Ursula Muller - Sadhana with Bhagavan Ramana

March 25, 2005

Sadhana with Bhagavan Ramana

by Ursulla Muller taken from RAMANA SMRTI SOUVENIR ------------------------

In the night of December 21-22, 1964, I was told by the Lord Himself:

Within you I fulfill my word ; Behold I am creating all anew. These words arose out of the boundless depth of blissful silence and faded away again leaving naught but an unlimited expanse . Throughout the night these words were repeated at long intervals until the young day was breaking. At that time I had been meditating already for about six years in accordance with Sri Ramana's teaching. All the same, and especially at first, I felt not mature for receiving such a communication from the one Father of all , and there was none to whom I would have dared speak of this new spiritual experience. Yet , in spite of the hardship of those days, I was always aware of the gracious hand of Sri Ramana whose glorious renewal of ancient lore had made me tread the path to Sri Arunachala siva. Thus, I was able to realize in course of time that the Lord alone is the doer, within and without, while I was to stay silent to allow the divine in me to grow and the poor ego to decrease.

During my sadhana there was always Bhagavan Ramana's guidance. He had for instance advised me to stop reading unnecessary things, at times with an apparent sense of humour, as can be deducted form the following incident : Once after meditation late in the evening I had gone to bed. In order to improve my knowledge of the English language I often would read some pages in English before sleeping. That evening I was going to have a short look into a copy of the American Reader's Digest. However, being tired I was not able to read really but was staring at some text in the booklet without taking in its contents. Suddenly I felt Bhagavan Ramana looking in smiling surprise over my shoulder at the text I was reading. Only now I cognized the heading of the article I was staring at, which ran : "Famous Recipes of German Housewives", a topic I for sure would not have selected consciously from the table of contents. It was now my turn to laugh silently at myself and to settle the mistaken enterprise by switching off the light.

Again there was Sri Ramana's loving guidance when I was physically and spiritually exhausted on account of having undertaken a new task without considering

beforehand carefully enough my daily-meditation practice as well as my demanding part time office job. Having started Hatha Yoga at the blessed Yoga School of Mr.

Selvarajan Yesudian and Mrs. E. Haich, Ramana Maharshi wanted me definitely to go on with my daily Hatha Yoga exercises despite my fatigue, as I learned from the

following incident :

One early morning, while sitting one the carpet ready to start my exercises, yet feeling tired, I suddenly found myself kneeling at the feet of Sri Ramana touching them

with my forehead in utter devotion. Immediately I knew in my heart that I was to continue my regular exercises without considering my body's condition. I have been

following Bhagavan's advice strictly until this day and am much better now.

On the other hand , when I was too fatigued for sitting in padmasana posture for meditation , Bhagavan taught me that silence alone is important and not the physical

posture observed along with it. Subsequently I learnt to sit comfortably in an easy-chair during meditation time. This has been a great help for my continuos sadhana

during the past years , and I gratefully bow down at Sri Ramana's holy feet :

" Kinder far art though than one's own mother , is this

then Thy all-kindness , Oh Arunachala?"

[Marital Garland of Letters , verse 6]

My newest experience of Sri Ramana's unceasing grace is only some days old. I had to stay at home on account of a sudden, serious cold, and felt miserable, supposing

that my Hatha Yoga prctice might be too poor. Two or three days later, still in bed, I happened to take in hand The Mountain Path copy of last April and to open it on page 117 where my eyes fell exactly on the passage: "Bhagavan's feet are ever over your head."

A wave of bliss ran through my mind and body and a little later I could think of going on with my sadhana again.

May Sri Ramana's grace be with all of us!