Ṛbhu, the wise sage, spoke to Nidāgha, a brāhmaṇa, with gentle clarity. “O Brāhmaṇa,” he said, “satisfaction comes from eating food when one is hungry; but as I did not feel hunger, I felt no satisfaction. Why do you question me about this?” He explained further, “Hunger arises when the element of earth in the body is consumed by fire, and thirst comes when the body’s waters are depleted. These—hunger and thirst—are conditions of the body, O twice-born, but they do not pertain to me. Since I do not experience hunger, I am always content.” Ṛbhu continued, “Contentment of mind and satisfaction of desires are qualities of the mind. Ask about these, for nothing else binds a person. When you ask, ‘Where do you dwell? Where will you go? From where have you come?’—listen to my answer.” He revealed, “The person is all-pervading, spreading everywhere like space. So, questions of ‘from where,’ ‘to where,’ and ‘where will you go?’ lose their meaning. I am neither one who goes nor one who comes, nor am I confined to any place. You are not another, nor yourself; nor am I another, nor myself.” “You have asked about ‘mine’ and ‘not mine.’ Hear what I say: When one eats food, is it tasteless or delicious? What is delicious becomes tasteless when it is no longer desired. What is tasteless becomes delicious, and from the delicious, people turn away. At the beginning, middle, and end, what is it that makes food appealing?” He illustrated, “Just as a house made of clay becomes firm when coated with clay, so too this body is made of earthly atoms. Barley, wheat, pulses, clarified butter, oil, milk, curd, jaggery, fruits, and the like—all are composed of earthly atoms. Knowing this, consider the distinction between what is delicious and what is not. Let the mind remain balanced, for equanimity is the means to liberation.” Hearing these words, which rested on the highest truth, Nidāgha bowed before Ṛbhu and spoke with gratitude, “Be gracious, and tell me why you have come. My delusion has vanished upon hearing your words, O Brāhmaṇa.” Ṛbhu replied, “I am Ṛbhu, your teacher, come to bestow knowledge upon you, O Brāhmaṇa. Now I will depart, for the highest truth has been declared to you. Know this: all this world is one, not divided; it is the true nature of the Supreme Self, known as Vāsudeva.” With reverence, Nidāgha bowed deeply and worshipped Ṛbhu with great devotion. Ṛbhu departed as he wished. A thousand years passed. Ṛbhu returned to the city to impart knowledge to Nidāgha once more. Outside the city, the sage saw Nidāgha, surrounded by a retinue, entering the king’s city. Ṛbhu noticed Nidāgha standing at a distance, avoiding the crowd, his throat parched, coming from the forest with sacrificial grass and sticks. Approaching him, Ṛbhu greeted Nidāgha and asked, “Why are you standing here alone, O twice-born?” Nidāgha replied, “O Brāhmaṇa, there is a great crowd here, O lord of men. Wishing to avoid it, I am standing outside the beautiful city.” Ṛbhu then asked, “Who here is the king, and who are the other people? Tell me, best of twice-born, for I consider you knowledgeable.” Nidāgha answered, “He who is mounted on the great elephant, whose head rises like a mountain peak, is the king; the rest are others.” Ṛbhu observed, “These two, the king and the elephant, are equally visible to me; but you, without distinction, do not mark them as separate. Therefore, O illustrious one, tell me the distinction between these two. Who here is the elephant and who is the king?” Nidāgha explained, “O Brāhmaṇa, the one below is the elephant; the one above is the king.” Ṛbhu responded, “I know this, O Brāhmaṇa, just as you do; but why do you speak in such a way, and what else is being indicated?” Thus addressed, Nidāgha quickly mounted up and said to Ṛbhu, “Listen, I will explain what you have asked me. Just as I am now above and you are below like the elephant, so, O Brāhmaṇa, I have shown you this example for your understanding. If you are like the king, best of twice-born, and I am standing like the elephant, then tell me which is you and which am I.” Nidāgha then took hold of both his feet and said, “You are the revered teacher Ṛbhu, and I am Nidāgha.” Ṛbhu declared, “No one else’s mind is shaped by discipline as much as the disciple’s by the teacher; therefore, I consider you to have attained the highest teacher. Thus, in brief, I have instructed you, O wise one, in the essence of the highest truth, as it has been taught to me in full.” Having spoken thus, Ṛbhu, the teacher, departed from Nidāgha; and Nidāgha, having received his instruction, became devoted to the supreme truth. At that time, his mind perceived all beings as non-different, just as one devoted to Brahman attains the supreme liberation. So too, O knower of dharma, you should be equal towards friend and foe, recognizing the Self as present in all. Just as the one sky appears as white, blue, and so on due to differences, so too the one Self, though truly one, appears as many through deluded vision. That which exists here as one alone—whatever it may be—is the imperishable; there is nothing else beyond it. I am that, you are that, and all this is that. Abandon the delusion of difference, which arises from ignorance of the Self.