Ramana Maharshi Says Manonasha(Destruction Of The Mind) Is Not Absolute Destruction

D: That means the manonasha or the ahamkara nasha. The destruction of the mind or of the ego you speak of is then not an absolute destruction.

M: Yes. The mind gets clear of impurities and become pure enough to reflect the truth, the real Self.This is impossible when the ego is active and assertive.

Source: Book Extracts (Sat-Darshana-Bashya and Talks with Maharshi)

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Ramana Maharshi Says Even When We Have Thoughts We Feel The Presence With Pure Mind

D: This seems to contradict the statements that the Self is beyond the mind, that the mind cannot know Brahman, that it is beyond thought and speech (avangmanasagochara).

M: That is why they say that the mind is two fold: there is the higher pure mind as well as the lower impure mind. The impure mind cannot know it but the pure mind knows. It does not mean that the pure mind measures the immeasurable Self, the Brahman.

It means that the Self makes itself felt in the pure mind so that even when you are in the midst of thoughts you feel the Presence, you realise the truth that you are one with the deeper Self and that the thought- waves are there only on the surface.

Source: Book Extracts (Sat-Darshana-Bashya and Talks with Maharshi)

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MIND IS ALL By Swami SIVANANDA

Mind alone is the whole world, with its pains, old age, death, sin, earth, water, fire, air and ether, and all the internal organs. Mind binds man. He who has controlled his mind is a veritable god on earth. We live in a world of thoughts. First there is the thought, and then there is the expression of that thought through the organ of speech.

Thought and language are intimately connected. Loving thoughts uplift and encourage others. Unkind thoughts, thoughts of anger, bitterness and malice injure others. Thoughts are things. Sound, touch, taste, form and odour, the waking, dream and deep sleep states - all are the products of the mind only.

Thoughts such as passion, anger, bondage, time - know all these to be the results of the mind. The only true laboratory is the mind. Study it, test it and then go beyond it. Then you will realise the truth; then you will discover the hidden soul. Only if your mind is quiet will you enjoy peace in your own home, as you will enjoy it in the forest.

Man has a mind. But mind is not man. Mind is a good servant. It is an instrument only. Utilise it tactfully and properly. The prime requisite for happiness is control of the mind or lower self. Your thought is imprinted on your face. Mind is a bridge that connects the human with the divine.

Your body, your business, your house, are all only ideas within your own mind. Thought is a dynamic force. Good thought is the first perfection; it is the real wealth. Emotion is the driving force at the back of the mind. Will-power is the master-key to success. Knowledge, thought, intellect and reason are one.

Appetite, instinct, impulse and desire are one. Emotion, ambition, spirit and courage are one. The mind is the master of the body. The soul is the master of the mind. Thou art, in essence, immortal soul. Thou art above body and mind. Always remember this supreme fact and live in the awareness of thy spiritual nature.

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Ramana Maharshi Disciple SilentGreen about Universal Consciousness: Beyond all limitations

Sri Ramakrishna said:

"God has form and He is formless too. Further, He is beyond both form and formlessness. No one can limit Him."

No can can limit the Universal Consciousness.

If someone thinks that only recluse can get Self-Realisation, a Lahiri Mahasaya is born.

If someone thinks that only devotees of Siva can get God-Realisation, a Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is born.

If someone thinks that only men can get God-Realisation, a Maa Anandamayi is born.

If someone thinks that God cannot be realised through idol worship, a Ramakrishna is born.

If someone thinks that God can only be realised through idol worship, a Ramana Maharshi is born.

If someone thinks that God can only be realized through rituals, a Buddha is born.

If someone thinks that God can only be realized in India, a Jesus Christ is born.

If someone thinks that only economically sound people can have realization, a Nisargadatta Maharaj is born.

If someone thinks that only grown-ups can get self-realization, a Jnana Sambandar is born.

If someone thinks that only learned people can get self-realization, a Sarada Devi is born.

If someone thinks a learned people can never get Self-realization, a Shankaracharya is born.

If someone thinks that one can get self-realisation only by satsangs of a personal guru, A J. Krishnamurthy is born.

Whenever there appeared to be a limiting opinion about Universal Consciousness, it reappears in a form and shows that it is beyond that limit also.

The Universal Consciousness is beyond all forms.
However for devotees It is amenable to all forms.
It is the Krishna of Krishna devotees.
It is the Shiva of Shiva devotees.
It is the Ramakrishna of Ramakrisha devotees.
If is the Ramana of Ramana devotees.
It is the Christ of Christ devotees.
It is the Buddha of Buddha devotees.

So Sri Ramakrisha said:

"God has form and He is formless too. Further, He is beyond both form and formlessness. No one can limit Him."

Source: http://www.arunachala-ramana.org/forum/index.php?topic=4183.0

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Suryanarayana Raju: Witnessing consciousness in Self-inquiry keeps the mind in its proper place

Hindus say offer the flower of your mind (mano pushpa) to God.They are right.There is a great insight in that.Unless we put away our mind in the initial stages as an offering to God through surrender we cannot find the way to our own "Self" which is veiled and hidden under the mind.

Mind is the greatest biological evolution.It has not to be thrown away in the waste paper basket in the name of spiritual discipline.It is a great instrument given as a gift to us by the existence.But we have to find the master who can use it.

This is here Self-inquiry has a significant role to play in finding our master who can use his mind in a sane manner effectively.Right now mind is behaving like a master and using you.Till one finds his own "Self" everybody is a slave to his ego.Once you find your "Self",the mind becomes your slave.Seeing the "Self"
with its splendor as the master,mind is reduced and recognizes what its position is and stop behaving like a master any longer.

When i was a student when the master is not there in the class students used to do all sorts of things like playing,singing,jumping, quarrelling with each other and one of them assuming the role of the master.This is their natural behavior when master is not there in the class room.

Once the master enters the class room,every child used to sit where he is expected to be including the one who assumed the role of master.

Same is the case with the contents of the mind which make up the mind
when the master of "Self" is yet to come.To find and invite this master Self-inquiry is the way and the witnessing consciousness is the medium of finding the master.Witnessing consciousness is synonymous with the spiritual heart.Witnessing is simply slipping out of the mind gracefully.

The moment you start witnessing the thought process you have slipped out of it without creating any fight with it.You are watching the thought flow standing aside,it is just like watching a heavy traffic on the road of a city
in rush hour sitting silently and watching it from your balcony.As awareness level increases thought traffic slows down because we no longer participate in it and giving any strength to it.

One devotee asked Bhagawan what is the parameter of spiritual progress? He said if the thought traffic is minimal or almost absent he is said to be progressing spiritually.

To observe the contents hidden in the deep unconscious layers of the mind to be aware while we relate with others is very important because in that mirror of relationship the hidden contents of the mind brought to the conscious level.

The other day one of our friend pointed out that i have "lifted" a discourse of Osho and published it as note in my own name.It is the best opportunity for me to know my intention in posting that note,is it for pure learning or for sharing a precious material written by some other person,not mentioning his name and pretend as though it is my own understanding to gain fame,am i posting the notes with doer-ship etc.

Unless that challenge from the other is not faced we will not know that content of the mind at the conscious level.So we should not escape from relating with the others which many times bring pain to the ego in course of time,just because of getting exposed in relationship.Many do not want to be exposed and simply they escape and run away from relationship which amounts to running away from life because life is relationship.

Our innate tendencies will not be revealed and spent out if we avoid
relationship with the other.Unless the tendencies are spent out thought process will be out of our control.The word Moksha means release of consciousness from its apparent imprisonment i tendencies.

Vasanakshayam(annjhilation of tendencies) is Moksham (Self realization) says Adi Sankara.Tendencies are annihilated through spending up of them only.That is why we should not renounce and escape from the world because the world and people in it are mirror in which our face can be seen on our own.

The destruction of that reflected image happens in Self-inquiry but that destruction of that image does not amount to your destruction.When that image is destroyed, for the first time you will taste the bliss of ultimate freedom.But people are afraid to jump into this unknowable,unchartered space and so they avoid Self-inquiry on some plea or the other.

We have to start witnessing without making direct attack on the mind.Self-inquiry is nothing but putting the mind aside and bringing the witnessing consciousness which is always there with us but hidden deep under the mind.Mind resists this putting aside of it because who want to be put aside from a place where it assumed that it is the master of us for centuries.

And we want to put it aside for something which we do not know what it is? So it must be put aside lovingly and carefully,gently.In the initial stages mind will not allow you to remain as a witness for long.You can experiment it for yourself by trying to witness the Sun rise or Sun set,just observing the ethereal space of the sky
or hearing the song of a bird early in the morning.

Then you will come to know the strength of your mind.Mind will take you somewhere in a few moments because if you are present in the present tense minding i.e thinking is not possible and mind feels it like a death for it and starts its activity somehow.

I asked one friend in UK who worked as an assistant for the editor for mountain path for 3 yrs in Ramanasramam,why he came back to UK leaving such a great opportunity to live in the presence of Bhagawan.He is an honest man.He told me that he used to sit in the old hall of Bhagawan for meditation but in few moments there uncontrollable flow of thoughts started and he tried his best to come back to tranquility but mind never cooperated with him.He felt he is in war with his own mind.

Many times he forgot where he is and only after quite sometime he came to senses and found himself in the old hall wasting time as he put it.See how powerful became the momentum of thought activity which is beyond our control because all the time we are cultivating the thought for everything even in the contexts where it is not required and its presence is inimical.He is not an exceptional case he represents the whole humanity.

Many times while doing Self-inquiry we forget we are witnessing the thought activity.Sanat kumara says that this forgetfulness of witnessing consciousness is Pramada which means that which brings danger to our being.But there is no need for frustration because it is part of our growth.The very awareness that we are so far are not witnessing is enough to continue the Self-inquiry.Bringing the mind in tune with the witnessing consciousness is the great "Art of Self-inquiry".But in the beginning mind is going to be against any effort to put it aside.

But don't create an enemy out of such resisting mind by condemning or hurting it.Mind creates many hindrances before the master i.e "Self" is awakened but once the mind sees the immense light of Self inside you,it spontaneously falls in tune with your inner "Self".

There is no question of fighting then from the side of the mind.But before finding the "Self' mind will give you every fight if you are going to leave it behind or put it aside.Mind is a great complicated mechanism born out of evolution like the body,we have to preserve it,not fight with it or hurt it because it is a very useful
instrument once the "Self' is found.It is a hindrance before finding the "Self' but it is a precious instrument to execute marvelous work after finding the "Self".

All masters used their mind effectively for the welfare of all beings in the existence.Condemning the body-mind complex is a sado-masochist tendency but not a spiritual trait.Only thing is that the body-mind complex should be shown its proper place to function effectively in the light of "Self" and not allowing it assume that it is our master of our life which it is doing for many many centuries.So Self-inquiry is the art knowing what to ignore.


About the Author

Sri Suryanarayana Raju is interested in Self-Enquiry in the light of Sri Ramana Maharshi,Osho,JK.He wrote two books on "Self-Enquiry" and "Commented on Upadesa Saram and Akshara Mana Malai". available for download at http://www.esnips.com/ web/ramana-maharshi

http://www.facebook.com/Arunachalasiva

Source : http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=414512566864

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Puthana's Liberation

Puthana is the demon, sent by Kamsa to kill young child Krishna, when he was hardly 2 years old in Gokulam. The demon came in the guise of a beautiful woman, with large
breasts, which she had smeared with dangerous poison.She came to feed Krishna and without even asking mother Yasoda's permission, she took Krishna on her laps and gave
her right breast for suckling.

Krishna the all-knowing, sucked her right breast in such a way that she started crying: Munja, munja, alam, alam.... She died and suddenly the form became a large lady of gigantic proportions. When Yadavas burnt her body, nice fragrant smell came out as if sandal wood was burning.

Nochur Venkataraman gives a beautiful explanation. She came to feed Krishna but knew that she would die. She thought the best way was to surrender to Him. She gave her right breast, (symbolic of the I thought). As Krishna sucked her ego, she felt that it was all over, she was ready for liberation.She cried: Munja, munja alam alam, it is enough, leave me! My ego is extinguished, leave me, let me attain liberation,
with your touch or diksha!

Source: http://www.arunachala-ramana.org/forum/index.php?topic=3901.msg0#new

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Seven Words On the Cross by Jesus Christ

1. The first word: "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do," is the supreme example of forgiveness as Jesus interceded for those who scoffed at Him.

2. The second word: "Verily I say unto Thee. Today thou shalt be with me in Paradise," was addressed to one of the two malefactors who were crucified on either side of Him. One repented and asked for forgiveness and Jesus assured him that he was forgiven.

3. The third word: "Woman behold your son!" addressed to the weeping mother Mary, demonstrated the filial care and responsibility by entrusting her to the care of His beloved disciple John.

4. The fourth word: "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani - My God, my God, why has thou forsaken me?" is the anguished cry of Jesus who by taking the sins of the whole world became repugnant to God, the essence of holiness. It was an ironic reward for His redemptive sacrificial suffering for all humankind.

5. The fifth word: "I thirst," proves the Man on the Cross was truly human in all respects, parched with thirst, after having been nailed to the cross for three hours in the terrible heat of the sun from noon to three O'clock in the afternoon.

6. The sixth word: "It is finished", is a familiar word taken from the world of commerce. It would be a triumphant shout of a contemporary Jew, who having been paid all his debts in full, would proclaim that he was free from all debts. The relief was great because a defaulting debtor and his family could have been thrown into prison until the last penny with interest had been paid. Jesus had paid the debt for all of humankind's sins. Only later would people understand what it truly meant.

7. The seventh and the last word: "Father into thy hands, I commend my spirit", was Jesus's surrendering His earthly life into the safekeeping of God.

The Seven Words in the Cross are applicable to all those -- of whatever faith they subscribe to -- as the believer's relationship with God who creates, punishes and forgives.

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Final Part - Few Teachings Of Ramana Maharshi

To say that one is apart
from the Primal Source
is itself a pretension;
to add that one divested of the ego
becomes pure and yet retains individuality
only to enjoy or serve the Supreme,
is a deceitful stratagem.
What duplicity is this --
first to appropriate what is really His,
and then pretend to experience or serve Him!
Is not all this already known to Him?

It is enough that one surrenders oneself.
Surrender is to give oneself up
to the original cause of one's being.
Do not delude yourself
by imagining such a source
to be some God outside you.
One's source is within oneself.
Give yourself up to it.
That means that you should
seek the source and merge in it.

The Swami continued, “In actual practice,sadhakas, even sincere ones, sometimes become dejected and lose faith in God. How to restore their faith? What should we do for them?”

Bhagavan:

If one cannot believe in God, it does not matter. I suppose he believes in himself, in his own existence. Let him find out the source from which he came.

Swami:

Such a man will only say the source from which he comes are his parents.

Bhagavan:

He cannot be such an ignoramus, as you started by saying he was a sadhaka in this line already"

Deep sleep is only the state of nonduality.
Can the difference between individuals
and Universal souls persist there?
Sleep implies forgetfulness
of all differences.
This alone constitutes happiness.

All efforts are meant only to end ignorance.
They have no use after realization.

It is enough that one surrender oneself.
Surrender is to give yourself up
to the original cause of one's being.

The gods and sages
experience the Infinite
continuously and eternally,
without their vision being obscured
at any moment.
Their minds are surmised by the spectators
to function, but in fact they do not.
Such surmising is due to the sense of individuality
in those who draw inferences.
There is no mental function
in the absence of individuality.
Individuality and mind functions
are co-existent.
The one cannot remain without the other.

The inherent nature of the Self is Bliss
Some kind of knowledge has to be admitted,
even in the realization of Supreme Bliss.
it may be said to be subtler than the subtlest.

The pure mind is itself Brahman;
therefore it follows that Brahman
is not other than
the mind of the sage.

We are happy in deep sleep.
We remain then as the pure Self.
We are the same even now.
In such sleep there was neither the wife
nor others nor even "I."
Now they become apparent
and give rise to pleasure or pain.
Why should not the Self,
which was blissful in deep sleep,
continue its blissful nature even now?
The sole obstruction to such continuity
is the wrong identification
of the Self with the body.

"I am Brahman," is only a thought.
Who says it?
Brahman itself does not say so.
What need is there for it to say it?
Nor can the real "I" say so.
For "I" always abides as Brahman.
To be saying it is only a thought.
Whose thought is it?
All thoughts are from the unreal "I,"
i.e., the "I"-thought.
Remain without thinking.
So long as there is thought
there will be fear.

There is no use discussing transcendental experiences
by those whose limitations are not removed.
Learn what surrender is.
It is to merge in the source of the ego.
The ego is surrendered to the Self.
Everything is dear to us
because of love of the Self.
The Self is that
to which we surrender our ego
and let the Supreme Power,
I. e., the Self, do what it pleases.
The ego is already of the Self.
We have no rights over the ego, even as it is.
However, supposing we had,
we must surrender them.

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Part 2 - Few Teachings Of Ramana Maharshi

We misapprehend the ego
and call it intellect or mind.

Being of the nature of Bliss,
why does one continue to crave for happiness?
To be rid of that craving is itself salvation.
The Scriptures say, "You Are That."
The imparting of that knowledge is their purpose.
The Realization must be
by your finding out who you are
and abiding as That, i. e., your Self
To be repeating "I am that"
or "not this" is a waste of time.
For the worthy disciple
the work lies within
and not without.

There was no "I" thought in your sleep
whereas it is present now.
The true "I" is not manifest
and the false "I" is parading itself.
This false "I" is the obstacle
to your right knowledge.
Find out wherefrom this false "I" arises.
Then it will disappear.
You will be only what you are --
i. e., absolute Being.

Search for the source of the "I" thought.
That is all one has to do.
The universe exists on account of the "I" thought.
If that ends, there is an end of misery, also.
The false "I" will end only when its source is sought.

The universe is like a painting on a screen.
That which rises and sinks is made up of what it rises from.
The finality of the universe is God --
meditating on Him or on the seer, the Self;
there is a mental vibration "I" to which all are reduced.
Tracing the source of "I",
the primal "I"-"I" alone remains,
and it is inexpressible.
The seat of Realization is within
and the seeker cannot find it as an object outside him.
That seat is bliss, and is the core of all beings;
hence it is called the Heart.
The only useful purpose of the present birth
is to turn within and realize it.
There is nothing else to do.

Is there a mind in the first place?
What you call mind is an illusion.
It starts from the "I"-thought.
Without the gross or subtle senses,
you cannot be aware of the body or the mind.
Still, it is possible for you to be without these senses.
In such a state, you are either asleep
or aware of the Self only.
Awareness of Self is ever there.
Remain what you truly are
and this question will not arise.

The Self is more intimate than the objects.
Find the subject [your Self]
and the objects will take care of themselves.
the objects are seen by different persons
according to their outlook --
and these theories evolved.
But who is the seer,
the cognizer of these theories?
It is you.
Find your Self.
Then there is an end to
these vagaries of the mind.

Yoga implies prior division and it means
later union of one with another.
Who is to be united with whom?
You are the seeker,
seeking union with something.
That something is apart from you.
Your Self is intimate to you.
You are aware of the Self.
Seek it and be it.
That will expand as the infinite.

Man owes his movements to another Power,
whereas he thinks he does everything himself --
just like a lame man bluffing that,
were he helped to stand up,
he would fight and chase away the enemy.
Action is impelled by desire;
desire arises only after the rise of the ego;
and this ego owes its origin to a Higher Power
on which its existence depends.
It can not remain apart.
Why then prattle, "I do, or I act, or I function"?
A Self-realized being cannot help but benefit the world.
His very existence is the highest good.

I exist now. I am the enjoyer.
I enjoy fruits of action.
I was in the past --
and shall be in the future.
Who is this "I"?
Finding this "I" to be pure Consciousness
beyond action and enjoyment;
freedom and happiness are gained.
There is then no effort,
for the Self is perfect
and there remains nothing more to gain.

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Part 1 - Few Teachings Of Ramana Maharshi

"Glory to Sri Ramana the Sage,
Who firmly established in devotion
to the Lotus-feet of Arunachaleswara,
can undo the evil of the world and
the misery of those who take refuge
in Him. Glory to Ramana,
glowing with merciful love for all."

"Bhagavan Sri Ramana's Realization is unique
and unparalleled in the annals of history.
He realised in his boyhood the Eternal Truth,
the Self Supreme, without the aid of initiation
by any external Guru, without the need for
theoretical knowledge and without any study
of the Scriptures, and without having resorted
to any ritualistic form of worship.....other than
his spontaneous realization of the eternal nature
of the "I", the Self Supreme."

The sense of body is a thought;
the thought is of the mind,
The mind rises after the "I"-thought,
the "I"-thought is the root-thought.
If that is held,
the other thoughts will disappear.
There will be no body,
no mind, not even the ego;
only the Self in all its purity.

To remain as the Self
is not difficult.

Why should one think of birth and death?
Are you really born?
....all these are only of the mind.
So long as the body is considered,
birth is real. But the body is not "I".
The Self is not born, nor does it die.
There is nothing new.
The Sages see everything as being
in and of the Self;
there is no diversity in it,
Therefore, there is neither birth nor death.

The soul remains always uncontaminated.
It is the substratum funning through these three states:
Wakefulness passes off, I Am
the dream state passes off, I Am;
the sleep states passes off, I Am;
They repeat themselves,
and yet "I Am" remains.
They are like pictures
moving on a screen at the cinema show.
They do not affect the screen.
"I Am" remains unaffected...

Any new appearances are bound to disappear.
Anything created will certainly be destroyed.
The eternal is not born nor does it die.
We are now confounding appearances with reality.
Appearance carries its end in itself.
What is it that appears newly?
If you cannot find it, surrender unreservedly
to the substratum of appearances;
then, the reality remains as residue.

Engage yourself in the living present.
The future will take care of itself.
Do not worry about the future.

Doubts cease when the confusion is surpassed.

Engage in self-investigation,
then the non-self will disappear.
The Self will be left over.
This is self-investigation of the Self.
The one word "Self"
is equivalent to the mind,
body, man, individual,
the Supreme and all else.

The Real is That what is;
the others are only appearances.
Diversity is not its nature.
We are reading the printed characters
on paper, but ignore the paper
which is the background.
Similarly, you are taken up by the manifestations
of the mind, and let go the background.
Whose fault is it?

Is there a difference between the
individual soul and the Self?
That is what IS.

The mind obstructs the innate peace.
Our investigation is only in the mind.
Investigate the mind;
then it will disappear.
There is no entity by the name "mind."
Because of the emergence of thoughts,
we surmise something from which they start;
that we term "mind."
When we probe to see what it is,
there is nothing of the sort.
After it has vanished,
Peace will be found to remain eternal.

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Few Poems On Ramana Maharshi

"As for myself, my body is weak
and shakes while walking; my mind
has grown very dull; the Vedic Mantras
I have forgotten; old age has overtaken
me; and my eyes are dim. Though learned,
I remain ignorant. O Sad-Guru Ramana,
Save me!

Wantonly inflated by the pride of being
the lord of all the senses, the mind does
not see its true Lord seated in the heart.
Till now, looking on life as the ultimate,
I have not achieved the Goal. Ah! when
Sad-Guru Ramana, shall I realize the Self?

In the world what was pleasing always
perished. But the miserable mind always
runs after sense-pleasures only.
O Ramana Bhagavan, I have not yet
realized the Supreme Brahman adored
by the fortunate. This life is lived in vain.
Alas! What greater misfortune can there be?"

"The Saints are the sustainers of society.
Philo remarks: 'Households, cities, countries
and nations have enjoyed great happiness,
when a single individual has taken heed of
the good and the beautiful. Such men not
only liberate themselves; they fill those they
meet with a free mind.' "

"The true sages possess the inner joy and
peace which are independent of outer circumstances.
Their happiness is not dependent on outer things.
They have passed beyond the forms of social life.
They work for the fulfillment of the Divine in the
world, for the good of all beings, for the fulfillment
of the Purpose. They are one in action and consciousness
with the Divine."

"Sri Ramana adopts the metaphysical
position of Advaita Vedanta. He speaks
to us of the Divine.....
When one discovers the Divine within
oneself, one must discover it also in the
outer world of men and things. While the
heights within are revealed...the process
of seeing all in the fullness of the Divine
is more arduous.
God is both eternal silence and perpetual
activity, the unmoved witness and the
ground of all that is, the metaphysical
Absolute and the personal Lord. The
Divine reveals itself anew in all life and
existence.....
Sri Ramana dwells not only in a world
of pure subjectivity but has also a sense
of the Infinite that is within all.....
Like all saints, he has the foundation in God."

"The Maharshi is above the spirit of the time.
Long after the spirit of the time will have been
succeeded by the spirit of another Age,
Sri Ramana will be remembered as an Immortal."

"After having studied the lives and ways of
teaching of Saints and Sages of the world,
belonging to various traditions and periods
of time;
It strikes one that Sri Ramana falls into a class of his own..."

"Sri Ramana declares that life is full of latent
happiness.....because the Divine heritage is
ever there, waiting to be received, God-Reality
is ever present within the heart of all.....
the dawn of Self-realization is not a new creation,
but the remembering of a lost state of consciousness.
It is an entering into the ancient heritage."

"Sri Ramana is a true son of the Indian earth.
He is genuine and, in addition to that, something
quite phenomenal. In India he is the whitest spot
in a white space.

What we find in the life and teachings of Sri Ramana
is the purest of India; with its breath of world-liberated
and liberating humanity, it is a chant of milleniums.....

The identification of the Self with God will strike the
European as shocking. It is a specifically oriental
Realization, as expressed in Sri Ramana's utterances.
Psychology cannot contribute anything further to it,
except the remark that it lies far beyond its scope to propose
such a thing. However, it is clear to the Indian that the
Self as spiritual Source is not different from God;
and in so far as man abides in his Self, he is not
only contained in God but is God Himself.
Sri Ramana is quite clear in this respect."

"I bow to the Lotus-feet of Sage Sri Ramana,
the great Teacher, Who revealed to me the Lord
Supreme in His glory transcending darkness."

--Sri Kavyakantha--Ganapati Muni--

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Sri Ramakrishna Quotes on Divine Love

The one goal of life is to cultivate love for God, the love that the milkmaids, the milkmen, and the cowherd boys of Vrindavan felt for Krishna.

Faith and devotion. One realizes God easily through devotion. He is grasped through ecstasy of love.

The means of realizing God are ecstasy of love and devotion – that is, one must love God.

The point is, to love God even as the mother loves her child, the chaste wife her husband, and the worldly man his wealth. Add together these three forces of love, these three powers of attraction, and give it all to God. Then you will certainly see Him.

The bliss of worship and communion with God is the true wine, the wine of ecstatic love. The goal of human life is to love God, Bhakti is the one essential thing. To know God through jnana and reasoning is extremely difficult.

If you enter the world without first cultivating love for God, you will be entangled more and more. You will be overwhelmed with its danger, its grief, its sorrows. And the more you think of worldly things, the more you will be attached to them.

Repeat God's name and sing His glories, and keep holy company; and now and then visit God's devotees and holy men. The mind cannot dwell on God if it is immersed day and night in worldliness, in worldly duties and responsibilities; it is most necessary to go into solitude now and then and think of God. To fix the mind on God is very difficult, in the beginning, unless one practises meditation in solitude. When a tree is young it should be fenced all around; otherwise it may be destroyed by cattle.

The path of knowledge leads to Truth, as does the path that combines knowledge and love. The path of love, too, leads to this goal. The way of love is as true as the way of knowledge. All paths ultimately lead to the same Truth. But as long as God keeps the feeling of ego in us, it is easier to follow the path of love.
God cannot be realized through mere scholarly reasoning.

One is able to realize God just through love. Ecstasy of feeling, devotion, love, and faith – these are the means.

What is needed is absorption in God – loving Him intensely. The 'Nectar Lake' is the Lake of Immortality. A man sinking in It does not die, but becomes immortal. Some people believe that by thinking of God too much the mind becomes deranged; but that is not true. God is the Lake of Nectar, the Ocean of Immortality. He is called the 'Immortal' in the Vedas. Sinking in It, one does not die, but verily transcends death.

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Famous Quotes from Thirukkural

• Smile, with patience, hopeful heart, in troublous hour and vanquish grief; nothing hath equal power. (Kural No.: 621)

• The stalks of water-flowers are proportionate to the depth of water; so is men's greatness proportionate to their minds (Knowledge). (Kural No.: 595)

• Defer not virtue(The quality of doing what is right and avoiding what is wrong) to another day; receive her now; and at the dying hour she will be your undying friend. (Kural No.: 36)

• Avoid an act which you may repent later; If done by mistake, better not to repeat it. (Kural No.: 655)

• He that is reduced to absolute poverty will be regarded as a stranger even by his own mother.(Kural No.: 1047)

• Friendship is not just a smile on the face; It is what is felt deep within a smiling heart. (Kural No.: 786)

• True friends guard you from evil, make you walk in right path and share your sorrow in difficult times. (Kural No.: 787)

• Excessive or deficient food or activity causes disorders in mobility, breathing and digestion. (Kural No.: 941)

• Though the world goes round with many activities, it is dependent on agriculture. Hence, though laborious, farming is the foremost activity. (Kural No.: 1031)

• Agriculturists are the linchpin of the mankind since they support all others who cannot till the soil. (Kural No.: 1032)

• The learned teacher makes you enjoy learning; On leaving, makes you to keep thinking of his teaching. (Kural No.: 394)

• Think and then undertake the work; to think after commencement will bring disgrace. (Kural No.: 467)

• Determined efforts result in prosperity; Idleness will bring nothing. (Kural No.: 616)

• Water will flow from a well in the sand in proportion to the depth to which it is dug, and knowledge will flow from a man in proportion to his learning. (Kural No.: 396)

• As water changes (its nature), from the nature of the soil (in which it flows), so will the character of men resemble that of their associates. (Kural No.: 452)

• If wealth be in the possession of a man who has the great excellence (of benevolence), it is like a tree which as a medicine is an infallible cure for disease. (Kural No.: 217)

• Let (one) weigh well the strength of the deed (he purposes to do), his own strength, the strength of his enemy, and the strength of the allies (of both), and then let him act. (Kural No.: 471)

• The axle tree of a bandy, loaded only with peacocks' feathers will break, if it be greatly overloaded. (Kural No.: 475)

• Let the thoughts be always great and progressive. It will not be a loss, even if the success eludes(fails). (Kural No.: 596)

• There is no need of a shaven head, nor of tangled long hair, if a man abstain from those deeds which the wise have condemned. (Kural No.: 280)

• A fool can procure in a single birth a hell into which he may enter and suffer through all the seven births. (Kural No.: 835)

• All human beings agree as regards their birth but differ as regards their characteristics, because of the different qualities of their actions. (Kural No.: 972)

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thirukkural#Famous_Quotes_from_Thirukkural

My Friend Subramanian R garu wants to add few more points

TirukuraL is one of the oldest works in Tamizh, dated as 3rd Century AD. It is a book of ethics.TiruvaLLuvar speaks only about Dharma, Artha and Kama. He does
not say anything about Moksha, Veedu in Tamil. He perhaps felt that if one could perform the functions of dharma, artha and kama, he will get Moksha. I do not agree with this. The one who does dharma, artha and kama may get Heavens but not liberation.

I like the Kural 655 very much. He says one has to think the pros and cons before entering the performance of a karma., After starting the performance of a karma, if one thinks, whether it is good or bad, will only be lowly and miserable.

TiruvaLLuvar's religion is considered to be Buddhist or Jainism or Hindu. But I feel he is a Hindu Brahmin. He speaks about god in different ways in his invocatory verses. He calls him as Vaalarivan, of great Knowledge, Chit. He also says he is engunattan, of 8 characteristics, i.e. as described in Sri Dakshinamurty Stotram of Sri Sankara. He also speaks about non-injury to other living beings. And about Yagas (sacrifices) without killing animals. Hence I consider him as Hindu Brahmin.

TirukuraL has been published by many Tamil publishers. There are editions with concessional price also. There are 10 commentaries for TirukuraL. The one by Parimelazhagar, is said to be the best.

In the Theme Song of Tamil Meet, Mr. Karunanidhi quotes one TirukuraL and got into trouble. It says Pirappokkum ella oyirkum... which means, there is birth which is common to all human beings. Mr. K says it is saying universal brotherhood and no castes. This is wrong as per Parimelazhagar. The commentator says that only
birth alone is common. But vasanas, are different. Hence one could grow up as good or bad. One may do good merits or do sins.One may be born as Brahmin or a non Brahmin. Only the birth is common to all. What happens afterwards, is dependent on one's vasanas and prarabdha.

TiruvaLLuvar also speaks about oozh vinai i.e prarabdha, the carry bag of our good deeds and bad deeds of earlier births. Hence he is definitely a Hindu Brahmin. The other religions do not speak much about prarabdha.

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Can the mind do Self-inquiry? By Sri Surya Narayana Raju

Above Photo of Dr Raju was taken At the entrance of JK center

The mind cannot do Self-inquiry, because whatsoever the mind can do will strengthen the mind. Any doing on the part of the mind makes the mind more strong. So Self-inquiry by the mind is impossible.

Mind doing something means mind continuing itself -- so that is not in the nature of things. But Self-inquiry happens through watching the mind, not by doing anything.

The watcher is separate from the mind, it is deeper than the mind, higher than the mind. The watcher is always hidden behind the mind. A thought passes, a feeling arises -- who is watching this thought? Not the mind itself -- because mind is nothing but the process of thought and feeling. The mind is just the traffic of thinking. Who is watching it? When you say, "Fear has arisen in me," who are 'you'? In whom has the thought of fear arisen? Who is the container? The thought of fear is the content -- who is the container?

Consciousness is like empty paper. Mind is like written, printed paper.

Whatsoever exists as an object inside you, whatsoever you can see and observe, is the mind. The perceiver is not the mind, the observed is the mind.

So if you can go on simply observing,watching,witnessing without condemning, without in any way creating a conflict with the mind, without indulging it, without following it, without going against it, if you can simply be there indifferent to it, in that indifference Self-inquiry happens. when the watcher arises, the witness is there, mind simply disappears.

Mind exists with your cooperation OR your conflict. Both are ways of cooperating -- conflict too! When you fight with the mind, you are giving energy to it. In your really fight you have accepted the mind, in your very fighting you have accepted the power of the mind over your being. So whether you cooperate or you conflict, in both the cases the mind becomes stronger and stronger.

Just watch. Just be a witness. And, by and by, you will see gaps arising. A thought passes, and another thought does not come immediately -- there is an interval. In that interval is peace. In that interval is love. In that interval is all that you have always been seeking -- and finding never. In that gap, you are no more an ego. In that gap you are not defined, confined, imprisoned. In that gap you are vast, immense, huge! In that gap you are one with existence -- the barrier exists not. Your boundaries are no more there. You melt into existence and the existence melts in you. You start overlapping.

If you go on watching and you don't get attached to these gaps either... because that is natural now, to get attached to these gaps. If you start hankering for these gaps... because they are tremendously beautiful, they are immensely blissful. It is natural to get attached to them, and desire arises to have more and more of these gaps -- then you will miss, that your watcher has disappeared. Then those gaps will again disappear, and again the traffic of the mind will be there.

So the first thing is to become an indifferent watcher. And the second thing is to remember that when beautiful gaps arise, don't get attached to them, don't start asking for them, don't start waiting that they should happen more often. If you can remember these two things -- when beautiful gaps come, watch them too, and keep your indifference alive -- then one day the traffic simply disappears with the road, they both disappear. And there is tremendous emptiness.

That's what Buddha calls 'Nirvana' -- the mind has ceased. This is what I call suicide -- but mind has not committed it. Mind cannot do it. You can help it to happen. You can hinder it, you can help it to happen -- it depends on you, not on your mind. All that mind can do will always strengthen the mind.

So Self-inquiry is not really mind-effort. Real meditation is not effort at all. Real Self-inquiry(Nija Vicharana) is just allowing the mind to have its own way, and not interfering in any way whatsoever -- just remaining watchful, witnessing. It silences, by and by, it becomes still. One day it is gone. You are left alone.

That aloneness is what your reality is. And reality is beginningless and endless. The mind has a beginning and an end, hence the mind and reality cannot meet. The mind cannot comprehend the eternal.

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.

And in that aloneness nothing is excluded, remember it. In that aloneness everything is included -- that aloneness is God. That purity, that innocence, uncorrupted by any thought, is what Self is.

About the Author

Sri Suryanarayana Raju is interested in Self-Enquiry in the light of Sri Ramana Maharshi,Osho,JK.He wrote two books on "Self-Enquiry" and "Commented on Upadesa Saram and Akshara Mana Malai". available for download at http://www.esnips.com/ web/ramana-maharshi

http://www.facebook.com/Arunachalasiva

Source: http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=413991431864

Prasanth Jalasutram Note: Sri Sundara Chaitanya Swami says Mano Nasam means only destruction of ignorance in the mind but not destruction of mind.

Sri Tyagaraja swami says in one of his songs,

kalpana lenni kalavaadee maa raamudu
sankalpam leni vaade maa raamudu.

Which means So there is nothing wrong in having thoughts but it is important not to have sankalpas.

If we want to know nature of pot there is no need to break the pot.

Sri Sundara Chaitanya Swami says there is no need to stop waves to understand about ocean.

Waves are not independent of ocean but are only part of ocean.

As there is no need to stop the waves similarly there is no need to kill the mind to know our nature i.e sat-chit-ananda.

Problem is though we are satyam(truth) i.e ocean in the above example we think we are mithya(waves) and start thinking of all the problems of waves as we compare ourselves with waves and then we start trying to solve our problems related to waves.

Here waves relate to mind and our nature is ocean on which everything(mind,indriyas..) is dependent.

If really problems solve by killing our mind then it can be solved by taking some injection like anaesthesia. :-)

So solution is to know that we are not the mind and it is mithya i.e dependent on our real nature i.e sat-chit-ananda.

Dr Raju Garu wants to add few more points

Manonasa according to Adi Sankara in Viveka Chudamani is destruction of sankapa(volition) and vikalpa(doubt) trait of the mind.Even after manonasa all physiological functions of the mind are done as usual.Impersonal thinking(not having any preference)is not pathological(diseased).

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Final Part - Reality In Forty Verses (Ulladu Narpadu) : Supplement

20. The Lord whose home is the interior of the Heart-Lotus is extolled as Lord of the Cave. If by force of practice the feeling ‘I am He, I am the Lord of the Cave’ becomes firmly established,as firmly as your present notion that you are the ego is
established in the body, and thus you stand forth as that Lord of the Cave, the illusion that you are the perishable body will vanish like darkness before the rising sun. (composed by Bhagavan,employing the ideas of two verses found in the Prabhulinga
Leela, v. 45, 46, Kannada)

21. When Rama asked, ‘Which is the great mirror in which we see these images of things? What is it that is called the Heart of all the beings in the world?’ Vasishta answered, ‘When we reflect we see that all the beings in the world have two different hearts.’ (Yoga Vasishta, 5 - 78 - v. 32, 33)

22. One of these is worth acceptance, the other worth rejection. Listen how they differ. The organ called the heart placed somewhere in the chest of the physical body is worth rejection. The Heart which is of the form of Pure Awareness is worth acceptance; it is both within and without — it has no inside or out. (Yoga Vasishta, 5 - 78 - v. 34, 35)

23. That indeed is the essential Heart and in it all this world abides. It is the mirror in which all things are seen. It is the source of all wealth. Hence Awareness may be termed the Heart of all beings. The Heart is not a part of the perishable
body inert like a stone. (Yoga Vasishta, 5 - 78 - 36, 37)

24. Therefore by the practice of merging the ego in the pure Heart which is all-Awareness, the tendencies of the mind as well as the breath will be subdued. (Yoga Vasishta, 5 - 78 - v. 38)

25. By constantly meditating in the Heart, ‘That pure unconditioned Awareness that is Siva, That am I,’ remove all attachment of the ego. (Devikalottara, v. 47)

26. Having investigated the various states of being, and seizing firmly by the mind that State of Supreme Reality, play your part, O hero, ever in the world. You have known the Truth which is at the Heart of all kinds of appearances. Without ever turning away from that Reality, play in the world, O hero,as if in love with it. (Yoga Vasishta, 5 - 18 - v. 20 to 23)

27. Seeming to have enthusiasm and delight, seeming to have excitement and aversion, seeming to exercise initiative and perseverance, and yet without attachment, play, O hero,in the world. Released from all bonds of attachment and with equanimity of mind, acting outwardly in all situations in accordance with the part you have assumed, play as you please,O hero, in the world. (Yoga Vasishta, 5 - 18 - v. 24 to 26)

28. He who by Knowledge of the Atman is established in the Truth, he who has vanquished the five senses — call him the fire of knowledge, the wielder of the thunderbolt of Knowledge, the Conqueror of Time and the Hero who has slain death. (a verse from the Yoga Vasishta)

29. Just as on the earth with the coming of spring the tree shines in fresh beauty of foliage, even so he who has seen the Truth will shine with growing lustre, intelligence and power.(Yoga Vasishta, 5 - 76 - v. 20)

30. Like one to whom a tale is told while his thoughts are wandering far away, the mind which is free from attachment is inactive while it acts. But the mind immersed in attachments is active, though it does not act, like the sleeper lying motionless
here, who in his dream climbs a hill and tumbles down. (Yoga Vasishta, 5 - 56 - v. 13, 14)

31. As the movement of the cart, its standing still and its being unyoked are to the passenger asleep in the cart, even so are action, contemplation and sleep to the Sage asleep in the cart of his body.

32. For one who seeks waking, dreaming or sleep there is a state beyond these three, a wakeful sleep, a fourth state called the turiya. But because this turiya state alone is real and the three apparent states are illusory, the ‘fourth’ state is indeed the transcendental state.

33. The statement that the jnani retains prarabdha while free from sanchita and agami is only a formal answer to the questions of the ignorant. Of several wives none escapes widowhood when the husband dies; even so, when the doer goes, all three karmas vanish.

34. For unlearned folk there is only one family consisting of wife, children and dependants. But in the mind of those with much learning there are many families of books, theories and opinions as obstacles to yoga. (Subhashita Ratna Bhandagara, Prakarana VI, Shanta Rasa Nirdesha, v. 13)

35. What is the use of letters to those lettered folk who do not seek to wipe out the letters of fate by inquiring, ‘Whence are we born?’ What else are they but gramaphones, O Lord of Arunachala? They learn and repeat words without realizing
their meaning.

36. The unlettered are easier saved than those who are learned but unsubdued. The unlettered are free from the clutches of the demon Pride, they are free from the malady of many whirling thoughts and words; they are free from the mad pursuit of wealth; they are free from many, many ills.

37. Though a man looks on the world as a wisp of straw and holds all sacred lore in his hand, it is hard for him to escape from thralldom if he has yielded to vile Flattery,the harlot. (from Sadhaka Avasta, by Sri Sadasiva Brahmendra)

38. Without thinking of oneself as apart from others,without swerving from one’s true state, if one abides always in one’s Self, who is there alien to one? What matters it
what people say of one? What matters it if one praises or blames oneself?

39. Keep advaita within the Heart. Do not ever carry it into action. Even if you apply it to all the three worlds, O Son, it is not to be applied to the Guru. (Tattvopadesa, v. 87,by Shankaracharya)

40. I shall declare truly the essence of the final doctrine of the Vedanta: when the ego dies and becomes That, the Self of Pure Awareness, That alone abides.

(Translated by Prof. K. Swaminathan)

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Part 1- Reality In Forty Verses (Ulladu Narpadu) : Supplement

Reality in Forty Verses: Supplement

Invocation

That which is the Support, the Soul, the Source, the Purpose and the Power of all this world, the Reality behind all this Appearance, That indeed exists. Let That, the Truth, abide in our Heart. (Yoga Vasishta, 8, v.12)

The Text

1. In the company of sages, attachment vanishes; and with attachment, illusion. Freed from illusion, one attains stability, and thence liberation while yet alive. Seek therefore the company of sages. (from Bhajagovindam, the “Mohamudagaram Hymn,” by Shankaracharya)

2. Not by listening to preachers, nor by study of books,not by meritorious deeds nor by any other means can one attain that Supreme State, which is attainable only through association with the sages and the clear quest of the Self.(a verse from the Yoga Vasishta, 5 - 12 - v.17)

3. When one has learned to love the company of sages,wherefore all these rules of discipline? When a pleasant, cool southern breeze is blowing, what need is there for a fan? (a verse from the Yoga Vasishta)

4. Fever is overcome by the cool light of the moon;want, by the good wish-yielding tree; and sin by the Holy Ganges. Those three — fever and want and sin — all flee at
the august sight of the peerless sage. (Subhashita Ratna Bhandargara, chapt. 3, v. 6)

5. Holy rivers, which are only water, and idols, which are made of stone and clay, are not as mighty as the sages.For while they make one pure in course of countless days, the sage’s eyes by a mere glance purify at once. (from Srimad Bhagavatam, chapt. 48, v. 31, tenth canto)

6. Disciple: Who is God?
Master: He who knows the mind.
D: My Self, the Spirit, knows my mind.
M: Therefore you are God; and also the sruti declares
that there is only one God, the Knower.

7. M: By what light do you see?
D: The sun by day, the lamp by night.
M: By what light do you see these lights?
D: The eye.
M: By what light do you see the eye?
D: The mind.
M: By what light do you know the mind?
D: My Self.
M: You then are the Light of Lights.
D: Yes, That I am.
(from Ekasloki, by Shankaracharya)

8. In the centre of the Heart-Cave there shines alone the one Brahman as the ‘I, I’, the Atman. Reach the Heart by diving deep in quest of the Self, or by controlling the mind with the breath, and stay established in the Atman.

9. In the lotus of the Heart is pure and changeless Consciousness in the form of the Self. When the ego is removed, this Consciousness of Self bestows liberation
of soul. (Devikalottaram, v. 46)

10. The body is like an earthen pot, inert. Because it has no consciousness of ‘I’, and because daily in bodiless sleep we touch our real nature, the body is not ‘I’. Then who is this ‘I’? Where is this ‘I’? In the Heart-cave of those that question thus,there shineth forth as ‘I’, Himself, the Lord Siva of Arunachala.

11. Who is born? It is only he who asks ‘Whence am I born?’ that is truly born in Brahman, the Prime Source. He indeed is born eternally; He is the Lord of saints; He is the ever-new. (On celebrating Sri Bhagavan’s jayanti))

12. Cast off the notion, ‘This vile flesh am I,’ and seek the ceaseless bliss of Self. To seek the Self while cherishing this perishing flesh is like trying to cross a stream by clinging to a crocodile.

13. The way of charity, penance, sacrifice, dharma, yoga and bhakti; and the Goal of Heaven, Reality, Peace, Truth,Grace, Silence, Stability, Deathless Death, Knowledge,
Renunciation, Liberation, Bliss — all this is only ceasing to think that the body is the Self.

14. What is action, or devotion, or union, or knowledge? It is to inquire, ‘Whose is this action, or indifference, or separateness, or ignorance?’ Inquiring thus, the ego vanishes.To abide as the Self, wherein these eight have never been, this is True existence.

15. Not realizing that they themselves are moved by an energy not their own, some fools are busy seeking miraculous powers. Their antics are like the boasting of a cripple who says to his friends: ‘If you raise me to my feet, these enemies are nothing before me.’

16. Since the stilling of the mind is true liberation and miraculous powers are unattainable without an act of the mind,how can they whose mind is set on such powers enter the bliss of liberation which is the ending of all activity of the mind?

17. While God sustains the burden of the world, the spurious ego assumes its burden, grimacing like an image on a tower, seeming to support it. If the traveller in a carriage,which can carry any weight, does not lay his luggage down but carries it painfully on his head, whose is the fault?

18. Between the two paps, below the chest, above the stomach, there are six organs of various colours. Of these,one, looking like a lily bud, is the Heart, at two digits’ distance to the right of the centre. (from Ashtanga Hridayam,Malayalam)

19. Its mouth is closed. Within its cavity is seated a heavy darkness, filled with all desires; all the great nerves are centred there; the home it is of breath, mind, light of knowledge. (from Ashtanga Hridayam, Malayalam)

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Final Part - Reality in Forty Verses (Ulladu Narpadu)

17. To those who do not know the Self and to those who do, the body is the ‘I’. But to those who do not know the Self the ‘I’ is bounded by the body; while to those who within the body know the Self the ‘I’ shines boundless. Such is the difference between them.

18. To those who do not know and to those who do, the world is real. But to those who do not know, Reality is bounded by the world; while to those who know, Reality shines formless as the ground of the world. Such is the difference between them.

19. The debate, ‘Does free will prevail or fate?’ is only for those who do not know the root of both. Those who have known the Self, the common source of freewill and of fate,have passed beyond them both and will not return to them.

20. To see God and not the Self that sees is only to see a projection of the mind. It is said that God is seen by him alone who sees the Self; but one who has lost the ego and seen the Self is none other than God.

21. When scriptures speak of ‘seeing the Self’ and ‘seeing God’, what is the truth they mean? How to see the Self? As the Self is one without a second, it is impossible to see it.How to see God? To see Him is to be consumed by Him.

22. Without turning inwards and merging in the Lord —it is His light that shines within the mind and lends it all its light — how can we know the Light of lights with the borrowed light of the mind?

23. The body says not it is ‘I’. And no one says, “In sleep there is no ‘I’.” When ‘I’ arises all (other) things arise. Whence this ‘I’ arises, search with a keen mind.

24. The body which is matter says not ‘I’. Eternal Awareness rises not nor sets. Betwixt the two, bound by the body, rises the thought of ‘I’. This is the knot of matter and Awareness. This is bondage, jiva, subtle body, ego. This is samsara, this is the mind.

25. Holding a form it rises; holding a form it stays; holding and feeding on a form it thrives. Leaving one form, it takes hold of another. When sought, it takes to flight. Such is the ego-ghost with no form of its own.

26. When the ego rises all things rise with it. When the ego is not, there is nothing else. Since the ego thus is everything, to question ‘What is this thing?’ is the extinction of all things.

27. ‘That’ we are, when ‘I’ has not arisen. Without searching whence the ‘I’ arises, how to attain the self-extinction where no ‘I’ arises? Without attaining self-extinction, how to stay in one’s true state where the Self is ‘That’?

28. Controlling speech and breath, and diving deep within oneself — like one who, to find a thing that has fallen into water, dives deep down — one must seek out the source whence the aspiring ego springs.

29. Cease all talk of ‘I’ and search with inward diving mind whence the thought of ‘I’ springs up. This is the way of wisdom. To think, instead, ‘I am not this, but That I am,’ is helpful in the search, but it is not the search itself.

30. When the mind turns inward seeking ‘Who am I?’ and merges in the Heart, then the ‘I’ hangs down his head in shame and the One ‘I’ appears as Itself. Though it appears as ‘I-I’, it is not the ego. It is Reality, Perfection, the Substance of the Self.

31. For him who is the Bliss of Self arising from extinction of the ego, what is there to do? He knows nothing other than this Self. How to conceive the nature of his state?

32. When the Vedas have declared, ‘Thou art That’ —not to seek and find the nature of the Self and abide in It, but to think ‘I am That, not This’ is want of strength. Because,That abides for ever as the Self.

33. To say ‘I do not know myself’ or ‘I have known myself’ is cause for laughter. What? Are there two selves,one to be known by the other? There is but One, the Truth of the experience of all.

34. The natural and true Reality forever resides in the Heart of all. Not to realize It there and stay in It but to quarrel ‘It is’, ‘It is not’, ‘It has form’, ‘It has not form’, ‘It is one’, ‘It is two’, ‘It is neither’, this is the mischief of maya.

35. To discern and abide in the ever-present Reality is true attainment. All other attainments are like powers enjoyed in a dream. When the sleeper wakes, are they real? Those who stay in the state of Truth, having cast off the unreal —will they ever be deluded?

36. If we think we are the body, then to tell ourselves,‘No, I am That’, is helpful to abide as That. Yet — since ever we abide as That — why should we always think, ‘I am That?’ Does one ever think, ‘I am a man’?

37. ‘During the search, duality; on attainment, unity’ —This doctrine too is false. When eagerly he sought himself and later when he found himself, the tenth man in the story was the tenth man and none else (ten men crossed a stream and wanted to make sure they were all safe. In counting, each one left himself out and found only nine. A passer-by gave each a blow and made them count the ten blows).

38. If we are the doers of deeds, we should reap the fruits they yield. But when we question, ‘Who am I, the doer of this deed?’ and realize the Self, the sense of agency is lost and the three karmas slip away. Eternal is this Liberation.

39. Thoughts of bondage and of freedom last only as long as one feels, ‘I am bound’. When one inquires of oneself,‘Who am I, the bound one?’ the Self, Eternal, ever free,
remains. The thought of bondage goes; and with it goes the thought of freedom too.

40. If asked, ‘Which of these three is final liberation: With form, without form, or with-and-without-form?’ I say,Liberation is the extinction of the ego which enquires ‘With form, without form, or with-and-without-form?’

(Translated by Prof. K. Swaminathan)

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Part 1 - Reality in Forty Verses (Ulladu Narpadu)

Once Bhagavan ramana composed twenty Tamil stanzas containing his important teachings. They were not written in any particular order to form a poem. Sri Muruganar therefore suggested that Bhagavan should write twenty stanzas more to make it the conventional forty. Accordingly, Bhagavan composed twenty more stanzas. Out of these forty, Kavyakanta Ganapati Muni selected two as the invocatory stanzas.

Then Bhagavan wrote two more to complete the forty. Some of the stanzas were translations from Sanskrit, but as devotees wanted all the forty verses to be original they were eliminated and new stanzas composed in their place.

The verses were all arranged in a continuous order to form a poem. Later, a
supplement consisting of a second forty verses was added. So indifferent to authorship was Bhagavan that he did not write all those supplementary verses himself. When he came upon a suitable one he used it — mostly translations from Sanskrit
— and when not, he made one. The verses eliminated from the original forty verses were included in the supplement.

These eighty verses are the most comprehensive exposition of the Maharshi’s teaching. A number of translations have been made and commentaries written on them. They have been published as separate books by the ashram under the titles Ulladu Narpadu, Sad Vidya and Truth Revealed. Bhagavan translated these verses into Telugu prose under the name of Unnadi Nalubadi and into Malayalam verse under the name of Saddarsanam.

Invocation

1. Unless Reality exists, can thought of it arise? Since,devoid of thought, Reality exists within as Heart, how to know the Reality we term the Heart? To know That is merely to be That in the Heart.

2. When those who are in dread of death seek refuge at the feet of the deathless, birthless Lord Supreme, their ego and attachments die; and they, now deathless, think no more of death.

The Text

1. Since we know the world, we must concede for both a common Source, single but with the power of seeming many.The picture of names and forms, the onlooker, the screen, the light that illumines — all these are verily He.

2. On three entities — the individual, God and the world — every creed is based. That ‘the One becomes the three’ and that ‘always the three are three’, are said only while the ego lasts. To lose the ‘I’ and in the Self to stay is the State Supreme.

3. ‘The World is true’; ‘No, it is a false appearance’;‘The World is Mind’; ‘No, it is not’; ‘The World is pleasant’;‘No, it is not’ — What avails such talk? To leave the world alone and know the Self, to go beyond all thought of ‘One’ and ‘Two’, this egoless condition is the common goal of all.

4. If Self has form, the world and God likewise have form. If Self is without form, by whom and how can form (of world and God) be seen? Without the eye, can there be sight or spectacle? The Self, the real Eye, is infinite.

5. The body is made up of the five sheaths;in the term body all the five are included. Without the body the world is not. Has one without the body ever seen the world?

6. The world is made up of the five kinds of sense perceptions and nothing else. And those perceptions are felt as objects by the five senses. Since through the senses the mind alone perceives the world, is the world other than the mind?

7. Though the world and mind rise and fade together,the world shines by the light of the mind. The ground whence the world and mind arise, and wherein they set, that Perfection rises not nor sets but ever shines. That is Reality.

8. Under whatever name or form we worship It, It leads us on to knowledge of the nameless, formless Absolute. Yet,to see one’s true Self in the Absolute, to subside into It and be one with It, this is the true Knowledge of the Truth.

9. ‘Twos’ and ‘threes’ depend upon one thing, the ego.If one asks in one’s Heart, ‘What is this ego?’ and finds it,they slip away. Only those who have found this know the Truth, and they will never be perplexed.

10. There is no knowledge without ignorance; and without knowledge ignorance cannot be. To ask, ‘Whose is this knowledge? Whose this ignorance?’ and thus to know the
primal Self, this alone is Knowledge.

11. Without knowing the Self that knows, to know all objects is not knowledge; it is only ignorance. Self, the ground of knowledge and the non-Self, being known, both knowledge and ignorance fall away.

12. True Knowledge is being devoid of knowledge as well as ignorance of objects. Knowledge of objects is not true knowledge. Since the Self shines self-luminous, with nothing else for It to know, with nothing else to know It, the Self is Knowledge. Nescience It is not.

13. The Self that is Awareness, that alone is true. The knowledge which is various is ignorance. And even ignorance,which is false, cannot exist apart from the Self. False are the many jewels, for apart from gold, which alone is true, they cannot exist.

14. ‘You’ and ‘he’ — these appear only when ‘I’ does.But when the nature of the ‘I’ is sought and the ego is destroyed, ‘you’ and ‘he’ are at an end. What shines then as
the One alone is the true Self.

15. Past and future are dependent on the present. The past was present in its time and the future will be present too.Ever-present is the present. To seek to know the future and the past, without knowing the truth of time today, is to try to count without the number ‘One’.

16. Without us there is no time nor space. If we are only bodies, we are caught up in time and space. But are we bodies? Now, then and always — here, now and everywhere — we are the same. We exist, timeless and spaceless we.

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Pure awareness--Ego awareness and Self-inquiry By Sri Surya Narayana Raju

Above Photo of Dr Raju Garu is taken In the garden of JK center.

Suppose on a plain paper we mark a zero with a pencil,we feel that zero mark is really zero.If we carefully observe even when we think that mark of pencil indicates zero with no value its background is plain paper which is there even before marking zero by the pencil and it will be there even after erasing the pencil mark of zero.

Similarly on the screen of awareness for functional purpose awareness mind is created whose essential nature is nothingness.That mind gives direction to the awareness so that awareness can function in the fleeting phenomenal reality.Mind has an utilitarian value in the phenomenal reality because awareness acts through it,just like pencil mark of zero on the plain paper has utilitarian value.Noe if we want have only plain paper we have to erase the pencil mark of zero.

Similarly if we want to know the nature of awareness which is the background of mind,first we must know the nature of mind which is nothingness.Once we know that a gestalt in our attitude happens and we observe the nature of awareness which is the background of the mind.

We direct our attention towards the source of mind which is awareness.The real can be known only through the false, so the ego is a must. One has to pass through it. It is a discipline. The real can be known only through the illusion. You cannot know the truth directly.

First you have to know that which is not true. First you have to encounter the untrue. Through that encounter you become capable of knowing the truth. If you know the false as the false, truth will dawn upon you. So you have two centers. One center you come with, which is given by existence itself. That is the self. And the other center, which is created by the society, is the ego.

It is a false thing - and it is a very great trick. Through the ego the society is controlling you. You have to behave in a certain way, because only then does the society appreciate you. You have to walk in a certain way; you have to laugh in a certain way; you have to follow certain manners, a morality, a code. Only then will the society appreciate you, and if it doesn't, you ego will be shaken. And when the ego is shaken, you don't know where you are, who you are.

The others have given you the idea. That idea is the ego.That which is given by the existence is the screen of awareness.That which is written on your screen by the society is the false center of awareness or ego.If we are aware that our essential nature is screen of awareness that which is written on the screen will not affect us.

Suppose there is news paper,we can see the letters on it and forget for the time being that writing and reading of letters are possible only because paper is there to write or read something on it.If we are aware of the fact then gestalt happens and we recognize that paper is the background of all these letters.Just as letters written with white chalk piece on a black board are very clear,we can see the contents of the mind,its thoughts,feelings with the background of awareness which is possible in Self-inquiry.

The ego is not individual. Ego is a social phenomenon - it is society, its not you. But it gives you a function in the society, a hierarchy in the society. And if you remain satisfied with it, you will miss the whole opportunity of finding the self.

And that's why you are so miserable. Try to understand it as deeply as possible, because this has to be thrown. And unless you throw it you will never be able to attain to the self. Because you are addicted to the center, you cannot move, and you cannot look at the self. This throwing is possible only through Self-inquiry.

Sri Surya Narayana Raju Warns Us Regarding Neo-advaitins ( Neo Means Mordern)

Note : Neo-advaitins understanding is a perverted one.As long as mind is there its projection of world is there which functions according to natural laws.Nobody is beyond above these laws.

a) Once one elephant charged at Adi Sankara,he immediately ran and climbed a tree to save his body.

b) JK used to hit his head against a wall unable to bear very severe headache and asked god to relieve it by taking prana from his body.

c) Lord Krishna ran away from Delhi to Madhura when he heard King Jarasandha is coming to kill him.

d) Totapuri who conferred non-dual Self knowledge to Ramakrishna tried to commit suicide by jumping into Ganges but Ramakrishna saved him through his yogic power by lowering the level of Ganges.

All these are Self realized masters.The phenomenal reality has its own reality.(Vyavaharika satya).

Neo advaitins are new group of idiots talking about Self without having any Self experience and having no comprehensive understanding on this subject.

All forms of idiocy is possible in USA and it is having a more of entertainment value than real exposition on Advaita.

Once Adi Sankara is walking through a street saying "Sivoham',"Sivoham",a man behind him repeated the same.

To teach him a lesson Adi Sankara took boiling tin and swallowed it and continued his walk as usual.The man behind him is afraid to see this unexpected event and stopped imitating Adi Sankara.

Neo Advaitins are just like parrots repeating the words of great masters without any understanding.Take no notice of them.

About the Author

Sri Suryanarayana Raju is interested in Self-Enquiry in the light of Sri Ramana Maharshi,Osho,JK.He wrote two books on "Self-Enquiry" and "Commented on Upadesa Saram and Akshara Mana Malai". available for download at http://www.esnips.com/ web/ramana-maharshi

http://www.facebook.com/Arunachalasiva

Source: http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=413347701864

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Final Part - Thus Spake Ramana

Devotee:

Being always Being-Consciousness-Bliss, why does God place us in difficulties? Why did He create us?

Bhagavan: Does God come and tell you that He has placed you in difficulties? It is you who say so. It is again the wrong ‘I’. If that disappears there will be no one to say that God created this or that.

source: Talk 197

People would not understand
the simple and bare truth.
--the truth of their everyday,
ever-present and eternal experience.
That Truth is that of the Self.

Because they love mystery
and not the bare truth,
religions pamper them.
Only to bring them around to the Self.
Wandering hither and thither,
you must return to the Self only.
Then, why not abide in the Self
right here and now?

Subject and object;
all merge in the Self.
All are only one Self.

A cultured lady, daughter of a well-known solicitor of Madras asked:
What should one do in order to remain free from thoughts as advised
by you? Is it only the enquiry "Who am I?"

M.: Only to remain still. Do it and see.

D.: It is impossible.

M.: Exactly. For the same reason the enquiry "Who am I?" is advised.

Ignorance vanishing,
the residue reveals itself.
It is experience,
not in the category of knowledge.

Everything is one's Self.
To see the world there must be a spectator.
There could be no world without the Self.
The Self is all comprising.
In fact, Self is all.
There is nothing besides the Self.

The Self is changeless;
it is the ego that has intervened.
That which rises and sets is the ego;
that which remains changeless is the Self.

Realize the Real Self.
It is all that is necessary.

The Self is ever the witness.
Whether imagined so or not.
There is no need to imagine it,
except for that purpose.
It is best to remain as one's self.

It is as it is.
They are excited at first.
By continued experience it becomes common
and then one is no longer excited.

A wandering mind is on the wrong track.
Only a devotional mind is on the right track.

A gentleman ... asked: "Swami, you say that finding out the self is the greatest thing in life. But for finding it out, is the Nama Japa (repeating the name of the Lord) good? Can we attain Moksha in htat way?"

Bhagavan said, "Yes it is good. That itself will take you in due course to the Goal. The repeating of the Name is to remove all extraneous things. Then everything extraneous disappears and what remians is the Name alone. That which remains is the Self or God or the Supreme Being. Nama Japa means we give a name to God and call HIM by that name. You give Him that name which you like most."

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from Nagamma: Letters, entry 29. July 1948

For whom is this ignorance [veiling?]
Does the Absolute tell you it is veiled?
It is the person that tells you something veils the Absolute
Find out for whom this ignorance exists.

For whom is this imperfection?
The Absolute is not imperfect and cannot ask.
The insentient cannot ask the question.
Between the two
something has risen up
and which raises these questions
and feels the doubt.
Who is it?
Is it the one who has now arisen?
Or is it the one who is eternal?
Being perfect, why do you feel yourself imperfect?
Such is the teachings of all the religions.
Whatever may be the experiences,
the experiencer is one and the same.

Reality must be always real.
It is not entangled with forms and names,
but is That which underlies these.
It underlies limitations, being itself limitless.
It is not bound.
It underlies unrealities, itself being real.
Reality is that which is. It is as it is.
It transcends speech and lies beyond
such expressions as existence, non-existence, etc

Each one wants to know the Self.
What kind of help does one require to know oneself?
People want to see the Self as something new.
But it remains eternal and is the same all along.

The best definition is, 'I Am That I Am.' - Ramana Maharshi

Bliss is not something to be got.
On the other hand, you are bliss.
This desire is born of the sense of incompleteness.
To whom is this sense of incompleteness?
Inquire. In deep sleep, you were blissful.
Now you are not so.
What is interposed between that bliss and this bliss?
It is the ego.
Seek its source and find you are bliss.

For whom is this ignorance?
It is the ego.
Trace the source of the ego.
Then the ignorance is lost and bliss remains.
It is eternal.
You are That, here and now.
Search the source of the ego,
and the Self is revealed.
That alone remains.

If the Self could be found in books,
it would already have been realized.
What wonder can be greater than
that we seek the Self in books?
Of course, books have given the
readers the sense to ask this question
and to seek the Self.

So you see that you are really formless
but you are at present identifying
yourself with the body.

There is a state beyond both effort
and effortlessness.
Until it is realized, effort is necessary.
After tasting such Bliss even once,
one will repeatedly try to regain it.
Having once experienced the Bliss of Peace,
no one would like to be out of it
or engage himself otherwise.

No activity of any kind affects a
Self-Realized man.
his mind remains ever in eternal Peace.
He will know it to be his real Being,
and thus be liberated even while alive.

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Part 3 - Thus Spake Ramana

The questioner asked again: "But first of all we must find a Guru who can give us sufficient practice and thereby enable us to get rid of these gunas, mustn't we?"

"If we have the earnestness to get rid of these qualities can we not find a Guru? We must first have the desire to get rid of them. When once we have this the Guru will himself come, searching for us; or, he will somehow manage to draw us to himself. The Guru will always be on the alert and keep an eye on us; Iswara himself will show us the Guru. Who else will look after the welfare of the children except the father himself? He is always with us, surrounding us. He protects us, as a bird protects its eggs by hatching them under the shelter of its wings. But we must have whole-hearted faith in Him," said Bhagavan

All bad qualities center around the ego.
When the ego is gone,
Realization results by itself.
There are neither good nor bad
qualities in the Self.
The Self is free from all qualities.
Qualities pertain to the mind only.
The Self is beyond quality.
If there is unity,
there will also be duality.
The numeral one gives rise to other numbers.
The truth is neither one nor two.
It is as it is.

Realization is already there.
The state free from thoughts
is the only real state.
There is no such action as Realization.
Is there anyone
who is not realizing the Self?
Does anyone deny his own existence?
Speaking of Realization,
it implies two selves.
The one to realize--
the other to be realized.
What is not already realized
is sought to be realized.
Once we admit our existence,
how is it that we do not know our Self?

If we look on the Self as the ego
then we become the ego.
if as the mind we become the mind,
if as the body we become the body.
It is the thought which builds up sheaths
in so many ways.
The shadow on the water
is found to be shaking.
Can anyone stop this shaking?
If it would cease to shake
you would not know the water
but only the light.
Similarly, take no notice of the ego
and its activities
but see only the light behind it.
The ego is the "I" thought.
The true "I" is the Self.

Devotee: From where do these objects arise?

Bhagavan: Just from where you rise. Know the subject first and then question about the object.

Devotee: It is only one aspect of the question.

Bhagavan: The subject comprehends the object also. That one aspect is an all-comprehensive aspect. See yourself first and then see the objects. What is not in you cannot appear outside.

Devotee: I am not satisfied.

Bhagavan: Satisfaction can be only when you reach the source. Otherwise restlessness exists.

Source; Talk 199 (19th May 1936)

M.: Make effort. Just as water is got by boring a well, so also you realise
the Self by investigation.

D.: Yes. But some find water readily and others with difficulty.

M.: But you already see the moisture on the surface. You are hazily aware of
the Self. Pursue it. When the effort ceases the Self shines forth.

D.: How to train the mind to look within?

M.: By practice. The mind is the intelligent phase leading to its own
destruction, for Self to manifest.

Even the ignorant man
sees only the Self
when he sees objects.
But he is confused
and identifies the Self with the object;
the body and the senses,
and plays in the world.
Subject and object --
all merge in the Self.
There is no seer or objects seen.
The seer and the seen are the Self.
There are not many selves, either,
All are only one Self.

Look at your Self or Atma, rather than anywhere else. The eyes may be kept open or closed - it is immaterial. There is only one I, whether you spell it 'I' or 'eye'. There is no point in opening or closing the eyes.Attention must be focussed on the inner 'I'.

You are not an eye that can be opened or closed. You may close or open the eyes according to your liking or inclination. It is immaterial and not important. You will cease to think of the world when you think of the Self. If you are in a room and close your eyes and do not look out, it is immaterial whether you close the windows of keep them open. (The body is the room, the eyes are the window.) Looking at ajna chakra, etc., is not necessary in this method. It may help in keeping the mind from going out towards external objects.Concentrate on the Self without which there are no chakras. They do not exist without you. You are all of them. All centres (chakras) are in the Heart.

The Heart is not the anahata chakra, which is in the spinal cord.
Heart is 'I'.

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Part 2 - Thus Spake Ramana

You see how you are acting
without your intention to do so?
The Gita says that a man
cannot remain without acting.
The purpose of one's birth will be fulfilled
whether you will it or not.
Let the purpose fulfill itself.

Everyone is the Self
by his own experience.
Still, he is not aware,
he identifies the Self with the body
and feels miserable.
This is the greatest of all mysteries.
One is the Self!
Why not abide as the Self
and be done with miseries?

In dreamless sleep, there is no world,
no ego, and no unhappiness,
but the Self remains.
In the waking state, there are all these;
yet, there is the Self.
One has only to remove the transitory happenings
in order to realize the ever-present
beatitude of the Self.
Your nature is Bliss.
Find that on which
all the rest is superimposed
and you then remain
as the pure Self.

So long as the ego is not dead, humility alone is good for a sadhaka spiritual seeker); acceptance of obeisance from others is not good.

The Sage whose ego is extinct
is freed
from the three seeming states
of waking,
dreaming
and deep sleep.

All that remains for such a Sage
Is turiya,
the most noble state,
First, last and all-transcendent

Be what you are.
There is nothing to come down
or become manifest.
All that is needed is to lose the ego.
That which is is always there.
The blank is seen by you.
You are there to see the blank.
What are you waiting for?
The thought, 'I have not seen,'
the expectation to see,
and the desire of getting something
are all the working of the ego.
You have fallen into the snares of the ego.
The ego says all that and not you.
Be yourself and nothing more!

As the restlessness of the elephant's trunk is checked by a chain held (by the elephant), so the restlessness of the mind is corrected by meditation on (spiritual) Names or Forms.

He who engages in investigation
starts holding on to himself,
asking. "Who am I?"
and the Self becomes clear to him.

Even now you are the Self.
But you are confounding this consciousness
[or ego] with the absolute consciousness.
This false identification is due to ignorance.
Ignorance disappears along with ego.
Killing the ego is the only thing to accomplish.
Realization is already there.
No attempt is needed to attain realization.
For it is nothing external.
Nothing new.
It is always and everywhere;
Here and now.

First surrender the self
and then harmonize the conflicts.

First give yourself up
and then think of the rest.

Reincarnation can be real
if you are incarnate now.
Even now you are not born.

The ego is the root of all diseases.
Give it up. There will be no disease.

There is only one Master
and that is the Self.

What is silence? It is eternal eloquence.

Each seeker after God should be allowed to go his own
way, the way for which he alone may be built (meant). It will
not do to convert him to another path by violence. The Guru
will go with the disciple in his own path and then gradually
turn him onto the Supreme path at the ripe moment. Suppose
a car is going at top speed. To stop it at once or to turn it at
once would be attended with disastrous consequences. - Bhagavan

Grace is in the beginning, middle, and end.
Grace is the Self. Because of false identification
of the Self with the body,
the Guru is thought to be with body,
but from the Guru's point of view,
the Guru is only the Self.
The Self is one only.
He states that the Self alone is.
Is not then the Self your Guru?
Where else would grace come from?
It is from the Self alone.
All of these doubts arise
because of the wrong outlook and
consequent expectation of things
external to oneself.
Nothing is external to the Self.

There is no greater mystery
than the following.
Ourselves being the Reality,
we seek to gain reality.
We think there is something hiding our Reality,
and that it must be destroyed,
before the Reality is gained.
That is ridiculous.
A day will dawn
when you will yourself laugh at your past efforts.
That which will be on the day you laugh,
is also here and now.

In Nagamma, letters, entry 9th February 1947 the talk was on getting rid of the gunas (qualities of the mind). Then it turns on the Guru.

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