Spiritual Stories of Bhagavan Ramana - Silence Is the True Upadesa

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Dakshinamurti

 

" The Self alone, the Sole Reality, Exists for ever.

If, of yore, the First of Teachers revealed it through unbroken silence, say, who can reveal it in spoken words?" ---- Ekatma Panchakam,Sri Bhagavan.

 

Sri Bhagavan once told the story that follows to Sri Muruganar. This brings out the profound significance of the Supreme Silence in which the First Master, Sri Dakshinamurti, is established.

 

Sri Bhagavan said,

"When the four elderly 'Sanakadi rishis' first beheld the 16-year-old Sri Dakshinamurthi sitting under the banyan tree, they were at once attracted by him, and understood that he was the real 'Sadguru'. They approached him,did three 'pradakshinas' around him,prostrated and sat at his feet and began to ask shrewd and pertinent questions about the nature of reality and the means of attaining it.

Because of the great compassion and fatherly love('vatsalya') which he felt for his aged disciples,the young Sri Dakshinamurti was overjoyed to see their earnestness,wisdom and maturity,and gave apt replies to each of their questions.But, as he answered each consecutive question, more doubts arose in their minds and they asked more questions. Thus, they continued to question Sri Dakshinamurti for a whole year, and he continued to clear their doubts through his compassionate answers.

Finally, however, Sri Dakshinamurthi understood that if he continued answering their questions, more doubts would arise in their minds and their ignorance('ajnana') would never end. Therefore, suppressing even the feeling of compassion and fatherly love which was welling up within him, he immersed himself into Supreme Silence.

Because of their great maturity(which had ripened to perfection through their year-long association with the Sadguru), as soon as Sri Dakshinamurthi assumed Silence, they, too, automatically merged into Supreme Silence, the true state of the Self."

[ Wonderstruck by this story of Sri Bhagavan, Sri Muruganar remarked that in no book was it mentioned that Sri Dakshinamurthi ever spoke anything.

"But this is what actually happened," replied Sri Bhagavan curtly.

From the authoritative way in which Sri Bhagavan replied and from the clear and descriptive way in which he narrated the story, Sri Muruganar understood that Sri Bhagavan was none other than Sri Dakshinamurthi himself ! ]

-------------from 'Spiritual Stories as told by Sri Ramana Maharshi', compiled by a devotee, Joan Greenblatt, published by Sri Ramanasramam, Tiruvannamalai.

(Source - Tattvaloka, December 2005)

 

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