Thursday, April 27, 2006

Arunachala Ramana

Arunachala Ramana

In the recesses of the lotus-shaped Hearts of all, beginning with Vishnu, there shines as pure intellect (Absolute Consciousness) the Paramatmanii, who is the same as Arunachala Ramana. When the mind melts with love of Him, and reaches the inmost recess of the Heart wherein He dwells as the beloved, the subtle eye of pure intellect opens and He reveals Himself as Pure Consciousness.

A devoteei named Amritanatha Yati wrote on a paper a Malayalam verse imploring Bhagavan to say whether he was Hari (Vishnu) or Sivaguru (Subrahmanya) or Yativara (Siva) or Vararuchi. Bhagavan wrote his reply in the same Malayalam metre on the same paper. A translation of it is given above.
Source: Collected Works, p143

nayana – Thu, 27/04/2006 – 2:22pm
See also Arunachala Ramana - the soul's last love:

Monday, April 10, 2006

Avadhoota Gita

Avadhoota Gita

The Avadhuta Gita is an ancient non-dual text, considered to be for advanced yogis, renunciants and spiritual aspirants. A short review:
The Avadhuta Gita is a text of Vedanta representing extreme Advaita i or Nondualism. It is ascribed to Dattatreya, who is looked upon as an Incarnation of God i. Unfortunately we possess no historical data concerning when or where he was born, how long he lived, or how he arrived at the knowledge disclosed in the text.

Avadhuta means a liberated soul, one who has "passed away from" or "shaken off" all worldly attachments and cares and has attained a spiritual state equivalent to the existence of God. Though avadhuta naturally implies renunciation, it includes an additional and yet higher state which is neither attachment nor detachment but beyond both. An avadhuta feels no need of observing any rules, either secular or religious. He seeks nothing, avoids nothing. He has neither knowledge nor ignorance. Having realized that he is the infinite Self, he lives in that vivid realization.

Swami Vivekananda, one of the greatest Advaitans of all time, often quoted from this Gita. He once said, "Men like the one who wrote this Song keep religion alive. They have actually realized; they care for nothing, feel nothing done to the body, care not for heat, cold, danger, or anything. They sit still, enjoying the bliss of Atman i i, and though red-hot coals burn the body, they feel them not."
Full text: Avadhoota Gita (87K)
Also try this , this
and Dakshinamurti Samhita

Related: Tripura Rahasya
Ribhu Gita

ananda – Sat, 01/04/2006 – 7:27am

Wednesday, April 05, 2006

Ribhu Gita: Chapter 26

Ribhu Gita: Chapter 26


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 i himself in the form of Lord Shiva, the formless aspect of the Divine activity, in whom all beings and things are always already absorbed.

Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi 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 if one repeatedly read Chapter 26 of the Ribhu Gita one could pass spontaneously into samadhi, or the natural state of Self-realization.



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 i 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 thought.

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, no 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, or 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 them, 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 all 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.

See Printable version of Ribhu Gita Chapter 26

--
"Truly, truly, all that I can not describe."
        Tirumantiram - 1596

http://gurudeva.org/resources/books/tirumantiram/TantraSix.html

Saturday, April 01, 2006

Ribhu Gita - Essence

Ribhu Gita - Essence

One of Bhagavan Ramana's favourite traditional spiritual works was the Ribhu Gita. It is an important text in the history of his instruction for those close devotees who gravitated to him. Bhagavan's first attendant, Palaniswami, brought a copy to Bhagavan's attention while he was residing at the mango grove near Gurumurtham in 1898. Later in life Bhagavan related how surprised he was at the time to hear an exact description of his own state recited in the Ribhu Gita and that it had been experienced by others and was the bliss of the Self sought after by all true seekers.

"I had read no books other than Periapuranam, my Bible lessons and bits of Tayumanavar or Tevaram. My notion of God i (Isvara) was similar to that found in the Puranas. I had not heard then of Brahman i i, samsara, etc. I had no idea that there was an Essence or Impersonal Real underlying everything, and that myself and Isvara were both identical with it. At Tiruvannamalai, as I listened to Ribhu Gita and other works, I picked up these facts and discovered that these books were analysing and naming what I had previously felt intuitively without analysis and name. In the language of the books, I could describe my mental or spiritual condition after awakening, as suddha manas or vijnana, i.e., the Intuition of the Illumined". (Self-Realizationi by B.V. Narasimhaswami, Ch.5) ...

The text itself is contained in a Sanskrit epic, the Sivarahasya, which is primarily devoted to the glory of Lord Siva. It describes renowned Saivite centres of pilgrimage, holy rivers, religious observances, spiritual instruction and other topics in the manner of the Puranas. In the sixth Amsa or Part VI of this twelve part work of about 10,000 verses, there occurs on the slope of Mount Kedara in the Himalayas a dialogue on the Supreme Brahman between the sage Ribhu and the sage Nidagha. This exposition in the form of a dialogue is typical of the Upanishads. The sage Ribhu figures in such ancient texts as the traditional anthology of 108 Upanishads such as the 37th , the Tejobindupanishad of the Krishna Yajur Veda. H.H. Sri Chandrasekharendra Sarasavati, the Paramacharaya of the Kanchi Kamakoti Pitha declared the Ribhu Gita is to the Sivarahasya what the Bhagavad Gita is to the Mahabharata.

The book was translated into Tamil by Sri Lokanatha Swamigal in the 1880's and was praised by the Paramacharya who said it excelled the original Sanskrit. The final verse of each of the forty-four chapters differs dramatically from the Sanskrit version. The concluding verse also encapsulates the meaning of the entire chapter. It was this version which was often read before Bhagavan. He would in later life speak about the Ashtavakra Gita and Ribhu Gita as being the two principle texts which enunciated in great detail the nature of the Self (Brahma swarupa). (Letters and Recollections by Suri Nagamma, 24th April 1948)

The concept of Brahman is covered in the Ribhu Gita by 1,924 verses contained in 44 chapters. The text is uncompromising Advaita i. It is adamant and unremitting in the assertion that the Supreme Brahman, "That", is all that exists. That there is nothing else which exists apart from the Self which is Brahman. Brahman is the Self (atman), our true indisputable being. This awareness is moksha or liberation, which is attained by the way of knowledge (jnana) and the conviction that I-am-Brahman. That Brahman is all is stressed again and again in a plethora of positive affirmations.

On the other hand the Ribhu Gita also explains the truth about Brahman by the removal of every possible theory about Brahman and the elimination of all fictitious identification or thought (sankalpa) about oneself. The intention of the Gita is the removal of all false ideas and thus there is an awakening from all the illusions which bind us to the ignorance of our true nature. Self alone is; it is without beginning and thus never-ending, since it exists outside our concepts of time and space.

In describing the Self or Brahman, the Ribhu Gita in verse after verse employs negation as a means of revelation. Since the Self can never be objectified it is not possible to say what is the Self. It cannot be perceived or even conceived of as a thing because that would make it an object of the senses or the mind, both of which are limited. Thus Brahman is beyond the reach of the senses and is the witness (sakshi) of all things. It can never be an object of
knowledge for "Who can know the knower" (Brhadaranyaka Upanishad 2.iv.14).

Ignorance (ajnana) consists in the misapprehension of the Self with what is not the Self. Ignorance confuses the Self with what is unreal. In the external world ignorance is the obscuring of the bliss (ananda) of the 'Conscious Existence' with the transient objects of perception. The resultant identification causes suffering. It is this misidentification and attachment which creates bondage. Ribhu advocates the use of repeated negation in the enquiry as to what is real (satya) and what is the Self (atman) and affirms that this destroys our ignorance. It is not a question of seeking what is real but destroying the illusion that the unreal exists. We do not seek to identify truth (satya) but rather we seek to negate the superimposition of illusion and by this, the true nature of our being (sat) is revealed. When the clouds of ignorance are dispersed the sun which is always present can shine.

The Gita is so emphatic because Ribhu is reputed to have obtained this knowledge (jnana) from the Supreme Lord Siva Himself. He then was said to have taught it to several disciples, principal among was Nidagha.

There is an amusing and instructive story which relates how Ribhu revealed to his disciple Nidagha the secret that totally transforms him. There are two versions of the story, one in the Agni Purana and the other in the Vishnu Purana. Based on the latter Purana, Bhagavan related the story in Maharshi's Gospel, Book Two, Chapter I.

D. Instead of enquiring 'Who am I?', can I put the question to myself 'Who are You?', since then, my mind may be fixed on You whom I consider to be God in the form of Guru. Perhaps, I would be nearer the goal of my quest by that enquiry than by asking myself 'Who am I?'

M. Whatever form your enquiry may take, you must finally come to the one I, the Self.

All these distinctions made between the 'I' and 'you', Master and disciple etc. are merely a sign of one's ignorance. The 'I-Supreme' alone is. To think otherwise is to delude oneself.

A Puranic story of Sage Ribhu and his disciple Nidagha, is particularly instructive in this context.
Although Ribhu taught his disciple the supreme Truth of the One Brahman without a second, Nidagha, in spite of his erudition and understanding, did not get sufficient conviction to adopt and follow the path of jnana, but settled down in his native town to lead a life devoted to the observance of ceremonial religion.

But the Sage loved his disciple as deeply as the latter venerated his Master. In spite of his age, Ribhu would himself go to his disciple in the town, just to see how far the latter had outgrown his ritualism. At times the Sage went in disguise, so that he might observe how Nidagha would act when he did not know that he was being observed by his Master.

On one such occasion Ribhu, who had put on the disguise of a village rustic, found Nidagha intently watching a royal procession. Unrecognised by the town-dweller Nidagha, the village rustic enquired what the bustle was all about, and was told that the king was going in procession.

"Oh! it is the king. He goes in procession! But where is he?" asked the rustic.

"There, on the elephant" said Nidagha.

"You say the king is on the elephant. Yes, I see the two" said the rustic, "But which is the king and which is the elephant?"

"What!" exclaimed Nidagha, "You see the two, but do not know that the man above is the king and the animal below is the elephant? Where is the use of talking to a man like you?"

"Pray, be not impatient with an ignorant man like me", begged the rustic. "But you said 'above' and 'below', what do they mean?"

Nidagha could stand it no more. "You see the king and the elephant, the one above and the other below. Yet you want to know what is meant by 'above' and 'below'?" burst out Nidagha. "If things seen and words spoken can convey so little to you, action alone can teach you. Bend forward, and you will know it all too well".

The rustic did as he was told. Nidagha got on his shoulders and said "Know it now. I am above as the king, you are below as the elephant. Is that clear enough?"

"No, not yet", was the rustic's quiet reply. "You say you are above like the king, and I am below like the elephant. The 'king', the 'elephant', 'above' and 'below', so far it is clear. But pray, tell me what you mean by 'I' and 'you'?"

When Nidagha was thus confronted all of a sudden with the mighty problem of defining the 'you' apart from the 'I', light dawned on his mind. At once he jumped down and fell at his Master's feet saying, "Who else but my venerable Master, Ribhu, could have thus drawn my mind from the superficialities of physical existence to the true Being of the Self? Oh! benign Master, I crave thy blessings".

Therefore, while your aim is to transcend here and now these superficialities of physical existence through atma-vichara, where is the scope for making the distinctions of 'you' and 'I', which pertain only to the body? When you turn the mind within, seeking the source of thought, where is the 'you' and where is the 'I'?

You should seek and be the Self that includes all.

The importance of the Ribhu Gita can be gauged from the fact Bhagavan right from the days at Virupaksha Cave, often recommended its recitation and sat with his devotees on many occasions when they chanted it. He encouraged devotees to regularly read and study the Ribhu Gita. He also affirmed that its repetition was a powerful aid to Self-enquiry, and said, "These readings from the Ribhu Gita are as good as samadhi" (Self-Realization by B.V. Narasimha Swami, Ch. 26. First edition).

By chanting the Gita the mind becomes more and more attuned with the Reality. And when the mind becomes purified by this practice, it is easier to take it back to its source and remain there.
There is one recorded instance where Bhagavan presented a devoteei, Sampurnamma with a copy of the Ribhu Gita and asked her to study it. When she declined to do it on the grounds she did not understand the Gita's import, Bhagavan persisted and asked her to read it all the same. "It doesn't matter that you do not understand it," he said, "still it will be of benefit to you". (The Mountain Path, June 1993, p.103) .

Now thanks to the extensive work and co-operation of the Society of Abidance in Truth, Santa Cruz, California, USA, we too have the chance to read and recite the complete Ribhu Gita in English translated by Dr H. Ramamurthy. The ashram has now published and has on sale a limited number of copies for those devotees visiting Arunachala and Sri Ramanasramam.

Source: T. V. Ramamurthy or this (publications -> mountain path -> Sept 2003 -> Ribhu Gita)

Download the online book Essence of Ribhu Gita from http://www.ramana-maharshi.org

Related:
Chapter 26 of Ribhu Gita (highly recommended read)
http://kalki.benegal.org/tripura_rahasya
http://kalki.benegal.org/vidya_gita
http://kalki.benegal.org/avadhoota_gita

Teaser / Excerpts from Essence of Ribhu Gita

11. There never was a mind nor any of its countless forms like world, jivas, etc. There isn't the least doubt that all these are the form of the eternally undifferentiable Supreme Brahman Self. This is the Truth. The one who hears this great secret diligently and understands completely, abides as Brahman-Self (Ch.5, v.28)

25. The firm denial of the existence of the mind and the firm belief in the existence of Brahman-Self, is the sure way to the conquest of mind, leading to the experience of the sole effulgent Self. (Ch.15, v.11)

26. If one gives the slightest room for the thought that the mind exists, pure Awareness itself will vibrate as the ruffled mind, which is the parent of all trouble and illusions. Therefore, one should ever abide in the conviction that there is no mind, and that the pure Awareness-Self is the sole Existence. This is the easy way to conquer the mind with all its vagaries. (Ch.15, v.12)

42. All worlds and creatures are only thought forms. They are nothing but the mind, which is a bundle of thoughts, which again are nothing more than ripples in the still ocean of Awareness-Self, and certainly nothing apart from that Self. Therefore, one should abide in the firm conviction that all objects are only I Am Self-Brahman . (Ch.22, v.24)

46. The illusion that one is the body and that the world is the basic reality has remained soaked over a long, long time, and cannot be got rid of by the casual reading and mere understanding of the truth. The basic illusion can be effaced only by a long and unremitting practice of the bhavana that all
this is 'I-am-Brahman-Self'. (Ch.24, v.28)

59. In the conviction that 'I am the Self' in which no thought, ego, desire, mind or confusion can exist one should abide still, free from trace of thought. (Ch.26, v.31)

62. Having gained the experience that there is no creator, no maya, no duality, and no objects at all, and that pure Awareness-Self alone exists, one should ever remain still and peaceful in that state of Selfhood. (Ch.27, v.34)

72. Enquiry should be made this wise: With the kind help of the Sat Guru, one should enquire 'Who am I? what is this world? what is the reality behind all these?' (Ch.32, v.21)

75. Only by those strong willed persons who make earnest and persistent Self-enquiry, will the turbulent mind be controlled and fixed still in the practice of firm bhavana (feeling). In due course all thoughts and nescience will disappear, yielding place to the effulgent Awareness-Self of mukti. (Ch.32, v.26)

77. It is only the mind which appear as the world and bondage; there is no world other than the mind. On enquiry this mind turns out to be nothing more than a group of ripples (thoughts) in the
still ocean of pure Awareness-Siva-Self. I am that Siva-Self only and there is nothing apart from me, one should ever abide in the conviction born of this experience. (Ch.32, v.33)

78. 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-Siva- Self. One should maintain this firm bhavana 'I am Self-Siva' until that state of being the Siva-Self — becomes the spontaneous
experience free from the effort of bhavana. (Ch.32, v.34)

96. One is solely responsible for one's own liberation or bondage, since the choice of destroying the restless mind or allowing it to roam at large rests with that one only. Therefore, one should conquer the restless mind by steady abidance in the pure thought-free Alert-Awareness-Self only. This steady
abidance is moksha. (Ch.38, v.7)

97. You are the sole supreme Godhead, the Self. There is nothing apart from you. This, we declare to be the ultimate truth after a complete analysis of all the scriptures. By the holy feet of Siva, we swear this to be the truth beyond all doubt. By the feet of the Sat Guru, we swear again that this is the truth declared by the Upanishads. (Ch.38, v.9)

ananda – Sat, 01/04/2006 – 7:49am