Listen, O seeker, to the wisdom that purifies the heart and illumines the mind. In this world, those whom the virtuous themselves call truly good are indeed the most distinguished among people. Such a one is to be earnestly sought, for the company of the virtuous is a blessing beyond measure. Of all treasures of knowledge, spiritual wisdom shines supreme. The scripture founded upon this wisdom is the true scripture, and one who reflects deeply upon it finds liberation. Just as a clearing nut purifies muddy water, or medicine restores the dull-minded, so too are the impurities of the heart destroyed through discernment born of true scripture and the association with the good. A disciple, eager for truth, asks, “Where does this deity—the liberator whom you have described—abide, and how may I attain Him?” The answer comes: This deity is not distant; He dwells ever within the body as pure consciousness itself. Indeed, this very consciousness is the essence of the entire universe. Yet, though all is pervaded by Him, He is not limited by the universe; there is no seer apart from this one reality. This pure consciousness is the true form behind all—the moon-bearer, the eagle-bannered one, the sun, and the lotus-born—all are but expressions of pure consciousness. Even children say that the world is nothing but consciousness. If this is so, what further teaching is needed, and what name could we possibly give to it? Yet, merely understanding that all is consciousness does not bring liberation from the cycle of becoming. What we call ‘awareness’ is itself samsara; the living being, known as the creature, is the source of the waves of old age and death. Though ignorant and formless, the creature is the vessel of suffering. Because it is conscious, it experiences misfortune and abides in sorrow. When one is free from objects of consciousness, or turns toward their absence, fullness is attained. In this state, there is no grief. The knot of the heart is broken, all doubts are cut asunder, and the burden of actions is exhausted when one realizes both the supreme and the non-supreme. Yet, the inclination toward objects cannot be restrained until the possibility of objects themselves ceases. As long as the visible world remains an object, how can attachment ever end? The Supreme Self is revealed through the company of the virtuous and the study of true scriptures. This Self is the one who leads across the ocean of worldly existence. “Tell me, O Brahman,” the disciple asks, “what is He like?” That which is this consciousness, the individual soul, scattered amidst the thick jungle of birth and death—those who pursue this as the Self, even if learned, remain ignorant. Here, the individual soul alone is worldly existence, arising from consciousness and the succession of suffering. When this is truly known, nothing remains unknown anywhere. If the Supreme Self is realized, O Rama, then the chain of suffering ends, just as poison, once neutralized, brings an end to disease. “Tell me, O Brahman,” the seeker requests, “what is the true form of the Supreme Self, by seeing which one crosses the sea of delusion?” The Supreme Self is that which, though consciousness travels from place to place, is attained in a single instant. Absolute non-existence is the very state of worldly existence and its persistence; that which abides in the vast ocean of awakening is the Supreme Self. Where the sequence of seer and seen has vanished, even though they seem present, and that which is space-less yet is space itself—this is the Supreme Self. That which is not empty yet appears as emptiness, in which this universe, itself empty, abides; that which remains empty even amidst countless creations—such is the Supreme Self. It is that which, though pure consciousness, stands unmoved like a great rock; which, though outwardly inert, is inwardly ever aware—this is the Supreme Self. By this, all is pervaded and united within and without, and it attains its own essential being. As light is to illumination, as emptiness is to space, so is this in which all abides—the Supreme Self. How, then, can this Supreme Self, which is everywhere, not be recognized? From this alone arises the very existence of the world and all that is seen. If, in the clear realization of absolute non-existence, there could be any true establishment of this world-appearance, which is like a mirage or the color of space, then let it be so. The form of Brahman is known only by knowledge, not by any other action; apart from the complete absence of the seen, there is no other auspicious path. When the seen is realized as utterly non-existent, then the ultimate reality remains, understood and realized. There is no reflection of consciousness without an object to reflect; for without a reflection, how can there be a mirror? Without the possibility of this visible world called ‘universe,’ no one ever realizes the supreme truth. Yet, given the presence of this network of appearances, how can non-existence be? Where is Mount Meru inside a mustard seed? If, O Rama, you remain for a few days with an unwearied mind, devoted to the company of the good and to true scriptures, then in a moment I will completely remove for you the visible world, as water in a mirage is dispelled by knowledge. When the seen is absent, the seerhood also ceases, and pure awareness alone remains. Seerhood exists only when there is something seen; being seen exists only when there is an observer. Duality exists only with unity, and unity is known only with duality. When one is absent, the existence of two cannot be; when the perception of duality and unity, of seer and seen, ceases, pure being alone remains. I will wipe away for you all the visible world, from the sense of ‘I’ and so on, by the knowledge of their utter non-existence, as one cleans impurity from a mirror. There is no existence for the unreal, nor is there non-existence for the real. When something does not exist by its own nature, what effort is needed to remove it? In the beginning, the world was not produced; and what is now seen as spread out is only the pure Self, Brahman, expanded by its own consciousness.