European Masters - Goodreads

Introductionmost of them. During the last years of Sri Ramana’s life, in the 1940s,a small number of Westerners made it to his ashram and were touchedby his presence. Wolter Keers came from the Netherlands and taught inEurope in the 1970s and 80s:The mere sight of him made me tremble all over because I hadcome face to face with the Divine. This recognition affectedme so much that my body shook involuntarily. As I gazed atSri Ramana, I felt I saw God Himself sitting there.S.S. Cohen from Iraq lived in the ashram and is buried there:I was alone in the hall with him. Joy and peace suffused mybeing, never before had I such a delightful feeling of purityand well being at the mere proximity of a man. To theserious minded, Bhagwan was a beacon light in an otherwiseimpenetrable darkness.The basic structure of each interview uses the same twelve questions[see Interview Questions in the front of the book]. The questions arethe same as the ones asked of the Indian Masters, with a few variationsto more clearly reflect the Western experience. Further questions wereasked spontaneously to illuminate an answer, leading to many exceptionsto the basic twelve-question structure. In each interview there was thevital element and strong energy of the Master’s presence, and I searchedfor a way to include this presence in the book. Hence you will finda DVD Sampler in the back of this book. It contains a Trailer forEuropean Masters – Blueprints for Awakening, which is the companionfilm to this book, a set of the Masters’ Portraits and an excerpt from theVideo Website: www.blueprintsforawakening.org with one hundredand fifty small videos of the Masters.The film includes selections from all twelve interviews and sets outimportant aspects of the teachings presented in this book. A series ofseparate films, Blueprints for Awakening – Meeting the Master, showingeach Master’s complete interview as well as material filmed during3

European Masterssubsequent visits, will also be available later. This set of films and theVideo Website create a unique archive for those wishing to taste thesimple wisdom of Truth through the Grace of these Masters.It was profound to experience the many different facets to sharingTruth in my meetings with these men and women. Tony Parsons, whohad spent time with Osho but does not acknowledge a Master figure,and Karl Renz, for whom Arunachala mountain played the role ofMaster, would not see themselves in the lineage of Sri Ramana. Theyspeak Truth from the absolute, without any compromise towards anillusionary somebody. In contrast to this absolute position, Dolano,Mooji, OM C. Parkin, Padma and Torsten and myself are firmly in thelineage of Papaji and Sri Ramana, exalting the benefits of conducting Selfenquiry according to the ancient tradition for all those still identifyingas a separate somebody. The practice is for the false somebody. FrancisLucille, whose Master was Jean Klein, and Rupert Spira, who hasFrancis as his Master, also encourage Self-enquiry, though with a slightlydifferent approach.I am so happy for the inspiration to include Deva Premal and Mitenwho bring the way of the Heart into the book and particularly into thefilm. They have touched so many by their mantra singing and theirdevotion to their master Osho, to each other and to their audiences.This devotion can be felt in every moment of their concerts. These arenot performances but accepting what is, daring to stop. The concertsare another form of Satsang. Mooji, with his sunny Jamaican personalityand warm heart, also personifies the devotional approach.I would have liked to include more female teachers in particular,as this moment in history seems to demand the female touch for us torecover from centuries of male domination. So I am happy to includeDolano, a disciple of Osho. Dolano also has a great love for Papaji andGangaji, both of whom she spent time with. Padma is a young womanwho has been in relationship with Torsten for some ten years. They makeno compromise, always keeping Truth as their priority. Padma’s teachersare from Sri Ramana’s lineage, in particular Papaji, Isaac, Gangaji andEli Jaxon-Bear. Then, of course, Deva Premal, whose master is Osho. Allthese women are German, which seems right. Perhaps German women4

Introductionin particular have emancipated themselves more than any others in abalanced manner from male domination. Neeru, another Germanwoman, based in Goa, India, and Kalika, an Italian woman, both havecameo appearances in the film.Michael Barnett, now eighty, originally a close disciple of Osho, hasdeveloped a transmission of Truth through subtle energy work. FrancisLucille had a close association with his Master Jean Klein and wasfriends with other Masters notably Wolter Keers, Douglas Harding andRobert Adams. Rupert Spira, a successful and talented potter, has beeninspired by his Master, Francis Lucille, to include Beauty in additionto Peace and Love as an attribute of Truth. Christopher Titmuss hascome from the Buddhist tradition having two Thai Buddhist Mastersbut is something of a maverick, not following any particular linage andexpressing Truth in his very own characteristic English fashion. As Iformulated the questions they are of particular interest to me, and so Iwas happy to respond to the challenge of answering them myself.Some of the Masters use Sanskrit terms. Sanskrit, the ancientlanguage of Vedic philosophy, with its unparalleled richness of expression,has been considered the language of the Gods. You will find an Englishexplanation with each Sanskrit word the first time it appears in eachchapter. The comprehensive glossary gives a more detailed explanationof the italicised Sanskrit words.While writing this introduction I recognise the depth of the spiritualwisdom contained in this Book, the Film and the Video Website. Itis a valuable archive, now encompassing thirty Indian and EuropeanMasters. I am pleased that I have been able to manifest the originalvision that came to me seventeen years ago. I had initially some concernwhether the European Masters could match their Indian colleagues butin fact they offer something different and valuable. This is the ancientwisdom of humanity passed down through generations of Masters andtheir disciples to all who wish to know who they are.It has been a total delight to experience the profundity of theEuropean Masters, many of whom have taken their knowledge of theIndian traditional teachings and combined it with their knowledge ofWestern psychology to offer a unique transmission most suitable for the5

European MastersWestern seeker. Until perhaps thirty years ago it was necessary to go tothe East to access these teachings. Now they are available down the roador through the Internet. In short, this book is a treasure for all on thepath of Truth.Finally I express my love and gratitude to Sri Ramana and Papaji,who I consider to be my Masters and constant guides and who inspiredme to create this project.Premananda 20106

ForewordKen WilberThe Sage of the Centur yThat Nondual vision – in the form of Vedanta, Shaivism, Mahayana andVajrayana Buddhism – is the precious gift of India to the world, and itfound its purest, most elegant, most brilliant expression in the simplesage of Arunachala.I am often asked, ‘If you were stranded on a desert island and hadonly one book, what would it be?’ Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi isone of the two or three I always mention. The Talks tops the list in thisregard: they are the living voice of the greatest sage of the 20th centuryand, arguably, the greatest spiritual realisation of this or any time.One of the many astonishing things about these Talks is howremarkably unwavering is the tone and style, the voice itself – not in thesense that it is fixed and rigid, but rather that it speaks with a full-blownmaturity from the first word to the last. It is as if – no, it is certainlythe case that – Sri Ramana’s realisation came to him fully formed –or perhaps we should say, fully formless – and therefore it needed nofurther growth. He simply speaks from and as the absolute, the Self,the purest Emptiness that is the goal and ground of the entire manifestworld, and is not other to that world. Sri Ramana, echoing Shankara,used to say:The world is illusory;Brahman alone is real;Brahman is the world.This profound realisation is what separates Sri Ramana’s genuineenlightenment from today’s many pretenders to the throne – deepecology, ecofeminism, Gaia revivals, Goddess worship, ecopsychology,systems theory, web-of-life notions – none of which have grasped the7

European Mastersfirst two lines, and therefore, contrary to their sweet pronouncements,do not really understand the third. And it is exactly for all of thosewho are thus in love merely with the manifest world – from capitaliststo socialists, from green polluters to green peacers, from egocentricsto ecocentrists – that Sri Ramana’s message needs so desperately tobe heard.What and where is this Self? How do I abide as That? There is nodoubt how Sri Ramana would answer those – and virtually all other –questions: Who wants to know? What in you, right now, is aware ofthis page? Who is the Knower that knows the world but cannot itselfbe known? Who is the Hearer that hears the birds but cannot itself beheard? Who is the Seer that sees the clouds but cannot itself be seen?And so arises Self-enquiry, Sri Ramana’s special gift to the world. Ihave feelings, but I am not those feelings. Who am I? I have thoughts,but I am not those thoughts. Who am I? I have desires, but I am notthose desires. Who am I?So you push back into the Source of your own awareness – what SriRamana often called the ‘I-I’, since it is aware of the normal I or ego.You push back into the Witness, the I-I, and you rest as That. I am notobjects, not feelings, not desires, not thoughts.But then people usually make a rather unfortunate mistake in thisSelf-enquiry. They think that if they rest in the Self, or Witness, they aregoing to see something, or feel something, something really amazing,special, spiritual. But you won’t see anything. If you see something,that is just another object – another feeling, another thought, anothersensation, another image. But those are all objects; those are what youare not.No, as you rest in the Witness – realising I am not objects, I am notfeelings, I am not thoughts – all you will notice is a sense of Freedom,a sense of Liberation, a sense of Release – release from the terribleconstriction of identifying with these little finite objects, the little bodyand little mind and little ego, all of which are objects that can be seen,and thus are not the true Seer, the real Self, the pure Witness, which iswhat you really are.So you won’t see anything in particular. Whatever is arising is fine.8

ForewordClouds float by in the sky, feelings float by in the body, thoughts floatby in the mind – and you can effortlessly witness all of them. They allspontaneously arise in your own present, easy, effortless awareness. Andthis witnessing awareness is not itself anything specific you can see. Itis just a vast, background sense of Freedom – or pure Emptiness – andin that pure Emptiness, which you are, the entire manifest world arises.You are that Freedom, Openness, Emptiness – and not any little finitething that arises in it.Resting in that empty, free, easy, effortless witnessing, notice thatthe clouds are arising in the vast space of your awareness. The cloudsare arising within you – so much so you can taste the clouds, you areone with the clouds, it is as if they are on this side of your skin, they areso close. The sky and your awareness have become one, and all thingsin the sky are floating effortlessly through your own awareness. Youcan kiss the sun, swallow the mountain, they are that close. Zen says‘Swallow the Pacific Ocean in a single gulp,’ and that’s the easiest thingin the world when inside and outside are no longer two, when subjectand object are nondual, when the looker and looked at are One Taste.And so: The world is illusory, which means you are not any objectat all – nothing that can be seen is ultimately real. You are neti-neti,not this, not that. And under no circumstances should you base yoursalvation on that which is finite, temporal, passing, illusory, sufferingenhancing and agony-inducing.Brahman alone is real, the Self (unqualifiable Brahman-Atman)alone is real – the pure Witness, the timeless Unborn, the formless Seer,the radical I-I, radiant Emptiness – is what is real and all that is real.It is your condition, your nature, your essence, your present and yourfuture, your desire and your destiny, and yet it is always ever-present aspure Presence, the alone that is Alone.Brahman is the world, Emptiness and Form are not-two. Afteryou realise that the manifest world is illusory, and after you realise thatBrahman alone is real, then you can see that the absolute and the relativeare not-two or nondual, then you can see that nirvana and samsara arenot-two, then you can realise that the Seer and everything seen are nottwo, Brahman and the world are not-two – all of which really means, the9

European Masterssound of those birds singing! The entire world of Form exists nowherebut in your own present Formless Awareness: You can drink the Pacificin a single gulp, because the entire world literally exists in your pure Self,the ever-present great I-I.Finally, and most important, Sri Ramana would remind us thatthe pure Self – and therefore the great Liberation – cannot be attained,any more than you can attain your feet or acquire your lungs. You arealready aware of the sky, you already hear the sounds around you, youalready witness this world. One hundred percent of the enlightenedmind or pure Self is present right now – not ninety-nine percent, butone hundred percent.As Sri Ramana constantly pointed out, if the Self (or knowledgeof the Self ) is something that comes into existence – if your realisationhas a beginning in time – then that is merely another object, anotherpassing, finite, temporal state. There is no reaching the Self – the Self isreading this page. There is no looking for the Self – it is looking out ofyour eyes right now. There is no attaining the Self – it is reading thesewords. You simply, absolutely, cannot attain that which you have neverlost. And if you do attain something, Sri Ramana would say, that’s verynice, but that’s not the Self.So, if I may suggest, as you read the following words from the world’sgreatest sage: If you think you don’t understand Self or Spirit, then restin that which doesn’t understand, and just that is Spirit. If you think youdon’t quite ‘get’ the Self or Spirit, then rest in that which doesn’t quite getit, and just that is Spirit. Thus, if you think you understand Spirit, thatis Spirit. If you think you don’t, that is Spirit. And so we can leave withSri Ramana’s greatest and most secret message: The enlightened mind isnot hard to attain but impossible to avoid. In the dear Master’s words:There is neither creation nor destruction,Neither destiny nor free-will;Neither path nor achievement;This is the final Truth.Ken Wilber10

PrefaceJan KersschotThere is no reaching the Self. If Self were to be reached, itwould mean that the Self is not here and now but that it isyet to be obtained. What is got afresh will also be lost. So itwill be impermanent. What is not permanent is not worthstriving for. So I say that the Self is not reached. You are theSelf; you are already That.Sri Ramana MaharshiReferring to Sri Ramana Maharshi is a great challenge, especially if younever met him in person. When relying on what was written about him,it is clear that this man was capable of throwing his followers back intothemselves, just by being his True Self in a simple, straightforward way.Many seekers at the time were overwhelmed by the power and depth ofhis presence.But what sometimes happened was that his words were (afterwards)interpreted as if enlightenment was something he attained as a person.People started to believe that he had attained ‘It’ – some special statewhich his followers hadn’t reached (yet).That presumption may be confusing because the True Self is limitless,and as a result It cannot be owned by anyone. Believing one can actuallyreach or attain enlightenment (as a person) only encourages the seekerto believe that he or she can find That as well. When one understandsthat the ‘seeker’ is just a mind construct, any recommendation that theseeker could attain Oneness through Self-enquiry is a contradictionin terms.I believe that basically, all Sri Ramana pointed to was that everybody‘is’ already This. That automatically means that there is no need for anypurification or any spiritual search whatsoever. How can one find the11

European MastersSelf if This is what we really are? How can one attain That which has nolimits whatsoever? So in a way, Sri Ramana’s Self-enquiry is like a Zenkoan, as there is no answer to the question, ‘Who am I?’ But seeing thatindeed there is no answer to this question, that there is no seeker, canbring an end to the spiritual search.Jan Kersschot M.D.Coming Home and The Myth of Self-Enquiry12

The world just comes and itgoes. I don’t have to destroy theworld; I don’t have to end theworld. It’s quietly, easily endingfrom one moment to the nextwithout me. I don’t have thisincredible task and responsibilityof trying to end this world inorder for realisation to happen.World is ending itself everymoment.C H R I S TO P H E R T I T M U S SChristopher Titmuss

Freedom of being lets love and wisdom manifest itself.Christopher Titmuss

Christopher TitmussChristopher Titmuss, a former Buddhist monk in Thailandand India, now teaches Awakening and Insight Meditationaround the world. He is the founder and director of theDharma Facilitators Programme and the Living DharmaProgramme. He gives retreats, par ticipates in pilgrimagesand leads Dharma gatherings. A senior Dharma teacher inthe West, a campaigner for peace and other global issues,Christopher is a member of the international advisorycouncil of the Buddhist Peace Fellowship. Poet and writer,he is the co-founder of Gaia House, an international retreatcentre in Devon, England. He lives in Totnes, Devon.While with Papaji in Lucknow in 1993 I heard about Christophergiving talks in Bodhigaya, India, and at Bodhi Farm, Australia. I hadwanted to meet him and my chance came in Tiruvannamalai in 2009.He immediately agreed to an interview and although busy with hisretreat he met me the next day. He is very English, funny, playful andprofound. We just had that delightful, joyful interview time together.Sri Ramana Maharshi proposed the fundamental question, ‘Who am I?’Who are you?A small extra in the scheme of things.Would yo

Ramana Maharshi I dedicate this book to Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi, the sage of Arunachala. He came into my life quietly, imperceptibly, through a photograph twenty years ago, and has become a central inspiration in my life. Thank you for the exemplary life you led an