Ramana Maharshi's Life and Teachings

• The Essence of These Matters
• A Sadhana Laid Bare T
• Teachings of Ramana Maharshi T
• Ramana Maharshi Instructions

The Essence of These Matters

From Alfred Edward Chalon. "Girl reading a letter".

The life story of Ramama Maharshi is quite a tale. This yogi lived on the southern slope of a hill for many years, and then moved down to the foot of the hill, where he spent his last 28 years on earth. An ashram was built around him. He is renowned for feelings that visitors experienced in his presence. And he answered questions for hours every day. Many books originated in it.

THE CHILD Venkataraman Aiyer who later was known as Ramana Maharshi, was born in the little town of Tirucculi (Tiruchuzhi) in the Tamil land of South India on December 30, 1879, and grew up a healthy, normal boy.

When Venkataraman was twelve, his father died, and the children went to live with his father's brother, who had a house in the city of Madurai (Madura). Venkataraman was sent first to Scott's Middle School there, and then to the American Mission High School.

He was athletic, and football and wrestling appealed to him. His memory was amazing too, and he was a really deep sleeper. Thus, boys who had grudges against him would come when he was asleep and carry him where they liked and beat him and then put him back to bed, and he would know nothing about it til he was told about it the next morning. [Mal 15].

Shortly before his sixteenth birthday he had a premonition of Arunachala. It is a mountain. And soon afterwards he felt provoked by a book, the life-stories of sixty-three Tamil saints. Something greater and more blissful than ordinary was detectable inside the earthly living.

He became spontaneously self-realized, or enlightened, on July 17 1896, when he was sixteen. Six weeks later he blissfully had renounced what he owned and fled to the holy hill of Arunachala in South India. He often said that his guru was Arunachala.

He taught a certain form of self-inquiry, of self-pondering inquiry, where one focuces on the I-thought and its source, and deeper than the ego in the heart. "The Self alone is real," is a facet of his teachings, along with "All that exists is but the manifestation of the Supreme Being," "Self is Simple Being," and so on. And "One can realize at heart without end."

In 1907, when he was 28, one of his early devotees named him Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi, and the name stuck. He died of cancer on April 14 in 1950, when he was seventy years old.

A Sadhana Laid Bare

The Beginning of the Story

When Venkataraman was seventeen he was sitting alone in a room on the first floor of his uncle's house. A sudden violent fear of death overtook him. He just felt "I am going to die" and began thinking what to do about it. He felt he had to solve the problem there and then. He said to himself mentally such as, "Death has come; what does it mean? This body dies."

He at once dramatized how death took place. He lay with his limbs stretched out stiff and imitated a corpse. He said to himself, "Well then, this body is dead . . . But with the death of this body am I dead? Is the body I? . . . I feel the full force of my personality and even the voice of the "I" within me, apart from it."

This is the approach of the ancient "not this, not that" (neti-neti) practice of yoga, and the whole discriminatory process of his sadhana took barely half an hour. From that moment the "I" or Self focussed attention on itself "by a powerful fascination". Whether he was talking rading or anything else, he was still centred on "I". And fear of death had disappeared for all, and "You are really absolute Being," became one of his dominant teachings.

Previous to that crisis he had had no clear perception of the Self and felt no perceptible or direct interest in it. [Mal 18-19, 21]

From His Interview with Paul Brunton

PAUL BRUNTON interviewed him years later: "How can one lose the feeling of one's personality?"

Ramama Maharshi told him that the first and foremost of all thoughts is the thought "I" and added that you could mentally follow the "I" thread until it leads you back to its source. It is the last [thought] to disappear that way.

Brunton asked what was then left, and if a man then would become an idiot.

He was told that man contrary to that would attain immortal consciousness, become truly wise - Self knowing. When a man knows his true Self, something divine and eternal takes possession of him. When this happens a man has not really lost himself; rather he has found himself, so enquiry into the the true Self is worthy to be undertaken.

In contrast to this, the greatest kings and statesmen know in their heart of hearts that they cannot rule themselves, do not yet know who they are. [Mal 19-21]

He would swallow with indifference -

Approaching books, naming

Analysing and naming came easily within reach as we develop mentally and further. One may approach books both as a writer or reader, and analysing and naming often helps in the acquisition of knowledge in them.

Books resulted from approaching him

"I SHOULD describe the state I was in as Suddha Manas or Vijnana or the intuition of the Illumined." [Mal 24] (1)

After obtaining control of the mind through breathing exercises, one is to harness the controlled mind to the [Deep, Inner] Self, he later mentioned. [cf. Mal 22]

Radiating Grace on those who approached him, came naturally and effortlessly. [cf. Mal 24]

"I had read no books except the Periapuranam, the Bible and bits of Taymanavar or Tevaram." And he went through studies rather mechanically, with his attention was far away from superficial matter. [Mal 23-24, cf. Mal 22]

He made as little outer change as possible to this new state of awareness, but he now preferred solitude. [cf. Mal 22, 23] (2)

Analysing and naming came easily as well

HE NO LONGER had any likes or dislikes with regard to food. He would swallow whatever was given to him with like indifference. [cf. Mal 23] (4)

"The books were analysing and naming what I had felt intuitively". [Mal 24]

He was meek from his won Self-identity

CONVENTIONAL aims of life became unreal. He remained in constant, unbroken awareness of the Self and there was no more sadhana [training], no more spiritual effort, after this. Further progress toward Self-identity came naturally and without effort. [cf. Mal 24]

He became meek. "I had never heard of Brahman [Reality inside], samsara and so forth." [cf. Mal 22, Mal 24]

Gist

1. Books do not have to result from mechanical study alone.
2. Those who can analyse and name very well from inside, should have favourable conditions to do it and prosper.
3. Who is meek from Self-realization or Self-identity, can progress too.

Mechanical study may be a way of learning a trade or something for breadwinning, and may not be so bad. It often helps to analyse and learn well. Along with it, some measures to enhance or improve one's self-understanding and self-assertiveness could be very useful. Self-knowledge is an altogether different "thing".

And so?

Many devotees hoped to be allowed to give up their jobs and remain always with Ramana. And many were surprised at the answers they got, such as,

"Bhagavan is always with you, in you. The Self in you is Bhagavan. It is that you should realize."

"One who truly renounces actually merges in the world and expands his live to embrace the whole world."

"He who renounces when he is not yet ripe for it only creates new bonds."

But there are some who "drop off from secular life as a ripe fruit does from the branch of a tree".

And the explantation that the Bhagavan most often gave, was that true renunication is in the mind. [Mal 72-73]

Teachings of Ramana Maharshi

The references below are to the book The Teachings of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi in His Own Words [Tb].

They err who crave instruction in Reality

In death, being is not lost — The Self is the witness of the three states of waking, dream and sleep. — You are eternal. [#29, 26, 32]

Find out first — Mere book learning is not of any great use. — Everything . . . illusion or Divine . . . must be within the Self. — The truth is that Realization is eternal and already exists. [27, 19, 23]

The world . . . has survived the death of so many who once lived — Many, craving instruction, brought him books; he became learned almost by accident. He said, "As I listened to . . . sacred books, I learnt all this and found . . . what I had felt." AO. — The state of deep sleep . . . what was in deep sleep continues to be now also. [21, 11, 25-26]

No one is ever away from his Self and therefore everyone is in fact Self-realized; only . . . people do not know this. — Abide in the natural heart-centre as the inherent Reality dwells in its natural heart-centre. [#23, 14]

When a person is sufficiently mature he becomes convinced naturally. — [The interval between death and re-birth] may be long or short. [22, #29]

Some theoretical knowledge is needed, but practical application is what is needed. — Reality . . . It is that which is. — Awareness is itself the "I". — The English words - Enlightenment, Liberation and Self-Realization - are here to correspond to the Sanskrit words Jnana, Moksha and Mukti. AO. [#13, 16, 24, 12]

It is possible [to know the posthumous state of an individual], but why try? — Were you born? — The Realized Man merges into Being when death comes. — There is neither birth nor death, one simply remains what one really is.[31, 27, #29, 30]

To understand anything there must be the Self. [15 (2)]

Pure Knowledge is at first like feeling (you feel inside oneself)

Point the way to the Self. — The real Self is waiting . . . to receive you. — Phenomena are real when experienced as the Self. — Illusion itself is illusory. [#14, #22. 16, 17 (3)]

Consciousness is pure knowledge. — The Self or pure Consciousness — The real Self is continuous and unaffected. — The teaching varies according to the understanding of the listener. [23, 21, 31, #28 (4)]

Actual intuition is more like feeling. — Self-realization. Attain that first. — Comment: What he had realized he recognized in Shankara's teachings. AO. [¤13, #27, 15]

Realization is beyond useful and useless knowledge, beyond all those categories

After Realization useless burdens are to be thrown overboard. — Realization . . . is not anything new to be acquired. — The Self is beyond knowledge and ignorance. — The essence of the mind is . . . consciousness [awareness]. [#13, #23, #25, 23]

If a man's merits and demerits are equal, he is re-born immediately. — Be well prepared of death beforehand. AO — Lived absorbed in the Self. — You wrongly identify yourself with the body. [29, 32, 10, 31]

The qualified one realizes the truth. — Theory serves as a basis for practice. — The world has no reality apart from Brahman. — There is neither birth nor death. [#30, #13, 16, #27 (6)]

Waking, dream and sleep are mind phases. — The Self is understood as the continuous Self uninterrupted by waking, dream and deep sleep. — Latent potentialities withdraw into the heart at death. [#26, #26, 29]

He spoke freely and his replies were often given with laughter and humour. AO — The spirit is not disembodied. It carries along a gross body, and/or a subtle one. [11, #31] (7)

Gist

1. They err who crave instruction in Reality.
2. Pure Knowledge is at first like feeling (you feel inside oneself). Tend it.
3. Realization is beyond useful and useless knowledge, beyond all those categories.

Silent Language

When Ramana Maharshi was staying in a certain cave, two men came to see him. They started to talk to him at length about all they had done in spiritual matters, and the spiritual books they had read. One of them them also confessed that in spite of all this, he had no peace.

The speeches of the two men took quite a long time, but Ramana Maharshi did not interrupt them even once. He continued to remain silent even after the speeches had ended. Then one of the men gave up waiting for a reply and delivered yet another long speech. Ramana listened in silence and continued to remain silent when the speech was over.

The man then said, "We have been speaking to you for a long time, but you don't open your mouth at all. Please tell us something. Anything, however brief, will do."

The guru finally said, "All this time I have been speaking in my own language. What can I do if you won't listen to it?"

One of the two men caught the meaning of Sri Bhagavan's reply and chanted a verse by Shankara:

Though the Master's speech is simple silence,
the doubts of the disciples are all resolved."

The two visitors then gave up speeches and questions.

Ramana Maharshi Instructions

When a pleasant, cool southern breeze is blowing, what need is there for a fan? (a verse from the Yoga Vasishta) [Crm 142]

One should ask: "What is the need for instruction in the Self if life is pleasant enough already and the Self cannot be explained anyway?"

At any rate - you can take it from me - here is gist from two more works by Ramana:

To ask the mind to kill itself is like making the thief the policeman. He will go with you and pretend to catch the thief, but nothing will be gained. So you must turn inward. [Gfb 15]

Ramana speaks for taking the ego back to its source: "Go on repeating "I-I" and that will lead you to the same goal. There is no harm in using "I" as a mantra. It is the first name of God." [Gfb 15-16, passim]

Happiness is the very nature of the Self; happiness and the Self are not different. [Crm 45]

This pursuit and related ones can take some of us deep inside - "The state we call realization is simply being oneself . . . we loosely talk of Self-realization for want of a better term." [Gfb 26]

Knowing one's Self is only being one's Self — This very Self is referred to as the witness (sakshi) and the transcendent (turiya, literally the fourth) — One's Self is of the nature of Brahman [Gfb 29, Crm 10, 12]

The Self is self-luminous . . . and is the reality which is self-manifest. [Crm 27]

What is called the Heart is no other than Brahman. [Crm 9]

Ramana too advises to give up all thoughts regarding the non-self and focus intently inwardly somehow. "Breath and mind arise from the same source and when one of them is controlled the other is also controlled," he tells. — [The breath control that is described is . . . not mere physical exercise. Publishers]. — Breath control is the means for mind control - Breath can be controlled . . . by regulation of breath (pranayama). [Gfb 15; Crm 4, 20]

. When we watch wherefrom the "I-thought" arises, we are necessarily watching the source of breath also, as the "I-thought" and the breath arise from the same source. Breath control may serve as an aid. — The six mystic centres [chakras] which are said to be loci of meditation, are [merely] meant for beginners in yoga. [Gfb 16, Crm 26]

Regulation of life, such as getting up at a fixed hour, bathing, doing mantra-japa, etc., all this is for people who do not feel drawn to Self-enquiry, or are not capable of it. [Gfb 17]

The thought "I am the body" is ignorance. That the body is not apart from the Self is knowledge. [Gfb 30]

How to see the Self? As the Self is one without a second, it is impossible to see it. [Crm 118]

To be taken note of is the Heart which is of the nature of consciousness. It is both inside and outside (us) and has neither an inside nor an outside . . . This is the really important Heart . . . The Self is the Heart. The Heart is Self-luminous. Light arises from the Heart. — True Knowledge is being devoid of knowledge. [Gfb 35; Crm 117]

Renunciation is always in the mind, not in going to the forest or solitary places, or giving up one's duties. [Gfb 38]

Now, then and always - here, now and everywhere - we are the same . . . spaceless. [Crm 117]

Take hold of that State which alone is the Supreme and True One and engage yourself in action in the world, regarding your life there as mere sport. You have discovered That which is the Reality inside your Heart behind all the appearances of this world. So, without ever letting That out of your sight, disport yourself as you like in the world . . . engage yourself in the affairs of the world without any detriment to yourself. [Gfb 43]

More

The body is within the Self. And yet
One thinks one is inside the . . . body. [Crm 130]

Abide in stillness. [Crm 135]

Enter deep into the Heart. [Crm 143]

Poetic

Better than hymns of praise
Is repetition of the Name;
Better low-voiced than loud,
But best of all
Is meditation in the mind.

. . . . . . . .

The noblest attitude of all,
Is to hold Him as the 'I' within,
The very 'I'. [Crm 110]

Mind and breath . . .
Fork out like two branches. [Crm 111]

Where this 'I' notion fades,
Now there as I, as I, arises
The One, the very Self. [Crm 112].

In the nature of their being, creature and creator
Are in substance one.
They differ only
In adjuncts and awareness. [Crm 113]

- Ramana Maharshi [The Essence of Instruction. Crm 110]

Literature  

Cor: Osborne, Arthur ed: The Collected Works of Ramana Maharshi. New ed. Rider. London, 1969.

Crm: Sri Ramanasramam. The Collected Works of Sri Ramana Maharshi. New Indian ed. Tiruvannamalai: Sri Ramanasramam, 1996.

Gfb: Ramana Maharshi. Gems from Bhagavan. Comp. A. D. Mudaliar. 6th ed. Tiruvannamalai: Sri Ramanashramam, 2000.

Mal: Osborne, Arthur ed: Ramana Maharshi and the Path of Self- Knowledge. New ed. Rider. London, 1970.

Tb: Osborne, Arthur ed: The Teachings of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi in His Own Words. New ed. Rider. London, 1971.



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