Part 2 - Important Couplets From Vedanta Panchadasi By Sri Vidyaranya Swami

Translated by Swami Swahananda Published by Sri Ramakrishna Math, Chennai

III. THE DIFFERENTIATION OF THE FIVE SHEATHS

3. The body which is produced from the seed and blood of the parents, which are in turn formed out of the food eaten by them, grows by food only. It is not the Self, for it does not exist either before birth or after death.

5. The vital airs which pervade the body and give power and motion to the eyes and
other senses constitute the vital sheath. It is not the Self because it is devoid of
consciousness.

6. That which gives rise to the ideas of ‘I’ and ‘mine’ with regard to one’s body,house and so forth, is the mind sheath. It is not the Self because it has desires and is moved by pleasure and pain, is subject to delusion and is fickle.

7. The intellect which has the reflection of pure consciousness, and which pervades the whole body up to the tips of the fingers in the waking state but disappears in deep sleep, is known as the intellect sheath. It also is not the Self because it too is changeable.

8. The inner organ functions as the agent and also the instrument. Hence though
one, it is treated as two, viz., the intellect sheath and the mind sheath. Their fields of operation are the inner world and the outer world respectively.

9. There is a position or function (of the intellect) which, at the time of enjoying the fruits of good actions, goes a little farther inward and catches the reflection of the bliss and at the end of this enjoyment, merges in deep sleep. (This is what is known as the sheath of bliss).

10. This bliss sheath also cannot be the Self because it is temporal and
impermanent. That bliss which is the source of this reflection is the Self; for it is
eternal and immutable.

11. (Objection): By granting that the sheaths beginning with that of food (body) and
ending in that of bliss (joy or sleep) are not the Self, yet (when they are negated),
no further object remains to be experienced.

12. (Reply): True, bliss sheath etc., are experienced and not anything else. Yet who
can deny that by which these are experienced ?

13. As the Self is Itself of the nature of experience only. It cannot be an object of experience. Since there is no experiencer nor any experience other than It, the Self is unknowable – not because It does not exist but because It cannot be an object of experience.

IV. THE DIFFERENTIATION OF DUALITY

2. The Svetasvatara Upanishad says: ‘Know Maya as Prakriti and Brahman associated with Maya as the great Ishvara’ (who imparts existence and consciousness to it and guides it). It is He who creates the world.

3. The Aitareya Upanishad says that before creation there was Atman only, and He thought, ‘Let me create the world’, and then He created the world by His will (to create).

4. The Taittiriya Upanishad says that from the Self or Brahman alone arose in succession the whole creation including Akasa, (ether), air, fire, water, earth,vegetation, food and bodies.

5. The Taittiriya Upanishad says that desiring ‘I shall be many, so I shall create’, the Lord meditated; and thus created the world.

20. Objects created by Ishvara (e.g., gems) do not alter; they remain the same. But
gems may affect different people differently according to their mental states.

21. One man may feel happy on obtaining a gem, whereas another may feel disappointed at failing to obtain it. And a man uninterested in it, may only look on and feel neither happy nor disappointed.

22. The Jiva creates these three feelings of happiness, disappointment or
indifference with regard to the gem, but the nature of the gem as created by Ishvara
remains the same throughout.

23. Through personal relationships, one and the same woman appears differently as
a wife, a daughter-in-law, a sister-in-law, a cousin and a mother; but she herself
remains unchanged.

24. (Objection): These different relationships may be seen, but no changes in the
woman’s appearance are seen to result from other people’s ideas about her.

25. (Reply): Not so. The woman has a subtle body as well as a physical body
composed of flesh etc. Although other people’s ideas about her may not affect her
physical body, yet they can change her mental state.

27. (Reply): True, Acharya Shankara, Sureshvara and others acknowledge the fact that the mind assumes the form of the external object with which it comes into contact and modifies that form to suit its purposes.

29. Or just as sunlight assumes the forms of the objects which it illumines, so the
mind assumes the forms of the objects which it perceives.

33. In dream, when external (material) objects are absent, man is bound by the intellect to pleasure and pain, although outer objects are not perceived. In deep sleep, in a faint and in the lower Samadhi (when the mental functions are temporarily suspended), no pleasure or pain is felt inspite of the proximity of outer objects.

34. A liar told a man whose son had gone to a far-off country that the boy was dead,although he was still alive. The father believed him and was aggrieved.

35. If, on the other hand, his son had really died abroad but no news had reached
him, he would have felt no grief. This shows that the real cause of a man’s bondage
is his own mental world.

38. (Objection): If the mind causes bondage by giving rise to the phenomenal world,
the world could be made to disappear by controlling the mind. So only Yoga needs to
be practised; what is the necessity of knowledge of Brahman ?

39. (Reply): Though by controlling the mind duality can be made to disappear
temporarily the complete and final destruction of the mental creation is not possible
without a direct knowledge of Brahman. This is proclaimed by the Vedanta.

45. ‘An intelligent person, who has studied the scriptures and has repeatedly
practised what they enjoin should renounce them after knowing the supreme
Brahman, just as a man throws aside a flaming torch at the end of his journey’.
[Amritanada Upanishad]

46. ‘An intelligent person, who has studied the scriptures and has practised what
they enjoin should discard them after experiencing Brahman as his Self, just as a
man discards the husk when he has found the grain’. [Amrita-Bindu Upanishad]

47. ‘A wise man, having experienced Brahman as his Self, should keep his higher intuitive faculty (prajna) united with Brahman. He should not oppress his mind with many words, for they are a mere waste of energy’. [Brihadaranyaka Upanishad]

48. It has been clearly told in the Shruti: ‘Know that One and give up other talks’ [Mundaka Upanishad] and ‘A wise man should restrain his speech and keep it within the mind’. [Katha Upanishad]

52. You may say: Let there be no liberation in life; I am satisfied if there is no birth anymore. We reply: Then (if the desires remain), you will have births also. So be satisfied with heaven only.

53. If you say that the pleasures of heaven are defective, having waning and
gradation, and so are to be renounced, then why don’t you give up this source of all
evils, the passions ?

55. Sri Sureshvara says that one who pretends to be a knower of Brahman and yet lives without moral restraint is like a dog that eats unclean things.[Naiskarmyasiddhi-IV-62]

66. If sometimes owing to actions performed in previous births the mind of a
reflective man is distracted by desire, then it may be brought back to a peaceful
state by the constant practice of spiritual meditations.

V. FIXING THE MEANING OF THE GREAT SAYINGS

2. The one consciousness which is in Brahma, Indra and other gods, as well as in
human beings, horses, cows, etc., is Brahman. So the consciousness in me also is
Brahman.

VI. THE LAMP OF THE PICTURE

7. On consciousness are superimposed various forms. In each of them there is a reflection, i.e., a special function of consciousness. They are known as the Jivas and are subject to the process of birth and death.

12. Therefore one should always enquire into the nature of the world, the individual Self and the supreme Self. When the ideas of Jiva and Jagat (world) are negated, the pure Atman alone remains.

13. By negation it does not mean that the world and Jiva cease to be perceptible to
the senses, it means the conviction of their illusory character. Otherwise people
would be automatically liberated in deep sleep or in a faint.

14. ‘The supreme Self alone remains’ also means a conviction about Its reality and
not non-perceiving of the world. Otherwise there would be no such thing as liberation
in life.

69. The Buddhists believe that the Atman consists of the momentary states of the intellect, because the intellect, endowed with the faculty of understanding, is the basis of the mind and through it the mind grasps matter.

70. The internal organ (Antahkarana) has two kinds of vrittis, viz., the ‘I’-
consciousness, and ‘this’ consciousness. The first constitutes the intellect, the
subject-consciousness and the second the mind, the object-consciousness.

75. Quoting the Shruti, ‘In the beginning all this was non-existent (Asat)’, the Buddhists say that perception and the objects of perception are the creations of illusion.

76. The Vedantins refute them by saying that there can be no illusion without a
substratum which is not an illusion. The existence of the Atman must be admitted.
Even the void has a witness; if not, it would be impossible to say, ‘There is a void’.

94. The first of the sheaths, the bliss-sheath which persists in the state of deep sleep and which does not manifest consciousness fully, is taken as Atman by the followers of Prabhakara and some logicians. What they state to be the nature of the Self, is in fact, characteristic of the bliss-sheath.

95. The followers of Bhatta hold that consciousness is hidden in Atman and that its
nature is both consciousness and unconsciousness. This is inferred from the fact of
the remembrance of sound sleep by the awakened man.

96. ‘I became unconscious and slept’, such feeling expresses the memory of that inert state which he actually experienced. But this remembrance of unconsciousness in deep sleep would not be possible unless there were at the same time a conscious element.

Source: http://www.celextel.org/othervedantabooks/panchadasi.html

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Part 1 - Important Couplets From Vedanta Panchadasi By Sri Vidyaranya Swami

Translated by Swami Swahananda Published by Sri Ramakrishna Math, Chennai

I. THE DIFFERENTIATION OF THE REAL PRINCIPLE

3. The objects of knowledge, viz., sound, touch, etc., which are perceived in the waking state, are different from each other because of their peculiarities; but the consciousness of these, which is different from them, does not differ because of its homogeneity.

4. Similar is the case in the dream state. Here the perceived objects are transient and in the waking state they seem permanent. So there is difference between them.But the (perceiving) consciousness in both the states does not differ. It is homogeneous.

11. If the supreme bliss of the Self is not known, there cannot be the highest love for it. (But it is there). If it is known, there cannot be attraction for worldly objects.(That too is there). So we say, this blissful nature of the Self, though revealed, is not (strictly speaking) revealed.

15. Prakriti (i.e. primordial substance) is that in which there is the reflection of Brahman, that is pure consciousness and bliss and is composed of sattva, rajas and tamas (in a state of homogeneity). It is of two kinds.

16. When the element of sattva is pure, Prakriti is known as Maya; when impure
(being mixed up with rajas and tamas) it is called Avidya. Brahman, reflected in
Maya, is known as the omniscient Isvara, who controls Maya.

17. But the other (i.e. the Jiva, which is Brahman reflected in Avidya) is subjected to Avidya (impure sattva). The Jiva is of different grades due to (degrees of) admixture (of rajas and tamas with sattva). The Avidya (nescience) is the causal body. When the Jiva identifies himself with this causal body he is called Prajna.

18. At the command of Isvara (and) for the experience of Prajna the five subtle elements, ether, air, fire, water and earth, arose from the part of Prakriti in which tamas predominates.

19. From the sattva part of the five subtle elements of Prakriti arose in turn the five subtle sensory organs of hearing, touch, sight, taste and smell.

20. From a combination of them all (i.e. sattva portions of the five subtle elements) arose the organ of inner conception called antahkarana. Due to difference of function it is divided into two. Manas (mind) is that aspect whose function is doubting and buddhi (intellect) is that whose functions are discrimination and determination.

21. From the rajas portion of the five elements arose in turn the organs of actions known as the organ of speech, the hands, the feet, and the organs of excretion and generation.

22. From a combination of them all (i.e. the rajas portions of the five subtle elements) arose the vital air (Prana). Again, due to difference of function it is divided into five. They are Prana, Apana, Samana, Udana and Vyana.

23. The five sensory organs, the five organs of action, the five vital airs, mind and intellect, all the seventeen together form the subtle body, which is called the Suksma or linga sarira.

24. By identifying himself with the subtle body (and thinking it to be his own), Prajna becomes known as Taijasa, and Isvara as Hiranyagarbha. Their difference is the one between the individual and the collective (i.e. one is identified with a single subtle body and the other with the totality of subtle bodies).

25. Isvara (as Hiranyagarbha) is called totality because of his sense of identification with all the subtle bodies (of the universe). The other (the Taijasa) is called ‘individual” because it lacks this knowledge (and is conscious only of his self, being identified with his own subtle body).

26. To provide the Jivas with objects of enjoyment and make the bodies fit for such
enjoyment, the all-powerful Isvara has made each of the (subtle) elements partake
of the nature of all others.

27. Dividing each element into two equal halves and one half of each again into four (equal parts) the Lord mixed the subtle elements so that each gross element thus formed should contain one half of its own peculiar nature and one eighth of that of each of the other four.

28. From these composite elements the cosmic egg arose, and from it evolved all the
worlds as well as all the objects of experience and the bodies in which the experience take place. When Hiranyagarbha identifies himself with the totality of gross bodies he is known as Vaisvanara; when Taijasas do so with individual gross bodies (e.g.) of the devas, men or lower animals, they are known as Visvas.

29. They see only external things and are devoid of the knowledge of their true inner
nature. They perform actions for enjoyment, and again they enjoy for performing
action.

30. They go from birth to birth, as worms that have slipped into a river are swept from one whirlpool to another and never attain peace.

31. When the good deeds performed by them in past births bear fruit, the worms
enjoy rest being lifted from the river by a compassionate person and placed under
the shade of a tree on the bank.

32. Similarly, the Jivas (finding themselves in the whirlpool of samsara), receive the appropriate initiation from a teacher who himself has realised Brahman, and
differentiating the Self from its five sheaths attain the supreme bliss of release.

33. The five sheaths of the Self are those of the food, the vital air, the mind, the
intellect and bliss. Enveloped in them, it forgets its real nature and becomes subject to transmigration.

45. When the supreme Brahman superimposes on Itself Avidya, that is, sattva mixed
with rajas and tamas, creating desires and activities in It, then it is referred to as ‘thou’.

46. When the three mutually contradictory aspects of Maya are rejected, there
remains the one individual Brahman whose nature is existence, consciousness and
bliss. This is pointed out by the great saying 'That thou art’.

53. The finding out or discovery of the true significance of the identity of the
individual self and the Supreme with the aid of the great sayings (like Tattvamasi) is what is known as sravana. And to arrive at the possibility of its validity through
logical reasoning is what is called manana.

54. And, when by sravana and manana the mind develops a firm and undoubted conviction, and dwells constantly on the thus ascertained Self alone, it is called unbroken meditation (nididhyasana).

55. When the mind gradually leaves off the ideas of the meditator and the act of
meditation and is merged in the sole object of meditation. (viz., the Self), and is
steady like the flame of a lamp in a breezeless spot, it is called the super-conscious state (samadhi).

II. THE DIFFERENTIATION OF THE FIVE ELEMENTS

10. The various actions of man can be classified into five groups; speech, grasping,
movement, excretion and enjoyment of sexual intercourse. Action performed in
agriculture, commerce, service and so forth may be included into one or other of the
groups.

13. The mind enquires into the merits and defects of the objects which are perceived
by the senses. Sattva, rajas and tamas are its three constituents, for through them
the mind undergoes various modifications.

20. Differences are of three kinds: The difference of a tree from its leaves, flowers,fruits etc., is the difference within an object. The difference of one tree from another tree is the difference between objects of the same class. The difference of a tree from a stone is the difference between objects of different classes.

59. With Brahman as its basis, Maya creates the various objects of the world, just as
a variety of pictures are drawn on a wall by the use of different colours.

Source: http://www.celextel.org/othervedantabooks/panchadasi.html

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Ramana Maharshi Describes About Gandhiji’s Thought-free Experience

The subject of silence and the thought-free state came up again after Bhagavan had cited, with great approval, a passage by Gandhi in which the latter had given a description of his own experience of this state:

Sri Bhagavan referred to the following passage of Gandhiji in the Harijan of the 11th instant:

‘How mysterious are the ways of God! This journey to Rajkot is a wonder even to me. Why am I going, whither am I going? What for? I have thought nothing about these things. And if God guides me, what should I think, why should I think? Even thought may be an obstacle in the way of His guidance.

‘The fact is, it takes no effort to stop thinking. The thoughts do not come. Indeed, there is no vacuum – but I mean to say that there is no thought about the mission.’

Sri Bhagavan remarked how true the words were and emphasised each statement in the extract. Then he cited Thayumanavar in support of the state which is free from thoughts:

The state in which you are not,
that is nishta [Self-abidance].
But, even in that state,
do you not remain?
You whose mouth is silent,
do not be perplexed!
Although [in that state] you are gone,
you are no longer there,
yet you did not go.
You are eternally present.
Do not suffer in vain.
Experience bliss all the time!

Two days after Bhagavan had cited Thayumanavar to illustrate Gandhi’s thought-free experiences, a visitor returned to the subject:

Devotee: Is not what Gandhi describes the state in which thoughts themselves become foreign?

Bhagavan: Yes, it is only after the rise of the ‘I’-thought that all other thoughts arise. The world is seen after you have felt ‘I am’. The ‘I’-thought and all other thoughts had vanished for him.

Devotee: Then the body sense must be absent in that state.

Bhagavan: The body sense is also a thought whereas he describes the state in which ‘thoughts do not come’.

Devotee: He also says, ‘It takes no effort to stop thinking’.

Bhagavan: Of course no effort is necessary to stop thoughts whereas one is necessary for bringing about thoughts.

Devotee: We are trying to stop thoughts. Gandhiji also says that thought is an obstacle to God’s guidance. So it is the natural state. Though natural, yet how difficult to realise. They say that sadhanas are necessary and also that they are obstacles. We get confused.

Bhagavan: Sadhanas are needed so long as one has not realised it. They are for putting an end to obstacles. Finally there comes a stage when a person feels helpless notwithstanding the sadhanas. He is unable to pursue the much-cherished sadhana also. It is then that God’s power is realised. The Self reveals itself.

Devotee: If the state is natural, why does it not overcome the unnatural phases and assert itself over the rest?

Bhagavan: Is there anything besides that? Does anyone see anything besides the Self? One is always aware of the Self. So it is always itself.

Source: Bhagavan and Thayumanavar By Robert Butler, T. V. Venkatasubramanian and David Godman

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How I Discovered the Awareness Watching Awareness Method by Michael Langford

By the year 2001, I had been studying the Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi for 27 years, from age 15 to age 42. I had read around 2,000 spiritual books from the various paths, etc. and I had seen many teachers. Reading those spiritual books, from so many different traditions, was a waste of time, because only Sri Ramana Maharshi, Sri Muruganar, Sri Sadhu Om and Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj teach the Direct Path.

I had, during that 27-year period, placed emphasis on studying the books “Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi” and “The Collected Works of Ramana Maharshi.” Since “Talks” came from notes taken in Sri Ramana’s presence, and since “The Collected Works” was written by Sri Ramana, I thought they would be the most accurate sources of the Teaching. I had the other Sri Ramana Maharshi books, but I did not place much attention on them. I did not want to read Sri Ramana’s teachings through what might be the distorted vision and opinions of a ‘sleeping’ aspirant.

Sri Ramana Maharshi had said that self-inquiry is more like feeling than like thought. Asking ‘Who am I’ is an easy instruction to follow and asking ‘to whom do these thoughts arise?’ is an easy instruction to follow, as long as one stays in the realm of thought. But when it comes to feeling ‘Who am I’ or feeling ‘I am’, then for me, that had always been a bit vague, because what exactly is the feeling I am? How do I know I am? I wondered is ‘I am’ the ‘I-thought’ or is ‘I am’ just my present awareness?

If ‘I AM’ is this present awareness, just the awareness that is now looking at this room, then paying attention to the I AM is just:

my awareness watching my awareness.

My present awareness watching my present awareness. Awareness watching awareness.

Just to add one more item of confirmation, I asked Sri Ganesan ‘is my present awareness, just this awareness that is looking through these eyes at you, the same as the I AM that Sri Nisargadatta speaks of?’

Sri Ganesan answered yes.

I asked Sri Ganesan ‘is awareness watching awareness, as described by Sri Muruganar, the same as practicing paying attention to the I AM, as Sri Nisargadatta taught?’

Sri Ganesan said yes. Sri Ganesan says he likes to call it ‘attention attending to attention.’

Since then, I have discovered many more quotes by Sri Muruganar on the Awareness watching Awareness method. From: Non-Dual Consciousness, The Flood Tide of Bliss, Sri Ramana Experience (Anubuti) by Sri Muruganar:

212. ‘Those who have sunk within their own inner selves to dwell as pure knowledge, so that their infatuation with worthless desires is abolished, will, through holy silence, establish the fulfillment of the real within their own selves. This practice of meditation upon consciousness itself is the true way.’

The same applies to the following quotes from “The Garland of Guru’s Sayings.” They are not under the heading of practice. They come from all different sections of the book. To discover these buried treasures, a careful study of all of the 1254 sayings was required.

From “The Garland Of Guru’s Sayings” By Sri Muruganar: Awareness watching awareness:

52. ‘If with mind turned towards Awareness and concentrating on Awareness, one seeks the Self, the world made up of ether and other elements is real, as all things are Awareness, the one sole substance of true Being.’

638. ‘If instead of looking outward at objects, you observe that looking, all things now shine as I, the seer. Perception of objects is mere illusion.’

742. ‘In the Self, he stands firm fixed who dwells and truly meditates on himself as pure awareness.’

435. ‘True natural Awareness, which does not go after alien objects, is the Heart. Since actionless Awareness shines as real Being, its joy consists in concentration on itself.’

428. ‘Not like other things unreal, but always by its Being real, the Self as permanent Awareness, has no other dwelling place, than in its own radiant Awareness.’

862. ‘Losing the false ego in awareness, and firm abidance as awareness, is true clarity.’

1068. ‘In that flawless state of Being, the Self, without a sense of ‘I’ or ‘mine,’ the still abidance in and as pure Awareness, this is the noblest victory worth winning.’

1039. ‘That which unaided shines within as ‘I AM, I AM’ without a break, the strong, true Being free from all adjuncts, this pure Awareness, is our firm, authentic nature.’

1038. ‘Awareness is not a quality of the Self. The Self is without qualities. Awareness is not an action of the Self. The Self does nothing. The Self, our Being, IS Awareness.’

Ignoring thoughts:

921. ‘None can confront and overcome the mind. Ignore it, then, as something false, unreal. Know the Self as the real ground and stand firm-rooted in it.’

1192. ‘The ego image moves reflected in the mind’s waves. How to stop this movement, how to regain the state of stillness? Don’t observe these movements, seek the Self, instead. It is wisdom to gain and abide in silence.’

1193. ‘The seers declare that pure silence is firm abidance in egoless, true Awareness. For such thought free silence, the means is clinging to the Self within the Heart.’

917. ‘As in the sky covered with thick clouds no eye can see the glorious sun, one fails to see one’s own Self when the mind firmament is darkened by the dense cloud of thoughts.’

918. ‘Only He who has vanquished thought, sits like an emperor, on the neck of the majestic elephant Knowledge. Know for certain that the mind’s movements alone give rise to birth and every cruel pain and sorrow.’

Ignoring the body, the world, etc.:

Some of the quotes above have already dealt with this subject, such as #638 and 435. Here are some additional quotes:

647. ‘If you refrain from looking at this, that or any other object, then by that overpowering look into absolute Being, you become yourself the boundless space of pure Awareness, which alone is real Being.’

1194. ‘When one refrains from looking out and noting outward objects, and abides within the heart in Self-Awareness, the ego disappears. The silence pure, that then shines forth, is the goal of Knowledge.’

1103. ‘It is folly to waste one’s life running in all directions searching different goals. Learn to practice firm abidance, at the feet of the Self supreme, the eternal and auspicious silence, which alone can still the ego’s restlessness.’

1157. ‘Holding in their hands the mirror, the scripture which declares ‘The Self alone is to be known,’ many, alas, study the text and commentaries; only a few seek the Self and gain true life.’

The following quotes, on the subject of practice, effort, earnestness and zeal, are also important to note:

694. ‘Even in this worldly life, one’s labors bear no fruit, without abundant faith. Hence till one merges in the bliss Supreme and boundless, one’s strong zeal in spiritual practice should never slacken.’

1063. ‘Not knowing the value of this treasure, their own birthright, people perish through mere laziness. The great ones who have found the clue and traced and gained it, they enjoy eternal bliss.’

1066. ‘True wealth is but the gracious silence of steady, unswerving Self-awareness. This bright rare treasure, can be gained only by those who earnestly strive for the extinction of all thoughts.’

1186. ‘Uninterrupted and whole-minded concentration on the Self, our true, non-dual Being, this is silence, pure, supreme, the goal; Not the lazy mind’s inertia, which is but a state of dark illusion.’

612. ‘Undeluded by whatever else may come and go, unwinking watch the Self, because the little fault of forgetting for one moment ones true Being as Pure Awareness, brings tremendous loss.’

692. ‘Since it was one’s own past effort that has now ripened into fate, one can with greater present effort change one’s fate.’

780. ‘Do not swerve from your true state, thinking some thought. But if you do, do not commit the same mistake again. ‘Do nothing that you may later regret. Even if you did it once, never repeat it.’

790. ‘To err is human. When those strong in virtue err, they do not hide it in their pride. Instead, they own up to their lapse and quickly reform themselves.’

826. ‘A superstructure raised without a strong foundation soon collapses in disgrace. Therefore, earnest seekers first ensure by every means their own stern self-discipline, through devotion and detachment.’

Take care,
with Love, in:
Awareness watching Awareness,
Michael Langford

You can read a detailed description of the Awareness Watching Awareness practice instructions by visiting Michael’s Web site at

http://uarelove1.tripod.com/FIVE_SAGES.htm

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RELIGION AND SCIENCE By Sri Swami Sivananda

Yoga and Science are inseparable. Science and Religion are inseparable. Science is part of Religion. Science and Religion are necessary correlatives. Scientists are also monists in one sense.They also emphatically declare that there is only one thing viz., Matter or Energy.

A Yogi tries to control the mental forces,a scientist the physical forces. This is all the difference between a Yogi and a scientist. A scientist is also an unconscious Raja-Yogi, but his mind works in external grooves.

Before the invention of watch, Yogius used to calculate time by measuring the shadow in day and by the study of the movement of the stars in the heavens at night. They were perfectly exact in their calculations. Astronomy and medicine received their first impulse from the exigencies of religious worship. Yogins have a sound practical knowledge of Ayurveda. One who endeavours to qualify himself as his own doctor can become a Yogi.

He has to live sometimes in the jungles and has to treathimself first, whenever diseases manifest. Otherwise his Sadhana will suffer and he cannot have rapid progress in Yoga. You will find in the books on Ayurveda: "A healthy body is a good instrument for doing virtuous actions and practising Yoga." Those who wrote these Ayurvedic books were great Rishis and Yogins.

Science is partially unified knowledge. A scientist observes the laws of Nature,experiements in his laboratory, investigates, infers and draws exact conclusions from his observations. He understands Nature. But he knows nothing of the origin or destiny of Nature! Who made the sun and gave power to its rays?

Who combined four parts of nitrogen with one part of oxygen? Who gave power to electrons? Who gave power to atoms to combine into molecules? Who or what made and bestowed upon the ultimate particles of matter their marvellous power of varied interaction? Science does not know this great mystery. On the contrary, Yoga is completely unified knowledge. A Yogi gets inner divine realisation.

He clearly sees with his inner Yogic eyes the subtle rudiments of matter. He identifies himself with the Supreme Being who is the Lord of the Prakriti (matter). He gets control over the five elements. He clearly understands the whole mystery
of creation through direct intuitional knowledge. The scientist lacks this sort of knowledge. He has only experimental knowledge.

The business of science is generalisation of phenomena; it is the function of philosophy and Yoga to explain. Religion is the practical aspect of philosophy. Philosophy is the rational aspect of religion. The scientist tries to answer the "How” of the problem; the philosopher and the Yogi the "Why" of it. It is a mistake to say that such and such an event occurs because of certain laws of Nature.

The laws of Nature do not give any real explanation of the phenomena. It is simply a
statement in terms as general as possible of what happens under given circumstances in his expression of an observed order or uniformity in a natural phenomena. Science is concerned only with the phenomena. It shows a marvellous harmony of Nature.

But it is the problem of philosophy and Yoga to solve the "Why" of Nature"s harmony. Scientists possess partial knowledge of the universe. They have not understood the whole code of Nature"s laws. They have no knowledge of the occult side of things. They have no knowledge of the astral, mental and higher planes such as Brahma-Loka (world of Brahma). The unseen world is of far greater importance than the sense-universe which is visible to the naked eye.

A fully developed Yogi can function in all the planes and so he has full knowledge of the manifested and unmanifested Nature. The senses by which you get knowledge of the external objects are not fully developed. Therefore the knowledge obtained is partial. The external senses are exact counterparts of the internal astral senses. Scientists have no knowledge of the subtle rudiments of matter. Life will become fuller and richer, when one develops this inner eye-sight by the practice of Yoga.

Just as blood, when seen under the microscope, reveals many mysterious things such as leucocytes, lymphocytes, nuclei, pigment,germs, bacilli, etc., so also the inner Yogic eye reveals many mysteries of the hidden side of things.The knowledge of the scientists is only fragmentary or partial whereas the knowledge of the Yogi is
full and perfect.

Scientists have to learn many things from the Seers of the East. Who gave power to the electrons to revolve? Who gave life to the cell or the protoplasm? What is that power that unites atoms to form molecules? Who gave intelligence to the cells to secrete milk or bile or gastric juice from the blood? Scientists are still observing and experimenting.

They are still groping in darkness.What is the cause of the origin of an impulse? Who is the director of the mind? What is the cause of the origin of thought? Even if all the living scientists were to put their heads together to solve these questions, they cannot give definite conclusive answers.

But I do not mean to condemn the wonderful discoveries and inventions that modern
science has contributed to the vast store of knowledge and happiness which the present generation enjoys today. The radio, the aeroplane, the microphone and other marvels of science are bound to baffle human intelligence. Scientists have found ways to fertilize an ovum with chemicals, without the help of semen. It is stupendous success. Some children are also born.

They inject the semen that is obtained from renowned and cultured men of the world in order to improve the race. They are attempting to fix a radio in a match-stick. They are trying to get the necessary nutrition to the body by pressing an electric button, so that eating and defecation may be entirely abandoned.

They are endeavouring to make the streets move so that there will be no necessity for motor-cars and carriages. They are trying to establish means of communication with the planet Mars. They may succeed in all their attempts.

May God bless them with roaring success in all their undertakings! But the question is: Can all these comforts and scientific discoveries and inventions give immortality,eternal satisfaction and everlasting peace? Have these material comforts enhanced human happiness? Is not man more restless today than ever before? Is he not more dissatisfied and discontented despite all these comforts? Life has become more complex and intricate. Luxuries are increasing day by day. Even a rich man finds it difficult to make both ends meet.

There is only one remedy for all these ills. You will have to abandon all luxuries and go back to simple natural living,if you want to enjoy real and lasting happiness. Immortality can be attained by realising the Self through simple living, practice of Yoga, self-control, mental discipline and meditation.

Matter exists in different conditions or states viz., solid, liquid and gaseous. The conditions may be made to change by variation of pressure and temperature. Water is turned into ice at a low temperature and steam at a higher temperature.

Every solid may become a liquid or gas under suitable conditions; every liquid may be rendered solid or gaseous; every gas may be made liquid or solid. One form of energy can be also transmuted into another form of energy. Heat can be transmuted into light and light into electricity. Even so, seminal energy or muscular energy, anger,
etc., can be transmuted into spiritual energy (Ojas-Shakti).

There is life in the mineral kingdom. This has been conclusively proved by the experiments of Prof. Von Schron at Naples. Even the elements manifest distinct preference.One element has a strong liking for the company of another. One element may even give up the company of one substance in order to join another element.

This is chemical affinity. Every chemist fully knows this well. Hydrogen likes the company of oxygen. Two molecules of hydrogen combine with one molecule of oxygen. Water is formed. If you place sodium in the water, you will notice that oxygen
likes sodium better than hydrogen and immediately abandons the company of hydrogen and joins sodium.

Likes and dislikes are more markedly present in the vegetable kingdom,than in the mineral.Many plants exhibit a remarkable degree of ingenuity in accomplishing their ends.

It is impossible humanly to imagine how the earth, for instance, can move along the same track which it was following for aeons up to this time, as if thers is a set of rails laid down on its path in space.

Source: GOD EXISTS By SRI SWAMI SIVANANDA

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Swami Vivekananda about Jesus And His crucifixion

Q. A man in the audience said, "If ministers stop preaching hell-fire, they will have no control over their people."

A. They had better lose it then. The man who is frightened into religion has no religion at all. Better teach him of his divine nature than of his animal.

Q. What did the Lord mean when he said, "The kingdom of heaven is not of this world?"

A. That the kingdom of heaven is within us. The Jewish idea was a kingdom of heaven upon this earth. That was not the idea of Jesus.

Q. Do you believe we come up from the animals?

A. I believe that, by the law of evolution, the higher beings have come up from the lower kingdoms.

Q. Do you know of anyone who remembers his previous life ?

A. I have met some who told me they did remember their previous life. They had reached a point where they could remember their former incarnations.

Q. Do you believe in Christ's crucifixion?

A. Christ was God incarnate; they could not kill him. That which was crucified was only a semblance, a mirage.

Q. If he could have produced such a semblance as that, would not that have been the greatest miracle of all?

A. I look upon miracles as the greatest stumbling-blocks in the way of truth. When the disciples of Buddha told him of a man who had performed a so-called miracle — had taken a bowl from a great height without touching it — and showed him the bowl, he took it and crushed it under his feet and told them never to build their faith on miracles, but to look for truth in everlasting principles. He taught them the true inner light — the light of the spirit, which is the only safe light to go by. Miracles are only stumbling-blocks. Let us brush them aside.

Q. Do you believe Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount?

A. I do believe he did. But in this matter I have to go by the books as others do, and I am aware that mere book testimony is rather shaky ground. But we are all safe in taking the teachings of the Sermon on the Mount as a guide. We have to take what appeals to our inner spirit. Buddha taught five hundred years before Christ, and his words were full of blessings: never a curse came from his lips, nor from his life; never one from Zoroaster, nor from Confucius.

Source: http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Complete_Works_of_Swami_Vivekananda/Volume_1/Lectures_And_Discourses/Soul,_God_And_Religion

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Swami Sivananda Gives Simple And Impressive Proof For The Existence Of Soul

You say in daily life, 'my body,' 'my Prana,' 'my mind,' 'my Indriya.' This clearly denotes that the Self or Atma is entirely different from body, mind, Prana and Indriyas.

Mind and body are your servants or instruments. They areas much outside of you as these towels, chairs, cups are. You are holding the body just as you hold a long walking stick in your hand. You are the possessor or proprietor of this body.

The body is your property or possession. The body, the senses,the mind, etc., are not the soul, but belong to it.

Purify the mind. Control the senses. Develop the four means. Hear the Srutis. Reflect and meditate. You will attain Self-realisation.

Source: GOD EXISTS By SRI SWAMI SIVANANDA

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Swami Sivananda Proves Existence Of God From The Study Of Nature

Who provides food for the little frog that lives hidden between the strata of rocks?Who has clothed the fruits with skin to prevent contamination from outside? Who divided the season? Who made the water warm beneath the ice to enable the fishes to live comfortably in the icy regions of the Himalayas, and other places? Who has combined four parts of nitrogen with the one part of oxygen?

At whose command does the sun rise in the morning and set in the evening? The sun is
92,830,000 miles away from the earth. What a great wonder that from such a long distance the sun is able to convey light, heat, energy and vitality to all the living beings who inhabit the earth. There are millions of suns larger and smaller than the one which we see, but which appear to us like tiny stars on account of their being remoter than the sun with which we are acquainted. It takes millions of years for the light from these stars to reach this earth. Velocity of light is 186,000 miles per
second. Light from some distant stars has not yet reached us even now. What a great marvel it is! All these stars, planets, and satellites are revolving in the sky in fixed orbits from day to day, month to month and year to year, under immutable, definite laws. God is the Niyanta (controller). The sun cannot shine without Him. Fire cannot burn without Him.

Who supplies water to the trees, flowers, various shrubs, etc., that are found in this world? Who is this unseen, untiring gardener who works without wages or any sort of remuneration? Who gives nourishment in time to tigers, lions, birds, fishes, plants, insects, worms, etc.? How is it that only human beings are born of human beings, birds of birds, tigers of tigers, dogs of dogs, horses of horses, elephants of elephants, ants of ants, bears of bears, mules of mules,- an exact copy of their parents in every respect? From a tiny seed there springs a huge banyan tree that can give shelter for thousands of persons. From a tiny seed there comes out a big mango tree that gives thousands of delicious fruits. What is that power which supports and nourishes these trees? What is that hidden,miraculous power that brings out huge form with hair, fingers, toes, eyes, nose, teeth, ears, legs,thighs, etc., out of a tiny embryo? What is that power that brings out a mighty tree with foliage,flowers, twigs and fruit out of a tiny seed?

Source: GOD EXISTS By SRI SWAMI SIVANANDA

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Swami Sivananda Proves Existence of God by the study of mind and its functions

Unless there exists one continuous principle equally connected with the past, present
and future, or an absolutely unchangeable Self which cognizes everything, we are unable to account for remembrance, recognition and so on, which are subject to mental impression on place, time and cause. The Self is distinct from and superior to ideas, because the ideas require an ultimate principle which unites and connects them, while the Self is itself the ultimate Principle which renders the cognition of the ideas possible.

The Manas (mind) is an organ of sensation and thought. It must be under the control of some one who uses this instrument. The Jiva or human soul is not the director of the mind, because we see that ordinary men are swayed away ruthlessly by the mind. Therefore, there must exist some other Supreme Being, who is the Director of the mind. He is the Antaryamin, the inner Ruler and Controller.

Then again look at the miraculous power of the mind. In the Kenopanishad the first Mantra begins, 'Who is the Director of the mind?' There is the play of the Divine hand here also. Can my brother psychologist manufacture a mind from his laboratory? We are struck with wonder when we look into the diverse faculties of the mind, viz., power of discrimination, power of judgment,reasoning, retentive power, imagination, cogitative faculty or the power of reflection,understanding, etc. No one but God can create such a powerful and miraculous mind.

Source: GOD EXISTS By SRI SWAMI SIVANANDA

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Swami Sivananda Proves Existence Of God Through Facts About This Physical Body

The insentient engine of a railway train cannot move without a qualified driver. Even
so this insentient body-engine cannot move without an intelligent driver, who is God or Ishvar.From the existence of the body you can infer the existence of the hidden driver of the body-engine.

There is display of intelligence in every inch of creation. Who pumps blood into the arteries? Who converts food into chyle and red-coloured blood? Who effects the peristalsis in the bowels and stomach and controls the process of assimilation and elimination. Who shuts the eye lids to prevent dust from falling into the delicate eyes? Who gave intelligence to the cells and glands to secrete milk, bile, saliva, gastric juice, etc., from the blood? Who gave intelligence and power to the spermatozoa to move, unite with the ovum in the womb and develop into a foetus? Wherefrom does this minutest, subtlest substance, Jiva, as minute as the tiniest grain of sand, derive the capacity to assume gradually the features, complexion and shape of its parents? What is the power which sustains it and helps its growth in the mother’s womb? Who arranges for milk in the mother’s breast before the child is born ?

How wonderful is the human machine? How harmoniously all the organs work in unison in
the economy of nature? In Gita this body is known as navadvara-puri or nine-gate city. In summer the skin works energetically to throw off all impurities of the blood and to relieve the kidneys which had over-worked in winter. The endocrine, pituitary, pineal, adrenal glands work in perfect harmony in manufacturing the internal secretions, and the hormones to help the metabolic process of the body, growth and structure.

It is a great marvel to see the working of the nervous system under the control of brain and the movement of the impulses through the spinal cord. There is a magnificent, electric battery inside with switchboard and wires. The operator is Antaryamin (inner ruler, or God) who controls and supervises everything. He is Upadrashta (supervisor), Anumanta (permitter) and Maheswar (the great Lord). Look at the heart and lungs which work under the direct control of the brain. How wonderful are these three vital organs the tripods of life? Can an eminent scientist manufacture any of these organs, tissues, fibres, tendons or cells in his laboratory with his intellects?

How harmoniously the different systems such as the digestive system, circulatory system,nervous system, integumentary system, work without any rest! How beautifully the different centres in the brain such as the vision-centre, authority-centre, centre of smell, etc., do their functions. One is struck with awe and wonder when he begins to think seriously of the structure and working of this delicate human machinery.

To think that this most wonderful mechanism is the result and product of a fortuitous
combination of matter or atoms is simply absurd and ridiculous indeed! It has been, doubtless,moulded and fashioned by some architect, who is infinitely more skilful, intelligent and powerful than the ordinary architects who build palaces and bungalows. That architect is God or Ishvar or Creator. Call him by any name. It does not matter much.

Source: GOD EXISTS By SRI SWAMI SIVANANDA

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Final Part - GOD EXISTS By Swami Sivananda

An atheist says that there is no God. But that knower who knows the non-existence of
God is Brahman.

A Sunyavadin says that there is only Sunya (void). But that knower who knows the
Sunya is Brahman (God).

Who sees the defects in the Sun —whether it shines brightly or whether it is obscured by clouds? It is the eye. Who sees the defects in the eye whether there is cataract or not? It is the Buddhi (intellect). Who sees the defects in the Buddhi whether there is confusion or clarity? Who illuminates the Buddhi? It is Aham (infinite “I”). This “Aham” is Kutastha or Atma or Brahman,illuminator of everything.

As a punishment for a certain crime you would rather prefer to have your hands cut off than the eyes removed. This indicates obviously that the Indriya is closer to you and dearer also than the external instruments. Instead of sentence for death you would rather prefer to have your two eyes removed. This shows that life is dearer and closer to you than the Indriya. When you suffer from a serious, protracted ailment, you wish to give up your life also, to get happiness. This shows that the Self or Atma is dearer than life or Prana.

Man generally argues at the time of his death, “I have undergone many miseries,troubles and difficulties in this life. I have done various good acts. They may not go in vain. After all, is it for this one life alone I have laboured so much? This cannot be. I must be immortal.” He invents the theory of Immortality. Even commonsense will tell everybody that there must be an immortal Atma.

You had been a child playing in your mother’s lap. Then you grew up into a school-going boy. Then you became a sighing lover in adolescence. Then you reached adult manhood. Lastly you became a veteran with grey hairs. You have had a variety of experiences.There must be an unchanging Self as a Sakshi to witness these changing experiences. Otherwise these experiences are impossible. That unchanging Self is Brahman. It is the substratum for all these changing experiences of life. An invariable Self must link continuously the varying childhood, boyhood, manhood and old age.

A spermatozoon, which is a millionth part of a drop of semen, and an ovum from the ovary joined together give rise to the formation of this body. What a great mystery! That subtle power which is the source for this semen and ovarian product, that subtle essence which sustains all these,is thy own Self. That is Truth. That is Soul. Thou art That. realise this and free yourself from the cage of bone and flesh.

The growth of the body with several limbs, organs, etc., from a tiny peck of semen, bespeaks the omnipotence of the Lord.

In the embryonic stage when the child dwells in the womb of the mother there is no difference between a male and a female child up to a certain stage. Both the male and female genital organs are developed from the same Wolffian body which contains the female (ovarian) as well as the male (testicular) tissue. By some unknown process of growth one of the tissues preponderates and the distinguishing characteristics of sex are developed by about the third month. The testicles are in the abdomen of the male child. They descend into the scrotal bag by about the seventh month.What a great wonder! The Lord only, who is the source of all beings and the ruler of all creatures,knows Himself by Himself.

Just as one thread penetrates all flowers in a garland, so also one Self penetrates all these living beings. He is hidden in all beings and forms, like oil in seed, butter in milk, mind in brain,Prana in the body, fetus in the womb, sun behind the clouds, fire in wood, vapour in the atmosphere,salt in water, scent in flowers, sound in the gramophone-records, gold in quartz, microbes in blood.

Just as the light is the same in bulbs of different colours, even so the bodies and mental Bhavanas (attitudes) are different, but Atma is one in all beings.

Just as the sun, reflected in various pots of water, appears to be many, so also the Atman appears to be many when reflected through various minds in various bodies.

Just as fire blazes forth when the ash above it is removed, Brahman shines forth when
the veil of ignorance, which conceals It, is removed. Just as butter is perceived when milk is converted into curd and churned, so also Brahman is perceived through the churning of meditation.

Just as hunger, thirst, pain, taste, etc., have to be experienced, but cannot be seen by the fleshy eyes,even so Brahman has to be experienced through deep meditation and Samadhi. Just as the tiny bacilli that produce cholera, typhoid, etc. cannot be seen by the naked eye, but can be seen with the help of a microscope, so also Brahman cannot be seen by the physical eyes but can be seen through the eye of intuition.

Source: GOD EXISTS By SRI SWAMI SIVANANDA

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Final Part - Ashtavakra Gita translated by John Richards

What remains to be done by the man who is pure awareness and has abandoned everything that can be expressed in words from the highest heaven to the earth itself? 18.69

The pure man who has experienced the Indescribable attains peace by virtue of his very nature, realising that all this is nothing but illusion, and that nothing is. 18.70

There are no rules, dispassion, renunciation, or meditation for one who is pure receptivity by nature, and admits no knowable form of being. 18.71

For him who shines with the radiance of Infinity and is not subject to natural causality there is neither bondage, liberation, pleasure, nor pain. 18.72

Pure illusion reigns in samsara which will continue until self-realisation, but the enlightened man lives in the beauty of freedom from me and mine, from the sense of responsibility and from any attachment. 18.73

For the seer who knows himself as imperishable and beyond pain there is neither knowledge, a world, nor the sense that I am the body or the body mine. 18.74

No sooner does a man of low intelligence give up activities like the elimination of thought than he falls into mind racing and chatter. 18.75

A fool does not get rid of his stupidity even on hearing the truth. He may appear outwardly free from imaginations, but inside he is still hankering after the senses. 18.76

Though in the eyes of the world he is active, the man who has shed action through knowledge finds no means of doing or speaking anything. 18.77

For the wise man who is always unchanging and fearless there is neither darkness nor light nor destruction nor anything. 18.78

There is neither fortitude, prudence, nor courage for the yogi whose nature is beyond description and free of individuality. 18.79

There is neither heaven nor hell nor even liberation during life. In a nutshell, in the sight of the seer nothing exists at all. 18.80

He neither longs for possessions nor grieves at their absence. The calm mind of the sage is full of the nectar of immortality. 18.81

The dispassionate man does not praise the good or blame the wicked. Content and equal in pain and pleasure, he sees nothing that needs doing. 18.82

The wise man is not averse to samsara, nor does he seek to know himself. Free from pleasure and impatience, he is not dead and he is not alive. 18.83

The wise man excels by being free from anticipation, without attachment to such things as children or wives, free from desire for the senses,and not even concerned about his own body. 18.84

The wise man, who lives on whatever happens to come to him, roams wherever he pleases, and sleeps wherever the sun happens to set, is at peace everywhere. 18.85

Whether his body rises or falls, the great-souled one gives it no thought, having forgotten all about samsara in coming to rest on the ground of his true nature. 18.86

The wise man has the joy of being complete in himself and without possessions, acting as he pleases, free from duality and rid of doubts, and without attachment to any creature. 18.87

The wise man excels in being without the sense of "me". Earth, a stone, or gold are the same to him. The knots of his heart have been rent asunder, and he is freed from greed and blindness. 18.88

Who can compare with that contented, liberated soul who pays no regard to anything and has no desire left in his heart? 18.89

Who but the upright man without desire knows without knowing, sees without seeing, and speaks without speaking? 18.90

Beggar or king, he excels who is without desire, and whose opinion of things is rid of "good" and "bad." 18.91

There is neither dissolute behaviour nor virtue, nor even discrimination of the truth for the sage who has reached the goal and is the very embodiment of guileless sincerity. 18.92

That which is experienced within by one who is desireless and free from pain, and content to rest in himself -- how could it be described, and of whom? 18.93

The wise man who is contented in all circumstances is not asleep even in deep sleep, nor sleeping in a dream, nor waking when he is awake. 18.94

The seer is without thoughts even when thinking, without senses among the senses, without understanding even in understanding, and without a sense of responsibility even in the ego. 18.95

Neither happy nor unhappy, neither detached nor attached, neither seeking liberation nor liberated, he is neither something nor nothing. 18.96

Not distracted in distraction, in mental stillness not poised, in stupidity not stupid, that blessed one is not even wise in his wisdom. 18.97

The liberated man is self-possessed in all circumstances and free from the idea of "done" and "still to do." He is the same wherever he is and without greed. He does not dwell on what he has done or not done. 18.98

He is not pleased when praised nor upset when blamed. He is not afraid of death nor attached to life. 18.99

A man at peace does not run off to popular resorts or to the forest. Whatever and wherever, he remains the same. 18.100


Janaka said:

Using the tweezers of the knowledge of the truth I have managed to extract the painful thorn of endless opinions from the recesses of my heart. 19.1

For me, established in my own glory, there are no religious obligations, sensuality, possessions, philosophy, duality, or even nonduality. 19.2

For me established in my own glory, there is no past, future, or present. There is no space or even eternity. 19.3

For me established in my own glory, there is no self or non-self, no good or evil, no thought or even absence of thought. 19.4

For me established in my own glory, there is no dreaming or deep sleep, no waking nor fourth state beyond them, and certainly no fear. 19.5

For me established in my own glory, there is nothing far away and nothing near, nothing within or without, nothing large and nothing small. 19.6

For me established in my own glory, there is no life or death, no worlds or things of this world, no distraction and no stillness of mind. 19.7

For me remaining in myself, there is no need for talk of the three goals of life, of yoga or of knowledge. 19.8


Janaka said:

In my unblemished nature there are no elements, no body, no faculties, no mind. There is no void and no despair. 20.1

For me, free from the sense of dualism, there are no scriptures, no self-knowledge, no mind free from an object, no satisfaction and no freedom from desire. 20.2

There is no knowledge or ignorance, no "me," "this," or "mine," no bondage, no liberation, and no property of self-nature. 20.3

For him who is always free from individual characteristics there is no antecedent causal action, no liberation during life, and no fulfilment at death. 20.4

For me, free from individuality, there is no doer and no reaper of the consequences, no cessation of action, no arising of thought, no immediate object, and no idea of results. 20.5

There is no world, no seeker for liberation, no yogi, no seer, no one bound and no one liberated. I remain in my own nondual nature. 20.6

There is no emanation or return, no goal, means, seeker or achievement. I remain in my own nondual nature. 20.7

For me who am forever unblemished, there is no assessor, no standard, nothing to assess, and no assessment. 20.8

For me who am forever actionless, there is no distraction or one-pointedness of mind, no lack of understanding, no stupidity, no joy and no sorrow. 20.9

For me who am always free from deliberations there is neither conventional truth nor absolute truth, no happiness and no suffering. 20.10

For me who am forever pure there is no illusion, no samsara, no attachment or detachment, no living organism, and no God. 20.11

For me who am forever unmovable and indivisible, established in myself, there is no activity or inactivity, no liberation and no bondage. 20.12

For me who am blessed and without limitation, there is no initiation or scripture, no disciple or teacher, and no goal of human life. 20.13

There is no being or non-being, no unity or dualism. What more is there to say? There is nothing outside of me. 20.14

Source: http://bhagavan-ramana.org/ashtavakragita.html

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Part 5 - Ashtavakra Gita translated by John Richards

He by whom inner distraction is seen may put an end to it, but the noble one is not distracted. When there is nothing to achieve what is he to do? 18.17

The wise man, unlike the worldly man, does not see inner stillness, distraction, or fault in himself, even when living like a worldly man. 18.18

Nothing is done by him who is free from being and non-being, who is contented, desireless, and wise, even if in the world's eyes he does act. 18.19

The wise man who just goes on doing what presents itself for him to do, encounters no difficulty in either activity or inactivity. 18.20

He who is desireless, self-reliant, independent, and free of bonds functions like a dead leaf blown about by the wind of causality. 18.21

There is neither joy nor sorrow for one who has transcended samsara. With a peaceful mind he lives as if without a body. 18.22

He whose joy is in himself, and who is peaceful and pure within has no desire for renunciation or sense of loss in anything. 18.23

For the man with a naturally empty mind, doing just as he pleases, there is no such thing as pride or false humility, as there is for the naturalman. 18.24

"This action was done by the body but not by me." The pure-natured person thinking like this,is not acting even when acting. 18.25

He who acts without being able to say why, but is not thereby a fool, he is one liberated while still alive, happy and blessed. He is happy even in samsara. 18.26

He who has had enough of endless considerations and has attained peace, does not think, know, hear, or see. 18.27

He who is beyond mental stillness and distraction does not desire either liberation or its opposite. Recognising that things are just constructions of the imagination, that great soul lives as God here and now. 18.28

He who feels responsibility within, acts even when doing nothing, but there is no sense of done or undone for the wise man who is free from the sense of responsibility. 18.29

The mind of the liberated man is not upset or pleased. It shines unmoving, desireless, and free from doubt. 18.30

He whose mind does not set out to meditate or act, still meditates and acts but without an object. 18.31

A stupid man is bewildered when he hears the ultimate truth, while even a clever man is humbled by it just like the fool. 18.32

The ignorant make a great effort to practise one-pointedness and the stopping of thought, while the wise see nothing to be done and remain in themselves like those asleep. 18.33

The stupid man does not attain cessation whether he acts or abandons action, while the wise man finds peace within simply by knowing the truth. 8.34

People cannot come to know themselves by practices -- pure awareness, clear, complete, beyond multiplicity, and faultless though they are. 8.35

The stupid man does not achieve liberation even through regular practice, but the fortunate remains free and actionless simply by understanding. 18.36

The stupid does not attain Godhead because he wants it, while the wise man enjoys the Supreme Godhead without even wanting it. 18.37

Even when living without any support and eager for achievement, the stupid are still nourishing samsara, while the wise have cut at the very root of its unhappiness. 18.38

The stupid man does not find peace because he desires it, while the wise man discriminating the truth is always peaceful minded. 18.39

How can there be self-knowledge for him whose knowledge depends on what he sees? The wise do not see this and that, but see themselves as infinite. 18.40

How can there be cessation of thought for the misguided who is striving for it. Yet it is there always naturally for the wise man delighting in himself. 18.41

Some think that something exists, and others that nothing does. Rare is the man who does not think either, and is thereby free from distraction. 18.42

Those of weak intelligence think of themselves as pure nonduality, but because of their delusion do not really know this, and so remain unfulfilled all their lives. 18.43

The mind of the man seeking liberation can find no resting place within, but the mind of the liberated man is always free from desire by the very fact of being without a resting place. 18.44

Seeing the tigers of the senses, the frightened refuge-seekers at once enter the cave in search of cessation of thought and one-pointedness. 18.45

Seeing the desireless lion, the elephants of the senses silently run away, or, if that is impossible, serve him like courtiers. 18.46

The man who is free from doubts and whose mind is free does not bother about means of liberation. Whether seeing, hearing, feeling, smelling, or tasting, he lives at ease. 18.47

He whose mind is pure and undistracted from just hearing of the Truth does not see anything to do or anything to avoid or even a cause for indifference. 18.48

The upright person does whatever presents itself to be done, good or bad, for his actions are like those of a child. 18.49

By inner freedom one attains happiness, by inner freedom one reaches the Supreme, by inner freedom one comes to absence of thought, by inner freedom to the Ultimate State. 18.50

When one sees oneself as neither the doer nor the reaper of the consequences, then all mind waves come to an end. 18.51

The spontaneous unassuming behaviour of the wise is noteworthy, but not the deliberate purposeful stillness of the fool. 18.52

The wise who are rid of imagination, unbound and with unfettered awareness, may enjoy themselves in the midst of many goods, or alternatively go off to mountain caves. 18.53

There is no attachment in the heart of a wise man whether he sees or pays homage to a learned brahmin, a celestial being, a holy place, a woman, a king or a friend. 18.54

A yogi is not in the least put out even when humiliated by the ridicule of servants, sons, wives, grandchildren, or other relatives. 18.55

Even when pleased he is not pleased, not suffering even when in pain. Only those like him can know the wonderful state of such a man. 18.56

It is the feeling that there is something that needs to be achieved which is samsara. The wise who are of the form of emptiness, formless, unchanging, and spotless see nothing of the sort. 18.57

Even when doing nothing the fool is agitated by restlessness, while a skillful man remains undisturbed even when doing what there is to do. 18.58

Happy he stands, happy he sits, happy sleeps, and happy he comes and goes. Happy he speaks and happy he eats. This is the life of a man at peace. 18.59

He who of his very nature feels no unhappiness in his daily life like worldly people, remains undisturbed like a great lake, cleared of defilement. 18.60

Even abstention from action has the effect of action in a fool, while even the action of the wise man brings the fruits of inaction. 18.61

A fool often shows aversion towards his belongings, but for him whose attachment to the body has dropped away, there is neither attachment nor aversion. 18.62

The mind of the fool is always caught in thinking or not thinking, but the wise man's is of the nature of no thought because he thinks what is appropriate. 18.63

For the seer who behaves like a child, without desire in all actions,there is no attachment for such a pure one even in the work he does. 18.64

Blessed is he who knows himself and is the same in all states, with a mind free from craving whether he is seeing, hearing, feeling, smelling, or tasting. 18.65

There is no one subject to samsara, no sense of individuality, no goal or means to the goal in the eyes of the wise man who is always free from imagination and unchanging like space. 18.66

Glorious is he who has abandoned all goals and is the incarnation of the satisfaction, which is his very nature, and whose inner focus on the Unconditioned is quite spontaneous. 18.67

In brief, the great-souled man who has come to know the Truth is without desire for either pleasure or liberation, and is always and everywhere free from attachment. 18.68

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Part 4 - Ashtavakra Gita translated by John Richards

Ashtavakra said:

My son, you may recite or listen to countless scriptures, but you will not be established within until you can forget everything. 16.1

You may, as a learned man, indulge in wealth, activity, and meditation, but your mind will still long for that which is the cessation of desire, and beyond all goals. 16.2

Everyone is in pain because of their striving to achieve something, but noone realises it. By no more than this instruction, the fortunate one attains tranquillity. 16.3

Happiness belongs to noone but that supremely lazy man for whom even opening and closing his eyes is a bother. 16.4

When the mind is freed from such pairs of opposites as, "I have done this," and "I have not done that," it becomes indifferent to merit, wealth, sensuality and liberation. 16.5

One man is abstemious and averse to the senses, another is greedy and attached to them, but he who is free from both taking and rejecting is neither abstemious nor greedy. 16.6

So long as desire, the state of lack of discrimination, remains, the sense of revulsion and attraction will remain, which is the root and branch of samsara. 16.7

Desire springs from usage, and aversion from abstension, but the wise man is free from the pairs of opposites like a child, and becomes established. 16.8

The passionate man wants to eliminate samsara so as to avoid pain, but the dispassionate man is free from pain and feels no distress even in it. 16.9

He who is proud about even liberation or his own body, and feels them his own, is neither a seer nor a yogi. He is still just a sufferer.16.10

If even Shiva, Vishnu, or the lotus-born Brahma were your instructor, until you have forgotten everything you cannot be established within. 16.11


Ashtavakra said:

He who is content, with purified senses, and always enjoys solitude, has gained the fruit of knowledge and the fruit of the practice of yoga too. 17.1

The knower of truth is never distressed in this world, for the whole round world is full of himself alone. 17.2

None of these senses please a man who has found satisfaction within,just as Nimba leaves do not please the elephant that has acquired the taste for Sallaki leaves. 17.3

The man is rare who is not attached to the things he has enjoyed, and does not hanker after the things he has not enjoyed. 17.4

Those who desire pleasure and those who desire liberation are both found in samsara, but the great-souled man who desires neither pleasure nor liberation is rare indeed. 17.5

It is only the noble-minded who is free from attraction or repulsion to religion, wealth, sensuality, and life and death too. 17.6

He feels no desire for the elimination of all this, nor anger at its continuing, so the fortunate man lives happily with whatever sustinence presents itself. 17.7

Thus fulfilled through this knowledge, contented, and with the thinking mind emptied, he lives happily just seeing, hearing, feeling, smelling, and tasting. 17.8

In him for whom the ocean of samsara has dried up, there is neither attachment or aversion. His gaze is vacant, his behaviour purposeless,and his senses inactive. 17.9

Surely the supreme state is everywhere for the liberated mind. He is neither awake nor asleep, and neither opens nor closes his eyes. 17.10

The liberated man is resplendent everywhere, free from all desires. Everywhere he appears self-possessed and pure of heart. 17.11

Seeing, hearing, feeling, smelling, tasting, speaking, and walking about, the great-souled man who is freed from trying to achieve or avoid anything is free indeed. 17.12

The liberated man is free from desires everywhere. He neither blames, praises, rejoices, is disappointed, gives, nor takes. 17.13

When a great-souled one is unperturbed in mind, and equally self-possessed at either the sight of a woman inflamed with desire or at approaching death, he is truly liberated. 17.14

There is no distinction between pleasure and pain, man and woman, success and failure for the wise man who looks on everything as equal. 17.15

There is no aggression nor compassion, no pride nor humility, no wonder nor confusion for the man whose days of samsara are over. 17.16

The liberated man is not averse to the senses nor is he attached to them. He enjoys hinself continually with an unattached mind in both success and failure. 17.17

One established in the Absolute state with an empty mind does not know the alternatives of inner stillness and lack of inner stillness, and of good and evil. 17.18

A man free of "me" and "mine" and of a sense of responsibility, aware that "Nothing exists," with all desires extinguished within, does not act even in acting. 17.19

He whose thinking mind is dissolved achieves the indescribable state and is free from the mental display of delusion, dream, and ignorance. 17.20


Ashtavakra said:

Praise be to That by the awareness of which delusion itself becomes dream-like, to that which is pure happiness, peace, and light. 18.1

One may get all sorts of pleasure by the acquisition of various objects of enjoyment, but one cannot be happy except by the renunciation of everything. 18.2

How can there be happiness, for one who has been burnt inside by the blistering sun of the pain of thinking that there are things that still need doing, without the rain of the nectar of peace? 18.3

This existence is just imagination. It is nothing in reality, but there is no non-being for natures that know how to distinguish being from nonbeing. 18.4

The realm of one's self is not far away, nor can it be achieved by the addition of limitations to its nature. It is unimaginable, effortless, unchanging, and spotless. 18.5

By the simple elimination of delusion and the recognition of one's true nature, those whose vision is unclouded live free from sorrow. 18.6

Knowing everything as just imagination, and himself as eternally free, how should the wise man behave like a fool? 18.7

Knowing himself to be God, and being and non-being just imagination, what should the man free from desire learn, say, or do? 18.8

Considerations like "I am this" or "I am not this" are finished for the yogi who has gone silent realising "Everything is myself." 18.9

For the yogi who has found peace, there is no distraction or one-pointedness, no higher knowledge or ignorance, no pleasure and no pain. 18.10

The dominion of heaven or beggary, gain or loss, life among men or in the forest, these make no difference to a yogi whose nature it is to be free from distinctions. 18.11

There are no religious obligations, wealth, sensuality, or discrimination for a yogi free from such opposites as "I have done this," and "I have not done that." 18.12

There is nothing needing to be done or any attachment in his heart for the yogi liberated while still alive. Things things will last just to the end of life. 18.13

There is no delusion, world, meditation on That, or liberation for the pacified great soul. All these things are just the realm of imagination.18.14

He by whom all this is seen may well make out it doesn't exist, but what is the desireless one to do? Even in seeing it he does not see it. 18.15

He by whom the Supreme Brahma is seen may think "I am Brahma," but what is he to think who is without thought, and who sees no duality? 18.16

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Part 3 - Ashtavakra Gita translated by John Richards

Ashtavakra said:

Abandon desire, the enemy, along with gain, itself so full of loss, and the good deeds which are the cause of the other two -- practice indifference to everything. 10.1

Look on such things as friends, land, money, property, wife, and bequests as nothing but a dream or a magician's show lasting three or five days. 10.2

Wherever a desire occurs, see samsara in it. Establishing yourself in firm dispassion, be free of passion and happy. 10.3

The essential nature of bondage is nothing other than desire, and its elimination is known as liberation. It is simply by not being attached to changing things that the everlasting joy of attainment is reached. 10.4

You are one, conscious and pure, while all this is inert non-being. Ignorance itself is nothing, so what is the point of wanting to understand? 10.5

Kingdoms, children, wives, bodies, pleasures -- these have all been lost to you life after life, attached to them though you were. 10.6

Enough of wealth, sensuality, and good deeds. In the forest of samsara the mind has never found satisfaction in these. 10.7

How many births have you not done hard and painful labour with body, mind, and speech. Now at last, stop! 10.8


Ashtavakra said:

Unmoved and undistressed, realising that being, non-being and change are of the very nature of things, one easily finds peace. 11.1

At peace, having shed all desires within, and realising that nothing exists here but the Lord, the Creator of all things, one is no longer attached to anything. 11.2

Realising that misfortune and fortune come in their own time from fortune, one is contented, one's senses under control, and does not like or dislike. 11.3

Realising that pleasure and pain, birth and death are from destiny, and that one's desires cannot be achieved, one remains inactive, and even when acting does not get attached. 11.4

Realising that suffering arises from nothing other than thought, dropping all desires one rids oneself of it, and is happy and at peace everywhere. 11.5

Realising, "I am not the body, nor is the body mine. I am awareness," one attains the supreme state and no longer remembers things done or undone. 11.6

Realising, "I alone exist, from Brahma down to the last clump of grass," one becomes free from uncertainty, pure, at peace, and unconcerned about what has been attained or not. 11.7

Realising that all this varied and wonderful world is nothing, one becomes pure receptivity, free from inclinations, and as if nothing existed, one finds peace. 11.8


Janaka said:

First of all I was averse to physical activity, then to lengthy speech, and finally to thought itself, which is why I am now established. 12.1

In the absence of delight in sound and the other senses, and by the fact that I am myself not an object of the senses, my mind is focused and free from distraction -- which is why I am now established. 12.2

Owing to the distraction of such things as wrong identification, one is driven to strive for mental stillness. Recognising this pattern I am now established. 12.3

By relinquishing the sense of rejection and acceptance, and with pleasure and disappointment ceasing today, brahmin -- I am now established. 12.4

Life in a community, then going beyond such a state, meditation and the elimination of mind-made objects -- by means of these I have seen my error, and I am now established. 12.5

Just as the performance of actions is due to ignorance, so their abandonment is too. By fully recognising this truth, I am now established. 12.6

Trying to think the unthinkable, is doing something unnatural to thought. Abandoning such a practice therefore, I am now established. 12.7

He who has achieved this has achieved the goal of life. He who is of such a nature has done what has to be done. 12.8


Janaka said:

The inner freedom of having nothing is hard to achieve, even with just a loin-cloth, but I live as I please, abandoning both renunciation and acquisition. 13.1

Sometimes one experiences distress because of one's body, sometimes because of one's speech, and sometimes because of one's mind. Abandoning all of these, I live as I please in the goal of human life. 13.2

Recognising that in reality no action is ever committed, I live as I please, just doing what presents itself to be done. 13.3

Yogis who identify themselves with their bodies are insistent on fulfilling and avoiding certain actions, but I live as I please abandoning attachment and rejection. 13.4

No benefit or loss comes to me by standing, walking or lying down, so consequently I live as I please whether standing, walking or sleeping.13.5

I lose nothing by sleeping and gain nothing by effort, so consequently I live as I please, abandoning success and failure. 13.6

Continually observing the drawbacks of such things as pleasant objects, I live as I please, abandoning the pleasant and unpleasant. 13.7


Janaka said:

He who by nature is empty-minded, and who thinks of things only unintentionally, is freed from deliberate remembering like one awakened from a dream. 14.1

When my desire has been eliminated, I have no wealth, friends, robbers, senses, scriptures or knowledge. 14.2

Realising my supreme self-nature in the Person of the Witness, the Lord,and the state of desirelessness in bondage or liberation, I feel no inclination for liberation. 14.3

The various states of one who is free of uncertainty within, and who outwardly wanders about as he pleases like an idiot, can only be known by someone in the same condition. 14.4


Ashtavakra said:

While a man of pure intelligence may achieve the goal by the most casual of instruction, another may seek knowledge all his life and still remain bewildered. 15.1

Liberation is distaste for the objects of the senses. Bondage is love of the senses. This is knowledge. Now do as you wish. 15.2

This awareness of the truth makes an eloquent, clever and energetic man dumb, stupid and lazy, so it is avoided by those whose aim is enjoyment. 15.3

You are not the body, nor is the body yours, nor are you the doer of actions or the reaper of their consequences. You are eternally pure consciousness, the witness, in need of nothing -- so live happily. 15.4

Desire and anger are objects of the mind, but the mind is not yours, nor ever has been. You are choiceless awareness itself and unchanging -- so live happily. 15.5

Recognising oneself in all beings, and all beings in oneself, be happy, free from the sense of responsibility and free from preoccupation with "me." 15.6

Your nature is the consciousness, in which the whole world wells up, like waves in the sea. That is what you are, without any doubt, so be free of disturbance. 15.7

Have faith, my son, have faith. Don't let yourself be deluded in this. You are yourself the Lord, whose very nature is knowledge, and you are beyond natural causation. 15.8

The body invested with the senses stands still, and comes and goes. You yourself neither come nor go, so why bother about them? 15.9

Let the body last to the end of the Age, or let it come to an end right now. What have you gained or lost, who consist of pure consciousness? 15.10

Let the world wave rise or subside according to its own nature in you, the great ocean. It is no gain or loss to you. 15.11

My son, you consist of pure consciousness, and the world is not separate from you. So who is to accept or reject it, and how, and why? 15.12

How can there be either birth, karma, or responsibility in that one unchanging, peaceful, unblemished, and infinite consciousness which is you? 15.13

Whatever you see, it is you alone manifest in it. How can bracelets, armlets and anklets be different from the gold they are made of? 15.14

Giving up such distinctions as "He is what I am," and "I am not that," recognise that "Everything is myself," and be without distinction and happy. 15.15

It is through your ignorance that all this exists. In reality you alone exist. Apart from you there is no one within or beyond samsara. 15.16

Knowing that all this is just an illusion, one becomes free of desire, pure receptivity, and at peace, as if nothing existed. 15.17

Only one thing has existed, exists and will exist in the ocean of being. You have no bondage or liberation. Live happily and fulfilled. 15.18

Being pure consciousness, do not disturb your mind with thoughts of for and against. Be at peace and remain happily in yourself, the essence of joy. 15.19

Give up meditation completely but don't let the mind hold on to anything. You are free by nature, so what will you achieve by forcing the mind? 15.20

Source: http://bhagavan-ramana.org/ashtavakragita.html

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Part 2 - Ashtavakra Gita translated by John Richards

Ashtavakra said:

Knowing yourself as truly one and indestructible, how could a wise man possessing self-knowledge like you feel any pleasure in acquiring wealth? 3.1

Truly, when one does not know oneself, one takes pleasure in the objects of mistaken perception, just as greed arises for the mistaken silver in one who does not know mother of pearl for what it is. 3.2

All this wells up like waves in the sea. Recognising, "I am That," why run around like someone in need? 3.3

After hearing of oneself as pure consciousness and the supremely beautiful, is one to go on lusting after sordid sexual objects? 3.4

When the sage has realised that he himself is in all beings, and all beings are in him, it is astonishing that the sense of individuality should be able to continue. 3.5

It is astonishing that a man who has reached the supreme nondual state and is intent on the benefits of liberation should still be subject to lust and in bondage to sexual activity. 3.6

It is astonishing that one already very debilitated, and knowing very well that its arousal is the enemy of knowledge, should still hanker after sensuality, even when approaching his last days. 3.7

It is astonishing that one who is unattached to the things of this world or the next, who discriminates between the permanent and the impermanent, and who longs for liberation, should still be afraid of liberation. 3.8

Whether feted or tormented, the wise man is always aware of his supreme self-nature and is neither pleased nor disappointed. 3.9

The great-souled person sees even his own body in action as if it were someone else's, so how should he be disturbed by praise or blame? 3.10

Seeing this world as pure illusion, and devoid of any interest in it, how should the strong-minded person, feel fear, even at the approach of death? 3.11

Who can be compared to the great-souled person whose mind is free from desire even in disappointment, and who has found satisfaction in self-knowledge? 3.12

How should a strong-minded person who knows that what he sees is by its very nature nothing, consider one thing to be grasped and another to be rejected? 3.13

An object of enjoyment that comes of itself is neither painful nor pleasurable for someone who has eliminated attachment, and who is free from dualism and from desire. 3.14


Ashtavakra said:

The wise person of self-knowledge, playing the game of worldly enjoyment, bears no resemblance whatever to samsara's bewildered beasts of burden. 4.1

Truly the yogi feels no excitement even at being established in that state which all the Devas from Indra down yearn for disconsolately. 4.2

He who has known That is untouched within by good deeds or bad, just as space is not touched by smoke, however much it may appear to be. 4.3

Who can prevent the great-souled person who has known this whole world as himself from living as he pleases? 4.4

Of all four categories of beings, from Brahma down to the last clump of grass, only the man of knowledge is capable of eliminating desire and aversion. 4.5

Rare is the man who knows himself as the nondual Lord of the world, and he who knows this is not afraid of anything. 4.6


Ashtavakra said:

You are not bound by anything. What does a pure person like you need to renounce? Putting the complex organism to rest, you can find peace. 5.1

All this arises out of you, like a bubble out of the sea. Knowing yourself like this to be but one, you can find peace. 5.2

In spite of being in front of your eyes, all this, being insubstantial, does not exist in you, spotless as you are. It is an appearance like the snake in a rope, so you can find peace. 5.3

Equal in pain and in pleasure, equal in hope and in disappointment, equal in life and in death, and complete as you are, you can find peace. 5.4


Ashtavakra said:

I am infinite like space, and the natural world is like a jar. To know this is knowledge, and then there is neither renunciation, acceptance, or cessation of it. 6.1

I am like the ocean, and the multiplicity of objects is comparable to a wave. To know this is knowledge, and then there is neither renunciation, acceptance or cessation of it. 6.2

I am like the mother of pearl, and the imagined world is like the silver. To know this is knowledge, and then there is neither renunciation, acceptance, or cessation of it. 6.3

Alternatively, I am in all beings, and all beings are in me. To know this is knowledge, and then there is neither renunciation, acceptance, or cessation of it. 6.4


Janaka said:

In the infinite ocean of myself the world boat drifts here and there, moved by its own inner wind. I am not put out by that. 7.1

Whether the world wave of its own nature rises or disappears in the infinite ocean of myself, I neither gain nor lose anything by that. 7.2

It is in the infinite ocean of myself that the mind-creation called the world takes place. I am supremely peaceful and formless, and I remain as such. 7.3

My true nature is not contained in objects, nor does any object exist in it, for it is infinite and spotless. So it is unattached, desireless and at peace, and I remain as such. 7.4

I am pure consciousness, and the world is like a magician's show. How could I imagine there is anything there to take up or reject? 7.5


Ashtavakra said:

Bondage is when the mind longs for something, grieves about something, rejects something, holds on to something, is pleased about something or displeased about something. 8.1

Liberation is when the mind does not long for anything, grieve about anything, reject anything, or hold on to anything, and is not pleased about anything or displeased about anything. 8.2

Bondage is when the mind is tangled in one of the senses, and liberation is when the mind is not tangled in any of the senses. 8.3

When there is no "me," that is liberation, and when there is "me" there is bondage. Consider this carefully, and neither hold on to anything nor reject anything. 8.4


Ashtavakra said:

Knowing when the dualism of things done and undone has been put to rest, or the person for whom they occur has, then you can here and now go beyond renunciation and obligations by indifference to such things. 9.1

Rare indeed, my son, is the lucky man whose observation of the world's behaviour has led to the extinction of his thirst for living, thirst for pleasure, and thirst for knowledge. 9.2

All this is transient and spoiled by the three sorts of pain. Knowing it to be insubstantial, ignoble, and fit only for rejection, one attains peace. 9.3

When was that age or time of life when the dualism of extremes did not exist for men? Abandoning them, a person who is happy to take whatever comes attains perfection. 9.4

Who does not end up with indifference to such things and attain peace when he has seen the differences of opinions among the great sages, saints, and yogis? 9.5

Is he not a guru who, endowed with dispassion and equanimity, achieves full knowledge of the nature of consciousness, and leads others out of samsara? 9.6

If you would just see the transformations of the elements as nothing more than the elements, then you would immediately be freed from all bonds and established in your own nature. 9.7

One's desires are samsara. Knowing this, abandon them. The renunciation of them is the renunciation of it. Now you can remain as you are. 9.8

Source: http://bhagavan-ramana.org/ashtavakragita.html

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