Raman Maharishi

Questioner (Q): How to live my daily life regardless of my family, job, financial situation, mood or body, and reach the Truth? Ramana Maharshi says, “One’s duty is to practice continuous self-enquiry.” The mind is so used to its tendencies that this is hard for me; it hijacks my attention… read_more

Questioner (Q): I want to know the source of thought. I remember Ramana Maharshi’s words: “‘I’ is the root of all the thoughts because in the end, every thought occurs to the ‘I’. So, first try to get hold of who this ‘I’ is, which will lead the enquirer to… read_more

Questioner (Q): You always mention how qualifications like dispassion and abandonment of action are necessary for enquiry to take place, while Ramana Maharshi says, “Even a great sinner can do enquiry.” How can this be reconciled? Also, you speak about renunciation, but Ramana Maharshi says, “All events in our lives… read_more

Questioner (Q): Acharya Ji, how do I live my daily life regardless of my family, job, financial situation, mood, or body to reach the Truth? Ramana Maharshi says,

“One’s duty is to practice continuous self-inquiry.”

I am not able to practice continuous self-inquiry due to mind’s tendencies. Please help and… read_more

Questioner (Q): Acharya Ji, Ramana Maharshi talks about ‘transcending and turning inwards'. Who is transcending and who is turning inwards?

Acharya Prashant (AP): The Ego, the I tendency. Whatever advice is given, is always given to the “I” tendency. Because at the center of everything lies this “I” tendency that… read_more

Question (Q): Acharya Ji, on being asked, can Karma ever come to an end? Ramana Maharshi says, "Karmas carry the seed of their own destruction in themselves." Dear Acharya Ji, please help me understand, how Karmas carry the seed of their own destruction?

Acharya Prashant (AP): Karma is action. We… read_more

Question:

“How do the triple factors, that is – the knower, the known, and knowledge, which are absent in deep sleep, Samadhi, etc., manifest themselves in the self, in the state of waking and dreaming?”

Sri Raman Maharshi:

“From the Self there arise in succession:

(i) Chidabhasa (reflected consciousness), which… read_more

“What is samaadhi?”

*“It is the complete merging of the mind in God-Consciousness. The jnani experiences jada samaadhi, in which no trace of ‘I’ is left. The samaadhi attained through the path of bhakti is called ‘chaitanya samaadhi’.”*

“In this samaadhi there remains the consciousness of ‘I’… read_more

Question: There are two things which I hold very tightly. Raman Maharishi has written only these two pieces himself. One is – ‘Who am I?’ And the other one is – ‘Self Inquiry’.

I go through only these, because these are from a young man who was not conditioned, who… read_more

“Silence is of four kinds: silence of speech, silence of the eye, silence of the ear, and silence of the mind.

Only the last is pure silence, and is the most important.”

~ Sri Raman Maharishi

Questioner: Acharya Ji, what does Ramana Maharshi mean by these lines? What is silence… read_more

All the people in the world can be put under four categories:

The Guru’s disciples, bhaktas, those who are indifferent to Him and those who are hostile to Him.

All these will be benefited by the existence of the Jnani

Each in his own way and to various degrees.

Sri… read_more

Somebody asks Raman Maharishi, “It is an established rule that so long as there is the least idea of ‘I am the doer’, self-knowledge cannot be attained. But is it possible for an aspirant who is a householder, to discharge his duties properly without this sense?”

Sri Raman Maharishi says:… read_more

One must be free to do as one pleases and should not be served by others.‘No want’ is the greatest bliss. It can be realized only by experience. ~ Sri Raman Maharishi

Questioner: Acharya Ji, Pranaam! Please elaborate on the above, especially with regard to what it means that… read_more

All that one gives to others, one gives to one’s self. If this truth is understood, who will not give to others? ~ Sri Raman Maharshi

Questioner: In this statement, Raman Maharshi is saying that giving to others is giving to oneself, but the mind discriminates between ‘I’ and ‘the… read_more

“All the texts say that in order to gain release one should render the mind quiescent; therefore their conclusive teaching is that the mind should be rendered quiescent. Once this has been understood, there is no need for endless reading.”

“In order to quieten the mind, one has only to… read_more

Ramana Maharshi also said,

“That which you take to be as your normal state is on the contrary, an abnormal state. Do you have to search for a long time before finding this ‘I’ which is none other than yourself?

This is what I mean when we declare that no… read_more

“'I' is the root of all thoughts because, in the end, very thought occurs to the ‘I’. So, first try to get hold of who this ‘I’ is, which will lead the enquirer to dissolve and merge in the source.” ~ Sri Raman Maharishi

Questioner: Acharya Ji, Pranaam! I want… read_more

Question: Acharya Ji, what is ‘elimination of false knowledge’ that Ramana Maharishi talks of when he says, “The individual is miserable because he confounds the mind and the body with the Self. This confusion is due to wrong knowledge. Elimination of wrong knowledge is alone needed. Such elimination results in… read_more

भीतर की ओर मुड़ना ही, आत्मा है।

जब मन भीतर की ओर मुड़ता है, वह घुल जाता है।

~ ओशो

कार्य को सामने ला दो कारण प्रकट हो जायेगा।

~ रमण महर्षि

वक्ता: दो बातें हैं, दोनों को आमने-सामने रखा गया है। रमण कह रहे हैं मन ही… read_more

Questioner: The reading has this quote that,

‘Solitude is in the mind of a man, that it is an attitude of the mind.

A man attached to things of life cannot get solitude wherever he may be.

A detached man is always in solitude.”

So it doesn’t depend on the… read_more

Speaker: So, this morning we are here, trying to look at what is Religion. It would be easy to go into this deeply researched and heavily documented topic as just another objective topic, but I wonder, whether we ask ourselves some very subjective, very personal, very intimate questions. I… read_more

Question: Sir, there is one statement here, ‘Sushupti does exists in your waking state’. Normally, in deep sleep, we don’t know we are there.

Acharya Prashant: When Maharishi is saying that Sushupti exists in your waking state also, he is using Sushupti to refer to Turiya. Classically, Sushupti… read_more

Question: Sir, at one point Ramana Maharishi says, “When the praarabdh is exhausted, the ego is completely dissolved without leaving any trace behind.” And at another point he says, “You can experience the Self right now.” So how will this *praarab*dh change or break at a certain moment? How can… read_more

Questioner (Q): (Referring to a text) Sir, it is written here, “Silence is ever speaking. It is the perennial flow of language.” How is ‘Silence’, a perennial flow of language?

Acharya Prashant (AP): What is language?

Q: Language is a medium of communication.

AP: Communication. What is the use of… read_more

Question: Sir, Ramana Maharshi has talked about the ‘I’. He has always asked the seekers to observe this ‘I’, and this has always been the basis of his teachings. What exactly does Ramana Maharshi mean, when he asks us to constantly observe this ‘I’? How does one witness this ‘I’?… read_more

आचार्य प्रशांत: हर तादात्म्य का सम्पूर्ण अस्वीकार, सिर्फ शरीर से तादात्म्य का नहीं, ये है ‘नाहं’। ये ध्यान का फल है। ध्यान जितना गहरा होगा, ‘नाहं’ उतनी जल्दी आएगा। ध्यान, आपके तीक्ष्ण अवलोकन का फल है। जितनी तीक्ष्णता से आप अवलोकन कर पाओगे उतनी जल्दी आप ‘नाहं’ कह पाओगे। इसको… read_more

Questioner(Q): What is the process of clarity? Is it just listening with immersion and no resistance? What is Truth? How we decide it?

Acharya Prashant (AP): Listening without effort, plus if there is Truth in what you hear, there is change and transformation, and that Truth becomes the master. We… read_more

Questioner: In light of our topic, one thing that really comes to mind is the concept of cancel-culture.

I am just summarising what it really means. Individuals on the platforms of social media or digital platforms, in general, have a kind of justice system, where someone can be kicked out… read_more

प्रश्नकर्ता: मेरा सवाल फिर से मृत्यु के ऊपर ही है। आम ज़िन्दगी में जीवन के बारे में बोला जाता है कि जीवन आनन्द है या जीवन यह है, पर इसमें मृत्यु की कोई बात नहीं आती। जैसे आध्यात्मिकता में भी आप देखें तो लोगों ने मृत्यु पर ज़्यादा चर्चा नहीं… read_more

श्रद्धावान् लभते ज्ञानं तत्पर: संयतेन्द्रिय: | ज्ञानं लब्ध्वा परां शान्तिमचिरेणाधिगच्छति || ४, ३९ || जितेन्द्रिय, साधनापरायण और श्रद्धावान मनुष्य ज्ञान को प्राप्त होता है तथा ज्ञान को प्राप्त होकर वह बिना विलम्ब के तत्काल ही भगवत्प्राप्तिरूप शान्ति को प्राप्त हो जाता है। —श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता, अध्याय ४, श्लोक ३९प्रश्नकर्ता: आचार्य जी,… read_more

The one relationship that is of maximum importance is the one you have with yourself.

When you are not alright with yourself, obviously you will seek an alternative to your company: “Can there be somebody to relate to? Can there be somebody to sit with, fill myself up with, form… read_more

What is the ultimate purpose of life? Earning money or happiness? How can this stupid thing be the purpose of life?

The common happiness that we know, I have said, has two characteristics: one, it is an acquired conditioning, and second, it depends on the presence of sadness. So, if… read_more

If you have seriously something worthwhile to do in life, then time is a friend. But if you are just loafing around and you fully well know that you are just killing time, then obviously time is an enemy. Every passing moment reminds you that you are committing a crime… read_more

Welcome pain. You have no option. That’s the way life is meant to be. Life is suffering. Because not only are you designed to have pain, you are also designed to resist pain.

Have pain, and have a lot of depth in your being. So much depth that it can… read_more

Happiness and sadness are both wonderful, are both welcome.

But in some deep sense, sadness is a little better than happiness. It teaches us a little more than happiness does. It elevates us a little more than happiness does. It has a certain purifying effect that happiness does not quite… read_more

Swami Vivekananda has said, “First of all, our young men must be strong; religion will come afterwards. Be strong, my young friends; that is my advice to you. You will be nearer to heaven through football than through the study of the Gita.”

Swami Vivekananda was no soccer evangelist. His… read_more

Let nobody say that he or she is making the right choices in life because she does not know. We all know. We prefer to suppress the inner knowledge. It’s an inner conspiracy against ourselves, just because we want to continue enjoying certain privileges in life—certain physical privileges, material privileges,… read_more

Where are the pleasures? I do not see any pleasures! I do not see anybody being pleased. You are talking of renunciation of pleasures as if pleasures do exist. Where are the pleasures? Go to a weekend party and show me who is happy. And if people were indeed happy,… read_more

Spirituality just needs basic self-honesty, self-awareness. There is nothing mystical, nothing magical about it, but that is what it has been associated with. I am not talking of chanting; I am not talking of chakras; I am not talking of flying snakes; I am not talking of magical seeds. Not… read_more

Real relaxation is about relaxing even in the middle of activity. You are relaxed even as you exert yourself. You are relaxed even as you are running. You are relaxed even as you are drained out. You are not waiting for a special activity like going to bed or sitting… read_more

The Upanishads were not composed to give you the normal kind of comfort and happiness. The Upanishads are there to give you an exalted happiness, a transcendental happiness, an eternal happiness. A happiness so rare and exquisite that it is not called as harṣa or moda or prasannatā; a… read_more

Emotions, they can do whatever they want to do. It doesn’t matter how I am feeling. What matters is what I must do.

Ask yourself: Had you not been feeling this way or that way, what would have you done? And you will get a very good answer.

When you… read_more

There is only one way to test whether you have done the maximum you can. If you have done the maximum you can, then you will find that things have started happening on their own, in unexpected, unplanned, unprecedented ways. You are now helpless; you can do no more, but… read_more

Love is about giving yourself the highest. When you love somebody, do you want to stop short of giving them the highest possible? Similarly, when you love yourself, would you stop short of giving yourself the highest possible?

The highest possible is not contained in pleasure nor in happiness. Both… read_more

Even if you want a deeper pleasure, you will have to go deeper into the mind, and going deeper into the mind is what the spiritual process is all about.

If the fellow is a lover of the good things of life, let’s say a complete hedonist, then encourage him… read_more

Know your duty and give yourself totally to it. Will there be pleasure? No sir, not at all. There would be some higher than pleasure, more fulfilling, more satisfying than pleasure. Pleasure is a turncoat: today one thing, tomorrow another thing.

The one who lives by his duty, his dharma… read_more