Verse 8 of Prakaraṇa 8 details the nirānanda state, a crucial intermediary stage marked by a serene, immaculate, and immutable mind (shanta, nirmala, acyuta). This is not a state of blissful joy, but rather a profound stillness, a cessation of all experiential fluctuation. The yogi, within this nirānanda, doesn’t merely attain nirvāṇa; rather, he becomes it directly, experiencing the cessation of suffering itself. The term saakshaat – ‘directly’ or ‘actually’ – highlights the immediacy of this transformation, a shift from conceptual understanding to an experiential fact. This state, reminiscent of the dhyāna practices within the eight-limbed yoga, is a preparation for deeper states of consciousness, a stilling of the prāṇa and a gradual refinement of the nāḍī system. It’s a necessary step in moving beyond the oscillations of pleasure and pain, paving the way for the ultimate realization of Brahman as the unchanging, underlying reality.