Why Bhagavan Ramana is different from other gurus/Jnanis?

Credit for gathering all these reasons goes to Senior Member Subramanium.R of arunachala ramana forum

1st Reason

Bhagavan Ramana came to Tiruvannamalai on 1st Sept 1896, and from that time, He never went out of Tiruvannamalai. He spent first three years in and around Arunachaleswara Temple, then at Vazhai Thottam, then at Guru Murtam, came to Virupaksha Cave, stayed here for 17 years, then to Skandasramam, stayed there for 6 years,and finally to the foothills. In His days, He might have gone to the Temple, three or four times. Once, at the insistence of Kovilur Math, He travelled in a bullock cart, to go the Math, to give a short discourse and eat and come back. He went to the houses in Big street, for bhiksha. He never had summer resort!

But what about other gurus? Sri Shirdi Baba, of course, never went out of Masjid or Shirdi. SRK rarely went out of Dakshineswar, and he went to Kolkota city only to see some devotees like Mathur Babu, Girsh Ghosh and then to some theatres for dramas. Vivekananda went to UK and US twice, since he was destined for a different mission.

But how about others? JK used luxurious cars, flights and air conditoned villas. Osho, had 300 limousines parked outside his Oregon villa.

JK needed a December,chill climate in Madras, for him to give his lectures! He needed an airconditoned villa for him to stay in Vasanta Vihar, in Adyar, Madras.
JK left behind him a lot of controversy, including his 'questionable' relationship with his student's wife, Ms. Rosalind Rajagopal.An authentic article came after his demise in news papers.

2nd Reason

Sadhus generally are expected to be considerate towards animals and birds. But Bhagavan Ramana's love for these beings is unique.

Apart from Cow Lakshmi, He was considerate towards all animals and birds even during His days in Hill. The deer and the crow were also conferred liberation and their bodies were interred inside the Asramam. Squirrels and peacocks were allowed to roam around the Hall and squirrels were allowed to build their nests inside the Hall. Generally the Maths rear cows. This practice is not only for go- pooja ceremonies but also for obtaining milk, which is the main food for sadhus. But no one has taken care of peacocks, deer crow and squirrels in their Maths. There is no record of these pontiffs conferring liberation to the cows. They never definitely entertained tigers and cheetahs into their Maths/Ashrams.

3rd Reason

Bhagavan Ramana spent most of His life time in this world, in silence. The silence is not deliberate but He just felt that there was no need for speeches, unless these are called for.His vocal chords became deficient years in the Hills, because, He was not speaking. He started speaking only after Virupaksha Cave days. Pazhaniswami made Him to talk, by way of explaining some Tamil scriptures brought from the local library.Even in Skandasramam, and also in the days at the Asramam, He measured His speech.His speeches for His 54 years of Tiruvannamalai life, it they had been recorded, would run for less than 54 hours!

4th Reason

Bhagavan Ramana, from the time of His arrival in Tiruvannamalai,was wearing only a white codpiece.He used white khadi towels for drying after bath.He never wore ochre codpieces or used ochre towels.Bhagavan Ramana has always said: "Renuniciation of the ego is the most important thing. Why then, ochre robes and all that?" His celibate disciples like Kunju Swami, Viswantha Swami,Sri Sadhu Om wore only white waist towels.Ochre robes are not syna chonon of sannyasa. But this practice is different with others.

Sri Shirdi Sai Baba wore a tattered kupni in his lifetime.SRK was wearing simple Bengali type dhoti.

Sankara Maths insist on ochre robes for gurus and the junior gurus.In SRK Math, the entrant-sannyasis are given only white dress for about 7 years and then only the ochre robes are permitted. In Vaishanva and Madhwa maths the pontiffs and junior jeers wear ochre robes. In Saiva Siddhanta Maths, the pontiffs wear ochre robes. Saint Manikkavachagar and Tiru Navukkarasar wore ochre robes. Sri Sundaramoorthy and Tiru Jnanasambandhar wore white towels or full fledged dhotis and upper clothes.

5th Reason

As regards food, Bhagavan Ramana has told even as early as 1901-02, in Who am I? : Sattvic food in moderate quantities, will be an aid to atma vichara. As a rule, the Asramam right from Bhagavan's pre-Maha Nirvana days, are serving only vegetarian food. Of course, onion is not a taboo, as Bhagavan Himself has said it.

Sri Shirdi Baba did not encourage to any food restriction.He was himself eating meat.SRK Maths in Kolkata, I am not sure, are permitting fish as per Bengali practice.Sri Vaisnava gurus and Madhva sampradaya gurus are permitting only vegetarian food and that too without onion and garlic.

Shirdi Sai Baba used to have hookah and so also Sri Rama Krishna and Swami Vivekananda.

Bhagavan Ramana, was altogether different.He used to have some betal leaves and nuts, for some time, more for digestion and not for pleasure.Even that habit got stopped once when an attendant failed to bring it after lunch.It was a nimitta to stop that habit.Gurram Venkata Subbaramaiah has composed a Telugu song titled Thamboola
Vaibhavam on that incident!

He Himself took interest in kitchen work for some years in the present Asramam. But, He used to eat only by mixing everything in one lump. But He took care of others' food. The first question, that He would ask the visitors was: Had you food? If it was not, the visitors were asked to go to the kitchen to take breakfast or lunch. Again, He insisted that the sadhus and beggars should be fed first and that too the same type of food that others would eat.Today, the sadhus are fed around 11 am in the morning, even before others adjourn to the dining hall. This practice is not there anywhere else.

In Sankara Maths, food is given daily. But only for selected few and not for all. In Sri Ramakrishna Math, they again feed selected few only.On festival days, SRK Math distributes Prasadams in leaf cup for everyone.In Dharmasthala, in South
Kannada district, in the temple of Manjunathaswamy, the food is served to everyone, if they go at lunch time.The sadhus and beggars are served afterwards.

6th Reason

After realization,Buddha established a religion,Sankara wrote Brahmasutra Bhashyam, and Christ went around meeting people in Sinai Desert.But Bhagavan Ramana just remained in the Self.He is the Jnani who swallowed a mountain of emotions, words, tours,and preaching.

7th Reason

His Self realization was sudden.He has Himself said that there was no element of time in that. Biographers have written that it took about 15 to 20 minutes for Him.

8th Reason

He had never gone through any scriptures.Whatever little He had read before Self Realization, were devotional poems and stories, and not on advaita per se.

9th Reason

He never knew the word Brahman, at the time when He realized the Self.

10th Reason

He kept mum and avoided eating, not as a "tapas". He just dwelt in the bliss of Self, with the result He had no liking to speak or eat! Even after nature calls, in the early years, He had, on many occasions no washing!

11th Reason

All that He read later in Tiruvannamalai, was for the sake of others, for clarifying certain points or as in the case of Pazhaniswami, He read them because Pazhaniswami could not read Tamil!

12th Reason

All that He wrote, perhaps with the exception of Arunachala Patigam and Arunachala Ashtakam, was for the sake of others.

13th Reason

He never wore ochre robes.

14th Reason

His teaching, if at all you call it as teaching, was consistently on self enquiry. For a few people who could not go to self enquiry directly, He advised them simple mantras like Siva..Siva...Rama..Rama.

15th Reason

He died a death after an incurable disease, with all the tribulations, as anyone else. He only expresssed a very little pain at the final period,say, one month.

16th Reason

He gave liberation to His mother, which even Sankara did not do.


O Bhagavan Ramana, how different were You!
How different are You!

I bow to Bhagavan Ramana,
The best among the bipeds,
I bow to His curved feet!