Shloka 16
जनक–सुलभा संवादः
Janaka–Sulabhā Dialogue on Mokṣa and Non-attachment
षड्विंशो5हमिति प्राज्ञो गृहमाणो5जरामर: । केवलेन बलेनैव समतां यात्यसंशयम्
ṣaḍviṃśo ’ham iti prājño gṛhṇāno ’jarāmaraḥ | kevalena balenaiva samatāṃ yāty asaṃśayam ||
Vasiṣṭha dit : «Je suis le vingt-sixième—distinct des vingt-cinq principes ; je suis le Soi impérissable et immortel, toujours pourvu de connaissance et digne d’être connu.» Lorsque l’âme individuelle s’attache fermement à ce discernement, elle atteint l’identité avec Brahman par la seule force de la discrimination ; il n’y a là aucun doute.
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
By firm contemplative discernment—recognizing the Self as the twenty-sixth reality beyond the twenty-five tattvas (body-mind and cosmic principles)—the jīva realizes its identity with Brahman. Liberation is presented as the fruit of viveka (discriminative knowledge) held steadily, not as a product of external force.
Vasiṣṭha instructs through a concise contemplative formula: the seeker repeatedly grasps the insight “I am the immortal Self beyond the tattvas.” This sustained inner conviction culminates in samatā—oneness/equanimity identified here with Brahman-realization.