Nirbija
Sanskrit: निर्बीजTransliteration: Nirbīja (IAST)
Translation: “(Samādhi) without Seed”
The Science of Yoga (I. K. Taimni)
Commentary: "An object on which Saṃyama is performed is technically called a ‘seed’ whether it is gross or subtle. So Sabīja Samādhi may also be called objective Samādhi as opposed to Nirbīja Samādhi or subjective Samādhi in which there is no ‘object’ or ‘seed’ of meditation. The Seeker Himself is the object of His search. The Seer who has gained the capacity to see truly all objects within the realm of Prakṛti now wants to see Himself as He really is.
What distinguishes Sabīja Samādhi from Nirbīja Samādhi is therefore the presence of an object associated with Prakṛti whose relative reality has to be realized. In Nirbīja Samādhi, Puruṣa who is beyond the realm of Prakṛti is the ‘objectless’ objective. He is the Seeker as well as the object of the search. In Sabīja Samādhi, also, he is really seeking Himself but a veil, howsoever thin, still obscures his vision. In Nirbīja Samādhi, He attempts to tear off the last veil in order to obtain a completely unobstructed vision of Himself. This is what is meant by Self-Realization." (p. 107-108)
"When the capacity to perform Saṃyama has been acquired and the Yogi can pass easily into the last stage of Sabīja Samādhi corresponding to the Asmitā stage of Samprajñāta Samādhi (Part 1, Sutra 17) and the Aliṅga stage of the Guṇa (Part 2, Sutra 19) he is ready for taking the last step, namely, transcending the realm of Prakṛti altogether and attaining Self-realization. In the Asmitā stage, consciousness is functioning in the subtlest form of Citta and enlightenment has reached the highest degree, but since consciousness is still in the realm of Prakṛti it must be limited to some extent. The veils of illusion have been removed one after another, but there is still present one last almost imperceptible veil which prevents complete Self-realization, and the object of Nirbīja Samādhi is to remove this. In the earlier stages of Samprajñāta Samādhi, the dropping of the ‘seed’ leads to the emergence of consciousness into the next subtler plane, but after the Asmitā stage has been reached and the consciousness is centered on the Atmic plane, the dropping of the ‘seed’ will lead the emergence of consciousness into the plane of Puruṣa himself. The Light, which was up to this stage illuminating other objects, now illuminates Itself for it has withdrawn beyond the realm of these objects. The Seer is now established in his own Self (Part 1, Sutra 3).
It is impossible to imagine this state in which the light of consciousness illuminates itself instead of illuminating other objects outside itself, but the student, at least, should not make the mistake of imagining it as a state in which the Yogi finds himself immersed in a sea of nebulous bliss and knowledge. Each successive stage of unfoldment of consciousness increases tremendously its vividness and clarity and brings about an added influx of knowledge and power. It is absurd to suppose, therefore, that in the last stage which marks the climax of this unfoldment, consciousness lapses suddenly into a vague and nebulous state. It is only the limitations of the vehicles through which we try to visualize this state which prevent us from comprehending it even to a limited extent. When the vibrations of sound become too rapid, they appear as silence. When the vibrations of light become too fine, they appear as darkness. In the same way, the extremely subtle nature of this transcendent consciousness of Reality appears as a void to the mind.
[...] It will be seen that Nirbīja Samādhi is nothing but the last stage of Asamprajñāta Samādhi. It differs from the previous Asamprajñāta Samādhi in that there is no deeper level of Citta into which consciousness can withdraw. Any further withdrawal now must be into the consciousness of the Puruṣa himself. The consciousness of the Yogi is, as it were, poised on the brink of the manifested Universe and has to plunge from the last foothold in the realm of Prakṛti into the Ocean of Reality.
Nirbīja Samādhi is so called not only because there is no ‘seed’ in the field of consciousness, but also because in this kind of Samādhi no new Saṃskāra is created. One characteristic of a ‘seed’, namely its complex and multi-layer nature, has already been referred to in Part 1 Sutra 42 and provides the reason for calling the object of Saṃyama in Samādhi a ‘seed’. But another characteristic of a seed is that it reproduces itself when sown in the ground. This potentiality to reproduce themselves under favorable conditions is also present in the ‘seeds’ of Samprajñāta Samādhi. In Nirbīja Samādhi, there being no ‘seed’, no Saṃskāra can be produced. Not only no fresh Saṃskāra can be produced, but the old Saṃskāra of Sabīja Samādhi are gradually dissipated by Para-Vairagya and partial contact with the Puruṣa (Part 4, Sutra 29). The consciousness thus gradually becomes free to function unburdened by the kind of Saṃskāra which tend to draw it back into the realm of Prakṛti. Nirbīja Samādhi is therefore not only a means of passing out of the realm of Prakṛti, but also of exhausting the subtle Saṃskāra which still remain and which must be destroyed completely before Kaivalya can be attained." (p. 114-115)
Reference:
Commentary: "An object on which Saṃyama is performed is technically called a ‘seed’ whether it is gross or subtle. So Sabīja Samādhi may also be called objective Samādhi as opposed to Nirbīja Samādhi or subjective Samādhi in which there is no ‘object’ or ‘seed’ of meditation. The Seeker Himself is the object of His search. The Seer who has gained the capacity to see truly all objects within the realm of Prakṛti now wants to see Himself as He really is.
What distinguishes Sabīja Samādhi from Nirbīja Samādhi is therefore the presence of an object associated with Prakṛti whose relative reality has to be realized. In Nirbīja Samādhi, Puruṣa who is beyond the realm of Prakṛti is the ‘objectless’ objective. He is the Seeker as well as the object of the search. In Sabīja Samādhi, also, he is really seeking Himself but a veil, howsoever thin, still obscures his vision. In Nirbīja Samādhi, He attempts to tear off the last veil in order to obtain a completely unobstructed vision of Himself. This is what is meant by Self-Realization." (p. 107-108)
"When the capacity to perform Saṃyama has been acquired and the Yogi can pass easily into the last stage of Sabīja Samādhi corresponding to the Asmitā stage of Samprajñāta Samādhi (Part 1, Sutra 17) and the Aliṅga stage of the Guṇa (Part 2, Sutra 19) he is ready for taking the last step, namely, transcending the realm of Prakṛti altogether and attaining Self-realization. In the Asmitā stage, consciousness is functioning in the subtlest form of Citta and enlightenment has reached the highest degree, but since consciousness is still in the realm of Prakṛti it must be limited to some extent. The veils of illusion have been removed one after another, but there is still present one last almost imperceptible veil which prevents complete Self-realization, and the object of Nirbīja Samādhi is to remove this. In the earlier stages of Samprajñāta Samādhi, the dropping of the ‘seed’ leads to the emergence of consciousness into the next subtler plane, but after the Asmitā stage has been reached and the consciousness is centered on the Atmic plane, the dropping of the ‘seed’ will lead the emergence of consciousness into the plane of Puruṣa himself. The Light, which was up to this stage illuminating other objects, now illuminates Itself for it has withdrawn beyond the realm of these objects. The Seer is now established in his own Self (Part 1, Sutra 3).
It is impossible to imagine this state in which the light of consciousness illuminates itself instead of illuminating other objects outside itself, but the student, at least, should not make the mistake of imagining it as a state in which the Yogi finds himself immersed in a sea of nebulous bliss and knowledge. Each successive stage of unfoldment of consciousness increases tremendously its vividness and clarity and brings about an added influx of knowledge and power. It is absurd to suppose, therefore, that in the last stage which marks the climax of this unfoldment, consciousness lapses suddenly into a vague and nebulous state. It is only the limitations of the vehicles through which we try to visualize this state which prevent us from comprehending it even to a limited extent. When the vibrations of sound become too rapid, they appear as silence. When the vibrations of light become too fine, they appear as darkness. In the same way, the extremely subtle nature of this transcendent consciousness of Reality appears as a void to the mind.
[...] It will be seen that Nirbīja Samādhi is nothing but the last stage of Asamprajñāta Samādhi. It differs from the previous Asamprajñāta Samādhi in that there is no deeper level of Citta into which consciousness can withdraw. Any further withdrawal now must be into the consciousness of the Puruṣa himself. The consciousness of the Yogi is, as it were, poised on the brink of the manifested Universe and has to plunge from the last foothold in the realm of Prakṛti into the Ocean of Reality.
Nirbīja Samādhi is so called not only because there is no ‘seed’ in the field of consciousness, but also because in this kind of Samādhi no new Saṃskāra is created. One characteristic of a ‘seed’, namely its complex and multi-layer nature, has already been referred to in Part 1 Sutra 42 and provides the reason for calling the object of Saṃyama in Samādhi a ‘seed’. But another characteristic of a seed is that it reproduces itself when sown in the ground. This potentiality to reproduce themselves under favorable conditions is also present in the ‘seeds’ of Samprajñāta Samādhi. In Nirbīja Samādhi, there being no ‘seed’, no Saṃskāra can be produced. Not only no fresh Saṃskāra can be produced, but the old Saṃskāra of Sabīja Samādhi are gradually dissipated by Para-Vairagya and partial contact with the Puruṣa (Part 4, Sutra 29). The consciousness thus gradually becomes free to function unburdened by the kind of Saṃskāra which tend to draw it back into the realm of Prakṛti. Nirbīja Samādhi is therefore not only a means of passing out of the realm of Prakṛti, but also of exhausting the subtle Saṃskāra which still remain and which must be destroyed completely before Kaivalya can be attained." (p. 114-115)
Reference:
- Taimni, I. K. (1975). The Science of Yoga: The Yoga-Sūtras of Patañjali in Sanskrit with Transliteration in Roman, Translation in English and Commentary: Theosophical Publishing House. p. 107-108, 114-115.
