Self-enquiry as taught by Sri Bhagwan is enough

[Subramanian.R]

Dear Anil.,

Kavyakanta Ganapati Muni was for many years arguing that brain is the centre
of consciousness.  Sri Bhagavan did not reply to him.  Once in the Hall, someone
was sleeping, and while he was in sleep, the head was hanging down.  Sri
Bhagavan showed this and told Muni:  "See, if brain is the centre of consciousness,
how can it hang down when one is in sleep?"



Arunachala Siva.

[eranilkumarsinha]

“Kavyakanta Ganapati Muni was for many years arguing that brain is the centre
of consciousness. Sri Bhagavan did not reply to him. Once in the Hall, someone
was sleeping, and while he was in sleep, the head was hanging down. Sri
Bhagavan showed this and told Muni: "See, if brain is the centre of consciousness,
how can it hang down when one is in sleep?"

Dear Sri Subramanian Sir,

Ji. Yes. I am aware of this episode. I am really very surprised. In ‘The Power of the Presence, Part Three, P. 167’, it is mentioned that Sri Ganapati Muni, though he was an ardent devotee of Sri Bhagwan , did not subscribe to His Advaita philosophy. He was, instead, a follower of Sakta Philosophy, which believed that both the world and the individual soul were real, rather than illusory. The book also mentions that in his translation of Sat Darshanam, all efforts were made to appear that that Sri Bhagwan did not teach Advaita. Moreover, that standpoint was negated in every possible way. When this fact was brought to the notice of Sri Bhagwan, He is reported to have said that Sri Muni and his disciples were ardent adherents of the Sakta cult, implying thereby their unwillingness to allow Advaita teachings to be conveyed as the genuine Teachings of Sri Bhagwan !   

Thank you so much, sir.

Regards,
  Anil

[eranilkumarsinha]

"Kavyakanta Ganapati Muni was for many years arguing that brain is the centre
of consciousness.  Sri Bhagavan did not reply to him.  Once in the Hall, someone
was sleeping, and while he was in sleep, the head was hanging down.  Sri
Bhagavan showed this and told Muni:  "See, if brain is the centre of consciousness,
how can it hang down when one is in sleep?"



Dear Sri Subramanian Sir,

The Verse 23, Reality on Forty Verses : Supplement, is cited below:

‘That indeed is the essential Heart and in it all this world abides. It is the mirror in which all things are seen. It is the source of all wealth. HENCE AWARENESS MAY BE TERMED THE HEART OF ALL BEINGS. The Heart is not a part of the perishable body inert like a stone.”   

The Pure Awareness is the Heart of all beings— the sentient as well as the insentient. Therefore, any description of the Heart is only a mental concept. ‘Hridayam’ means ‘This is the Centre’ and is therefore verily the Self and the Self is here, there, and everywhere.
We, the ignorant creatures with body consciousness, were given a physical location for the Heart, for That which transcends space and time, on the right side of the chest because Sri Bhagwan reveals that it is the ‘Seat of Realisation’.

I said in my post, re.1358, that Consciousness flows from the Heart through Sushumna Nadi ( Nerve) to Sahasrara and from Sahasrara, Consciousness spreads, by its power of spreading, to all over the body, resulting in the experience of the world and of the second and third persons (idam).

Thank you so much, sir.
 
Regards,
  Anil       


 

[eranilkumarsinha]

Controlling speech and breath, and diving deep within oneself—like one who, to find a thing that has fallen into water, dives deep down ---one must seek out the source whence the aspiring ego springs.
                                                          V. 28, Reality in Forty Verses

‘Therefore by the practice of merging the ego in the pure Heart which is all Awareness, the tendencies of the mind as well as the breath will be subdued.
                                                             V. 24, Reality in Forty Verses: Supplement
                                                               (Orig. Yoga Vasishta, 5-78, V. 38)

Dear Devotees,

From the above cited Verses, it is obvious that by controlling speech and breath, Sri Bhagwan does not mean that one should start practicing breath retention of ‘pranayama’ to restrain and control the breath, though Sri Bhagwan Himself has said that it is an aid to Enquiry. Therefore, one may practice breath control a little in the beginning to turn the mind inwards. I SAY THIS, WITH ALL HUMILTY, THAT I FIRST STARTED PRACTICING PRANAYAMA, THEN SOMETIME LATER IT DAWNED ON ME OF ITS OWN ACCORD THAT I SHOULD ASK “WHO AM I?”, AND THEN CAME TO SRI BHAGWAN.    Having said this, I wish to say that if one is seized with ardent longing to find the True Nature of His Existence and turns inwards, the breath stops automatically of its own accord. There is no essential need to bring it about by the practice of breath control of ‘hatha-yoga’ or for that matter by any other yogic practices.

Sri Bhagwan says that both mind and breath have a common conscious source, i.e. the Heart or the Self. Hence control of one leads to the control of the other automatically. However, so far as breath control is concerned, Sri Bhagwan recommends watching of the breath with the mind. If one constantly watches the breath—its rising and sinking—it certainly has the effect of stilling the mind. But we should always remember Sri Bhagwan’s Teaching in this context that the stilling of mind brought about by the breath regulation is temporary in its effect.  It cannot confer on one Realisation by itself.

Dear devotees, we experience in our everyday life that when some startling news is suddenly broken to us, or when the mind is engaged in some activity with full concentration, the breath stops or slows down automatically of its own accord. So also, as soon as the mind, with ardent and intense longing to know the truth of one’s own existence, turns inwards with full concentration, breath will certainly stop automatically. Breath regulation achieved in this manner is natural and the enquirer does not experience suffocation irrespective of the state and duration of the retention, contrary to the retention brought about by pranayama, in which if unit of time of retention is increased, suffocation is experienced and there is an urge either to exhale or to inhale. On the contrary, if the enquirer’s attention is intensely fixed on the Self, he will not even care to know whether the breath has stopped or not. Therefore, the breath regulation thus brought about by enquiry is rather involuntary. WHAT I MEAN TO SAY IS THAT THE ENQUIRER’S ATTENTION SHOULD INTENSELY REMAIN FIXED ON THE SELF AND REMAIN VIGILLANT AND SHOULD NOT CARE WETHER THE BREATH STOPPED OR SLOWD DOWN OR NOT.

 So,Sri Bhagwan says, “One should dive within, controlling speech and breath, with a keen introverted mind”.
SRI SADHU OM’S INSIGHT:
IT WOULD BE WISE TO UNDERASTAND THE VERSE 28, ULLADU NARPADU, THUS BY ADDING ‘WITH A KEEN MIND’ IN ALL THE THREE PLACES, ‘CONTROL THE BREATH WITH A KEEN MIND, DIVE WITHIN WITH A KEEN MIND, AND KNOW THE RISING-PLACE WITH A KEEN MIND’.

Therefore, the V. 24, ( Supplement: Forty Verses on Reality) teaches that by the practice of fixing the mind (attention) in the Heart (Self), the Pure Consciousness, both the destruction of tendencies (vasanas) and the control of breath are accomplished automatically.

Thank You,
    Anil
                   

             

[Subramanian.R]

Dear Anil,

Nice post. Sri Bhagavan says that the Silence is the grandfather of speech.  Silence,
if broken, gives rise to thoughts and thoughts give rise to speech. Silence is an
interrupted speech.  Silence gives more inner peace and one rests with the Self.



Arunachala Siva.
 

[eranilkumarsinha]

“Sri Bhagavan says that the Silence is the grandfather of speech. Silence,
if broken, gives rise to thoughts and thoughts give rise to speech. Silence is an
interrupted speech. Silence gives more inner peace and one rests with the Self.”
(Correction: Silence is an uninterrupted speech.)

Dear Sri Subramanian Sir,     

Silence
       
     Ego

Thoughts

  Speech (Words)

Therefore, Sri Bhagwan says that words are the great grandson of the Original Source. In my view, it is more accurate than saying that Silence is the grandfather of the speech, for, Silence is the Ultimate Father; there is no lineage of forefathers to trace before the Silence. Sri Bhagwan says that if words can produce effect, we should ourselves judge how much more powerful Silence Itself should be ! Guru is the bestower of that Silence. Sri Bhagwan says that Guru’s Silence is more vast and more emphatic than all the sastras put together. Indeed, a Self-Realised Jnani alone can fathom the Silence of the Self.

Thank you so much, sir.

Regards,
  Anil   

[eranilkumarsinha]

Devotee :
1.   How am I to search for the ‘I’ from the start to the finish ?
2.   When I meditate I reach a stage where there is a vacuum or void. How should I proceed from Here?
Sri Bhagwan : Never mind whether there are visions or sounds or anything else or there is a void. Are you present during all this or are you not? You must have been there even during the void to be able to say that you experienced a void. TO BE FIXED IN THAT ‘YOU’ IS THE QUEST FOR THE ‘I’ FROM START TO FINISH. In all books on Vedanta you will find this question of a void or of nothing being left, raised by the disciple and answered by the Guru.
                                                             21. 07. 1946, Day by Day with Bhagwan

Dear Devotees,

Sri Bhagwan says that it is the mind that sees the objects and has the experiences. There comes a stage during the Sadhana (Practice) of the Self-enquiry when it ceases to see objects and have experiences and finds a void. But I am not the mind. I am the ‘Illumination’ Itself that lights up both the void and the experience of the void. True ‘you’ or ‘I’ is like the theatre light that enables one to see the theatre, the actors and the play while the play is on but also remains alight and enables one to say that there is no play going on. Similarly, Sri Bhagwan teaches by another example: we see objects all around us, but in complete darkness we do not see them and say, “I do not see anything”; even then the eyes are there to say that they see nothing. So also, I am there even in the void to be able to say that there is a void. Sri Bhagwan says that being fixed in that ‘I’ which is there even in the void is the quest for the ‘I’ from the start to finish.

What happens can be explained thus : When the ego is annihilated by the Enquiry, the seeker experiences a great void and is at a loss. He feels that the beacon light that he was attending to thus far in his sadhana is now lost. This is the time when he may even wonder that there is no such thing as the Self ! The Sadguru, who is ever shining as the Heart comes to his rescue at this crucial moment. He points out to the seeker that the annihilation of the ego which is merely the reflected consciousness of the infinitesimal part of the Consciousness is not a loss at all. “Are you not clearly aware not only of its former existence, but also of the present great void created by its disappearance ? THEREFORE, KNOW THAT YOU, WHO EVEN KNOW THE VOID AS ‘THIS IS A VOID’, ALONE ARE THE TRUE KNOWLEDGE; YOU ARE NOT A VOID.” The seeker at once experiences his true Existence-Consciousness shining in Heart as Heart Itself. The seeker attains the non-dual Self-knowledge, “I AM THAT I AM” WHICH IS FREE FROM THE LIMITATIONS OF A PARRTICULAR NAME, PLACE OR TIME.       
Therefore, I am mere Witness (Presence) of the three bodies and three states and the void. When the tenth man is found missing, the missing corresponds to the void. Sri Bhagwan says that we are so accustomed to empirical experiences that when it ceases to exist, we fear that we have ceased to exist.

In the context of discussion on void Sri Bhagwan also quotes verse 212 and 213 from Vivekchdamani in which the disciple says, ‘After I eliminate the five sheaths as not-Self, I find that nothing at all remains”, and the Guru replies, “The Self or That, by which all modifications including the ego and its creatures and their absence as void are perceived, is always there”.
Sri Bhagwan :“First one sees the Self as objects, then one sees the Self as the void, then one sees the Self as Self, only in this last there is no seeing because seeing is being.” THE TENTH MAN IS FOUND.

Thank you,
  Anil
                                                             

[Subramanian.R]

Dear Anil,

Fear, Void etc., happen during sadhana of most of us. Visions are also happening
for a few.  But Sri Bhagavan says that all these are to be ignored, and the sadhana
must be pursued further. Sri Bhagavan used to ask: Find out to whom these visions,
void, or fear happen? Is it not for you. Find out who you are.

The happening of Void is also described in Vivekachoodamani by Sankara.



Arunachala Siva. 

[eranilkumarsinha]

Sri G.V. Subbaramaya :
“I know not what other people mean by war and peace. My war is only to fight against the obstacles in my way to YOU, and my peace is only to reach YOU and fall at YOUR feet in one everlasting prostration.”

Sri Muruganar :
“People discuss whether Brahman is with form or without form, but I have seen Brahman on the slopes of Arunachala in the form of a frail man, tottering about with a stick in his hand, opening out the large lotus petals of his eyes and looking round for souls to save. He is none other than Sri Ramana.”
                                                  The Power of the Presence, Part Three, P. 164

                          PERFECT DIVINE GRACE MANIFEST THAT IS BHAGWN SRI RAMANA !

Dear Sri Subramanian Sir,

Ji Yes. Thank you so much, sir.  “KNOW THAT YOU, WHO EVEN KNOW THE VOID AS ‘THIS IS A VOID’, ALONE ARE THE TRUE KNOWLEDGE; YOU ARE NOT A VOID.”

Dear sir, Bhagwan Sri Ramana is timeless. He is now Eloquent Silence, Silence of the Self. All one has to do is to become more and more receptive to that Infinite Silence by steadfast practice of Self-enquiry with unwavering faith in Him. To the faithful His Divine Silence is still available as before. There can be no doubt about it. To whom, when, and how His Divine Silence is transmitted is a mystery. But when it happens, Path becomes lighted and it becomes easy for the recipient to move forward on the Path.

Thank You,
    Anil   


 

[Subramanian.R]

Dear Anil.,

Muruganar says: I do not know whether Brahman has a form or no form. But I have
seen Brahman walking on the slopes of Arunachala, with a stick on His hand!

What a wonderful statement displaying para bhakti, the highest form of devotion.
If one could have this kind of ardent devotion, one is sure to go to Sri Bhagavan's
feet.

Some one asked Sri Ramakrishna:  Thakur!  Have you read Panchadasi ?

Sri Ramakrishna replied: I do not know Panchadasi and all those books. I
know only my Mother Kali. And that is sufficient for me!

Saint Manikkavachagar says: "I do not want the relatives. I do not want my town.
I do not want any name for me. I only want to sing melodiously about Your golden
feet, and cry like a young calf crying Amma, Amma for its mother-cow.

What more does one need in life?  If one could shed tears on thinking, speaking
and singing about God, the gates of liberation are wide open for him.



Arunachala Siva.   

[amiatall]

Dear Anil,

Fear, Void etc., happen during sadhana of most of us. Visions are also happening
for a few.  But Sri Bhagavan says that all these are to be ignored, and the sadhana
must be pursued further. Sri Bhagavan used to ask: Find out to whom these visions,
void, or fear happen? Is it not for you. Find out who you are.

The happening of Void is also described in Vivekachoodamani by Sankara.



Arunachala Siva.

Dear Subramanian.R,

about arising emotions, the devotee of Robert Adams has nicely summed up:

"Often the unconscious mind buries painful memories in “secret” storerooms in the unconscious. Those storerooms of pain are totally connected to the conscious sense of I-Am, so that when the sense of I Am is approached in introspection, many defense mechanismsare activated to hide the I Am. In these cases, a person needs to do psychotherapeutic introspection first, before true self-inquiry can take place. This is best done with a good psychotherapist. If none are available, go ahead with self inquiry, but be aware if emotional pain arises, THAT MUST BECOMETHE FOCUS OF YOUR INVESTIGATION UNTIL THE PAIN IS CLEARLY SEEN THROUGH. There is no need to eliminate it entirely, but there is a need to deal with it and know it is there." - Hunting the I (Expanded) (source: http://www.wearesentience.com/hunting-the-i-expanded.html, I suggest to read it through once for some insights for many)

[eranilkumarsinha]

Fear, Void etc., happen during sadhana of most of us. Visions are also happening
for a few. But Sri Bhagavan says that all these are to be ignored, and the sadhana
must be pursued further. Sri Bhagavan used to ask: Find out to whom these visions,
void, or fear happen? Is it not for you. Find out who you are.
“Dear Subramanian.R,

about arising emotions, the devotee of Robert Adams has nicely summed up:

"Often the unconscious mind buries painful memories in “secret” storerooms in the unconscious. Those storerooms of pain are totally connected to the conscious sense of I-Am, so that when the sense of I Am is approached in introspection, many defense mechanismsare activated to hide the I Am. In these cases, a person needs to do psychotherapeutic introspection first, before true self-inquiry can take place. This is best done with a good psychotherapist. If none are available, go ahead with self inquiry, but be aware if emotional pain arises, THAT MUST BECOMETHE FOCUS OF YOUR INVESTIGATION UNTIL THE PAIN IS CLEARLY SEEN THROUGH. There is no need to eliminate it entirely, but there is a need to deal with it and know it is there." - Hunting the I (Expanded) (source: http://www.wearesentience.com/hunting-the-i-expanded.html, I suggest to read it through once for some insights for many)”

Dear Sri amiatall,

First, I must thank you for your sincere advice.

In the realm of spirituality in general and in Sri Bhagwan’s Teaching in particular, lower or impure mind is treated in its entirety which is nothing but a bundle of thoughts. Sri Bhagwan has taught that such a mind is not a real entity, but without discussing whether it is real or unreal, one should seek its source, then it will disappear. Therefore, in my view, its further division into conscious, sub-conscious and unconscious and study its contents and subject them to a psychotherapeutic inspection etc. is not the proper way to tackle it and even may prove  counter-productive.

Instead, as Sri Subramanian sir has so beautifully portrayed :
“Sri Bhagavan used to ask: Find out to whom these visions,
void, or fear happen? Is it not for you. Find out who you are.”

Yes, visions, voids,or fear etc. happen or pertain to the spurious ego. Sri Bhagwan teaches that when the source of the ego is sought it disappears. Dear amiatall, Self-enquiry as taught by Sri Bhagwan has the wherewithal and capacity to eject the hidden thoughts out from the most secret recess and corner of the so called ‘secret store rooms’ of the ‘unconscious mind’and tackle them at the very place of their rising. Moreover, it is only natural that when one sits for enquiry in the beginning, such thoughts would rise in hordes and distract his attention from the first person, otherwise how else will they all be destroyed ? You have rightly said this is the defence mechanism of the ego which is activated when the very existence of the ego is threatened. But for this very purpose, Sri Bhagwan gave us the most lethal divine weapons ever (Brahmastra).
What is needed most, in my view, is the ‘Faith in the Guru’ and firm resolve and steady determination to realise our True and Blissful Nature, that is, our Atma-Swarupa and be rid of unhappiness for once and all. And in my knowledge, Sri Bhagwan never even advocated to see the mind and its contents to anyone. A barber does not count the removed hair of his customers before throwing them away as the waste. However, Sri Bhagwan, of course, enjoined all other spiritual practices, if he found that some devotees were not prepared to take up Enquiry straight away.

Thank you,
   Anil       

[eranilkumarsinha]

Dear Devotees

Sri Bhagwan narrated a story which demonstrates the Power and Greatness of the Guru’s Silence which runs as follows:

Sri Tattavaraya once composed a bharani, some kind of a poetic composition, in Tamil, in honour of his Guru, Sri Swarupananda, and convened an assembly of learned scholars for its appraisal. But scholars assembled raised the objection that a bharani was composed in honour of only great heroes who were capable of killing a thousand elephants in battle and therefore it was not proper for Sri Tattavaraya to compose it in honour of an ascetic. Thereupon, the composer said, “Let us all go to my Guru and we shall have the matter settled there.” So, they all approached the Guru, and after they were seated, the composer apprised the Guru of the purpose of their visit. The Guru sat silent and all visitors also remained in silence. The whole day passed, the night came and passed, and in this manner some more days and nights passed, and yet they all sat silently, no thought at all whatever occurred to any of them and nobody thought or asked why had they come there. However, after three or four days like this, THE GURU MOVED HIS MIND A BIT, AND THE LEARNED PEOPLE REGAINED THEIR THOUGHT ACTIVITY. They then declared, “Conquering a thousand elephants is nothing beside this Guru’s Power to conquer the rutting elephants of all our egos put together. So, certainly he deserves the bharani in His honour !”
                                                                            Source: The Day by Day With Bhagwan   

Dear devotees, we are aware that Sri Bhagwan Himself demonstrated the Power of His Silence to devotees who understood. The first western devotee Sri F.H. Humphreys, Sri Paul Brunton, and many, many Indian and foreign devotees and recipient of His Grace have testified to the extraordinary power of Sri Bhagwan’s Eloquent Silence. The first western devotee, Sri F. H. Humphreys, on his very first visit to Sri Bhagwan in the Virupaksha cave, knew for the first time what it was for the thought-tortured mind to be without thoughts ! There is no doubt that His ‘Silent Teaching was and is most intimate, most direct and most powerful. His Silent Teaching was a powerful spiritual force which emanated from His form when He was in the body and one experiences the same powerful spiritual engulfment when His Presence is invoked anywhere, anytime now.  Those devotees who are well- attuned and receptive to this spiritual force of Silence experience it as Inner Peace and Fulfilment of Well-being. This is as valid today as it was before. There is no change. To those who think that He is gone, I have nothing to say. But for those who know better, know that he is Here, There, and Everywhere. For, He is the Self all beings, Self of selves. Therefore, where will He go ?

Thank You,
   Anil             

[eranilkumarsinha]

“Muruganar says: I do not know whether Brahman has a form or no form. But I have
seen Brahman walking on the slopes of Arunachala, with a stick on His hand!

What a wonderful statement displaying para bhakti, the highest form of devotion.
If one could have this kind of ardent devotion, one is sure to go to Sri Bhagavan's
feet.”

Dear Sri Subramanian Sir,

Ji. Yes. It is the pinnacle of devotion. Sri Muruganar was a Poet, a Mystic, and a Devotee par excellence. He fulfilled his tryst with destiny to perfection. His life and great poetical outpourings are the quint essence of perfect devotion to the Guru and His Teaching. His compositions portray a unique merging of Janan aad Bhakti succinctly and its mellifluous voice can be heard in any one of his compositions. For example :

Praise the being of pure, clear Awareness,
The robber who has stolen my heart.
Praise the comlinessrare, yet anear,
Brightness familiar, precious, dear.


Praise father, mother, awareness
Firm-fixed as the axle, praise.
Praise the breath, the body praise,
And the Awareness beyond body and breath.
                                               P. 3, Sri Ramana sannidhi Murai

In my view, dear sir, it is the grand synthesis of Jnana and Bhakti. Is it not ? How I wish I had the ability to emulate him !

Than you so much, sir, for a nice post.

Regards,
   Anil
     

[Subramanian.R]

Dear Anil,.

Bhakti and Jnana go together.  Bhakti is considered mother of Jnana. Sri
Bhagavan attained self realization in Madurai.  Thereafter He stayed for
about 6 weeks in Madurai before leaving for good to Arunachala. Here
in these six weeks, He used to go to Meenakshi Temple in Madurai and
cry before the sixtythree saints saying, When shall I get bhakti like you?

Even after coming to Arunachala, His first song was Aksharamana Maalai,
which is full of  honey called bhakti.  He says: "Let me dissolve in You, like
a ice cube in water, let me dissolve in Your Love called Pure Water as an icecube.



Arunachala Siva.