How does one cultivate spiritual knowledge and stay focused on the Self, based on the advice in this chapter?

Chapter 17 outlines a multi-faceted practice for cultivating spiritual knowledge. It begins with the act of listening to good scriptures and the Guru's stories, but goes further by advising one to contemplate and meditate on them daily. A crucial step is to "follow the Sadguru's word with faith" and discard ignorance regarding happiness and sorrow to acquire special knowledge, or Vijnana. The text stresses the importance of remaining alert and consistently keeping one's focus on the Self. By doing this, one can transcend the ego of "me and you" and realize that the knowledge of Brahman is already right near you, as Chapter 17 explains.