Guru: "When you wake from deep sleep, were you destroyed during sleep?"
Sadhak: "No, I was still there, just... without experience."
Guru: "Exactly. The universe rests in the unmanifest like you rest in deep sleep. All potentials remain, awaiting the next dawn."
Sadhak: "This is overwhelming. Does it mean nothing I do matters since it will all dissolve anyway?"
Guru: "Does knowing a song will end make singing meaningless? The music matters in the singing, not in lasting forever."
Sadhak: "But I want my life, my loved ones, to be permanent\!"
Guru: "That wanting is the source of suffering. Life IS impermanent - resisting this truth creates pain. Accepting it creates freedom to love fully without grasping."
Sadhak: "How do I accept such vast impermanence?"
Guru: "By discovering within yourself that which neither arises nor dissolves. The knower of Brahma's day and night is not subject to them."
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🌅 Daily Practice
As you wake, recognize this as a micro-creation. Consciousness emerges from the unmanifest of sleep. Take three breaths honoring this daily "dawn of Brahma" - your own arising from formlessness.
When you create anything - a meal, a document, a conversation - recognize you are participating in the cosmic function of manifestation. Avyakta becomes vyakta through you. Create with reverence.
As you prepare for sleep, consciously release the day's manifestations. Let thoughts, worries, plans dissolve back into potential. Practice this mini-pralaya (dissolution) willingly, as preparation for the greater dissolutions to come.