The revered sage continued to instruct Śvetaketu, offering vivid analogies to illuminate the journey of self-realization. He said, “Consider a man who has been blindfolded and taken far from home. When the blindfold is removed and someone tells him, ‘Gandhāra lies in this direction, go this way,’ he sets out, asking his way from village to village. If he is wise and intelligent, he will surely reach Gandhāra. In the same manner, a man who has a teacher comes to know, but he is not yet truly free until he attains liberation.” The sage then declared, “That which is this subtle essence, all this has that as its self. That is the true, that is the Self. You are that, Śvetaketu.” Śvetaketu, eager for deeper understanding, requested, “Please, revered one, explain further.” The sage agreed, “So be it, Somya.” He continued, “Somya, when a man is afflicted and near death, his relatives gather around him, asking, ‘Do you know me? Do you know me?’ As long as his speech has not merged into his mind, his mind into his breath, his breath into fire, and fire into the supreme deity, he recognizes them. But when speech merges into mind, mind into breath, breath into fire, and fire into the supreme deity, then he no longer knows them.” Once more, the sage affirmed, “That which is this subtle essence, all this has that as its self. That is the true, that is the Self. You are that, Śvetaketu.” Again, Śvetaketu asked for further explanation, and the sage agreed. The teacher then offered another illustration: “Somya, suppose a man is brought before the people, accused of theft. They say, ‘He stole, he committed theft, the axe burns him.’ If he is indeed the doer, he makes himself false. With intent on falsehood, hiding behind untruth, he accepts the burning axe; he is burned and then killed. But if he is not the doer, he makes himself true. With intent on truth, hiding in truth, he accepts the burning axe; he 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. The narrative then turns to Nārada, who approached the wise Sanatkumāra and humbly requested, “Revered one, teach me.” Sanatkumāra replied, “Approach me with what you know; then I will speak further.” Nārada listed his vast learning: “Revered one, I study 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.” Yet, Nārada confessed, “Revered one, I am a knower of mantras, but not a knower of the Self. I have heard that only the knower of the Self crosses sorrow. I, revered one, grieve. May the revered one lead me beyond sorrow.” Sanatkumāra replied, “Whatever you have studied is only name.” He explained, “Name is 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. All this is name alone. Meditate on name.” Sanatkumāra continued, “Whoever meditates on name as Brahman, to the extent that name reaches, there he moves as he wishes. But if one asks, ‘Is there something greater than name?’ the answer is, ‘Indeed, there is something greater than name.’” Nārada requested, “Please, revered one, tell that to me.” Sanatkumāra then said, “Speech is indeed greater than name. Speech makes known the Ṛgveda, the Yajurveda, the Sāmaveda, the Atharvaveda as the fourth, the Itihāsa and Purāṇa as the fifth Veda, the Veda of the Vedas, the rites for ancestors, the collections for the gods, the treasury, the words of speech, the single course, the knowledge of the gods, the knowledge of Brahman, the knowledge of beings, the knowledge of rulers, the knowledge of stars, the knowledge of serpents and divine beings, the heaven and the earth, the wind and the space, the waters and the fire, the gods and humans, the animals and birds, the grass and trees, the wild beasts, the insects, the flying creatures, the ants, righteousness and unrighteousness, truth and falsehood, good and not good, what is pleasing to the heart and what is not. Without speech, none of these would be made known. Meditate on speech.” He added, “Whoever meditates upon speech as Brahman, to the extent that speech reaches, there he moves as he wishes. Yet, there is something greater than speech.” At Nārada’s request, he continued his teaching. “Mind is indeed greater than speech. Just as two fruits are grasped in a fist, so speech and name are grasped by the mind. When one contemplates with the mind, one studies the mantras; when one wills, one acts; when one desires sons or cattle, or this world or the next, one desires with the mind. Mind is indeed the self; mind is indeed the world; mind is indeed Brahman. Meditate on mind.” “Whoever meditates on mind as Brahman, to the extent that mind reaches, there he moves as he wishes. But there is something greater than mind.” Nārada asked to know more. “Intention is indeed greater than mind. When one intends, then one contemplates; then one utters speech; then one utters name; in name the mantras become one; in the mantras, the actions. All these have intention as their one course, are of the nature of intention, are established in intention. Heaven and earth, wind and space, waters and fire, all are established by intention. For the sake of intention, rain is intended; for rain, food is intended; for food, breath is intended; for breath, mantras are intended; for mantras, actions are intended; for actions, the world is intended; for the world, everything is intended. Meditate on intention.” “Whoever meditates upon intention as Brahman attains the worlds that are established and firm, and he himself becomes established and unshaken. Yet, there is something greater than intention.” Nārada asked, “Please, revered one, tell that to me.” Sanatkumāra continued, “Awareness is indeed greater than intention. When one is aware, then one intends; then one contemplates; then one utters speech; then one utters name; in name the mantras become one; in the mantras, the actions. All these have awareness as their one course, are of the nature of awareness, are established in awareness. Even if a person has much awareness, people say, ‘He is not present,’ if he does not know. Or, if he is knowledgeable but lacks awareness, people attend to him only to that extent. Awareness alone is their one course, awareness is the self, awareness is the foundation. Meditate on awareness.” “Whoever meditates upon awareness as Brahman truly attains the worlds that are established and firm, and he himself becomes established and unshaken. Yet, there is something greater than awareness.” Nārada asked for further instruction. “Somya, meditation is indeed 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 small, quarrelsome, slanderous, and talkative are not so. The powerful appear so through meditation. Meditate on meditation.” “Whoever meditates upon meditation as Brahman, to the extent that meditation reaches, there he moves as he wishes. But there is something greater than meditation.” Again, Nārada sought to know more. “Understanding is indeed greater than meditation. By understanding, one knows the Ṛgveda, the Yajurveda, the Sāmaveda, the Atharvaveda as the fourth, the Itihāsa and Purāṇa as the fifth Veda, the Veda of the Vedas, the rites for ancestors, the collections for the gods, the treasury, the words of speech, the single course, the knowledge of the gods, the knowledge of Brahman, the knowledge of beings, the knowledge of rulers, the knowledge of stars, the knowledge of serpents and divine beings, the heaven and the earth, the wind and the space, the waters and the fire, the gods and humans, the animals and birds, the grass and trees, the wild beasts, the insects, the flying creatures, the ants, righteousness and unrighteousness, truth and falsehood, good and not good, what is pleasing to the heart and what is not, food and its taste, this world and the next—by understanding alone one knows all this. Meditate on understanding.” “Whoever meditates upon understanding as Brahman attains the worlds of those who possess understanding, not those who lack understanding. Yet, there is something greater than understanding.” Nārada again entreated, “Please, revered one, tell that to me.” “Strength is indeed 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, and understands. By strength the earth stands, the atmosphere, the sky, the mountains, the gods and humans, the animals and birds, the grass and trees, the wild beasts, the insects, the flying creatures, the ants; by strength the world stands. Meditate on strength.” “Whoever meditates upon strength as Brahman, to the extent that strength reaches, there he moves as he wishes. But there is something greater than strength.” Nārada asked to be taught further. “Food is indeed 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.” “Whoever meditates upon food as Brahman attains the worlds that are rich in food and drink; wherever there is food, there he moves as he wishes. Yet, there is something greater than food.” Nārada asked, and Sanatkumāra continued. “Water is indeed greater than food. When there is no good rainfall, living beings become distressed, thinking, ‘Food will become scarce.’ But when there is good rainfall, living beings rejoice, thinking, ‘There will be much food.’ All these forms—earth, sky, heaven, mountains, gods, humans, cattle, birds, grass, trees, wild animals, insects, and ants—are all forms of water. Meditate on water.” “Whoever meditates upon water as Brahman attains all desires and becomes satisfied; wherever there is water, there he moves as he wishes. Yet, there is something greater than water.” Nārada asked for more. “Fire is indeed greater than water. When fire seizes air, it pierces the sky; then people say, ‘It flashes, it thunders, it will rain.’ Fire first reveals itself, and then produces water. These lightnings, with their upward and crosswise flashes, move about with thunder. Therefore, people say, ‘It lightens, it thunders, it will rain.’ Meditate on fire.” “Whoever meditates upon fire as Brahman becomes radiant; he attains luminous worlds free from darkness. Yet, there is something greater than fire.” Nārada requested to learn this. “Space is indeed greater than fire. In space, both the sun and the moon, lightning, stars, and fire are set. By space one calls, by space one hears, by space one responds, in space one delights or does not delight, in space one is born, and into space one is born. Meditate on space.” “Whoever meditates upon space as Brahman attains worlds that are vast, luminous, and unobstructed; wherever there is space, there he moves as he wishes. Yet, there is something greater than space.” Nārada asked, and the sage replied. “Memory is indeed greater than space.