परमार्थसार (महामाहेश्वर अभिनवगुप्त - त्रिक-दर्शन, अद्वैत शैव साधना एवं सान्वय सटीक)

Paramārthasāra of Abhinavagupta 23
being and to revolve in the cycles of transmigratory existence.
Paśu is the finite being who is fastened like an animal with the
ropes of karman and the limiting elements called kañcukas.
नानाविधवर्णानां रूपं धत्ते यथामलः स्फटिकः ।
सुरमानुषपशुप्रादपरूपत्वं तद्वदीशोडपि ॥ ६ ॥
6. Nānā-vidha-varṇānāṁ
rūpaṁ dhatte yathāmalaḥ sphaṭikaḥ
Sura-mānuṣa-paśu-pādapa-
rūpatvaṁ tadvadīśo'pi.
Just as a pure and colourless crystal takes up the appearance of
different types of hues reflected in it, so does the Lord also take
up the forms of gods, humanbeings, animals and plants (in the
manner of reflection).
God, appearing as different types of beings, does not at all
undergo any change. The basic creation conducted directly by
God Himself does not at all involve Him or His divine power into
pariṇāma or transformation. He reflects His divine powers out-
wardly and such reflections of His powers appear as all pheno-
mena and their creation etc. Doing so, he does not require any
external substances to cast their reflections into divine prakāśa, the
psychic luminosity of His pure consciousness. The basic cause of
all such phenomenal manifestations is only His playful nature,
by virtue of which such reflectionary creation of all phenomena
happens. Creation is not thus due either to any external entity
like Māyā or Avidyā or to any internal entity like Vāsanā as
propounded by the Vedāntins and Buddhists respectively. It is due
only to the divinely playful nature of the Absolute.
गच्छति गच्छति जल इव हिमकरबिम्बं स्थिते स्थितिं याति ।
तनुकरणभुवनवर्गे तथायमात्मा महेशानः ॥ ७ ॥
7. Gacchati gacchati jala iva
himakara-bimbaṁ sthite sthitiṁ yāti
Tanu-karaṇa-bhuvana-varge
tathāyamātmā maheśānaḥ.
Just as the disk of moon appears to be moving when reflected in
flowing waters and just as it looks to be static in still waters, so
does this great master Ātman appear in multifarious variety in
the different categories of bodies, senses, organs and worlds.
Here the difference between the moon and the Ātman is this