Sage Teachings
Wisdom from enlightened sages
79 dialogues
Where Has Delusion Gone?
Janaka & Ashtavakra
Delusion was never realâlike the snake seen in a rope, it was a misperception in awareness. When recognition dawns, ignorance does not go anywhere because it never truly existed.
Peace Beyond Words
Ashtavakra & Janaka
The deepest peace cannot be described or understoodâit can only be recognized as what we already are beneath all concepts, in the silence before words arise.
The Nature of the Wise
Janaka & Ashtavakra
The wise one lives fully in the world but remains untouched because he identifies with awareness itself, not with the passing experiences that appear within it.
The Knower of Truth
Ashtavakra & Janaka
The knower of truth perceives all forms as expressions of one awareness, transforming experience from fragmentation to unity without losing the ability to function in the diverse world.
Janaka's Final Realization
Janaka & Ashtavakra
The final realization is that the Self was never bound, never seeking, never separateâthe entire journey of awakening was the Self playing at forgetting and remembering itself.
Ribhu's Farewell
Ribhu & Nidagha
The ultimate farewell teaching is that there was never separation between teacher and student - only Brahman playing the game of teaching itself what it already knows.
Resting in the Self
Janaka & Ashtavakra
Resting in the Self is not passive withdrawal but vibrant presenceâit accommodates all activity and experience while remaining undisturbed, making action more effective and relationships more genuine.
Final Destruction of Duality
Ribhu & Nidagha
The final destruction of duality dissolves even the spiritual understanding 'I am Brahman' - what remains is pure being without a knower, where neither knowledge nor ignorance exist.
True Happiness
Janaka & Ashtavakra
True happiness is not found in changing circumstances but is the unchanging nature of the Self, always present when we stop seeking it outside ourselves.
Special Instruction
Ashtavakra & Janaka
Even the sense of spiritual progress is a subtle form of ego; true liberation comes from seeing through the one who measures progress and releasing all spiritual ambition.
The One Who Has Arrived
Janaka & Ashtavakra
One who has arrived recognizes there was never a journeyâthe sense of traveling was a dream, and awakening reveals that the Self was always present, complete, and free.
Beyond Qualities
Ashtavakra & Janaka
The Self is beyond all qualitiesâgood and bad, pure and impure, wise and ignorant. These attributes belong to the body-mind, while awareness itself remains untouched by any characteristic.
The Fearless One
Ashtavakra & Janaka
True fearlessness comes not from courage but from recognizing that the Self is unborn and undyingâwhen identification with what can be harmed dissolves, fear has nothing to attach to.
Detachment in Action
Ashtavakra & Janaka
True detachment is not avoiding action but recognizing there is no separate doer - action continues naturally while the Self remains untouched.
Dissolution of the Mind
Ashtavakra & Janaka
The mind need not be dissolved through effort; when seen clearly as an appearance in awareness, it naturally settles into its proper place.
Liberation is Your Nature
Nidagha & Ribhu
Liberation is not a future attainment but your eternal natureâyou are always already free, and the path is simply recognizing what has never been otherwise.
Neither Bound Nor Free
Janaka & Ashtavakra
True realization transcends even the concepts of bondage and liberation - the Self was never in either state and cannot be categorized.
No Teacher, No Student
Nidagha & Ribhu
Even the sacred guru-disciple relationship is ultimately a play within the one Brahmanâliberation is not transmitted from one to another but recognized as one's eternal nature.
Janaka's Awakening
Janaka & Ashtavakra
When recognition dawns, even the abandonment of the world is seen as unnecessaryâthe world itself is the Self appearing. The seeker, the seeking, and the sought are revealed as one undivided awareness, and the journey is seen to have never happened.