You never were, can never be anywhere but Here | Ashtavakra Gita

The Ashtavakra Gita.

Chapter 12: Abiding in the Self.

Janaka said:

"Becoming first intolerant of action, then of excessive speech, then of thought itself, I come to be here.

Neither sounds nor other sense perceptions attract my attention. Even the Self is unperceived. The mind is free, undistracted, one-pointed. And here I am.

Effort is required to concentrate a distracted mind superimposed with illusion. Knowing this, I remain here.

Nothing to reject, nothing to accept. No joy, no sorrow. Lord God I am here.

The four stages of life, life without stages, meditation, renunciation, objects of mind — nothing but distractions. I am forever here.

Doing and not-doing both arise from ignorance. I know this. And I am here.

Thinking of the unthinkable One unavoidably conjures thought. I choose no-thought and remain here.

Blessed is he who attains this by effort. Blessed is he who is such by nature."

There is a point where the question, "What am I?" is resolved.

This is that clear description of what it means to realize the Self. Early on in the search, you quickly discover what you are not, but it is not yet clear what you are. The way to know yourself is to recede from the world and mind completely, to the point where only the pure unadulterated Self remains.

This Awareness.

Awareness is, of course, not a state to be attained or maintained. It is just that you need a certain detachment to see Yourself clearly, a lack of interest in anything but what is most truly You. There are no fixed instructions or a practice to be adopted. This is a description of what actually takes place in one timeless moment.

If you ever meditate truly, sitting alone in the dark, when you take that one step back, this is what unfolds.

"Becoming first intolerant of action, then of excessive speech, then of thought itself, I come to be here.

Neither sounds nor other sense perceptions attract my attention. Even the Self is unperceived.

The mind is free, undistracted, one-pointed. And here I am."

Where else could you be?

Here you are.

You're not among the perceivables. You're not a perception. So we do away with them. You are completely unperceived, yet the basis for these perceptions. The proof of what you are is not to be found by examining thoughts or becoming supremely mindful of every perception.

You just pull back all interest from that. No speech and you are still here. No thought and you are still here. No sights, or sounds, or sensations, and you are still here.

No perceptions at all. The mind, the world, all ideas of self forgotten, and You are still Here.

"Effort is required to concentrate a distracted mind superimposed with illusion. Knowing this, I remain here."

If you start paying attention to some vision, some sound, some sensation, if you get interested in thought again, those are all distractions. Therefore, in the ultimate moment of Realization, the Jnani steps away from all illusion. The world is forgotten. The mind fades away.

It is like going to sleep while remaining awake. Where there's no world, no mind, there is no illusion. Only what is real.

All experience begins Here, is witnessed from Here, ends Here.

All minds arise and dissipate Here.

The idea of separate selves, separate minds, bodies, it cannot be retained Here. Effort and meditation are required only in the dealings of the mind and the world. Just look past those distractions once and you know that You are Here. Yet having the insight being described here is somehow rare because the seeking mind wishes to see the Self or feel the Self or know the Self.

Thus effort is required to concentrate a distracted mind superimposed with illusion. But if you simply take away all perceivable phenomena, what is left is real. What is left is formless. What is left is the pure infinite Capacity to perceive.

The Basis of perception itself.

Pure Consciousness / Sentience / Awareness / You.

"Nothing to reject, nothing to accept, no joy, no sorrow. Lord God I am here."

Who is Lord here? Who is God here? Who is I here?

There are no such distinctions Here.

This is the Buddha's Nirvana. Ramana's Heart Cave. Nisargadatta's Absolute. There are no dualities when there are no objects and the subject is the Space of Subjectivity itself — pure formless Aware-ness.

"The four stages of life, life without stages, meditation, renunciation, objects of mind. Nothing but distractions.

I am forever here."

In the usual way of looking at things, it may be said that you cannot remain here; in this no-mind, this Absolute where there are no attributes. While this body functions, the mind will return. When the sense of existence returns, when the world returns, then you are back in the stages of life, the states of mind.

The flow of experience returns. Yet after you have died this Death, you know you can never be anywhere but Here.

You never were, can never be anywhere but Here.

Looking from Here, nothing ever moves an inch. No one is ever born. There is no possibility of separate selves, separate entities that become conscious and then lose it. All phenomena are appearing and dissipating Here — in this pure Awareness, which is the very fabric of Reality. All is contained within the Heart Cave.

And now you know who is the Lord of the Heart Cave.

"Doing and not-doing both arise from ignorance. I know this and I am here."

These ideas of doing or not doing, of having free will or not, they all assume there's an individual I in the first place. Someone with agency, acting in the world, or manipulating it from the outside. But the Truth demolishes this idea. There is no separate self.

What the Self is, is stupendous!

This Absolute Nothing prior to everything. The Basis of everything. The Infinity of infinities. Ignorance cannot stand in the face of this resounding Truth. That single timeless moment reveals the ignorance for good.

And Here You Are.

You are Here, always Here.

"Thinking of the unthinkable One unavoidably conjures thought. I choose no thought and remain here."

It is rare for a mind to drop away so completely that this Knowledge, Jnana, arises in You. But trying to return to that point, reside here, still the mind, go deeper, live the truth — these all just spin up the old thought processes. Thought always forms around the idea of self. And that idea of self is always far from the Truth.

Because thought cannot think of the Unthinkable — of what is truly You.

Choose no thought.

Even as the thoughts are flying past, choose no thought. Don't choose to pursue any of them.

See? No-thought does not mean no thoughts. It means not choosing thought over Truth.

Choose no-thought and remain Here as You Are.

It is true that effort is required to concentrate a distracted mind. It is true that no effort is required to be Here. Both are true. The effort is to see the Truth once. Yet the Truth shines ever true.

Blessed is the one who turns to this inner quest. Blessed are You who are in Yourself the Truth — Pure Awareness.

"Blessed is he who attains this by effort. Blessed is he who is such by nature."

Chapter 13: Happiness.

Janaka said:

"The tranquil state of knowing Self alone is rare, even among those who own but a loin cloth. I therefore neither renounce nor accept and am happy.

The body is strained by practices, the tongue tires of scripture, the mind numbs with meditation. Detached from all this, I live as I am.

Realizing that nothing is done, I do what comes and am happy. Yogis who preach either effort or non-effort are still attached to the body. I neither dissociate nor associate with any of that and am happy.

I have nothing to gain or lose by standing, walking or sitting down. So whether I stand, walk or sit, I am happy.

I do not lose by sleeping nor attain by effort. Not thinking in terms of loss or gain. I am happy.

Pleasure and pain fluctuate and are inconsistent. Without good or bad, I live happily."