From the very nature of the Supreme Self, the entire universe—moving and unmoving—arises, abides, and dissolves, just as foam and bubbles arise and vanish upon the ever-changing surface of water. In that very source, one attains the eternal Self, the Lord. There, in that reality, there is no need for breath control, no fixed gaze, no posture; neither knowledge nor ignorance exists, nor do the subtle movements of the vital channels. In such a state, one realizes the eternal Self, the Lord. In that presence, there is neither multiplicity nor unity, neither both nor otherness; there is neither minuteness nor greatness, nor emptiness, nor any measure or object, nor even equality. It is there that the eternal Self, the Lord, is attained. Whether one is disciplined or undisciplined, collected or scattered, active or inactive—none of these distinctions matter in the presence of the Self. There, the eternal Lord is realized. In that state, mind and intellect are absent, as are body and senses, the subtle elements and the five gross elements, even ego and the nature of space itself. Here, one attains the eternal Self, the Lord. When, in the cycles of creation and dissolution, one reaches the Supreme Self, and the yogi’s mind is free from all division, then notions of purity and impurity, and all rules and prohibitions, become mere prescriptions without binding power. Where mind and speech cannot reach, how could a teacher impart instruction? Yet, when the teacher has spoken, the truth of this teaching shines forth equally to all. Thus ends the second chapter. Now, there is no division of qualities and non-qualities in this reality—there is nothing at all. Free from attraction and aversion, pure, without elaboration, devoid of all qualities and non-qualities, all-pervading and of universal form—how could one worship Shiva, who is of the very nature of space, here? Shiva is ever free from color—white or otherwise. This effect and cause, too, is the Supreme Shiva. Thus, free from all distinctions, I am pure Shiva. Tell me, O Sumitra, how can I worship my own Self within myself? I am neither rooted nor rootless, yet ever arisen; without smoke or smokiness, yet ever arisen; without lamp or lampness, yet ever arisen. I am the nectar of knowledge, of equal taste, vast as the sky. How can I speak here of desireless desire, or unattached attachment, or essence-less essence? I am the nectar of knowledge, of equal taste, like the sky. How can I speak of the nondual form of all, or the dual form of all, or the eternal and non-eternal nature of all? I am the nectar of knowledge, of equal taste, like the sky. I am neither gross nor subtle, neither coming nor going, without beginning, middle, or end, neither higher nor lower. Truly, I declare the ultimate reality: I am the nectar of knowledge, of equal taste, like the sky. Consciousness is all the senses, like the sky; consciousness is all objects, like the sky; consciousness is one and pure, neither bound nor liberated. I am the nectar of knowledge, of equal taste, like the sky. I am not dense with difficult or easy comprehension, O dear one; not dense with difficult or easy perception; not dense with nearness of form. I am the nectar of knowledge, of equal taste, like the sky. I am the fire that burns up actionlessness; I am the fire that consumes both sorrow and the absence of sorrow; I am the fire that burns away both embodiment and disembodiment. I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. Truly, I am the fire that burns up both sin and sinlessness, righteousness and unrighteousness, bondage and freedom from bondage. I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. I am without both existence and non-existence, O child; without both union and non-union; without both mind and absence of mind. I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. There is no notion in me of either delusion or freedom from delusion; no notion of either sorrow or freedom from sorrow; no notion of greed or freedom from greed. I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. For me, there is never the thread of worldly existence, nor the happiness of contentment. This bondage of ignorance is never mine. I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. There is no change in me from the dust of worldly existence, nor from the darkness of suffering, nor from the quality that generates its own nature. I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. No rule produces suffering for me, nor is there any mind born of the union with suffering. The sense of ‘I’ is never mine. I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. There is no cessation of motion or unmoving for me, nor any imagined creation; no end of dream or waking, no good nor evil, no end of essence or non-essence, nor moving nor unmoving. I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. This is neither the known nor the knower, nor is it to be reasoned by cause; it is beyond the reach of speech, neither mind nor intellect. So how can I tell you the truth? I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. The ultimate reality is without division or non-division; it is neither inside nor outside—how, then, can it be described? It is prior to creation, unattached, and nothing at all truly exists. I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. I alone am the reality, free from faults such as passion and fate; I alone am the reality, free from the sorrow of worldly existence. I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. If the three states do not exist, how can there be a fourth? If the three times do not exist, how can there be directions? The supreme, peaceful state is the ultimate reality. I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. Long or short, broad or narrow, angular or round—there is no distinction for me here. I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. Mother, father, child, and so on—never are they mine; born or dead, neither mind nor anything is ever mine. This ultimate reality is undisturbed and steady. I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. Pure, supremely pure, beyond thought, of endless form; stainless, utterly stainless, undivided, utterly undivided, beyond thought, of endless form—I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. How can Brahma and the other gods exist here? How can heavens and other abodes exist here? If the ultimate reality is one, pure, and without a second, I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. How can I speak of the pure that is beyond all negation, all remainder, all marks? I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. I always perform the supreme action that is beyond action and inaction; I delight supremely, free from attachment and non-attachment; I always delight, free from embodiment and disembodiment. I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, vast as the sky. The construction of the world by illusion is not my transformation; nor is the creation of crookedness and hypocrisy, nor the division into truth and falsehood. I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, like the sky. I am without the divisions of time such as dawn and dusk, nor do I have separation; I am not devoid of inner awakening, neither deaf nor mute. Thus, being free from all conceptual distinctions, I am not defined by pure or impure states. I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, like the sky. I am without master or disciple, truly undisturbed; without mind or absence of mind, truly undisturbed; consciousness, all distinctions gone, truly undisturbed. I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, like the sky. How can I describe this wilderness-like abode? How can I speak of this perfectly resolved doubt? Thus, being ever the same and undisturbed, I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, like the sky. Ever shining, devoid of living beings and non-living, ever shining, devoid of seeds and seedless, ever shining, devoid of bondage and liberation—I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, like the sky. Ever shining, free from origination, from worldly existence, from dissolution—I am the nectar of knowledge, of one taste, like the sky.