The Secret Doctrine of Goddess Lalita
(Sri LalitaAṣṭottara Rahasyārthamu)
21. tattvādhikā - tattvamayī
She who transcends all cosmic categories.
She who is reality itself; She who is Siva Himself.
Although we refer to śakti as manifest and un-manifest, in reality, there are no such differences. śakti is one, not two. At every stage in Her journey from parā to vaikharī, She shines as Pure Consciousness. The apparent stages do not impinge on Her real nature in any way. She does not undergo any change. Her essential nature is Existence-Consciousness, sat-cīt. Since sat and cīt are both formless, they are in essence One, not two. There can be no Existence without Consciousness, and no Consciousness without Existence. As pure Existence-Consciousness, śakti is Absolute and Universal. As icchā śakti and kriya śakti and through the various stages of manifestation, She appears as though relative and particular.
These particulars, the various elements or aspects of the phenomenal world, are called tattva-s. According to the Shaiva/Tantric philosophy, there are 36 tattva-s. Except for śiva tattva, which is the Absolute Consciousness, the other tattva-s are particulars. Since śakti is not separate from Consciousness, śakti is also of śiva tattva. Hence, She is tattvādhikā, the one who transcends all tattva-s.
In addition to being known as tattvādhikā (the one who transcends), She is also known as tattvamayī (the one who is immanent). tattvamayī means that which is immanent in the 36 tattvas. That means śakti pervades as well as transcends the basic elements that constitute the universe. When we recognize the śiva tattva (Consciousness) in every aspect of manifestation, we realize that śakti and śiva are not different. When we closely examine any name, form, or function, from the subtlest ( śiva tattva) to the grossest (earth/bhūtatva) element, we find that it is pervaded by śakti in the form of Existence-Consciousness, sat-cīt. An object IS (sat) and we are aware (cīt) of its existence. We don’t think that it does not exist. Although objects appear with particular names, forms, and functions, these particulars cannot transcend sat-cīt. sat-cīt pervade every object uniformly. It is the substratum on which all objects appear. If an object loses touch with sat-cīt, it ceases to exist.
That is the reason why Devī, the material cause of this entire universe, is called tattvamayī. The mantra hiranmayi, also implies the same. Gold is not different from the gold ornaments. Similarly, śakti (tattvamayi) is not different from the tattva-s it manifests. Therefore, we must reflect on all the nāma-s that describe the nature of śakti as describing Her expansion (vibhūti), the manifestation of Consciousness into names and forms.
The nāma tattvādhikā presents the Goddess as the efficient cause. In the empirical world, an efficient cause is usually separate from the material cause. For instance, the potter (efficient cause) is separate from the clay (the material cause of the pot). The nāma tattvamayi, however, presents the Goddess as the material cause. Like the gold that is not different from the ornament, śakti is not different from Her creation. Hence, She is immanent in Her creation as well as transcends it. Since She is both the material and efficient cause, She is jagadātmaka (She who pervades the entire world) and jaganiyāmaka (She who appointed Herself to transform into the world.). This means everything in this world is Her and by Her divine will. The individual (jīvā), who is a mere notion, is not responsible for anything. He is neither the doer nor the enjoyer. When such an insight into the nature of Devī develops into a firm conviction, the jīvā will be free of saṃsāra.