5. If all this is certainly the very Brahma, and our consciousness of him; then O Venerable sir, he must be unspeakable and inexpressible in words, even by the most learned and wisest of men. 6. Remaining thus in the meditation of the knowable One, and without any desire in our minds of any earthly good; we are enabled to attain the consciousness of our highest bliss (The Turíya state), which is unattainable by learning and unutterable in words. (The divine state is only known <to> one’s self, but never to be spoken or expressed). 7. How can this certain and invariable state of felicity, be obtained from the dogmas of the sástras; which are at variance with each other, and are employed in the enumeration of their several categories. (The ever varying sástras cannot give us any knowledge of this invariable felicity). 8. We can gain no true knowledge from the tenets of the different sástras, that are <at> best but contradictory of one another; it is therefore in vain to expect any benefit from them, that are based upon mere theories of our pretended leaders. 9. Tell me therefore, O Venerable sir, whether it is of any good to us, to learn the doctrines of the sástras or attend to the teaching of our preceptors (when our true knowledge is derived from within ourselves: _i.e._ from our intuition, self-consciousness and our personal experiences). 10. Vasishtha replied:--So it is, O mighty armed Ráma, the sástras are not the means to divine knowledge; those being profuse in wordy torrents, and this beyond the reach of words. 11. Yet hear me to tell you, O thou best of Raghu’s race, how the dictates of the sástras and the lectures of your preceptors, are of some avail towards the improvement of your understanding. 12. There lived in a certain place some wood-cutters, who had been ever unfortunate and miserable in this lives (or who were miserably poor all their lives). They pined and faded away in their poverty, like the withering trees in summer heat. 13. Excessive poverty made them cover themselves with patched up rags, and they were as emaciated in their despair as the fading lotus flowers for want of their natal water. 14. Being parched by famine, and despairing of their lives; they only thought of the means of filling their bellies. 15. In this state of their distress and despondence, one thought gleamed in their minds; and it was to carry the woods day by day to the town, and to live upon the profits of their sale as fuel. 16. Thus determined they went to the forest to fell down the woods, because any plan that is hit upon in distress, is best to be availed of, for the preservation of life. 17. Thus they continued daily to go to the forest to fell the woods, and fetch them to the town for sale; and to fill their bellies and support their bodies with the sale proceeds thereof.