socalled as mine. Let me illustrate it. Do you not see me and recognize me as your belove d?

It means I am not the Self. It is true that I am like Self, I am your own because o f certain relationship, but in no way can I be your essence of Self. In this manner, whate ver you can, discard because it is mine, and that which cannot be so discarded since it is di fferent from mine; try to find that which is your self essence and reach to that highest abode in t his manner." Having heard this, the prince got off from there at once and came out of the cit y mounting on his horse, without wandering here or there. Reaching the palace, passing through the beautiful garden, he entered the palace and went up the terrace of his palace. He allowed his attendance to remain below and strongly instructed the gate-keepers that no one should be allo wed to enter the palace as he was meditating in loneliness. Whether he be the father or the minis ters or anyone else, no one should be allowed to enter the palace without his permission. Havin g given this instruction, he went up to the 9th story of his palace. It was on a very great h eight, from where he could see land to a very great distance. He spread a mattress and seated himself on it and concentrating his mind, he began to think: "Indeed, the whole world is idiotic; not even a single man knows who he is, and everyone is busy in various activities all for himself. Some are busy studying scriptures while o thers Vedas and some others are engaged in accumulating wealth or governing a kingdom. Some peop le are engaged in fighting against their enemies while others in engagement of the sens es. And all this is being done for each one's self, yet hardly anyone knows who himself is. What an infatuation; What height of ignorance.' I, not knowing myself, was engaged in many things til l now. All this has become fruitless like a dream. Let me now meditate upon my own essence. I do not feel myself in any of these things before me like the palace, grain, the whole kingdo m, the treasury, beautiful women, elephants, horses, etc. It is not possible for me to call them "I". They are all mine. I am not these though they are mine. Is then this body "I"? It seems to be so. I am born in a princely family, having fair color. This is what I am. Well, everyone understand s himself like me to be this body." He became doubtful for some time and began to meditate over this. "Oh no, even this body is mine, it is not "I". How can it be myself? It is compo sed of blood and flesh and bones and is transforming itself every moment. Every moment, its atom is being lost and is being replaced by new ones according to the law of time. All those atoms which constituted the childhood are lost when it becomes a youth. This is how it is go ing on. But then, I

was existing even in the childhood, so am I today. Hence, if I were an organizat ion of these atoms, that is, body, how could that be possible? So also, I appear to myself in the dream state also, and in that state this body remains motionless like a log of wood. Hence, how is it possible for me to call myself a body, since in the sleep it is just like a stone? I do n ot know in that state if there is anyone near me or not. Hence, the knower within me is something differe nt from this body. It knows, I am not; because in the deep sleep I do not know even myself. M ay-be, I do not exist at all. No, but I exist, I am. If I am not, how could I say that I was in sleep? Who had this experience of sleep then? Well, it is indubitable that it is "I" who knows it. I f I am not the knower and not knowing anything, i.e. if I am just like a stone, who is it that is striving to know my own essence? Hence, it is absolutely false to think that I am the body. I am not the body, I am