O Rama, the sage addressed the Brahman, acknowledging his words: “O Brahman, what you have spoken is true and beautifully expressed. Indeed, the Self is both the doer and the non-doer, the enjoyer and the non-enjoyer, and the very sustainer of all beings. He is the lord of all, pervading everything, pure consciousness alone, the spotless state. He is the divine one whose own experience is his very form, dwelling within all beings.” Moved by these words, the listener confessed, “O Lord, just as water cools the earth through gentle streams, so too has Brahman entered my heart by your words. Yet, because of indifference and lack of desire, the Self neither enjoys nor acts; still, as the cause of the entire world, the divine one both enjoys and acts.” “O Lord, a strong doubt remains in my heart. Please dispel it with your words, just as sunlight and moonlight dispel darkness. For endless distinctions arise: ‘This is real, this is unreal; this is I, this is you; this is one, this is another.’ In the one all-pervading, peaceful reality, like mist in the sun, how does this first notion of ‘this’ become established in the Self?” The sage replied, “At the time of conclusion, O Rama, I will explain to you the answer to this profound question, and you will know it then. O Raghava, when you have attained the essential understanding of the means to liberation, you will be truly fit to hear these questions and their answers. Just as a young man is suited to the sweet songs of his beloved, so too is one with awakened vision suited to the highest answers to profound questions, O Rama. A tale filled with passion is wasted on children, just as exalted teachings are futile for those whose understanding is immature. At some particular time, something shines forth in a person; the fruit appears on the tree in autumn, not in spring. Words of instruction delight the mature, like colors on a pure cloth; and the stories of noble wisdom take hold in one who has realized the Self.” “I have spoken to you before, in brief, the answer to this question. Because it was not explained in detail, you have not clearly understood it. If you realize the Self by your own Self, O noble one, you will know the answer to this question yourself—of this there is no doubt. But when, at the time of conclusion, you have attained understanding, then, O noble one, this sequence of questions and answers should be explained to you in detail by me.” “The Self knows itself by itself, for indeed the Self is established in itself. Being serene, the Self attains itself. O Rama, I have explained to you this inquiry into doer and deed; one who understands this becomes free of tendencies and is without impressions. Bondage is truly the bondage of tendencies, and liberation is the cessation of tendencies. Abandon all tendencies, even the desire for liberation—let go.” “First, abandon the dark tendencies that are attached to sense objects; then, take up pure tendencies named after friendliness and similar qualities. Even those, abandon inwardly, while outwardly acting through them; within, remain with all agitation stilled, established only in the tendency of pure consciousness. Then, abandoning even that, which is accompanied by mind and intellect, remain firmly established in samadhi; whatever remains to be abandoned, abandon that as well. Abandon completely, from the root, all imagination of consciousness and mind, all darkness of manifestation, all tendencies and their sources, along with the prior movement of breath.” “Having abandoned all completely from the root, you become like clear space, with a tranquil mind. O wise one, become that without delay. The great-minded one who has completely abandoned everything from the heart and remains without agitation is liberated, the supreme lord. Whether he engages in meditation or actions, or refrains from them, the one whose heart is free from all objects is liberated, possessing the highest intention. For him, there is no purpose in inaction, nor any purpose in actions; nor in meditation or recitation, whose mind is free from impressions. Scriptures have been thoroughly examined and discussed for a long time, but apart from abandoning impressions through silence, there is no supreme state.” “All that is seen and all that is to be seen has been observed, wandering through the ten directions, yet only a few people perceive things as they truly are. Whatever is seen, wherever one goes, apart from what is desired or undesired, a person does not strive for anything else there. Whatever undertakings there are, whatever actions people perform, all are only for the sake of the body; nothing is for the sake of the Self. In the netherworld, in Brahma’s realm, in heaven, or on earth, only a few saints are seen who possess true vision. For one whose certainty of ‘this is to be rejected, this is to be accepted’ has faded in the arising of the unreal, such a knower is exceedingly rare.” “Let one rule the world, enter fire or water; except for attaining the Self, a creature does not find rest. Those who are great thinkers, heroes against their own sense-enemies, who destroy the fever of birth—those wise ones are to be revered. Everywhere are the five elements; there is nothing else as a sixth. On earth, in the netherworld, or in the sky—where does the wise mind find delight? For the knower who crosses by reasoning, the world is like the size of a cow’s hoofprint; but for one who has abandoned reasoning, it is like a vast ocean of delusion.” “The universe, clear as a cluster of kadamba fruits, is the sphere of the expansive mind; what does he give, what does he enjoy, when all this is attained? Rama, I consider all these great acts of war performed by the unwise to be for the sake of begging, bringing about the destruction of the marks of duality. By mere time, by a single epoch, in the fragile belly of time, even here, the destruction that occurs is like a great thunderbolt to the sprout.” Thus, the sage’s words flowed, illuminating the path to the Self, guiding Rama—and all who listen—towards the heart of true liberation.