Verses 42–51 · Contemplation (Nididhyasana)
Verse 43 — What You Dwell On Becomes Real
The mind makes real whatever it dwells upon.
I am self-effulgent. I am unborn. I am the One without a second. I am the ever-resplendent light of Consciousness. I am extremely pure, the uncontaminated mass of pure Consciousness. I am holy, infinite, blissful, and actionless. [Verse 43]
This verse gives the operating principle of nididhyasana, and then a set of affirmations to practise.
The principle
Key idea. Whatever the mind dwells on more, becomes more real for it; whatever it ignores becomes as good as non-existent.
A simple illustration:
| A sister in a distant city, no contact | A neighbour you meet daily |
|---|---|
| Emotionally feels "unreal," faint | Emotionally feels vivid, "real" |
Now see the problem this creates for a seeker:
flowchart LR
A[We deal with the WORLD<br/>all day, every day] --> B[World feels solidly real]
C[We touch BRAHMAN<br/>one hour a week in class] --> D[The Self feels abstract]For most of us, "Jagat satyam, Brahma mithya" — the world is real, the Self is a theory. Nididhyasana reverses this by deliberately dwelling on the Self until it becomes the reality and the world becomes the passing appearance.
The affirmations — your true nature
The verse itself is a meditation. Dwell on each phrase (by reading, writing, hearing, or repeating), understanding its meaning — posture is unimportant; the mind resting on the fact is everything.
| Affirmation | Sanskrit | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| I am the light of consciousness | Aham Prakasha-rupa | Like light itself, I illumine all |
| I am unborn | Aham Aja | The body is born and dies; I am not |
| I am non-dual | Aham Advaya | Bodies are many; consciousness is one |
| I am ever-shining | Asakrit Vibhata | The mind sleeps and wakes; I never switch off |
| I am utterly pure | Aham Nirmala | Free of craving, untouched |
| I am unmixed consciousness | Vishuddha-Vijnana-ghana | Homogeneous, unadulterated by matter |
| I am free of disease | Nir-amaya | Free of the "illness" of samsara; ever-liberated |
| I am complete | Sampoorna | Lacking nothing (unlike the ever-deficient body and mind) |
| I am of the nature of bliss | Anandamaya | Bliss itself |
| I am actionless | Akriya | Neither doer nor enjoyer |
Why "unadulterated" matters
A film of a waterfall or a rainstorm cannot wet the screen it plays on. In the same way, matter (which is mithya) can never truly stain consciousness (which is satyam). "I am ever-unadulterated."
The verse ends with a promise that is easy to test: "It will be a joke if you don't dwell on this often. When you dwell on it regularly, this becomes real — and then the problems of life become the joke, mere pinpricks." Verse 44 offers a second affirmation-meditation, tuned to specific troubles.