Weapons, it is said, are countered by other weapons; impurities are cleansed by other impurities; poison is subdued by poison; and an enemy is overcome by another enemy. In the same way, O Rama, this world is woven with a grand illusion—a marvel whose nature is to bring joy by its own dissolution. The moment one tries to grasp its true essence, it slips away, for it cannot be truly seen; as soon as you look for it, it vanishes. This illusion, subtle and powerful, thoroughly conceals discernment and brings forth entire worlds, yet it remains unrecognized—a wonder indeed! Unseen, it stirs life into motion, but when you attempt to observe it, it disappears, never revealing its true nature, ever dancing and elusive. How astonishing is this illusion that binds beings to worldly existence! Though it is utterly unreal, it appears most real, even casting its spell upon the wise. This illusion projects division upon that which is wholly undivided. The one who recognizes this play of illusion is truly the supreme person. By steadfast contemplation—by realizing, “This truly does not exist”—and by gaining knowledge, when you attain what is to be known, you will understand the essence of this illusion. Until awakening dawns, let your conviction, inspired by my words, be unwavering: “Ignorance does not exist.” Whatever appears in the mind as this vast reflection, if you are inwardly certain that it is unreal, liberation is attained. Likewise, if you are inwardly certain that all that appears is real, that it is Brahman, liberation is also attained. But that third way of perceiving—seeing the world as both moving and unmoving—is merely a fixation of imagination, a net that ensnares all beings like birds. He who, with a detached mind, sees this world as uncertain, real and unreal, like a dream or a delusion, does not fall into suffering. For one whose self-conceptions are tangled in imagined forms, and who confuses the true and the false, only ignorance prevails. Yet, just as dust cannot remain in pure water, so too do defects such as change not exist in the great, supreme Self. Imagination colors the world with words and meanings for the sake of worldly dealings, but it is not separate from the Self. Without such practical engagement, the teachings of the scriptures do not hold together, just as threads cannot form a fabric without the cloth. The Self cannot be found by wandering the path of ignorance; it is attained only through self-knowledge, which is gained from understanding the scriptures. O Rama, the far shore of the river of ignorance is reached only by attaining the Self—that imperishable, unchanging state. This ignorance, which clouds and deludes, arises from somewhere and takes hold, covering the true state and remaining established. Do not trouble yourself, Rama, with questions of where it arose; rather, inquire how it can be destroyed. When ignorance has diminished and set, O Raghava, you will know fully and without division whence it came, what it was, and how it was lost. In truth, it does not exist at all; it only appears when not examined. Who can know the form of a delusion that is unreal, and from where it arose? It has only arisen and grown strong to cause harm; by forcefully destroying it, you will truly understand. Even the brave and wise of the three worlds are not truly so if they are rendered helpless by ignorance. Therefore, in this hospital of worldly disease, make every effort at treatment so that ignorance does not again subject you to the pain of rebirth. Uproot ignorance completely—the single companion of all misfortunes, the blossom of the tree of unknowing, the mother of endless calamities. Forcefully cast aside this distorted vision that brings fear, poison, suffering, and calamity, that fills the heart with dense darkness; then you will reach the far shore of the ocean of existence. Now, O Raghava, listen to the remedy for the disease of ignorance, which is widespread and difficult to cure, but is destroyed merely by seeing through the false and angry mind. Hear about that pure, sattvic nature, which I shall describe so you may examine the power of the mind. That which truly exists is immortal, Brahman: all-pervading, free from affliction, the very reflection of consciousness, called the Infinite, beginningless and without confusion. The vibration of that which has the form of consciousness arises from a certain region, just as the ocean swells under the movement of the moon. Just as the water in the ocean, when agitated, appears to become solid, so too does all power gather and become the power of vibration. As the wind moves in the sky by its own power, so the Self, by its inherent energy, becomes active within itself. Just as a lamp rises by the power of its own flame, so does the Self shine forth in its own form. Within the ocean, water sometimes shines and sometimes moves; so too, within the body of all powers, vibration appears with its own playfulness. As a sea of molten gold sparkles with circles of light, so the ocean of consciousness in the self flashes with pure pulsations. Just as the movement of a pearl is seen in the sky by the eye, so the radiant form of Brahman’s own power arises from consciousness. That power of consciousness, when slightly stirred, shines purely in the great ocean of consciousness, just as a wave arises in the ocean itself. It remains not separate from the Self, yet appears as if separate, like the brilliance of light deep within illumination, having attained a certain density. For a moment, that goddess, flashing as all power, gathers her own strength, just as the moon gathers its coolness. Thus, O Rama, the play of ignorance and the revelation of true knowledge are but the dance of consciousness itself.