Aṣṭāvakra Saṃhitā
A Dialogue on Self-realization
Chapter 1
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Ashtavakra Gita Chapter 1: Teachings on Self-Realization and Liberation
Ashtavakra Gita Chapter 1 – Commentary by Swami Bhoomananda Tirtha
Ashtavakra Samhita begins with King Janaka asking Sage Ashtavakra how wisdom is attained, how liberation can result, and how dispassion (vairaagya) is gained. These three questions form the foundation of the entire text.
In reply, the Sage says that for attaining liberation one must shift his attention from the external to the internal, and must cultivate five principal virtues considering them as nectar. The seeker is taught to recognize that he is not the body but the Witness of all experiences. When one dis-identifies from the body-mind complex and rests in pure Consciousness, one attains peace and liberation from bondage.
Ashtavakra explains that the seeker is not the objects perceived but the witnessing Presence. Dharma and adharma (moral codes) belong to the realm of mind and ethical conditioning. The Sage declares that the Self is the one Seer of all—ever free and eternally liberated.
The awareness “I am pure Consciousness” becomes a transforming force that burns away ignorance and delusion. The Self is singular, peaceful, desire-free, complete and ever full.
Complete List of Verses in Ashtavakra Samhita Chapter 1
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.1 How to Gain Knowledge, Liberation and Detachment?
प्रथमोऽध्याय:
जनक उवाच ।
कथं ज्ञानमवाप्नोति कथं मुक्तिर्भविष्यति ।
वैराग्यं च कथं प्राप्तमेतद् ब्रूहि मम प्रभो
prathamo’dhyāya: –
janaka uvāca ..
kathaṃ jñānam-avāpnoti kathaṃ muktir-bhaviṣyati .
vairāgyaṃ ca kathaṃ prāptam-etad brūhi mama prabho .. 1-1..
How can jñana (wisdom) be attained? How will liberation result? And how does one gain dispassion? O Lord, please tell me.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.2 Renounce Sense Objects and Cultivate Virtues for Liberation
अष्टावक्र उवाच ।
मुक्तिमिच्छसि चेत्तात विषयान् विषवत्त्यज ।
क्षमार्जवदयातोषसत्यं पीयूषवद्भज
aṣṭāvakra uvāca ..
muktim-icchasi cet-tāta viṣayān viṣavat-tyaja .
kṣamārjava-dayā-toṣa-satyaṃ pīyūṣavad-bhaja .. 1-2..
Dear son, if you aspire for liberation, abandon all the objects considering them as poison. Take instead to patience, straightforwardness, compassion, contentment and truthfulness, considering them as nectar. Worship these wholeheartedly.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.3 You Are Not the Five Elements; You Are the Witness (Sakshi)
न पृथ्वी न जलं नाग्निर्न वायुर्द्यौर्न वा भवान् ।
एषां साक्षिणमात्मानं चिद्रूपं विद्धि मुक्तये
na pṛthvī na jalaṃ nāgnir-na vāyur-dyaur-na vā bhavān .
eṣāṃ sākṣiṇam-ātmānaṃ cid-rūpaṃ viddhi muktaye .. 1-3..
You are not the earth, not water, nor the wind, nor fire, nor again the sky, nor space. Know yourself as the witness of all these. Know the sentience within, its nature, for winning liberation.
The entire world is what you see. It consists of five elements, pañca-bhūtas, each of which is distinctly visible to us. The Sage picks every one of them, and says “you are not anyone of these; neither the earth, nor water, nor wind, nor fire nor again the space around and interpenetrating the other four.”
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.4 Rest in Consciousness and Be Liberated This Very Moment
यदि देहं पृथक्कृत्य चिति विश्राम्य तिष्ठसि ।
अधुनैव सुखी शान्तो बन्धमुक्तो भविष्यसि
yadi dehaṃ pṛthak-kṛtya citi viśrāmya tiṣṭhasi .
adhunaiva sukhī śānto bandha-mukto bhaviṣyasi .. 1-4..
Separating the body distinctly, should you sit restfully in Consciousness, this moment itself will you become comfortable, peaceful, liberated from bondage.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.5 You Are Beyond Caste and Ashrama, the Formless Witness (Sakshi)
न त्वं विप्रादिको वर्णो नाश्रमी नाक्षगोचर: ।
असङ्गोऽसि निराकारो विश्वसाक्षी सुखी भव
na tvaṃ viprādiko varṇo nāśramī nākṣa-gocaraḥ .
asaṅgo’si nirākāro viśva-sākṣī sukhī bhava .. 1-5..
You are not of any caste like the Brahmana, etc. You are not also of any āśrama (a stage in life). Why say much, you are not perceptible to the senses (as the body is) at all. Being so, you are unattached, formless, witness of the whole universe. Be happy.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.6 You Are Not the Doer or Enjoyer; You Are Ever Liberated
धर्माधर्मौ सुखं दु:खं मानसानि न ते विभो ।
न कर्तासि न भोक्तासि मुक्त एवासि सर्वदा
dharmādharmau sukhaṃ duḥkhaṃ mānasāni na te vibho .
na kartāsi na bhoktāsi mukta evāsi sarvadā .. 1-6..
O all-pervading one, righteousness and unrighteousness, happiness and grief, are mind-borne, mental; they are not for you. You are not any doer or experiencer. Hence are liberated indeed, always.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.7 You Are the Seer (Sakshi), Not the Seen
एको द्रष्टासि सर्वस्य मुक्तप्रायोऽसि सर्वदा ।
अयमेव हि ते बन्धो द्रष्टारं पश्यसीतरम्
eko draṣṭāsi sarvasya mukta-prāyo’si sarvadā .
ayam-eva hi te bandho draṣṭāraṃ paśyasītaram .. 1-7..
You are the one Seer of all, and always free, liberated. This indeed is your bondage, that you are seeing the Seer as another.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.8 Ego of Doership Is Bondage; Freedom Lies in Non-Doership
अहं कर्तेत्यहंमानमहाकृष्णाहिदंशित: ।
नाहं कर्तेति विश्वासामृतं पीत्वा सुखी भव
ahaṃ kartety-ahammāna-mahā-kṛṣṇāhi-daṃśitaḥ .
nāhaṃ karteti viśvāsāmṛtaṃ pītvā sukhī bhava .. 1-8..
You are bitten by the powerful black serpent, namely, egoistic notion, ‘I am the doer’. Drink well the nectar of faith, namely ‘I am not the doer’, and be comfortable.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.9 Burn the Forest of Ignorance with the Fire of Pure Consciousness
एको विशुद्धबोधोऽहमिति निश्चयवह्निना ।
प्रज्वाल्याज्ञानगहनं वीतशोक: सुखी भव
eko viśuddha-bodho’ham-iti niścaya-vahninā.
prajvālyājñāna-gahanaṃ vīta-śokaḥ sukhī bhava .. 1-9..
With the blazing fire of conclusion that ‘I am the pure Consciousness’, burning down the huge forest of ignorance and delusion, transcend grief, and be happy.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.10 World Is an Illusion (Superimposition) on Consciousness
यत्र विश्वमिदं भाति कल्पितं रज्जुसर्पवत् ।
आनन्दपरमानन्द: स बोधस्त्वं सुखं चर
yatra viśvam-idaṃ bhāti kalpitaṃ rajju-sarpavat.
ānanda-paramānandaḥ sa bodhas-tvaṃ sukhaṃ cara .. 1-10..
You are that Consciousness, which is blissful and supremely ecstatic, on which this universe is superimposed like the snake on a rope. Live and move, bereft of all anxiety and grief.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.11 As You Think, So You Become
मुक्ताभिमानी मुक्तो हि बद्धो बद्धाभिमान्यपि ।
किंवदन्तीह सत्येयं या मति: सा गतिर्भवेत्
muktābhimānī mukto hi baddho baddhābhimāny-api .
kiṃ-vadantīha satyeyaṃ yā matiḥ sā gatir-bhavet .. 1-11..
One who assiduously feels that he is liberated becomes liberated. And one who feels that he is bound becomes bound. The proverb current here is true. Whatever one thinks, that he really becomes.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.12 The Self Is Witness (Sakshi), Non-Doer and Ever Free
आत्मा साक्षी विभु: पूर्ण एको मुक्तश्चिदक्रिय: ।
असङ्गो नि:स्पृह: शान्तो भ्रमात्संसारवानिव
ātmā sākṣī vibhuḥ pūrṇa eko muktaś-cid-akriyaḥ .
asaṅgo niḥspṛhaḥ śānto bhramāt-saṃsāravān-iva .. 1-12..
The Self is the witness, all-pervading, complete and full, singular, liberated. It is consciousness and hence non-acting. It is un-associated, absolutely desire-free, quiescent, peaceful. Only due to delusion, it appears to be worldly.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.13 Give Up Ego and Concepts, Abide as Pure Consciousness
कूटस्थं बोधमद्वैतमात्मानं परिभावय ।
आभासोऽहं भ्रमं मुक्त्वा भावं बाह्यमथान्तरम्
kūṭasthaṃ bodham-advaitam-ātmānaṃ paribhāvaya .
ābhāso’haṃ bhramaṃ muktvā bhāvaṃ bāhyam-athāntaram .. 1-13..
Abandoning the illusion ‘I am the entity reflected by the mind’, equally eschewing all external and internal notions, ruminate over the Self, immutable, non-dual and sentient to the core.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.14 Cut Body-Identity with Knowledge ‘I Am Consciousness’
देहाभिमानपाशेन चिरं बद्धोऽसि पुत्रक ।
बोधोऽहं ज्ञानखड्गेन तन्निकृत्य सुखी भव
dehābhimāna-pāśena ciraṃ baddho’si putraka .
bodho’haṃ jñāna-khaḍgena tan-nikṛtya sukhī bhava .. 1-14..
Dear child, you have for long been bound by the noose of body-consciousness. Cut it off with the sword of knowledge ‘I am Consciousness’, and be happy and relieved.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.15 You Are Ever Free; Even Seeking Samadhi Is Bondage
नि:सङ्गो निष्क्रियोऽसि त्वं स्वप्रकाशो निरञ्जन: ।
अयमेव हि ते बन्ध: समाधिमनुतिष्ठसि
niḥsaṅgo niṣkriyo’si tvaṃ svaprakāśo nirañjanaḥ .
ayam-eva hi te bandhaḥ samādhim-anutiṣṭhasi .. 1-15..
You are free of clinging, free of activity, self-revealing, devoid of any blemish. This alone is your bondage, that you pursue samadhi, inner soul-absorption.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.16 The Universe Exists in You, the Pure Consciousness
त्वया व्याप्तमिदं विश्वं त्वयि प्रोतं यथार्थत: ।
शुद्धबुद्धस्वरूपस्त्वं मा गम: क्षुद्रचित्तताम्
tvayā vyāptam-idaṃ viśvaṃ tvayi protaṃ yathārthataḥ .
śuddha-buddha-svarūpas-tvaṃ mā gamaḥ kṣudra-cittatām .. 1-16..
This universe is permeated by you. Nay, in truth, it is woven in you, it exists in you. Your nature itself is pure, luminous. Be not given to small-mindedness.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.17 Free of Desires, Aspire Only for Consciousness
निरपेक्षो निर्विकारो निर्भर: शीतलाशय: ।
अगाधबुद्धिरक्षुब्धो भव चिन्मात्रवासन:
nirapekṣo nirvikāro nirbharaḥ śītalāśayaḥ .
agādha-buddhir-akṣubdho bhava cin-mātra-vāsanaḥ .. 1-17..
Free of expectation, formless, unboundedly full, with a cool disposition, with unfathomable intelligence, un-agitated, aspire only for Consciousness.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.18 The Formless Alone Is Real, Beyond Birth and Death
साकारमनृतं विद्धि निराकारं तु निश्चलम् ।
एतत्तत्त्वोपदेशेन न पुनर्भवसम्भव:
sākāram-anṛtaṃ viddhi nirākāraṃ tu niścalam .
etat-tattvopadeśena na punar-bhava-sambhavaḥ .. 1-18..
Know that anything with form is unreal, and whatever is formless is immovable. By dint of this truthful instruction, there will be no further birth.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.19 The Supreme Lord Exists Inside and Outside the Body
यथैवादर्शमध्यस्थे रूपेऽन्त: परितस्तु स: ।
तथैवास्मिन् शरीरेऽन्त: परित: परमेश्वर:
yathaivādarśa-madhyasthe rūpe’ntaḥ paritas-tu saḥ .
tathaivāsmin śarīre’ntaḥ paritaḥ parameśvaraḥ .. 1-19..
As the mirror is present inside and outside the object it reflects, so too the Supreme Lord exists inside and outside this body.
Ashtavakra Samhita 1.20 Brahman Is All-Pervading, Inside and Outside All Beings
एकं सर्वगतं व्योम बहिरन्तर्यथा घटे ।
नित्यं निरन्तरं ब्रह्म सर्वभूतगणे तथा
ekaṃ sarva-gataṃ vyoma bahir-antar-yathā ghaṭe .
nityaṃ nirantaraṃ brahma sarva-bhūta-gaṇe tathā .. 1-20..
The all-pervading space is inside and outside the jar. Likewise, the eternal, ever-present Brahman, the Supreme Reality, is inside and outside all beings and existences.
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