Yoga Vasiṣṭha unfolds a clear distinction between the transient ego and the true Self by presenting a radical non-dual vision of consciousness. The text describes the Self (Ātman) as pure, undivided consciousness that is beginningless, endless, and ever free, the unchanging witness in which all experiences arise and subside. This Self is not the body, mind, senses, or any mental modification, but the very ground of existence, often characterized as existence-consciousness-bliss. It is likened to the unmoving screen upon which the moving images of life are projected, yet it remains untouched by what appears upon it. In this light, the Self is not something to be newly attained, but that which is always present, silently witnessing all phenomena.

In contrast, the ego (ahaṅkāra) is portrayed as a mental construct, the notion “I am this body-mind,” “I am the doer,” and “I am the enjoyer.” It arises within consciousness through ignorance and conditioning, giving rise to the illusion of a separate individual entity. The text compares this ego to a wave on the ocean of consciousness, or to a dream character that believes itself to be real while the dream lasts. Though it appears to have a powerful hold, the ego is said to be only a transient thought-wave, a fictional center without independent substance. As long as this “I-idea” persists, the cycle of desire, attachment, pleasure, pain, and rebirth continues.

Yoga Vasiṣṭha further explains that mind, ego, and world are appearances within consciousness, comparable to dreams, mirages, or reflections in a mirror. They are not absolutely nonexistent, but possess only a dependent, illusory mode of existence. Just as in a dream the dreamer, the dream-body, and the dream-world are all made of mind alone, so in the waking state the individual ego and the perceived world are nothing but modifications within pure consciousness. Recognizing this perspective loosens the rigid sense of separateness that the ego imposes and reveals the inherent unity of all things in the Self.

Liberation, therefore, is described not as acquiring a new state, but as the dissolution of the false identification that constitutes the ego. Through deep inquiry into “Who am I?”, along with detachment and sustained contemplation, the illusory nature of the ego is exposed. When the sense of being a separate doer and enjoyer falls away, what remains is simple, egoless awareness in which all experiences may still arise, yet without clinging or bondage. In this realization, it becomes evident that the true Self was never bound, and that the ego was only a passing appearance in the unchanging field of pure consciousness.