That which remains immutable in the states of waking, dreaming, and deep sleep—that is the principle of the Supreme Self, and that is the mark of the liberated while living.

The triad of consciousness states—waking, dreaming, and deep sleep—constitutes the field of inquiry within the Māṇḍūkya Upaniṣad. Vāsiṣṭha does not posit a fourth state (turīya) as a discrete entity; rather, he indicates that which remains once the three are recognized as superficial undulations. Immutability (avikāritva) is not inertia, but the capacity to encompass all change without itself undergoing modification. The jīvanmukta is not one who has departed from the world, but rather one who has recognized never having been situated within it. Their actions—walking, speaking, eating—are akin to the movements of the body in sleep: ostensibly real to the observer, yet recognized as unreal by the awakened.