WHERE MUST A DEVOTEE LIVE?

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--- On Wed, 12/8/09, Swami Sadasivananda <sadasivananda wrote:

 

 

WHERE MUST A DEVOTEE LIVE?

 

 

 

If oneself (the ego) rises, all will rise; if oneself subsides, all will subside. To the extent to which we behave humbly, to that extent (and to that extent only) will good result. If one can remain controlling the mind (keeping the mind subsided), one can live anywhere.

Sri Ramana Maharshi in Who am I?

 

 

To know of that which is deemed “Goodâ€, one must surely surrender to It with devotion as well as with knowledge. These two are in essence one, for the secret of Enlightenment is the Love of God! Though many of Bhagavan’s disciples flowered in the fullness of jnana, what strikes us most in them is their total love and bhakti to Bhagavan.

 

Thus the Maharshi, the embodiment of Love, enticed us with His words, with His glance, with His life that shone upon us as a brilliant sun to know:

 

“The eternal, unbroken, natural state of abiding in the Self is jnana. To abide in the Self you must love the Self. Since God is verily the Self, love of the Self is love of God; and that is bhakti. Jnana and bhakti are thus one and the same…. their purpose is to lead you to dhyana, to meditation, which ends in Self-realization.†[1]

 

 

 

 

 

[1] Maharshi’s Gospel I, The Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi. Sri Ramanashramam 2007, p. 17-18.-- Teachings of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi web site: http://www.ramanateaching.orgAsk your question in relation to Bhagavan's teachings, meditation and spirituality at: http://www.ramanateaching.org/faqTo contact Swami Sadasivananda:http://www.ramanateaching.org/contact.html