As the dawn breaks within the mind, the multitude of mental states—so varied and scattered—begin to unify, much like a collection of clay pots dissolving and merging into one when placed in water. This unity reveals a deeper truth, and so, the earnest seeker approaches the revered sage and asks, “O foremost knower of all truths, what are the seven stages of yoga that grant perfection? Please tell me briefly.” The sage replies, “Listen well, for both ignorance and knowledge have sevenfold fields. Between these two, countless other stages arise. Self-effort and the delight in supreme existence are like two mighty trees, each bearing its own fruit at every stage from its firmly rooted base. I will first explain the sevenfold nature of ignorance; afterwards, you will hear of the sevenfold nature that arises from the field of knowledge. Abiding in one’s own true nature is liberation; falling from that is the sense of ‘I’ and ‘not-I.’ This, in brief, is the mark distinguishing knowledge from ignorance. Those who do not stray from their own nature—which is pure consciousness alone—and in whom attraction and aversion do not arise, ignorance cannot touch them. All delusion is nothing but the loss of one’s own nature and immersion in the objectified; apart from this, there is no other delusion, nor will there ever be. When, as one object passes to another in the mind, the state that remains in between—free from the marks of thought—that is called abiding in one’s own nature. That state in which all intentions have become quiet, like the space within a rock, and which is free from dullness, sleep, and the like, is remembered as abiding in one’s own nature. In the peaceful state beyond ego and distinctions, where the mind is unmoving, whatever shines forth without dullness is remembered as one’s true nature. Now, hear the seven states of ignorance: seed-awakening, ordinary awakening, great awakening, waking dream, ordinary dream, dream-awakening, and deep sleep. Delusion is sevenfold; these states are intertwined and known by various names. Let me describe their characteristics. First is consciousness, unnamed and pure awareness; it becomes the basis for future names and meanings such as mind, living being, and so forth. When it remains in the form of a seed, that is called seed-awakening—a new state of cognition. When, having arisen, the conviction ‘this is the other, I am this, this is mine’ appears clearly, that is the prior formation of waking awareness, called ordinary awakening. When the conviction ‘this is that, I am this, this belongs to me’ arises from previous births, that strong conviction is called great awakening. Whether unestablished or established, without sleep and not outwardly directed, the kingdom of the mind during waking is called waking dream. Due to distinctions such as seeing a double moon, the illusion of silver in an oyster shell, or a mirage, when these are repeatedly experienced, wakefulness itself becomes manifold. Even if one thinks, ‘I saw this only for a short time; it is not real,’ the impression that remains at the end of sleep about what was experienced during sleep is indeed there. That is called a dream—when, in the state of great wakefulness, it remains in the heart, not having appeared for a long time and not having manifested its vast form. A dream that has risen to the status of wakefulness attains the state of great wakefulness; whatever is perceived or not perceived in the body is considered both dream and waking. When the six states are abandoned, the condition in which the dull soul remains, filled with awareness of future suffering, is called the state of deep sleep. In that state, all objects—grass, clods, stones, and so on, whether old, new, or very recent—are all present. Thus, O Raghava, I have described the seven states of ignorance; each one has hundreds of branches and appears in various forms of manifestation. That which is long established as waking or dream eventually becomes wakefulness itself; through the diversity of objects, it unfolds and expands. Within this, too, exist states like deep waking; and within those, yet others—thus, the cycles of existence are dense. Even in the states of deep sleep and dream, and in the intermediate conditions, this entire mass of delusion remains, solid like a rock. From one dream the world enters into another dream, from one delusion into another delusion, just as a whirlpool in a river sinks into another body of water. Some cycles of existence persist as long dreams or waking states; others, again and again, as dreams, or as waking and dreaming, or otherwise. This ground of ignorance, called the sevenfold path, is divided by various inner distinctions of transformation. When you cross beyond this by beautiful inquiry and see the pure awakening, you know yourself as the Self. Now, O sinless one, hear about the sevenfold ground of knowledge. By knowing it, you will not again sink into the mire of delusion. The disputants speak of the stages of yoga in many ways, but these alone, I truly consider, are auspicious and worthy. They call knowledge ‘awakening’; this is the sevenfold ground. Liberation is to be known as that which is beyond the seventh stage. True understanding and liberation are synonymous; through true understanding, this living being does not sprout again here. The first stage is called ‘pure desire’; the second is ‘inquiry,’ and the third is ‘attenuation of mind.’ The fourth is ‘establishment in purity,’ then comes the stage named ‘non-attachment’; the sixth is ‘absence of conceptualization,’ and the seventh is known as ‘transcending the fourth.’ Liberation stands at the end of these stages; in that, one does not grieve again. Now listen to the explanation of these stages. One who thinks, ‘Am I merely dull, or am I observing the scriptures and the wise? I desire, preceded by dispassion,’—this is called ‘pure desire’ by the wise. The conduct that arises from association with scriptures and the wise, preceded by dispassion and practice, is called ‘inquiry.’ Thus, the sage reveals the path: from the dissolution of scattered mental states into unity, through the sevenfold fields of ignorance and knowledge, the seeker moves—by inquiry and true understanding—toward liberation, abiding in the pure nature of the Self.