Wednesday, November 2, 2011

From ‘Moments Remembered. Reminiscences of Bhagavan Ramana’ by V. Ganesan

In the course of tracing ourselves back to our source, when all thoughts have vanished, there arises a throb from the Hridaya on the right, manifesting as ‘Aham’ ‘Aham’ ‘I-I’. This is the sign that Pure Consciousness is beginning to reveal itself. But that is not the end in itself. Watch wherefrom this sphurana (throbbing) arises and wait attentively and continually for the revelation of the Self. Then comes the awareness, oneness of existence.
When we steady our breath we feel the steadying of our thoughts. Then the thoughts turn inward and melt away at a point. Watching this point, where the thoughts vanish, will also help us to merge ourselves in the Hridaya.



Bhagavan on Arunachala …… “…… Is it just a hill of rocks? ….. Arunachala is the Self Itself ….. Of al the saints who adored Arunachala in many hymns, the child-saint Jnanasambandar’s songs are remarkable ……. He saw the Holy Hill as …… the ‘manifestation of Knowledge (Jnana) inundation’. It is the best and exact description of this Wisdom Mountain!”



Bhagavan observed a small child eating lots of sugar …… “Give a few teaspoons of ghee to the child. Ghee is the antidote for too much sugar!”



Professor Aiyar said: ………. “ …….. One noticed in Bhagavan’s daily life, personal cleanliness, tidiness of dress, habitual wearing of vibhuti and kumkum on the forehead; equal sharing of all enjoyments with those around one; strict adherence to a time schedule; doing useful work however ‘low’ it be; never leaving a work unfinished; the pursuit of perfection in every action; incessant activity except while sleeping or resting after a spell of hard work; never considering oneself superior to others; speaking the truth always, or strict silence if the expression of a truth would hurt or lower the reputation of others; perfect self-help, never asking another to do a piece of work which can be done by oneself; taking full responsibility for failure; if any, without shifting the blame on others; accepting success and failure with equanimity; never disturbing the peace of another; leaving the leaf or plate clean after eating; complete non-interference in the affairs of others; never worrying about the future.



….. some bee-wax ……. mixed it with cotton and made ear-plug …… totally sound-proof …….such ear-plugs …… a boon for undisturbed meditation.



Some of Bhagavan’s personal instructions to me:

(i) If you observe the breathing one-pointedly such attention will lead you spontaneously into kumbhaka (retention) – this is jnana pranayama.

(ii) The more you humble yourself, the better it is for you, in all ways. ………..

(vii) Both likes and dislikes should be equally discarded and eschewed.

(viii) With attention focused on the first person and on the heart within, one should relentlessly practice Who am I? When this is done one-pointedly, one’s breathing will subside of itself. During such controlled practice, the mind might suddenly spring up; so you have to vigilantly pursue the vichara, Who am I?

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