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Advaita Non-dual Tradition

Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi
Humbly Laid at the feet of Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi
Remain aware of yourself (as awareness), and all else will be known.
Because people want something elaborate and mysterious, so many religions have come
into existence. Only those who are mature can understand the matter in its naked
simplicity. Because people love mystery and not the truth, religions cater to them,
eventually bringing them around to the SELF.
Whatever is destined not to happen will not happen, try as you may. Whatever is destined
to happen will happen, do what you may to prevent it. This is certain. The best course
therefore, is to remain silent.

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Self-Enquiry - Vasanas (Latent Tendencies)

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.
Vasanas keep our mind outwardly directed, Sri Ramana says:
All the age long vasanas (impressions) carry the mind outwards and turn it to external objects. All
such thoughts have to be given up and the mind turned inward. For that effort is necessary, for most
people. (Ramana Maharshi, GFB, chapter 8.)
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.
To know the truth of one's Self (awareness, Being-ness, existence) as the sole Reality, and to
merge and become One with it, is the only true Realization.
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Question: What are kevala nirvikalpa samadhi and sahaja nirvikalpa samadhi?
Ramana: The immersion of the mind in the Self, but without its destruction, is kevala nirvikalpa samadhi.
In this state one is not free from vasanas and so one does not therefore attain mukti. Only after the
vasanas have been destroyed can one attain liberation.
Question: May I have a clear idea of the difference between savikalpa and nirvikalpa?
Ramana: Holding on to the supreme state is samadhi. When it is with effort due to mental disturbances,
it is savikalpa. When these disturbances are absent, it is nirvikalpa. Remaining permanently in the primal
state without effort is sahaja.
Question: Why is it that sometimes I find concentration on the Self so easy, and at other times
hopelessly difficult?
Ramana: Because of latent tendencies of the mind. But really, it is easy, since we are the Self. All we
have to do is to remember that. We keep on forgetting it, and thus think we are this body, or this ego. If
the will and desire to remember the Self are strong enough, they will eventually overcome tendencies.
There must be a great battle going on inwardly all the time until the Self is realised. This battle is
symbolically spoken of in scriptural writings as the fight between God and Satan. In our texts, it is the
Mahabharata, in which the demons represent our bad thoughts and the gods our elevated ones.
We all have to return to our source. Every human being is seeking their source and must one day come
to it. We came from the Within; we have gone outward and now we must turn inward. What is
meditation? It is our natural Self. We have covered ourselves over with thoughts and passions. To throw
them off we must concentrate on one thought: the Self.
Beginners in self-enquiry were advised by Sri Ramana to put their attention on the inner feeling of 'I' and
to hold that feeling as long as possible. They would be told that if their attention was distracted by other
thoughts they should revert to awareness of the 'I'-thought whenever they became aware that their
attention had wandered. He suggested various aids to assist this process - one could ask oneself 'Who
am I?' or 'Where does this I come from?' - but the ultimate aim was to be continuously aware of the 'I'
which assumes that it is responsible for all the activities of the body and the mind.
In the early stages of practice attention to the feeling 'I' is a mental activity which takes the form of a
thought or a perception. As the practice develops the thought 'I' gives way to a subjectively experienced
feeling of 'I', and when this feeling ceases to connect and identify with thoughts and objects it
completely vanishes. What remains is an experience of being in which the sense of individuality has
temporarily ceased to operate. The experience may be intermittent at first but with repeated practice it
becomes easier and easier to reach and maintain. When self-enquiry reaches this level there is an
effortless awareness of being in which individual effort is no longer possible since the 'I' who makes the
effort has temporarily ceased to exist. It is not Self-realisation since the 'I'-thought periodically reasserts
itself but it is the highest level of practice. Repeated experience of this state of being weakens and
destroys the vasanas (mental tendencies) which cause the 'I'-thought to rise, and, when their hold has
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been sufficiently weakened, the power of the Self destroys the residual tendencies so completely that
the 'I'-thought never rises again. This is the final and irreversible state of Self-realisation.
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 meditation on one's
nature 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.
Experience gained without rooting out all the Vasanas (latent impressions or mental tendencies) cannot
remain steady. Effort must be made to eradicate the Vasanas; knowledge can only remain unshaken
after all the Vasanas are rooted out.
As long as there are tendencies towards sense-objects in the mind, the enquiry 'Who am I?' is necessary.
As with self-enquiry, final realisation is brought about automatically by the power of the Self. When all
the outgoing tendencies of the mind have been dissolved in the repeated experiences of being, the
Self destroys the vestigial 'I'-thought so completely that it never rises again.
Whenever a thought arises, do not be carried away by it. You become aware of the
body when you forget the Self.
Q: Do these tendencies go gradually or will they suddenly all disappear one day? I ask this because
although I have remained here for a long time I do not perceive any gradual change in me.
A: When the sun rises, does the darkness go gradually or all at once?
Q: A young man from Colombo, Ceylon, said to Bhagavan: J. Krishnamurthi teaches the method of
effortless and choiceless awareness as distinct from that of deliberate concentration. Would Sri
Bhagavan be pleased to explain how best to practise meditation and what form the object of meditation
should take?
A: Effortless and choiceless awareness is our real nature. If we can attain that state and abide in it,
that is all right. But one cannot reach it without effort, the effort of deliberate meditation. All the age-
old vasanas (inherent tendencies) turn the mind outwards to external objects. All such thoughts have
to be given up and the mind turned inwards and that, for most people, requires effort. Of course,
every teacher and every book tells the aspirant to keep quiet, but it is not easy to do so. That is why
all this effort is necessary. Even if we find somebody who has achieved this supreme state of stillness,
you may take it that the necessary effort had already been made in a previous life. So effortless and
choiceless awareness is attained only after deliberate meditation. That meditation can take whatever
form most appeals to you. See what helps you to keep out all other thoughts and adopt that for your
meditation.
In this connection Bhagavan quoted some verses from the great Tamil poet and saint, Thayumanavar,
the gist of which is as follows: Bliss will ensue if you keep still, but however much you tell your mind this
truth, it will not keep still. It is the mind that tells the mind to be still in order for it to attain bliss, but it
will not do it. Though all the scriptures have said it and though we hear it daily from the great ones and
even from our Guru, we are never quiet but stray into the world of Maya (illusion) and sense objects.
That is why conscious, deliberate effort is needed to attain that effortless state of stillness.
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Indeed, until the supreme, effortless state is attained, it is impossible for a man not to make effort. His
own nature compels him to, just as Sri Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita told Arjuna that his own nature
would compel him to fight.
Q: In the practice of meditation are there any signs in the realm of subjective experience which will
indicate the aspirant's progress towards Self-realisation?
A: The degree of freedom from unwanted thoughts and the degree of concentration on a single
thought are the measures to gauge the progress.
Q: Why do thoughts of many objects arise in the mind even when there is no contact with external
objects?
A: All such thoughts are due to latent tendencies (purva samskaras). They appear only to the individual
consciousness (jiva) which has forgotten its real nature and become externalised. Whenever particular
things are perceived, the enquiry Who is it that sees them? should be made; they will then disappear at
once.
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Unless you enquire, within yourself, through yourself, into yourself, it will be impossible for you to
become one with your own SELF.
The state we call Realization is simply being one's self, not knowing anything or becoming
anything.
The body itself is a thought. Be as you really are (Being-ness).
The state of the SELF is reached by going back the way one came. Whichever other path one travels
on, it has to take you here and take refuge here.
This path [ attention to the I ] is the direct path; all others are indirect ways. The first leads to the
Self, the others elsewhere. And even if the latter do arrive at the SELF it is only because they lead at
the end to the first path which ultimately carries themto the goal. So, in the end, the aspirants must
adopt the first path. Why not do so now? Why waste time?
Question: Can the meditator be affected by physical disturbances during nirvikalpa samadhi? My
friend and I disagree on this point.
Ramana: Both of you are right. One of you is referring to kevala and the other to sahaja samadhi. In
both cases the mind is immersed in the bliss of the Self. In the former, physical movements may
cause disturbance to the meditator, because the mind has not completely died out. It is still alive
and can, as after deep sleep, at any moment be active again.
It is compared to a bucket, which, although completely submerged under water, can be pulled out
by a rope which is still attached to it. In sahaja, the mind has sunk completely into the Self, like the
bucket which has got drowned in the depths of the well along with its rope. In sahaja there is
nothing left to be disturbed or pulled back to the world. One's activities then resemble that of the
child who sucks its mother's milk in sleep, and is hardly aware of the feeding.
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Question: Howcan one function in the world in such a state?
Ramana: One who accustoms himself naturally to meditation and enjoys the bliss of meditation will
not lose his samadhi state whatever external work he does, whatever thoughts may come to him.
That is sahaja nirvikalpa. Sahaja nirvikalpa is nasa [total destruction of the mind] whereas kevala
nirvikalpa is laya [temporary abeyance of the mind].
Those who are in the laya samadhi state will have to bring the mind back under control fromtime
to time. If the mind is destroyed, as it is in sahaja samadhi, it will never sprout again. Whatever is
done by such people is just incidental, they will never slide down fromtheir high state.
Those that are in the kevala nirvikalpa state are not realized, they are still seekers. Those who are in
the sahaja nirvikalpa state are like a light in a windless place, or the ocean without waves; that is,
there is no movement in them. They cannot find anything which is different fromthemselves. For
those who do not reach that state, everything appears to be different fromthemselves.
Why do you ask all these questions? Go on practising till you have the experience yourself.
Question: What is the use of samadhi and does thought subsist then?
Ramana: Samadhi alone can reveal the truth. Thoughts cast a veil over reality, and so it is not
realized as such in states other than samadhi. In samadhi there is only the feeling `I am' and no
thoughts. The experience of `I am' is `being still'.
Padamis the wondrous illumination of the real that shines within the faculties, such as the mind
and the intellect, lending themits light.
Though the I is always experienced, yet one's attention has to be drawn to it. Then only
knowledge dawns. Experiences such as "I went; I came; I was; I did" come naturally to everyone.
From these experiences, does it not appear that the consciousness "I" is the subject of those various
acts? Enquiry into the true nature of that consciousness, and remaining as oneself is the way to
understand one's true nature.
There can be satisfaction only when you reach the source; otherwise there will be restlessness.
Thoughts alone constitute the mind; and for all thoughts the base or source is the I thought. I is
the mind. If we go inward questing for the source of the I, the I topples down. This is the jnana
enquiry.
That which rises in this body as I is the mind.
Thoughts alone make up the mind;
And of all thoughts the I thought is the root.
What is called mind is but the notion I.
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You must distinguish between the I, pure in itself, and the I-thought. The latter, being merely a
thought, sees subject and object, sleeps, wakes up, eats and thinks, dies and is reborn. But the pure
I is the pure Being, eternal existence, free fromignorance and thought-illusion. If you stay as the
I, your being alone, without thought, the I-thought will disappear and the delusion will vanish
forever.
She said, one day, "Bhagavan, please give me some upadesa." Bhagavan gave her a benign look and
replied: "Don't ever lose awareness of your being."
Self-enquiry by following the clue of Aham-vritti is just like the dog tracing its master by his scent.
The master may be at some distant, unknown place, but that does not at all stand in the way of the
dog tracing him. The master's scent is an infallible clue for the animal, and nothing else, such as the
dress he wears, or his build and stature etc., counts. To that scent the dog holds on undistractedly
while searching for him, and finally it succeeds in tracing him.
In your quest for the Self, the one infallible clue is the Aham-vritti, the I-am-ness which is the
primary datumof your experience. No other clue can lead you direct to Self-realization.
Whence does this I arise? Seek for it within; it then vanishes. This is the pursuit of Wisdom.
Eternal, ever effulgent, full and infinite Bliss, Single, indivisible, whole and living, Shines in everyone
as the witnessing awareness.
I am is the goal and final reality. To hold to it with effort is vichara. When spontaneous and natural
it is realization.
Remain aware of yourself, And all else will be known.
To enquire and know oneself properly, nothing except the consciousness I am is necessary.
In your quest for the Self, the one infallible clue is the I am-ness which is the primary datumof
your experience. No other clue can lead you to Self-realization.
Attain true life by abiding as the being I.
To remain still, without thinking about that which is other than the Self, is to offer the mind to the
Self.
Knowing That is only abiding as That. Therefore, shine, remaining still without objectifying.
Communion with the Self
The act of communion with the Self, or remaining still inwardly, is intense activity which is
performed with the entire mind and without break. Maya, which cannot be destroyed by any other
act, is completely destroyed by this intense activity, which is called silence.
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It is important for one who is established in his Self to see that he does not swerve in the least from
this absorption.
True Worship
The state in which consciousness does not desire the non-Self is worship of the Self without being
separate fromit.
Self-Abidance
If one abides clinging to the Self, then, through that state of peace, all other attachments will fall
away, and only your natural state, liberation, will remain.
The heroic ones should attain and remain firmly established in Self-abidance in the Heart.
Devotee: How is the I-I consciousness felt?
Maharashi: As an unbroken awareness of I. It is simply consciousness.
How long should inquiry be practised?
As long as there are impressions of objects in the mind, so long the inquiry Who am I? is
required.
If one searches for the method to still [the minds] movement, the correct way is to cling to
the Self.
Question : How can I tell if I am making progress with my enquiry?
Ramana Maharshi : The degree of the absence of thoughts is the measure of your progress
towards Self-realization. But Self-realization itself does not admit of progress, it is ever the
same. The Self remains always in realization. The obstacles are thoughts. Progress is
measured by the degree of removal of the obstacles to understanding that the Self is always
realized. So thoughts must be checked by seeking to whom they arise. So you go to their
source, where they do not arise.
The residual impressions (thoughts) of objects appear wending like the waves of an
ocean.
When will all of them get destroyed?
As the meditation on the Self rises higher and higher, the thoughts will get destroyed.
What is non-attachment?
As thoughts arise, destroying them utterly without any residue in the very place of their
origin is
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non-attachment.
Is there no difference between waking and dream?
Waking is long and a dream short; other than this there is no difference. Just as waking
happenings seem real while awake. so do those in a dream while dreaming. In dream the
mind takes on another body. In both waking and dream states thoughts, names and forms
occur simultaneously.
Is it any use reading books for those who long for release?
All the texts say that in order to gain release one should render the mind quiescent;
therefore their conclusive teaching is that the mind should be rendered quiescent; once this
has been understood there is no need for endless reading. In order to quieten the mind one
has only to inquire within oneself what ones Self is; how could this search be done in books?
One should know ones Self with ones own eye of wisdom. The Self is within the five
sheaths; but books are outside them. Since the Self has to be inquired into by discarding the
five sheaths, it is futile to search for it in books. There will come a time when one will have
to forget all that one has learned.
But the Self is realized not by ones doing something, but by ones refraining from
doing anything.
Sri Bhagavan has given clear instructions in His prose work Who am I, where He explains:
The mind will subside only by means of the enquiry `Who am I?' The thought 'Who am I?',
destroying all other thoughts, will itself finally be destroyed like the stick used for stirring
the funeral pyre and like the reflection of the sun directed from a mirror towards the sun
itself. If other thoughts rise one should, without attempting to complete them, enquire `To
whom did they rise?' What does it matter however many thoughts rise? At the very
moment that each thought rises, if one vigilantly enquires `To whom did this rise?', it will
be known `To me'. If one then enquires `Who am I?', the mind will turn back to its source
[the Self] and the thought which had risen will also subside. By repeatedly practising
thus, the power of the mind to abide in its source increases.
What is essential in any sadhana is to try to bring back the running mind and fix it on
one thing only.
Of all paths, this path (Self-enquiry) is the easiest.
Reality is simply the loss of ego. Destroy the ego by seeking its identity. Because the ego
is no entity it will automatically vanish and reality will shine forth by itself. This is the
direct method, whereas all other methods are done only by retaining the ego. In those
paths there arise so many doubts and the eternal question `Who am I ?' remains to be
tackled finally. But in this method the final question is the only one and it is raised from the
beginning.
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Regulation of life, such as getting up at a fixed hour, bathing, doing mantra, japa, observing
ritual, all this is for people who do not feel drawn to self-enquiry or are not capable of it.
But for those who can practise this method all rules and discipline are unnecessary.
The idea of time is only in your mind. It is not in the Self. There is no time for the Self. Time
arises as an idea after the ego arises. But you are the Self beyond time and space. You exist
even in the absence of time and space.
Attention to one's own Self, which is ever shining as `I', the one undivided and pure reality,
is the only raft with which the individual, who is deluded by thinking `I am the body', can
cross the ocean of unending births.
Setting apart time for meditation is only for the merest spiritual novices. A man who is
advancing will begin to enjoy the deeper beatitude whether he is at work or not. While his
hands are in society, he keeps his head cool in solitude.
The perception of `I' is associated with a form, maybe the body. There should be nothing
associated with the pure Self. After the rise of the `I'-thought there is the false identification
of the `I' (Self) with the body, the senses, the mind, etc. `I' is wrongly associated with them
and the true `I' is lost sight of.
Eagerness to do it must be equal to that of a man kept under water trying to rise up to the
surface for his life.
When the wrong identification of oneself with the body ceases, the master will be found to
be none other than the Self.
The state free from thoughts is the only real state.
You are awareness. Awareness is another name for you. Since you are awareness there is
no need to attain or cultivate it. All that you have to do is to give up being aware of other
things, that is of the not-Self. If one gives up being aware of them then pure awareness
alone remains, and that is the Self.
If you keep on making the enquiry till you fall asleep, the enquiry will go on during sleep
also. Take up the enquiry again as soon as you wake up.
The Self alone is real. All others are unreal. The mind and intellect do not remain apart from
you. The Bible says, `Be still and know that I am God.' Stillness is the sole requisite for the
realization of the Self as God.
The wrong knowledge is the false identification of the Self with the body and the mind. This
false identification must go, and then the Self alone remains.
You must distinguish between the `I', pure in itself, and the `I'-thought. The latter, being
merely a thought, sees subject and object, sleeps, wakes up, eats and thinks, dies and is
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reborn. But the pure `I' is the pure being, eternal existence, free from ignorance and
thought-illusion. If you stay as the `I', your being alone, without thought, the `I'-thought will
disappear and the delusion will vanish for ever. It is foolish to attempt to kill the mind by
means of the mind. The only way of doing it is to find its source and hold on to it. The mind
will then fade away of its own accord.
You are now thinking that you are the body and therefore confuse yourself with its birth
and death. But you are not the body and you have no birth and death.
The Jnani's mind is known only to the jnani. One must be a jnani oneself in order to
understand another jnani. However the peace of mind which permeates the saint's
atmosphere is the only means by which the seeker understands the greatness of the saint.
His words or actions or appearance are no indication of his greatness, for they are
ordinarily beyond the comprehension of common people.
When the Self is sought, the mind is nowhere. Abiding in the Self, one need not worry about
the mind. When the mind unceasingly investigates its own nature, it transpires that there is
no such thing as mind. This is the direct path for all. The mind is merely thoughts. Of all
thoughts the thought `I' is the root. Therefore the mind is only the thought `I'.
The one unalterable reality is being. Until you realize that state of pure being you should
pursue the enquiry. If once you are established in it there will be no further worry.
Knowing the Self means being the Self.
Is it the mind that wants to kill itself ? The mind cannot kill itself. So your business is to find
the real nature of the mind. Then you will know that there is no mind. When the Self is
sought, the mind is nowhere. Abiding in the Self, one need not worry about the mind.
Our real nature is Liberation. But we are imagining we are bound and are making various,
strenuous attempts to become free, while we are all the while free. This will be understood
only when we reach that stage. We will be surprised that we were frantically trying to
attain something which we have always been and are.
Atman is realized with mruta manas [dead mind], that is, mind devoid of thoughts and
turned inward. Then the mind sees its own source and becomes that [the Self].
Abhyasa [spiritual practice] consists in withdrawal within the Self every time you are
disturbed by thought. It is not concentration or destruction of the mind but withdrawal into
the Self.
Leave it to God. Surrender unreservedly. One of two things must be done. Either surrender
because you admit your inability and require a higher power to help you, or investigate the
cause of misery by going to the source and merging into the Self. Either way you will be free
from misery. God never forsakes one who has surrendered.
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The more you get fixed in the Self the more other thoughts will drop off of themselves. The
mind is nothing but a bundle of thoughts.
The egos phenomenal existence is transcended when you dive into the source from where
the I-thought rises.
Question : How is that done?
Ramana Maharshi : You have to ask yourself the Question `Who am I ?' This investigation
will lead in the end to the discovery of something within you which is behind the mind, the
Self becomes clear to him. Solve that great problem and you will solve all other problems.
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. The annihilation
of the ego (the primal thought) alone is liberation (mukti).
After coming to know that the final decision of all the scriptures (sastras) is that such
destruction of the mind alone is liberation (mukti), to read scriptures unlimitedly is
fruitless.
Just as one would dive in order to find something that had fallen into the water, so one
should dive within with a keen (introverted) mind, controlling breath and speech, and
know the rising-place of the rising ego. Know thus !
When the attention goes deeper and deeper within along the ray I, its length decrease
more and more, and when the ray I dies, that which shines as I is Jnana.
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!!
We can detach ourself from what we are not.
First and foremost Bhagavan stated that self-enquiry should be performed with the same
intensity as that of a drowning man struggling for air, only then can it succeed.
Mind is consciousness which has put on limitations. You are originally unlimited and
perfect. Later you take on limitations and become the mind.
Question: How can I control the mind?
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Ramana: Seek the mind. On being sought, it will disappear. The mind is only a bundle of
thoughts. The thoughts arise because there is a thinker. The thinker is the ego. The ego, if
sought, will vanish automatically. The ego and the mind are the same. The ego is the root-
thought from which all other thoughts arise. Dive within. You are now aware that the mind
rises from within. So sink within and seek. You need not eliminate the wrong "I." How can
the 'I' eliminate itself? All that you need do is to find its origin and abide there. That is as far
as your efforts can extend. Then the Beyond will take care of itself. You are helpless there;
no effort can reveal it.
Ramana: The false ego is associated with objects; the subject alone is the Reality.
The mind must be erased out of existence. See who the thinker is, who the seeker is. Then
abide as the thinker, the seeker, and all thoughts will then disappear. That ego is pure ego
purged of thoughts. It is the same as the Self.
Why do thoughts of many objects arise in the mind even when there is no contact
with external objects?
All such thoughts are due to latent tendencies. They appear only to the individual
consciousness which has forgotten its real nature and become externalised. Whenever
particular things are perceived, the enquiry "Who is it that sees them"? should be made;
they will then disappear at once.
The mind resting in the Self is its natural condition; but, instead of that, our minds are
resting in outward objects.
The natural state is simply being oneself, not knowing anything or becoming anything. If
one has realised, he is That which alone is, and which alone has always been. He cannot
describe that state. He can only be That.
Forgetfulness of your real nature is the real death; remembrance of it is the true birth. It
puts an end to successive births. Eternal life is then yours. How does the desire for eternal
life arise? Because the present state is unbearable. Why? Because, it is not your true nature.
Had it been your real nature, there would be no desire to agitate you. How does the present
state differ from your real nature? Truly, you are spirit. Human beings consider themselves
limited and that is the root of the trouble. The idea is wrong. In sleep there was no world,
no ego and no trouble. Something wakes up from that happy state and says 'I'. To that ego
the world appears. It is the rise of the ego that is the cause of the trouble. But trace the ego
to its origin, and you will reach that undifferentiated happy source, a state which is
sleepless sleep. The Self is ever there; wisdom only appears to dawn, though it is natural.
See the self by meditation in this manner. Trace every thought to its origin. Never allow
thought to run on. If you do, it will be unending. Take it back to its starting place and the
mind will die of inaction. Go back by the question, "Who am I?"
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No meditation on any kind of object is helpful. In meditating on an object, whether concrete
or abstract, you are destroying the sense of Oneness and creating duality. Meditate on what
you are, in reality.
Obviously the seer is more real, true and important than the seen, since the seen is
dependent on it. So, turn your attention to the seer, who is the source of your 'I', and realise
That. Up to now, you have been studying the object, not the subject. Now, find out what the
word 'I' stands for.
All kinds of thoughts arise in meditation unless they rise up, how can they be destroyed?
They rise up spontaneously in order to be extinguished in due course. The Self is realised
with a mind that is turned inward. When the mind sees its own source it becomes That.
You are incarnated now aren't you? Then you will be so again. As the body is illusion then
the illusion will repeat itself until you find the real Self.
When the ego leaves the body it must immediately grasp another body. It cannot exist
without a body.
The 'I'- thought, the ego will recur again, only, each time you identify it with a different
body and different surroundings around the body. It is karma which has placed you in this
particular body and placed it in a particular family, race, sex, etc...
Devotee: Work leaves no time for separate meditation. Is the constant reminder I am,
trying to feel it while actually at work, enough?
Sri Ramana: It will become constant when the mind becomes strengthened. Repeated
practice strengthens the mind; and such mind is capable of holding on to the current. In
that case, engagement in work or no engagement, the current remains unaffected and
uninterrupted.
What exactly does tracing the ego back to the source mean?
To answer this question we must first understand how the ego left its source, because as
Sri Ramana sometimes used to say, we must go back the way we came, and before we can
do that, we must understand what the way we came actually is.
In verse 25 of Ulladu Narpadu, Sri Ramana explains how the ego rises from its source (our
real self), how it remains away from its source, and how it will eventually subside back into
its source:
Grasping form [that is, attaching itself to a body] it comes into existence; grasping form
[that is, attending to thoughts or perceptions of a seemingly external world] it stands [or
endures]; grasping form it feeds and grows [flourishes or expands]; leaving [one] form it
15
grasps [another] form. If [we] seek [search, investigate, examine or scrutinise it], it will
take flight. Know [that this is the nature of this] formless ghost-ego.
That is, since this ego has no form (no finite or separate existence) of its own, it can
seemingly come into existence and endure only when we imagine ourself to be a form (a
physical body), and it flourishes when we attend to any form (anything that appears to be
separate from ourself). In other words, since this ego is thus just a formless ghost, it can
rise, endure and flourish only by grasping form, and hence when it tries to grasp (or
attend to) itself, which is not a form, it will subside and disappear.
The truth that Sri Ramana teaches us here can therefore be rephrased thus: our mind or
ego is nourished and sustained by attending to anything other than itself, and hence it will
be dissolved and destroyed only by attending to itself. This is a fundamental and extremely
important truth, which I have described elsewhere as the first law of consciousness or
first law of the science of self-knowledge.
In your quest for the Self, the one infallible clue is the Aham-vritti , the I-am-ness which is
the primary datum of your experience. No other clue can lead you direct to Self-realization.
(Ramana Maharshi, MG, n.p.)
The thought who am I? will destroy all other thoughts, and like the stick used for stirring
the burning pyre, it will itself in the end get destroyed. Then, there will arise Self-
realization. (Ramana Maharshi, WHO, 14.)
Just as a man would dive in order to get something that had fallen into the water, so one
should dive into oneself, with a keen one-pointed mind, controlling speech and breath, and
find the place whence the I originates. (Ramana Maharshi, FVR, verse 28.)
Therefore on diving deep upon the quest Who am I and from whence? thoughts disappear
And consciousness of Self flashes forth.
Identification with the Supreme is the only the other name for the destruction of the ego.
(Ramana Maharshi, TWSRM, Question 130.)
The moment the ego-self [tries] to know itself, it changes its character; it begins to partake
less and less of the Jada , in which it is absorbed, and more and more of the Consciousness
of the Self, the Atman . (Ramana Maharshi, SDB, xvii.)
To know the Self is to be the Self as there are not two separate selves.
Knowing the Self is being the Self. (Ramana Maharshi, GR, 63.)
D: How does individuality emanate from the Absolute Self, and how is its return made
possible?
M: As a spark proceeds from fire, individuality emanates
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from the Absolute Self. The spark is called the ego. In the case of the ajnani [?], the ego
identifies itself with some object simultaneously with its rise. It cannot remain without
such association with objects.
This association is due to ajnana [?], whose destruction is the objective of one's efforts. If
this tendency to identify itself with objects is destroyed, the ego becomes pure and then it
also merges into its source. The false identification of oneself with the body is dehatma-
buddhi [?] or `I-am-the-body'-idea. This must go before good results can follow.
The Path of Sri Ramana Part One
What is the goal towards which the world is moving? What is the world striving for?
Careful observation will show that all are striving for happiness. From the smallest ant to
the greatest emperor, everyone is tirelessly working. For what? For happiness, and
happiness alone! Everyone is anxious that he or she should live in happier circumstances
than those at present. Since men are constantly endeavoring to obtain more happiness, it is
evident that happiness in full has not yet been obtained. Man is constantly trying to
accumulate such sources of pleasure as food, dress, house, employment, wife and children,
because he believes that happiness will be derived from these sources.
Thus, down through the ages, human effort has been directed only towards acquiring
objects for the satisfaction of these five senses.
The happiness acquired through anyone of these five senses cannot be enjoyed
continuously; beyond a certain limit, they may actually become sources of pain instead of
pleasure. Hence, the foregoing scrutiny can only lead us to the conclusion that the
permanent and perfect happiness sought by man cannot be obtained through the five
senses.
The desire for happiness is not wrong! Happiness must be obtained! It is in fact the
Supreme goal (purushartha) for all human beings! But the means to obtain it which have
been charted and followed by people up till now are wrong. The defect is only in the means
and not in the goal. That is why man is not able to enjoy perfect happiness despite the
herculean efforts he has made to achieve it.
The rising of thought-waves in the form of likes and dislikes for things alone is sorrow, and
their subsidence alone is happiness; that is all!
In fact, thoughts are the veil that covers over the happiness; when this veil is removed,
happiness is revealed. Since you yourself are happiness, all you have to do to enjoy your
own innate happiness is to ward off all thoughts. So, understand this truth that the
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happiness enjoyed by you in deep sleep on account of its thought-free nature can also be
enjoyed in a thought-free waking state.
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 ones real nature is itself happiness, it will not then run
outwards but towards oneself; in other words, it will remain still in Self.
It is of course essential to achieve one-pointedness of mind. Even while doing japa or
dhyana, it is necessary to make effort to bring back repeatedly the power of attention (the
mind) from wandering over other thoughts and to fix it on only one thought. The same
amount of effort is also needed while practicing Self-attention in order to bring back the
wandering mind and to fix it in our existence-consciousness. Thus in both kind of practice,
an earnest effort is needed to obtain one-pointedness of mind. When this is so, why should
not an aspirant obtain it by practicing Self-attention, which is free of all danger, from the
very beginning?
Can God be one of the second or third person objects? No, He cannot be ! Because, if God
were one of the second or third persons, He would have to depend upon the grace of the
ego for His existence!
Now if God, who is the very form of existence (sat), had to depend upon something else for
His existence, then would it not mean that He is devoid of Godhood? Thus, God can never be
one of the second or third persons, He must then certainly exist and shine as the source of
and base for the rising of this false first person, that is, as the reality (the real aspect) of the
first person. Since God or Brahman is thus always shining as the reality of I, giving the
mind the practice of attending to Self is the only true seeking of God and the only effective
yoga. Hence, Self-attention is the true God-attention!
The method of enquiry of Sri Ramana is an attention intensely fixed on the first person,
What is this I?, rather than meditating I am this or I am that, Knowing well that any
activity given to the mind in the form of an attention to the second and third
persons/objects. What is this revelation? The mind is destroyed only when it turns towards
the first person!
Moreover, when the mind itself, which is an aggregate of thoughts, is a second person
object perceived by us, what else can the objects perceived by it be other than second or
third persons? Therefore, the attention of the aspirant should be focused only on Self,
which always shines (even when the mind is not), and should be kept there without
being allowed to be diverted towards any second or third person object.
The second and third persons (the objects) live only because of the root, the first person
(the subject or ego).If the fickle mind turns towards the first person, the first person will
become non-existent and That which really exists will then shine forth. This indestructible,
real Self is Jnana.
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Attending to the first person is equal to committing suicide, for only by enquiring into the
first person will the ego itself die.
Attending to second and third persons instead of turning towards and attending to the first
person is an attention based only upon ignorance (ajnana).
The reason why this I dies when enquired into, What am I? is as follows: This thought I is
a reflected ray of Jnana (Self), (and it alone is directly connected with Self, whereas the
other thoughts are not); (so) when the attention goes deeper and deeper within along the
ray I, its length decreases more and more, and when the ray I dies that which shines as I
is Jnana.
This is no ordinary clue. When aspirants (even those who, with intense desirelessness and
a steady power of onepointedness while attending to any undertaking, have been
struggling for countless ages, through ever so many births and deaths, since, not knowing
the proper direction in which to make efforts, they have been attending to the useless
second and third persons) are puzzled at not finding a solution, this clue of first person
attention given by Bhagavan Sri Ramana will surely be valued by them as priceless, like a
heap of diamonds put into the hands of a poor man. Not only has Sri Bhagavan revealed this
clue, but He has also given in His invaluable, appealing, simple and small work Who am I?
the exact practical process of Self-enquiry to help even beginners to fix their mind on Self
alone, without allowing it to stray towards second and third persons/Objects.
The consciousness I am when felt along with an adjunct as I am so-and-so becomes a
thought. Of all thoughts, this thought is the first. But the consciousness which shines alone
as I-I without any adjunct is Self (atman) or the Absolute (brahman). This is not a thought.
It is our being (that is, our true existence).
Can our existence, which is beyond thought, be reached by thought? It cannot be thought of.
If one takes to meditating I am Siva (sivoham) or I am He (soham) and so on, the ego will
wax and grow strong, whereas if one attends to Self, Who am I ?, the ego will die.
After the conviction 'My true existence-consciousness is God or Brahman has been well
stabilized in an aspirant through the strength of such meditation, at an opportune moment
the knowledge Do I not always exist! Why then should I meditate in order to exist ? will
flash, and thus his attention will be drawn back all of a sudden and fixed on his existence-
consciousness(the state of thought free consciousness). This Self-attention is exactly the
technique of Self-enquiry.
He thus implies that attending to I, Self, is itself the method of negating the five sheaths
(The body, prana, mind, Intellect end the darkness of ignorance), the non- Self.
Thinking I am not this, not this (neti, neti) is a negative method, Sri Bhagavan has
reformed the ancient negative method by giving us the positive method Who amI?:
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.who is to negate them, and how? If the mind (or the intellect) is to negate them, it can at
best negate only the insentient physical body and the prana, which are objects seen by it.
Beyond this, how can the mind negate itself, its own form? And when it cannot even negate
itself, how can it negate the other two sheaths, the intellect (vijnana-maya kosa) and the
darkness of ignorance (anandamaya kosa), which are beyond its range of perception?
During the time of enquiry, therefore, what more can the mind do to remain as Self except
to repeat mentally, I am not this body, I am not this prana? From this, it is clear that
enquiry is not a process of one thing enquiring about another thing. That is why the
enquiry Who am I? taught by Sri Bhagavan should be taken to mean Self-attention (that is,
attention merely to the first person, the feeling I).
The nature of the mind is to attend always to things other than itself, that is, to know only
second and third persons. If the mind in this way attends to a thing, it means that it is
clinging (attaching itself) to that thing. Attention itself is attachment! Since the mind is to
think about the body and prana though with the intention of deciding this is not!, this is
not! such attention is only a means of becoming attached to them and it cannot be a means
of negating them.
The practice of witnessing thoughts and events, which is much recommended nowadays by
lecturers and writers, was never even in the least recommended by Sri Bhagavan, Indeed,
whenever He was asked what should be done when thoughts rise (that is, when attention
is diverted towards second or third persons) during sadhana, He always replied in the
same manner as He had done to Sri Sivaprakasam Pillai in Who am I?, where He says, If
other thoughts rise, one should, without attempting to complete them, enquire To whom
did they rise?. What does it matter however many thoughts rise? At the very moment that
each thought rises, if one vigilantly enquires To whom did this rise ?, it will be known To
me. If one then enquires Who am I?, the mind (our power of attention) will turn back
(from the thought) to its source (Self). Moreover, when He says later in the same work,
Not attending to what-is-other (that is, to any second or third person) is non-attachment
(vairagya) or desirelessness (nirasa), we should clearly understand that attending to
(witnessing, watching, observing or seeing) anything other than Self is itself attachment,
and when we understand thus we will realize how meaningless and impractical are such
instructions as Watch all thoughts and events with detachment or Witness your thoughts,
but be not attached to them, which are taught by the so-called gurus of the present day.
when the power of attention of the mind is directed more and more towards second and
third person objects, both the strength (kriya-bala) to attend to those objects and the
ignorance the five sense-knowledges in the form of thoughts about them will grow more
and more, and will never subside. Accordingly, the more we attend to the mind, the
thoughts which are the forms (the second and third person objects) of the world, the more
they will multiply and be nourished. On the other hand, if our (Selfs) attention is directed
only towards ourself, our knowledge of our existence alone is nourished, and since the
mind is not attended to, it is deprived of its strength.
Self (atman) does not exist as an object to be known by us who seek to know it ! Since Self
shines as the very nature of him who tries to know it!
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Self alone realizes Self; the ego does not.
The mind which has obtained a burning desire for Self-attention, which is Self-enquiry, is
said to be the fully mature one (pakva manas).
The feeling I am is the experience common to one and all. In this, am is consciousness or
knowledge. This knowledge is not of anything external; it is the knowledge of oneself, This
is chit.
Thus in I am, I is existence (sat) and am is consciousness (chit). When Self, our nature of
existence-consciousness, instead of shining only as the pure consciousness I am, shines
mixed with an adjunct as I am a man, I am Rama, I am so-and-so, I am this or that, then this
mixed consciousness is the ego. This mixed consciousness can rise only by catching hold of
a name and form.
The feeling I am a man, I am so-and-so is only a thought. But the consciousness I am is
not a thought; it is the very nature of our being.
The consciousness I thus pointed out here is the first person feeling. But as we have
already said, it is to be understood that the consciousness mixed with adjuncts as I am this
or I am that is the ego or the individual soul , whereas the unalloyed consciousness devoid
of adjuncts and shining alone as I-I (or I am that I am) is Self (atman), the Absolute
(brahman) or God (iswara).
The ego, the feeling of I, generally taken by people to be the first person consciousness, is
not the real first person consciousness; Self alone is the real first person consciousness. The
egofeeling, which is merely a shadow of it, is a false first person consciousness. When one
enquires into this ego, what it is or who it is, it disappears because it is really nonexistent,
and the enquirer, having nothing more to do, is established in Self as Self.
Therefore, the mind which attends to Self is no more the mind; it is the consciousness
aspect of Self (atma-chit-rupam). Likewise, so long as it attends to the second and third
persons (the world), it is not the consciousness aspect of Self; It is the mind, the reflected
form of consciousness. Hence, since Self-attention is not a doing (kriya), it is not an action
(karma). That is, Self alone realizes Self; the ego does not.
The mind which has obtained a burning desire for Self-attention, which is Self-enquiry, is
said to be the fully mature one (pakva manas).
The feeling I am a man, I am so-and-so is only a thought. But the consciousness I am is
not a thought; it is the very nature of our being. The mixed consciousness I am this or
that is a thought that rises from our being.
Only if the first person exists, will the second and third persons exist..
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Remaining firmly in Self-abidance, without giving even the least room to the rising of any
thought other than the thought of Self is surrendering oneself to God.
Clinging to the consciousness I and thereby acquiring a greater and greater intensity of
concentration upon it, is diving deep within.
Therefore, all that we are to practise is to be still with the remembrance of the feeling
I.
This regaining of Self-attention is actually being Self (that is, remaining or abiding as Self)!
Such being alone is the correct sadhana; sadhana is not doing, but being.
Having our attention withdrawn from second and third persons and clinging to the
first person that alone is sadhana. As soon as the attention turns towards the first
person feeling, not only do other thoughts disappear, but also the first thought, the rising
and expanding pseudo I-consciousness, itself begins contracting.
...Attending to the first person is equal to committing suicide...
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.
Self-enquiry is an active investigation, not a passive witnessing.
General
Papaji once gave a nice analogy: You are sitting by the side of the road and cars
are speeding past you in both directions. These are like the thoughts, memories and
desires in your head. They are nothing to do with you, but you insist on attaching
yourself to them. You grab the bumper of a passing car and get dragged along by it until
you are forced to let go. This in itself is a stupid thing to do, but you dont even learn
from your mistake. You then proceed to grab hold of the bumper of the next car that
comes your way. This is how you all live your lives: attaching yourself to things that are
none of your business and suffering unnecessarily as a result. Dont attach yourself to a
single thought, perception or idea and you will be happy.
Beginners in self-enquiry were advised by Sri Ramana to put their attention on the inner
feeling of I and to hold that feeling as long as possible. They would be told that if their
22
attention was distracted by other thoughts they should revert to awareness of the I-
thought whenever they became aware that their attention had wandered. He suggested
various aids to assist this process- one could ask oneself Who am I? or Where does this I
come from?- but the ultimate aim was to be continuously aware of the I which assumes
that it is responsible for all the activities of the body and the mind.
In the early stages of practice attention to the feeling I is a mental activity which takes the
form of a thought or a perception. As the practice develops, the thought I gives way to a
subjectively experienced feeling of I, and when this feeling ceases to connect and identify
with thoughts and objects, it completely vanishes. What remains is an experience of being
in which the sense of individuality has temporarily ceased to operate. The experience may
be intermittent at first but with repeated practice it becomes easier and easier to reach and
maintain. When self-enquiry reaches this level there is an effortless awareness of being in
which individual effort is no longer possible since the I who makes the effort has
temporarily ceased to exist. It is not Self-realisation since the I-thought periodically
reasserts itself but it is the highest level of practice. Repeated experience of this state of
being weakens and destroys the Vasanas (mental tendencies) which cause the 'I-thought
to rise, and, when their hold has been sufficiently weakened, the power of the Self destroys
the residual tendencies so completely that the I-thought never rises again. This is the final
and irreversible state of Self-realisation.
Nisargadatta Maharaj
M: Whatever activities are happening are also the unmanifest. The activity of the unmanifest has
manifested. It is not the activity of an individual. There is only one, the unmanifest. There is no
duality at all. For the realized one, the jnani, activity spontaneously happens. For the individual
[who is not realized] he thinks he's doing things because he thinks he is an individual. The duality
consciousness is at the personality level, one who is employed with body. He thinks he's doing the
activity. But one who has merged with consciousness, there is no more personality as such. A jnani
is one who has transcended consciousness also [and thus realized pure Awareness]. That is the
unmanifest principle, having the availability of consciousness. So the jnani, the Self-realized one, [is
having] the unmanifest speaking or acting through the consciousness which is available. It
spontaneously happens. The Self-realized one is having the total consciousness. The Self-realized
one does not identify with the body-mind. Can you show yourself somewhere in the body? (i.e., in
some particular organ, part, etc.) [No, we are pure Awareness.] Therefore, our Awareness does not
know ItSelf.
Q: Is Awareness aware of itself?
M: No. Awareness, by ItSelf, does not know ItSelf. When consciousness appears, then the witnessing
of the consciousness happens to Awareness. If consciousness is not, then Awareness does not know
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Awareness [that is, in its aspect as consciousness]. So consciousness is knowing, "I am"it is like an
announcement, "I am." You go deep inside and before you know "I am," you have the feeling "I am."
You knowyou are. When the sense "I am" subsides into nothingess, when there is no feeling of "I
am," that is pure Awareness.
The Awareness has no Awareness about ItSelf. Consciousness, knowingness, I-am-ness, is a product
of the objective food-body [annamayakosha], which is like an instrument with reference to
Awareness. "I am" is like an announcement, and for this you need an instrument, the body. That
principle which provides energy to say "I am," etc., is Awareness.
Your identity is the body and whatever concepts you are collecting. When you start the spiritual
course you reject"I amnot the body, I amnot the concepts," then you come to this "I am" only.
When you feel "I amthis 'I am' only," without words, just the feeling, you have discarded the body
and concepts. At that level you are everything. You are not confined to this body, because the
moment that feeling "I am" is there, everything is. The world is. If "I am" is not, world is not. Your "I
am" is that world--unicity. You discard your identity with the body and mind but now you are only
being this unicity consciousness. Understand this thoroughly. Be the unicity consciousness or [else]
get entrenched in the body and mind and get "comforted" [in normal worldly life], if you think it is
comfortable. This is the basic principle you must understand. I tell it to you again and again.
Understand this only. Don't try to collect more concepts and ideas on this. Understand. Assimilate
and be this. Be that total unicity consciousness, and all further things will spontaneously happen.
Try to stabilize in a situation fromwhere you can observe the body-mind. This is the basic
philosophy of spirituality, the most important aspect of spirituality. Master it. Be that. Then you
need not come again. Hold onto that, be that, and the rest will be taken care of [by Grace].
Spontaneously.
Don't try to struggle and be there [with the "I am" sense]. It is as simple as looking at the flower and
realizing "I amnot the flower. I amhere, the flowers are there." Don't be the body and mind,
observe the body and mind and feel "I am not the body and mind."
Having got this, either accept it as the royal truth of spirituality, or throw it out and go to somebody
else and collect more ideas and concepts about spirituality.
Try to observe the body and mind and understand you are not the body and mind. By
understanding you stabilize in a position prior to body and mind. Having rejected the body and
mind you are that total consciousness. Then you have to understand that this consciousness is due
to the body. Because of the instrument of the body, that feeling of consciousness is there. And I as
the Absolute [pure Awareness] cannot be that consciousness. So again, try to observe
consciousness [the sense of beingness, knowingness, "I-am-ness"] as you observe the flower.
Having become, or realized, the total consciousness, the next step is to be in a position to observe
consciousness and all the play in consciousness. That is a very difficult stage because of the
attachment to the body and to consciousness which is due to the body. So to understand that you
are not the consciousness, the product of the body, is very difficult, but is the next step.No more or
no further than this will be given. That's all. This is the limit of communication. Further, you must
fend for yourself.
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I have no form, no identity. And thus I see you as myself. You are myself only, without formor
identity. By mistake you stumble into this place and collect all this talk. When you have collected, go
away and don't come again. If it's good, try to use it, if not, throw it out.
Some people are in the habit of arguing with the guru and don't meditate. They don't realize. Just as
children don't offer resistance to growth, they naturally grow, similarly, a spiritual seeker doesn't
offer resistance to the guru's instruction and meditates on that and then he realizes. It is
"intelligent" people who offer resistance to the guru. The simple ones don't offer resistance to their
guru. Some people don't allow the knowledge to stabilize, they go on arguing, they use their
intellect to [try to] realize the Self, which is of no use. Many people go on collecting knowledge in
different places but never let it stabilize and so do not realize.
My advice to you is very simple just remember yourself, I am, it is enough to heal your mind and
take you beyond, just have some trust. I dont mislead you. Why should I? Do I want anything from
you? I wish you well such is my nature. Why should I mislead you? Common sense too will tell you
that to fulfill a desire you must keep your mind on it. If you want to know your true nature, you
must have yourself in mind all the time, until the secret of your being stands revealed.
You have to go within. Whatever great things have happened in nature, however powerful, still they
disappear right here. These situations appear and disappear. This is actually abstract, what is solid
here is the knowledge I am. The seen and seeing disappear. I tell this only to those who are
prepared to listen. Whatever appears is bound to disappear.
If you abide in consciousness everything will be happening spontaneously. If you are still at body-
mind level, you will think that you are doing something. If you really abide in what I say, you
become one with your Self. Then people will be serving you, they will fall at your feet.
-------------------------------------
What is the root of pain?
Ignorance of yourself.
What is the root of desire?
The urge to find yourself.
All creation toils for its self
and will not rest
until it returns to it.
To remain without thoughts in waking state is the greatest worship.
Evil is the shadowof inattention. In the light of self-awareness it will wither and fall off.
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Do nothing, just be. In being all happens naturally.
There is the true Awareness, fromwhich comes consciousness, which is your feeling I am, be one
with your consciousness and that is all that you can do, the Ultimate must come to you. You can only
watch what happens there is nothing you can do to get it.
The message I am does not have any form, design, or color. So long as I amis, this experience of
manifestation is, once that I amness disappears there is no experience. Once this message I am
appears in insect, animal, or human being, immediately the manifestation occurs with that
beingness. Inside and outside is full of manifestation. These talks are not for general consumption,
for the masses.
The knowledge I am is the same, whether it is an insect, worm, human being or an avatar (being of
the highest order); the basic consciousness is the same in all of these.
Brahman means the emanation of the world, simultaneously confirming that I am. In this Brahman
everything is illusion, but who understands that? The principle that understands, realizes, and
witnesses is the Parabrahman. Witnessing happens to the Parabrahman. In this manifest state
everything is ever changing, nothing is permanent, and all is illusion.
You knowyou are sitting here. Be attentive to that knowledge only. Just be in your beingness. That
knowingness I am has created the entire universe. Hold on to that; nothing has to be done. Once
you recognize that principle it becomes tranquil. Become one with that and all your needs will be
satisfied.
What you must witness is not your thoughts but the consciousness I am. Everything is an
expression of the I am, but you are not that; you are prior to the I am.
There is nothing to practice. To know yourself, be yourself. To be yourself, stop imagining yourself
to be this or that. Just be. Let your true nature emerge. Don't disturb your mind with seeking.
The search for Reality is the most dangerous of all undertakings, for it destroys the world in which
you live.
David Godman: 'I have been doing self-enquiry, trying to keep attention on the inner feeling of "I",
for several years, but no matter how intensively I try to do it, I don't find that my attention stays on
the "I" for more than a few seconds. There doesn't seem to be an improvement in my ability to keep
my attention on this inner feeling of "I". Do the periods of being aware of the "I" have to get longer
and longer until they become more or less continuous?'
'No,' he replied, 'just having the strong urge to seek this "I" and investigate it is enough. Don't
worry about howwell or howlong you are holding onto it. The strong desire to know the "I" will
keep taking you back to it when your attention strays. If something is important to you, it keeps
coming up in your mind. If knowing the "I" is important to you, you will find yourself going back to
it again and again.'
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Awareness becomes consciousness when it has an object. The object changes all the time. In
consciousness there is movement; awareness by itself is motionless and timeless, here and now.
M: Your own self is your ultimate teacher (sadguru). The outer teacher (Guru) is merely a
milestone. It is only your inner teacher, that will walk with you to the goal, for he is the goal.
Q: The inner teacher is not easily reached.
M: Since he is in you and with you, the difficulty cannot be serious. Look within, and you will find
him.
Q: When I look within, I find sensations and perceptions, thoughts and feelings, desires and fears,
memories and expectations. I amimmersed in this cloud and see nothing else.
M: That which sees all this, and the nothing too, is the inner teacher. He alone is, all else only
appears to be. He is your own self (swarupa), your hope and assurance of freedom; find himand
cling to himand you will be saved and safe.
Q: Is the witness-consciousness the real Self?
M: It is the reflection of the real in the mind (buddhi). The real is beyond. The witness is the door
through which you pass beyond.
Q: Please tell me which road to self-realization is the shortest.
M: No way is short or long, but some people are more in earnest and some are less. I can tell you
about myself. I was a simple man, but I trusted my Guru. What he told me to do, I did. He told me to
concentrate on I am I did. He told me that I am beyond all perceivables and conceivables I
believed. I gave him my heart and soul, my entire attention and the whole of my spare time (I had to
work to keep my family alive). As a result of faith and earnest application, I realized my self
(swarupa) within three years. You may choose any way that suits you; your earnestness will
determine the rate of progress.
Q: No hint for me?
M: Establish yourself firmly in the awareness of I am. This is the beginning and also the end of all
endeavour.
You must come to a firm decision. You must forget the thought that you are a body
and be only the knowledge "I Am," which has no form, no name. Just be. When you
stabilize in that beingness it will give all the knowledge and all the secrets to you, and when
the secrets are given to you, you transcend the beingness, and you, the Absolute, will know
that you are also not the consciousness. Having gained all this knowledge, having
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understood what is what, a kind of quietude prevails, a tranquility. Beingness is
transcended, but beingness is available.
Go on to know the I am without words, you must be that and not deviate from it for even
a moment, and then it will disappear.
Sitting quietly, being one with the knowledge I am, you will lose all concern with the world,
then the I am will also go, leaving you as the Absolute.
Just sit and know that you are the I am without words, nothing else has to be done;
shortly you will arrive to your natural Absolute state.
You have to realize that you are not the body or the knowledge I am. You as the Absolute
are neither, nor do you require them.
The Absolute or the Parabrahman is prior to the I am, its the unborn state, so how can it
have or even require the knowledge I am?
You have to transcend the I am to enter the concept-free Parabrahman state, where you
do not even know you are!
When you dwell in the I am as your destiny you realize that your destiny is not death but
the disappearance of I am.
Go to the I am state, remain there, merge, and go beyond. If you were to dwell in the I am
and firmly abide in it, all external things will lose their grip on you.
You are the Reality beyond the I am, you are the Parabrahma. Meditate on this and
remember this, finally this idea, too, shall leave you. Understand the I am, transcend it and
realize the Absolute.
This knowledge I am has spontaneously appeared on your Absolute state, therefore it is
an illusion. The feeling I am is itself an illusion, therefore whatever is seen through this
illusion cannot be real.
You should identify yourself only with this indwelling knowledge I am. That is all. Sit in
meditation by identifying with the I am, dwell only on the I am- not merely the words I
am. When you are established in the I am there are no thoughts or words.
Having acquired and understood the knowledge I am stay there in seclusion and dont
wander around here and there. Once you stabilize in the I am, you will realize that it is not
the eternal state, but you are eternal and ancient.
Keep focused on the I am till you become a witness to it, then you stand apart, you have
reached the highest.
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The seeker is he who is in search of himself. Give up all questions except one: "Who am I?"
After all, the only fact you are sure of is that you are. The "I am" is certain. The "I am this" is
not. Struggle to find out what you are in reality. To know what you are, you must first
investigate and know what you are not. Discover all that you are not - body, feelings,
thoughts, time, space, this or that - nothing, concrete or abstract, which you perceive can be
you. The very act of perceiving shows that you are not what you perceive. The clearer you
understand on the level of mind you can be described in negative terms only, the quicker
will you come to the end of your search and realise that you are the limitless being.
It is your fixed idea that you must be something or other that blinds you.
Self-inquiry is only an aid to Self-Awareness; only Self-Awareness is the True Direct Path.
The unchangeable can only be realised in silence. Once realised, it will deeply affect the
changeable, itself remaining unaffected.
Awareness is ever there. It need not be realized. Open the shutter of the mind, and it will be
flooded with light.
A quiet mind is all you need. All else will happen rightly, once your mind is quiet. As the sun
on rising makes the world active, so does self-awareness affect changes in the mind. In the
light of calm and steady self-awareness inner energies wake up and work miracles without
effort on your part.
The mind cannot know what is beyond the mind, but the mind is known by what is beyond
it.
You are not in the body, the body is in you! The mind is in you. They happen to you. They
are there because you find them interesting.
All that a guru can tell you is: My dear Sir, you are quite mistaken about yourself. You are
not the person you take yourself to be.
"There is nothing to practise. To know yourself, be yourself. To be yourself, stop imagining
yourself to be this or that. Just be. Let your true nature emerge. Don't disturb your mind
with seeking"
The consciousness in you and the consciousness in me, apparently two, really one, seek
unity and that is love.
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Who is the one who recognizes this body-mind? This `I Am-ness' which recognizes the
body-mind is without name and form, it is already there.
To deal with things knowledge of things is needed. To deal with people, you need insight,
sympathy. To deal with yourself, you need nothing. Be what you are--conscious being--and
don't stray away from yourself.
The death of the mind is the birth of wisdom.
Past and future are in the mind only - I am now.
Please understand that there is only one thing to be understood, and that is that you are the
formless, timeless unborn.
In the light of consciousness all sorts of things happen and one need not give special
importance to any. The sight of a flower is as marvelous as the vision of God. Let them be.
Why remember them and then make memory into a problem? Be bland about them; do not
divide them into high and low, inner and outer, lasting and transient. Go beyond, go back to
the source, go to the self that is the same whatever happens. Your weakness is due to your
conviction that you were born into the world. In reality the world is ever recreated in you
and by you. See everything as emanating from the light which is the source of your own
being.
Only the sense 'I am' persisted- unchanged. Stay with the changeless among the changing
until you are able to go beyond.
There is no such thing as peace of mind. Mind means disturbance; restlessness itself is
mind.
There is no such thing as an expression of reality. You are introducing a duality where there
is none. Only reality is, there is nothing else. Just watch events happening, knowing them to
be unreal. Learn to look without imagination, to listen without distortion: that is all. Stop
attributing names and shapes to the essentially nameless and formless, realise that every
mode of perception is subjective, that what is seen or heard, touched or smelt, felt or
thought, expected or imagined, is in the mind and not in reality, and you will experience
peace and freedom from fear.
Just realize that you are dreaming a dream you call the world, and stop looking for ways
out. The dream is not your problem. Your problem is that you like one part of the dream
and not another. When you have seen the dream as a dream, you have done all that needs
be done.
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To know what you are you must first investigate and know what you are not. And to know
what you are not you must watch yourself carefully, rejecting all that does not necessarily
go with the basic fact: I am.'
Papaji
Thoughts are impediments to seeing your own face. Don't give rise to any thought, and
discover who you are.
What is purification of the mind? No thought. This thought-less mind, sattvic mind, no mind,
can be called Consciousness itself. Self itself.
Mind is nothing but thought. You can't separate thought itself from the mind.
Who is journeying for freedom? The one who is already free. Just get rid of the concept, "I
am the body, separate from the source." You return to what you always were.
What I mean by Silence is that should be no thought rising from the mind. No thought rising
from your mind is Silence.
Stillness of mind comes from giving up all attachments except that attachment to Self.
Mind can be the enemy and mind can also be the friend. It is the mind that binds and it is
the mind that liberates. When the mind is attached to objects, which are transitory and
impermanent, this is the mind that binds. This is the mind that is an enemy. But a mind that
does not abide anywhere, on any object, is a mind that is your friend. This is the mind that
liberates. It all depends on you, on what kind of company you keep in your mind.
Annamalai Swami Quotes and Sayings
If you can hold on to this knowledge 'I am Self' at all times, no further practice is necessary.
There are so many thoughts in the mind. Thought after thought after thought. But there is
one thought that is continuous, though it is mostly sub-conscious: 'I am the body'. This is
the string on which all other thoughts are threaded. Once we identify ourselves with the
body by thinking this thought, maya follows. It also follows that if we cease to identify with
the body, maya will not affect us anymore.
If you are having trouble with your enthusiasm for sadhana, just tell yourself, 'I may be
dead in seven days'. Let go of all the things that you pretend are important in your daily life
and instead focus on the Self for twenty-four hours a day. Do it and see what happens.
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Go deeply into this feeling of 'I'. Be aware of it so strongly and so intensely that no other
thoughts have the energy to arise and distract you. If you hold this feeling of 'I' long enough
and strongly enough, the false 'I' will vanish leaving only the unbroken awareness of the
real, immanent 'I', consciousness itself.
Sadhana is a battlefield. You have to be vigilant. Don't take delivery of wrong beliefs and
don't identify with the incoming thoughts that will give you pain and suffering. But if these
things start happening to you, fight back by affirming, 'I am the Self; I am the Self; I am the
Self;'. These affirmations will lessen the power of the 'I am the body' arrows and eventually
they will armour-plate you so successfully, the 'I am the body' thoughts that come your way
will no longer have the power to touch you, affect you or make you suffer.
Continuous attentiveness will only come with long practice. If you are truly watchful, each
thought will dissolve at the moment that it appears. But to reach this level of disassociation
you must have no attachments at all. If you have the slightest interest in any particular
thought, it will evade your attentiveness, connect with other thoughts, and take over your
mind for a few seconds. This will happen more easily if you are accustomed to reacting
emotionally to a particular thought.
Self-inquiry must be done continuously. It doesn't work if you regard it as a part-time
activity.
If you can hold on to this knowledge 'I am Self' at all times, no further practice is necessary.
There is nothing wrong with looking at Bhagavan's picture. It is a very good practice. But
you should not get sidetracked from you main objective which is establishing yourself as
consciousness. Don't get attached to states of bliss or give them priority over the quest for
the Self.
When the rejection of mental activities becomes continuous and automatic, you will begin
to have the experience of the Self.
Meditation must be continuous. The current of meditation must be present in all your
activities. With practice, meditation and work can go on simultaneously. One must keep
one's attention on the Self if one wants to make progress on the spiritual path.
The thoughts that come and go are not you. Whatever comes and goes is not you. Your
reality is peace. If you don't forget that, that will be enough.
Bhagavan is always present, inside you and in front of you. If you don't cover the vision of
Bhagavan with your ego, that will be enough. The ego is the 'I am the body' idea. Remove
this idea and you shine as the Self.
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When I say, 'Meditate on the Self' I am asking you to be the Self, not think about it. Be aware
of what remains when thoughts stop. Be aware of the consciousness that is the origin of all
your thoughts. Be that consciousness.
The mind and the body are both inert. Any energy or peace you experience can only come
from the Self. Drop the identification with the body. These experiences are making you too
body-conscious. Just be aware of the Self and try to pay as little attention as possible to the
body. The Self is pure energy, pure power. Hold onto that.
If you can give up duality, Brahman alone remains, and you know yourself to be that
Brahman, but to make this discovery continuous meditation is required. Don't allocate
periods of time for this. Don't regard it as something you do when you sit with your eyes
closed. This meditation has to be continuous. Do it while eating, walking and even talking. It
has to be continued all the time.
Remember that nothing that happens in the mind is 'you', and none of it is your business.
You don't have to worry about the thoughts that rise up inside you. It is enough that you
remember that the thoughts are not you.
Tayumanuvar, a Tamil saint whom Bhagavan often quoted, wrote in one of his poems: 'My
Guru merely told me that I am consciousness. Having heard this, I held onto
consciousness. What he told me was just one sentence, but I cannot describe the bliss I
attained from holding onto that one simple sentence. Through that one sentence I attained
a peace and a happiness that can never be explained in words.'
In every moment you only have one real choice: to be aware of the Self or to identify with
the body and the mind.
You have to keep up the enquiry, 'To whom is this happening?' all the time. If you are
having trouble remind yourself, 'This is just happening on the surface of my mind. I am not
this mind or the wandering thoughts.' Then go back into enquiry 'Who am I?'. By doing
this you will penetrate deeper and deeper and become detached from the mind. This will
only come about after you have made an intense effort.
Your ultimate need is to get established in the changeless peace of the Self. For this you
have to give up all thoughts.
When Bhagavan spoke like this he sometimes used the analogy of a besieged fort. If one
systematically loses off all the entrances to such a fort and then picks off the occupants one
by one as they try to come out, sooner or later the fort will be empty.
Bhagavan said that we should apply these same tactics to the mind. How to go about doing
this? Seal off the entrances and exits to the mind by not reacting to rising thoughts or sense
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impressions. Don't let new ideas, judgements, likes, dislikes, etc. enter the mind, and don't
let rising thoughts flourish and escape your attention.
When you have sealed off the mind in this way, challenge each emerging thought as it
appears by asking, 'Where have you come from?' or 'Who is the person who is having this
thought?' If you can do this continuously, with full attention, new thoughts will appear
momentarily and then disappear.
If you can maintain the siege for long enough, a time will come when no more thoughts
arise; or if they do, they will only be fleeting, undistracting images on the periphery of
consciousness. In that thought-free state you will begin to experience yourself as
consciousness, not as mind or body.
However, if you relax your vigilance even for a few seconds and allow new thoughts to
escape and develop unchallenged, the siege will be lifted and the mind will regain some or
all of its former strength.
In a real fort the occupants need a continuous supply of food and water to hold out during a
siege. When the supplies run out, the occupants must surrender or die. In the fort of the
mind the occupants, which are thoughts, need a thinker to pay attention to them and
indulge in them.
If the thinker withholds his attention from rising thoughts or challenges them before they
have a chance to develop, the thoughts will all die of starvation. You challenge them by
repeatedly asking yourself 'Who am I? Who is the person who is having these thoughts?' If
the challenge is to be effective you must make it before the rising thought has had a chance
to develop into a stream of thoughts.
Mind is only a collection of thoughts and the thinker who thinks them. The thinker is the 'I'-
thought, the primal thought which rises from the Self before all others, which identifies
with all other thoughts and says, 'I am this body'. When you have eradicated all thoughts
except for the thinker himself by ceaseless enquiry or by refusing to give them any
attention, the 'I'-thought sinks into the Heart and surrenders, leaving behind it only an
awareness of consciousness.
This surrender will only take place when the 'I'-thought has ceased to identify with
rising thoughts. While there are still stray thoughts which attract or evade your
attention, the 'I'-thought will always be directing its attention outwards rather than
inwards. The purpose of self-enquiry is to make the 'I'-thought move inwards,
towards the Self. This will happen automatically as soon as you cease to be
interested in any of your rising thoughts.
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Robert Adams Quotes and Sayings
Use, Atma-Vichara, self-enquiry. Whatever method you have to use, do it, but do it all day
long. That's the secret, not just when you come here, not just an hour a day, but all during
the day.
For most people to be happy, there has to be a person, place, or thing involved in their
happiness. In true happiness, there are no things involved. It's a natural state. You will
abide in that state forever.
The universe loves you. It will always supply you with your needs. Forget about other
people, what they do, what they don't do. Do not listen to malicious gossip. Be yourself.
Understand who you really are. You are the absolute reality, unconditioned consciousness.
Work from that standpoint. Do not work from your problems. Do not get lost in
meaningless gossip. Understand your true reality. Be yourself.
Many people enjoy the play, because they wish to continue. They continue to identify with
their conditions, situations, bank accounts, wives or husbands. As long as you are attached
to anything, you cannot find freedom.
When you stop searching and you calm down and you put your books away, and you
confront yourself and see what you are all about, that will bring about bliss faster than
anything you can ever imagine or ever do.
As far as I am concerned, its morally correct to be a vegetarian. The soul become purified.
You come closer to realization. Eating meat pulls you down to earth. Scriptures talk of the
three gunas. Meat eaters have Tamasic qualities, which are the lowest qualities of humans.
Therefore, it is better not to eat meat. Your thinking becomes clearer and you are able to
absorb the higher teachings.
The universe is ultimate oneness beyond concepts. The mind cannot comprehend it.
To do affirmations, mantras, yoga exercises and so forth, will not awaken you. You start from the
beginning. You simply admit to yourself that you exist. This is the truth. You do exist, don't you? So
you say to yourself, "I exist. I know that for sure. I exist. I exist. That's all I know. I'm ignorant of
everything else, but I do know that I exist because here I am." And, as you keep saying this to
yourself, "I exist, you begin to put more space between "I" and "exist." "I... exist." Say that to
yourselves: "I... exist, "I... exist."
If you're doing this correctly you'll soon find that I and "exist" are two separate words. In other
words you'll come to the conclusion that you exist as I. You'll have to ask yourself, ponder, "Who is
this I that exists? What is I?" You never answer. It will come to you of its own accord.
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"Where does this I come from? Who is this I?" Whatever answer comes to you is the wrong answer.
Do not accept it but do not deny it. You simply put it aside. And you continue with the self-inquiry.
"Who am I?" And you wait. And you ask again, "Who am I?" It is not a mantra. Where did the I come
from? How did it get there? Who gave it birth? What is the source of the I? You continue to abide in
the I.
As you continue this process someday something will happen. To some people it comes like an
explosion within, where all your thoughts are wiped away.
Now there's no answer to "Who am I?" When you get to the answer there will be emptiness, a void.
You will be of the unborn. But it is not a void like you think. It is not emptiness like you think. For
want of a better word you can call it godliness, nirvana, sat-chit-ananda, bliss consciousness,
absolute reality. It doesn't matter what name you give it. You will become that, and there will be no
explanation. You will just become that, and you will feel a profound peace that you have never felt
before. You will feel a bliss that is unqualified. You will try to explain it to yourself and to your
friends, but you cannot, for the finite cannot comprehend the infinite. There are no words.