https://www.happinessofbeing.com/The_Path_of_Sri_Ramana_Part_One.pdf
233 pdf pages
“The state of one who abides unshaken in SeIf
has more grandeur than the mightiest mountain:”
“Tirukkural”, verse 124
“Silence is the unequalled eloquence –
the state of Grace that rises within.”
“I have learnt all the
Vedas, performed millions of mantra-japas, undergone
fasting and other austerities, yet I still do not know what
tapas really is. Please instruct me.” Sri Bhagavan replied: “If
watched wherefrom the ‘I’ starts, there the mind merges; that is tapas.” However, when Ganapati Sastri further asked,
“Is it possible to attain the same state through japa?”, Sri
Ramana replied: “When a mantram is pronounced, if
watched wherefrom the sound starts, there the mind will
merge; that is tapas.”
.............“He is no ordinary soul. He is the
perfect Jnana-Guru. Since He ever remains in natural
Self-abidance,
Some days later the police caught the thieves and
brought them before Sri Bhagavan, and an officer asked Him
to identify the one who had beaten Him on that night. Sri
Bhagavan at once replied with a smile, “Find out whom I
beat [in a previous birth], for it is he who has beaten me
now!”. He never denounced the criminal!
“Conquer the foe by your worthy patience
and for ever forget the wrong done to you
on account of ignorance.”
‘Tirukkural’, verse 157
“The right way of punishing the wrong-doer is to
do good to him and to forget his wrong.”
‘Tirukkural’, verse 314
The knowledge ‘I am the body’ (which is
the ego) is a false knowledge of ourself. The true knowledge
of ourself is that in which we know that we are the
unlimited Self (atman).
What is the benefit of thus attaining true Self-knowledge? It is only when one knows oneself as Self that
real good can be done to all creatures on earth. How? Only
when Self- knowledge dawns will the truth be known that
we alone are the reality of all living beings, and only then
will the true love towards all blossom in our heart. Until this Self-knowledge is obtained, one cannot truly love all
creatures merely by talking and propagating on platforms.
“Love thy neighbour as thyself”.
It is only when one
experiences the whole world and all the souls in it as the
first person singular that the real love, a love for ‘not
another’ (ananya-bhakti), will be achieved.
.......Therefore the sole
and immediate need of the world is Self-enquiry, the
medicine that destroys the evil ego. Only a true Knower of
Self (atma-jnani) can really serve the world perfectly!
The
mere existence on earth of such a Jnani is sufficient to
ensure the spiritual and moral welfare of the whole world..
. Self-surrender and
Self-enquiry are in fact one and the same, both in their
result – the extinction of the ego –,.
‘I’ and ‘mine’ is the great sin of stealing the property of God.
...This state devoid of ‘I’ and ‘mine’ is the state of Self
...If he again thinks ‘I am the body’ or
‘this body is mine’, he is committing the sin of
dattapaharam, that is, taking back what has already been
offered to God.
Since God ever shines as the reality of the first
person, attending to the first person is the right attention
to God and this is the true path of devotion
Sri Bhagavan still refused to be given
chloroform. When asked by a devotee whether there
was any pain, Sri Bhagavan replied, “Even the pain is
not apart from us!” Just as the teeth which bite our
tongue are not other than us, and just as the thief who
beat Sri Bhagavan was not viewed by Him as other
than Himself, so also, even the disease which was
ravaging His body was net other than He (Self). So wonder inspiring was His Jnana!
“The body itself is a
disease that has come upon us. If a disease attacks that
original disease, is it not good for us?”
“Just as the cow does not know whether the
garland tied to its horns is still there or has been lost, and
just as a drunken man does not know whether his dhoti is
on his body or not, so also, a Jnani does not even know
whether His body is still alive or dead.”
65/223
The mind runs outwards because of the ignorant
outlook that happiness is derived from external objects.
If
the mind is thoroughly and firmly convinced, through the
above scrutiny, that happiness is within and that one’s real
nature is itself happiness, it will not then run outwards but
towards oneself; in other words, it will remain still in Self.
This knowledge is sine-qua-non for effectively controlling
the mind.
Where
thoughts cease, happiness reigns supreme; such is the truth
about happiness.
..Therefore, the happiness obtained through the
second kind of absorption, the destruction of the mind, is
eternal. It is the supreme bliss.
Temporary quiescence (laya) of the
mind is temporary quiescence of misery, and permanent
destruction (nasa) of the mind is permanent destruction of
misery; that is, the mind itself is misery!
Hence, let us find
out what is to be done to destroy the mind.
What is mind? The verdict given by Sri Bhagavan is:
“The mind is only thoughts...”
‘Upadesa Undhiyar,’ verse 18
If we give up all thoughts and observe what is mind,
we will find that there is no such thing as ‘mind’ at all.
“If one enquires–without inadvertence (pramada) –
into the form of the mind, it will be found that
there is no such thing as mind! This is the direct
path for all!”
‘Upadesa Undhiyar’, verse 17
"If there is no ‘I'-thought, no other thing will
exist...”
'Sri Arunachala Ashtakam', verse 7
.. if
a man has no clear knowledge of what he really is, all his
learning, greatness and power are merely fictitious!
Hence,
the first lesson to be learnt is about one’s own self.
On the other hand. some, who had
discrimination and a sharp, clear intellect, not already
confused by a mere study of the sastras without any
practice, were fully convinced as soon as they heard Sri
Bhagavan’s exposition (that the body and world do not exist
in deep sleep) that it alone is right; therefore, they were able
to proceed along the path of enquiry, But, those who did not
have the maturity of intellect to be able to accept the nonexistence of the body and world in deep sleep were stopped
and could progress no further on the path.
“Since the sastras proclaim, ‘Thou art That which
is called the Supreme’, and since That itself
always shines as Self, for one to meditate ‘I am
That and not this (the body and so on)’, instead of
knowing oneself through the enquiry ‘What am I?’
and abiding as Self, is indeed due to lack of
strength (of mind) !”
Ulladhu Narpadhu verase 32
reworded above:
'you are that'. that is supreme.
'One cannot abide in the Self', due to weakness of M.
All these complaints are made only
by those who do not earnestly like to do any sadhana, that’s
all.
What is essential in any sadhana is to try to bring back
the running mind and fix it on one thing only’.
Why then
should it not be brought back and fixed in Self-attention?
That alone is Self-enquiry (alma-vichara).
That is all that is
to be done!
Even in the Bhagavad Gita it is said:
Sanais sanai rupa ramed buddhya dhriti grihi taya
Atma samstham manah kritva nakim chidapi
chinta yet
which means,
‘By means of an extremely courageous
intellect (power of discrimination), make the mind
motionless little by little; fix the mind firmly in Self (atman)
and never think of any other thing’ (chapter 6, verse 25)
and:
Yato yato nis charati manas chanchalam asthi ram
Tatas tato niyam yaitad atman yeva vasam nayet
which means,
‘Towards whatever thing the unsteady mind
wanders, from each thing pull it back, fix it always in Self
and make it firmly abide there’ (chapter 6, verse 26)
Only that
practice of Self-attention which Sri Bhagavan referred to in
‘Who am I?’ when He wrote, “By repeatedly practising thus,
the strength of the mind to abide in its source increases”,
is the right sadhana which will give the mind the real
requisite strength!
reworded above:
by repeated practise, the strenth of M to abide in it's source increases.
............“Ah! Knowing Self is the easiest thing! Indeed,
it is the easiest!”
“To unfasten the bonds of karma and so on, end to achieve the
destruction of birth and so on, of all paths, this path is the easiest !
If we remain still (that is, if we merely ‘be’), without the least action
of mind, speech and body, oh what a wonder it will be I The Self-effulgence in the heart will be (known as) the ever-present experience,
all fear will cease and the ocean of bliss (will surge) !”
‘Atmavidya Kirtanam’, verse 4
125/233
51 The six virtues:
(a) Tranquility (shama):
means fixing the mind upon its
target, with the help of the desirelessnes arising out of repeated
reflection upon the defects of worldly objects.
b) Restraint of the senses (dama) :
means controlling the
sense-organs end organs of action and thereby preventing them from
leaving their respective places.
(c) Withdrawal from activities (uparati) :
means fixing the
mind on its target so firmly that it is not led by previous tendencies
to dwell upon objects, end thereby giving up all unnecessary
activities.
(d) Forebearance (titiksha):
means courageously enduring
any amount of misery that may befell one, without trying to avoid it
or grieving over it.
(e) Faith (shraddha) :
means an unshakable conviction that
only the words of Vedanta shastras and those of the Guru are true.
(f) samadhi :
means preventing the mind
by all efforts from wandering according to its nature, and fixing it only on Brahman.
129
The mind is destroyed only when
it turns towards the first person
Only
such a firm fixing of our attention on Self is ‘Self-enquiry’
(atma-vichara).
He has confirmed the same idea in the work’
Who am I’?”, where He says:
“Always keeping the mind (the
attention) fixed In Self (in the feeling ‘I’) alone is called Selfenquiry’...
Remaining firmly in Self-abidance, without giving
even the least room to the rising of any thought other than the thought of Self (that is, without giving even the least
attention to any second or third person, but only to Self), is surrendering oneself to God (which alone is called
para bhakti, the supreme devotion.
159
“Self (atman) is that which is self-shining in the form
‘I am that I am’. One should not imagine it to be anything
such as this or that (light or sound). Imagining’ or thinking
thus is itself bondage. Since Self is the consciousness which
is neither light nor darkness, let it not be imagined as a light
of any kind. That thought itself would be a bondage.
.. but completely giving up even
the thought that one is a sinner, one is steadfast in Self-attention, one will surely be saved. Therefore everyone,
diving deep within himself with desirelessness (vairagya),
can attain the pearl of Self.
When the
mind, with a tremendous longing to find the source which
gives it light, turns inwards, the breath stops
automatically
Sri Bhagavan advised, ‘Control breath and speech
with a keen (introverted) mind’. It would be wise to
understand this verse thus, by adding ‘with a keen mind’
(kurnda matiyal) in all the three places, ‘Control the breath
with a keen mind dive within with a keen mind, and know
the rising-place with a keen mind’,
Similarly, when the aspirant, on account of his diving
deeper and deeper within by an intense effort of Self-attention, is so close to his source that not even an iota of
rising of the ego is possible, he remains absorbed in the
great dissolution of the ‘I am the body’ – feeling (dehatmabuddhi), which he had hitherto had as a target of attention,
This dissolution is what Sri Bhagavan refers to when He
says, ‘I’ will die”, in ‘Upadesa Undhiyar’ verse 19.
“… When the attention goes deeper and deeper
within along the (reflected) ray ‘I’, its length decrease more and more, and when the ray ‘I’ dies,
that which shines as ‘I’ is Jnana, “
‘Atma Vichara Patikam’, verse 9
...............
ns
whatever can be witnessed cannot be your tue Self
............. .........................
http://www.sriramanakendram.org/pdf/2009.pdf
GITA’S STHITA PRAJNA*
By Swami Shantananda Puri**
The ultimate purpose of all spiritual sadhanas is to control and still the mind. Only
a person whose prajna is still is sthita can be free of the shackles of the vasanas
and attain liberation.
The qualities or characteristics of a sthita prajna have been described in second
chapter of the Gita. According to scholars, the terms sthita prajna and gunatita are synonymous.
The qualities of a gunatita described in chapter 14 of the Gita are
identical to those of a sthita prajna. They can also be called jivanmuktas.
According to Shankara sthita prajana is one whose mind is rooted in the
conviction that ‘I am the Supreme Being, Brahaman.’
Factors necessary for becoming a sthita prajna are – renouncing all desires and
remaining always content in oneself without depending on external objects for
satisfaction. Further, whose mind remains unperturbed by any sorrow or suffering,
whose attachment to pleasure is completely gone and who is free from attachment,
fear and anger, is called a sage with stable wisdom.
Both joy and sorrow are only psychological states of the mind. It is thus possible to
reason with one’s own mind and make it impervious to the reactions of joy and
sorrow so that the mind could remain undisturbed and stable.
According to the Gita, the wisdom of that person is stable who wholly withdraws
his senses from their objects just as a tortoise withdraws its limbs from all sides.
Attachment must be removed by our own efforts, by the grace of the Lord and the
guru. Satsang, mantra japa and prayers are definitely of positive help. Once the
mind is concentrated on the Self as a result of severe sadhana, all vasanas will
begin to wane away without our being aware of them.
The mind of a person who keeps his senses under control by withdrawing and
subduing them by means of uniting his mind at all times with the Lord and being
completely engaged in him with devotion (yukta) is considered as stable or wellestablished. At no time of sadhana can a seeker be complacent that his attractions
to the objects have ceased. The senses bid their time. Never for a moment relax
your reins over them, but continue doing the sadhana till the attitude of ‘I’, the
seeker, disappears so that there is no need to think, ‘I am keeping my senses under
control.’ The senses are so powerful that they definitely drag down even a man of
knowledge. The way to fight it down is constant remembrance of God. Let your
mind be totally engaged in the Lord with sincere love and devotion, so that you are
yukta – integrated in Him.
Desires, especially lust and passion, are the last things to leave a sadhaka in spite
of all the sadhanas. Even when a person becomes very old, the vasana of kama
expresses itself in apparently innocuous ways.
Prayers are extremely effective. Engage yourself in the reading of the biographies
of saints so that the intensity of longing they had, the austerities they performed,
will inspire you to emulate them.
............................... .........
When the man finally reaches very near to the piece of
mirror, he can be said to have reached the very source of
the reflected ray. This is similar to the aspirant diving
within and reaching the source (Heart) whence he had
risen. Does not the man now attain a state where the length
of the reflected ray is reduced to nothing – a state where no
reflection is possible because he is so close to the mirror?
Similarly, when the aspirant, on account of his diving
deeper and deeper within by an intense effort of Self-attention, is so close to his source that not even an iota of
rising of the ego is possible, he remains absorbed in the
great dissolution of the ‘I am the body’ – feeling (dehatmabuddhi), which he had hitherto had as a target of attention,
This dissolution is what Sri Bhagavan refers to when He
says, ‘I’ will die”, in ‘Upadesa Undhiyar’ verse 19.
..........................
mountain path..
Sri Bhagavan teaches us that the practice of Self-enquiry
of ‘Who am I?’ is not a subject-object method of meditation. The
moment the ego-self tries to know itself it begins to partake less and
less of the body in which it is immersed and more and more of the
consciousness of Self.
There are not two ‘I’s, one to realize the other. There is only one
Self. Self-enquiry is holding onto the subject ‘I’ by the ‘I’, thus
preventing thoughts to rise. Without thoughts, the individual ‘I’
cannot remain and will resolve itself into its Source. This is the ‘I’
underlying the waking, dreaming and deep sleep states. It is our true
and natural state and is ever-present.
If the ego ‘I’ turns inwards and simply holds onto itself, without
letting other thoughts arise, the individual ‘I’ becomes absorbed into
its Source, the Self. Just hold onto the ‘I’ thought and go on searching for its source. Then you will find there is really no such thing as
the ego ‘I’. On its source being sought, it disappears.
......The mind has long been in the habit of going outwards,
towards the objects of the world. It doesn’t easily turn inwards for
any length of time. Only by the steady practice of Self-enquiry or
meditation does the mind gradually come under control.
...........................................
“...Attending to the first person is equal to
committing suicide...”
‘Atma Vichara Patikam’, verse 7
“Yes, yes! To stay fixed thus in the Self, is the highest return
you can render me.” (Arunachala’s Ramana, Vol. II)
A small portion of his advice as contained in letters to his friends is as follows: Our
own mind is the greatest cheater in the world. It will have thousands of reasons to
go its own way. Three ways to handle this cheat are: (1) Treat him as a friend and
give him full satisfaction. This is a very long and tiresome way as he is never
satisfied. (2) Treat him as an enemy and with all force try to get rid of him. This is
only possible by the grace of divine because the mind has got two very powerful
weapons – the discriminating intellect and the imaginative faculty. These two can
convince even God himself that black is white. (3) It is the way taught by Sri
Ramana – treat the mind as thought- patients, who are coming to a doctor to
complain about their ailments. Just as a doctor sits in his room receiving different
kinds of patients, ‘this fool’ [the term he uses for himself] imagines himself sitting
in the sacred cave of the Heart and receiving the thought-patients. You know a
sick person likes to babble for hours about his complaint. In the same way, a thought likes to multiply itself, but the doctor will cut it short saying, “Very good.
Take this medicine. Thank you very much.’ And then he calls another patient. This
is how ‘this fool’ decided to meditate.
First ‘this fool’ slows down his breath as much as possible, but only to the point
where there is no discomfort. To ‘this fool’ two breaths per minute is the proper
speed, but that may not be possible for you, without very long and sustained
practice. You may be able to decrease your breathing to 8-10 per minute in the
beginning. Don’t get to a level where you are uncomfortable.
‘This fool’ asks himself, “To whom have all these thoughts come?” Three times he
slowly repeats this question. Then in the same slow manner he answers to himself,
“To me, to me, to me.” “Then who am I” , “Then who am I” , “Then who am I?
All questions and answers are repeated three times, very slowly. “This ‘I’ is not a
thought. This ‘I’ is not a thought. This ‘I’ is not a thought. Then who is the receiver
of the thought? Then who is the receiver of the thought? Then who is the receiver
of the thought? “I” – “I’ – “I”. Now the mind is centralized in the source itself.
‘Then who am I?’ ‘Then who am I?’ ‘Then who am I?’ Now the breath comes to
an end and the attention is concentrated 100% on the sound caused by the
palpitation of the heart, as if the sound would give answer to our questions.
This is
nothing but the pranava itself.
If, during this time, the sakti which was static is
converted to movements or becomes dynamic, trance will occur.
If the primal
energy reaches the space between the eyebrows, savikalpa samadhi will occur.
If
the energy rises up to the top of the head, nirvikalpa samadhi will occur, which is
nothing but the Self itself.
Some thoughts of Swami Ramanagiri as contained in his notebook entitled
‘Cold Fire’, are as follows:
1. His Name taken once with whole-hearted love and one-pointed mind, is worth
more than the knowledge collected from every book all over the world.
2. Learning
is learned ignorance. Unlearning is learning.
3. What you speak about others
doesn’t reveal anything about them, but about you.
4. The power of listening
attracts more than the power of speaking.
5. Jnana and bhakti are not separate from
each other. One cannot know Him without loving Him, and one cannot love Him
without knowing Him.
6. Shut the doors and the door will be opened.
7. Religion is experience. It should be practiced, not studied or discussed, and at the very least
not preached. Those who preach don’t know; those who know don’t preach.
8. It is
a good policy to keep away from other’s plates, however sweet and inviting they
look. Both sugar and arsenic are white.
9. When the asuric forces see a sadhaka
progressing, they will put every possible obstacle in the form of worldly troubles,
mental botherations and sex urges.
10. Selfless activity will give the power of
introversion.
11. The disciple’s love for the Guru is more important than the Guru’s
power.
12. We are imprisoned within the walls of our thoughts.
13. Meditation is
for the strong, not for the weak.
14. It is not a question of balancing, but balancing
without effort.
The world does not exist in the state of ultimate truth [paramartha]. Its
appearance, its [apparently] existing nature in maya, is like the imagined
appearance of a snake in a rope, a thief in a wooden post, and water in a
mirage. Their essential nature is delusion. – Sri Ramana Maharshi
A keen effort of the
mind, complete introversion of all the faculties, total absorption in the quest
wherefrom the ‘I’ springs – all this is needed for success.
To one who is established in what is infinite, pure consciousness, bliss and
unqualified non-duality, where is the question of bondage or liberation, seeing
that there is no second reality? O Rama, the mind has, by its own activity,
bound itself; when it is calm, it is free. – Sage Vasishta’s
Just as a rubber ball gains greater and greater
momentum while bouncing down the staircase, the more
the concentration in clinging to the first person
consciousness is intensified the faster is the contraction of
the first thought (the ego), till finally it merges in its source.
That which now merges thus is only the adjunct (upadhi),
the feeling ‘so-and-so’ which, at the moment of waking,
came and mixed with the pure existence-consciousness,
which was shining in sleep as ‘I am’, to constitute the form
of the ego, ‘I am so-and-so’, ‘I am this’ or ‘I am that’. That
is, what has come and mixed now slips away. All that an
aspirant can experience in the beginning of his practice is
only the slipping away (subsidence) of the ego.
Since the aspirant tracks down the ego from the waking state, where
it is in full play, in the beginning it is possible for him to
cognize only its removal. But to cognize its rising (how it
rises and holds on to ‘I am’) from sleep will be more
difficult for him at this stage
“As you practise more and more abiding in this
existence-consciousness (that is, remaining in the
state between sleep and waking), the ordinary
sleep which had previously been taking possession
of you will melt away.
The waking which was
full of sense-knowledges (vishayas) will not creep
in again,
Therefore repeatedly and untiringly abide
in it,”
‘Sadhanai Saram’
“Why has it been said (in the above two verses of
‘Sadhana Saram’) that one ought to make effort
repeatedly to be in that state (our existence-consciousness) and ought to abide in it with more
and more love? Because, until all the tendencies
(vasanas) which drive one out of it are completely
exhausted, this state will seem to come and go.
Hence the need for continued effort and love to
abide in Self.”
“For those who are well established in the
unending Self-consciousness, which pervades and
transcends all these three so-called states (waking,
dream and sleep), there is but one state, the
Whole, the All, and that alone is real! This state,
which is devoid even of the feeling ‘I am making
effort’, is your natural state of being! Be!!”
‘Sadhanai Saram’
Heart), when the knot of attachment (abhimana-granthi)
is severed by the annihilation of the mind through
Self-enquiry, the knot of bondage to the nerves (nadi bandha-granthi) is also severed. In raja yoga, after removing
the knot of bondage to the nerves by means of breathcontrol, if the mind which is thus controlled is made to
enter the Heart from the brain (sahasrara), since it reaches
its source, then the knot of attachment is also severed.
“When the mind which has been subdued by
breath control is led (to the Heart) through the
only path (the path of knowing Self), its form
will die.”
‘Upadesa Undhiyar’, verse 14
Knot of attachment of vasnas remain intact..Hence, rebirth inescapable...implies tapa to eradicate vasanas? :
However, since the knot of attachment is the basic
one, until and unless the destruction of attachment
(abhimana) is effected, by knowing self, even when the knot
of bondage to the nerves is temporarily removed in sleep,
swoon, death or by the use of anesthetics, the knot of
attachment remains unaffected in the form of tendencies
(vasanas), which constitute the causal body, and, hence
rebirths are inescapable.
181/233
This is why Sri Bhagavan insists
that one reaching kashta-nirvikalpa-samadhi 77 through raja
yoga should not stop there (since it is only mano-laya, a
temporary absorption of the mind), but that the mind so
absorbed should be led to the Heart in order to attain
sahaja-nirvikalpa-samildhi, which is the destruction of the
mind (mano-nasa), the destruction of the attachment to the body (dehabhimana-nasa). In the body of such a Self-realized One (sahaja jnani), the coursing of the ‘I’ -
consciousness along the nerves, even after the destruction
of the knot of attachment, is like the water on a lotus leaf
or like a burnt rope, and thus it cannot cause bondage.
Therefore the destruction of the knot of attachment is
anyway indispensible for the attainment of the natural state
(Sahaja Sthiti), the state of the destruction of the tendencies
(vasanakshaya).
Disconnecting the knot in such a way that it will never
again come into being is called by many names such as ‘the
cutting of the knot’ (granthi-bheda). ‘the destruction of the
mind’ (mano-nasa) and so on. ‘In such a way that it will
never again come into being’ means this: by attending to it
(the ego) through the enquiry ‘Does it in truth exist at
present?’ in order to find out whether it had ever really
come into being, there takes place the dawn of knowledge (jnana), the real waking, where it is clearly and firmly
known that no such knot has ever come into being, that no
such ego has ever risen, that ‘that which exists’ alone ever
exists, and that which was existing as ‘I am’ is ever existing
as ‘I am’! The attainment of this knowledge (Self-knowledge
or atma-jnana), the knowledge that the knot or bondage is
at all times non-existent and has never risen, is the
permanent disconnecting of the knot.
“Only the first place or the present time is advised
to be attended to. If you keenly do so, you will
enjoy the bliss of Self, having completed all
yogas and having achieved the supreme
accomplishment. Know and feast on it!”
‘Sadhanai Saram’
Let us now again take up our original point. When the
attention of an aspirant is turned towards second and third
persons, the ‘I’-consciousness spreads from the brain all over
the body through the nerves (nadis) in the form of the
power of spreading; but when the same attention is focused
on the first person, since it is used in an opposite direction,
the ‘I’ -consciousness, instead of functioning in the form of
the power of spreading, takes the form of the power of Selfattention (that is, the power of ‘doing’ is transformed into
the power of ‘being’). This is what is called ‘the churning of
the nadis’ (nadi-mathana).
By the churning thus taking place
in the nadis, the ‘I’-consciousness scattered throughout the
nadis turns back, withdraws and collects in the brain, the
starting point of its spreading, and from there it reaches,
drowns and is established in the Heart, the pure
consciousness, the source of its rising
In raja-yoga, the ‘I’-consciousness pervading all the
nadis is forcibly pushed back to the starting point of its
spreading by the power generated through the pressure of
breath-retention (prana-kumbhaka). But this is a violent method. The following is what Sri Bhagavan used to say:
“Forcibly pushing back the ‘I’ – consciousness by breathretention, as is done in raja yoga, is a violent method, like
chasing a run-away cow, beating it, catching hold of it,
dragging it forcibly to the shed and finally tying it there; on
the other hand, bringing back the ‘I’-consciousness to its
source by enquiry is a gentle and peaceful method, like
tempting the cow by showing it a handful of green grass,
cajoling and fondling it, making it follow us of its own
accord to the shed and finally tying it there”.
dangers 186/233
This is a safe
and pleasant path, To bear the churning of the nadis
effected through the method of breath-retention in raja yoga,
the body must be young and strong. If such a churning is
made to happen in a body which is weak or old, since the
body does not have the strength to bear it, many troubles
may occur such as nervous disorders, physical diseases,
insanity and so on. But there is no room for any such
dangers if the churning is made to take place through
enquiry.
Not taking into consideration the legs
and arms, since they are only subsidiary limbs, the channel
through which the ‘I’ -consciousness is experienced in the
trunk of the body from the base of the spine (muladhara) to
the top of the head (sahasrara) is alone the sushumna.
visions ..not a requisite
While the ‘I’ – consciousness is withdrawing through
the sushumna, an aspirant may have experiences of the
places of the six yogic centres (shadchakras) on the way, or
even without having them may reach the Heart directly.
While travelling in a train to Delhi, It is not necessary that
a man should see the stations and scenes on the way. Can
he not reach Delhi unmindful of them, sleeping happily?
However, due to the past devotional tendencies towards the
different names and forms of God, which are bound by time
and place, some aspirants may have experiences of the six
yogic centres and of divine visions, sounds and so on
therein. But for those who do not have such obstacles in the
form of tendencies, the journey will be pleasant and without
any distinguishing feature
(visesha). In the former case,
these experiences are due to non-vigilance (pramada) in
Self-attention, for they are nothing but a second person
attention taking place there! This itself betrays that the
attention to Self is lost! For those tremendously earnest
aspirants who do not at all give room to non-vigilance in
Self-attention, these objective experiences will never occur!
The following replies of Sri Ramakrishna are worth being
noted in this context: When Swami Vivekananda reported
to Him, “All say that they have had visions, but I have not
seen any !” the Guru said, “That is good !” On another
occasion, when Swami Vivekananda reported that some
occult powers (siddhis) such as clairvoyance seemed to have
been gained by him in the course of his sadhana, his Guru warned him “Stop your sadhana for some time, Let them
leave you!” It is therefore clear from this that such
experiences can be had only by those who delay by often
stopping on the way on account of their Self-attention being
obstructed by lack of vigilance (pramada).
189/223
Even though the ‘I’-consciousness while being
withdrawn courses only along the sushumna nadi, on
account of its extreme brilliance it illumines the five sense
organs (jnanendriyas), which are near the sushumna, and
hence the above–mentioned experiences happen.
How?
When the light of ‘I’-consciousness stationed in the
sushumna illumines the eye, the organ of sight, there will
be visions of Gods and many celestial worlds; when it
illumines the ear, the organ of hearing, celestial sounds will
be heard such as the playing of divine instruments (deva
dundubhi), the ringing of divine bells, Omkara and so on;
when it illumines the organ of smell, delightful divine
fragrances will be smelt; when it illumines the organ of
taste, delicious celestial nectar will be tasted; and when it
illumines the organ of touch, a feeling of extreme pleasure
will permeate the entire body or a feeling of floating in an
ocean of pleasantness will be experienced.
There is no
wonder that these experiences appear to be clearer and of
greater reality than the sense-experiences in the ordinary
waking state, because the experiences of the present waking
world are gained through the gross five senses, which are
functioning by the impure ‘I’ – consciousness scattered all
over the body, whereas these experiences of celestial worlds
are gained through the subtle five senses, which are
functioning by the pure, focused ‘I’ – consciousness.
Yet all
these are only qualified mental experiences (visesha-manaanubhavas) and not the unqualified Self-experience
(nirvisesha-ekatma-anubhava).
Since the mind is now very subtle and brilliant
because it is withdrawn from all the other nadis into the
sushumna, and since it is extremely pure because it is free
from worldly desires, it is now able to project through the
subtle five senses only the past auspicious tendencies
(purva subha vasanas) as described above. However, just
because of these visions and the like, one should not
conclude that the mind has been transformed into Self
(atman). Even now there has not been destruction of the
mind (mono-nasa).
yoga brhashtha
Being still alive with auspicious
tendencies, it creates and perceives subtler and more
lustrous second and third person objects, and finds
enjoyment in them. So this is not at all the unqualified
experience of true knowledge (nirvisesha-jnana-anubhava),
which is the destruction of the tendencies (vasanakshaya).
Whatever appears and is experienced is only a second
person knowledge, which means that sadhana, the first
person attention, is lost at that time! Many are those who
take these qualified experiences (visesha-anubhavas) of
taste, light, sound and so on to be the final attainment of
Self-knowledge (brahma-jnana), and because they have had
these experiences they think that they have attained
liberation and they become more and more entangled in
attention to second and third persons, thus losing their
foothold on Self-attention. Such aspirants are called ‘those
fallen from yoga’ (yoga-bhrashtas).
This is similar to a man
bound for Delhi getting down from the train at some
intermediate station, thinking ‘Verily, this is Delhi’, being
deluded by its attractive grandeur! Even siddhis, the
superhuman powers that may come during the course of
sadhana are only our illusion, barring our progress to
liberation and landing us in some unknown place.
What are we to do to escape from falling into such
dangers? Even in this difficult situation, the clue given by
Bhagavan Sri Ramana alone serves as the proper medicine!
How? Whenever one is overtaken by such qualified
experiences, the weapon of Ramana (Ramanastram), ‘To
whom are these experiences ?’, is to be used! The feeling ‘To
me’ will be the response! From this, by the enquiry ‘Who am
I?’, one can immediately regain the thread of Self-attention.
When Self-attention is thus regained, those qualified
experiences of second and third persons will disappear of
their own accord because there is no one to attend to them
(just as a spirit possessing a man jumps and dances more
and more so long as others attend to and try to hold the
man, but leaves him if there is nobody to attend to him).
When the mind, giving up knowing those qualified external
sense-objects, again turns towards its form of light 80
(consciousness), it will sink into its source, the Heart, and
lose its form for ever. Therefore, the enquiry ‘Who am I?’
alone is the best sadhana even for aspirants on the path of
raja yoga), which will guard and guide us to the end and
save us. It is the invincible supreme weapon (brahmastram)
which is bestowed only by the Grace of Sri Ramana
Sadguru! It is the beacon-light which safeguards us lest we
should stray away from the path to eternal happiness,
which is the aim of the whole world! It is the path of Sri
Ramana, which alone transforms us into Self, ‘I am that I
am’!
During the course of sadhana, an aspirant will now be
able, by the strength of practice, to cognize tangibly what is
the state of the absorption of the ego and what exactly is Self-consciousness, at which he has been aiming till now.
Although his pure Self-existence, devoid of bodyconsciousness or any other adjunct, will often be
experienced by him, this is still the stage of practice and not
the final attainment! Why? Since there are still the two
alternating feelings, one of being sometimes extroverted and
the other of being sometimes introverted, and since there is
the feeling of making effort to become introverted and of
losing such effort while becoming extroverted, this stage is
said to be ‘not the final attainment’,
What Sri Bhagavan
reveals in this connection is :
“If the mind (the attention) is
thus well fixed in sadhana (attending to Self), a power of
divine Grace will then rise from within of its own accord
and, Subjugating the mind, will take it to the Heart”.
What
is this power of divine Grace ?
It is nothing but the perfect
clarity of our existence the form of the Supreme Self
(paramatman), ever shining with abundant Grace in the
heart as ‘I-I’ !
The nature of a needle lying within a magnetic field
is to be attracted and pulled only when its rust has been
removed. But we should not conclude from this that the
magnetic power comes into existence only after the rust is
removed from the needle. Is not the magnetic power always
naturally existing in that field?
Although the needle was all
the while lying in the magnetic field, it is affected by the
attraction of the magnet only to the extent that it loses its
rust.
All that we try to do by way of giving up second and
third attention and clinging to Self-attention is similar to
scraping off the rust.
So the result of all our endeavours is
to make ourself it to become a prey to the attraction of the
magnetic field of pure consciousness the Heart, which is
ever shining engulfing all (that is reducing the whole universe to non-existence) with spreading rays of Selfeffulgence.
imp
Mature aspirants will willingly and without
rebelling submit themselves to this magnetic power of the
Grace of Self-effulgence.
Others, on the other hand, will
become extroverted (that is, will turn their attention
outwards) fearing the attraction of this power
Therefore, we
should first make ourself fit by the intense love (bhakthi) to
know Self and by the tremendous detachment (vairagya) of
having no desire to attend to any second or third person.
Then, since our very individuality (as an aspirant) itself is
devoured by that power, even the so-called ‘effort of ours’
becomes nil.
Thus, when the ‘I’ – consciousness that was
spread all over the body is made to sink into the Heart, the
real waking, the dawn of knowledge (jnana), takes place.
This happens in a split second !
“Death is a matter of a split second! The leaving
off of sleep is a matter of a split second! Likewise,
the removal of the delusion ‘I am an individual
soul (jiva)’ is also a matter of a split second!
The
dawn of true knowledge is not such that glimpses
of it will be gained once and then lost! If an
aspirant feels that it appears and disappears, it is
only the stage of practice (sadhana); he cannot be
said to have attained true knowledge (jnana).
The
perfect dawn of knowledge is a happening of a
split second; its attainment is not a prolonged
process.
All the age long practices are meant only
for attaining maturity
Let us give an example it
takes a long lime to prepare a temple cannon-blast,
first putting the gunpowder into the barrel, giving
the wick, adding some stones and then ramming
it, but when ignited it explodes as a thunder in a split second.
Similarly, after an age long period of
listening and reading (sravana), reflecting
(manana), practising (h-dhyasana) and weeping
put in prayer (because of the inability to put what
is heard into practice), when the mind is thus
perfectly purified, then and then only does the
dawn of self-knowledge suddenly break forth in a
split second as ‘I am that I am’!
Since, as soon as
this dawn breaks, the space of Self-consciousness
is found, through the clear knowledge of the
Reality, to be beginningless, natural and eternal,
even the effort of attending to Self ceases then! To
abide thus, having nothing more to do and nothing
further to achieve, is alone the real and supreme
state.”
‘Sadhanai Saram’
That which we are now experiencing as the waking
state is not the real waking state. This waking state is also
a dream! There is no difference at all between this waking
and dream. In both these states, the feeling ‘I am’ catches
hold of a body as ‘I am this’ and, seeing external objects,
involves itself in activities. To awaken as described above
from the dream of this waking state is the dawn of
knowledge, our real state, or the real waking.
How are we to determine, ‘Another
awakening is no longer necessary; this is the real waking’?”
Whatever state it may be which we feel to be waking, so
long as there is an experience of the existence of any second
or third persons, which are other than oneself, it is not at all the real waking state; it is only a dream! Verify, our real
waking (our real state) is that in which our existence alone
(not attached to any kind of body) shines unaided and
without cognizing anything other than ‘we’. The definition
of the correct waking is that state in which there is perfect
Self-consciousness and singleness of Self- existence, without
the knowledge of the existence of anything apart from Self!
From this one can determine the real waking.
“Forgetting Self, mistaking the body for Self, taking
innumerable births, and at last knowing Self and
being Self is just like waking from a dream of
wandering all over the world. Know thus.”
‘Ekatma Panchakam’, verse 1
“To remain in the state (of Self), having attained
the supreme bliss, which is devoid of both
bondage end liberation, is truly to be in the service
of the Lord.”
‘Upadesa Undhiyar’, verse 29
The mind will subside only by means of the enquiry
Who am I?’. The thought ‘Who am I?’ (which is but a means
for turning our attention Self -wards), destroying all other
thoughts, will itself finally be destroyed like the stick used
for stirring the funeral pyre.
....By repeatedly practising thus, the power of the
mind to abide in its source increases.
When the mind (the
attention), which is subtle, goes out through the brain and
sense-organs (which are gross), the names-and-forms (the
objects of the world), which are gross, appear; when it
abides in the heart (its source, Self), the names-and-forms
disappear
Keeping the mind in the heart (through the
above-described means of fixing our attention in Self), not
allowing it to go out, alone is called ‘Self-wardness’
(ahamukham) or ‘introversion’ (antarmukham).
Allowing it
to go out from the heart alone is called ‘extroversion’
(bahirmukham). When the mind thus abides in the heart, the ‘I’ (the thought ‘I’, the ego), which is the root of all
thoughts, having vanished, the ever-existing Self alone will
shine. The place (or state) where even the slightest trace of
the thought ‘I’ does not exist, alone is Self (swarupam). That
alone is called ‘Silence’ (maunam). To be still (summa
iruppadu) in this manner alone is called ‘seeing through
(the eye of) knowledge’ (jnana-drishti). To be still is to make
the mind subside in Self (through Self-attention). Other than
this, knowing the thoughts of others, knowing the three
times (past, present and future), knowing events in distant
places – all these can never be jnana-drishti.
To make the mind subside, there is no adequate means
other than enquiry (vichara). If controlled by other means,
the mind will remain as if subsided, but will rise again.
206
As thoughts
subside more and more, one-pointedness is gained, and for
the mind which has thereby gained strength, Self-enquiry (atma-vichara) will easily be attained*
Although tendencies towards sense-objects (vishaya--
vasanas), which have been recurring down the ages, rise in
countless numbers like the waves of the ocean, they will all
perish as Self-attention (swarupa-dhyana) becomes more
and more intense.
Without giving room even to the doubting
thought, ‘Is it possible to destroy all these tendencies
(vasanas) and to remain as Self alone ?’, one should
persistently cling fast to Self-attention,
However great a
sinner one may be, it, not lamenting Oh, I am a sinner !
How can I attain salvation ?’ but completely giving up even
the thought that one is, a sinner, one is steadfast in Selfattention, one will surely be saved
As long as there are tendencies towards sense-objects
(vishaya-vasanas) in the mind, so long the enquiry ‘Who am
I?’ is necessary.
Not attending to what-is-other
(anya, that is, to any second or third person object) is nonattachment (vairagya) or desirelessness (nirasa);
not leaving
Self is knowledge (jnana).
In truth, these two (desirelessness
and knowledge) are one and the same. Just as a pearl-diver,
tying a stone to his waist, dives into the sea and takes the
pearl lying at the bottom, so everyone, diving deep within
himself with non-attachment (vairagya), can attain the pearl
of Self. If one resorts uninterruptedly to Self-remembrance
(swarupa-smaranai, that is, remembrance of or attention to
the mere feeling ‘I’) until one attains Self, that alone will be
sufficient. As long as there are enemies within the fort, they
will continue to come out. If one continues to cut all of
them down as and when they come, the fort will fall into
our hands
Remaining firmly in Self-abidance (atma-nishtha),
without giving even the least room to the rising of any
thought other than the thought of Self (atma-chintan), is surrendering oneself to God
Since it is said in all the scriptures that in order to
attain liberation (mukti) one should control** the mind,
after coming to know that mind-control (mano-nigraha)
alone is the final decision (injunction) of the scriptures, to
read scriptures unlimitedly is fruitless,
In order to control
the mind, it is necessary to enquire who one is, (then) how,
instead (of enquiring thus within oneself) to enquire (and
know who one is) in scriptures?
One should know oneself
through one’s own eye of knowledge (jnana-kan). For Rama
to know himself to be Rama, is a mirror necessary?
‘Oneself’ is within the five sheaths (pancho kosas); whereas
the scriptures are outside them. Therefore, enquiring in
scriptures about oneself, who is to be enquired into
(attended to) setting aside even the five sheaths, is futile,
Enquiring ‘Who am I that am in bondage?’ and knowing
one’s real nature (swarupam) alone is liberation (mukti),
Always keeping the mind (the attention) fixed in Self (in the
feeling ‘I’) alone is called ‘Self-enquiry’ (atma-vichara);
whereas meditation (dhyana) is thinking oneself to be the
Absolute (brahman), which is existence-consciousness-bliss
(sat-chit-ananda). All that one has learnt will at one time
have to be forgotten.
Remembering once the name of God with an
unwavering (one-pointed) mind is more valuable than
doing a thousand crores of Japa with a wandering mind.
6. The mind that attends to the true import of the word ‘I’
through jnana japa dies in Self, losing its individuality.
The mind that embraces the name of God, who is pure
consciousness (chit), with melting love (through bhakti
japa) transforms itself into the unbroken form of bliss
(ananda); it cannot remain as a separate entity.
In order to qualify as an aspirant,
one must have the absolute conviction that happiness, the
sole aim of all living beings, can be obtained not from
external objects but only from one’s own inmost Self. When
one has this qualification, an intense yearning will arise in
one’s heart to try to attend to and know Self. Indeed’, for a
true aspirant the desire and effort to know Self will become
the most important part of his life, and all other things will
be regarded as being only of secondary importance. When
such an intense yearning arises in one, success is assured,
for ‘where there is a will there is a way’.
Moreover, since
prarabdha determines only the outward activities of the
body and mind, it can in no way obstruct the inward desire
and yearning for Self-knowledge. If one has an intense
yearning for Self-knowledge, the Guru’s Grace will certainly
help one in all ways, both from within and without, to
enable one to attend to Self.
At first one may not be able to maintain unbroken
Self-attention even for a few minutes. Due to long habit, it
is only natural that the mind will start to think of some
second or third person objects. Each time the attention thus
turns outwards, the aspirant again tries to turn it back
towards the first person. This process of slackening of Self-attention and then trying to regain it, will repeat itself again
and again. If the aspirant’s mind is weak due to deficiency
in the love to know Self, the slackening of Self-attention will
happen frequently, in which case a struggle will ensue and
the mind will soon become tired. Instead of thus repeatedly struggling to regain Self-attention, one should
relax the mind for a while as soon as the initial attempt to
fix the attention on the first person becomes un-steady, and
then again make a fresh attempt. If one thus makes
intermittent attempts, each attempt will be found to have a
fresh force and a more precise clarity of attention.
If one presses one’s thumb on a pressure scale, the
dial may at first indicate a pressure of ten kilograms. But if
one tries to maintain that pressure for a long period of time,
the dial will show that it is gradually slackening and
decreasing. On the other hand, if one releases the pressure
and after a brief rest presses again with fresh vigour, the dial
will show a little more than ten kilograms. Similar is the
case with Self-attention. If one struggles for a long time to
maintain Self-attention, the intensity and clarity of one’s
attention will gradually slacken and decrease. But if instead
one relaxes as soon as one finds that one’s Self-attention is
slackening, and if after a brief rest one makes a fresh
attempt to fix one’s attention on Self, that fresh attempt will
have a greater intensity and clarity. Therefore, what is
important is not so much the length of time one spends
trying to attend to Self, but the earnestness and intensity
with which one makes each fresh attempt.
228
During the time of practice (sadhana) our attention,
which is now focused on second and third person objects,
has to turn back 180 degrees, so to speak to focus itself on
the first person. In the beginning, however, one’s attention
may be able to turn only 5, 10 or 15 degrees. This is
because one’s turning is resisted by a powerful spring – the
spring of one’s tendencies (vasanas) or subtle desires
towards worldly objects. Every time one tries to turn
towards the first person, this spring of one’s worldly
tendencies will tend to pull one’s mind back again towards
second and third persons. Therefore the number of degrees
one is able to turn will depend upon the firmness of one’s
desirelessness (vairagya) towards worldly objects and upon
the strength of one’s longing (bhakti) to know Self. Such
vairagya and bhakti will be increased in one by regularly
practising Self-attention, by earnestly praying to Sri
Bhagavan and by constantly associating with such persons
or books as will repeatedly remind one, “Only by knowing
Self can we attain. real and enduring happiness; so long as
we do not know Self we will be endlessly courting and
experiencing misery; therefore our first and foremost duty
in life is to know Self; all other efforts will only end in
vain.”
As one’s desirelessness and longing to know Self thus
increase by prayer to the Guru, by study (sravana) of and
reflection (manana) upon His teachings, and by practice
(nididhyasana) of Self-attention, one’s ability to turn one’s
attention towards the first person will also increase, until
one will be able to turn it 90, 120 or even 150 degrees at
each fresh attempt.
When one’s ability to turn one’s
attention Self-wards thus increases, one will be able to
experience a tenuous current of Self-awareness even while
engaged in activity; that is, one will be able to experience
an awareness of one’s being which will not be disturbed by
whatever one’s mind, speech or body may be doing, in other
words, one will be able to remember the feeling ‘I am’
which always underlies all one’s activities.
However, this
tenuous current of Self-awareness should not be taken to be
the state of unceasing Self-attention,. because one will
experience it only when one feels inclined to do so.
How then can one experience the state of unceasing
Self-attention, the state of unswerving Self-abidance? The Guru’s Grace will more and more help those aspirants who
thus repeatedlY practise Self-attention with great love
(bhaktl) to know Self. When a glowing fire and a blowing
wind join together, they play wonders. Likewise, when the
glowing fire of love for Self-knowledge and the blowing
wind of the Guru’s Grace join together, a great wonder takes
place. During one of his fresh attempts, the aspirant will be
able to turn his attention a complete 180 degrees towards
Self (that is, he will be able to achieve a perfect clarity of
Self-awareness, completely uncontaminated by even the
least awareness of any second or third person), whereupon
he will feel a great change taking place spontaneously and
without his effort.
His power of attention, which he had previously tried so many times to turn towards Self and which
had always slipped back towards second and third persons,
will now be caught under the grip of a powerful clutch
which will not allow it to turn again towards any second
or third person.
This clutch is the clutch of Grace. Though
Grace has always been helping and guiding one, it is only
when one is thus caught by its clutch that one becomes
totally a prey to it. If one once turns one’s attention a full
180 degrees towards Self, one is sure to be caught by this
clutch of Grace, which will then take one as its own and
will forever protect one from again turning towards second
and third person objects.
This state in which the mind is
thus caught by the clutch of Grace and is thereby drowned
forever in its source, is known as the experience of
true.knowledge (jnananubhutl), Self-realization (atmasakshatkaram), liberation (moksha) and so on.
This alone
can be called the state of unceasing Self-attention.
Some people doubt, “If it is so, will the mind then
remain drowned forever in samadhi? Will it not be able to
come out again and know all the second and third person objects of this world? Is it not a fact that even Bhagavan Sri
Ramana spent nearly fifty-four years in the state of Self-realization and that most of that time He was seen to be
attending to second and third persons ?” Yes, it is true that
though Sri Bhagavan always remained in the state of Self-realization, yet in the outlook of others He was seen to be
knowing the world. How can this be accounted for?
To remain with the body and mind completely inert
is not the only sign of samadhi. Though after Selfrealization some Jnanis spend their entire lifetime
completely oblivious of the body and world, not all Jnanis
will necessarily remain thus. The return of body consciousness (and consequently world-consciousness) after
the attainment of Self-realization is according to the
prarabdha of that body; in the case of some it might never
return, while in the case of others it might return within a
second or after a few hours or days. But even in such cases
where it does return, it will not be experienced as a
knowledge of second or third persons! That is to say, the
body and world are not experienced by the Jnani as second
and third persons – objects other than Himself-but as His
own unlimited and undivided Self.
So long as one is an aspirant one mistakes the limited
form of one’s body to be oneself, and consequently the
remaining portion of one’s unlimited real Self is experienced
by one as the world-a collection of second and third person,
objects. But after attaining Self-realization, since one
experiences oneself to be the unlimited Whole, one
discovers that all the second and third persons which one
was previously feeling to be other than oneself, are truly
nothing but one’s own Self. Therefore, even while a Jnani
is (in the view of onlookers) attending to second and third person objects, He is (in His own view) attending only to
Self. Hence, even though He may appear to be engaged in
so many activities, both physical and mental, He is in fact
ever abiding in the natural state of unceasing Self--attention.
Therefore, unceasing Self-attention is possible only in
the state of Self-realization and not in the state of practice
(sadhana). What one has to do during the period of sadhana
is to cultivate ever-increasing love to attain Self-knowledge
and to make intermittent but repeated attempts to turn one’s
attention a full 180 degrees towards Self. If one once
succeeds in doing this, then unceasing Self-attention will be
found to be natural and effortless.
...the path of Ramana part 1 ends.....................
.......................................
sadhanai saram
31. When the true knowledge dawns that everything is only “I”, then the extroverted love which
desirously springs towards other objects, will remain
pervading everywhere in the form of mere Being and
will no longer spring towards anything else. The
love that thus remains as mere Being, having
ceased to move in the form of thoughts, alone is
Siva, who is Self.
......
In this connection, some raise the following doubt: “If
it is said that we have awakened from one dream and have
come to another dream, the present waking state, why, after
we awaken from this waking state, will even that not be
another dream like this? How are we to determine, ‘Another
awakening is no longer necessary; this is the real waking’?”
Whatever state it may be which we feel to be waking, so
long as there is an experience of the existence of any second
or third persons, which are other than oneself, it is not at all the real waking state; it is only a dream! Verify, our real
waking (our real state) is that in which our existence alone
(not attached to any kind of body) shines unaided and
without cognizing anything other than ‘we’.
The definition
of the correct waking is that state in which there is perfect
Self-consciousness and singleness of Self- existence, without
the knowledge of the existence of anything apart from Self!
From this one can determine the real waking.
............
ns
bc is denial of Self
........
32. Since Self is happiness itself, so long as one
sees other things, which are in truth only Self (but
whose names and forms are a mere appearance),
how can one not think that those other things are
pleasurable? This alone is the reason why all living
beings, beginning with celestial beings and including
men and all other creatures, are drowning and burning in the great fire of desires for external objects.
35. When we limit our true nature of undivided
existence-consciousness-bliss by wrongly accepting
an insignificant body to be “I”, desire arises for those
objects of the world that are favorable to this limited
“I”, and aversion arises for those objects which are
not favorable to it. This desire and aversion are a
twofold reflected shadow of our real nature, which is
bliss (ananda) or love (priya).
37. Only by the experience of Self-knowledge
will all desires be burnt and destroyed in such a
manner that they can never again revive. Nobody
has ever overcome the power of desires merely by
fighting and struggling for any number of years
against the wandering nature of the five senses.
.................
non grasping mind ..agraham....= No mind
Atma satyane bodhena
then sansara disappears...agrahena ..you are not grasping
anitya drusheshu vivichya (viveka) nityam
tasmin samaddhatta (samadhistha ) leela
viveka vairagya visshuddha chittam
...This understanding not difficult....but letting go mentally..is difficult.
atma satya..anatma mithya
...mind becomes with no sankalpa. fear lost.
..................... ................
ns no 8 isarga medn playlist 1:12:00
those who have realised that c is devoid of gunas become tired of living in this world. They go to lonely places like the himalayas
ll chaos due to concept ..im the body..
.....................
41....Know that
the non-rising of the ego, which rises either with the
feeling “I am having this particular desire” or with the
feeling “I have renounced this particular desire,” is
alone true renunciation.
42....Hence, the state that is devoid of the ego,
which feels “I” and “me,” is alone the state that is
acceptable to Sages.
50a. Those fortunate people who have attained a
perfect Guru will not toil in vain to cultivate good
qualities in the mind.
They will only cultivate the practice of Self-inquiry, which will draw the mind within
and destroy it, and thereby they will not allow the
mind to rise in the form of thoughts.
To attain the
unequaled and unsurpassed nature (of abiding eternally as Self), there is no way other than the practice
of making the mind humbly subside through devotion and inquiry.
51. Our association (sanga) with the reality (sat)
alone is true sat-sanga. Since Self-alone is the reality, abiding in the Self-alone is the best sat-sanga
(conscious company or association). Moreover,
since those great aspirants (Sadhus) who have realized Self, the reality, cannot be other than Self, they
too are the reality itself. Therefore, approach such Self-realized Ones (Sadhus) and remain with them
as their devoted slave.
52. If you do not have the power to abide in Self,
the reality, remain with love in the constant company
of Sadhus who have known the reality.
If you do not
have even the good fortune to be in their company,
have contact at least with the teachings of such
Sadhus by constantly studying those books that
contain the words (works) they have spoken. Studying such books is also sat-sanga (conscious association).
53. What are those books, the study of which is
to be considered as sat-sanga? They are only those
books that will clearly impress upon you, “Self alone
is the reality, so always abide in Self.” “In order to
abide in Self, practice only Self-inquiry and do not
follow any other path.” “Practice Self-inquiry now, itself; turn and dive within.”
54. If, in the name of conscious association (satsanga), you gather together all kinds of people, said
“holy gathering” will consist only of a crowd of people who are skilled in oratory, or who have studied
innumerable books, or who have mastered the sixty-four mundane arts (apara-vidyas); all of which are
unreal products of the mind’s power of imagination.
Reject all such gatherings, knowing that they are not
at all true conscious company (sat-sanga).
55. Rather than associating with such people,
thinking their company to be sat-sanga, it is better
for you to remain alone without associating with
anyone; because such solitude or non-association
will help you at least gradually to gain more and
more detachment.
56. For those who have been blessed with the
rare and great good fortune of gaining true satsanga, all the heaps of gold in the seven worlds
cannot be compared with that treasure called satsanga, because by such sat-sanga they will cross
the ocean of ignorance (ajnana), which is so difficult
to cross, and thus they will attain in this very life the
unequaled state of liberation, which is so difficult to
attain.
Note: Compare verse 2 of Supplement to Reality
in Forty Verses, in which Sri Bhagavan says, “that
supreme state (of liberation) that is praised (by all
the scriptures) and that is attained here (in this very
life) by the clear Inquiry (vichara) that arises in the
heart when one gains association with a sage
(Sadhu), is impossible to attain by (listening to)
preachers, by (studying and learning) the meaning
of the scriptures, by (doing) virtuous deeds or by any
other means”.
57. Though your mind lacks the strength of discrimination or dispassion (viveka and vairagya) required to withdraw itself from the false attraction of
the pleasures of this unreal world, your mind will
naturally and spontaneously become mature to the
extent to which you humbly and lovingly come very
close and associate with enlightened sages
(Jnanis), who abide as the reality (sat).
58. If you ask how, just as even a fresh plantain
tree will become dry and catch fire when it comes in
close proximity to a raging forest fire, so the minds
of those who associate with Jnanis will, unknown to
themselves, be made by that association to attain
great love to attend to and abide in Self.
60. We should not believe that we have by our
own efforts and practice (sadhana) brought about
the rising of such pure devotion and clear discrimination that we are thus able to experience in our
hearts. This true devotion and discrimination are
spontaneously and naturally kindled in our hearts,
not by our own efforts, but only by the power of the
Grace of that Sat-purusha who is living close to us,
and who appears as if he is someone other than us.
61. Just like a mother who feeds her sleeping
child even without the child knowing that he is being
fed, the Grace of the Sat-purusha enters our hearts
in a manner that cannot be known by us even if we
have the most subtle and powerful of intellects, and
thereby His Grace reforms us and brings about the
destruction of our mind. Ah! His Grace is beyond
all limits and cannot be gauged by anyone.
63. Only those who abide firmly in the reality
(sat) are Sages (Sadhus); those pure Sages are not
other than Self, whose nature is realityconsciousness-bliss (sat-chit-ananda). Knowing the
truth, that Arunachala is manifest here as the peerless gross form of the reality, remain here in order to
associate with the reality.
Note: There is no form of external conscious
company (sat-sanga) superior to that of residing
near and doing pradakshina (circumambulation)
around Arunachala.
64. If due to its wavering nature one’s mind is
confounded and bewildered, being unable to cling
fast to the practice of Self-abidance,
or to the path of
devotion, or to the eightfold path of raja yoga, and if
one is therefore seeking some good form of austere
spiritual practice (tapas) as an effective and easy
path along which he can make further effort, let him
repeatedly and perseveringly come round this divine
Hill Arunachala.
65. Any kind of action (karma) is a dual activity
(dvaita vritti) that casts one further and further away
from Self, the center of all.
But unlike all other actions (karmas), doing pradakshina, or circumambulating around Arunachala is a dual activity that does
not cast one away from Self, the sun of true knowledge. Therefore, do this.
...
ns
renunciation happens through self knowledge
...
71. The benefit in repeating a holy name of God
is not only to gain one-pointedness of mind, but is to
surrender oneself to God to such an extent that
one’s heart melts and dissolves with ever-brimming
love for Him while repeating His name.
72. Thinking once of the name of God with a
steady one-pointed mind is more valuable than doing a thousand, thousand (or crores) of repetitions
(japa) with a wandering mind. But calling intently
upon God even once, with a mind surging with love
for Him, is far superior even to doing a million (crore)
of japa with a one-pointed mind.
73. While doing repetition (japa) of the name of
God, there is one thing, called “love,” which is to be
mingled with it. If one knows correctly the way to do
japa uniting love with the name of God, the result attained by that japa will be not only one-pointedness of mind, that japa will bestow upon one the deathless state of union with God.
74. Uniting love with the name of God is giving
of oneself, the ego “I,” as an offering to His feet.
Love is we, and the name is He. Thus, uniting
love with His name is offering our self to Him, which
is the principle of self-surrender (saranagati-tattva).
By such self-surrender, the state of Self-abidance is
attained.
75. Japa (repetition of mantra) can be classified
as being of two kinds, namely knowledge (jnana
japa) and devotion (bhakti japa). Repeating mentally “I, I” is knowledge, or jnana japa; repeating the
name of God with love is devotion, or bhakti japa.
The mind of one who has liking for jnana japa seeks
to know the true import of the word “I” and merges in
that. One who is earnest in doing bhakti japa loses
his separate individuality, melting with love in the
name of his Lord.
76. The mind, which seeks the true import of the
word “I” while doing natural or swarupa japa, will
lose itself and die in Self, the reality. Those who
depend upon God, the embodiment of pure consciousness, and who melt with love while repeating
His name, become the supreme bliss which is devoid of the ego “I”, and thus they cease to exist as
an entity separate from Him.
77. For those who follow the path of Self-inquiry,
or jnana japa, renders all the help required to attain
Self-knowledge. For those who follow the path of
devotion, bhakti japa makes them unite with God.
For which ever one of these two kinds of japa a lik-ing naturally arises in a person, that kind of japa is
suitable for him.
...................
unless vasana kshaya and manonasha...reality sat will be difficult to manifest in life.
.......................
imp
79. To the extent to which love for God arises in
one’s heart, to that extent will one acquire knowledge about Him. And to the extent to which one
knows the nature of God, to that extent will the mind
gain steadfast love for Him. Thus, knowledge
(jnana) will be increased by devotion (bhakti), and
devotion (bhakti) will be increased by knowledge
(jnana).
80. By means of our love for God, He will give
us more knowledge of Him, and by means of our
knowledge of Him, He will give us more love for Him.
Therefore, of these two paths, bhakti and jnana, follow that one for which you first gain a liking, because that one path will lead you to follow the other
one into the heart.
81. In the life of an aspirant who is seeking liberation, bhakti and jnana will be experienced as inseparable, like the two sides of one sheet of paper.
Hence, each one is equal to the other. They are not
two different things, for the true nature of both of
them is one and the same; know that bhakti and
jnana are merely two names for that one thing
82. The state of abiding firmly in Self-alone is
wisdom (jnana). Would it be possible to abide thus
in Self if one did not have love for Self? Love for
Self-alone is bhakti; abiding firmly in Self on account
of that love alone is jnana. What difference is there
between these two? Discriminate and know this
truth. (Maharshi’s Gospel p.24)
84. An aspirant who practices Self-inquiry, which
is the path of jnana, denies his own individuality by
knowing, “I, this insignificant ego, am not the doer of
any action”; while a devotee denies his own individuality by knowing, “God alone is the doer of all
actions.” Thus, since an aspirant who follows either
of these two paths refrains from assuming the sense
of doership, understand that these two paths are not
different even during the time of practice, and follow
either of them
20. Inquiry Becoming Easy Due to Devotion
imp-
87. When, having wept and wept with intense
yearning for a long time, unceasingly thinking of and
adoring the Gracious Feet (of the Lord), the mind
which rises (as “I am so-and-so”) dissolves and becomes pure, the blemishless Self-inquiry (jnana-atmavichara) will become firmly settled (in the heart) and
the experience of Self (swarupa-anubhava) will of its
own accord arise very easily indeed. – Sri Muruganar
89. Since the ego itself is everything (as revealed by Sri Bhagavan in verse 26 of Reality in
Forth Verses), giving up the ego, the feeling “I am
this body,” by surrendering it to God, is lovingly surrendering everything to Him. Having once surrendered the ego to God, abiding in Self without taking
it back again (that is, without again identifying the
body as “I” or “mine”) is true tapas.
90. Having surrendered the ego to God, if one
takes it back again, that is the sin of stealing back
what has once been given. Therefore, in order to
avoid committing such a sin, practice Self-attention
unfailingly, because only if one attends to the ego
vigilantly and unceasingly will it drown in the heart
so as never to rise again. Garland of Guru’s Sayings verse 317)
91. Destroying the ego through Self-attention is
alone the excellent path of self-surrender. Therefore, scrutinizing and knowing one’s own Self is
alone the proper method of practicing both self surrender, the path of devotion, and Self-inquiry, the
path of knowledge.
Note: Compare with Who am I?; thirteenth paragraph, where Sri Bhagavan says, “Remaining
firmly….surrendering oneself to God.”
92. The path of knowledge, in which we scrutinize “Who am I?”, is itself the path of devotion in which we have true love for God. Knowing thus,
that Self-inquiry and self-surrender are one and the
same, not only in their goal but also in their method
of practice, follow the practice of Self-attention.
105. Until the root-tendency (mula-vasana) to
identify a body as “I” ceases to exist, the appearances of the waking and dream states that arise due
to delusion (maya) will not come to an end.
If you,
with a one-pointed mind keenly and incessantly attend to the consciousness of your existence, which
shines as pure “I am,” the root-tendency “I am the
body,” and all its products and other tendencies, will
cease to exist.
111...You
will not take birth again only if you awaken into the
true state of Self-knowledge. Awaken thus.
115. Even before the experience of the current
destiny (prarabdha karma) which caused the appearance of a dream has come to an end, if the
mind is struck by intense fear, joy or suffering, its
power of attention will be driven Self-wards and return to the heart, whereupon waking will result.
116. Similarly, even before all the accumulated
sanchita karmas have been exhausted by being experienced in the form of prarabdha, if in this present
life, which was started by prarabdha, the mind either
gains firm dispassion (vairagya), being unable to
bear the severe sufferings of life, or experiences intense fear of death, it will turn Self-wards and merge
in the heart; whereupon the true awakening of Self-knowledge will result.
117. When such intense fear or suffering are
experienced, if the mind with mature discrimination
(viveka) at once earnestly scrutinizes, “To whom
does this fear or suffering arise?” then the extroverted power of attention, which was till then being
dragged out towards objects other than itself, will
turn inwards to face itself, whereupon the truly
awakened life of Self-abidance will immediately be
attained.
121. The pure consciousness “I,” which exists in
sleep devoid of all adjuncts, is the Supreme Reality
(Brahman). If we do not slip down from that state of
pure consciousness due to attachment to the body
(dehabhimana), that itself is the Supreme Abode
(parandhama). If we remain, without leaving Self,
that itself is liberation.
136. A human body is necessary (in order for us
to attain Self-knowledge); all right, it has now come
to us. But if we still have a liking for this human
body (and if we desire to make it healthy and
strong), the attachment to it in the form “I” and
“mine” will increase, and it will not help us in the
least to destroy the feeling “I am this body”
(dehatma-bhava). That (desire to protect the body
and to make it healthy and strong) is indeed an obstacle (to the attainment of Self-knowledge).
137...“Trying to know the (real) Self and at the same time
cherishing the (unreal and) perishable body, is like
taking hold of a crocodile as a raft in order to cross a
river.”
143. Having understood, “If death is only the destruction of the body, then it is merely the state in
which I, the soul, am separated from the insentient
body,” the mind of the aspirant will come to a bold
determination, accepting thus, “Let me remain in the same manner as I would be when death occurs in
practice.”
144. This bold determination is dispassion
(vairagya). Only when it arises will true renunciation
be attained. When true renunciation is thus attained
as a result of the fear of death, then and there the
divine Grace of the Guru will arise and function so
as to separate us as other than this body – as Self,
the nature of existence-consciousness (sat-chitswarupa). Thus, the attachment to the body as “I”
(dehabhimana) will perish.
145. When the power of divine Grace functions
thus, the true light of Self-consciousness, the one
peerless reality, will shine forth, expanding and
blossoming in the heart, whereupon in front of that
brilliant light this world and our life as an individual in
this world will disappear, being found to be a mere
false appearance, just as in front of the sun the yellow stain of turmeric disappears from a white cloth.
146. Since the truth, “The death which comes is
only for this filthy body, and is not in any way for us,”
will thus shine forth as one’s own experience, the
fear of death will thereafter never rise again
147. Then patient forbearance (udasina) or indifference to mundane happenings, absence of all
base qualities, fearlessness, the steadfast power of
true love, and all the six exalted divine qualities
(bhagavat-gunas) divine splendor, valor, glory, pure
knowledge, divine prosperity and desirelessness,
will shine in one clearly and harmoniously.
151. Thinking of anything other than “I” is alone
birth; not thinking of anything other than “I” is liberation (mukti).
Will those who have learnt well the art
of not thinking, and who thereby abide firmly in the
thought-free state, come again under the sway of
thought?
The practice of refraining from seeing
oneself as the many objects of this world is alone
perfect practice (sadhana).
If one achieves success in this sadhana, then there will be no more birth or
death.
152. In order not to experience either birth or
death, let us arrive at the exalted practice (sadhana)
of abiding in the natural state, which is devoid of
thinking and forgetting.
If we learn correctly how to
abide thus, then for what reason will we take birth or
die?
The art of abiding without doubt in the state of
Self is alone worthy for us to learn.
154. Since they are known only when thoughts
exist, and since they do not shine when one abides
firmly in Self, the creator of the soul, God and world
is only the mind, which is the aggregate of all
thoughts. Is this creation a work done by Self? No.
29. Pramada
156. Know that the world, soul and God have all
seemingly come into existence only because of our
pramada or slackness in Self-attention.
30. The Disappearance of Otherness
157. The entire universe composed of the five
elements, earth, water, fire, air and space, appears
only due to our error of mistaking as “I,” the ego that
rises from Self like a spark rising from fire, and
which appears as different from Self whose nature is
Being, and as identical with the mind, whose nature
is rising.
159. If we attain the otherness-free knowledge
(ananya jnana), that this world is nothing but our
own Self, seen wrongly in our self by our self
through our power of imagination, then the delusion
of desire for or fear of the world (the objects we see
in front of us), will never rise again; and we will
merge in and become one with Self. This alone is
our natural state.
163. If this “I,” the self-rising ego-appearance, is
destroyed by the inquiry “Who am I?”, then everything else, which till then appeared only in him (in
the mind) but which was seen as if existing outside
of him, will cease to exist. The ever-existing Whole
or purna, which then shines forth as “I-I,” the blissful
existence which neither appears nor disappears, is
the real Self, the true import of the word “I.”
164. The “I” which is the Whole, which is the
true import of “I”, which shines by its own light without appearing due to the functioning of the five
sense-knowledge (and disappearing when they
cease to function); which is the exalted and everunleaving experience of Self, and which is the true
nature of everyone, alone is the one non-dual reality; it alone is true knowledge.
165. This true knowledge is not anything other
than oneself; it is our own existence-consciousness
“I am.” Why should we suffer by imagining and seeing the soul, world and God in this knowledge?
Abiding firmly as mere Being, experience this
knowledge correctly; then what thing other than
oneself will appear there?
.........the
mind merging and abiding firmly in Self is alone the
true state of supreme power.
170. If one has the ability to deny oneself and
thereby to destroy the rising of the ego in its very
source, what other tapas need one perform? The
real Self, the source in which the ego thus subsides
and dies, alone is the state which is worth to purchase and attain by selling (or renouncing) all the
three worlds.
173. If you first attend to yourself, by investigating within yourself “To whom has this illusory appearance of the world (maya) come? To whom
does it exist?” then in the mind that has merged in
the state of Silence due to such Self-attention, the
truth that you exist as the mere consciousness “I
am,” devoid of any differentiation, diversity or imagi-nation (vikalpa), will spontaneously reveal itself to
you.
imp
174. When the truth is known that you, the person who identifies the body as “I,” and who raises
doubts and asks questions about phenomenal existence (maya), do not exist even in the least, then
you will know as a matter of direct experience that in
no place, at no time and in no way did phenomenal
existence (maya) ever come or exist, and that the
existence of the illusory world (maya) cannot be accepted even as a false appearance.
175. He (the mind) who says that the illusion of
phenomenal existence (maya) has come into existence is himself an illusion (maya). Therefore, the
one path of Self-attention, which puts an end to the
mind, is alone the means that the pure Jnana-Guru,
Sri Ramana Bhagavan, has bestowed upon us as
the apt medicine to put an end to all the arguments
that arise about phenomenal existence (maya).
176. Even though our Guru has instructed us,
“See ‘Who am I'?”, people of dull intellect ask, “Why
has this world and the pleasures and pains herein
come into existence?”
instead of investigating “Who
am I?” within themselves;
only for such dull-minded
people who ask thus, the Guru and the scriptures
say, “Ah! That is all illusion (maya).”
177. But since people of pure faith who sincerely
engage in the practice of Self-attention as instructed
by the Guru, drown in the true consciousness “I” by
turning their attention again and again towards the
false self (the mind) whenever it rises, to raise any kind of further questions, this talk of maya is not intended for them.
34. Doubt Who is the Doubter
178. Do you merely want an apt reply to the
doubt that has come to you? Or do you wish to attain the state in which no doubt can ever rise again?
Know that to become pure consciousness, in which
there is no place for any doubt to rise, is alone the
state that is acceptable to wise people.
35. The Learning That Should be Learnt
189. One’s learning to abide as the indestructible existence-consciousness “I am,” having known it
to be different from the existence of the body, is
alone true learning, (the supreme science or paravidya). Abiding thus, having clearly known this existence-consciousness, and having thereby subsided
in Self, is alone the state of true knowledge (jnana).
....but it cannot be an
obstacle to one’s enjoying the true happiness of
Self, because) to abide permanently in Self is easy
imp
194. Know that making effort to achieve an inward-facing attention, which will increase the clarity
of Self-awareness,
instead of driving the mind outwards with great force in order to acquire the useless learning (of mundane knowledge or aparavidya), which will cloud and destroy that clarity, is
the truest and highest learning (para-vidya).
196. Self-knowledge will shine forth spontaneously only when the mind subsides.
But if the mind
that subsides is full of wicked and inauspicious tendencies (asubha vasanas), Self-knowledge will not
shine forth, and hence the mind will once again rise
and become extroverted. If on the other hand the
mind that subsides is pure, being endowed with
good qualities (sattva gunas) and the tendency to
simply be (sat-vasana), it will merge within with onepointed Self-attention and unsleeping vigilance, and
hence it will not rise again; but will attain unwavering
abidance in the state of Self-knowledge.
197. If the mind, having subsided and becoming
one with Self, clearly knows that Being (as it really
is) is alone real happiness,
and that rising as “I” (a
separate individual or ego) is nothing but misery,
it
will gain the fondness to subside in Self
without ever
rising again, having completely destroyed the duality
of likes and dislikes.
.....and whose minds have not therefore completely
withdrawn from all such extroverted desires and efforts, it will not be easy to inquire, “Who am I?”, and
to know the true state of Self, just as a reflection of
one’s face will not be formed clearly in swiftly running water
200. If the liking to attain true knowledge really
rises with one, it will be easy for one to experience
Self-knowledge, the state of perfect emancipation,
as clearly as an amalaka (crystal, or goose berry)
fruit in the hand.
But so long as even an iota of the
liking to enjoy the pleasures of this unreal world remains unsubsided in one’s heart, the real thirst to
know Self will not rise within one.
201. To the extent in which the conviction grows
stronger in us that all the extroverted activity of the
mind is only misery, to that extent the desire and
love to turn within will also increase.
And to the extent to which the strength to attend to Self alone increases in us, to that extent the conviction will grow that attending to anything other than Self is useless.
Thus, each one of these two (namely vairagya or
desirelessness towards external objects and bhakti
or the love to attend to Self) is an aid to increase the
other.
202. Know that he who likes to remain steadfastly attending to Self, knowing that Self-attention is
far more important than any action that he has to do,
than any word that he has to speak, or than any
thought that he has to think, alone is a true mature
spiritual aspirant (pakvi).
203. Though many crores (millions) of very important thoughts rise in one’s heart, bliss can be enjoyed only when one rejects all of them and remains
still, knowing that to be still is far more important
than to continue attending to any thought whatsoever.
Only by those earnest aspirants who have
clearly understood this truth, can real austere practice (tapas) be possible.
38. Intense Earnestness is Required
205. If a pearl-diver remains on the shore of the
ocean waiting for the roaring waves to subside, will
he ever succeed in gathering pearls? If he plunges
through the waves on the surface and dives deep
into the ocean with a heavy stone tied to his waist, what waves will he find there in the depths? (Similarly, if we steadfastly dive beneath the waves of
thoughts into the depths of our heart, by keenly attending to the consciousness “I”, we will find that
there are no thoughts there to disturb us).
206. Since a life of great peace exists deep
within the ocean of our heart, we should be completely indifferent towards the many tendencies (vasanas) which are tossing like heavy waves on the
surface of that ocean, and with intense desirelessness (vairagya) we should dive deep into Self, the
primal consciousness of our existence.
207. Having dived deep into the heart, which is
the consciousness “I”, and having thereby rectified
all kinds of sense-knowledge, which are distortions
of the one real consciousness, and which rise like
bubbles on the surface of the ocean, we should
abide only as this existence-consciousness, which
shines as “I am”, without knowing anything through
the senses.
208. When we thus abide more and more in the
natural state of Self, all the innumerable tendencies
(vasanas) will be destroyed. Other than this practice
of Self-abidance, there is no effective means that
will destroy the tendencies so easily and so quickly.
209. Even before all the tendencies have been
completely destroyed, by one’s own desirelessness
(vairagya) and by the Grace of God, it is possible for
one to attain the blemishless light of Self-knowledge.
Then by the power and clarity of that Self knowledge, the delusion of attachment to the body
and mind will automatically be destroyed.
210. Those aspirants who have attained purity
of mind due to the strength of the good qualities that
they have gradually cultivated, and acquired through
so many births, will easily learn how to abide in this
state of Self-knowledge as soon as they come into
the presence of the Sadguru who has manifested
Himself in human form.
213. Other than knowing the ever-existing Self,
all the aims and paths that the deceptive mind
shows to be so lofty, are not worthy to be accepted
even in the least by real aspirants, but are only worthy to be rejected. Therefore, without any fear or
hesitation, reject all of them.
214. We should not give even the least room in
our heart to the demonic ghost of forgetfulness
(pramada), which deludes the mind by diverting it
from Self-attention. Instead, with unhesitating and
irresistible courage, we should victoriously attain
Self-knowledge.
216. The tendencies (vasanas) are the seeds,
and the thoughts that rise are the plants. The Grace
of God or Guru is the water that makes the vasanas
sprout in the form of thoughts. Then in order to destroy those thoughts, which exist in the form of desires, that same Grace crushes them by the power
of the clear discrimination that it bestows upon us.
Therefore, until you achieve victory in this war of
Grace, do not become disheartened and give up
your meditation.
40. How to Make Thoughts Subside
218. All thoughts (vrittis) arise only because the
unreal feeling “I am this body” has become well
soaked and firmly established in us. All these
thoughts will be destroyed only if we vigilantly practice Self-inquiry, and thereby root out the unreal feeling “I am this body.”
Sri Bhagavan says, “The thought ‘This
fleshy body alone is I’ is indeed the one thread on
which the various thoughts are strung. Therefore, if
one goes within (by keenly scrutinizing) ‘Who am I
and what is the place (from which I rise)?’ the
thoughts will perish and Self-knowledge will spontaneously shine forth within the cave (of the Heart) as
‘I-I’ ”
221. The tendency to identify this gross body as
“I” (in the waking state) alone is the root which
paves the path for ignorance to subsist as the subtle
body (in dream) and to hide as the casual body (in
sleep). Therefore, if we abide as Self, having repeatedly practiced Self-attention and having thereby
put an end to this root-tendency to identify the gross
body as “I,” the tendency to identify with the other
two bodies will also be destroyed automatically.
Tapa defined
223. The state in which our power of attention,
which now sees the objects that exist in front of our
eyes, sees its own existence “I am”, having suddenly become introverted by giving up all objective
attention and turning towards “I,” is alone the state
of true austerity (tapas) or yoga.
If our power of attention is used in any other way, that is only an objective attention that is opposed to true tapas or
yoga.
224. Know that a vichari (a person practicing
Self-inquiry) who makes effort with the liking always
to turn inwards to see the “I” with the inner eye, will
not be able to experience the pure Selfconsciousness merely by the process of sitting majestically with closed eyes for a long period of time at
one stretch.
225. If at one single attempt you strive persistently for long hours without limit, to pull Self -wards
and restrain the running mind without leaving your
hold on Self-attention, you will find that you are not
able to maintain a steady intensity of Self-attention.
Therefore, after making one attempt for a few minutes, relax your effort for a while, and then again
make a fresh attempt with renewed effort.
226. If you continue incessantly to struggle for
many hours at a stretch to turn your power of attention towards Self, your effort will become slack and
the intensity of your Self-attention will decrease. On
the other hand, if you take rest as and when each
attempt becomes slack, and then if you repeatedly
make fresh efforts to turn Self-wards, with each fresh
attempt your Self-attention will gain an increased
vigor and intensity.
227. When the mind, our power of attention,
having little by little gained the strength to turn Self-wards, finally at one time reaches the heart due to
the intensity and clarity of its Self-attention, it will
drown in Self, having been caught in the clutch of
the Grace of God who has ever been waiting without
the least forgetfulness to catch it, and hence it will
never again turn outwards to know objects other
than “I”.
228. Knowing that this is indeed the peerless divine marriage of Grace, the power of attention will
become settled and will attain firm abidance in Self.
To remain steadily established in Self-abidance, be-ing firmly bound by Self in Self, having known oneself to be that Self, is alone the state of supreme
bliss.
42. Watching the Breath
229. If one takes to Self-attention, the practice of
keenly observing only the consciousness “I,” then
one need not perform any other practice (sadhana).
But let those who cannot take to this practice of Selfattention from the very outset, practice for a short
while either repetition of mantras (japa) or watching
of the movement of the breath, and then let them
give up all such practices and cling only to Selfattention.
232. If you fix your attention upon the one power
within you, which is experienced in the form of the
effort that draws the breath within and then pushes it
out, then retention of the breath (kumbhaka) will be
attained without difficulty or strain.
233. But if you think that effort of yours to be
something other than “I,” no benefit will be gained
from the retention kumbhaka. And even though you
understand this effort of yours to be only yourself, if
your attention does not cling to that first person consciousness “I,” know that even this practice will only
be a buffoonery.
43. Self-Inquiry and Other Methods of Practice
(Sadhana)
236. For those who listen and pay heed to what
Sri Ramana Bhagavan has said, the path of Selfinquiry is very easy. Only to those who ask, “What
is this path? What is that path?”, having already
confused their mind by learning so much, does it
become necessary to teach all the other superficial
and extroverted methods of sadhana saying, “First
subdue the breath (by practicing pranayama), subdue the tongue (by observing silence), and subdue
the mischief of the mind (by practicing meditation).”
238. If the mind practices any one thing incessantly, it will naturally gain one-pointedness in that
one thing....
However, rather than any external object,
the first person consciousness “I” is alone the most
worthy thing for the mind to have as the target of its
attention, is it not?
By taking any second person object, such as the movement of the breath, or the
right side of the chest, as the target of its attention,
the mind will attain only a state of temporary absorption in that object.
Mano -nasha vs Mano-laya
239. The state in which the mind, by the
strength of practice (abhyasa-bala), abides or immerses itself in the attention to any second person
object, however exalted that object may be, is only a
state of temporary absorption of the mind (manolaya). On the other hand, by abiding in the state of
Self-attention, the natural state of true awakening,
the state of destruction of the mind (mano-nasa) will
be attained. Since this natural state of Selfknowledge alone is our goal, cling firmly only to this
flawless practice (sadhana), or incessantly thinking
“I, I”.
240. The one-pointedness of mind, which is
gained by the practice of repetition of a mantra
(japa) or meditation (dhyana), will also be gained by
practicing Self-inquiry; but in a very easy manner
without the need of any restriction or restraint, such
as those that are to be observed while practicing
other methods of practice (sadhana). Rather than
the common existence-consciousness “I am,” which
is always experienced by all people, what more worthy and easy target of attention (dhyana-lakshana) is
now needed?
241. Whatever kind of person they may be, everyone says, “I am”; so what obstacle can there be for
anyone to attend unceasingly to that -“I am?” Therefore, without giving
room for even an iota of doubt, attend with love and
joy only to your own being.
44. Why is Practice (Sadhana) Difficult?
242. When we are lacking in earnestness or
faith (shraddha), whatever practice (sadhana) we
may take to will appear to be equally difficult. But if
our earnestness is firm and one-pointed, no sadhana will be felt to be difficult, and without any aid
we will be able to remain firmly established in the
state of Self-abidance.
243. Where there is a will, there is a way. That
is, if a sincere liking to attain something arises in
one’s heart, a path whereby one can attain it will
also be found, and because of that liking one’s mind
will unceasingly seek the goal until it is attained.
Only when the liking to attain that goal does not truly
arise in one’s heart, will one experience difficulty in
the practice (sadhana) or means adopted to attain it.
Know that this is the secret underlying all methods
of practice.
244. To the extent to which one approaches and
lives close to true devotees, to that extent will the liking arise in one’s heart to attain salvation, the real
goal of human life. By having more and more association with such true devotees, that liking will
gradually increase until finally one will attain salvation by abiding firmly in Self.
45. Love for the State of Self
245. By great love for the fourth (the state of
mere being, the natural state of Self, which is known
as turiya or the fourth state), we can go above (transcending the three states of waking, dream and
sleep). By means of breath-control and so on, it (the transcending of the three states) will not happen. Is
it proper to investigate illusion? (That is, is it proper
to seek to attain the state of Self by breath-control,
or by any other such effort involving an attention to
second or third person objects, which are products
of illusion [maya]?)
46. Gaining One-Pointedness in Self
246. For whatever thing a liking or love arises in
you, upon that thing your mind will certainly gain
one-pointedness, because such is the nature of the
mind. Unless a real love for Self arises in you, you
will not turn within and attend to it one-pointedly; instead you will always be telling some excuse or
other for not doing so.
247. (When will a real love for Self arise in you?)
Whatever your intellect decides to be the greatest
and most worthy thing, for that thing alone will a love
arise in you.
The intellect of a mature spiritual aspirant will decide that Self-alone is the greatest and
most worthy thing, and hence he will have real love
for Self.
But to the intellects of immature people, the
objects of this world alone will appear to be great
and worthy to be attained, and hence their desire for
those objects will constantly be increasing.
nitya-anitya viveka...kshanikam
248. (When will the intellect decide that Self
alone is the greatest thing?)
The intellect will esteem something as the greatest according to its decision as to what is eternal and what is ephemeral.
What can be correctly decided by the intellect to be
eternal? Only that thing, which can be decided to be
real, is unquestionably eternal; other things are only
ephemeral objects that are fit to be discarded.
249. (How to decide what is real?) Whatever
exists always and unceasingly, whatever exists
without ever undergoing any change, and whatever
shines by its own light of consciousness without depending upon the aid of any other thing, either to
know it or to make it known – that alone is to be decided as real, is it not?
Sri Bhagavan says, “What is the
standard of reality? That alone is real which exists
by itself, which reveals itself by itself, and which is
eternal and unchanging.”
...................
liberation is nothing but a Mind stilled...ADB
m gone ..sansara gone
m stilled by sankhya
m root in non enquiry..disappears with enquiry
alternative yoga ..medn on being free from qualities
...........
257. Therefore, knowing that you, the Self,
alone are real, drown in your own non-dual blissful
existence-consciousness and experience the state
of Self-abidance, which is completely devoid of the
unreal body and mind. To experience this state is
alone the real duty of all good and cultured people.
258. Know that those people who have discriminated and clearly understood that Self is thus
greater and more real than any other thing, will
surely gain true love for Self, and even through forgetfulness they will never have desire for any other
thing.
259. Those people who have a clear and unshakable understanding of their own reality, having
thus discriminated and concluded that Self, the existence-consciousness “I am,” alone is real and eternal, will gain unlimited love to abide as Self and will
thus attain the state of one-pointed Self-attention.
260. When you attain the non-dual state of Self-abidance, by gaining such one-pointedness and
such unequaled love for Self, you will experience the
state of true spiritual discipline (tapas)
in which you
alone blissfully exist as the direct knowledge of Self.
261. Being worried on seeing that sleep is
brought about during the practice of Self-inquiry, do
not give up Self-inquiry. This sleep is one among the experiences that will arise during the initial
stages of Self-inquiry. Have no doubt about this.
262. If sleep comes, sleep well. After sleeping
thus, as soon as you wake up, fix your attention with
earnest love upon the self-consciousness “I am.”
When the mind again subsides in that sleep-like
state, and when waking returns once again, try
gradually to experience the one existence-consciousness that shines in between these two
states.
263. When you practice abiding more and more
in the experience of this existence-consciousness,
which shines between sleep and waking, the sleep
that formerly appeared to overcome you will be dispersed, and the waking state in which you identify
with the body and cognize external objects will not
arise and engulf you again. Therefore, abide in this
existence-consciousness repeatedly and untiringly.
264. Since there is the consciousness “I am,”
this state is not sleep. Since there is a complete absence of thoughts, this state is not waking. It is the
state of existence-consciousness, or sat-chit, which
is the undivided nature of God, or akhanda-sivaswarupa. Therefore, unceasingly abide in this state
with great love.
265. Why is it said, “Abide in this existenceconsciousness repeatedly” and “Abide in this state
with great love?” Because until all the tendencies
(vasanas) which drive us out of this state have
ceased to exist, this state will seem to come and go.
Therefore, until those vasanas have been completely destroyed, it is necessary to have love and to
make repeated efforts to abide in this state.
Note: Just as the moving of clouds creates the
illusion that the moon itself is moving in the opposite
direction, the coming and going of the mind’s tendencies (vasanas) creates the illusion that our natural state of existence-consciousness is often coming
and going of its own accord.
266. When by this practice of abiding in the
state of existence-consciousness, this existence-consciousness is always experienced to be effortless and inescapably natural, then no harm will result even if sleep, dream and waking appear to
come and go.
267. For those who firmly abide in the unending
state of Self-consciousness, which pervades and
transcends the three states of waking, dream and
sleep, that state of existence-consciousness is the
only real state. It is the unlimited Whole (or purna).
That state, in which even the feeling “I am making
effort to abide” does not at all rise, alone is your
natural state of Being. Be thus.
48. The Manner of the Dawn of Knowledge
(Janodaya Vidham)
268. Death happens in a split second. Awakening from sleep happens in a split second. Similarly,
the destruction of the delusion of individuality happens in just a split second. True knowledge is not
something that can be gained and then lost. If a
person feels that true knowledge is coming and going, he is still only in the state of practice (or abhyasa). It cannot be said that such a person has attained true Self-knowledge.
The perfect awakening into the state of Self-knowledge happens in just a split second. That
state is not attained gradually over a long period of
time. All the sadhanas that are practiced over a period of many years are meant only for attaining
blemishless maturity. Listen to an apt illustration.
After people have placed gunpowder in the iron barrel of a temple-cannon, after they have added broken pieces of brick, after they have packed it tight
with a ramrod, after they have placed a wick in contact with the powder, and after they have plastered
the open end of the barrel with clay, as soon as the
charge is ignited it will explode in a split second with
a blast that sounds like thunder.
Similarly, after one has learnt the truth about the
real Self through hearing and reading, after one has
practiced sadhana for a long time, after one has
wept and prayed with heart-melting devotion, and after one has thereby attained purity of mind, the
knowledge of the reality will instantaneously shine
forth in a split second as “I am I”. As soon as the
dawn of Self-knowledge thus takes place, due to the
clear shining of the reality of this state, which is an
empty space devoid of objective knowledge, will be
spontaneously realized to be the state of true
knowledge, which is our beginningless real nature.
When even the effort of attending to Self thereby
merges in Silence, that state of mere Being, in which
there is nothing further to do and nothing further to
attain at any time, alone is the real state.
49. Self-Knowledge
269. One’s lying, having forgotten one’s existence consciousness, “I am,” and having drooped, is
sleep.
One’s being confused, mistaking one’s existence-consciousness, “I am,” to be the alien feeling
“I am this body,” is dream;
which is of two kinds,
known as the waking state and the dream state.
One’s experiencing one’s existence-consciousness,
“I am,” without any forgetfulness (pramada), is the
true waking.
The former two are unreal, the latter
alone is real.
271. One’s lying, having forgotten one’s existence-consciousness, “I am,” and having drooped, is
tamo-guna. One’s being confused, mistaking one’s existence-consciousness, “I am,” to be the alien
feeling “I am this body,” is rajo-guna. The power of
clear discernment (sphurana-sakti), which experiences one’s existence-consciousness, “I am,” is
sattva-guna. Such is the nature of our illusion
(maya); (that is, the concealing of our true nature by
the former two gunas is ignorance or deception
(avidya-maya), while the revealing of our true nature
by the latter guna is true knowledge (vidya-maya).
272. Even when one drooped (as in sleep), having forgotten oneself, the consciousness “I am” was
nonetheless existing and shining. Even when one
was confused, mistaking oneself to be the body (as
in waking and dream), the consciousness “I am” was
still existing and shining (as the base and support of
the perverted consciousness “I am the body”).
Therefore, when I thus exist and know myself as the
one who existed and shone (in the above two
states), what obstacle can ever arise to impede me
from existing and knowing my existence?
273. Therefore, one’s lying, having forgotten
one’s existence-consciousness, “I am,” and having
drooped, is not (something which ever truly happened). One’s being confused, mistaking one’s existence-consciousness, “I am,” to be the alien feeling
“I am the body,” is not (something which ever truly
happened). One’s newly experiencing one’s existence-consciousness, “I am,” is not (something
which ever truly happens).
Such is the nature of the
experience of true knowledge (jnana).
274. Only so long as it falsely appears as if we
have forgotten our existence-consciousness, “I am,”
can an effort arise as an effort (tapas) or practice (sadhana) to know and attain Self. After we have
clearly known that we have never forgotten Self, and
that the feeling as if we have forgotten Self is a mere
imagination (kalpana), there will be no practice
(sadhana) for us to do. The truth is that we ever exist only as mere Being.
277. This existing reality is not something that
can be reached and attained like an object other
than “I.” All that is to be done is only to abide as it
is, having set aside the empty imagination that has
risen within us that we have lost that state. Setting
aside that imagination is to abide in Self, having
turned our attention within, withdrawing it from all
other objects. The true state is nothing other than
this.
284. Even though you may visit any number of
Mahatmas, and even though they may exhibit all the
eightfold occult powers (ashta siddhis), know that he who turns your attention towards Self saying, “Without allowing your mind to go after these juggleries,
turn within,” is alone the true pure soul (Mahatma).
285. Let the individual (jivatma) who enters the
lofty Himalayas and forests seeking Mahatmas, enter instead the heart, by turning within seeking
“Where am I?” and thereby become the blissful Self
(sukhatma-swarupa). Thereafter, all who were seen
externally as pure souls (Mahatmas) will be experienced by him to be his own Self (atma-swarupa).
This is the teaching given by Sri Ramana Bhagavan.
286. Before one knows oneself, in whatever way
one may try, it is not possible for one to know the
real tapasvis (the Jnanis, who ever remain in the
egoless state of Self-abidance, the true state of
tapas). Therefore, giving up all the futile efforts to
seek externally to know pure souls (Mahatmas),
cling firmly to the great and worthwhile effort of attending to Self, which will destroy the unreal feeling
“I am an individual jiva.”
287. Therefore, if any thought arises in you
hereafter to seek to determine whether someone is
a Jnani or an ajnani, reject that thought immediately
by inquiring “Who am I who rise to determine about
the state of others?” and thus merge your mind in
the heart, the source from which that thought arose,
by turning within and keenly fixing your attention in
that source.
289. If someone is a Jnani, what is that to us?
So long as we do not know ourself, that will be of no
benefit to us. On scrutiny, Jnana alone is the Jnani;
the Jnani is not a human form; he is only the supreme space of pure consciousness. That supreme
space is our true nature.
52. The Ultimate Secret of Spiritual Practice
(Sadhanottava Rahasya)
291. (Among the three places or persons [the
first, second and third persons], and among the
three times, the present, past and future) the first
person (known in Tamil as tanmai-idam or the “selfness-place”) and the present time, are the place and
the time that Sadguru Sri Ramana told us to scrutinize (as our dhyana-laksha, or target for attention).
If you abide, attending with subtle vigilance to either
of these, investigating “Who is this first person, who
shines as I?” or “What is this present time that
shines as the consciousness am?“ you will experience the supreme joy of Self (atma-parabhoga) –
having accomplished yoga and having become one
who has attained siddhi (the state of final liberation).
See and feast upon Self, thus.
................................end sadhana sarai...............
11 verses on atma vichar patikam...and then:
........................
40 verses on renunciation
30. The path of karma yoga (selfless service),
which is practiced by anyone other than such a
Jivanmukta (see previous verse), will gradually remove the impurities from the mind, and it will stop
with thus imparting complete purity of mind.
After
thus attaining purity of mind, it is proper that a person should give up the path of karma yoga and
should follow either the path of devotion (bhakti) or
the path of Self-inquiry and thereby attain the egoless state of Self.
31. The fruit to be attained from selfless service
(karma yoga), which bestows purity of mind (chitta shuddhi), is only to make one mature and fit to follow
the paths of devotion (bhakti) or Self-inquiry (vichara).
But unless a true renunciate (sannyasi) is
already fit to follow either of these two paths, know
that he will not gain the real fruit of the renunciation
(sannyasa), which he has taken.
32. For a person who has taken renunciation
(sannyasa) in order to attain God, the supreme real-ity, it is not proper to go outwards seeking worldly
people and climbing on platforms to give lectures.
Instead of turning within towards God and becoming
established in Self-abidance, if a renunciate (sannyasi) turns towards the alluring and deceptive world,
diverting his mind to the habit of giving lectures, he
will be doing great harm to himself.
33. You have taken this renunciation (sannyasa)
not for the sake of giving spiritual instructions
(upadesa) to the people of this world, but only to attain the infinite Self, and to remain firmly established
in Self-abidance. Why do you forget this truth and
wander about in the world giving lectures?
34. Only the real renunciate (sannyasi), who
never deviates from the state of firm Self-abidance
is a person who is correctly teaching true knowledge
to all other people. Rather than by climbing on platforms to give lectures by mouth, if one turns the
mind within away from the world and abides in Self,
then the entire world, which seems to exist externally, will be awakened into the state of true knowledge.
No comments:
Post a Comment