Shri RAMANA mAHARISHI ON GURUS....

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In Sidney Cohen's book, Reflections on Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi

(1959, p.96) the question of can the Guru make his disciples realize

the Self, Sri Ramana answers it in this way:

 

"...the Guru does not bring about Self-realisation, but simply

removes the obstacles to it. The Self is always realized. So long as

you seek Self-realisation the Guru is necessary. Guru is the Self.

Take the Guru to be the real Self and yourself the individual. The

disappearance of this sense of duality is removal of ignorance. So

long as duality persists in you the Guru is necessary. Because you

identify yourself with the body, you imagine the Guru to be the body.

You are not the body, nor is the Guru. Your are the Self and so is

he. The knowledge is gained by what you call Self-realisation".

 

In his comments on this Cohen says, "Bhagavan does not recognize the

possibility of transmitting a power to a person to make him realize

the Self. In fact no such power is at all necessary. What is

necessary for the cognition of the Real is not an addition but a

substraction - the removal of the sense of duality with covers the

One consciousness."

 

So from our inquiry into the question of can the Guru enlighten it is

clear that the Guru can awaken one who puts his or her attention on

the Guru. And so the question still remains, "is this a permanent

change", "is the devotee now awakened?" And of course the answer is

NO, the devotee is not awakened, permanently. As Cohen says, "All

that the Guru can do is to help (the disciple) correct (his) false

identification."

 

When asked by a questioner if God does his work through a chosen

person, Maharshi says, "God is in all and works through all. but His

presence is better recognized in purified minds. the pure one

reflects God's actions more clearly than the impure mind."......(p.

105)...the fact is that the Self is never bound and thus there can be

no release".

 

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THIS IS ONE VIEWPOINT. THERE ARE OTHER VIEWPOINTS AS WELL ON THIS

FASCINATING SUBJECT OF GURUS....

 

 

stay tuned....

 

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