Passage 1
श्रीआत्रेय उवाच— कथं तत्त्वात्मकं राम त्वां ध्यायन् मुच्यते नरः। एतन्मे रघुशार्दूल कृपया कथय प्रभो॥१॥
Śrī Ātreya said: Rāma, how is a person liberated by meditating upon you as the principles of reality? Tiger among the Raghus, Lord, please explain this to me.
Passage 2
श्रीराम उवाच— पद्भ्यामाजानुपर्यन्तं भूतधात्री प्रतिष्ठिता। चतुरस्रा पीतवर्णा स्ववीर्यसहितापि च॥२॥
Śrī Rāma said: From the feet up to the knees is established earth, bearer of beings. It is square, yellow, and endowed with its own power.
Passage 3
तत्र चित्तं शनैः स्थित्वा तन्मयं जायते ध्रुवम्। तन्मात्रां च ग्रसित्वा तदपां मण्डलमाविशेत्॥३॥
By gradually fixing awareness there, one certainly becomes identified with earth. One should then absorb its subtle quality and enter the sphere of water.
Passage 4
जानुभ्यां नाभिपर्यन्तमपां मण्डलमुत्तमम्। शुक्लवर्णं स्ववीर्येण युक्तं वरुणदैवतम्॥४॥
From the knees to the navel extends the excellent sphere of water. It is white, endowed with its own power, and governed by Varuṇa.
Passage 5
तत्र चित्तं शनैः स्थित्वा तन्मयं जायते ध्रुवम्। तन्मात्रां च ग्रसित्वा तत्तेजोमण्डलमाविशेत्॥५॥
By gradually fixing awareness there, one certainly becomes identified with water. One should then absorb its subtle quality and enter the sphere of fire.
Passage 6
नाभेर्हृदयपर्यन्तं तेजोमण्डलमुत्तमम्। रक्तवर्णं त्रिकोणं च वह्निदैवतवीर्यभाक्॥६॥
From the navel to the heart extends the excellent sphere of fire. It is red, triangular, and bears the power of the deity Fire.
Passage 7
तत्र चित्तं शनैः स्थित्वा तन्मयं जायते ध्रुवम्। तन्मात्रां च ग्रसित्वा तद्वायुमण्डलमाविशेत्॥७॥
By gradually fixing awareness there, one certainly becomes identified with fire. One should then absorb its subtle quality and enter the sphere of air.
Passage 8
हृदयात्कण्ठपर्यन्तं वायुमण्डलमुत्तमम्। षट्कोणं च हरिद्वर्णं स्ववीर्यसहितं सदा॥८॥
From the heart to the throat extends the excellent sphere of air. It is hexagonal, green, and always endowed with its own power.
Passage 9
तत्र चित्तं शनैः स्थित्वा तन्मयं जायते ध्रुवम्। तन्मात्रां च ग्रसित्वा तन्नभोमण्डलमाविशेत्॥९॥
By gradually fixing awareness there, one certainly becomes identified with air. One should then absorb its subtle quality and enter the sphere of space.
Passage 10
कण्ठाद् भ्रूमध्यपर्यन्तं नभोमण्डलमुत्तमम्। शुद्धस्फटिकसङ्काशं वर्तुलं वीर्यसंयुतम्॥१०॥
From the throat to the space between the brows extends the excellent sphere of ether. It resembles pure crystal, is circular, and is filled with power.
Passage 11
तत्र चित्तं शनैः स्थित्वा तन्मयं जायते ध्रुवम्। तन्मात्रां च ग्रसित्वा तन्मनःस्थानमाविशेत्॥११॥
By gradually fixing awareness there, one certainly becomes identified with space. One should then absorb its subtle quality and enter the seat of mind.
Passage 12
सङ्कल्पं च विकल्पं च तदन्ते निरसेद्ध्रुवम्। ततो बोद्धव्यरूपं तन्निश्चितं जायते मनः॥१२॥
At that point one should decisively cast away both projection and counter-projection. Mind then becomes definite and assumes the form of the object to be known.
Passage 13
बोद्धव्यं बुद्धिविज्ञानं जायते तच्च वै ध्रुवम्। विज्ञानं हीनविषयं चैतन्यं जायते ततः॥१३॥
That object of knowledge certainly becomes the discriminative cognition of the intellect. When cognition is emptied of its object, it then becomes pure consciousness.
Passage 14
मनो बुद्धिश्च विज्ञानं चित्तं चाहङ्कृतिस्तथा। भवेत् पञ्चात्मकमिदमन्तःकरणशब्दितम्॥१४॥
Mind, intellect, discriminative consciousness, the field of awareness, and egoity form the fivefold complex called the inner instrument.
Passage 15
ततो भ्रूदेशतश्चोर्ध्वं सहस्रदलतोऽप्यधः। अहमस्मीति संवित्या शुद्धात्मानं च लक्षयेत्॥१५॥
Then, above the brow region yet below the thousand-petaled lotus, one should recognize the pure Self through the awareness “I am.”
Passage 16
अहन्तायां निवृत्तायामस्मीतिद्योतते विभुः। अस्मितायां निवृत्तायां स्वरूपमवभासते॥१६॥
When egoity subsides, the all-pervading reality shines as the bare sense “am.” When even that self-sense subsides, one's true nature becomes manifest.
Passage 17
ज्ञातृज्ञेयाख्यसम्बन्धे ततः शान्तिमुपागते। गुणातीतं पदं गत्वा न ततो विनिवर्तते॥१७॥
When the relation called knower and known has become still, one reaches the state beyond the guṇas and never returns from it.
Passage 18
यतो निवर्तते नैव यत्रोच्चैः सुखमश्नुते। यत्र चात्येति त्रिपथं गुणातीतपदं हि तत्॥१८॥
That from which one never returns, where one experiences supreme joy, and where one passes beyond the threefold path is indeed the guṇa-transcending state.
Passage 19
एषा ते तत्त्वसन्दोहसंस्था प्रोक्ता मया मुने। रहस्यं योगिनामेतज्ज्ञानिनां च विशेषतः॥१९॥ Sage, I have taught you this method of gathering and dissolving the principles. It is a secret of yogins and especially of those who follow the way of knowledge. **इति श्रीमदादिरामायणे ब्रह्मभुशुण्डसंवादे उत्तरखण्डे श्रीरामात्रेयसंवादे आत्रेयबोधितश्रीरामगीतायां विंशोऽध्यायः॥२०॥
** Thus ends Chapter Twenty of the Śrī Rāma Gītā taught in response to Ātreya, within the dialogue of Śrī Rāma and the sage of Atri's line in the Uttara-khaṇḍa of the glorious Ādi Rāmāyaṇa, in the dialogue of Brahmā and Bhuśuṇḍa.