Yama, the Lord of Death, addressed Nachiketa with admiration, saying, “Nachiketa, you have reflected deeply upon the pleasures that appear desirable and alluring to most. Yet, you have turned away from them, refusing to be ensnared in the endless pursuit of wealth—a trap in which countless people become entangled and sink ever deeper. “Indeed, ignorance and knowledge lie far apart, opposed and leading in different directions. I see in you, Nachiketa, one who truly seeks knowledge. The many temptations of desire have not swayed your heart. “Most people dwell in ignorance, yet pride themselves on wisdom and learning. Deluded, they wander aimlessly, led as the blind are led by the blind—none the wiser for their journey. The reality beyond this world remains hidden from the childish and careless, who are intoxicated by riches. Firm in their belief that only this world exists, they repeatedly fall under my dominion. “The Self, the truth you seek, is not easily heard of, even by many. Some may hear of it, yet do not truly know. Rare is the teacher who can speak of it well, rare the student who can grasp it fully. Wonderful indeed is the one who, with the guidance of such a teacher, comes to know it. “This truth cannot be grasped when taught by one who is inferior, however much it is discussed or considered. Only when imparted by one who is different—who has realized it—can it be understood, for it is subtler than the subtlest, beyond the reach of ordinary reasoning. “Reasoning alone cannot reveal this knowledge. It must be taught by another to one who is truly wise and sincere. Nachiketa, you have received it, steadfast in your devotion to truth. May there be more seekers like you! “I know well that all treasures are impermanent, for the eternal cannot be gained by what is not lasting. Yet, Nachiketa, the fire-sacrifice you have established by impermanent means, I have accepted as eternal. “You have seen the fulfillment of desire, the foundation of the world, the endlessness of ritual, and the far shore of fearlessness. You have witnessed the highest praise and the very root of prosperity, yet, unwavering, you have renounced them all. “The divine Self is difficult to see, hidden deep within the secret cave of the heart, dwelling in the abyss, ancient and elusive. Only through discipline of the inner self does the wise person come to know Him, and, having known, transcends both joy and sorrow. “One who hears and fully understands this teaching, who discerns this subtle principle and realizes it, rejoices—having attained that which is truly worthy of rejoicing. Nachiketa, your house is indeed open to this knowledge. “What you see there is beyond righteousness and unrighteousness, beyond what has been done and not done, beyond what is and what is yet to be. Declare that truth. “The goal to which all the Vedas point, which all austerities proclaim, for which people practice celibacy with longing—that goal I will tell you briefly: it is Om. “This syllable alone is Brahman; this syllable alone is the Supreme. Whoever knows this syllable, whatever he desires, that becomes his. “This is the best support, the highest support. Knowing this, one is glorified in the world of Brahman. “The wise Self is never born, nor does it die; it did not come from anywhere, nor did anything come from it. It is unborn, eternal, everlasting, and ancient. It is not slain when the body is slain. “If one thinks he is the slayer, or another thinks he is slain, both are mistaken. The Self neither kills nor is killed. “Finer than the finest, greater than the greatest, the Self is hidden in the cave of all beings. One free from desire, with senses at peace, perceives the majesty of the Self and is freed from sorrow. “Sitting, it travels far; lying down, it goes everywhere. Who but myself can know that divine one, who is at once joyful and joyless? “Bodiless among bodies, stable among the unstable, the wise, contemplating the vast, all-pervading Self, does not grieve. “This Self is not attained by instruction, nor by intellect, nor by much hearing. It is attained only by one whom the Self chooses; to such a one the Self reveals its own form. “Not by one who has not ceased from evil conduct, not by the untranquil, not by the undisciplined, nor by one whose mind is not at peace, can this truth be realized. “For whom both Brahman and Kshatra are food, and death is but a condiment—who can know where such a one is? “Those who know Brahman, who perform the five fires and the triple Nachiketa sacrifice, drinking the truth in the world of good deeds, entering the secret cave in the highest, call them the shadow and the light. “That which is the bridge for those who know—the imperishable Brahman, the highest—may we, Nachiketa, who wish to cross to the shore of fearlessness, attain it. “Know the Self as the rider, the body as the chariot; know the intellect as the charioteer, and the mind as the reins. “The senses are called the horses, and their objects are the paths they travel. The wise say that the self, joined with mind and senses, is the enjoyer. “But for one who lacks understanding, whose mind is always unrestrained, the senses are uncontrolled, like unruly horses with a poor charioteer. “Yet, for one who possesses understanding, whose mind is always restrained, the senses are controlled, like well-trained horses for a good charioteer. “One who lacks understanding, whose mind is unsteady and impure, does not reach the goal and enters into the cycle of rebirth. “But whoever has understanding, whose mind is steady and pure, attains that state from which there is no return. “He who has understanding as the charioteer and the mind as the reins reaches the end of the journey—the highest state of Vishnu. “Objects are higher than the senses; the mind is higher than objects; the intellect is higher than the mind; and the great Self is higher than the intellect. “Higher still than the great Self is the unmanifest; higher than the unmanifest is the Person. There is nothing higher than the Person—this is the limit, the supreme goal. “This Self, hidden in all beings, does not shine forth. Yet it is seen by those with sharp intellect, subtle vision, and subtle understanding. “Let the wise restrain speech in the mind, the mind in knowledge, knowledge in the great Self, and the great Self in the peaceful Self. “Arise! Awake! Seek out the wise and understand. The path is sharp, like the edge of a razor—difficult to traverse, so say the sages. “That which is soundless, touchless, formless, undecaying, tasteless, eternal, and scentless; without beginning, without end, higher than the great, steadfast—having realized that, one is freed from the mouth of death. “Having told and heard this ancient story of Nachiketa, spoken by Death, the wise are honored in the world of Brahman. “Whoever, with devotion, teaches this supreme secret in an assembly of Brahmanas, or at the time of the Śrāddha, is prepared for infinity—indeed, is prepared for infinity.