Sage Uddalaka continued his teaching to his son, Śvetaketu, using vivid examples drawn from nature. He pointed to a great tree and said, “Dear one, if someone strikes the root of this tree, it bleeds sap while living; if they strike the middle or the top, it bleeds sap while living. So long as the living self pervades it, the tree stands rejoicing, taking nourishment. But if life leaves one branch, that branch withers; if it leaves another, that withers too; if it leaves all, the whole tree withers. Understand, dear one, that this is how life pervades all.” He continued, “When life departs from the tree, it dies, but life itself does not die. That subtle essence, which is the self of all things, is the true. That is the Self. That, Śvetaketu, you are.” Śvetaketu, eager for deeper understanding, requested further explanation. Uddalaka then asked Śvetaketu to bring a fruit of the banyan tree. When Śvetaketu handed it to him, Uddalaka said, “Break it.” Śvetaketu did so. “What do you see?” asked Uddalaka. “Very small seeds,” replied Śvetaketu. “Break one of them.” Śvetaketu broke a seed and answered, “I see nothing at all.” Uddalaka explained, “Somya, though you do not see this subtle essence, from it alone this great banyan tree stands. Believe this, Somya. That subtle essence is the Self of all. That is the true. You are that, Śvetaketu.” Again, Śvetaketu asked for further instruction. Uddalaka continued with another lesson. He asked Śvetaketu to place some salt in water, and return the next morning. When Śvetaketu returned, he could not find the salt—it had dissolved. Uddalaka instructed him to taste the water from different parts: the edge, the middle, the other edge. Each time, Śvetaketu found it salty. Uddalaka said, “Somya, though you do not see it, the salt is truly present. In the same way, the subtle essence is present in all. That is the true, that is the Self. You are that, Śvetaketu.” Śvetaketu, still yearning, requested more. Uddalaka then spoke of a man blindfolded and brought from Gandhāra, released among people. He would wander, blowing in every direction, unable to find his way. But if someone removed the blindfold and told him the direction, the wise man would ask from village to village and eventually reach Gandhāra. “In the same way, a man who has a teacher knows, but only until he is freed; then he attains.” Uddalaka repeated, “That subtle essence is the Self of all. That is the true. You are that, Śvetaketu.” Śvetaketu humbly asked for more, and Uddalaka agreed. He described a man afflicted, surrounded by relatives asking, “Do you know me?” As long as his speech has not merged in his mind, his mind in breath, breath in fire, fire in the supreme deity, he knows them. But when all these merge, he no longer knows them. “That subtle essence is the Self of all. That is the true. You are that, Śvetaketu.” Śvetaketu asked yet again, and Uddalaka consented. Next, Uddalaka explained what happens when a man is brought holding something stolen, accused of theft. If he is the doer, he makes himself false, accepts the burning axe, is burned and killed. If he is not the doer, he makes himself true, accepts the burning axe, is not burned and is released. “Just as he would not be burned there, so all this has that as its self. That is the true, that is the Self. You are that, Śvetaketu.” Thus Śvetaketu understood. Meanwhile, Nārada approached Sanatkumāra, seeking guidance. “Revered one, teach me,” he asked. Sanatkumāra replied, “Approach me with what you know; then I will speak further.” Nārada listed his vast learning: the Ṛgveda, Yajurveda, Sāmaveda, Atharva as the fourth, history and ancient lore as the fifth Veda, the Veda of the Vedas, the science of ancestors, numbers, divination, treasure, speech, single texts, knowledge of the gods, knowledge of Brahman, knowledge of beings, knowledge of warriors, knowledge of stars, knowledge of serpents and spirits. “This, revered one, I study. I am a knower of mantras, but not a knower of the Self. I have heard only the knower of the Self crosses sorrow. I grieve. Lead me beyond sorrow.” Sanatkumāra told him, “Whatever you have studied is only name. Name is the Ṛgveda, Yajurveda, Sāmaveda, Atharva as the fourth, history and ancient lore, the Veda of the Vedas, and all the sciences you mentioned. All this is name alone. Meditate on name.” Whoever meditates on name as Brahman moves as he wishes to the extent name reaches. But there is something greater than name. “Speech is greater than name,” Sanatkumāra said. Speech makes known all the Vedas, histories, sciences, the world, righteousness and unrighteousness, truth and falsehood, and what is pleasing or not. Without speech, none of these would be known. Meditate on speech. Whoever meditates on speech as Brahman moves as he wishes to the extent speech reaches. Yet, there is something greater than speech. “Mind is greater than speech. Just as two fruits are grasped in a fist, so speech and name are grasped by the mind. When one contemplates, studies mantras, acts, desires—mind is the self, the world, Brahman. Meditate on mind.” Whoever meditates on mind as Brahman moves as he wishes to the extent mind reaches. Still, there is something greater than mind. “Intention is greater than mind. When one intends, then one contemplates, utters speech, utters name; in name the mantras become one; in the mantras, the actions. All these have intention as their one course; heaven and earth, wind and space, waters and fire, rain, food, breath, mantras, actions, the world—everything is intended for the sake of intention. Meditate on intention.” Whoever meditates on intention as Brahman attains the worlds that are established and firm, and he himself becomes established and unshaken. To the extent intention reaches, there he moves as he wishes. Yet, there is something greater than intention. “Awareness is greater than intention. When one is aware, then one intends, contemplates, utters speech, utters name; in name the mantras become one; in the mantras, the actions. All these have awareness as their one course, are established in awareness. Even if a person has much awareness, people say of him, ‘He is not present,’ if he does not know. Awareness alone is their one course, awareness is the self, the foundation. Meditate on awareness.” Whoever meditates on awareness as Brahman attains the worlds that are established and firm, and he himself becomes established and unshaken. Yet, there is something greater than awareness. “Meditation is greater than awareness. The earth, atmosphere, sky, waters, mountains, gods and humans all seem to meditate. Among humans, those who attain greatness appear to do so through meditation; those who are powerful appear so through meditation. Meditate on meditation.” Whoever meditates on meditation as Brahman moves as he wishes to the extent meditation reaches. Still, there is something greater than meditation. “Understanding is greater than meditation. By understanding, one knows all the Vedas, histories, sciences, the world, righteousness and unrighteousness, truth and falsehood, good and not good, food and its taste, this world and the next. Meditate on understanding.” Whoever meditates on understanding as Brahman attains the worlds of those who possess understanding, not those who lack understanding. Yet, there is something greater than understanding. “Strength is greater than understanding. Even a hundred people with understanding cannot shake a single person with strength. When one is strong, one rises, moves about, approaches, sits, sees, hears, thinks, knows, acts, understands. By strength the earth, atmosphere, sky, mountains, gods and humans, animals, birds, grass, trees, wild beasts, insects, flying creatures, ants, and the world stand. Meditate on strength.” Whoever meditates on strength as Brahman moves as he wishes to the extent strength reaches. Yet, there is something greater than strength. “Food is greater than strength. Even if one does not eat for ten nights, yet lives, one becomes a seer, a hearer, a thinker, a knower, a doer, an understander; but when one eats, one becomes all these for the sake of food. Meditate on food.” Thus, through these gentle, profound teachings, the sages revealed layer by layer the subtle essence that pervades all, guiding their students ever closer to understanding the true Self, that which is the foundation and reality of all existence.