Ramana again 4

[Guest guest]

Bhagavan begins the essay with a statement about the nature of

happiness and the means by which it can be attained or discovered.

 

* 'Jnana' is " I " and the nature of Jnana is 'Sat -Chit -Ananda'

[being -consciousness -bliss]

 

* " .... the perception of one's real nature ....... will not be

obtained unless the perception of the world ...... ceases "

 

* " ...... the mind projects the world from within itself and later

reabsorbs it into itself "

 

* The place from which the " I " thought arises is known

as 'hridayam', the birth place of the mind.

 

* The mind will only subside by means of the enquiry 'Who am I ?'.

 

Sri Ramana Maharshi - Who am I ?

 

--------------(continued from

yesterday's post )

 

Question: What is the means for constantly holding on to the

thought 'Who am I ?' And what is 'jnana drishti' ?

 

If other thoughts arise, one should, without attempting to

complete them, enquire, 'To whom did they occur?' What does it

matter if ever so many thoughts arise? At the very moment that each

thought rises, if one vigilantly enquires 'To whom did this appear?'

it will be known ' To me '. If one then enquires 'Who am I?' the

mind will turn back to its source and the thought that had arisen

will also subside. By repeatedly practicing in this way, the mind

will increasingly acquire the power to abide at its source. When the

mind, which is subtle, is externalised via the brain and the sense

organs, names and forms, which are material, appear. When it abides

in the Heart, names and forms disappear. Keeping the mind in the

Heart, not allowing it to go out, is called 'facing the Self'

or 'facing inwards'. Allowing it to go out from the Heart is

termed 'facing outwards'. When the mind abides in the Heart in this

way, the 'I', the root of all thoughts, [vanishes]. Having vanished,

the ever-existing Self alone will shine. The state where not even

the slightest trace of the thought 'I' remains is alone ' swarupa '

[ one's real nature ]. This alone is called 'mauna' [silence]. Being

still in this way can alone be called 'jnana drishti' [seeing

through true knowledge]. Making the mind subside into the Self

is 'being still'. On the otherhand, knowing the thoughts of others,

knowing the three times [past present and future] and knowing events

in distant places - these can never be 'jnana drishti'.

 

 

( ..... to be continued )

( Notes of Sri. David Godman :

The word 'swarupa' is another key word in the text. It

means 'one's real nature' or one's real form'. Each time the

phrase 'one's real nature' appears in this text, it is a translation

of 'swarupa'. Bhagavan's repeated use of the word as a synonym for

the Self indicates that the Self is not something that is reached or

attained. Rather, it is what one really is, and what one always has

been.

'Mauna is another of the synonyms Bhagavan used to describe

the Self:

 

Q: What is 'mauna' [silence]?

Bhagavan: That state which transcends speech and thought is

mauna........ That which is, is 'mauna'. Sages say that the state in

which the thought 'I' does not rise even in the least, alone

is 'swarupa', which means 'mauna'. That silent Self is alone God ....

 

In 'jnana', the state of Self-knowledge or Self-realisation,

there is no one who sees, nor are there objects that are seen. There

is only seeing. The seeing that takes place in this state,

called 'jnana drishti', is both true seeing and true knowing. It is

therefore called 'seeing through true knowledge'.

In 'Day by Day with Bhagavan(17.10.46)' Bhagavan points out

that this seeing is really being and should not be confused with or

limited to the sensory activity that goes under the same name: 'You

are the Self. You exist always. Nothing more can be predicated of

the Self than it exists. Seeing God or the Self is only being God or

your Self. Seeing is being.' ).