Seeing is the beginning of freedom

What makes us feel free? Is freedom the result of external actions or is it our natural essence that does not need to be acquired? In this excerpt from Satsang, Nitya leads us through the metaphor of a mirror – a symbol of Consciousness that reflects everything that appears in it, remaining unchanged. The mirror does not change its essence, regardless of what it sees. It is an invitation to recognize that we are not what we see, but what is looking. This realization brings profound freedom.

The Mirror Metaphor: Awareness as the Key to Liberation

Nitya describes Consciousness as a mirror that reflects everything that appears in it – without judgment, without preference, without choice. The mirror does not identify with what it reflects and remains unchanged, regardless of the content of the reflections. Similarly, our true nature is like a mirror that sees everything but never becomes what it perceives.

"Does a mirror have preferences as to what it sees? Does it segregate images into good and bad? No. It reflects everything as it comes. It is the same with our Consciousness - independent and always present."

Recognizing ourselves as a mirror means liberating ourselves from identification with thoughts, body, or emotions. Freedom comes not when we change the external world, but when we stop identifying with its reflections.

Highlights of Satsang

• The illusion of looking for home (0:42)

  Nitya talks about the illusion of searching for happiness and “home” that seem distant, as if they are out of reach. This search is often associated with a sense of tension and lack—a sense that we need to find something in order to feel complete. Yet, as Nitya notes, what we seek has always been right in front of us. “You are where you are looking from. So why look? You already are that, you always were.” Recognizing this truth is both relief and liberation, showing us that all searching only obscures what has always been present—our true nature.

• The Mirror as Consciousness (5:30)

  The mirror is a key symbol in this satsang, acting as a metaphor for Consciousness. Nitya explains that just as a mirror reflects whatever is in front of it, yet remains unchanging, so Consciousness registers whatever appears in it, without judgment or preference. Consciousness, like the mirror, does not identify with the reflections and is not dependent on their content.
  "Imagine that a mirror equals Consciousness. Does the mirror reflect itself or everything that happens in it? It has no preferences. It does not judge" – emphasizes Nitya, pointing to the universality and neutrality of Consciousness, which is our true nature.

• Seeing as Liberation (12:32)

  A Satsang participant shared a moving story in which recognizing her true nature—a mirror that sees everything—helped her break the spiral of suffering. As she noted, Consciousness, like a mirror, registers everything that appears, but never becomes what it sees. Nitya explains that this recognition brings profound liberation. By cutting off identification with the thoughts that generate suffering, we begin to see that we cannot escape from ourselves, because we are already what we seek.

How to recognize our true nature?

Seeing is the basis of freedom that requires no effort or acquisition. Already, each of us is what we always were. Nitya reminds us that we cannot escape from our true nature because we already are it. This recognition brings immense liberation, allowing us to see that the mirror (Consciousness) remains unchanged, regardless of what is reflected in it.