WHO AM I - Sri Ramana Maharshi

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WHOAMI?THE TEACHINGSofBHAGAVANSRI RAMANAMAHARSHISRI RAMANASRAMAMTiruvannamalai2010

Sri RamanasramamTiruvannamalaiSeventh Edition - 1948Eighth Edition - 2010 – 10000 copiesCC No.: 1143ISBN: 978-81-8288-113-6Price: Rs.Published byV.S. RamananPresidentSri RamanasramamTiruvannamalai 606 603Tamil Nadu, INDIATel: 91-9244937292 & 91-4175-237200email: ashram@sriramanamaharshi.orgwebsite: www.sriramanamaharshi.orgPrinted bySudarsan Graphics Pvt. Ltd.,Chennai 600 017

IntroductionWho am I? is the title given to aset of questions and answers bearing onSelf-enquiry. The questions were putto Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi bySri M. Sivaprakasam Pillai, about the year1902. Sri Pillai, a graduate in philosophy,was at the time employed in the RevenueDepartment of the South Arcot Collectorate.During his visit to Tiruvannamalai in 1902on official work, he went to Virupaksha Caveon Arunachala Hill and met the Maharshi3

there. He sought from him spiritual guidanceand solicited answers to questions relating toSelf-enquiry. As Bhagavan was not talkingthen, not because of any vow he had takenbut because he did not have the inclinationto talk, he answered questions put to himby writing. As recollected and recorded bySri Sivaprakasam Pillai, there were thirteenquestions and answers to them given byBhagavan. This record was first publishedby Sri Pillai in 1923 (in the original Tamil),along with a couple of poems composedby himself relating how Bhagavan’s graceoperated in his case by dispelling his doubtsand by saving him from a crisis in life.Who am I? has been published severaltimes subsequently. We find thirteen4

questions and answers in some editionsand twenty-eight in others. There is alsoanother published version in which thequestions are not given, and the teachingsare rearranged in the form of an essay. Theextant English translation is of this essay.The present rendering is of the text in theform of twenty-eight questions and answers.Along with Vicharasangraham (SelfEnquiry), Nan Yar (Who am I?) constitutesthe first set of instructions in the Master’sown words. These two are the only prosepieces among Bhagavan’s works. Theyclearly set forth the central teaching thatthe direct path to liberation is Self-enquiry.The particular mode in which the enquiryis to be made is lucidly set forth in Nan5

Yar. The mind consists of thoughts. The“I”-thought is the first to arise in themind. When the enquiry “Who am I?” ispersistently pursued, all other thoughts getdestroyed, and finally the “I”-thought itselfvanishes leaving the supreme non-dual Selfalone. The false identification of the Selfwith the phenomena of non-self such asthe body and mind, thus ends, and thereis illumination, sakshatkara. The process ofenquiry, of course, is not an easy one. As oneenquires “Who am I?”, other thoughts willarise; but as these arise, one should not yieldto them by following them; on the contrary,one should ask, “To whom do they arise?”In order to do this, one has to be extremely6

vigilant. Through constant enquiry oneshould make the mind stay in its source,without allowing it to wander away and getlost in the mazes of thought created by itself.All other disciplines such as breath-controland meditation on the forms of God shouldbe regarded as auxiliary practices. Theyare useful so far as they help the mind tobecome quiescent and one-pointed. For themind that has gained skill in concentrationSelf-enquiry becomes comparatively easy.It is by ceaseless enquiry that the thoughtsare destroyed and the Self realised – theplenary Reality in which there is not even the“I”-thought, the experience which is referredto as “Silence”.7

This, in substance, is BhagavanSri Ramana Maharshi’s teachings in Nan Yar(Who am I?).T.M.P. MahadevanUniversity of MadrasJune 30, 19828

Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi(At the age of 21)

Who Am I?Nan YarAll living beings desire to be happy always,without any misery. In everyone there is observedsupreme love for oneself. And happiness alone isthe cause of love. In order therefore, to gain thathappiness which is one’s nature and which isexperienced in the state of deep sleep, where thereis no mind, one should know oneself. To achievethis, the Path of Knowledge, the enquiry in theform of “Who am I?”, is the principal means.11

1.Who am I?The gross body which is composed ofthe seven humours (dhatus), I am not; thefive cognitive sense organs, viz., the sensesof hearing, touch, sight, taste and smell,which apprehend their respective objects,viz. sound, touch, colour, taste and odour,I am not; the five cognative sense organs,viz., the organs of speech, locomotion,grasping, excretion and procreation, whichhave as their respective functions, speaking,moving, grasping, excreting and enjoying, Iam not; the five vital airs, prana, etc., whichperform respectively the five functions ofin-breathing, etc., I am not; even the mindwhich thinks, I am not; the nescience too,12

which is endowed only with the residualimpressions of objects and in which thereare no objects and no functionings, I am not.2.If I am none of these, then who am I?After negating all of the abovementioned as ‘not this’, ‘not this’, thatAwareness which alone remains – that I am.3.What is the nature of Awareness?The nature of Awareness is ExistenceConsciousness-Bliss.13

4.When will the realization of the Self begained?When the world which is what-is-seenhas been removed, there will be realizationof the Self which is the seer.5.Will there not be realization of the Selfeven while the world is there (taken asreal)?There will not be.6.Why?14

The seer and the object seen are like therope and the snake. Just as the knowledgeof the rope which is the substratum willnot arise unless the false knowledge of theillusory serpent goes, so the realization ofthe Self which is the substratum will notbe gained unless the belief that the world isreal is removed.7.When will the world which is the objectseen be removed?When the mind, which is the causeof all cognition and of all actions, becomesquiescent, the world will disappear.15

8.What is the nature of the mind?What is called ‘mind’ is a wondrouspower residing in the Self. It causes allthoughts to arise. Apart from thoughts, thereis no such thing as mind. Therefore, thoughtis the nature of mind. Apart from thoughts,there is no independent entity called theworld. In deep sleep there are no thoughts,and there is no world. In the states of wakingand dream, there are thoughts, and there is aworld also. Just as the spider emits the thread(of the web) out of itself and again withdrawsit into itself, likewise the mind projects theworld out of itself and again resolves it intoitself. When the mind comes out of the Self,the world appears. Therefore, when the world16

appears (to be real), the Self does not appear;and when the Self appears (shines) the worlddoes not appear. When one persistentlyinquires into the nature of the mind, themind will end leaving the Self (as the residue).What is referred to as the Self is the Atman.The mind always exists only in dependenceon something gross; it cannot stay alone. Itis the mind that is called the subtle body orthe soul (jiva).9.What is the path of inquiry forunderstanding the nature of the mind?That which rises as ‘I’ in this body isthe mind. If one inquires as to where in the17

body the thought ‘I’ rises first, one woulddiscover that it rises in the heart. That is theplace of the mind’s origin. Even if one thinksconstantly ‘I-I’, one will be led to that place.Of all the thoughts that arise in the mind, the‘I’-thought is the first. It is only after the riseof this that the other thoughts arise. It is afterthe appearance of the first personal pronounthat the second and third personal pronounsappear; without the first personal pronounthere will not be the second and third.10. How will the mind become quiescent?By the inquiry ‘Who am I?’. The thought‘Who am I?’ will destroy all other thoughts,18

and like the stick used for stirring the burningpyre, it will itself in the end get destroyed.Then, there will arise Self-realization.11. What is the means for constantly holdingon to the thought ‘Who am I?’When other thoughts arise, one shouldnot pursue them, but should inquire: ‘Towhom do they arise?’ It does not matter howmany thoughts arise. As each thought arises,one should inquire with diligence, ‘To whomhas this thought arisen?’. The answer thatwould emerge would be ‘to me’. Thereuponif one inquires ‘Who am I?’, the mind willgo back to its source; and the thought that19

arose will become quiescent. With repeatedpractice in this manner, the mind willdevelop the skill to stay in its source. Whenthe mind that is subtle goes out through thebrain and the sense-organs, the gross namesand forms appear; when it stays in the heart,the names and forms disappear. Not lettingthe mind go out, but retaining it in the Heartis what is called ‘inwardness’ (antarmukha).Letting the mind go out of the Heart isknown as ‘externalisation’ (bahirmukha).Thus, when the mind stays in the Heart, the‘I’ which is the source of all thoughts willgo, and the Self which ever exists will shine.Whatever one does, one should do withoutthe egoity ‘I’. If one acts in that way, all willappear as of the nature of Siva (God).20

12. Are there no other means for making themind quiescent?Other than inquiry, there are noadequate means. If through other means itis sought to control the mind, the mind willappear to be controlled, but will again goforth. Through the control of breath also, themind will become quiescent; but it will bequiescent only so long as the breath remainscontrolled, and when the breath resumes themind also will again start moving and willwander as impelled by residual impressions.The source is the same for both mind andbreath. Thought, indeed, is the nature of themind. The thought ‘I’ is the first thoughtof the mind; and that is egoity. It is from21

that whence egoity originates that breathalso originates. Therefore, when the mindbecomes quiescent, the breath is controlled,and when the breath is controlled the mindbecomes quiescent. But in deep sleep,although the mind becomes quiescent,the breath does not stop. This is becauseof the will of God, so that the body maybe preserved and other people may notbe under the impression that it is dead. Inthe state of waking and in samadhi, whenthe mind becomes quiescent the breathis controlled. Breath is the gross form ofmind. Till the time of death, the mind keepsbreath in the body; and when the body dies,the mind takes the breath along with it.Therefore, the exercise of breath control is22

only an aid for rendering the mind quiescent(manonigraha); it will not destroy the mind(manonasa).Like the practice of breath control,meditation on the forms of God, repetitionof mantras, restriction on food, etc., are butaids for rendering the mind quiescent.Through meditation on the forms ofGod and through repetition of mantras,the mind becomes one-pointed. The mindwill always be wandering. Just as when achain is given to an elephant to hold in itstrunk it will go along grasping the chainand nothing else, so also when the mind isoccupied with a name or form it will graspthat alone. When the mind expands in theform of countless thoughts, each thought23

becomes weak; but as thoughts get resolvedthe mind becomes one-pointed and strong;for such a mind Self-inquiry will becomeeasy. Of all the restrictive rules, that relatingto the taking of sattvic food in moderatequantities is the best; by observing this rule,the sattvic quality of mind will increase, andthat will be helpful to Self-inquiry.13. The residual impressions (thoughts) ofobjects appear unending like the waves of anocean. When will all of them get destroyed?As the meditation on the Self riseshigher and higher, the thoughts will getdestroyed.24

14. Is it possible for the residual impressionsof objects that come from beginninglesstime, as it were, to be resolved, and forone to remain as the pure Self ?Without yielding to the doubt ‘Is itpossible, or not?’, one should persistentlyhold on to the meditation on the Self.Even if one be a great sinner, one shouldnot worry and weep ‘O! I am a sinner, howcan I be saved?’ One should completelyrenounce the thought ‘I am a sinner’ andconcentrate keenly on meditation on theSelf; then, one would surely succeed. Thereare not two minds – one good and theother evil; the mind is only one. It is theresidual impressions that are of two kinds25

– auspicious and inauspicious. When themind is under the influence of auspiciousimpressions it is called good; and whenit is under the influence of inauspiciousimpressions it is regarded as evil.The mind should not be allowed towander towards worldly objects and whatconcerns other people. However bad otherpeople may be, one should bear no hatredfor them. Both desire and hatred should beeschewed. All that one gives to others onegives to one’s self. If this truth is understoodwho will not give to others? When one’sself arises all arises; when one’s self becomesquiescent all becomes quiescent. To theextent we behave with humility, to thatextent there will result good. If the mind isrendered quiescent, one may live anywhere.26

15. How long should inquiry be practised?As long as there are impressions ofobjects in the mind, so long the inquiry‘Who am I?’ is required. As thoughts arisethey should be destroyed then and therein the very place of their origin, throughinquiry. If one resorts to contemplation ofthe Self unintermittently, until the Self isgained, that alone would do. As long as thereare enemies within the fortress, they willcontinue to sally forth; if they are destroyedas they emerge, the fortress will fall into ourhands.16. What is the nature of the Self?27

What exists in truth is the Self alone.The world, the individual soul and God areappearances in it, like silver in mother-ofpearl; these three appear at the same timeand disappear at the same time.The Self is that where there is absolutelyno ‘I’-thought. That is called ‘Silence’. TheSelf itself is the world; the Self itself is ‘I’; theSelf itself is God; all is Siva, the Self.17. Is not everything the work of God?Without desire, resolve, or effort, thesun rises; and in its mere presence, the sunstone emits fire, the lotus blooms, waterevaporates, people perform their various28

functions and then rest. Just as in the presenceof the magnet the needle moves, it is by virtueof the mere presence of God that the soulsgoverned by the three (cosmic) functionsor the fivefold divine activity perform theiractions and then rest, in accordance withtheir respective karmas. God has no resolve;no karma attaches itself to Him. That is likeworldly actions not affecting the sun, or likethe merits and demerits of the other fourelements not affecting all-pervading space.18. Of the devotees, who is the greatest?He who gives himself up to the Selfthat is God is the most excellent devotee.29

Giving one’s self up to God means remainingconstantly in the Self without giving roomfor the rise of any thoughts other than thatof the Self.Whatever burdens are thrown on God,He bears them. Since the supreme powerof God makes all things move, why shouldwe, without submitting ourselves to it,constantly worry ourselves with thoughtsas to what should be done and how, andwhat should not be done and how not? Weknow that the train carries all loads, so aftergetting on it why should we carry our smallluggage on our head to our discomfort,instead of putting it down in the train andfeeling at ease?30

19. What is non-attachment?As thoughts arise, destroying them utterlywithout any residue in the very place of theirorigin is non-attachment. Just as the pearl-diverties a stone to his waist, sinks to the bottom ofthe sea and there takes the pearls, so each oneof us should be endowed with non-attachment,dive within oneself and obtain the Self-Pearl.20. Is it not possible for God and the Guruto effect the liberation of a soul?God and the Guru will only show theway to liberation; they will not by themselvestake the soul to the state of liberation.31

In truth, God and the Guru are notdifferent. Just as the prey which has falleninto the jaws of a tiger has no escape, sothose who have come within the ambit ofthe Guru’s gracious look will be saved bythe Guru and will not get lost; yet, each oneshould, by his own effort pursue the pathshown by God or Guru and gain liberation.One can know oneself only with one’s owneye of knowledge, and not with somebodyelse’s. Does he who is Rama require the helpof a mirror to know that he is Rama?21. Is it necessary for one who longs forliberation to inquire into the nature ofcategories (tattvas)?32

Just as one who wants to throw awaygarbage has no need to analyse it and see whatit is, so one who wants to know the Self hasno need to count the number of categoriesor inquire into their characteristics; what hehas to do is to reject altogether the categoriesthat hide the Self. The world should beconsidered like a dream.22. Is there no difference between waking anddream?Waking is long and dream short; otherthan this there is no difference. Just aswaking happenings seem real while awake,so do those in a dream while dreaming. In33

dream the mind takes on another body. Inboth waking and dream states thoughts,names and forms occur simultaneously.23. Is it any use reading books for those wholong for liberation?All the texts say that in order togain liberation one should render themind quiescent; therefore their conclusiveteaching is that the mind should be renderedquiescent; once this has been understoodthere is no need for endless reading. In orderto quieten the mind one has only to inquirewithin oneself what one’s Self is; how couldthis search be done in books? One should34

know one’s Self with one’s own eye ofwisdom. The Self is within the five sheaths;but books are outside them. Since the Selfhas to be inquired into by discarding the fivesheaths, it is futile to search for it in books.There will come a time when one will haveto forget all that one has learned.24. What is happiness?Happiness is the very nature of theSelf; happiness and the Self are not different.There is no happiness in any object of theworld. We imagine through our ignorancethat we derive happiness from objects. Whenthe mind goes out, it experiences misery. In35

truth, when its desires are fulfilled, it returnsto its own place and enjoys the happiness thatis the Self. Similarly, in the states of sleep,samadhi and fainting, and when the objectdesired is obtained or the object disliked isremoved, the mind becomes inward-turned,and enjoys pure Self-Happiness. Thus themind moves without rest alternately goingout of the Self and returning to it. Underthe tree the shade is pleasant; out in theopen the heat is scorching. A person whohas been going about in the sun feels coolwhen he reaches the shade. Someone whokeeps on going from the shade into the sunand then back into the shade is a fool. Awise man stays permanently in the shade.Similarly, the mind of the one who knows36

the truth does not leave Brahman. The mindof the ignorant, on the contrary, revolvesin the world, feeling miserable, and for alittle time returns to Brahman to experiencehappiness. In fact, what is called the world isonly thought. When the world disappears,i.e., when there is no thought, the mindexperiences happiness; and when the worldappears, it goes through misery.25. What is wisdom-insight (jnana drishti)?Remaining quiet is what is calledwisdom-insight. To remain quiet is to resolvethe mind in the Self. Telepathy, knowingpast, present and future happenings and37

clairvoyance do not constitute wisdominsight.26. What is the relation between desirelessnessand wisdom?Desirelessness is wisdom. The two arenot different; they are the same. Desirelessnessis refraining from turni

to Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi by Sri M. Sivaprakasam Pillai, about the year 1902. Sri Pillai, a graduate in philosophy, was at the time employed in the Revenue Department of the South Arcot Collectorate. During his visit to Tiruvannamalai in 1902 on official work, he went to Virupaksha Cave on Arunachala Hill and met the MaharshiFile Size: 539KBPage Count: 40Explore furtherWho Am I? (Nan Yar?) - Sri Ramana Maharshiwww.sriramanamaharshi.orgBe as you are – The teachings of sri Ramana Maharishiwww.sadgurus-saints-sages.comA Light on the Teaching of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshiwww.happinessofbeing.comTeachings of Ramana Maharshi in His Own Words SINGLE PAGEwww.coursnondualite.com(pdf) The Collected Works Of Sri Ramana Maharshi .isitreallyflat.comRecommended to you b

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