The practice
Hold the first half: nothing you are aware of shows up except by being known. Then the second: what you are is disclosed only through the things it knows. Then hold that these are not two processes but one, and that knower and known share a single nature.
What it works on
The verse builds its conclusion in three moves and the third is the one to stay with. Each half alone is an ordinary observation; taken together they leave no room for the gap between the one who sees and what is seen.
Notes
- Take the halves slowly. The conclusion is worthless as a sentence and useful only as a place you arrive at.
Practise gently
Shoonyaka offers educational and contemplative material, not medical, psychological or religious authority. Nothing here diagnoses or treats any condition. Stop any practice that leaves you dizzy, frightened or unwell, and treat a strong reaction as a reason to rest rather than to push on.