Why does not Bhagavan go about and preach?

[Guest guest]

Question :

Why does not Bhagavan go about and preach the truth

to the people at large ?

 

Answer :

How do you know I am not doing it? Does preaching consist

in mounting a platform and haranguing the people around ?

Preaching is simple communication of knowledge ; it can

really be done in silence only.

 

What do you think of a man who listens to a sermon for an hour

and goes away without having been impressed by it so as

to change his life ? Compare him with another , who sits in

a holy presence and goes away after some time with his outlook

on life totally changed. Which is the better , to preach loudly

without effect or to sit silently sending out inner force ?

Again , how does speech arise ? First there is abstract

knowledge. Out of this arises the ego, which in turn gives rise

to thought, and thought to the spoken word.

So the word is the great-grandsome of the original source .

If the word can produce an effect , judge for yourself,

how much more powerful must be the preaching through silence.

 

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BE AS YOU ARE , The Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi

Edited by David Godman

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