O Raghava, listen as I explain the nature of the mind and its many descriptions. The terms I have described for the mind are spoken in countless ways by others, each with their own imagined distinctions and interpretations. People, projecting their preferred reasoning, have created various names and descriptions—not only for the mind, but also for the intellect, the senses, and all the inner faculties. For some, the mind is thought to be insentient; for others, it is considered alive and conscious. In the same way, ego and intellect are defined differently by different thinkers. Yet, O delight of the Raghu lineage, I have explained that ego, mind, and intellect are one in essence, though others imagine them as separate at the time of creation. Different philosophical schools conceive of these faculties in their own ways: the Naiyayikas have one view, the Sankhyas and Charvakas another. The Jaiminiyas, Arhatas, Buddhists, Vaisheshikas, Pancharatras, and many others each hold varied opinions, shaped by their own traditions. Yet, despite these differences, all must ultimately reach the supreme state of the Self, just as travelers from different lands and times all converge upon the same city. Because of ignorance of the highest truth and mistaken understanding, these thinkers merely dispute with one another, each eager to assert their own opinions. Debaters praise their own path with elaborate arguments, each like a traveler extolling the virtues of his chosen route, shaped by the diverse places and times from which they come. Raghava, the doctrines they proclaim are ultimately false, devised by minds caught in imagined meanings, each possessing its own peculiarities. Just as one person, performing different acts such as bathing, giving, receiving, and eating, is seen in various roles, so too does the mind exhibit diversity in its activities. Because of these manifold activities, agency is ascribed to the mind under various names—such as the tendencies of the living being, actions, and their designations. Indeed, this entire experience is only the mind; for one without mind, even if he sees, he does not truly see in this world. Upon hearing, touching, seeing, smelling, or tasting what is auspicious or inauspicious, it is the mind that perceives inner joy or sorrow. The mind is the cause of objects, just as light reveals forms; one whose mind is bound is bound, and one whose mind is free is liberated. Know that the mind called “dull” is best suited for the dull; and understand that the mind is dull for one whose consciousness is dull. This mind, which has arisen, is neither truly conscious nor inert; from it, this world with all its pleasures and pains has emerged. When the mind becomes of a single form, saṃsāra dissolves; confusion arises from turbidity, and through this confusion, the world appears. The mind, which is not inert, is not the cause of saṃsāra; nor is the inert—like a stone—the cause of saṃsāra. The mind is the cause of objects, just as forms are revealed by light; apart from consciousness, what is this world to the unconscious? Therefore, O Raghava, in this world, nothing is truly conscious or inert; ultimately, the entirety of all beings dissolves completely. Through various states and activities, the mind assumes manifold designations; becoming one, it attains diversity, just as time does through the seasons. If, for those said to be without mind, ego and the actions of the senses disturb the body, then let there be other entities such as the jīva. But the distinctions in the mind that have been posited in various philosophical views are sometimes asserted by some debaters and denied by others. O Rama, these powers do not oppose or surpass one another; for all powers exist within the divine, which is all-pervading. Whenever even the slightest trace of inert power arises in that pure awareness, then diversity appears. Just as a thread emerges from the spider, the inert arises from the conscious; in the same way, from the ever-awakened, supreme Brahman, nature arises. Because of the force of ignorance, various notions have come into existence; thus, terms like mind and its modifications have different meanings among disputants here. When this impure awareness first arises, it is called by many names—individual soul, mind, intellect, ego. In the world, it is indeed referred to by these various designations, and there is no dispute about this. O Brahman, all this display is said to be of the mind alone, for it is understood from the scriptures that the mind itself is action. It is only by the mind, firmly established in its own nature, that this radiant covering of the body is assumed, just as the fierce heat of the sun creates a shining veil. In this world, I consider that the mind alone takes on various forms—sometimes appearing as a human, sometimes as a celestial being. At times it shines forth as a demon, at times as a yaksha; sometimes it attains the state of a gandharva, sometimes it takes the form of a kinnarā. With various forms as forests, mountains, cities, and towns, it is the mind alone that expands itself in manifold shapes. Thus, the multitude of bodies is like grass, wood, or dust; by reflecting on this, what is there to investigate? For us, only the mind is to be examined. Therefore, I consider that all this world, filled with endless variety, is the play of the mind; apart from that, only the supreme Self remains. The Self transcends all conditions, pervades all, and is the support of all; by its grace, the mind runs and leaps in the world. Therefore, I think the mind is the agent of action and the cause in bodies; it is born and dies, for such qualities do not belong to the Self. I think that by such inquiry, the mind will come to dissolution; and with the mere dissolution of the mind, supreme good will arise. When what is called the mind is exhausted and action is no longer agitated by harmful impulses, the being is said to be liberated and does not take birth again.