Ashtavakra Gita 1.2 - Teachings on Self-Realization and Liberation

Sage Aṣṭāvakra heard Janaka’s enquiry and begins to answer him. The sage’s very first words are precise, poignant.

He says: Shun all sensory objects, as if they are poisonous. If the objects are to be shunned outright, what else is to be sought?

Aṣṭāvakra speaks about a set of five virtues or disciplines, the seeker should consider as nectar. The focus has to be shifted from the external to the internal. This is no surprise or contradiction.

Though we see the world through the senses, the real sight or perception is not in the sensory level. Even the senses cannot work independently. Inner mind alone employing them, takes imprints of the objects. The imprints are mental, and therefore, inner. Whatever we see or experience is thus inside our body, in the level of the mind. The delight or contentment we derive, seemingly from external objects, is, in fact, inner, the mind alone generates and presents.

By cultivating the qualities or virtues the Sage specifies, the seeker is enriching and empowering his own mind to generate and preserve all the contentment and delight he looks for. In this context, how true, invaluable, is Aṣṭāvakra’s description of the objects as poisonous, and pronouncement of virtues as nectarine! The seeker should reflect upon this point repeatedly.

By distancing from objects, none stands to lose at all. Instead he gains immensely. In our pursuit of contentment and fulfilment, all we need is our mind, its purity and enrichment.
As body grows with food and nourishment, mind grows with healthy emotions and virtues. And the virtues Aṣṭāvakra specifies are extremely relevant and rewarding.

Straightforwardness and contentment stand out among the five qualities, the Sage specified. Especially in the context of the Guru-śishya relationship, ārjava, straightforwardness, counts a great deal. Only in its presence, the Guru will be able to share all he has with the disciple. The disciple will be able to disclose all he has – good, bad or neutral.

Contentment is always one’s own mind’s creation. To be contented, one needs nothing more than his mind. All emotions belong to the mind; joy or contentment too. The whole spiritual wisdom is the art and process of being joyous, ecstatic. And here comes the mind, and mind alone. Thus spirituality is a double blessing. It seeks to generate joy, something one and all equally need, aspire for. Secondly, one’s own mind is the sole focus for deriving it. The goal is extremely dear, and the means still closer!

The Sage takes the seeker directly to his goal, pointing that it is within his own body, and is closer than the mind, intelligence and ego. A distinct revelation to every one!