ð
ð·ðððūðĩððð° ðððĪðū is a 20-chapter dialogue of direct ð
ðĶððĩððĪ, moving from questions to recognition to the quiet stabilization of freedom. Its repeated teaching is simple: you are the awareness that knows experience, not the body-mind that is experienced. The aim is not to build a new spiritual identity, but to dissolve the old habit of identification that produces fear, craving, and inner struggle.
In the previous chapters, this recognition has been approached from many angles. Chapter 1 points to the witness (ðļðūððð·ð) and warns against compulsive attachment to ðĩðŋð·ðŊs. Chapters 2-4 describe recognition and its lived texture. Chapters 5-9 emphasize ðēðŊ and the dropping of grasping and renouncing, and Chapter 10 presses dispassion further by calling ðĪðð·ððĢðū the essence of bondage. Chapter 11 then adds a stabilizer: firm inner conviction (ðĻðŋðķðððŊ) that ends mental argument and allows the mind to settle naturally.
Chapter 12 is ððĻð's response from that settledness. Instead of describing metaphors or debating philosophy, he repeatedly says: ððĩðŪððĩ ð
ðđðŪðūðļððĨðŋðĪð - "thus, I abide." The verses describe a quiet withdrawal of inner compulsion. Not only does craving drop, but even the effortful project of "managing the mind" relaxes. ððĻð notices how the mind can get distracted by work, speech, thought, and even by spiritual practices, and he describes a natural settling beyond those swings.
The next chapters continue this portrait of effortless freedom. Chapter 13 repeats ðŊðĨðū ðļðððŪð - "as is comfortable" - describing ease amid life. Chapter 14 describes a mind so empty of inner story that ordinary desires and comparisons fall away. Then Chapter 15 returns to ð
ð·ðððūðĩððð°'s voice with powerful direct pointers, building toward the longer later chapters that explore freedom in many more facets.
Seen as a whole, Chapter 12 is a chapter of "resting as is." It shows the aftermath of clarity: aversion to noisy busyness, fading attraction to sensory distraction, and the dropping of the constant inner project of achieving a special state. The refrain is not laziness; it is the taste of freedom that comes when the mind stops bargaining with reality and stops trying to turn spirituality into another achievement. The summary is simple: recognition ripens into natural abiding.
ððĻð ððĩðūð āĨĨ
ððūðŊðððĪððŊðūðļðđð ðŠðð°ððĩð ðĪðĪð ðĩðūðððĩðŋðļððĪð°ðūðļðđð āĨĪ
ð
ðĨ ððŋððĪðūðļðđðļððĪðļððŪðūðĶð ððĩðŪððĩðūðđðŪðūðļððĨðŋðĪð āĨĨ 12-1āĨĨ
Meaning (ðŠðĶðūð°ððĨ):
ððĻðð - King Janaka
ððĩðūð - said
ððūðŊ-ðððĪððŊ-ð
ðļðđð - unable to bear bodily activity; weary of bodily doing
ðŠðð°ððĩð - before; earlier
ðĪðĪð - then; thereafter
ðĩðūðð-ðĩðŋðļððĪðūð°-ð
ðļðđð - unable to bear the expansion of speech; weary of excessive talking
ð
ðĨ - then; next
ððŋððĪðū-ð
ðļðđð - unable to bear worry/thought-traffic; weary of rumination
ðĪðļððŪðūðĪð - therefore; from that
ððĩð ððĩ - thus; in this very way
ð
ðđðŪð - I
ððļððĨðŋðĪð - established; abiding
Translation (ððūðĩðūð°ððĨ):
Janaka said: Earlier I grew weary of bodily busyness; then I grew weary of excessive speech; then I grew weary of constant thinking. Therefore, in this way, I abide.
Commentary (ð
ðĻððļðð§ðūðĻ):
This verse is not a teaching of aversion; it is a description of ripening. When recognition becomes clear, the mind naturally loses taste for needless noise. ððūðŊ-ðððĪððŊ refers to activity driven by restlessness - doing for the sake of doing, or doing to avoid feeling. ðĩðūðð-ðĩðŋðļððĪðūð° is not truthful speech; it is the overflow of talk that comes from insecurity, performance, and the need to manage impressions. ððŋððĪðū is not useful reflection; it is the endless inner commentary that multiplies suffering. ððĻð says these have become unbearable not because life is bad, but because the mind has tasted a deeper quiet.
This is a practical sign of ðĩðð°ðūðððŊ. Dispassion is often misunderstood as forcing yourself to stop doing things. Here it is simply loss of appetite for compulsive patterns. When you see that the Self is already complete, you no longer need to keep proving yourself through activity, or soothing yourself through chatter, or controlling life through rumination. The earlier chapters pointed to this: bondage is inner compulsion, not outer situation. When compulsion drops, the nervous system begins to rest.
Practice by noticing which layer is currently most active for you: body-busyness, speech-busyness, or thought-busyness. Then apply a gentle reduction, not a harsh suppression. If it is body-busyness, do one task slower and with full attention, and leave one unnecessary task undone. If it is speech-busyness, practice one minute of listening without interrupting, or skip one opinion you do not need to broadcast. If it is thought-busyness, set a two-minute timer and refuse rumination; return to breath and the present action. These small reductions create space for the abiding ððĻð describes.
ðŠðð°ððĪððŊððūðĩððĻ ðķðŽððĶðūðĶðð°ðĶððķððŊðĪððĩððĻ ððūðĪððŪðĻð āĨĪ
ðĩðŋððð·ððŠðððūððð°ðđððĶðŊ ððĩðŪððĩðūðđðŪðūðļððĨðŋðĪð āĨĨ 12-2āĨĨ
Meaning (ðŠðĶðūð°ððĨ):
ðŠðð°ððĪðŋ-ð
ððūðĩððĻ - by absence of attraction; by lack of craving
ðķðŽððĶ-ððĶðð - of sound and other sense-objects
ð
ðĶððķððŊðĪððĩððĻ - by the fact of being unseen; not an object of sight
ð - and
ððĪððŪðĻð - of the Self
ðĩðŋððð·ððŠ - distraction; scattering
ðððūððð° - one-pointedness; forced concentration
ðđððĶðŊð - (my) heart/mind
ððĩð ððĩ - thus; in this very way
ð
ðđðŪð - I
ððļððĨðŋðĪð - established; abiding
Translation (ððūðĩðūð°ððĨ):
Because there is no attraction to sound and other sense-objects, and because the Self is not a visible object, my mind is free from both distraction and forced concentration. Thus I abide.
Commentary (ð
ðĻððļðð§ðūðĻ):
This verse is subtle because it names two extremes: ðĩðŋððð·ððŠ and ðððūððð°. Most people know distraction. But after some spiritual effort, the mind can become attached to a different extreme: forcing one-pointedness as a badge of progress. ððĻð says his heart is free of both. Why? First, there is ðŠðð°ððĪððŊð-ð
ððūðĩ toward sensory lure - not because senses are evil, but because craving has weakened. Second, the Self is ð
ðĶððķððŊ - not an object you can "see" like a thing. When you stop treating the Self as an object to attain, the effortful grasping relaxes.
This is a mature point: concentration is a tool, but clinging to concentration becomes another bondage. Advaita emphasizes that the witness is present even when the mind is scattered and even when the mind is focused. Therefore, freedom is not identical with a particular mental state. A scattered mind can still recognize the witness; a concentrated mind can still be egoic. ððĻð is describing a mind that has stopped turning states into identity.
Practice by shifting from "state-chasing" to "witness-recognition." In a quiet moment, notice one sensory pull (sound, phone, taste). Instead of resisting, see it as an appearance in awareness. Then notice the opposite pull: the desire to control the mind and force stillness. See that too as an appearance. For a few breaths, rest as the knower of both pulls. Then return to life with a simple experiment: do one activity without distraction (one meal, one walk), not to prove concentration, but to taste simplicity. This trains the balance ððĻð describes.
ðļðŪðūð§ððŊðūðļðūðĶðŋðĩðŋððð·ðŋðŠððĪð ðĩððŊðĩðđðūð°ð ðļðŪðūð§ðŊð āĨĪ
ððĩð ðĩðŋðēððððŊ ðĻðŋðŊðŪðŪððĩðŪððĩðūðđðŪðūðļððĨðŋðĪð āĨĨ 12-3āĨĨ
Meaning (ðŠðĶðūð°ððĨ):
ðļðŪðūð§ðŋ-ððļðūðĶðŋ - samAdhi and so on (spiritual attainments/practices)
ðĩðŋððð·ðŋðŠððĪð - in distraction; in being scattered/occupied
ðĩððŊðĩðđðūð°ð - worldly activity; practical dealings
ðļðŪðūð§ðŊð - for samAdhi; for the sake of settling
ððĩð - thus
ðĩðŋðēððððŊ - having seen; having observed
ðĻðŋðŊðŪðŪð - the rule; the pattern
ððĩð ððĩ - thus; in this very way
ð
ðđðŪð - I
ððļððĨðŋðĪð - established; abiding
Translation (ððūðĩðūð°ððĨ):
When one becomes distracted even by samAdhi and such pursuits, one turns to worldly activity for the sake of settling. Seeing this pattern, I abide as I am.
Commentary (ð
ðĻððļðð§ðūðĻ):
This verse exposes a subtle trap: spiritual ambition can become another distraction. The mind can chase ðļðŪðūð§ðŋ the way it chases wealth - as proof of worth. Then even meditation becomes ðĩðŋððð·ððŠ: a restless project of attainment. ððĻð observes a pattern: when the mind is scattered by such pursuits, it often swings to ðĩððŊðĩðđðūð° (worldly action) as a counterbalance, hoping that activity will make the mind fit for samAdhi. Both can become endless projects.
The point is not to reject meditation or to reject daily work. The point is to stop making "settledness" an achievement. In Advaita, the witness is already present; peace is not manufactured, it is uncovered. When the mind turns spirituality into achievement, it stays in the same pattern of becoming. Seeing this pattern (ðĻðŋðŊðŪ) clearly is itself a kind of freedom: it lets you step out of the pendulum.
Practice by checking your motive in practice. If you meditate, ask: "Am I meditating to be someone, or to see what I am?" If you work hard, ask: "Am I working to avoid myself, or as a clean expression of responsibility?" Then try a small shift: do one short meditation without any goal - simply noticing awareness - and do one small piece of work with full attention and no self-image attached. This breaks the cycle of spiritual achievement and worldly avoidance. Over time, you begin to live practice as ð
ðĻððļðð§ðūðĻ - reflective assimilation - rather than as a trophy hunt.
ðđððŊððŠðūðĶððŊðĩðŋð°ðđðūðĶð ððĩð ðđð°ðð·ðĩðŋð·ðūðĶðŊðð āĨĪ
ð
ððūðĩðūðĶðĶððŊ ðđð ðŽðð°ðđððŪðĻððĻð ððĩðŪððĩðūðđðŪðūðļððĨðŋðĪð āĨĨ 12-4āĨĨ
Meaning (ðŠðĶðūð°ððĨ):
ðđððŊ-ððŠðūðĶððŊ-ðĩðŋð°ðđðūðĪð - from absence of "reject this / accept that"
ððĩð - thus
ðđð°ðð·-ðĩðŋð·ðūðĶðŊðð - of elation and dejection
ð
ððūðĩðūðĪð - from absence
ð
ðĶððŊ - today; now
ðđð - O!
ðŽðð°ðđððŪðĻð - O Brahman; O wise one (address)
ððĩð ððĩ - thus; in this very way
ð
ðđðŪð - I
ððļððĨðŋðĪð - established; abiding
Translation (ððūðĩðūð°ððĨ):
Because the inner habit of "reject this / accept that" has dropped, and because elation and dejection have faded, O Brahman, today I abide thus.
Commentary (ð
ðĻððļðð§ðūðĻ):
This verse names the mind's basic software: ðđððŊ-ððŠðūðĶððŊ - "must reject" and "must obtain." That software can be useful for practical life, but it becomes bondage when it is driven by fear and incompleteness. Then every moment becomes a negotiation: "I must get rid of this feeling," "I must secure that result." From that negotiation come ðđð°ðð· and ðĩðŋð·ðūðĶ: excitement when the desired arrives, and dejection when it doesn't. ððĻð says these swings have faded because the underlying compulsion has faded.
This does not remove discernment. It removes compulsive valuation. You can still choose what is wholesome, avoid what is harmful, and act responsibly. But you stop turning every choice into identity. In Advaita, this is possible because the witness is already whole. When wholeness is recognized, the mind's frantic sorting slows down. The result is a quieter emotional tone: not flatness, but stability.
Practice by noticing where you live inside ðđððŊ-ððŠðūðĶððŊ. It might be an emotion you refuse to feel, a result you demand, or a person you try to control. When you catch the demand, pause and ask: "Is this discernment, or is this fear?" Discernment is calm and specific; fear is urgent and absolute. Then rest for two breaths as the witness and choose a clean action: speak truthfully, set a boundary, take one step, or simply allow a feeling to be felt. This trains the nervous system out of swing and into steadiness.
ððķðð°ðŪðūðĻðūðķðð°ðŪð ð§ððŊðūðĻð ððŋðĪððĪðļððĩððððĪðĩð°ðððĻðŪð āĨĪ
ðĩðŋððēððŠð ðŪðŪ ðĩðððð·ððŊððĪðð°ððĩðŪððĩðūðđðŪðūðļððĨðŋðĪð āĨĨ 12-5āĨĨ
Meaning (ðŠðĶðūð°ððĨ):
ððķðð°ðŪ-ð
ðĻðūðķðð°ðŪðŪð - being in an ashrama/role or not being in one
ð§ððŊðūðĻð - meditation
ððŋðĪððĪ-ðļððĩððððĪ-ðĩð°ðððĻðŪð - adopting the mind or rejecting it; taking and leaving (mental discipline)
ðĩðŋððēððŠð - imagination; conceptual alternative
ðŪðŪ - my
ðĩðððð·ððŊ - having seen; having examined
ððĪðð - by these; with these
ððĩð ððĩ - thus; in this very way
ð
ðđðŪð - I
ððļððĨðŋðĪð - established; abiding
Translation (ððūðĩðūð°ððĨ):
Seeing as imagination the alternatives of ashrama or no ashrama, meditation, and taking or rejecting mental discipline, I abide thus.
Commentary (ð
ðĻððļðð§ðūðĻ):
This verse is not dismissing practice; it is describing non-clinging toward practice. Many seekers turn practices into identity: "I am a renunciate," "I am a householder," "I am a meditator," "I am disciplined," "I am beyond discipline." These are ðĩðŋððēððŠs - conceptual alternatives - and the ego can hide inside any of them. ððĻð says he has examined these alternatives and no longer treats them as ultimate. The Self is not improved by an external role, and it is not diminished by the absence of a role.
This is a liberating point for modern life, where people often get stuck in comparisons: "I should have a different lifestyle," "If only I lived like a monk, I'd be peaceful," or the opposite, "If only I had a more successful life, then I'd be free." The verse points to a deeper freedom: use roles and practices as tools, not as identities. Advaita keeps returning to the witness: whatever role you play, you are the awareness in which the role is known.
Practice by choosing one role-identity you lean on and loosening it gently. If you identify as "productive," practice one hour of being without proving; if you identify as "spiritual," practice one day of quiet sincerity without announcing it; if you identify as "undisciplined," practice one small discipline for seven days. The goal is not to pick the right identity; it is to see identities as ðĩðŋððēððŠ and rest as the witness. Then keep one simple practice - meditation, prayer, or self-inquiry - as a support, but without turning it into a badge.
ðð°ððŪðūðĻðð·ðð ðūðĻðŪððððūðĻðūðĶð ðŊðĨððĩððŠð°ðŪðļððĪðĨðū āĨĪ
ðŽðð§ððĩðū ðļðŪððŊððŋðĶð ðĪðĪððĪððĩðŪððĩðŪððĩðūðđðŪðūðļððĨðŋðĪð āĨĨ 12-6āĨĨ
Meaning (ðŠðĶðūð°ððĨ):
ðð°ððŪ-ð
ðĻðð·ðð ðūðĻðŪð - performance of actions; ritualized doing
ð
ððððūðĻðūðĪð - from ignorance
ðŊðĨðū ððĩ - just as
ððŠð°ðŪð - cessation; stopping
ðĪðĨðū - so
ðŽðð§ððĩðū - having understood
ðļðŪððŊðð - rightly; thoroughly
ððĶðŪð - this
ðĪðĪððĪððĩðŪð - truth; principle
ððĩð ððĩ - thus; in this very way
ð
ðđðŪð - I
ððļððĨðŋðĪð - established; abiding
Translation (ððūðĩðūð°ððĨ):
Seeing that compulsive action arises from ignorance and that it naturally ceases when ignorance is understood, and understanding this truth rightly, I abide thus.
Commentary (ð
ðĻððļðð§ðūðĻ):
This verse points to a subtle shift: action can become simpler when the doer-identity drops. ðð°ððŪ-ð
ðĻðð·ðð ðūðĻ includes not only ritual action, but the whole pattern of "doing to become." ððĻð says that this pattern is rooted in ð
ððððūðĻ - ignorance of what you are. When you think you are a limited person who must secure yourself through action, you keep acting in an anxious way. When the Self is recognized as already complete awareness, a portion of that anxious doing ceases by itself. That natural cessation is ððŠð°ðŪ.
This does not mean realized people stop all action. The body-mind will still function. But the quality of action changes: less compulsion, less self-justification, less need to prove. In Advaita terms, ðð°ððĪððĪððĩ (doer-identity) and ðððððĪððĪððĩ (enjoyer/owner-identity) loosen. Then action can become more like a response to what is needed rather than a strategy to fix your existence.
Practice by observing where your action is driven by insecurity. Pick one daily area: work, helping, exercise, socializing. Ask: "Am I doing this to be okay, or because it is simply appropriate?" Then try one experiment: do one task with a relaxed body and without inner self-talk about your worth. If anxiety arises, pause and return to awareness for one breath, then continue. Also practice a small ððŠð°ðŪ: stop one unnecessary action today (one extra email check, one extra explanation, one extra scroll) and see that you remain okay. This trains the mind to trust the Self rather than the compulsion to do.
ð
ððŋððĪððŊð ððŋððĪððŊðŪðūðĻðð―ðŠðŋ ððŋððĪðūð°ððŠð ðððĪððŊðļð āĨĪ
ðĪððŊðððĪððĩðū ðĪðĶðððūðĩðĻð ðĪðļððŪðūðĶð ððĩðŪððĩðūðđðŪðūðļððĨðŋðĪð āĨĨ 12-ðāĨĨ
Meaning (ðŠðĶðūð°ððĨ):
ð
ððŋððĪððŊð - the unthinkable; that which cannot be grasped by thought
ððŋððĪððŊðŪðūðĻð ð
ðŠðŋ - even when being thought about
ððŋððĪðū-ð°ððŠðŪð - takes the form of thought
ðððĪðŋ - becomes; takes on
ð
ðļð - that (unthinkable reality)
ðĪððŊðððĪððĩðū - having abandoned
ðĪðĪð-ððūðĩðĻðŪð - contemplation of that (as a thought-object)
ðĪðļððŪðūðĪð - therefore
ððĩð ððĩ - thus; in this very way
ð
ðđðŪð - I
ððļððĨðŋðĪð - established; abiding
Translation (ððūðĩðūð°ððĨ):
Even the unthinkable, when it is thought about, becomes only a thought-form. Therefore, giving up that kind of contemplation, I abide thus.
Commentary (ð
ðĻððļðð§ðūðĻ):
This is a key instruction for avoiding a subtle spiritual mistake: turning the Self into a mental object. The Self is ð
ððŋððĪððŊ not because it is mysterious, but because it is the very light by which thoughts are known. When you try to "think the Self," you only produce a thought about the Self. That thought is known; therefore it cannot be the knower. ððĻð says he has abandoned that kind of contemplation (ððūðĩðĻðū) - not contemplation as such, but objectifying contemplation.
This is why Advaita often emphasizes direct recognition over conceptualization. Concepts can point, but they cannot substitute for seeing. The verse is not anti-intellectual; it is pro-clarity. A mind that keeps spinning subtle concepts can still avoid the simple fact of being awareness. When the mind drops the urge to grasp the Self as an object, it becomes easier to rest as the witness. That resting is what ððĻð calls abiding.
Practice by noticing when you are using thought to avoid silence. If you read a verse and then immediately start constructing theories, pause. Ask: "What is aware of this theorizing?" Then stop for ten breaths and rest as that awareness. If the mind produces another thought, notice it and let it pass. After the ten breaths, return to the verse and see if it lands more simply. This builds a skill: you use thought as a pointer, then you drop thought and stand as what the pointer indicates. That is how study becomes liberation rather than another form of mental entertainment.
ððĩðŪððĩ ðððĪð ðŊððĻ ðļ ðððĪðūð°ððĨð ððĩððĶðļð āĨĪ
ððĩðŪððĩ ðļððĩððūðĩð ðŊð ðļ ðððĪðūð°ððĨð ððĩððĶðļð āĨĨ 12-ðŪāĨĨ
Meaning (ðŠðĶðūð°ððĨ):
ððĩð ððĩ - thus; in this very way
ðððĪð - done; accomplished
ðŊððĻ - by whom
ðļð - that person
ðððĪðūð°ððĨð - fulfilled; accomplished; whose purpose is achieved
ððĩððĪð - would be
ð
ðļð - that one
ðļððĩððūðĩð - nature; natural state
ðŊð - who
Translation (ððūðĩðūð°ððĨ):
The one by whom this is done is fulfilled; and the one whose natural state is like this is fulfilled.
Commentary (ð
ðĻððļðð§ðūðĻ):
This concluding verse gives two complementary ways to understand freedom. One way emphasizes "done": you can say, "I have practiced and arrived." That is helpful for the mind that needs a sense of path. The other way emphasizes nature: freedom is not manufactured; it is the natural state when false identification drops. ððĻð honors both: effort has its place in removing confusion, yet what is discovered is not created by effort.
This is also why the chapter repeats "thus I abide" rather than "thus I achieved." The text keeps pointing to ease. When the mind stops objectifying the Self, stops chasing states, stops bargaining with dualities, and stops compulsive doing, what remains is simple awareness. That awareness is not special; it is ordinary and ever-present. The accomplishment (ðððĪðūð°ððĨ) is simply no longer missing what has always been here.
Practice by keeping both truths together. If you need discipline, keep a small daily practice and be steady. But do not make practice into a new identity. Each day, also pause and ask: "What is already true right now, before I improve anything?" Rest as the witness for a few breaths. Then act from clarity. Over time, practice becomes light, and freedom becomes less of a distant goal and more of a present fact. That is what this conclusion is pointing to.
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