Self-enquiry as taught by Sri Bhagwan is enough

[eranilkumarsinha]

Q (a visitor from Madras):  Swami, how can people like us be saved from our materialistic outlook?
If we ask, you will surely say, "It is enough if you go on with Self-enquiry: Who am I?" How is that possible for us who are family people and are doing our respective jobs? If the mind goes on with worldly affairs, how can we get peace of mind?"
Sri Bhagavan simply remained silent, listening to them quietly.

An Ashramite (referring to the question above): "Yesterday evening, the people who came from Madras asked you some questions, but you did not answer. Why was that? In the past when Sivaprakasam Pillai wrote a verse beginning 'Udalinai veruthum' I am told that you were also silent. Why, Bhagavan? Does it mean that no one can become a Realized Soul, a jnani, unless he lives in a lonely place like that?"

Sri Bhagwan: "Who said that? The nature of the mind is determined by its former actions, its samskaras. People are able to continue to do all their work and yet pursue their Self-enquiry and ultimately become Realized Souls. Janaka, Vasishta, Rama, Krishna and others like them, are examples of this. Again, for some it would appear impossible to do this and they have to go to solitary places to become Realized Souls through Self-enquiry. Of these, 'Sanaka, Sanandana, Suka, Vamadeva, are amongst the examples. Self-enquiry is essential for whomever it may be. It is called ?human effort (purushakara)'. The course of the body follows according to our fate (prarabhdha). What more can we say about it?"
Source: Letters from Sri Ramanasramam









Dear devotees and seekers, Bhagwan Sri Ramana has taught without any ambiguity whatever  that the most effective as well as the easiest way to engage in Self-enquiry is to be always aware of the Awareness 'I AM' within our hearts inwardly, for ?I Am?  is always present within every one of us. Therefore, no matter what we are doing, we must sincerely and earnestly endeavor to do the Self-enquiry or the Atma-vichara where we are, for we are the Centre of Meditation whether at home or away from the home, or whether lonely in solitude or amidst the crowd. 
Pranam,
 Anil

[eranilkumarsinha]

Sri Bhagwan Ramana:
"As long as there are tendencies towards sense-objects in the mind, (since they will always create some subtle or gross world-appearance) so long the enquiry 'Who am I?' is necessary. As and when thoughts rise of their own accord, one should annihilate all of them through enquiry then and
there in their very place of origin. What is the means to annihilate them? If other thoughts rise disturbing Self-attention, one should, without attempting 'to complete them, enquire 'To whom did they rise?', It will then be known 'To me'; immediately, if we observe 'Who is this I that thinks?', the mind will turn back to its Source (Self). Hence, the other thoughts which had risen will also subside. By repeatedly practising thus, the power of the mind to abide in its Source increases. When the mind thus abides in the Heart, the first thought, 'I' ('I am the body', the rising 'I'), which is the root of all other thoughts, itself having vanished, the ever-existing Self (the being 'I') alone will shine. The place (or state) where even the slightest trace of the thought 'I' ('I am this, that, the body, Brahman and so on') does not exist, alone is Self. That alone is called Silence (maunam)."





Dear Devotees,

Thus, we see that Sri Bhagwan has Himself explained the technique of the Self-enquiry wonderfully from A to Z. What more do we need to know intellectually to practice this supremely beneficial path? Yes, we need to destroy inherent tendencies so that thoughts do not arise and disturb the Self-attention, and we need to drop our worries, etc., so that the Enquiry is done unobstructed.  But one cannot destroy the predispositions and drop worries by merely wishing to do so, that is, by wishful thinking. One must practice Self-attention for that alone is the correct form of the Self-enquiry as taught by Sri Bhagwan. If we repeatedly practice and steadily maintain attention only onto ourseves, contact the Inner Awareness, reach and abide in the Source, all inherent tendencies and problems, worries and anxieties, et al, will be pulverized or drop off of their own accord, nay, the root of them all , i.e., the rising 'I' itself will disappear or merge in the Substratum of the being 'I' or the Self or the Swarupa. That alone is the Silence of the Self , Which is Being-Awareness  the nature of which is Perfect Bliss. 

Pranam,
 Anil   

[eranilkumarsinha]

Bhagwan Sri Ramana:

"Although in the beginning, on account of the tendencies towards sense-objects (vishaya-vasanas) which have been recurring down the ages, thoughts rise in countless numbers like the waves of the ocean, they will all perish as the aforesaid Self-attention becomes more and more intense. Since even the doubt 'Is it possible to destroy all of them and to remain as Self alone ?' is only a thought, without giving room even to that thought, one should persistently cling fast to Self-attention. However great a sinner one may be, if, not lamenting 'Oh, I am a sinner! How can I attain salvation?' but completely giving up even the thought that one is a sinner, one is steadfast in Self-attention, one will surely be saved. Therefore everyone, diving deep within himself with desirelessness (vairagya),can attain the pearl of Self."




Dear devotees and seekers, therefore, our work is to practice steadfast and unwavering Self-attention as far as possible without giving room to any doubt whatever. Aforesaid Self-attention is same as clinging to, or holding of,  or attending to the I-consciousness. And what is meant by the phrase 'Self-attention becoming more and more intense'? SELF-ATTENTION  BECOMING  MORE AND MORE  INTENSE AND  THEREBY  GAINING  GREATER  CLARITY,  AND  ACQUIRING  GREATER  AND  GREATER  INTENSITY  OF  CONCENTRATION  UPON  THE  'I',  IS  INDEED  DIVING  DEEP  WITHIN.  Therefore, what is absolutely necessary is to pursue the aforesaid Self-attention till the very end.

  Pranam,
   Anil 

[eranilkumarsinha]

Bhagwan Sri Ramana:
"After coming to know that the final decision of all the scriptures (sastras) is that such destruction of the mind alone is liberation (mukti), to read scriptures unlimitedly is fruitless. In order to destroy the mind, it is necessary to enquire who one is; then how, instead of enquiring thus within oneself, to enquire and know who one, is in scriptures ? For Rama to know himself to be Rama, is a mirror necessary ? 'Oneself' is within the five sheaths, whereas the scriptures are outside them. Therefore, how can oneself, who is to be attended to within, setting aside even the five sheaths, be found in scriptures? Since scripture-enquiry is futile, one should give it up and take to Self-enquiry.?


Dear devotees, 'oneself' is concealed within the five sheaths, whereas the scriptures are outside them. Therefore, if oneself is attended to within, setting aside even the five sheaths, and knows oneself through this Self-attention to be pure consciousness 'I Am', further study of scriptures, ad nauseam, are not necessary at all, unless of course, one wishes to become a dry scholar instead, and remain always confused.   

Pranam,
  Anil 

[eranilkumarsinha]

Disciple: Is Self-experience possible for the mind, whose nature is constant change?

Sri Bhagwan: Since sattva guna (the constituent of prakriti which makes for purity, intelligence, etc.) is the nature of mind, and since the mind is pure and undefiled like ether, what is called mind is, in truth, of the nature of knowledge. When it stays in that natural (i.e. pure) state, it has not even the name 'mind'. It is only the erroneous knowledge which mistakes one for another that is called mind. What was (originally) the pure sattva mind, of the nature of pure knowledge, forgets its knowledge-nature on account of nescience, gets transformed into the world under the influence of tamo guna (i.e. the constituent of prakriti which makes for dullness, inertness, etc.), being under the influence of rajo guna (i.e. the constituent of prakriti which makes for activity, passions, etc.), imagines 'I am the body, etc.; the world is real', it acquires the consequent merit and demerit through attachment, aversion, etc., and, through the residual impressions (vasanas) thereof, attains birth and death.
But the mind, which has got rid of its defilement (sin) through action without attachment performed in many past lives, listens to the teaching of scripture from a true guru, reflects on its meaning, and meditates in order to gain the natural state of the mental mode of the form of the Self, i.e., of the form 'I am Brahman' which is the result of the continued contemplation of Brahman. Thus will be removed the mind's transformation into the world in the aspect of tamo guna, and its roving therein the aspect of rajo guna. When this removal takes place the mind becomes subtle and unmoving. It is only by the mind that is impure and is under the influence of rajas and tamas that Reality (i.e., the Self) which is very subtle and unchanging cannot be experienced; just as a piece of fine silk cloth cannot be stitched with a heavy crowbar, or as the details of subtle objects cannot be distinguished by the light of a lamp flame that flickers in the wind. But in the pure mind that has been rendered subtle and unmoving by the meditation described above, the Selfbliss (i.e., Brahman) will become manifest.
As without mind there cannot be experience, it is possible for the purified mind endowed with the extremely subtle mode (vritti) to experience the Self-bliss, by remaining in that form (i.e. in the form of Brahman). Then, that one's Self is of the nature of Brahman will be clearly experienced.






Dear devotees, since we are listening to the true Guru's Highest Teaching of the Atma-vidya (Self-Knowledge) and reflecting and contemplating on the intuitive Meaning of the Words of Grace, it implies that we all must have got rid of the mental impurities and defilement substantially in the past (in this very life or in the past lives).  And now, our duty is to remain engaged in Enquiry and just be in order to remove the mind's transformation into the world in the aspect of tamo guna (dullness) and its activities for obtaining sense enjoyments in the aspect of rajo guna, and gain the natural state of the mental mode of the form of the Self so that the Self-bliss becomes manifest. Remember, when the mind stays in its natural state it is not even appropriate name the mind as the mind for then it is verily Absolute Consciousness.

Pranam,
  Anil 

[eranilkumarsinha]

DIALOGUE ON SELF-ENQUIRY
Dear devotees, I happened to find the the following conversation which comes from the diary of a devotee called Sri Yalamanchili who met Sri Bhagwan in 1928 and had a discussion with him on Self-inquiry. It was published in Arunachala Ramana in February 1982:
Question: How to realize the Atman?
Bhagavan: Whose Atman?
Question: Mine.
Bhagavan: Then you yourself have to do it.
Question: I am unable to do and know it.
Bhagavan: To whom is it not known?
Question: To myself.
Bhagavan: Try to know who is that 'myself'.
Question: That is what you have to tell.
Bhagavan: [Smiling] It seems you have come here to test me. Will it really benefit you if I tell you what you are? Will you be satisfied if I just tell you? Ask yourself 'Who am I?' After questioning you will get the answer within yourself, and that will satisfy you.
Question: I have been doing sadhana for a long time but in vain.
Bhagavan: You will have to search for 'I' [aham]. Then, the apparent 'I' will vanish.
Question: Please give me the details of the process.
Sri Bhagawan: Mind is, in reality, a bundle of thoughts. And every thought springs from the 'I'. So, it is the first thought. Instead of dwelling on the secondary thoughts, the seeker has to concentrate on the primary thought, which is this 'I'.
Question: What is the difference between a thought and the 'I'?
Sri Bhagawan: Thoughts are not independent. They have a standing only when they are associated with the 'I'. But the 'I' can stand by itself. Actually, this 'I' is also not independent. In its turn, it is supported by the Atman.
Again and again, it rises from the Self and sinks there. It subsides in deep sleep and it comes out again in waking. We have to find out the place of its birth with an introverted vision.
Question: I have been questioning in this way but getting no answer.
Sri Bhagawan: If you ask this question with zeal and proceed inward, the false 'I' disappears and the real 'I' emerges.
Question: What is the real ?I??
Sri Bhagawan: This is what we call 'soul' or 'God'.
Question: When I start the inquiry numerous thoughts come in the way and obstruct me. When I eliminate one, another appears in its place. It seems there is no end.
Sri Bhagawan: I am not telling you to grapple with the thoughts. There will be no end if you do it that way. Here lies the secret: there is the ?I?, the source of all thoughts, and we have to catch it and see from where it arises. This is absolutely necessary. As a dog traces his master by following the track of his smell, you have to follow the inner development of the 'I' to reach its source, which is the [true] soul.
Question: From this, I understand that one can reach the source by one's own effort.
Sri Bhagawan: It is by the grace of God that you come to desire to know yourself. This desire to know yourself is itself a clear sign of the Atman's grace. So, there is grace already working as the source of your effort. Grace is not an external quality of the Self but its very nature. It abides in your Heart, pulling you inward into itself. The only task you must do is turn your attention inward and search the source of 'I'. This is the only personal effort we have to put in. That is why [one can say that] where there is no grace, there is no desire at all for the quest for the Self.
Question: Is there no need for a Guru then?
Sri Bhagawan: When it is necessary the Self itself will take the form of an external Guru and initiate you into the process. He will push you in and hand you over to the inner Guru who is already there. Finally, the Atman, which abides in the Heart, embraces you there.
Question: Now, may I know sir, what is the distinguishing feature of this method?
Sri Bhagawan: The sense of 'I' is always present in us. So, it is relatively easy to find the Self through this 'I', which is an emanation of the Self. Further, if, before the ?I? ramifies into many forms, we put our attention via this method on the parent-form of the 'I', this makes for the direct dissolution of the 'I' in its source.
Otherwise, if you begin the inquiry when the 'I' has already taken many forms, you will be swept away by its illusive power and never reach its source.
Question: The Self is nameless and formless. How then can we find it by the questioning of this 'I' that has a name and a form?
Sri Bhagavan: The false 'I' or ego stands between the soul and the body, and connects them. Now, soul is conscious while the body is inert. The false 'I' binds them together. So, it is also called the knot between matter and spirit [chit-jada-granthi].




Dear devotees, Sri Yalamanchili at the end of this profound conversation has observed that from this we see that the ego or the false 'I' has its feet in the Self and its head in the body. Therefore, by enquiring into the origin of the ego, we can easily proceed and reach the formless Self.

Will you like make any comment on the above conversation?


Pranam,
  Anil

[eranilkumarsinha]

Dear devotees, the following passages give a picturesque demonstration of the gross mind's predicament and how Sri Bhagwan  subdues it, even during the conversation, His Presence Itself making the questioner see the error of his ways, and thus turning the questioner's gross mind into a subtle one.

"Once a few followers of a faith which vehemently condemns the use of idols, came to the Sage and started questioning him. Their aim was to obtain from him, an admission that it is wrong to worship God in an idol. Their spokesman asked the Sage, "Has God any form?" Bhagavan replied, "Who says God has form?" The questioner then said, "If God is formless, then is it not wrong to worship Him in an idol?" The Sage said, "Let God alone. Tell me if you have a form or not?" The questioner promptly answered, "Yes, I have a form, as you see." The sage said, "What? Are you the body, which is about three and a half cubits in height, dark in colour and moustachioed and bearded?" "Yes", came the answer. "Are you this in dreamless sleep also?" "Of course! For on waking, I find myself to be the same." "Also when the body dies?""?Yes." "If so, why does not the body say to the people when they are preparing to take it away for burial, "No, you must not take me away. This house is mine and I want to remain here?"" When at last the disputant realized his error, he said, "I was wrong; I am not the body, I am the life that dwells in it.""
"Then the Sage explained, "Look here, until now you quite seriously believed that this body is yourself; but now you see that you were wrong in this; understand that this is the initial ignorance, out of which grows inevitably all the ignorance that enslaves men. So long as this primal ignorance remains, it does not matter much whether you regard God as formless or having form. But, when this primal ignorance goes, then, with it will go all the rest.""




Dear devotees, I posted some content of the above conversation before also, but I again posted this to demonstrate as to how Sri Bhagwan zeroed on this disease of bondage to our desire and fear as stemming  from the root ignorance that the body is the self. This is confirmed by the observation that desire and fear arise because of the body. Therefore, the assumption that we are the body is absolutely untrue.  We are the Life Itself and not the contents of the Life. Mind as we know it, the body, the world, time, space, et al, are only the contents of the Life. Self is the only Life and only Existence, Being is the Self, and we are That. This, Sri Bhagwan has taught, is the whole Truth

Pranam,
 Anil

[eranilkumarsinha]

Dear Sri Jewell,

Thank you so much, dear friend, Sri Jewell. I have downloaded and saved this important book for the second time in my computer.
Dear Sri Jewell, I will like to request you to spare some time from your busy schedule for this Forum as well, for your thoughts and profound poetry have always enriched it.
Pranam,
 Anil

[eranilkumarsinha]

Dear Sri Ravi, where and how are you? I have noted, truly speaking, with a sense of nostalgia, that you, of late, have stopped posting your insightful precepts and ideas and comments in this forum. If any post or comment or remark of mine or anybody else hurt  or offended you, please forgive, for as you are aware that this is done in sheer ignorance!! So, I would request you once again to start posting and enrich this forum which was designed by one of Sri Bhagwan Ramana's great devotee, Sri Graham Boyd, mainly to disseminate Sri Bhagwan's Life and Teaching.
Thanks very much, dear Sri Ravi Bhai Saheb.

Pranam,
 Anil   

[eranilkumarsinha]

Sri V. Ganesan:
What was the purpose of Bhagavan Arunachala Ramanan's advent on earth? In his hymn Necklace of Nine Gems, Bhagavan reveals it: "Arunachala commanded me to make known his true state of Awareness all over the world as the Self in each one's Heart, and thereby destroy the false identity that one is the body." Arunachala Siva , the infinite flame of jnana manifest in the form of a holy hill, incarnated as Ramana to talk to us in our language. After all, who would be able to understand a hill if it were to speak? Its language is mounam, silence.

I once shared this with Bhagavan's old devotee, Professor N. R. Krishnamurthy Iyer, a physics professor and scientist. He exclaimed, "How wonderful! This is true! Arunachala did come as Ramana; but Ganesan, add another sentence to that." He continued, "It is true that Bhagavan is Arunachala, but we, his devotees, are the rocks and boulders of Arunachala, part and parcel of the sacred hill." This revelation thrilled me. Professor Iyer added, "Whenever a great being appears, he comes with his retinue. When Bhagavan incarnated on earth, we too came to serve him. Once our service is over, we will go back to the source."




Dear devotees, and who are we who came to His Lotus Feet of Sri Arunachala Ramana after His Mahanirvana?  Well, there should not be any doubt as to who we are, for we too are, like the old devotees, rocks and boulders of Sri Arunachala though may be a little more scattered than they were. At the end of Enquiry, we too will go back to the Source. This is certain.
Pranam,
 Anil

[Jewell]

Dear Sri Anil,

My dear friend thank You for so kind words,and for all the posts You share about beautiful practice of self-enquiry,where 'enquiry' disappears and only the Self shines in all its glory! And truly,in any way God is shown to us,That will point to our own Heart,our own Self. Like Bhagavan always pointed on the Heart,and Arunachala as the Heart...

Beyond our little imagined self. But that Heart is so full of everything and so wonderful,that it is Beyond beyond Beyond. Unfathomable.

Here is something i have mentioned about some practical things on the practice from Sri Sadhu Om. Only recently i have found this wonderful book and it is so true and practical.

With love,
41. Intermittent Attempts

223. The state in which our power of attention,
which now sees the objects that exist in front of our
eyes, sees its own existence 'I am', having suddenly
become introverted by giving up all objective
attention and turning towards 'I', is alone the state
of true austerity (tapas) or yoga. If our power of attention
is used in any other way, that is only an objective
attention that is opposed to true tapas or
yoga.

224. Know that a vichari (a person practicing
Self-inquiry) who makes effort with the liking always
to turn inwards to see the 'I' with the inner eye, will
not be able to experience the pure Selfconsciousness
merely by the process of sitting majestically
with closed eyes for a long period of time at
one stretch.

225. If at one single attempt you strive persistently
for long hours without limit, to pull Selfwards
and restrain the running mind without leaving your
hold on Self-attention, you will find that you are not
able to maintain a steady intensity of Self-attention.
Therefore, after making one attempt for a few minutes,
relax your effort for a while, and then again
make a fresh attempt with renewed effort.

226. If you continue incessantly to struggle for
many hours at a stretch to turn your power of atten-
tion towards Self, your effort will become slack and
the intensity of your Self-attention will decrease. On
the other hand, if you take rest as and when each
attempt becomes slack, and then if you repeatedly
make fresh efforts to turn Selfwards, with each fresh
attempt your Self-attention will gain an increased
vigor and intensity.
Note: If we press our hand on a weighing-scale
and if we try to maintain the pressure continuously
for a long time by not removing our hand, as time
passes the dial will indicate that the pressure is
gradually decreasing. But if instead we relax by removing
our hand for a while, and if we then again
apply the pressure, the dial will indicate that with
each fresh attempt the pressure is increasing. Simi
larly, instead of struggling to maintain the intensity of
Self-attention for a long time, if we make intermittent
attempts to turn our attention keenly towards Self,
with each fresh attempt our Self-attention will gain a
greater degree of intensity and clarity.

227. When the mind, our power of attention,
having little by little gained the strength to turn Selfwards,
finally at one time reaches the heart due to
the intensity and clarity of its Self-attention, it will
drown in Self, having been caught in the clutch of
the Grace of God who has ever been waiting without
the least forgetfulness to catch it, and hence it will
never again turn outwards to know objects other
than 'I'.

228. Knowing that this is indeed the peerless divine
marriage of Grace, the power of attention will
become settled and will attain firm abidance in Self.
To remain steadily established in Self-abidance, be-
ing firmly bound by Self in Self, having known oneself
to be that Self, is alone the state of supreme Bliss.

A Light on the Teaching of
Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi
The Essence of Spiritual Practice
(Sadhanai Saram)
Sri Sadhu Om

[Jewell]

He knows the best of all,
 Leave it to Him, be calm;
 Believe Him most of all,
 Then rests the mental storm.

A Light on the Teaching of
Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi
The Essence of Spiritual Practice
(Sadhanai Saram)
Sri Sadhu Om

[Ravi.N]

Anilbhai,
Thanks for your loving remembrance...By the 'will of Rama' we are doing fine...yes,I have not been posting anything here for sometime now...not because someone has 'offended' my sensibilities and certainly not you!...No brother...perhaps I have shared enough ...perhaps not even that!...There was no inner prompting to do so.
What is the essence of spiritual sadhana?...Is it not to drop the sense of 'doership' ? Any effort that strengthens the 'doership' and perpetuates it is counterproductive...so,the very first step in awakening is to realize that sadhana is something that gets done (and this is the breeze of Grace that carries one)...and Sadhana is not an undertaking by oneself through exercising one's will.
So,the very nature of so called 'Effort'  is quite different than what is understood in worldly parlance...and the paradox is that although effort is called for,effort keeps one off the mark!...until the effort and struggle is transmuted to one of pure yearning and Shraddha...and it is this shraddha that is the very essence of Sadhana...and this yearning and  shraddha arises through the causeless Grace of the Divine...This is already covered in the thread http://www.arunachala-ramana.org/forum/index.php?topic=8446.15 (Practical Hints on Sadhana from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna).

There is absolutely no new 'insight' that one has to gain ...it is always the same...that only the crying baby gets its milk...yearning and shraddha are the very essence of sadhana and satsangha is the only way to discover this in ourselves.

Namaskar

[Ravi.N]

Will Of Rama

Master:"God has put you in the world. What can you do about it? Resign everything to Him. Surrender yourself at His feet. Then there will be no more  confusion. Then you will realize that it is God who  does everything. All depends on 'the will of Rāma'."
Story of "the will of Rāma"
A DEVOTEE: "What is that story about 'the will of Rāma'?"
MASTER: "In a certain village there lived a weaver. He was a very pious soul.  Everyone trusted him and loved him. He used to sell his goods in the market-place. When a customer asked him the price of a piece of cloth, the weaver would say: 'By the will of Rāma the price of the yarn is one rupee and the labour four ānnās; by the will of Rāma the profit is two ānnās . The price of the cloth, by the will of Rāma, is one rupee and six ānnās.' Such was the people's faith in the weaver that the customer would at once pay the price and take the cloth. The weaver was a real devotee of God. After finishing his supper in the evening, he would spend long hours' in the worship hall meditating on God and chanting His name and glories. Now, late one night the weaver couldn't get to sleep. He was sitting in the worship hall, smoking now and then, when a band of robbers happened to pass that way. They wanted a man to carry their goods and said to the weaver, 'Come with us.' So saying, they led him off by the hand. After committing a robbery in a house, they put a load of things on the weaver's head, commanding him to carry them. Suddenly the police arrived and the robbers ran away. But the weaver, with his load, was arrested. He was kept in the lock-up for the night. Next day he was brought before the magistrate for trial. The villagers learnt what had happened and came to court. They said to the magistrate, 'Your Honour, this man could never commit a robbery.' Thereupon the magistrate asked the weaver to make his statement.
'The weaver said: 'Your Honour, by the will of Rāma I finished my meal at night. Then by the will of Rāma I was sitting in the worship hall. It was quite late at night by the will of Rāma. By the will of Rāma I had been thinking of God and chanting His name and glories, when by the will of Rāma a band of robbers passed that way. By the will of Rāma they dragged me with them; by the will of Rāma they committed a robbery in a house; and by the will of Rāma they put a load on my head. Just then, by the will of Rāma the police arrived, and by the will of Rāma I was arrested. Then by the will of Rāma the police kept me in the lock-up for the night, and this morning by the will of Rāma I have been brought before Your Honour.' The magistrate realized that the weaver was a pious man and ordered his release. On his way home the weaver said to his friends, 'By the will of Rāma I have been released.'
"Whether a man should be a householder or a monk depends on the will of Rāma. Surrender everything to God and do your duties in the world. What else can you do? A clerk was once sent to prison. After the prison term was over he was released. Now, what do you think he did? Cut capers or do his old clerical work?
"If the householder becomes a jivanmukta, then he can easily live in the world if he likes. A man who has attained Knowledge does not differentiate between 'this place' and 'that place'. All places are the same to him. He who thinks of 'that place' also thinks of 'this place'.
The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna

[eranilkumarsinha]

Quote from Sri Jewell:
"You share about beautiful practice of self-enquiry, where 'enquiry' disappears and only the Self shines in all its glory."




Dear Sri Jewell,

Thank you so much, dear friend, for your response in the form of two very beautiful posts. Your poems, verses and your practical approach to the pursuit of divinity have inspired me and many others in this Forum.

Yes, Self-inquiry is a very beautiful practice where 'Inquiry' disappears and what remains is what IS--the Self.
It's indeed a very beautiful and profound insight, dear friend Sri Jewell!


Quote:
" If at one single attempt you strive persistently
for long hours without limit, to pull Selfwards
and restrain the running mind without leaving your
hold on Self-attention, you will find that you are not
able to maintain a steady intensity of Self-attention.
Therefore, after making one attempt for a few minutes,
relax your effort for a while, and then again
make a fresh attempt with renewed effort.

226. If you continue incessantly to struggle for
many hours at a stretch to turn your power of atten-
tion towards Self, your effort will become slack and
the intensity of your Self-attention will decrease. On
the other hand, if you take rest as and when each
attempt becomes slack, and then if you repeatedly
make fresh efforts to turn Selfwards, with each fresh
attempt your Self-attention will gain an increased
vigor and intensity.
Note: If we press our hand on a weighing-scale
and if we try to maintain the pressure continuously
for a long time by not removing our hand, as time
passes the dial will indicate that the pressure is
gradually decreasing. But if instead we relax by removing
our hand for a while, and if we then again
apply the pressure, the dial will indicate that with
each fresh attempt the pressure is increasing. Simi
larly, instead of struggling to maintain the intensity of
Self-attention for a long time, if we make intermittent
attempts to turn our attention keenly towards Self,
with each fresh attempt our Self-attention will gain a
greater degree of intensity and clarity."


Dear Sri Jewell, yes, this is the way to go as far as the practice of the Enquiry is concerned, and I dwelt on this topic regarding slackness in the Self-attention during the practice of the Inquiry. Yes, if one finds that the intensity of attention has slackened and one is either not able to concentrate on the consciousness 'I Am' or is not able to go deeper within, it is always beneficial to take some rest and relax, and then make fresh attempt to turn Self-ward. If one practices thus, one is certain to gain an increased intensity and depth with each fresh attempt. There is no doubt about it and one can ascertain its efficacy for oneself by practicing in this way.



Quote:
"He knows the best of all,
 Leave it to Him, be calm;
 Believe Him most of all,
 Then rests the mental storm."


Yes, last but the most important: Grace is the primary cause, and therefore, we must have faith in Him and His Teaching, love Him, surrender to Him, and always seek His Grace in the heart.


Thanks very much, dear Sri Jewell.
Pranam,
  Anil