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MANO NASA
Unless the force that activates thought is driven deeply within and destroyed, it is impossible to enjoy one’s own experience of jnana.
Muruganar: In having no settled principles, nothing else matches the mind. Its perception and evidence are completely unreliable. Its nature is to prostitute itself. At an opportune moment for deceiving the sadhaka, it will jump outwards towards sense objects. So long as the mind survives, its nature will not change. Hence, the mind should be destroyed at its roots by unceasing dhyana and vichara. Until the mind has been destroyed, no sensible aspirant should remain satisfied and think he has accomplished all that needs to be done.
Padamalai, p 145, 146
Unless the force that activates thought is driven deeply within and destroyed, it is impossible to enjoy one’s own experience of jnana.
Muruganar: In having no settled principles, nothing else matches the mind. Its perception and evidence are completely unreliable. Its nature is to prostitute itself. At an opportune moment for deceiving the sadhaka, it will jump outwards towards sense objects. So long as the mind survives, its nature will not change. Hence, the mind should be destroyed at its roots by unceasing dhyana and vichara. Until the mind has been destroyed, no sensible aspirant should remain satisfied and think he has accomplished all that needs to be done.
Padamalai, p 145, 146
Silence, which is devoid of the assertive ego, alone is liberation.
Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi: Talk 616:
D.: Is the Jivanadi an entity or a figment of the imagination?
M.: The yogis say that there is a nadi called the jivanadi, atmanadi or
paranadi. The Upanishads speak of a centre from which thousands
of nadis branch off. Some locate such a centre in the brain and
others in other centres. The Garbhopanishad traces the formation
of the foetus and the growth of the child in the womb. The jiva is
considered to enter the child through the fontanelle in the seventh
month of its growth. In evidence thereof it is pointed out that the
fontanelle is tender in a baby and is also seen to pulsate. It takes
some months for it to ossify. Thus the jiva comes from above, enters
through the fontanelle and works through the thousands of the
nadis which are spread over the whole body. Therefore the seeker
of Truth must concentrate on the sahasrara, that is the brain, in
order to regain his source. Pranayama is said to help the yogi to
rouse the Kundalini Sakti which lies coiled in the solar plexus. The
sakti rises through a nerve called the Sushumna, which is imbedded
in the core of the spinal cord and extends to the brain.
If one concentrates on the Sahasrara there is no doubt that the ecstasy
of samadhi ensues. The vasanas, that is the latencies, are not however
destroyed. The yogi is therefore bound to wake up from the samadhi,
because release from bondage has not yet been accomplished. He
must still try to eradicate the vasanas in order that the latencies yet
inherent in him may not disturb the peace of his samadhi. So he
passes down from the sahasrara to the heart through what is called
the jivanadi, which is only a continuation of the Sushumna. The
Sushumna is thus a curve. It starts from the solar plexus, rises through
the spinal cord to the brain and from there bends down and ends in
the heart. When the yogi has reached the heart, the samadhi becomes
permanent. Thus we see that the heart is the final centre.
Some Upanishads also speak of 101 nadis which spread from the heart,
one of them being the vital nadi. If the jiva comes down from above and
gets reflected in the brain, as the yogis say, there must be a reflecting
surface in action. That must also be capable of limiting the Infinite
Consciousness to the limits of the body. In short the Universal Being
becomes limited as a jiva. Such reflecting medium is furnished by the
aggregate of the vasanas of the individual. It acts like the water in a
pot which reflects the image of an object. If the pot be drained of its
water there will be no reflection. The object will remain without being
reflected. The object here is the Universal Being-Consciousness which
is all-pervading and therefore immanent in all. It need not be cognised
by reflection alone; it is self-resplendent. Therefore the seeker’s aim
must be to drain away the vasanas from the heart and let no reflection
obstruct the Light of Eternal Consciousness. This is achieved by the
search for the origin of the ego and by diving into the heart. This is the
direct method for Self-Realisation. One who adopts it need not worry
about nadis, the brain, the Sushumna, the Paranadi, the Kundalini,
pranayama or the six centres.
The Self does not come from anywhere else and enter the body through
the crown of the head. It is as it is, ever sparkling, ever steady, unmoving
and unchanging. The changes which are noticed are not inherent in
the Self which abides in the Heart and is self-luminous like the Sun.
The changes are seen in Its Light. The relation between the Self and
the body or the mind may be compared to that of a clear crystal and
its background. If the crystal is placed against a red flower, it shines
red; if placed against a green leaf it shines green, and so on. The
individual confines himself to the limits of the changeful body or of
the mind which derives its existence from the unchanging Self. All
that is necessary is to give up this mistaken identity, and that done, the
ever-shining Self will be seen to be the single non-dual Reality.
The reflection of Consciousness is said to be in the subtle body
(sukshma sarira), which appears to be composed of the brain and
the nerves radiating from it to all parts of the trunk, chiefly through
the spinal column and the solar plexus.
When I was on the Hill, Nayana (Kavyakantha Ganapathi Muni)
once argued that the brain was the seat of the vasanas, because it
consisted of innumerable cells in which the vasanas were contained
and illuminated by the light of the Self which projected from the
heart. Only this set a person working or thinking.
But I said, “How can it be so? The vasanas must be with one’s Self
and can never remain away from the Self. If, as you say, the vasanas
be contained in the brain and the Heart is the seat of the Self, a person
who is decapitated must be rid of his vasanas and should not be
reborn. You agree that it is absurd. Now can you say that the Self is
in the brain with the vasanas? If so, why should the head bend down
when one falls asleep? Moreover a person does not touch his head
and say ‘I’. Therefore it follows that the Self is in the Heart and the
vasanas are also there in an exceedingly subtle form.
“When the vasanas are projected from the Heart they are associated
with the Light of the Self and the person is said to think. The
vasanas which lie imbedded in an atomic condition grow in size
in their passage from the heart to the brain. The brain is the screen
on which the images of the vasanas are thrown and it is also the
place of their functional distribution. The brain is the seat of the
mind, and the mind works through it.”
So then this is what happens. When a vasana is released and it comes
into play, it is associated with the light of the Self. It passes from the
heart to the brain and on its way it grows more and more until it holds
the field all alone and all the vasanas are thus kept in abeyance for the
time being. When the thought is reflected in the brain it appears as an
image on a screen. The person is then said to have a clear perception
of things. He is a great thinker or discoverer. Neither the thought that
is extolled as being original, nor the thing, nor the country which
is claimed to be a new discovery, is really original or new. It could
not manifest unless it was already in the mind. It was of course very
subtle and remained imperceptible, because it lay repressed by the
more urgent or insistent thoughts or vasanas. When they have spent
themselves this thought arises and by concentration the Light of
the Self makes it clear, so that it appears magnificent, original and
revolutionary. In fact it was only within all along.
This concentration is called samyamana in the Yoga Sastras. One’s
desires can be fulfilled by this process and it is said to be a siddhi. It
is how the so-called new discoveries are made. Even worlds can be
created in this manner. Samyamana leads to all siddhis. But they do
not manifest so long as the ego lasts. Concentration according to yoga
ends in the destruction of the experiencer (ego), experience and the
world, and then the quondam desires get fulfilled in due course. This
concentration bestows on individuals even the powers of creating
new worlds. It is illustrated in the Aindava Upakhyana in the Yoga
Vasishta and in the Ganda Saila Loka in the Tripura Rahasya.
Although the powers appear to be wonderful to those who do not
possess them, yet they are only transient. It is useless to aspire for
that which is transient. All these wonders are contained in the one
changeless Self. The world is thus within and not without. This
meaning is contained in verses 11 and 12 - Chapter V of Sri Ramana
Gita “The entire Universe is condensed in the body, and the entire
body in the Heart. Thus the Heart is the nucleus of the whole Universe.”
Therefore Samyamana relates to concentration on different parts of
the body for the different siddhis. Also the Visva or the Virat is said to
contain the cosmos within the limits of the body. Again, “The world
is not other than the mind, the mind is not other than the Heart; that
is the whole truth.” So the Heart comprises all. This is what is taught
to Svetaketu by the illustration of the seed of a fig tree. The source is
a point without any dimensions. It expands as the cosmos on the one
hand and as Infinite Bliss on the other. That point is the pivot. From
it a single vasana starts, multiplies as the experiencer ‘I’, experience,
and the world. The experiencer and the source are referred to in the
mantra. Two birds, exactly alike, arise simultaneously.
When I was staying in the Skandasramam I sometimes used to go out
and sit on a rock. On one such occasion there were two or three others
with me including Rangaswami Iyengar. Suddenly we noticed some
small moth-like insect shooting up like a rocket into the air from a
crevice in the rock. Within the twinkling of an eye it had multiplied
itself into millions of moths which formed a cloud and hid the sky
from view. We wondered at it and examined the place from which it
shot up. We found that it was only a pinhole and knew that so many
insects could not have issued from it in such a short time.
That is how ahankara (ego) shoots up like a rocket and
instantaneously spreads out as the Universe.
The Heart is therefore the centre. A person can never be away from
it. If he is he is already dead. Although the Upanishads say that
the jiva functions through other centres on different occasions, yet
he does not relinquish the Heart. The centres are simply places of
business (vide Vedanta Chudamani). The Self is bound to the Heart,
like a cow tethered to a peg. The movements are controlled by the
length of the rope. All its wanderings centre around the peg.
A caterpillar crawls on a blade of grass and when it has come to the
end, it seeks another support. While doing so it holds on with its
hind-legs to the blade of grass, lifts the body and sways to and fro
before it can hold another. Similarly it is with the Self. It stays in
the Heart and holds other centres also according to circumstances.
But its activities always centre round the Heart.
D.: Is the Jivanadi an entity or a figment of the imagination?
M.: The yogis say that there is a nadi called the jivanadi, atmanadi or
paranadi. The Upanishads speak of a centre from which thousands
of nadis branch off. Some locate such a centre in the brain and
others in other centres. The Garbhopanishad traces the formation
of the foetus and the growth of the child in the womb. The jiva is
considered to enter the child through the fontanelle in the seventh
month of its growth. In evidence thereof it is pointed out that the
fontanelle is tender in a baby and is also seen to pulsate. It takes
some months for it to ossify. Thus the jiva comes from above, enters
through the fontanelle and works through the thousands of the
nadis which are spread over the whole body. Therefore the seeker
of Truth must concentrate on the sahasrara, that is the brain, in
order to regain his source. Pranayama is said to help the yogi to
rouse the Kundalini Sakti which lies coiled in the solar plexus. The
sakti rises through a nerve called the Sushumna, which is imbedded
in the core of the spinal cord and extends to the brain.
If one concentrates on the Sahasrara there is no doubt that the ecstasy
of samadhi ensues. The vasanas, that is the latencies, are not however
destroyed. The yogi is therefore bound to wake up from the samadhi,
because release from bondage has not yet been accomplished. He
must still try to eradicate the vasanas in order that the latencies yet
inherent in him may not disturb the peace of his samadhi. So he
passes down from the sahasrara to the heart through what is called
the jivanadi, which is only a continuation of the Sushumna. The
Sushumna is thus a curve. It starts from the solar plexus, rises through
the spinal cord to the brain and from there bends down and ends in
the heart. When the yogi has reached the heart, the samadhi becomes
permanent. Thus we see that the heart is the final centre.
Some Upanishads also speak of 101 nadis which spread from the heart,
one of them being the vital nadi. If the jiva comes down from above and
gets reflected in the brain, as the yogis say, there must be a reflecting
surface in action. That must also be capable of limiting the Infinite
Consciousness to the limits of the body. In short the Universal Being
becomes limited as a jiva. Such reflecting medium is furnished by the
aggregate of the vasanas of the individual. It acts like the water in a
pot which reflects the image of an object. If the pot be drained of its
water there will be no reflection. The object will remain without being
reflected. The object here is the Universal Being-Consciousness which
is all-pervading and therefore immanent in all. It need not be cognised
by reflection alone; it is self-resplendent. Therefore the seeker’s aim
must be to drain away the vasanas from the heart and let no reflection
obstruct the Light of Eternal Consciousness. This is achieved by the
search for the origin of the ego and by diving into the heart. This is the
direct method for Self-Realisation. One who adopts it need not worry
about nadis, the brain, the Sushumna, the Paranadi, the Kundalini,
pranayama or the six centres.
The Self does not come from anywhere else and enter the body through
the crown of the head. It is as it is, ever sparkling, ever steady, unmoving
and unchanging. The changes which are noticed are not inherent in
the Self which abides in the Heart and is self-luminous like the Sun.
The changes are seen in Its Light. The relation between the Self and
the body or the mind may be compared to that of a clear crystal and
its background. If the crystal is placed against a red flower, it shines
red; if placed against a green leaf it shines green, and so on. The
individual confines himself to the limits of the changeful body or of
the mind which derives its existence from the unchanging Self. All
that is necessary is to give up this mistaken identity, and that done, the
ever-shining Self will be seen to be the single non-dual Reality.
The reflection of Consciousness is said to be in the subtle body
(sukshma sarira), which appears to be composed of the brain and
the nerves radiating from it to all parts of the trunk, chiefly through
the spinal column and the solar plexus.
When I was on the Hill, Nayana (Kavyakantha Ganapathi Muni)
once argued that the brain was the seat of the vasanas, because it
consisted of innumerable cells in which the vasanas were contained
and illuminated by the light of the Self which projected from the
heart. Only this set a person working or thinking.
But I said, “How can it be so? The vasanas must be with one’s Self
and can never remain away from the Self. If, as you say, the vasanas
be contained in the brain and the Heart is the seat of the Self, a person
who is decapitated must be rid of his vasanas and should not be
reborn. You agree that it is absurd. Now can you say that the Self is
in the brain with the vasanas? If so, why should the head bend down
when one falls asleep? Moreover a person does not touch his head
and say ‘I’. Therefore it follows that the Self is in the Heart and the
vasanas are also there in an exceedingly subtle form.
“When the vasanas are projected from the Heart they are associated
with the Light of the Self and the person is said to think. The
vasanas which lie imbedded in an atomic condition grow in size
in their passage from the heart to the brain. The brain is the screen
on which the images of the vasanas are thrown and it is also the
place of their functional distribution. The brain is the seat of the
mind, and the mind works through it.”
So then this is what happens. When a vasana is released and it comes
into play, it is associated with the light of the Self. It passes from the
heart to the brain and on its way it grows more and more until it holds
the field all alone and all the vasanas are thus kept in abeyance for the
time being. When the thought is reflected in the brain it appears as an
image on a screen. The person is then said to have a clear perception
of things. He is a great thinker or discoverer. Neither the thought that
is extolled as being original, nor the thing, nor the country which
is claimed to be a new discovery, is really original or new. It could
not manifest unless it was already in the mind. It was of course very
subtle and remained imperceptible, because it lay repressed by the
more urgent or insistent thoughts or vasanas. When they have spent
themselves this thought arises and by concentration the Light of
the Self makes it clear, so that it appears magnificent, original and
revolutionary. In fact it was only within all along.
This concentration is called samyamana in the Yoga Sastras. One’s
desires can be fulfilled by this process and it is said to be a siddhi. It
is how the so-called new discoveries are made. Even worlds can be
created in this manner. Samyamana leads to all siddhis. But they do
not manifest so long as the ego lasts. Concentration according to yoga
ends in the destruction of the experiencer (ego), experience and the
world, and then the quondam desires get fulfilled in due course. This
concentration bestows on individuals even the powers of creating
new worlds. It is illustrated in the Aindava Upakhyana in the Yoga
Vasishta and in the Ganda Saila Loka in the Tripura Rahasya.
Although the powers appear to be wonderful to those who do not
possess them, yet they are only transient. It is useless to aspire for
that which is transient. All these wonders are contained in the one
changeless Self. The world is thus within and not without. This
meaning is contained in verses 11 and 12 - Chapter V of Sri Ramana
Gita “The entire Universe is condensed in the body, and the entire
body in the Heart. Thus the Heart is the nucleus of the whole Universe.”
Therefore Samyamana relates to concentration on different parts of
the body for the different siddhis. Also the Visva or the Virat is said to
contain the cosmos within the limits of the body. Again, “The world
is not other than the mind, the mind is not other than the Heart; that
is the whole truth.” So the Heart comprises all. This is what is taught
to Svetaketu by the illustration of the seed of a fig tree. The source is
a point without any dimensions. It expands as the cosmos on the one
hand and as Infinite Bliss on the other. That point is the pivot. From
it a single vasana starts, multiplies as the experiencer ‘I’, experience,
and the world. The experiencer and the source are referred to in the
mantra. Two birds, exactly alike, arise simultaneously.
When I was staying in the Skandasramam I sometimes used to go out
and sit on a rock. On one such occasion there were two or three others
with me including Rangaswami Iyengar. Suddenly we noticed some
small moth-like insect shooting up like a rocket into the air from a
crevice in the rock. Within the twinkling of an eye it had multiplied
itself into millions of moths which formed a cloud and hid the sky
from view. We wondered at it and examined the place from which it
shot up. We found that it was only a pinhole and knew that so many
insects could not have issued from it in such a short time.
That is how ahankara (ego) shoots up like a rocket and
instantaneously spreads out as the Universe.
The Heart is therefore the centre. A person can never be away from
it. If he is he is already dead. Although the Upanishads say that
the jiva functions through other centres on different occasions, yet
he does not relinquish the Heart. The centres are simply places of
business (vide Vedanta Chudamani). The Self is bound to the Heart,
like a cow tethered to a peg. The movements are controlled by the
length of the rope. All its wanderings centre around the peg.
A caterpillar crawls on a blade of grass and when it has come to the
end, it seeks another support. While doing so it holds on with its
hind-legs to the blade of grass, lifts the body and sways to and fro
before it can hold another. Similarly it is with the Self. It stays in
the Heart and holds other centres also according to circumstances.
But its activities always centre round the Heart.
The Consciousness within, purged of the mind, is felt as God.
There never was and never will be a time when all are equally happy or rich or wise or healthy. In fact none of these terms has any meaning except in so far as the opposite to it exists. But that does not mean that when you come across any one who is less happy or more miserable than yourself, you are not to be moved to compassion or to seek to relieve him as best you can. On the contrary, you must love all and help all, since only in that way can you help yourself. When you seek to reduce the suffering of any fellowman or fellow-creature, whether your efforts succeed or not, you are yourself evolving spiritually thereby, especially if such service is rendered disinterestedly, not with the egoistic feeling 'I am doing this', but in the spirit 'God is making me the channel of this service; He is the doer and I the instrument'.
D.: How is one to overcome regrets?
M.: By realising the Divinity in him.
D.: How?
M.: By practice.
D.: What kind of practice?
M.: Meditation.
D.: Mind is not steady while meditating.
M.: It will be all right by practice.
D.: How is the mind to be steadied?
M.: By strengthening it.
D.: How to strengthen it?
M.: It grows strong by satsanga (the company of the wise).
D.: Shall we add prayers, etc.?
M.: Yes.
D.: What of the one who has no regrets?
M.: He is an accomplished Yogi. There is no question about him.
D.: People cite disasters, e.g., earthquakes, famines, etc., to disprove God. How shall we meet their contention?
M.: Wherefrom have they come - those who argue?
D.: They say, “Nature”.
M.: Some call it “Nature” - others “God”.
D.: Are we to keep anything against a rainy day; or to live a precarious life for spiritual attainments?
M.: God looks after everything.
Talk 377
M.: By realising the Divinity in him.
D.: How?
M.: By practice.
D.: What kind of practice?
M.: Meditation.
D.: Mind is not steady while meditating.
M.: It will be all right by practice.
D.: How is the mind to be steadied?
M.: By strengthening it.
D.: How to strengthen it?
M.: It grows strong by satsanga (the company of the wise).
D.: Shall we add prayers, etc.?
M.: Yes.
D.: What of the one who has no regrets?
M.: He is an accomplished Yogi. There is no question about him.
D.: People cite disasters, e.g., earthquakes, famines, etc., to disprove God. How shall we meet their contention?
M.: Wherefrom have they come - those who argue?
D.: They say, “Nature”.
M.: Some call it “Nature” - others “God”.
D.: Are we to keep anything against a rainy day; or to live a precarious life for spiritual attainments?
M.: God looks after everything.
Talk 377
Like a deer caught in the jaws of a tiger, those
who are trapped by the Sadguru's knowledge-
bestowing glance of grace will never be
abandoned. Rather, they are destined to lose
their individuality, their restricted nature, and
attain liberation.
who are trapped by the Sadguru's knowledge-
bestowing glance of grace will never be
abandoned. Rather, they are destined to lose
their individuality, their restricted nature, and
attain liberation.
BHAGAVAN'S PROMISES
When devotees surrendered their problems to Sri Ramana, it was the same as surrendering them to God. They were submitting to the same divine authority, surrendering to a living manifestation of that same power. Here are some statements that Sri Ramana made on this subject. I have taken them from a book I am currently working on. Each sentence was originally recorded by Muruganar in Tamil verse:
My devotees have the qualifications to rejoice abundantly, like children of an emperor.
Abandon the drama [of the world] and seek the Self within. Remaining within, I will protect you, [ensuring] that no harm befalls you.
If you inquire and know me, the indweller, in that state there will be no reason for you to worry about the world.
For the cruel disease of burning samsara to end, the correct regimen is to entrust all your burdens on me.
In order that your needless anxieties cease, make sure that all your burdens are placed on me through the brave act of depending totally on grace.
If you completely surrender all your responsibilities to me, I will accept them as mine and manage them.
When bearing the entire burden remains my responsibility, why do you have any worries?
Long ago you offered your body, possessions and soul to me, making them mine, so why do you still regard these things as 'I' and 'mine' and associate yourself with them?
Seek my grace within the Heart. I will drive away your darkness and show you the light. This is my responsibility.
David Godman, Interviews
When devotees surrendered their problems to Sri Ramana, it was the same as surrendering them to God. They were submitting to the same divine authority, surrendering to a living manifestation of that same power. Here are some statements that Sri Ramana made on this subject. I have taken them from a book I am currently working on. Each sentence was originally recorded by Muruganar in Tamil verse:
My devotees have the qualifications to rejoice abundantly, like children of an emperor.
Abandon the drama [of the world] and seek the Self within. Remaining within, I will protect you, [ensuring] that no harm befalls you.
If you inquire and know me, the indweller, in that state there will be no reason for you to worry about the world.
For the cruel disease of burning samsara to end, the correct regimen is to entrust all your burdens on me.
In order that your needless anxieties cease, make sure that all your burdens are placed on me through the brave act of depending totally on grace.
If you completely surrender all your responsibilities to me, I will accept them as mine and manage them.
When bearing the entire burden remains my responsibility, why do you have any worries?
Long ago you offered your body, possessions and soul to me, making them mine, so why do you still regard these things as 'I' and 'mine' and associate yourself with them?
Seek my grace within the Heart. I will drive away your darkness and show you the light. This is my responsibility.
David Godman, Interviews
Everything has to be done in a hurry.
Everybody has some train to catch.
They visit this swami in a rush and want to carry away a parcel of liberation and salvation.
They read something here and there and they think they are learned and ready for liberation.
Who wants salvation?
To whom is the liberation?
Instead of simply turning within and being the silence which is saturated within the Heart, they roam about outside and remain agitated without peace.
Everything is already within.
The one who searches is the very thing one is searching for.
Stillness is the truth.
Everybody has some train to catch.
They visit this swami in a rush and want to carry away a parcel of liberation and salvation.
They read something here and there and they think they are learned and ready for liberation.
Who wants salvation?
To whom is the liberation?
Instead of simply turning within and being the silence which is saturated within the Heart, they roam about outside and remain agitated without peace.
Everything is already within.
The one who searches is the very thing one is searching for.
Stillness is the truth.
The Master observed: “Being of the nature of Bliss why does one continue to crave for happiness? To be rid of that craving is itself salvation. The Scriptures say, ‘You are That’. The imparting of that knowledge is their purpose. The realisation must be by your finding out who you are and abiding as That, i.e. your Self. To be repeating, ‘I am that’ or ‘not this’ is only a waste of time. For the worthy disciple, the work lies within himself and not without.”
Talk 227
Talk 227
When a confessed atheist provocatively asked him (Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi),
"Is there God; can you prove the existence of God?"
he smiled and replied,
"Why worry about God? Let Him worry about Himself! Find out who raises the question."
The atheist was puzzled. Sri Ramana recommended that he read the book `Who am I?' The visitor, who only wanted to stay for a few hours, ended up staying for several days. Finally he said,
"Bhagavan! When I came here as an atheist, denying God, I was happy. But, now, after asking myself the question `Who am I?' I am thoroughly confused. I feel I have deteriorated; therefore I am very unhappy."
Sri Ramana smiled at him and said,
"Your confusion is not a state of deterioration. All these days you have been indifferent to the truth behind your own existence. Now you have raised the fundamental question; thereby you have moved away from indifference. So it is only an improvement! From indifference to confusion, from confusion to clarity, from (intellectual) clarity to experience and from experience to abidance in the Self - this is the order of ascendancy in spiritual sadhana.
"Is there God; can you prove the existence of God?"
he smiled and replied,
"Why worry about God? Let Him worry about Himself! Find out who raises the question."
The atheist was puzzled. Sri Ramana recommended that he read the book `Who am I?' The visitor, who only wanted to stay for a few hours, ended up staying for several days. Finally he said,
"Bhagavan! When I came here as an atheist, denying God, I was happy. But, now, after asking myself the question `Who am I?' I am thoroughly confused. I feel I have deteriorated; therefore I am very unhappy."
Sri Ramana smiled at him and said,
"Your confusion is not a state of deterioration. All these days you have been indifferent to the truth behind your own existence. Now you have raised the fundamental question; thereby you have moved away from indifference. So it is only an improvement! From indifference to confusion, from confusion to clarity, from (intellectual) clarity to experience and from experience to abidance in the Self - this is the order of ascendancy in spiritual sadhana.
DESTINY
Bhagavan:
Individual human beings have to suffer their karmas but Isvara manages to make the best of their karmas for His purpose.
God manipulates the fruits of karma.; He does not add or take away from it. The subconscious of man is a warehouse of good and bad karma. Isvara chooses from this warehouse what He sees will best suit the spiritual evolution at the time of each man whether pleasant or painful. Thus there is nothing arbitrary.
From Conscious Immortality P.127 4th Edition
Bhagavan:
Individual human beings have to suffer their karmas but Isvara manages to make the best of their karmas for His purpose.
God manipulates the fruits of karma.; He does not add or take away from it. The subconscious of man is a warehouse of good and bad karma. Isvara chooses from this warehouse what He sees will best suit the spiritual evolution at the time of each man whether pleasant or painful. Thus there is nothing arbitrary.
From Conscious Immortality P.127 4th Edition
BHAGAVAN CURES RAMASWAMI IYER
In 1922, Bhagavan saved Iyer from definite death. Kapali Shastri, an eye witness to that miracle, has written in his book: “Maharshi was living on the hill in Skandashram. A few of us used to accompany him during giripradakshina. On one such day before starting our giripradakshina, we got word that supervisor Ramaswami Iyer was taken ill suddenly and was lying at Virupaksha cave. The Maharshi went down the hill to the place where Iyer was lying. Iyer was having violent palpitations of the heart. Maharshi sat near him placing his hand on his head. Within five minutes, Iyer got up and looked quite normal. Maharshi kept sitting - he did not get up even after an hour. I had in my bag in Skandashram olive oil, which I went and brought and rubbed on Maharshi‟s head. Then, we all went back to Skandashram. When I asked Bhagavan, he simply replied, „Well, Ramaswami Iyer got up and I sat down. I was conscious when the oil was rubbed, it was very pleasant.‟ He did not say he performed a miracle or anything like that.”
Later, in 1942, Iyer was once again saved from certain death. One day, his wife came running to Bhagavan and prayed that her husband who was unconscious in their house be saved. At that very moment, Iyer woke up. Years later, when I heard about this, I was a little skeptical. So, I went and challenged Iyer, “How is it that all the time you fall sick and Bhagavan saves you from death?” He answered, “What to do, Ganesan, it is not only me that Bhagavan has saved. He also saved other sincere souls from the throes of death.” He then gave me a list - his own daughter, his friend Subramani Iyer‟s daughter, Jagadisa Shastri, Bhagavan‟s own sister‟s husband and a few other names that I did not know.
In 1922, Bhagavan saved Iyer from definite death. Kapali Shastri, an eye witness to that miracle, has written in his book: “Maharshi was living on the hill in Skandashram. A few of us used to accompany him during giripradakshina. On one such day before starting our giripradakshina, we got word that supervisor Ramaswami Iyer was taken ill suddenly and was lying at Virupaksha cave. The Maharshi went down the hill to the place where Iyer was lying. Iyer was having violent palpitations of the heart. Maharshi sat near him placing his hand on his head. Within five minutes, Iyer got up and looked quite normal. Maharshi kept sitting - he did not get up even after an hour. I had in my bag in Skandashram olive oil, which I went and brought and rubbed on Maharshi‟s head. Then, we all went back to Skandashram. When I asked Bhagavan, he simply replied, „Well, Ramaswami Iyer got up and I sat down. I was conscious when the oil was rubbed, it was very pleasant.‟ He did not say he performed a miracle or anything like that.”
Later, in 1942, Iyer was once again saved from certain death. One day, his wife came running to Bhagavan and prayed that her husband who was unconscious in their house be saved. At that very moment, Iyer woke up. Years later, when I heard about this, I was a little skeptical. So, I went and challenged Iyer, “How is it that all the time you fall sick and Bhagavan saves you from death?” He answered, “What to do, Ganesan, it is not only me that Bhagavan has saved. He also saved other sincere souls from the throes of death.” He then gave me a list - his own daughter, his friend Subramani Iyer‟s daughter, Jagadisa Shastri, Bhagavan‟s own sister‟s husband and a few other names that I did not know.
Your thinking that you have to make an effort to get rid of this dream of the waking state and your making efforts to attain jnana or real awakening are all parts of the dream.
When you attain jnana you will see there was neither the dream during
sleep, nor the waking state, but only yourself and your real state.
When you attain jnana you will see there was neither the dream during
sleep, nor the waking state, but only yourself and your real state.
26. What is the relation between
desirelessness and wisdom?
Desirelessness is wisdom.
The two are not different; they are the same.
Desirelessness is
refraining from turning the mind towards any object.
Wisdom means the appearance of no object.
In other words, not
seeking what is other than the Self is detachment or
desirelessness; not leaving the Self
is wisdom.
desirelessness and wisdom?
Desirelessness is wisdom.
The two are not different; they are the same.
Desirelessness is
refraining from turning the mind towards any object.
Wisdom means the appearance of no object.
In other words, not
seeking what is other than the Self is detachment or
desirelessness; not leaving the Self
is wisdom.
Place your burden at the feet of the Lord of the universe who is ever victorious and accomplishes everything. Remain all the time steadfast in the heart, in the Transcendental Absolute. God knows the past, present and future. He will determine the future for you and accomplish the work. What is to be done will be done at the proper time. Don’t worry. Abide in the heart and surrender your acts to the Divine.
BHAGAVAN ON SEXUAL DESIRES
Question : Do you approve of sexual continence?
Ramana Maharshi : A true brahmachari [celibate] is one who dwells in Brahman. Then there is no question of desires any more.
Question : At Sri Aurobindo's ashram there is a rigid rule that married couples are permitted to live there on condition that they have no sexual intercourse.
Ramana Maharshi : What is the use of that ? If it exists in the mind, what use is it to force people to abstain ?
Question : Is marriage a bar to spiritual progress?
Ramana Maharshi : The householder's life is not a bar, but the householder must do his utmost to practise self-control. If a man has a strong desire for the higher life then the sex tendency will subside. When the mind is destroyed, the other desires are destroyed also.
Question : I have committed sexual sin.
Ramana Maharshi : Even if you have, it does not matter so long as you do not think afterwards that you have done so. The Self is not aware of any sin and renunciation of sex is internal, not merely of the body alone.
Question : I am carried away by the sight of the breasts of a young woman neighbor and I am often tempted to commit adultery with her. What should I do?
Ramana Maharshi : You are always pure. It is your senses and body which tempt you and which you confuse with your real Self. So first know who is tempted and who is there to tempt. But even if you do commit adultery, do not think about it afterwards, because you are yourself always pure. You are not the sinner.
Question : Do you approve of sexual continence?
Ramana Maharshi : A true brahmachari [celibate] is one who dwells in Brahman. Then there is no question of desires any more.
Question : At Sri Aurobindo's ashram there is a rigid rule that married couples are permitted to live there on condition that they have no sexual intercourse.
Ramana Maharshi : What is the use of that ? If it exists in the mind, what use is it to force people to abstain ?
Question : Is marriage a bar to spiritual progress?
Ramana Maharshi : The householder's life is not a bar, but the householder must do his utmost to practise self-control. If a man has a strong desire for the higher life then the sex tendency will subside. When the mind is destroyed, the other desires are destroyed also.
Question : I have committed sexual sin.
Ramana Maharshi : Even if you have, it does not matter so long as you do not think afterwards that you have done so. The Self is not aware of any sin and renunciation of sex is internal, not merely of the body alone.
Question : I am carried away by the sight of the breasts of a young woman neighbor and I am often tempted to commit adultery with her. What should I do?
Ramana Maharshi : You are always pure. It is your senses and body which tempt you and which you confuse with your real Self. So first know who is tempted and who is there to tempt. But even if you do commit adultery, do not think about it afterwards, because you are yourself always pure. You are not the sinner.
God dwells in you, as you, and you don't have to 'do' anything to be God-realized or Self-realized, it is already your true and natural state. Just drop all seeking, turn your attention inward, and sacrifice your mind to the One Self radiating in the Heart of your very being. For this to be your own presently lived experience, Self-Inquiry is the one direct and immediate way.
I do not say that you must keep on rejecting thoughts. If you cling to yourself, to the ‘I-thought’, and your interest keeps you to that single thought, other thoughts will get rejected and will automatically vanish.
All your cares are His. Such is surrender.
There is no investigation into the Atman. The investigation can only be to the non-Self. Elimination of the non-Self is alone possible. The Self being always self-evident will shine forth of itself.
Both, pleasure and pain are mental creations.
Mourning is not the index of true Love.
It betrays love of the object, of its shape only.
It betrays love of the object, of its shape only.
"BHAGAVAN, IS THIS IT?"
Once, I asked Chadwick, “Are you realized?” I have put this question to all of the old devotees like Muruganar, Cohen, Osborne, Sadhu Natanananda, Devaraja Mudaliar and others. None of them either said yes or no - all smiled. When I asked him whether he was realized, he did not say yes or no. Instead, he told me, “I will tell you what happened. After many years of my stay with Bhagavan - four or five years, I committed the mistake of trying to evaluate how much I have progressed spiritually. This is a thing any seeker should not do. I felt that I have not progressed. Many who saw me in Ramanasramam, looked at me like I was a sage or a saint saying, „Oh! He is so fortunate. He is so close to Bhagavan. He meditates so much. He is already in that state.‟ This created a contradiction in me as I personally felt that I was not progressing spiritually. However, having left the material life I could not go back to a worldly life either. I felt caught between the devil and the deep sea. I was sorrow stricken. I ran to Bhagavan‟s hall. He was alone. I told him, „Bhagavan, this is my plight. I am neither here nor there and this causes much sorrow in me.‟
Bhagavan looked at me compassionately and said, „Chadwick, who says all this?‟ Immediately, there was a current like shock in my body and I literally ran to my room, shut the doors and went into a neutral state. I was not bothered whether I was spiritually maturing or whether I would be able to stay in the world. I was in a neutral state of silence. A few days passed like that wherein I was neither happy nor worried.” The only luxury that Chadwick allowed himself was taking his bath in a bath tub which he had in the verandah of his cottage. One day, shortly after the above incident, something happened unexpectedly. As Chadwick told me later, “I was taking my bath and very honestly Ganesan, I was not in a spiritual state or in a prayerful mood when it suddenly dawned - the „I AM‟!”
He experienced it - not just as words. He was so ecstatic that he did not even dry himself. He just wrapped a towel around his waist and ran to the Old Hall from where a few days back he had run away. Fortunately, this time too, Bhagavan was alone. In this spiritual ecstasy of experiencing the „I AM‟, where there was no Chadwick, just the „I AM‟, he asked Bhagavan, “Bhagavan, is THIS it?” Chadwick recounted,
“Bhagavan gave me the most glorious smile, and then confirmed, „Yes, Chadwick, THIS is THAT!‟ I then asked him, „Bhagavan, is it so simple?‟ Bhagavan replied, „Yes it is that simple.‟ Since then, I‟ve never had any doubt.”
V. Ganesan in 'Ramana Periya Puranam'
Once, I asked Chadwick, “Are you realized?” I have put this question to all of the old devotees like Muruganar, Cohen, Osborne, Sadhu Natanananda, Devaraja Mudaliar and others. None of them either said yes or no - all smiled. When I asked him whether he was realized, he did not say yes or no. Instead, he told me, “I will tell you what happened. After many years of my stay with Bhagavan - four or five years, I committed the mistake of trying to evaluate how much I have progressed spiritually. This is a thing any seeker should not do. I felt that I have not progressed. Many who saw me in Ramanasramam, looked at me like I was a sage or a saint saying, „Oh! He is so fortunate. He is so close to Bhagavan. He meditates so much. He is already in that state.‟ This created a contradiction in me as I personally felt that I was not progressing spiritually. However, having left the material life I could not go back to a worldly life either. I felt caught between the devil and the deep sea. I was sorrow stricken. I ran to Bhagavan‟s hall. He was alone. I told him, „Bhagavan, this is my plight. I am neither here nor there and this causes much sorrow in me.‟
Bhagavan looked at me compassionately and said, „Chadwick, who says all this?‟ Immediately, there was a current like shock in my body and I literally ran to my room, shut the doors and went into a neutral state. I was not bothered whether I was spiritually maturing or whether I would be able to stay in the world. I was in a neutral state of silence. A few days passed like that wherein I was neither happy nor worried.” The only luxury that Chadwick allowed himself was taking his bath in a bath tub which he had in the verandah of his cottage. One day, shortly after the above incident, something happened unexpectedly. As Chadwick told me later, “I was taking my bath and very honestly Ganesan, I was not in a spiritual state or in a prayerful mood when it suddenly dawned - the „I AM‟!”
He experienced it - not just as words. He was so ecstatic that he did not even dry himself. He just wrapped a towel around his waist and ran to the Old Hall from where a few days back he had run away. Fortunately, this time too, Bhagavan was alone. In this spiritual ecstasy of experiencing the „I AM‟, where there was no Chadwick, just the „I AM‟, he asked Bhagavan, “Bhagavan, is THIS it?” Chadwick recounted,
“Bhagavan gave me the most glorious smile, and then confirmed, „Yes, Chadwick, THIS is THAT!‟ I then asked him, „Bhagavan, is it so simple?‟ Bhagavan replied, „Yes it is that simple.‟ Since then, I‟ve never had any doubt.”
V. Ganesan in 'Ramana Periya Puranam'
Realize your pure Being. Let there be no confusion with the body. The body is the result of thoughts. The thoughts will play as usual, but you will not be affected.
GURU VACHAKA KOVAI
FOCUSSING INTENTLY ON THE SOURCE
782 To investigate what is our birth place and to merge in that birth place is of all methods the best for rooting out the suffering that exists only in the place we have entered.
Muruganar: The miseries of birth appear only in the place that one has entered, that is, the mind that manifests as the body and the world. They do not arise in the place of one's birth, the Heart. Therefore, by enquiring through Self-ward attention, 'What is the place of my birth?', a person should reach and abide in his source, the Heart. Out of all the techniques that are suitable for destroying the miseries of birth, this is the best.
Just as a woman, suffering intolerably in her father-in-law's house, obtains peace in her mother's house, so the mind, harried by samsaric suffering, wins peace by returning to its source.
FOCUSSING INTENTLY ON THE SOURCE
782 To investigate what is our birth place and to merge in that birth place is of all methods the best for rooting out the suffering that exists only in the place we have entered.
Muruganar: The miseries of birth appear only in the place that one has entered, that is, the mind that manifests as the body and the world. They do not arise in the place of one's birth, the Heart. Therefore, by enquiring through Self-ward attention, 'What is the place of my birth?', a person should reach and abide in his source, the Heart. Out of all the techniques that are suitable for destroying the miseries of birth, this is the best.
Just as a woman, suffering intolerably in her father-in-law's house, obtains peace in her mother's house, so the mind, harried by samsaric suffering, wins peace by returning to its source.
Beings
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