Shloka 9
जनक–सुलभा संवादः
Janaka–Sulabhā Dialogue on Mokṣa and Non-attachment
केवलं पज्चविंशं च चतुर्विशं न पश्यति । बुध्यमानो यदा55त्मानमन्यो5हमिति मन्यते
kevalaṁ pañcaviṁśaṁ ca caturviṁśaṁ na paśyati | budhyamāno yadātmānam anyo 'ham iti manyate ||
Vasiṣṭha said: When a person begins to awaken to understanding, he no longer truly perceives the twenty-four and the twenty-fifth principles as they are; instead, he falls into the notion, “I am someone other (than the Self).” In this way, misidentification arises, and ethical clarity is lost because the knower mistakes the Self for an alien or separate identity.
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse warns that even when one begins to ‘wake up’ intellectually, one may still fail to discern the true distinction between the 24 principles (the psycho-physical field) and the 25th (the witnessing Self). The error is the thought “I am other,” i.e., misidentifying the Self as a separate ego-entity, which sustains ignorance and undermines right conduct.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction-oriented setting, Vasiṣṭha speaks as a teacher, using Sāṅkhya-style categories (24/25 tattvas) to diagnose a subtle confusion in seekers: partial awakening can still leave one trapped in dualistic self-notions, preventing direct insight into the Self.