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How does the Ashtavakra Gita define the nature of the self (Atman)?

The Ashtavakra Gita paints the Self (Atman) as pure, undivided awareness—untouched by body, mind or world. It’s not a personality or emotion, but the silent witness behind every thought and sensation. Like sunlight that doesn’t get burned by the dust it lights up, the Atman remains forever pristine, even as it illuminates the sugar-spun complexities of life.

Rather than being born, the Self is ever-existing and unborn. No birth marks its arrival, no death can claim its departure. Thoughts and sensations are likened to passing weather—sometimes stormy, sometimes clear—yet the sky itself remains unchanged. When the mind mistakes those weather patterns for its own identity, confusion and suffering sneak in. In truth, there’s no real “other” out there; only the ever-present, seamless oneness.

Attributes like strength, weakness, joy or sorrow belong to the body–mind drama. Atman transcends those labels, resting in effortless being. The Gita goes so far as to say the liberated one sees the entire universe in the Self, and the Self in the universe—a vision strikingly in tune with today’s quantum physics hinting at deep interconnection.

The present era of mindfulness apps and wellness gurus scratches at this ancient jewel, but the Ashtavakra Gita cuts to the chase: drop all concepts, rests in awareness itself, and freedom dawns. No rituals or elaborate practices are mandatory—simply wake up to what’s already here. It’s like discovering a hidden room in a familiar house: the key was in one’s own pocket all along.