0032from Shankara On The Chandogya Upanishad 8.1.1 Poem by Michael Shepherd

Inside the body
is a little place.

you could say that
this is like a lotus
for it floats on the surface of the waters of life
and opens its petals to the heavens,
rejoicing to be alive.

or you could say that
it is like a house
for it is where you return for rest and re-creation
within the love of family,
within the safety of its walls.

or you could say that
it is like a city
for it has a palace and a treasury, and many officers
such as mind and intellect
to fulfil its needs.

yet within that little place,
a space,
as large as the universe itself.

we should know about that space.

within it are comprehended
the heavens and the earth;
the elements, sound, air, fire, light, water, all that’s underfoot
that arises from the earth, returns to dust;
whatever is, and what is not;
all in that little space
which because it is space
is unbounded.

it does not age with age,
with wrinkles nor gray hair, nor
with forgetful mind;
beyond all sorrows, since sorrow comes
from separation;
free to have desires,
since it satisfies all desires
and lives in its own satisfaction;
that satisfaction, they call bliss – what else?

you need not seek outside for this;
all this is in your heart.