and played with me in diverse ways, which I blush to tell you. When he ran to catch me with a merry laugh, and I flew away, he then showed me a piece of cake.

When I went near, the Lord would laugh; when I flew away again, he would fall a-crying. When I approached to touch his feet, he would scamper off, turning round again and again to look at me.

Seeing him play like an ordinary child, I was overcome by bewilderment and wondered what these sports of the Lord meant who is the sum of truth, intelligence and bliss.

While I was thus perplexed, O king of birds, illusion, sent forth by Raghunatha, took possession of me. Yet that illusion was in no way painful to me, nor did it throw me like other creatures into the whirlpool of birth and death.

This, my lord, is attributable to another reason. Now listen attentively, O mount of Hari. Sita’s spouse alone is absolute intelligence, every creature, animate or inanimate, is subject to illusion.

If all possessed the same perfect wisdom, tell me, what would be the distinction between God and the individual soul? The arrogant soul (which identifies itself with a particular psycho-physical organism) is subject to illusion, and illusion itself, the source of the three gunas, is subject to God.

The soul dependent (subject to illusion), God is self-dependent, Jivas (souls) are many, but Lakshmi’s lord is one (without a second) are many, but Lakshmi’s lord is one (without a second). Even though this distinction, created by illusion, is false, yet it cannot disappear except by Hari’s grace, whatever you may do.