Bhagawan Sri Ramana Maharshi's teachings

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Hari Om!

 

 

Disciple: What is the nature of the heart?

 

Bhagawan Ramana Maharshi: The sacred Texts describing it say: “Between the two

breasts, below the chest and above the abdomen, there are six organs of

different colours (these are not the same as the charkas). One of them

resembling the bud of a water lily and situated two digits to the right is the

heart. It is inverted and within it is a tiny orifice which is the seat of dense

darkness (ignorance) full of desires. All the psychic nerves (nadis) depend upon

it. It is the abode of the vital forces, the mind and the light (of

consciousness). But although it is described thus, the meaning of the word heart

(hridayam) is the Self (Atman). As it is denoted by the terms existence,

consciousness, bliss eternal and plenum (sat, chit, anandam, nityam, purnam) it

has no differences such as exterior and interior or up and down. That tranquil

state in which all thoughts come to an end is called the state of the Self.

When it is realized as it is, there is no scope for discussions

about its location inside the body or outside.

 

Disciple: Why do thoughts of many objects arise in the mind even when there is

no contact with external objects?

 

Bhagawan Ramana Maharshi: All such thoughts are due to latent tendencies

(purva samskaras). They appear only to the individual consciousness (jiva) which

has forgotten its real nature and become externalized. Whenever particular

things are perceived, the enquiry, “who is it that sees them?” should be made;

they will then disappear at once.

 

Disciple: How do the triple factors (knower, known and the knowledge), which

are absent in deep sleep, Samadhi, etc., manifest themselves in the Self (in the

states of waking and dreaming)?

 

Bhagawan Ramana Maharshi: From the Self there arise in succession:

1) Chidabhasa (reflected consciousness) which is a kind of luminosity;

2) Jiva (the individual consciousness) or the seer or the first concept.

3) Phenomena, that is the world.

 

Disciple: Since the Self is free from the notions of knowledge and ignorance

how can it be said to pervade the entire body in the shape of sentience or to

impart sentience to the senses?

 

Bhagawan Ramana Maharshi: Wise men say that there is a connection between the

source of the various psychic nerves and the Self, that this is the knot of the

heart, that the connection between the sentient and the insentient will exist

until this is cut asunder with the aid of true knowledge, that just as the

subtle and invisible force of electricity travels through wires and does many

wonderful things, so the force of the Self also travels through the psychic

nerves and, pervading the entire body, imparts sentience to the senses, and that

if this knot is cut, the Self will remain as it always is, without any

attributes.

 

Disciple: How can there be a connection between the Self which is pure

knowledge and the triple factors which are relative knowledge?

 

Bhagawan Ramana Maharshi: This is, in a way, like the working of a cinema.

 

In a Cinema Show:

Self

1) The lamp inside (the apparatus) - the Self

 

2) The lens in front of the lamp - The pure (Sattvic) mind close

to the Self.

 

3)The film which is a long series of The stream of latent

tendencies consisting

separate photos - of subtle

thoughts.

 

4)The lens, the light passing through it The mind, the illumination of it

and the

and the lamp, which together form the - Self, which together

form the seer or the

focused light. Jiva.

 

5)The light passing through the lens The light of the

Self emerging from the

and falling on the screen. - mind through

the senses, and falling on

the world.

 

6) The various kinds of pictures The various forms and names

appearing

appearing in the light of the screen. - as the objects perceived in

the light of

the world.

 

7) The mechanism which sets the film - The divine law manifesting the

latent

in motion.

tendencies of the mind.

 

Just as the pictures appear on the screen as long as the film throws the

shadows through the lens, so the phenomenal world will continue to appear to the

individual in the waking and dream states as long as there are latent mental

impressions. Just as the lens magnifies the tiny specks on the film to a huge

size and as a number of pictures are shown in a second, so the mind enlarges the

sprout-like tendencies into tree-like thoughts and shows in a second innumerable

worlds. Again just as there is only the light of the lamp visible when there is

no film, so the Self alone shines without the triple factors when the mental

concepts in the form of tendencies are absent in the states of deep sleep, swoon

and Samadhi. Just as the lamp illumines the lens, etc., while remaining

unaffected, the Self illumines the ego (chidabhasa), etc., while remaining

unaffected.

 

Pranams,

 

Vanaja Ravi Nair

 

 

 

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