The Student

Śuka chose Bṛhaspati, the teacher of the gods, for his own teacher, and learned from him all the Vedas with their secrets, and the histories, and the science of kings. He gave his teacher his fee and came home, and took up a fierce austerity, keeping the vow of a student. Even as a boy he was one whom the gods and seers came to for counsel, honoured for his knowledge and austerity. But his mind took no delight in the three stages of life rooted in the householder's: the student's, the householder's own, and the forest-dweller's. He thought only of freedom.

So he went to his father, bowed, and said: You know the way of freedom, sir. Teach me, so that my mind may find the highest peace. Study freedom, my son, said Vyāsa, and dharma, the right way of living, in all its kinds. Śuka learned from his father the whole of yoga and the teaching of the sage Kapila. When Vyāsa saw that his son had the glory of Brahman, the one reality behind all things, and was skilled in the knowledge of freedom, he said to him: Go to Janaka, the king of Mithilā. He will tell you all there is to know of freedom.

Go by the road men travel, he said, not through the sky by your power. Go simply, not seeking comfort, and do not look for anything special, for special things bind. Do not be proud before that king, for I perform his sacrifices. Put yourself in his hands, and he will cut through your doubt. Whatever he says, do it without hesitation.