#ramana maharshi
“You are not the body, you are not the mind, you are Pure Consciousness, the all pervasive Self. Pay your attention to that. Be aware of it all the time even while you are working”
~Sri Ramana Maharshi
Solitude is in the mind of a person. One may be in the thick of the world and yet maintain perfect serenity of mind. Such a person is always in solitude.
Dr. Syed asked Bhagavan, “Does not total or complete surrender require that one should not have left in him the desire even for liberation or God?”
Bhagavan: Complete surrender does require that you have no desire of your own, that God’s desire alone is your desire and that you have no desire of your own.
Dr. Syed: Now that I am satisfied on that point, I want to know what are the steps by which I could achieve surrender.
Bhagavan: There are two ways; one is looking into the source of ‘I’ and merging into that source. The other is feeling “I am helpless by myself, God alone is all-powerful and except throwing myself completely on him, there is no other means of safety for me,” and thus gradually developing the conviction that God alone exists and the ego does not count. Both methods lead to the same goal. Complete surrender is another name for jnana or liberation.
When once asked to define the ‘Goal of Life’,
Sri Ramana Maharshi said: “Getting rid of the non-existent 'misery’ and attainment of the 'Bliss’, which is always there
Question: If there is a certain work destined to be done by each and we shall eventually do it however much we do not wish to do it or refuse to do it, is there any free will?
BHAGAVAN: It is true that the work meant to be done by us will be done by us. But it is open to us to be free from the joys or pains, pleasant or unpleasant consequences of the work, by not identifying ourselves with the body or that which does the work. If you realise your true nature and know that it is not you that does any work, you will be unaffected by the consequences of whatever work the body may be engaged in according to destiny or past karma or divine plan, however you may call it. You are always free and there is no limitation of that freedom.
(DAY BY DAY)
If you surrender yourself to the Higher Power all is well. That Power sees your affairs through. Only so long as you think that you are the worker you are obliged to reap the fruits of your actions. If on the other hand, you surrender yourself and recognise your individual self as only a tool of the Higher Power, that Power will take over your affairs along with the fruits of actions. You are no longer affected by them and the work goes on unhampered. Whether you recognise the Power or not the scheme of things does not alter. Only there is a change of outlook. Why should you bear your load on the head when you are travelling on a train? It carries you and your load whether the load is on your head or on the floor of the train. You are not lessening the burden of the train by keeping it on your head but only straining yourself unnecessarily. Similar is the sense of doership in the world by the individuals.
(Talks 503)
3. What is bliss?
It is the experience of joy (or peace) in the state of vijnana free of all activities and
similar to deep sleep.
This is also called the state of kevala nirvikalpa (remaining without concepts).
4. What is the state beyond bliss?
It is the state of unceasing peace of mind which is found in the state of absolute
quiescence, jagrat-sushupti (lit. sleep with awareness) which resembles inactive deep
sleep. In this state, in spite of the activity of the body and the senses, there is no
external awareness, like a child immersed in sleep* (who is not conscious of the food
given to him by his mother).
A yogi who is in this state is inactive even while engaged in activity. This is also called sahaja nirvikalpa samadhi (natural state of absorption in oneself without concepts).
* The acts of sleeping children like eating and drinking are acts only in the eyes of
others and not in their own. They do not therefore really do those acts in spite of their appearing to do them.
- The teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi.
Spiritual Instruction.
Chapter III. Verses 3 & 4.
Experience (Anubhava)
What is the nature of Awareness?
The nature of Awareness is existence-consciousness-bliss
When will the realization of the Self be gained?
When the world which is what-is-seen has been removed, there will be realization of the Self which is the seer.
Will there not be realization of the Self even while the world is there (taken as real)?
There will not be.
Why?
The seer and the object seen are like the rope and the snake.
Just as the knowledge of the rope which is the substrate will not arise unless the false knowledge of the illusory serpent goes,
so the realization of the Self which is the substrate will not be gained unless the belief that the world is real is removed.
When will the world which is the object seen be removed?
When the mind, which is the cause of all cognition’s and of all actions, becomes quiescent, the world will disappear.
- Who Am I? (Nan Yar?) ( 3 -7 )
The Teachings of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi
Wanting to reform the world without discovering one’s true self is like trying to cover the world with leather to avoid the pain of walking on stones and thorns. It is much simpler to wear shoes.
Ramana Maharshi
