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Who Am I Really? - Jon Knebel
Who Am I Really? - Jon Knebel
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Week 4 Philosophy: Advaita
"The Martial Garland of Letters"
The ‘Five Hymns to Arunachala’ are the earliest poems of the Maharshi except for a few short verses. They were written about 1914, that is when he was about thirty-five years of age (he was born in December, 1879) and while he was still living in a cave on the hill. Some of his followers who were sadhus used to go into the town of Tiruvannamalai daily to beg for food and one day they asked him to make a song for them to sing as they went. At first he refused, saying that there were plenty of songs already made by the ancient Saivite saints. They continued to press him, however, and one day he walked round the Hill, composing the first hymn, ‘The Marital Garland of Letters’ (Arunachala Akshara Mana Malai), as he went. Bhagavan also said that, ‘The Martial Garland of Letters’ was composed partly at the Virupaksha cave and partly on my walks around the hill.’
Ideally, group participants would read the pdf handout before the class, and then as a group, the following can be read to begin the class.
Sri Ramana Maharshi (December 30, 1879 – April 14, 1950). Sri Ramana's teachings about self-enquiry, the practice he is most widely associated with, have been classified as the Path of Knowledge (Jnana marga) among the Indian schools of thought.
His earliest teachings are documented in the book Nan Yar?(Who am I?), first written in Tamil. The original book was published by Sri Pillai, although the essay version of the book (Sri Ramana Nutrirattu) prepared by Sri Ramana is considered definitive as unlike the original it had the benefit of his revision and review. A careful translation with notes is available in English as 'The Path of Sri Ramana, Part One' by Sri Sadhu Om, one of the direct disciples of Sri Ramana. Selections from this definitive version follow:
• As all living beings desire to be happy always, without misery, as in the case of everyone there is observed supreme love for one's self, and as happiness alone is the cause for love, in order to gain that happiness which is one's nature and which is experienced in the state of deep sleep where there is no mind, one should know one's self. For that, the path of knowledge, the inquiry of the form "Who am I?", is the principal means.
• Knowledge itself is 'I'. The nature of (this) knowledge is existence-consciousness-bliss.
• What is called mind is a wondrous power existing in Self. It projects all thoughts. If we set aside all thoughts and see, there will be no such thing as mind remaining separate; therefore, thought itself is the form of the mind. Other than thoughts, there is no such thing as the world.
The Practice:
• Of all the thoughts that rise in the mind, the thought 'I' is the first thought.
• That which rises in this body as 'I' is the mind. If one enquires 'In which place in the body does the thought 'I' rise first?', it will be known to be in the heart [spiritual heart is 'two digits to the right from the centre of the chest']. Even if one incessantly thinks 'I', 'I', it will lead to that place (Self)'
• The mind will subside only by means of the enquiry 'Who am I?'. The thought 'Who am I?', destroying all other thoughts, will itself finally be destroyed like the stick used for stirring the funeral pyre.
• If other thoughts rise, one should, without attempting to complete them, enquire, 'To whom did they arise?', it will be known 'To me'. If one then enquires 'Who am I?', the mind (power of attention) will turn back to its source. By repeatedly practicing thus, the power of the mind to abide in its source increases.
• The place where even the slightest trace of the 'I' does not exist, alone is Self.
• Self itself is the world; Self itself is 'I'; Self itself is God; all is the Supreme Self (siva swarupam)
*Sri Ramana warned against considering self-enquiry as an intellectual exercise. Properly done, it involves fixing the attention firmly and intensely on the feeling of 'I', without thinking. It is perhaps more helpful to see it as 'Self-attention' or 'Self-abiding' (cf. Sri Sadhu Om - The Path of Sri Ramana Part I). The clue to this is in Sri Ramana's own death experience when he was 16. After raising the question 'Who am I?' he "turned his attention very keenly towards himself" (cf. description above). Attention must be fixed on the 'I' until the feeling of duality disappears. “I” in the context is synonymous with The Witness and Awareness.
*Although he advocated self-enquiry as the fastest means to realization, he was also known to have advised the practice of bhakti and self-surrender (to one's Deity or Guru) either concurrently or as an adequate alternative, which would ultimately converge with the path of self-enquiry.
Sri Ramana's Teachings and Advaita
Sri Ramana's teachings and the traditional Advaitic school of thought pioneered by Sri Sankaracharya have many things in common. Sri Ramana often mentioned and is known to have encouraged study of the following classical works: Ashtavakra Gita, Ribhu Gita and Essence of Ribhu Gita, Yoga Vasista Sara, Tripura Rahasya, Kaivalya Navaneetam, Advaita Bodha Deepika, and Ellam Ondre. However, there are some practical differences with the traditional Advaitic school, which recommends a negationist neti, neti (Sanskrit, "not this", "not this") path, or mental affirmations that the Self was the only reality, such as "I am Brahman" or "I am He", while Sri Ramana advocates the enquiry "Nan Yar" (Tamil, "Who am I"). Furthermore, unlike the traditional Advaitic school, Sri Ramana strongly discouraged most who came to him from adopting a renunciate lifestyle.
To elaborate:
• The traditional Advaitic (non-dualistic) school advocates "elimination of all that is non-self (the five sheaths) until only the Self remains”. The five kosas, or sheaths, that hide the true Self are: Material, Vital, Mental, Knowledge, and Blissful.
• Sri Ramana says "enquiry in the form 'Who am I' alone is the principal means. To make the mind subside, there is no adequate means other than self-enquiry. If controlled by other means, mind will remain as if subsided, but will rise again."
Teachers in His Tradition
He considered his own guru to be the Self, in the form of the sacred mountain Arunachala. Sri Ramana did not publicize himself as a guru, never claimed to have disciples, and never appointed any successors. While a few who came to see him are said to have become enlightened through association, and there are accounts of private acknowledgements, he did not publicly acknowledge any living person as liberated other than his mother at death. Sri Ramana declared himself an Atiasrami (beyond all caste and religious restrictions, not attached to anything in life), and did not belong to or promote any lineage. Despite his non-affiliations, there are numerous contemporary teachers who publicly associate themselves with Sri Ramana, and some who assert being in his lineage.
His method of teaching was characterized by the following:
1. He urged people who came to him to practice self-enquiry;
2. He directed people to look inward rather than seeking outside themselves for Realization. ("The true Bhagavan resides in your Heart as your true Self. This is who I truly am.");
3. He viewed all who came to him as the Self rather than as lesser beings. ("The jnani sees no one as an ajnani. All are only jnanis in his sight.");
4. He charged no money, and was adamant that no one ever ask for money (or anything else) in his name;
5. He never promoted or called attention to himself. Instead, Sri Ramana remained in one place for 54 years, offering spiritual guidance to anyone of any background who came to him, and asking nothing in return;
6. He considered humility to be the highest quality;
7. He said the deep sense of peace one felt around a jnani was the surest indicator of their spiritual state, that equality towards all was a true sign of liberation, and that what a true jnani did was always for others, not themselves.
******************************************************************
Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj (birth name: Maruti Shivrampant Kambli) (April 17, 1897[1] – September 8, 1981) was an Indian spiritual teacher and philosopher of Advaita (Nondualism), and a Guru, belonging to the Ichegeri branch of the Navnath Sampradaya.
One of the 20th century's exponents of the school of Advaita Vedanta philosophy (nondualism), Sri Nisargadatta, with his direct and minimalist explanation of non-dualism, is considered the most famous teacher of Advaita since Ramana Maharshi.
In 1973, the publication of his most famous and widely-translated book, I Am That, an English translation of his talks in Marathi by Maurice Frydman, brought him worldwide recognition and followers.
According to Sri Nisargadatta the purpose of spirituality is to know who you are.
Summed up in the words of Advaita scholar and a disciple, Dr. Robert Powell, "Like the Zen masters of old, Nisargadatta's style is abrupt, provocative, and immensely profound -- cutting to the core and wasting little effort on inessentials. His terse but potent sayings are known for their ability to trigger shifts in consciousness, just by hearing, or even reading them."
Teachings
Sri Nisargadatta's teachings are grounded in the Advaita Vedanta interpretation of the Hindu idea Tat Tvam Asi, literally "That Thou Art", meaning You are one with Divinity. He also had a strong devotional zeal towards his own guru, and suggested the path of devotion, Bhakti yoga, to some of his visitors, as he believed the path of knowledge, Jnana yoga was not for everyone.
According to Sri Nisargadatta, our true nature is perpetually free peaceful awareness, in Hinduism referred to as Brahman. Awareness is the source of, but different from, the personal, individual consciousness, which is related to the body. The mind and memory are responsible for association with a particular body; awareness exists prior to both mind and memory. It is only the idea that we are the body that keeps us from living what he calls our "original essence," the True Self, in Hinduism referred to as Atman.
He describes this essence as pure, free, and unaffected by anything that occurs. He likens it to a silent witness that watches through the body's senses, yet is not moved, either to happiness or sadness, based on what it sees.
For Nisargadatta, the Self is not one super-entity which knows independently, regardless of things; there is no such super-entity, no Creator with infinite intellect. God does not exist independently from creation. What does exist is the "total acting" (or functioning) of the Ultimate or Absolute Reality along the infinite varying forms in manifestation. This Absolute Reality is identical to The Self.
Nisargadatta's teachings also focus on our notion of causality as being misinterpreted. He understood that the interconnectedness of varying forces in the universe is so vast and innumerable that the notion of causality, as presently understood, is wasted. The endless factors required for anything to happen means that, at most, one can say everything creates everything; even the choices we make are predetermined by our genetic code, upbringing, mental strivings and limitations, our ethical and philosophical ideals, etc, all of which are uniquely combined to each person and recontextualized accordingly.
This leads to the radical notion that there is no such thing as a "doer." According to him and other teachers of Vedanta, since our true nature or identity is not the mind, is not the body, but the witness of the mind and body, we, as pure awareness, do nothing. The mind and body act of their own accord, and we are the witness of them, though the mind often believes it is the doer. This false idea (that the mind is the self and responsible for actions) is what keeps us from recognizing our Self. Nisargadatta cautions:
• '"The life force [prana] and the mind are operating [of their own accord], but the mind will tempt you to believe that it is "you". Therefore understand always that you are the timeless spaceless witness. And even if the mind tells you that you are the one who is acting, don't believe the mind. [...] The apparatus [mind, body] which is functioning has come upon your original essence, but you are not that apparatus." - The Ultimate Medicine, (pp.54 - 70)
• "All you can teach is understanding. The rest comes on its own."
• "Truth is not a reward for good behavior, nor a prize for passing some tests. It cannot be brought about. It is the primary, the unborn, the ancient source of all that is. You are eligible because you are. You need not merit truth. It is your own. Just stop running away by running after. Stand still, be quiet." - Interview with Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj
• "My advice to you is very simple – just remember yourself, ‘I am’, it is enough to heal your mind and take you beyond, just have some trust. I don’t mislead you. Why should I? Do I want anything from you? I wish you well – such is my nature. Why should I mislead you? Common sense too will tell you that to fulfill a desire you must keep your mind on it. If you want to know your true nature, you must have yourself in mind all the time, until the secret of your being stands revealed [26]." - I Am That
• "There is only life, there is nobody who lives a life." - I Am That pp. 43
• "A quiet mind is all you need. All else will happen rightly, once your mind is quiet. As the sun on rising makes the world active, so does self-awareness affect changes in the mind. In the light of calm and steady self-awareness inner energies wake up and work miracles without effort on your part."
• "There is nothing to practice. To know yourself, be yourself. To be yourself, stop imagining yourself to be this or that. Just be. Let your true nature emerge. Don't disturb your mind with seeking."
• "When I see I am nothing, that is wisdom. When I see I am everything, that is love. My life is a movement between these two."
• You always want what you cannot have & don't want what you have. To be Self-realized just reverse it.
Discussion Questions
1- “This leads to the radical notion that there is no such thing as a "doer". According to him and other teachers of Vedanta, since our true nature or identity is not the mind, is not the body, but the witness of the mind and body, we, as pure awareness, do nothing. The mind and body act of their own accord, and we are the witness of them, though the mind often believes it is the doer. This false idea (that the mind is the self and responsible for actions) is what keeps us from recognizing our Self.” Do you think highly developed awareness, watching the mind completely, might affect the activity of the mind in any way? If so, how?
2- If acute awareness can affect the mind in any way, is immersion in total awareness a sort of doing?
3- Sri Nisargadatta describes True Self as pure, free, and unaffected by anything that occurs. How do you think an experience of this True Self would affect one’s compassion?
4- Sri Nisargadatta felt the path of knowledge, Jnana yoga, was not for everyone. He suggested the path of devotion, Bhakti yoga, to some of his visitors, as he believed the path of knowledge, was not for everyone. Sri Ramana also sometimes practiced the path of devotion in concert with his practice of the path of knowledge. Sri Ramakrishna, another Indian teacher, once said in an interview that his own practice alternated between an emphasis on the path of knowledge and the path of devotion, and that this sort of alternating of emphasis was quite natural. Would you describe your own spiritual practice as having an emphasis in the path of knowledge or the path of devotion? If you have practiced both paths, how would you differentiate your experiences?
5- Sri Nisargadatta once said, “There is nothing to practice. To know yourself, be yourself. To be yourself, stop imagining yourself to be this or that. Just be. Let your true nature emerge. Don't disturb your mind with seeking.” Do you think, paradoxically, that one has to first have a disciplined spiritual practice involving spiritual seeking before one can reach this enlightened state of “nothing to practice”?
6- Sri Nisargadatta also said, "All you can teach is understanding. The rest comes on its own." What, then, is the basis for this “understanding?”
Proposed Activities
1-For this class, it seems most appropriate to concentrate on one single sustained exercise in order to get a taste of these teachings. This will be a partially guided meditation with the group facilitator occasionally giving reminding cues to the rest of the meditating group. Have everyone get in a posture of comfortable meditation (whatever is appropriate for them to allow them to be still, stable, and with heir spine as straight as possible. Either full or half lotus, sitting in a chair, or lying down or all fine.)
A) This meditation begins with the group facilitator helping members quiet their minds by focusing on their breathing, focusing on a single spot of contact with breath and skin in one nostril. (5 minutes)
B) Members should put 50% of their attention on watching their breath, and 50% of their attention listening to the group facilitator very slowly (and with pauses in between) read the following wisdom statements of practice:
• Of all the thoughts that rise in the mind, the thought 'I' is the first thought.
• That which rises in this body as 'I' is the mind. If one enquires 'In which place in the body does the thought 'I' rise first?', it will be known to be in the heart [spiritual heart is 'two digits to the right from the centre of the chest']. Even if one incessantly thinks 'I', 'I', it will lead to that place (Self)'
• The mind will subside only by means of the enquiry 'Who am I?'. The thought 'Who am I?', destroying all other thoughts, will itself finally be destroyed like the stick used for stirring the funeral pyre.
• If other thoughts rise, one should, without attempting to complete them, enquire, 'To whom did they arise?', it will be known 'To me'. If one then enquires 'Who am I?', the mind (power of attention) will turn back to its source. By repeatedly practicing thus, the power of the mind to abide in its source increases.
• The place where even the slightest trace of the 'I' does not exist, alone is Self.
• Self itself is the world; Self itself is 'I'; Self itself is God; all is the Supreme Self (siva swarupam)
*Sri Ramana warned against considering self-enquiry as an intellectual exercise. Properly done, it involves fixing the attention firmly and intensely on the feeling of 'I', without thinking. It is perhaps more helpful to see it as 'Self-attention' or 'Self-abiding'
C) After the above statements have been read during meditation, the group facilitator should then give the following instructions. Group members should continue to meditate but now their focus of meditation will be to identify with Impersonal Awareness by focusing on the single statement, “I AM.” They should keep this thought and this thought only in their mind breathing in and breathing out. When they notice themselves drifting into other thoughts or sounds etc., simply return to the thought, “I AM.” Most of this meditation then will be silence, but every few minutes the group facilitator can briefly, quietly remind mediators to return to the exclusive thought of, “I AM.” (This section of the meditation should go for at least 15-20 minutes.)
2-Group members may describe their experiences of the “I AM” meditation.
Resources:
Books
- Case, Margaret H, The Inner Journey: Views from the Hindu Tradition, H294.5 PAR CAS IJ
- Murthy, T. S., The Life and Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi, H294.558 MUR LTSR
- Narasimha Swami, B. V., Self-Realization: Life & Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi, H294.558 MAH ZNAR SR
-Nisargadatta, Maharaj, The Experience of Nothingness: Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj's Talks on Realizing the Infinite, H294.556 NIS EN
-Nisargadatta, Maharaj, I am That, H294.556 NIS IAT
-Nisargadatta, Maharaj, Pointers from Nisargadatta Maharaj, H294.556 NIS PFN
- Osborne, Arthur, Ramana Maharshi and the Path of Self-Knowledge, H294.558 OSB RM
- Osborn, Arthur, The Teachings of Ramana Maharshi, H294.558 OSB TRM
- Ramana, Maharshi, The Spiritual Teaching, H294.558 MAH ST
Videorecordings
(VR : Videocassette)
- Flynn, John, The Sage of Arunachala: Sri Ramana Maharshi : 1879-1950, VR 1195
- Ramana, Maharshi, Abide as the Self: The Essential Teachings of Ramana Maharshi, VR 1003
- Sri Ramanasramam, The Archival Films, 1935 to 1950: Sri Ramana Maharsi, VR 1194
Download handouts
Week 4 Philosophy: Advaita
"The Martial Garland of Letters"
The ‘Five Hymns to Arunachala’ are the earliest poems of the Maharshi except for a few short verses. They were written about 1914, that is when he was about thirty-five years of age (he was born in December, 1879) and while he was still living in a cave on the hill. Some of his followers who were sadhus used to go into the town of Tiruvannamalai daily to beg for food and one day they asked him to make a song for them to sing as they went. At first he refused, saying that there were plenty of songs already made by the ancient Saivite saints. They continued to press him, however, and one day he walked round the Hill, composing the first hymn, ‘The Marital Garland of Letters’ (Arunachala Akshara Mana Malai), as he went. Bhagavan also said that, ‘The Martial Garland of Letters’ was composed partly at the Virupaksha cave and partly on my walks around the hill.’
Ideally, group participants would read the pdf handout before the class, and then as a group, the following can be read to begin the class.
Sri Ramana Maharshi (December 30, 1879 – April 14, 1950). Sri Ramana's teachings about self-enquiry, the practice he is most widely associated with, have been classified as the Path of Knowledge (Jnana marga) among the Indian schools of thought.
His earliest teachings are documented in the book Nan Yar?(Who am I?), first written in Tamil. The original book was published by Sri Pillai, although the essay version of the book (Sri Ramana Nutrirattu) prepared by Sri Ramana is considered definitive as unlike the original it had the benefit of his revision and review. A careful translation with notes is available in English as 'The Path of Sri Ramana, Part One' by Sri Sadhu Om, one of the direct disciples of Sri Ramana. Selections from this definitive version follow:
• As all living beings desire to be happy always, without misery, as in the case of everyone there is observed supreme love for one's self, and as happiness alone is the cause for love, in order to gain that happiness which is one's nature and which is experienced in the state of deep sleep where there is no mind, one should know one's self. For that, the path of knowledge, the inquiry of the form "Who am I?", is the principal means.
• Knowledge itself is 'I'. The nature of (this) knowledge is existence-consciousness-bliss.
• What is called mind is a wondrous power existing in Self. It projects all thoughts. If we set aside all thoughts and see, there will be no such thing as mind remaining separate; therefore, thought itself is the form of the mind. Other than thoughts, there is no such thing as the world.
The Practice:
• Of all the thoughts that rise in the mind, the thought 'I' is the first thought.
• That which rises in this body as 'I' is the mind. If one enquires 'In which place in the body does the thought 'I' rise first?', it will be known to be in the heart [spiritual heart is 'two digits to the right from the centre of the chest']. Even if one incessantly thinks 'I', 'I', it will lead to that place (Self)'
• The mind will subside only by means of the enquiry 'Who am I?'. The thought 'Who am I?', destroying all other thoughts, will itself finally be destroyed like the stick used for stirring the funeral pyre.
• If other thoughts rise, one should, without attempting to complete them, enquire, 'To whom did they arise?', it will be known 'To me'. If one then enquires 'Who am I?', the mind (power of attention) will turn back to its source. By repeatedly practicing thus, the power of the mind to abide in its source increases.
• The place where even the slightest trace of the 'I' does not exist, alone is Self.
• Self itself is the world; Self itself is 'I'; Self itself is God; all is the Supreme Self (siva swarupam)
*Sri Ramana warned against considering self-enquiry as an intellectual exercise. Properly done, it involves fixing the attention firmly and intensely on the feeling of 'I', without thinking. It is perhaps more helpful to see it as 'Self-attention' or 'Self-abiding' (cf. Sri Sadhu Om - The Path of Sri Ramana Part I). The clue to this is in Sri Ramana's own death experience when he was 16. After raising the question 'Who am I?' he "turned his attention very keenly towards himself" (cf. description above). Attention must be fixed on the 'I' until the feeling of duality disappears. “I” in the context is synonymous with The Witness and Awareness.
*Although he advocated self-enquiry as the fastest means to realization, he was also known to have advised the practice of bhakti and self-surrender (to one's Deity or Guru) either concurrently or as an adequate alternative, which would ultimately converge with the path of self-enquiry.
Sri Ramana's Teachings and Advaita
Sri Ramana's teachings and the traditional Advaitic school of thought pioneered by Sri Sankaracharya have many things in common. Sri Ramana often mentioned and is known to have encouraged study of the following classical works: Ashtavakra Gita, Ribhu Gita and Essence of Ribhu Gita, Yoga Vasista Sara, Tripura Rahasya, Kaivalya Navaneetam, Advaita Bodha Deepika, and Ellam Ondre. However, there are some practical differences with the traditional Advaitic school, which recommends a negationist neti, neti (Sanskrit, "not this", "not this") path, or mental affirmations that the Self was the only reality, such as "I am Brahman" or "I am He", while Sri Ramana advocates the enquiry "Nan Yar" (Tamil, "Who am I"). Furthermore, unlike the traditional Advaitic school, Sri Ramana strongly discouraged most who came to him from adopting a renunciate lifestyle.
To elaborate:
• The traditional Advaitic (non-dualistic) school advocates "elimination of all that is non-self (the five sheaths) until only the Self remains”. The five kosas, or sheaths, that hide the true Self are: Material, Vital, Mental, Knowledge, and Blissful.
• Sri Ramana says "enquiry in the form 'Who am I' alone is the principal means. To make the mind subside, there is no adequate means other than self-enquiry. If controlled by other means, mind will remain as if subsided, but will rise again."
Teachers in His Tradition
He considered his own guru to be the Self, in the form of the sacred mountain Arunachala. Sri Ramana did not publicize himself as a guru, never claimed to have disciples, and never appointed any successors. While a few who came to see him are said to have become enlightened through association, and there are accounts of private acknowledgements, he did not publicly acknowledge any living person as liberated other than his mother at death. Sri Ramana declared himself an Atiasrami (beyond all caste and religious restrictions, not attached to anything in life), and did not belong to or promote any lineage. Despite his non-affiliations, there are numerous contemporary teachers who publicly associate themselves with Sri Ramana, and some who assert being in his lineage.
His method of teaching was characterized by the following:
1. He urged people who came to him to practice self-enquiry;
2. He directed people to look inward rather than seeking outside themselves for Realization. ("The true Bhagavan resides in your Heart as your true Self. This is who I truly am.");
3. He viewed all who came to him as the Self rather than as lesser beings. ("The jnani sees no one as an ajnani. All are only jnanis in his sight.");
4. He charged no money, and was adamant that no one ever ask for money (or anything else) in his name;
5. He never promoted or called attention to himself. Instead, Sri Ramana remained in one place for 54 years, offering spiritual guidance to anyone of any background who came to him, and asking nothing in return;
6. He considered humility to be the highest quality;
7. He said the deep sense of peace one felt around a jnani was the surest indicator of their spiritual state, that equality towards all was a true sign of liberation, and that what a true jnani did was always for others, not themselves.
******************************************************************
Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj (birth name: Maruti Shivrampant Kambli) (April 17, 1897[1] – September 8, 1981) was an Indian spiritual teacher and philosopher of Advaita (Nondualism), and a Guru, belonging to the Ichegeri branch of the Navnath Sampradaya.
One of the 20th century's exponents of the school of Advaita Vedanta philosophy (nondualism), Sri Nisargadatta, with his direct and minimalist explanation of non-dualism, is considered the most famous teacher of Advaita since Ramana Maharshi.
In 1973, the publication of his most famous and widely-translated book, I Am That, an English translation of his talks in Marathi by Maurice Frydman, brought him worldwide recognition and followers.
According to Sri Nisargadatta the purpose of spirituality is to know who you are.
Summed up in the words of Advaita scholar and a disciple, Dr. Robert Powell, "Like the Zen masters of old, Nisargadatta's style is abrupt, provocative, and immensely profound -- cutting to the core and wasting little effort on inessentials. His terse but potent sayings are known for their ability to trigger shifts in consciousness, just by hearing, or even reading them."
Teachings
Sri Nisargadatta's teachings are grounded in the Advaita Vedanta interpretation of the Hindu idea Tat Tvam Asi, literally "That Thou Art", meaning You are one with Divinity. He also had a strong devotional zeal towards his own guru, and suggested the path of devotion, Bhakti yoga, to some of his visitors, as he believed the path of knowledge, Jnana yoga was not for everyone.
According to Sri Nisargadatta, our true nature is perpetually free peaceful awareness, in Hinduism referred to as Brahman. Awareness is the source of, but different from, the personal, individual consciousness, which is related to the body. The mind and memory are responsible for association with a particular body; awareness exists prior to both mind and memory. It is only the idea that we are the body that keeps us from living what he calls our "original essence," the True Self, in Hinduism referred to as Atman.
He describes this essence as pure, free, and unaffected by anything that occurs. He likens it to a silent witness that watches through the body's senses, yet is not moved, either to happiness or sadness, based on what it sees.
For Nisargadatta, the Self is not one super-entity which knows independently, regardless of things; there is no such super-entity, no Creator with infinite intellect. God does not exist independently from creation. What does exist is the "total acting" (or functioning) of the Ultimate or Absolute Reality along the infinite varying forms in manifestation. This Absolute Reality is identical to The Self.
Nisargadatta's teachings also focus on our notion of causality as being misinterpreted. He understood that the interconnectedness of varying forces in the universe is so vast and innumerable that the notion of causality, as presently understood, is wasted. The endless factors required for anything to happen means that, at most, one can say everything creates everything; even the choices we make are predetermined by our genetic code, upbringing, mental strivings and limitations, our ethical and philosophical ideals, etc, all of which are uniquely combined to each person and recontextualized accordingly.
This leads to the radical notion that there is no such thing as a "doer." According to him and other teachers of Vedanta, since our true nature or identity is not the mind, is not the body, but the witness of the mind and body, we, as pure awareness, do nothing. The mind and body act of their own accord, and we are the witness of them, though the mind often believes it is the doer. This false idea (that the mind is the self and responsible for actions) is what keeps us from recognizing our Self. Nisargadatta cautions:
• '"The life force [prana] and the mind are operating [of their own accord], but the mind will tempt you to believe that it is "you". Therefore understand always that you are the timeless spaceless witness. And even if the mind tells you that you are the one who is acting, don't believe the mind. [...] The apparatus [mind, body] which is functioning has come upon your original essence, but you are not that apparatus." - The Ultimate Medicine, (pp.54 - 70)
• "All you can teach is understanding. The rest comes on its own."
• "Truth is not a reward for good behavior, nor a prize for passing some tests. It cannot be brought about. It is the primary, the unborn, the ancient source of all that is. You are eligible because you are. You need not merit truth. It is your own. Just stop running away by running after. Stand still, be quiet." - Interview with Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj
• "My advice to you is very simple – just remember yourself, ‘I am’, it is enough to heal your mind and take you beyond, just have some trust. I don’t mislead you. Why should I? Do I want anything from you? I wish you well – such is my nature. Why should I mislead you? Common sense too will tell you that to fulfill a desire you must keep your mind on it. If you want to know your true nature, you must have yourself in mind all the time, until the secret of your being stands revealed [26]." - I Am That
• "There is only life, there is nobody who lives a life." - I Am That pp. 43
• "A quiet mind is all you need. All else will happen rightly, once your mind is quiet. As the sun on rising makes the world active, so does self-awareness affect changes in the mind. In the light of calm and steady self-awareness inner energies wake up and work miracles without effort on your part."
• "There is nothing to practice. To know yourself, be yourself. To be yourself, stop imagining yourself to be this or that. Just be. Let your true nature emerge. Don't disturb your mind with seeking."
• "When I see I am nothing, that is wisdom. When I see I am everything, that is love. My life is a movement between these two."
• You always want what you cannot have & don't want what you have. To be Self-realized just reverse it.
Discussion Questions
1- “This leads to the radical notion that there is no such thing as a "doer". According to him and other teachers of Vedanta, since our true nature or identity is not the mind, is not the body, but the witness of the mind and body, we, as pure awareness, do nothing. The mind and body act of their own accord, and we are the witness of them, though the mind often believes it is the doer. This false idea (that the mind is the self and responsible for actions) is what keeps us from recognizing our Self.” Do you think highly developed awareness, watching the mind completely, might affect the activity of the mind in any way? If so, how?
2- If acute awareness can affect the mind in any way, is immersion in total awareness a sort of doing?
3- Sri Nisargadatta describes True Self as pure, free, and unaffected by anything that occurs. How do you think an experience of this True Self would affect one’s compassion?
4- Sri Nisargadatta felt the path of knowledge, Jnana yoga, was not for everyone. He suggested the path of devotion, Bhakti yoga, to some of his visitors, as he believed the path of knowledge, was not for everyone. Sri Ramana also sometimes practiced the path of devotion in concert with his practice of the path of knowledge. Sri Ramakrishna, another Indian teacher, once said in an interview that his own practice alternated between an emphasis on the path of knowledge and the path of devotion, and that this sort of alternating of emphasis was quite natural. Would you describe your own spiritual practice as having an emphasis in the path of knowledge or the path of devotion? If you have practiced both paths, how would you differentiate your experiences?
5- Sri Nisargadatta once said, “There is nothing to practice. To know yourself, be yourself. To be yourself, stop imagining yourself to be this or that. Just be. Let your true nature emerge. Don't disturb your mind with seeking.” Do you think, paradoxically, that one has to first have a disciplined spiritual practice involving spiritual seeking before one can reach this enlightened state of “nothing to practice”?
6- Sri Nisargadatta also said, "All you can teach is understanding. The rest comes on its own." What, then, is the basis for this “understanding?”
Proposed Activities
1-For this class, it seems most appropriate to concentrate on one single sustained exercise in order to get a taste of these teachings. This will be a partially guided meditation with the group facilitator occasionally giving reminding cues to the rest of the meditating group. Have everyone get in a posture of comfortable meditation (whatever is appropriate for them to allow them to be still, stable, and with heir spine as straight as possible. Either full or half lotus, sitting in a chair, or lying down or all fine.)
A) This meditation begins with the group facilitator helping members quiet their minds by focusing on their breathing, focusing on a single spot of contact with breath and skin in one nostril. (5 minutes)
B) Members should put 50% of their attention on watching their breath, and 50% of their attention listening to the group facilitator very slowly (and with pauses in between) read the following wisdom statements of practice:
• Of all the thoughts that rise in the mind, the thought 'I' is the first thought.
• That which rises in this body as 'I' is the mind. If one enquires 'In which place in the body does the thought 'I' rise first?', it will be known to be in the heart [spiritual heart is 'two digits to the right from the centre of the chest']. Even if one incessantly thinks 'I', 'I', it will lead to that place (Self)'
• The mind will subside only by means of the enquiry 'Who am I?'. The thought 'Who am I?', destroying all other thoughts, will itself finally be destroyed like the stick used for stirring the funeral pyre.
• If other thoughts rise, one should, without attempting to complete them, enquire, 'To whom did they arise?', it will be known 'To me'. If one then enquires 'Who am I?', the mind (power of attention) will turn back to its source. By repeatedly practicing thus, the power of the mind to abide in its source increases.
• The place where even the slightest trace of the 'I' does not exist, alone is Self.
• Self itself is the world; Self itself is 'I'; Self itself is God; all is the Supreme Self (siva swarupam)
*Sri Ramana warned against considering self-enquiry as an intellectual exercise. Properly done, it involves fixing the attention firmly and intensely on the feeling of 'I', without thinking. It is perhaps more helpful to see it as 'Self-attention' or 'Self-abiding'
C) After the above statements have been read during meditation, the group facilitator should then give the following instructions. Group members should continue to meditate but now their focus of meditation will be to identify with Impersonal Awareness by focusing on the single statement, “I AM.” They should keep this thought and this thought only in their mind breathing in and breathing out. When they notice themselves drifting into other thoughts or sounds etc., simply return to the thought, “I AM.” Most of this meditation then will be silence, but every few minutes the group facilitator can briefly, quietly remind mediators to return to the exclusive thought of, “I AM.” (This section of the meditation should go for at least 15-20 minutes.)
2-Group members may describe their experiences of the “I AM” meditation.
Resources:
Books
- Case, Margaret H, The Inner Journey: Views from the Hindu Tradition, H294.5 PAR CAS IJ
- Murthy, T. S., The Life and Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi, H294.558 MUR LTSR
- Narasimha Swami, B. V., Self-Realization: Life & Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi, H294.558 MAH ZNAR SR
-Nisargadatta, Maharaj, The Experience of Nothingness: Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj's Talks on Realizing the Infinite, H294.556 NIS EN
-Nisargadatta, Maharaj, I am That, H294.556 NIS IAT
-Nisargadatta, Maharaj, Pointers from Nisargadatta Maharaj, H294.556 NIS PFN
- Osborne, Arthur, Ramana Maharshi and the Path of Self-Knowledge, H294.558 OSB RM
- Osborn, Arthur, The Teachings of Ramana Maharshi, H294.558 OSB TRM
- Ramana, Maharshi, The Spiritual Teaching, H294.558 MAH ST
Videorecordings
(VR : Videocassette)
- Flynn, John, The Sage of Arunachala: Sri Ramana Maharshi : 1879-1950, VR 1195
- Ramana, Maharshi, Abide as the Self: The Essential Teachings of Ramana Maharshi, VR 1003
- Sri Ramanasramam, The Archival Films, 1935 to 1950: Sri Ramana Maharsi, VR 1194
Tags: advaita, philosophy, sri nisargadatta maharaj, sri ramana maharshi
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