Behind My Hand

Q: How can the mind be made to go? M: No attempt should be made to destroy it. To think or wish is in itself a thought. If the thinker is sought, the thoughts will disappear. Q: Will they disappear by themselves? It seems so difficult. M: They will disappear because they are unreal. The idea of difficulty is itself an obstacle to realization. It must be overcome. To remain as the Self is not difficult. This thought of difficulty is the chief obstacle. A little practice in discovering the source of ‘I’ will make you think differently. Absolute freedom from thoughts is the state conducive to such recognition of the Self. Mind is but an aggregate of thoughts. Q: I begin to ask myself ‘Who am I?’ and eliminate the body as not ‘I’, the prana as not ‘I’, the mind as not ‘I’ and I am not able to proceed further. M: Well, that is as far as the intellect goes. Your process is only intellectual. Indeed all the scriptures mention the process only to guide the seeker to know the truth. T

It is the universe in its diversity which is generally spoken of as reality. The pairs of opposites (dvandvas) vie for our attention. Good/bad, hot/cold, rich/poor, spiritual/material etc., we give our attention to all of these in order to make judgements on their relative merits. They are the all important opposites. All important because without them the universe as we 'know' it would collapse into Unity. The task is simple. There is no mystery. Ramana Maharshi appeals to us to sacrifice everything for Truth. It is not that the mind of the jnani (Sage) and the mind of the ajnani (one who 'believes' enlightenment has yet to come) are different. This is simply thought. The sum and substance of Ramana Maharshi's enquiry (vichara) "Who am I?" is "...to remain still." The wrong identification of Self with body and senses etc. is solved with this enquiry. This state of equilibrium is not unknown to us. To think it is, is again just thought. sam

In verse 2 of his Sanskrit work, Sri Ramanaparavidyopanisad (The Teaching of Supreme Science), K. Lakshmana Sarma refers to "the natural state of the real Self" and equates it with right awareness (v. 2). In Talk 17, 24th January, 1935, Ramana Maharshi says that "the ever-present state is the natural state sahaja ."  Sri Sarma further explains that the sahaja or natural state has been described, previously, in Upanishads such as Mandukya, where it is revealed as the firm conviction, in one's core essence, which is beyond knowledge or ignorance and without definable characteristics. In essence, this sahaja state is the absence of mindstuff ( vikalpas ), i.e. the ever-present witness centred in the here and now.

I first came across Ramana Maharshi, in 1968, mentioned in a book called "Teach Yourself Yoga." The author was James Hewitt. I still have the book. It is an excellent introduction to Yoga and continues to surpass other yoga books for beginners. Here is the short passage, from the book, which introduces the teaching of Sri Ramana Maharshi –– ""Pursue the enquiry 'Who am I?' relentlessly," advised an Indian guru, Sri Ramana Maharshi. "Analyse your entire personality. Try to find out where the I-thought begins. Go on with your meditations. Keep turning your attention within. One day the wheel of thought will slow down and an intuition will mysteriously arise. Follow that intuition, let your thinking stop and it will eventually lead you to the goal."" (p. 121) A wonderfully succinct passage. This 1968 edition of Teach Yourself Yoga also contained a rather useful bibliography which led to further research via Paul Brunton's The Quest of t

External samadhi is holding on to the Reality while witnessing the world, without reacting to it from within. There is the stillness of a waveless ocean. The internal samadhi involves loss of body- consciousness. - Ramana Maharshi in Talks #406

From Talk 25 - "If the enquiry into the ultimate cause of manifestation of mind itself is pushed on, mind will be found to be only the manifestation of the Real which is otherwise called Atman or Brahman."  - Ramana Maharshi

Who Am I? is the question.