“The ego or separate soul is a concept. God, the world, the mind desires,
action, sorrow and all other things are all concepts”.
Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi, a famous Sage of modern India, attributed
unique value to this lucid exposition of Supreme Truth. He often referred to
it in his talks with devotees and seekers, and he is reported to have said that
is one repeatedly read Chapter 26 of the Ribhu Gita one could pass
spontaneously into samadhi, or the natural state of Self-realization.
The Ribhu Gita, literally “Ribhu’s Song”, is Part Six of the Shiva Rahasya,
a legendary mystical text of India. The whole of the Ribhu Gita is said to
represent the teaching given to the Sage Ribhu by God himself in the form of
Lord Shiva, the formless aspect of the Divine activity, in whom all beings
and things are always already absorbed. The Sage in turn gave the teaching
to his reluctant disciple Nidagha.
The Heart of the Ribhu Gita
1. I shall now expound to you the method of inhering in the All-inclusive
and undifferentiated Reality. This teaching is secret and difficult to
understand even with the help of the various Scriptures. Even celestial
beings and practitioners of spiritual discipline who hold it dear acquire
it only with great difficulty. Follow what I say and, inhering in Reality,
be happy.
2. My son! Realized sages say that absolute inherence in Reality means
becoming one with the immutable, tranquil, non-dual Absolute Supreme
Being which is Existence-Consciousness-Bliss and the Self of all, and
making the wandering mind one with it like the proverbial milk and
water, absolutely free from all concepts.
3. When one scrutinizes this variety of manifestation one realizes that it
does not really exist and that everything is the undifferentiated Absolute
Supreme Being which is not different from the Self and oneself. Let this
knowledge become firm with you by constant practice. Then,
discarding everything, become one with the Supreme Absolute Reality
and, remaining as that, be happy.
4. Abide as That which does not, when scrutinized, show any duality in the
form of these various objects or the least trace of cause and effect, That
in which, when the mind is absorbed in It, there is not fear of duality at
all – and be always happy, unshakable and free the fear arising from
duality.
5. Abide as That in which there are neither thoughts nor fancies, neither
peace nor self-control, neither the mind nor the intellect, neither
confusion nor certainly, neither being nor non-being, and no perception
of duality – and be always happy, unshakable and absolutely free from
the fear arising from duality.
6. Abide as That in which there is neither any defect nor good quality,
neither pleasure nor pain, neither thought nor silence, neither misery
nor austerities practiced for getting rid of misery, no “I-am-the-body”
idea, no objects of perception whatsoever – and be always happy, free
from all traces of thought.
7. Abide as That in which there is no work, physical, mental, verbal or of
any other kind, neither sin nor virtue, neither attachment nor its
consequences – and be always happy, free from all traces of thought.
8. Abide as That in which there are neither thoughts nor a thinker, neither
the arising nor the preservation nor the dissolution of the world,
nothing whatsoever at any time – and be always happy, free from all
traces of thought.
9. Abide as That in which there is neither the Self-limiting Power of
Illusion nor its effects, neither knowledge nor ignorance, neither
separate soul nor Lord of Creation, neither being nor non-being,
neither world nor God – and be always happy, free from all traces of
thought.
10. Abide as That in which there are no gods and their worship, none of the
three Divine aspects of Creator, Preserver and Destroyer or meditation
on them no Supreme Formless God nor meditation on Him – and be
always happy, without the least trace of thought.
11. Abide as That in which there is neither maturing bondage to the way of
good works nor searching devotion to the Divine nor self-knowing
wisdom, no fruit of action to be enjoyed, no supreme state separate
from it, no means of attainment or object to be attained and be always
happy, free from all traces of though.
12. Abide as That in which there is neither body nor senses nor vital forces,
neither mind nor intellect nor fancy, neither ego nor ignorance, nor
anyone who identifies himself with them, neither the macrocosm nor the
microcosm and be always happy, free from all traces of thought.
13. Abide as That in which there is neither desire nor anger, neither greed
nor delusion, neither ill-will nor pride, no impurities of mind and no
false notions of bondage and liberation – and be always happy, free
from all traces of thought.
14. Abide as That in which there is no beginning or end, no top or bottom
or middle, no holy place or god, no gifts or pious acts, no time or space,
no objects of perception – and be always happy, free from all traces of
thought.
15. Abide as That in which there is no discrimination between the real and
the unreal, no absence of desire, no possession of virtues, o yearning
for liberation, no competent Master or disciple, no steady knowledge,
no realized stage, no liberation while alive or after death, nothing
whatsoever at any time – and be always happy free from all traces of
thought.
16. Abide as That in which there are no Holy Scriptures or sacred books,
no one who thinks, no objection or answer to it, no theory to be
established, no theory to be rejected, nothing other than one Self – and
be always happy, free from the least trace of thought.
17. Abide as That in which there is no debate, no success or failure, no
word or its meaning, no speech, no difference between the soul and the
Supreme Being, none of the manifold causes and consequences – and
be always happy, without the least trace of thought.
18. Abide as That in which there is no need for listening, reflecting and
practicing, no meditation to be practiced, no differences of sameness,
otherness or internal contradictions, no words or their meanings – and
be always happy, free from the least trace of thought.
19. Abide as That in which there are no fears of hell, no joys of heaven, no
worlds of the Creator God or the other Gods, nor any object to be
gained from them, no other world, no universe of any kind – and be
always happy, without the least trace of thought.
20. Abide as That in which there is nothing of the elements nor even an iota
of their derivatives, no sense of “I” or “mind”, no fantasies of the
mind, no blemish of attachment, no concept whatsoever – and be
always happy, without the least trace of the thought.
21. Abide as That in which there are none of the three kinds of bodies
(gross physical, subtle internal, or formless and most subtle), dreaming
and sleeping), none of the three kinds of souls (those who are fully
prepared to advance spiritually, those who are not fully prepared, and
those who are not prepared at all), none of the three kinds afflictions
(those of the body, those caused by the elements, and those caused by
subtle beings and powers), none of the five functional layers of being
(gross physical, vital, emotional-psychic, mental, and that of formless
bliss), no one to identify himself with them – and be always happy,
without the least trace of thought.
22. Abide as That in which there is no sentient object, no power to hide
Reality, no difference of any kind, no power of projecting unreal
objects, no power of any other kind, no false notion about the world –
and be always happy, without the least trace of thought.
23. Abide as That in which there are no sense organs or anyone to use the,
That in which transcendent bliss is experienced, That which is
absolutely immediate, That by realizing and attaining which one
becomes immortal, That by becoming which one does not return to this
cycle of births and deaths – and be always happy, without the least
trace of thought.
24. Abide as That, on realizing and experiencing the bliss of which, all joys
appear to be the joys of That, That which, when clearly known to be
oneself, shows there is nothing apart from oneself, and, knowing which,
all kinds of separate souls become liberated – and be always happy,
without the least trace of thought.
25. Abide as That, on realizing which to be oneself, there is nothing else to
be known, everything becomes already known and every purpose
accomplished – and be always happy, without the least trace of thought.
26. Abide as That which is attained easily when one is convinced that one is
not different from the Supreme Absolute, That which results, when that
conviction becomes firm, in the experience of the Supreme Bliss of the
Real, That which produces a sense of incomparable and complete
satisfaction when the mind is absorbed in It – and be always happy,
without the least trace of thought.
27. Abide as That which leads to the complete cessation of misery when the
mind is absorbed in It, and the extinction of all ideas of “I,” “you” and
“another,” and the disappearance of al differences – and be always
happy, without the least trace of thought.
28. Abide as That in which, when the mind is absorbed in It, one remains
without a second, nothing other than oneself is seen to exist and
incomparable bliss is experienced – and be always happy, without the
least trace of thought.
29. Abide as That which is undifferentiated Existence, undifferentiated
Consciousness, undifferentiated Bliss, absolutely non-dual, the
undifferentiated Absolute Reality – and with the firm conviction that
you are That, be always happy.
30. Abide as That which is “I” as well as “you” as well as everyone else, is
the basis of all, is one without anything else whatsoever, is extremely
pure, the undifferentiated Whole – and with the firm conviction that you
are That, be always happy.
31. Abide as That in which there are no concepts or anything else
whatsoever, the ego ceases to exist, all desires disappear, the mind
becomes extinct and all confusions come to an end – and with the firm
conviction that you are That, be always happy.
32. Abide as That in which there is no awareness of the body, or the
various functions of manifest existence, no perception of objects, That
in which the mind is dead, the soul become one with the Reality,
thoughts dissolved and even one’s convictions no longer hold – and
with the firm conviction that you are That, be always happy.
33. Abide as That in which there is no longer any meditative spiritual
practice or ignorance or knowledge or activities of any kind, that which
is the Supreme Reality – and with the firm conviction that you are That,
be always happy.
34. Abide as That in which, when one is completely merged with It, one
experiences pure bliss, never experiences misery, sees nothing, does not
take birth again, never thinks oneself to be a separate individual,
becomes the Supreme Being and with the conviction that you are That,
be always happy.
35. Abide as That which is truly the Supreme Absolute Reality, the Supreme
Formless God, the absolutely pure Being, the Supreme State, Absolute
Consciousness, the Supreme Truth – and with the conviction that you
are That, be always happy.
36. Abide as That which is the absolutely pure Supreme Being, absolute
Bliss, the supremely subtle Being, the Self-Effulgent, non-dual and
undifferentiated One – and with the conviction that you are That, be
always happy.
37. Abide as That which is absolute Truth, supreme Tranquility, eternal
Being, absolutely attributeless, the Self, the absolutely undifferentiated
Supreme Being – and with the conviction that you are That, be always
happy.
38. Abide as That which is everything from the experiential point of view
and nothing from the absolute point of view, Existence –
Consciousness-Bliss, always tranquil, with nothing separate from It, the
self-existent Being –and with the conviction that you are That be always
happy.
39. I have thus, O Nidagha, clearly explained to you the state of being one
with the Supreme Being. By constantly thinking that you are the
undifferentiated Supreme Being you can attain that state and enjoy
constant bliss. There after, having become the Supreme Absolute
Reality, you will never experience the misery that comes from
identification with birth and death.
40. “Everything is the Supreme Being, which is Existence-Consciousness-
Bliss, and I am That” By constantly cultivating this pure thought, get
rid of impure thoughts. Then, my son, discarding even that thought and
always inhering in the State of Fullness, you will become the non-dual
and undifferentiated Supreme Being and attain liberation.
41. Pure and impure thoughts are a feature of the mind. There are no
wandering thoughts in the Supreme Being. Therefore, abide as That
and, free from the pure and impure thoughts of the mind, remain still
like a stone or a log of wood. You will then be always happy.
42. By constantly thinking of the undifferentiated Supreme Being and
forgetting thereby all thoughts, including the thought of the Supreme
Being, you will become the all-comprehensive Supreme Being. Even a
great sinner who hears and understands this teaching will get rid of all
his sins and become the undifferentiated Supreme Being.
43. The endless textbooks of spiritual instruction have already prescribed
meditation for attaining purity of mind. In order that those who have
become pure in mind may easily attain liberation and, realizing that
they are absolute and boundless Bliss, remain still like a stone in the
undifferentiated and all-comprehensive Supreme Formless God, the
nature of this immaculate state has been expounded by me.
44. Therefore, attaining purity of mind by constantly thinking that
everything that is known is the Supreme Being and that Supreme Being
is oneself, and thereafter abiding in the state of complete identity with
the Absolute Reality, liberation can be attained here and now. I have
spoken the truth. In this manner, Sage Ribhu expounded the true and
full state of being to Nidagha.
45. When one is convinced that one is always That which is Existence-
Consciousness-Bliss and abides as That in a state of complete identity,
one casts off the unreal bondage of identification with birth and death
and attains liberation. This is the significance of the highly blissful
mood and dance of our Supreme and undifferentiated God.
