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in the self-luminous consciousness. Consciousness alone is holy, purifying. Except consciousness, there is no other holy place for pilgrimage.
Consciousness is your innate nature. You have not been away from it even for a moment. But the fact is, it is dark underneath the lamp. You can't go too far away from the lamp, the illuminating consciousness -- even if you wished to. You can, of course, have an illusion of having been moved too far apart from it; you can be in a dream world. But a dream cannot be the reality. Consciousness is your inherent nature and that is the only reality there is.
Consciousness is the being. And so the first thing is: no one, nothing is mine except the consciousness. Should this feeling become crystallized in you, it will give birth to sannyas. Because, essentially, samsara means to carry the feeling that someone other than myself can be mine.
Hence, the first sutra is tremendously radical; it can spark off a revolution in your life. It's a provocation for making you realize for the first time the truth that you alone belong to yourself -- there is no one else for you. This realization will naturally depress your mind; because you have built great relationships, you have saved lofty dreams around other people. You are carrying a lot of hopes from them.
A mother is carrying high expectations from her son. A father is hopeful of his son. They are completely lost in their hopes. Your father, for example, died carrying similar hopes. What did he gain from you? The same will apply to you; you too will meet death and gain nothing from your son. And your son will continue to follow the same stupidity -- he will keep expectations from his son.
No, this won't help. Look at your own self -- neither at someone who will follow you, nor at anyone who preceded you. No one is yours. No son can ever fulfill you. No relationship can ever be a substitute for your soul. You alone are your own friend. A realization of all this creates fear, because it makes one feel as though he is left all by himself.
Man is so scared of being lonely that even as he passes through a deserted lane, he begins to sing in a loud voice.
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