Essence of Freedom

Excerpts from The Essence of the Ribhu Gita

The Ribhu Gita forms the sixth section of the Sanskrit work known as Siva Rahasya. It is the teachings of Lord Siva in Mount Kailas to His devotee Ribhu, from whom the Gita derives its name. Sri Ramana Maharshi recommended its recital as a strong support for spiritual sadhana. He used to say that the recital itself leads to spontaneous abidance in the Self.

It is only the mind which appears as the world and bondage, there is no world other then the mind. On enquiry this mind turns out to be nothing more then a group of ripples (thoughts) in the still ocean of pure Awareness-Shiva-Self. I am that Shiva-Self only and there is nothing apart from me, one should ever abide in the conviction born of this experience.

There is no world apart from the mind. What appears as the world is only the mind. If this mind is investigated, it turns out to be nothing more than a bundle of thoughts based on the primary thought of "I am the body" called the ego. If this ego--I is enquired into and its identity searched, it gets swallowed up without a trace in the pure Awareness-Being-Shiva-Self. One should maintain this firm bhavana "I am Self-Shiva" until that state of being the Shiva-Self -- becomes the spontaneous experience free from the effort of bhavana.

In me, the pure Awareness-Self, the universe is born, maintained and dissolved as the mind. Therefore, there are no mind and thought forms of objects apart from me the Self. In this firm experience one should ever abide.

One should ever abide as pure Shiva-Self by the firm experience that there are no thought forms of creature, world and creator apart from the mind which is just an array of ripples in me the still ocean of pure Awareness-Self and therefore I am the sole Being-Shiva-Self only.

Even as the world, seen in my dream, is not apart from me but only my creation, even so, the world of the waking state is only a creation made by me and seen by me in the medium of my pure Awareness-Self.

No world exists during absence of the mind, and there is no mind apart from my awareness. so, mind and world are nothing apart from the Self, and I am ever that sole Existence-Awareness-Self. The wise one should abolish all thought of differentiation of self and non-self.

In the wisdom of integral experience, I am the non-dual, transcendental, motionless, peaceful, bondage-freedom-motion-free, sky of pure consciousness only. With this experience one should reject all differentiations of Self and non-Self and ever abide firmly in the peace of Brahman-Self.

One should give up all hatha yogic practices like breath control, all religious dogmas and their diverse sadhanas and be ever satisfied in simple abidance as the Self only.

Only those who contemplate on Lord Shiva-Self, the pure supporting screen of all manifestation, gain the pure experience of sahaja nirvikalpa samadhi.
Apart from this devotion to Lord Shiva (the Pure-Alert-Awareness-Self) there are no other means leading to liberation.

One should remain firm in this conviction. "I am the Self" and reject all thoughts like "I am this body" and "This world is real". If one maintains this habit unremittingly, this false belief will drop away even as a flower held in the hand slips away when one falls into deep slumber.

One is soley responsible for one's own liberation or bondage. You are the sole supreme Godhead, the Self. There is nothing apart from you.