After gaining victory in debate, Hailina came to me and declared with the earnestness of one who speaks with the authority of a mother, a father, and a teacher: “Speech is indeed Brahman. Without speech, nothing would exist.” Yet when I asked Hailina about the true abode and support of speech, he confessed his ignorance, saying, “I do not know.” Thus, O King Janaka, what Hailina taught was but one part of the truth. Then you, O King, turned to me and asked, “Yājñavalkya, tell me: what is the abode and support of speech?” I answered, “Its abode is speech itself; its support is space; meditate upon it as knowledge.” You pressed further, “What is knowledge, Yājñavalkya?” I replied, “Speech itself, O King. Through speech, we know our relatives, the Ṛgveda, Yajurveda, Sāmaveda, Atharvāṅgiras, history, legends, knowledge, Upaniṣads, verses, aphorisms, explanations, and commentaries—all these are known by speech. Speech is the supreme Brahman. Speech never abandons the knower; all beings approach him.” Whoever knows and meditates thus, having become a god, attains the gods. Then you, King Janaka, said, “I will give a thousand cows.” But I recalled my father’s teaching: “One should not accept without instructing.” So I asked, “What did he say to you?” Next, Barku Vārṣṇa came to me and said with the same reverence, “The eye is indeed Brahman. Without seeing, nothing would exist.” But when I asked him about its abode and support, he too admitted, “I do not know.” Again, this was only one part. You asked me, “Yājñavalkya, what is the abode and support of the eye?” I replied, “The eye is its abode, space is its support; meditate on it as truth.” When you inquired, “What is truth?” I said, “The eye itself, O King. By the eye, one sees; when one says, ‘I have seen,’ that is truth. The eye is the supreme Brahman. The eye does not abandon the knower; all beings approach him.” Whoever knows and meditates thus, having become a god, attains the gods. Again, you offered a thousand cows, and I reminded you of my father’s teaching and asked, “What did he say to you?” Then Bharadvāja, who had drunk donkey’s milk, declared to me, “The ear is indeed Brahman. Without the ear, one would be as if without hearing.” But when asked about its abode and support, he could not answer. This too was but one aspect. You turned to me: “Yājñavalkya, what is the abode and support of the ear?” I replied, “The ear is its abode; space is its support; meditate on it as infinite.” When you asked, “What is this infinitude?” I answered, “The directions themselves, O King. Whichever direction one goes, one never reaches its end; the directions are infinite, and so is the ear. The ear is the supreme Brahman. The ear never abandons the knower; all beings approach him.” Whoever knows and meditates thus, having become a god, attains the gods. You again offered a thousand cows, and I reminded you of my father’s teaching. Śatyakāma Jābāla then told me, “The mind is indeed Brahman. Without the mind, one would be as if without mind.” But when I asked about its abode and support, he did not know. This, too, was but one aspect. You asked me, “Yājñavalkya, what is the abode and support of the mind?” I replied, “The mind is its abode; space is its support; meditate on it as bliss.” “What is this bliss?” you inquired. “The mind itself, O King. With the mind, one approaches a woman, and a son resembling him is born; that is bliss. The mind is the supreme Brahman. The mind never abandons the knower; all beings approach him.” Whoever knows and meditates thus, having become a god, attains the gods. Again, you offered a thousand cows, and I recalled my father’s teaching. Vidagdha Śākalya came and said to me, “The heart is indeed Brahman. Without the heart, one would be as if without heart.” But when I asked about its abode and support, he did not know. This, too, was but one aspect. You asked me, “Yājñavalkya, what is the abode and support of the heart?” I replied, “The heart is its abode; space is its support; meditate on it as stability.” “What is this stability?” you asked. “The heart itself, O King. The heart is the abode and support of all beings; indeed, all beings are established in the heart. The heart is the supreme Brahman. The heart never abandons the knower; all beings approach him.” Whoever knows and meditates thus, having become a god, attains the gods. Once more, you offered a thousand cows, and I reminded you of my father’s teaching. At this, O King Janaka, you rose from your seat and with humility said, “Salutations to you! Yājñavalkya, do not defeat me.” I replied, “Just as one prepares a chariot or a boat before a great journey, so you have composed yourself with these Upaniṣadic teachings. O wealthy Vṛndāraka, having studied the Veda and spoken the Upaniṣad, when you are released from this world, where will you go?” You replied, “I do not know, revered one.” I said, “Then I will tell you.” I explained: “The person who dwells in the right eye is called Indha—known as Indra, but only indirectly, for the gods delight in indirectness. In the left eye is the form of a person, his wife, Virāj. The space within the heart is their meeting place. The lump of blood in the heart is their food, the network of vessels is their covering, and the artery rising from the heart is their path of movement. “There are a thousand arteries of the heart, as fine as a hair split a thousandfold. Through these, the self moves and departs. Therefore, when the self leaves the body, a person becomes thin, as if deprived of nourishment. “For this person, the vital breaths correspond to the directions: east to eastern breaths, south to southern, west to western, north to northern, upward to upward breaths, downward to downward; all directions are all the breaths. “This self is ‘not this, not this’; it cannot be grasped, for it is ungraspable; it does not decay, for it is undecaying; it is unattached, for it does not attach; it does not suffer. You have attained fearlessness, Janaka.” You replied, “Salutations to you, Yājñavalkya. May fearlessness come to us. You have made us know fearlessness. May fearlessness come to you as well, Yājñavalkya. Salutations to you. These are the Videhas; I am this.” Then, seeking further knowledge, you approached me again, desiring to debate. Together, we performed the Agnihotra sacrifice, and I offered you a boon. You chose to ask about desire, and I granted it. As before, you questioned me. “Yājñavalkya, what is the light of this person?” you asked. “The sun is his light, O King,” I replied. “By the sun’s light, he sits, moves, works, and returns.” “So it is, Yājñavalkya,” you agreed. “When the sun has set, what is his light?” “The moon is his light, O King. By the moon’s light, he sits, moves, works, and returns.” “So it is, Yājñavalkya.” “When both sun and moon have set, what is his light?” “Fire is his light, O King. By fire’s light, he sits, moves, works, and returns.” “So it is, Yājñavalkya.” “When the sun has set, the moon has set, and fire is extinguished, what is his light?” “Speech is his light, O King. By speech, he sits, moves, works, and returns. Even when one cannot see his own hand, yet when speech is uttered, he moves towards it.” “So it is, Yājñavalkya.” “When the sun has set, the moon has set, fire is extinguished, and speech is silent, what is his light?” “The self is his light, O King. By the self, he sits, moves, works, and returns.” You asked, “Which is the self?” I replied, “That which is the person made of knowledge among the vital breaths, the inner light within the heart—being the same, he moves through both worlds. As if thinking, as if moving, endowed with intelligence, becoming a dreamer, he passes beyond this world. “Being born, this person enters a body and is joined with evils. Departing upwards at death, he casts off evil—the forms of death. “This person has two abodes: this world and the other world. There is a third, the intermediate, the dream state. Standing in this place, he sees both this world and the other world. “Having entered the other world, he sees the results of both evil and joy. When he falls asleep, taking with him the impressions of this world, having destroyed and created them himself, by his own radiance, he sleeps. Here, he becomes his own light. “In that state, there are no chariots, charioteers, or roads, yet he creates them. There are no joys or pleasures, yet he creates them. There are no ponds, rivers, or lotus pools, yet he creates them. For he is the creator. “Regarding this, the sages recite: In sleep, having struck down the body, the sleeper shines in his own light, and, taking the pure essence, returns again to his place—the golden person, the solitary swan. “Protecting the nest with the breath, the immortal one moves outside the nest, and, having wandered, he returns—the golden person, the solitary swan, wherever he wishes. “At the end of the dream, the deity, moving among higher and lower forms, creates many shapes: sometimes enjoying with women, sometimes eating, sometimes seeing fearful things. “They see his pleasure garden, but no one sees him. They say, ‘Let no one wake him there.’ He becomes difficult to cure if he does not return when sought. “Some say, ‘This is just his waking world,’ for whatever he sees while awake, that he sees while asleep—here, this person becomes his own light.” You affirmed, “So it is, Yājñavalkya.” And you gave me a thousand cows, requesting further teaching for liberation. I continued, “Having enjoyed, moved about, and seen both merit and sin in the dream state, he returns again, each to its own place, for the sake of awakening. Whatever he sees there, not followed by anything else, by that he becomes; for this person is unattached.” Again, you gave a thousand cows and asked for more. I said further, “Having enjoyed, moved about, and seen both merit and sin in this dream, he returns again, each to its own place, for the sake of awakening. Whatever he sees there, not followed by anything else, by that he becomes; for this person is unattached.” You gave yet another thousand cows and asked to hear more. Finally, I explained, “Having enjoyed, moved about, and seen both merit and sin in the waking state, he returns again, each to its own place, for the sake of dreaming.” Thus, O King Janaka, was the teaching given—of the abodes and supports of the senses, of the light that guides a person, and of the self who, unattached, moves between waking, dreaming, and deep sleep, ever his own light, ever free.