The Svacchanda Tantra

However, these two aspects of the Supreme Reality—Shiva and Shakti (or light and reflection, world-transcendent and world-immanent)—are completely non-dual, not different at all. Just as heat from fire, coolness from water, or fragrance from a flower are completely non-different or in harmony, in the same way, the principles of Shiva and Shakti are also completely non-different—

Neither is Shiva without Shakti, nor is Shakti separate.
Coolness is not separate from ice, nor is heat separate from fire. (Shivadrishti, 3.2.7)

The Parama-Shiva of the Pratyabhijna philosophy is beyond the subject-object distinction. Yet, He is the foundation of both subject and object. Consequently, in this philosophy, an explanation of the world as separate from the Shiva-principle is not possible, whereas in Advaita-Vedanta Non-dualistic Vedanta, an explanation of the world (empirical reality) as separate from Brahman (ultimate reality) is possible—through the theory of illusion (vivartavada). In Advaita-Vedanta, while the ultimate reality (Brahman) is the final truth, the empirical (the world) is also real for the time being, even if it is in the form of an illusion. The rope or the shell is indeed real; and as long as the erroneous knowledge like the snake or silver is not negated, the knowledge of the snake in the rope and silver in the shell is also real.

This is not the case in the Pratyabhijna philosophy. Because the world is merely the pulsation (spanda) of Shiva, it is not separate from Shiva at all. It is merely His reflection. The entire world resides in Shiva just as waves reside in the ocean. Vedanta considers the waves to be an illusion of the ocean water, hence it raises the question of the reality of their existence; but the Pratyabhijna philosophy considers even the ocean with waves to be "ocean" only.

In Vedanta, Maya is an inseparable power of Brahman, which is indescribable. However, in Pratyabhijna, Shiva’s power, while inseparable from Shiva, is not indescribable. The Brahman of Vedanta is not the cause of the world; but the Shiva of Pratyabhijna, while being pure consciousness, immovable, eternal, and unchanging, is the cause of the world—just like the Krishna-principle of Shuddhadvaita pure non-dualism.

Here, both facts might seem contradictory: if Shiva is immovable, eternal, and unchanging, how is He the cause of the changing world? Answering this question, Acharya Abhinava says that the changing world is merely the result of Shiva’s pulsation-power. The pulsation-power is truly the cause of change (world creation); but despite this change (creation) born of pulsation, there is no difference in the state of Parama-Shiva. He remains one-formed and world-transcendent.