Part4 -- Talks of Ramana Maharshi

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“Look how every person believes in his own existence. Does he look in the mirror to see his being? His awareness of his existence gives him the assurance of it. But he compares it with the body, etc. Why should he do that? Is he aware of his body in sleep? He is not, yet he does not cease to exist while in sleep. He has therefore only to be aware of his being and this will be evident to him.” -- Talks 363

“You speak of the vision of Siva. Vision is always of an object, which implies the existence of the subject.Whatever appears must also disappear. A vision can never be eternal. But Siva is eternal. He is the consciousness. He is the Self.“TO BE is to realise — hence I AM THAT I AM. I AM is Siva. Nothing can be without Him. Therefore enquire ‘Who am I?’ Sink deep and abide as the Self. That is Siva as BEing.Do not expect to have visions of Him.” -- Talks 450

“There is no being who is not conscious and therefore who is not Siva. Not only he is Siva but also all else. Yet he thinks in sheer ignorance that he sees the universe in diverse forms. But if he sees the Self he will not be aware of his separateness from the universe. Siva is then seen as the universe. But (unfortunately) the seer does not see the background. Think of the man who sees only the cloth and not the cotton of which it is made, or the pictures and not the screen; or the letters which he reads and not the paper on which they are written. Siva is both the Being assuming the forms in the universe as well as the consciousness that sees them. That is to say Siva is the background underlying both the subject and the object — Siva in repose and Siva in action. Whatever it is said to be, it is only Consciousness, whether in repose or in action.” -- Talks 450

“The Cosmic Mind, being not limited by the ego, has nothing separate from itself and is therefore only aware. This is what the Bible means by ‘I am that I Am’.” -- Talks 187

“There is the peaceful mind which is the supreme. When the same becomes restless, it is afflicted by thoughts. Mind is only the dynamic power (shakti) of the Self. There is no difference between matter and spirit. Modern science admits that all matter is energy. Energy is power or force (shakti). Therefore all are resolved in Siva and Shakti, i.e., the Self and the Mind.” -- Talks 268

“Should I meditate on the right chest in order to meditate on the Heart?” Bhagavan: “The Heart is not physical. Meditation should not be on the right or the left. It should be on the Self. Everyone knows “I am”. It is neither within nor without, neither on the right nor the left: ‘I am’ — that is all.” -- Talks 273

“The silence of solitude is forced. Restrained speech in society amounts to silence. For the man then controls his speech. If the speaker is engaged otherwise speech becomes restrained. Introverted mind is otherwise active and is not anxious to speak.” -- Talks 60

Bhagavan says that going to places of solitude for the purpose of cultivating the habit of silence is not of much value; for it is a forced state for lack of company; whereas control of the tongue in society is true silence, and thus true self-control. 

“Mouna as a disciplinary measure is meant for limiting the mental activities due to speech. If the mind is otherwise controlled disciplinary mouna is unnecessary. For mouna becomes natural.” -- Talks 60Note: Why do sadhakas cultivate silence? In order to silence the mind. But this is holding the stick by the wrong end; for it is not speech that causes thinking, but thinking that causes speaking. Conversation, no doubt, provokes thinking and therefore talking, but if the mind has not been brought under control, even if there is no one to talk to, the mind will talk to itself; memory in particular will surge up and will fill the mind with thoughts of the dead past. The mind in solitude will then be in a far worse condition than in society. Memory is a more dangerous companion than the society of sattvic friends, who may sometimes talk on irrelevant matters, but this may prove a help to the sadhaka,in that it serves to break his brooding over a chain of unhappy events which are dead and gone, and whose resuscitation may depress the mind, which he endeavours to keep cheerful for the sake of a successful sadhana.

.... To Be Contined-- Om namo Bhagavate Sri RamanayaPrasanth Jalasutram