Aśoka-śāstra: Nārada’s Instruction on the Cessation of Śoka
Grief
परचक्षुषि चात्मानं ये न पश्यन्ति पार्थिव
paracakṣuṣi cātmānaṃ ye na paśyanti pārthiva
হে পাৰ্থিৱ! যিসকলে ‘পৰচক্ষুষি’—অৰ্থাৎ আনৰ চকুৰে দেখা বস্তুত—আত্মাক নেদেখে, বাহ্য আশ্ৰয়ত নিৰ্ভৰশীল হৈ থাকে, সিসকলে প্ৰকৃততে নিজকে নাজানে।
याज्ञवल्क्य उवाच
True self-knowledge is inward: one must recognize the Ātman directly, not define oneself by external appearances or by how others see and judge.
In Śānti Parva’s instructional setting, the sage Yājñavalkya addresses a king and delivers a reflective teaching on self-perception—warning against mistaking external viewpoints for the reality of the Self.