Category: meditation

These questions were asked by Sri Sivaprakasam Pilli about the year of 1902. Sri pilli was a graduate in philosophy. He was employed in the revenue department. During his official visit to the Virupaksha cave Arunachala hill and met the Maharishi Ramana. He asked some questions to Maharishi Ramana. Answers were given by writing as Maharishi Ramana was in Silence that time.

Question no 9; What is the path of self-inquiry for understanding the nature of the mind?

M.R; That which rises as ‘I’ in this body is the mind. If one inquires as to where in this body the thought ‘I’ rises first.,one would discover that it rises in the heart. That is the place of the mind’s origin. Even if one thinks constantly ‘I–I’, one will be led to that place. Of all the thoughts that arises in the mind,the ‘I’ thought is the first. It is after the rise of this of this, that the other thoughts arise. It is after the appearance of the first personal pronoun that the second and third personal pronouns appear; without the first personal pronoun there will not be the second and third.

Date 6 July 1935. A letter came in Raman Ashram and question was asked about Sleep, Memory and Death with very intelligent . It was logical and it seems very hard to answer.

But when the letter was shown to Maharishi Ramana, he answered very clearly .He said,” when we cannot analysis between false ‘I’ and real ‘I’ then such doubts arise. These adjectives and thoughts come from false ‘I’ not from real ‘I’.

Comments; In deep meditation we can not find thoughts and if there is not thought there will be not a thinker. first thought of ‘I’ come after sleep and we say it Ahembhawa. After this ‘I’ my and me comes into existence. Then World comes which is illusion.

So to find our real nature we have to come back on the source of ‘I’ ego . This is called knot of matter and spirit. We should trace this very place to find Nirvana.

All religious begin with the existence of the individual, the world and God. So long as the ego lasts these three will remain separate. To abide, egoless, in the Self, is the best.–Maharishi Ramana.

Comments; It is very interesting that all religions, describing so many methods, so many holy books like Vedas, other kind of scriptures to define it. Our Ego is the main cause of our ignorance. When any body looses his Ego by meditation, then a new dawn starts in his life. This is our blossoming ,this is Liberation and Nirvana. This is our fulfilment.

These Questions were asked by Sri Sivaprakasam Pilli, about the year of 1902 to Maharishi Ramana. Sri pill was a graduate in philosophy. He was employed in the revenue department that time. During his official visit he went to Virupakasa Cave and met Maharishi Ramana, which was in Silence that time, and answers were given in writing.

Question no; 10. What is the nature of mind?

Answer by M.R; What is called Mind is a wondrous power residing in the Self. It causes all thoughts to arise.Apart from thoughts,there is no such thing as mind. Therefore thought is the nature of mind, Apart from thoughts, there is no independent entity called the world. In deep sleep there are no thoughts, and there is no world. In the states of waking and dream, there are thoughts, and there is a world also.Just as the spider emits the thread of the web out of itself and again withdraws it itself, likewise the mind projects the world out of itself and again resolves it into itself. When the mind comes out of the Self, the world appears.Therefore, when the world appears (to be real) the Self does not appear; and when the Self appears (shines) the world does not appear. When one persistently inquires into the nature of the mind, the mind will end, leaving the Self (as the residue). What is referred to as the Self is the Atman.The mind always exists only in dependence on something gross; It cannot stay alone. It is the mind that is called the subtle body or the soul (Jiva).

Sleep is the first obstacle. The second is the sense objects of the world which divert one’s attention .Third is thoughts in mind about previous experiences with sense objects.The fourth is bliss in that state the thought ‘I am the enjoyer’ is still there . The final state of ‘Samadhi’ is to be reached in which one is the bliss, or one with reality.

Comments; No doubet one has to cross these states so that Self-realization can be found in true meaning.

The more you get fixed in the self the more the thoughts will drop off themselves……. Regulation of life, such as getting up at fixed hours, bathing, doing mantra, Japa, observing the ritual, all this is for people who do not feel drawn to self-inquiry or not capable of it. —-Maharishi Ramana.

Comments; As I also find it true in myself that when you are doing more practice, more time it becomes more calm and peaceful. But in very few practice bliss also becomes lesser and lesser. Here maharishi told us that if you have experience of bliss, you should not worry about other methods of practice, but while practicing if you are unable to do self-inquiry then you should do other methods.

It is like the elephant which wakes up on seeing a lion in its dream. Even as an elephant wakes up at the mere sight of the lion. So is too certain that the disciple wakes up from the deep sleep of ignorance into wakefulness of true knowledge through the guru’s benevolent look of grace.—Maharishi Ramana.

Comments; It is right a holy Saint can do this. As in my case, my Guru St Nikka Sing was a great Saint. I lived with him sometime in my life. I mostly used to go early in the morning to study Bhagvada Gita. We were four, five disciples .One day he said to me that after this class you should come in my room. When everybody was gone, I came back . He said take Bhagvad Gita and read fourteen chapters. I was reading Slokas one by one and he was explaining them. This chapter is about the combination of matter and spirit in a human body. And in 19 teen Solaka it has been defined that when one becomes a witness of the mind, then he will be able to find me (self).

Then my Guru said to me,” Use to look on your mind and you will go straight”. It was January of 1981. He died in 1983. And I forgot his words. This came in my mind in 1986. I started to practice “witnessing” after a dance for exercise. I used to sit for some time it may be one or two hours ‘Observing” my mind. One day I find a new experience of bliss. This was transformation of life as a new dawn started in my life. We cannot explain it in language. It is just like a dew drop fresh life. This is also called eternal life.

Disciple; What is the highest goal of spiritual experience of man.?

Maharishi Ramana; Self-realization.

D. Can a married man realize the self?

Maharishi Ramana; Certainly . Married or unmarried, a man can realize the self. Because that is here and now. If it were not so, but attainable by some effort at any time, and if it were new and had been acquired ,it would not be worth pursuit. Because that is not natural is not permanent either.But what I say is that the Self is here and now.

The marks of a Sadguru are steady abidance in the Self. Looking at all with an equal eye, unshakable courage at all times,in all places and circumstance.—-Maharishi Ramana.

Comments; Abidence in the Self is the main thing. We cannot explain it very well, because who has found the eternal bliss only that can understand it. We can only say it’s a new dawn in life or words like Nirvana, Liberation. But who is looking at all with an equal eye, his unshakable courage in all places and in all circumstances will help us to understand. When mind emerges in the Self by inwardness then anybody can find self-realization.