From the
Works of Sri Ramana Maharshi and Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj
Realization – The Sum And Substance
[Compiled by A. Ramana (AHAM’s founder/director) from the Works of Sri Ramana Maharshi and Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj with slight editing for clarity of meaning in this commentary].
Everyone is aware of two things, namely himself the seer and the world which he sees, and he assumes that these are both real. But, that alone is real which has a consistent existence.
Judged by this test of reality these two – the seer and that which is seen – are both unreal, as they appear intermittently. They are apparent only in the waking and dream states; in the state of deep sleep they cease to appear. That is, these two appear only when the mind is active and disappear as soon as the mind ceases to function; therefore, these are both but thoughts in the mind.
There must be Something Else from which the mind rises and into which it subsides. That Something must have a continuous, uninterrupted existence. That is, IT must be the One Reality.
Can there be a sense of existence or reality without something that exists or is real? Is one’s own consciousness or being something other than That? Since this Existence or Reality dwells thought-free as the Silent Presence or pure Awareness, abiding in the very heart or core of being, can it even be considered or meditated on? Who is there other than or apart from It to contemplate or meditate on It – this One Reality or Self, whose very nature is the Silent Presence of Existence-Consciousness – and how? How could this even be? Or be done?
Know this: To simply abide as and be at one with That, in the Heart as the Heart, is itself to contemplate or meditate on it – for It is All. This One Reality ever dwells in the Heart of ALL creatures as the Very Self of each one, as the silent Witness without thoughts, unrelated to anything. To remain ever-present in It, as It is its contemplation, for it is the One Presence and Power of simple Awareness – in which and on which everything is dependent and is always, already occurring. There is, in Truth, no separate-self or individual being.
However, this Self or One Reality is forgotten or concealed during the outward-turned state of mind, like the sun when covered by the presence of clouds, by identification with thought and the resulting false appearance of the world and the seer (the thinker), which are both only concepts, being manifestations of the mind.
This Universal Awareness or One Reality, which is the Divine Self, or Heart of the Absolute – ever-abiding prior to and beyond time and space – being one-without-a-second and always complete in Itself – is Itself the giver of existence to the whole world. It also gives its One and Only Light of Consciousness to the mind, which lacks or is itself entirely without consciousness. This One Self is always, already realized, for there is no other. Although obscured or seemingly hidden, being covered up by the world of objects, it is ever available here and now as the One and Only Presence and Power. All else is a false appearance, being a product of the mind. This One Reality is “ever-known” as the Silence and Stillness of pure Being.
This is like the full moon, having no light of its own, on a clear night reveals objects on the earth by reflecting the light of the sun. The mind having no consciousness of its own gives rise to the appearance of the world in the One Light of Consciousness of the Self, which is the One and Only Reality; for in Truth there is no world or separate-individual person, there is only the Self. Simply see and know this.
Awareness and Consciousness
Questioner: You use the words “awareness” and “consciousness.” Are they not the same?
Maharaj: Awareness is primordial, it is the original state – beginningless, endless, uncaused, unsupported, without parts, without change. Consciousness is a state of duality, it is always of something. There can be no consciousness without awareness, but there can be awareness or pure existence without consciousness, as in deep sleep, coma or swoon.
Awareness is absolute; consciousness is relative to its content. Consciousness is partial and changeful; awareness is total, changeless, calm and silent, the common matrix of every experience. It is pure stillness and silence.
Q: How does one go beyond consciousness into awareness?
M: Since it is awareness that makes consciousness possible, there is always awareness in every state of consciousness. This means the very consciousness of being conscious is itself already an activity or movement in awareness. Determined steady attention and interest in this stream of consciousness awakens and reestablishes “you” in awareness. It is not a new state, but is re-cognized (known again) as the original basic existence, or pure Being itself, the One Life always, already available prior to time and space. It is also pure Love and Joy, these also being its very nature.
Q: Since reality is all the time with us, what does self-realization consist of?
M: Realization is but the letting go or removal of ignorance. To take the world as cause, primary, powerful and what’s real, and oneself as effect, secondary, powerless or immaterial is ignorance. It’s the one cause of limitation, sorrow, and suffering. To know the Self as the One and Only Reality, and all else as temporal and transient, is Freedom, Peace and Joy.
It is all really very simple. Instead of seeing things as they are now imagined, or appearing in your mind, learn to see them as they actually are. When you can see everything as it is, you will also see yourself as You are. It is like cleaning a mirror. The same mirror that shows you the world as it is, will also show you your own face. The thought “I am” is the polishing cloth. Use it. But you must use it correctly.
Know this: I AM is not a thought in the mind, it is one’s infinite and eternal Self, prior to and free from both birth and death. The mind happens in You, you do not happen in the mind! And since time and space are in the mind, You (your True Self) exist beyond time and space, yet permeate time and space. You are eternal and omnipresent.
Q: Do you see the world as having a direction and a purpose?
M: The world is but a reflection of your own mind; it is your own imagination. Whatever you want to see, you can see. But why should you invent patterns of creation, evolution and destruction? Why do you need them? The world is inyou, it is yourself, it is appearing entirely in your own consciousness. Don’t be afraid of it, or desire to lock it up into a particular mental picture.
What is Final Realization Like, Beyond Understanding?
Imagine a dense forest full of tigers, and you are in a strong steel cage. Knowing that you are well protected by the cage, you watch the tigers fearlessly. Next, you find the tigers in the cage and yourself roaming about the jungle without fear. Last, the cage disappears and you ride on the tigers’ backs and frolic with them.
Or similarly imagine yourself skin diving wearing an oxygen tank, and watching a school of huge sharks swimming about in the ocean as you observe them from the safety of a steel cage. Next, the sharks are in the cage and you are swimming freely about exploring a beautiful coral reef along the ocean floor. Then the cage is gone and you are swimming about among the many varieties of fish and other creatures, and being playfully towed by the big sharks while holding onto their dorsal or ventral fins.
You are totally free, being one with all life in the vast ocean of being.
Copyright ©
1991 Sri Ramanasramam and © 1973 Nisargadatta Maharaj. Compilation
and Commentary © 2003 AHAM
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