PROBLEMS AND EXPERIENCES

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Problems and experiences-Part I

 

Physical pain and discomfort, mental anarchy, emotional fluctuations

and occasional interludes of blissful peace are frequently

experienced as by-products of spiritual practice...they tend to be

of great interest to the people who experience them. They are

usually interpreted as either milestones or obstacles on the road to

the Self and, depending on which interpretation is favoured, great

efforts are expended in trying to prolong or eliminate them.

 

Sri Ramana tended to play down the importance of most spiritual

experiences and if they were reported to him he would usually stress

that it was more important to be aware of the experiencer than to

indulge in or analyse the experience. He would sometimes digress

into explanations about the causes of the experiences and he

occasionally evaluated them as being either beneficial or

detrimental to Self-awareness, but on the whole he tended to

discourage interest in them. He was more forthcoming when devotees

asked his advice about problems they had encountered during

meditation. He would listen patiently to their complaints, offer

constructive solutions to their problems and, if he felt that it was

appropriate, try to show them that from the standpoint of the Self

all problems were non-existent.

 

Q: One has at times vivid flashes of a consciousness whose centre is

outside the normal self, and which seems to be all-inclusive.

Without concerning ourselves with philosophical concepts, how would

Bhagavan advise me to work towards getting, retaining and extending

those rare flashes? Does the abhyasa [spiritual practice] necessary

for such experiences involve retirement?

 

A: You say `outside': for whom is the inside or outside? These can

exist only so long as there are the subject and object. For whom are

these two again? On investigation you will find that they resolve

into the subject only. See who is the subject and this enquiry will

lead you to pure consciousness beyond the subject. You say `normal

self': the normal self is the mind. The mind is with limitations.

But pure consciousness is beyond limitations, and is reached by

investigation into the `I'. You say `getting': the Self is always

there. You have only to remove the veil obstructing the revelation

of the Self. You say `retaining': once you realize the Self, it

becomes your direct and immediate experience. It is never lost. You

say `extending': there is no extending of the Self, for it is as it

always is, without contraction or expansion. You say `retirement':

abiding in the Self is solitude, because there is nothing alien to

the Self. Retirement must be from one place or state to another.

There is neither the one nor the other apart from the Self. All

being the Self, retirement is impossible and inconceivable. You say

`abhyasa': abhyasa is only the prevention of disturbance to the

inherent peace. You are always in your natural state whether you

make abhyasa or not. To remain as you are, without question or

doubt, is your natural state.

 

Q: There are times when persons and things take on a vague, almost

transparent form as in a dream. One ceases to observe them from

outside, but one is passively conscious of their existence, while

not actively conscious of any kind of selfhood. There is a deep

quietness in the mind. Is the mind at such times ready to dive into

the Self ? Or is this condition unhealthy, the result of self-

hypnotism? Should it be encouraged as a means of getting temporary

peace?

 

A: There is consciousness along with quietness in the mind. This is

exactly the state to be aimed at. The fact that the question has

been framed on this point, without realising that it is the Self,

shows that the state is not steady but casual. The word `diving' is

only appropriate if one has to turn the mind within in order to

avoid being distracted by the outgoing tendencies of the mind. At

such times one has to dive below the surface of these external

phenomena. But when deep quietness prevails without obstructing the

consciousness, where is the need to dive ?

 

Q: When I meditate I feel a certain bliss at times. On such

occasions, should I ask myself `Who is it that experiences this

bliss?'

 

A: If it is the real bliss of the Self that is experienced, that is,

if the mind has really merged in the Self, such a doubt will not

arise at all. The question itself shows real bliss was not reached.

All doubts will cease only when the doubter and his source have been

found. There is no use removing doubts one by one. If we clear one

doubt, another doubt will arise and there will be no end of doubts.

But if, by seeking the source of the doubter, the doubter is found

to be really non-existent, then all doubts will cease.

 

Q: Sometimes I hear internal sounds. What should I do when such

things happen?

 

A: Whatever may happen, keep up the enquiry into the self, asking

`Who hears these sounds?' till the reality is reached.

 

Q: Sometimes, while in meditation, I feel blissful and tears come to

my eyes. At other times I do not have them. Why is that?

 

A: Bliss is a thing which is always there and is not something which

comes and goes. That which comes and goes is a creation of the mind

and you should not worry about it.

 

Q: The bliss causes a physical thrill in the body, but when it

disappears I feel dejected and desire to have the experience over

again. Why?

 

A: You admit that you were there both when the blissful feeling was

experienced and when it was not. If you realize that `you' properly,

those experiences will be of no account.

 

Q: For realising that bliss, there must be something to catch hold

of, mustn't there?

 

A: There must be a duality if you are to catch hold of something

else, but what is is only the one Self, not a duality. Hence, who is

to catch hold of whom? And what is the thing to be caught?

 

NOTE: TAKEN FROM "BE AS YOU ARE", EDITED BY DAVID GODMAN, PAGES 170

TO 178