Guest guest Posted April 24, 2005 Report Share Posted April 24, 2005 Q: Is solitude necessary for vichara? A: There is solitude everywhere. The individual is solitary always. His business is to find it out within, not to seek it outside himself. Solitude is in the mind of man. One might be in the thick of the world and maintain serenity of mind. Such a one is in solitude. Another may stay in a forest, but still be unable to control his mind. Such a man cannot be said to be in solitude. Solitude is a function of the mind. A man attached to desires cannot get solitude wherever he may be, whereas a detached man is always in solitude. Q: So then, one might be engaged in work and be free from desire and keep up solitude. Is it so? A: Yes. Work performed with attachment is a shackle, whereas work performed with detachment does not affect the doer. One who works like this is, even while working, in solitude. Q: Our everyday life is not compatible with such efforts. A: Why do you think you are active? Take the gross example of your arrival here. You left home in a cart, took a train, alighted at the railway station here, got into a cart there and found yourself in this ashram. When asked, you say that you travelled here all the way from your town. Is it true? Is it not a fact that you remained as you were and there were movements of conveyances all along the way? Just as those movements are confounded with your own, so also are the other activities. They are not your own, they are God's activities. Be As You Are, The Teaching of Sri Ramana Maharshi edited bty David Godman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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