Janaka, the wise king, spoke to Shuka, saying, “Just as this world, which arises from our own imagination, dissolves when that imagination ceases, so too does the certainty dawn that the burnt-out world is empty of essence.” With reverence, Janaka implored, “O mighty-armed one, speak to me truly and purely, for from you my mind finds rest—let it not wander amidst the world.” He continued, “There is no higher or further certainty than this, O sage. You have realized this yourself and have also heard it from your teacher. Here, only the undivided consciousness-self exists; nothing else. That self is bound by the force of thought, and freed when thought ceases. Whoever knows this clearly, that great soul becomes dispassionate toward all enjoyments and all that is seen here. And for you as well, O mighty hero, your mind has attained dispassion from both enjoyments and long-lasting afflictions—what more do you seek to ask?” Janaka observed, “Such fullness has not arisen even for your father, who remains in vast austerity and is a great treasure of all-knowingness, as it has for you. I am even greater than Vyasa, though I am his disciple and son; yet, because your desire for enjoyment is so diminished, you surpass even me here. You have attained all that is to be attained, with a mind fully complete. You do not fall into the visible, O Brahman, you are liberated—abandon delusion.” Thus instructed by the great-souled Janaka, Shuka rested silently in the pure, supreme reality. Free from sorrow, fear, and fatigue, indifferent and with all doubts severed, Shuka ascended the flawless summit of Meru for meditation. There, for a thousand years, he remained in absorption without conceptualization, like a lamp without oil, at rest within himself. With all traces of mental activity and impurity gone, pure in his own stainless self, the great soul entered the state of unity, like a drop of water merging into the ocean. Turning to Rama, the narration continues: “The cleansing of mere intellect for the son of Vyasa is used only as much as is needed, and only for that purpose. By this, everything is known, O lord of the earth; pleasures do not delight him, just as diseases do not please the wise. This is surely the mark of one whose mind has known what is to be known: that all arrays of pleasures no longer delight him.” It is explained, “By the imagination of enjoyment, bondage rooted in unreality becomes firm; by the same imagination pacified, bondage in the world becomes thin. Rama, the thinning of desires is called liberation by the wise; the firmness of desire for objects is called bondage. Most people, after approaching the knowledge of the Self, soon again develop aversion to sense objects, though only with difficulty. He who truly sees is wise; he who knows both the knower and the known is learned. To such a great soul, enjoyments do not taste sweet, even if forced upon him. He for whom, without any cause such as fame or wealth, pleasures on earth no longer appeal—he is called liberated while living. As long as the knowable has not been realized, O dear one, so long does a being not develop dispassion for sense objects, just as a creeper does not grow in a desert. Therefore, O descendant of Raghu, know that one who has realized the knowable is such that these unpleasing fields of enjoyment no longer delight him.” Whatever Rama learns as true reality, upon hearing it directly, brings repose to the mind of Raghava. The mind of Rama seeks only the repose found in pure, undivided being, just as the beauty of autumn seeks rest in water. For the repose of the mind of the great-souled Raghava, let the illustrious sage Vasistha speak his reasoning. Vasistha is described as the lord and family preceptor of the Raghu dynasty, ever all-knowing, all-seeing, perceiving the three times with flawless clarity. “Vasiṣṭha, revered one, do you recall what you yourself once taught, for the sake of ending enmity between us and for the welfare of the great souls? On the summit of Niṣadha mountain, amidst the cluster of pines, the blessed one, Padmabhū (Brahmā), imparted abundant knowledge to the sages. By which, O wise Brahman, when one is endowed with discernment, this tendency is transformed by knowledge; the worldly person surely attains tranquility, just as darkness is dispelled by sunlight.” It is requested, “That very method of knowledge should be taught to Rāma, who resides here. O Brahman, instruct him swiftly, by which he will attain repose. There is no need for persuasion; Rāma is free from impurity. His face is reflected effortlessly in a spotless mirror. That knowledge, the meaning of scripture, and that unbroken skill—all these are to be imparted to the noble disciple who is detached. Whatever is taught to one who is not a disciple and not detached, becomes impure, like cow's milk mixed with a dog's saliva. Those who are free from passion, fear, and anger, who are without possessiveness and have shed all impurity—what such as you declare, upon that alone does the mind here find rest.” When the son of Gadhi had spoken thus, the sages, led by Vyasa and Narada, praised that statement, saying, “Well said, well said.” Then the illustrious sage Vasistha, radiant with great energy and standing by the king’s side like Brahma’s own son, spoke: “O sage, whatever you instruct me, I shall carry out without obstacle; for who, even if capable, would dare to transgress the words of the virtuous? For I shall today dispel the darkness of mind in the royal princes, beginning with Rama, by means of knowledge, just as a lamp removes the darkness of night. I recall, without interruption, all the knowledge once spoken by the lotus-born for the pacification of the delusion of worldly existence on Mount Nishadha.” Thus, the stage was set for the transmission of the highest wisdom, as the assembly awaited the words of Sage Vasistha, whose knowledge would bring repose to Rama’s mind and dispel the darkness of ignorance.