“Who am I?” – the scrutiny of the indispensable truth of one’s own Self – is the sole life-current passing through all the religions which have come to save us. Thus should you know.
The truth of one’s own Self is said to be indispensable because all other things depend upon it, and without it they could neither shine nor exist.
339
Just as the string which is strung through every bead is only one and not many, so the Supreme Lord exists and shines as the one Light in every religion, and so He also exists and shines, not as another, but as the one Self [‘I am’] in all the innumerable creatures.
Sadhu Om: Refer also to Sri Arunachala Ashtakam verse 5.
340
Just as one flame appears to be many lights when it is lit in many lamps, so it is the one Self alone which appears to be many different individuals
[jivas] when It is seen through many different attributes [upadhis].
341
If there were not, in each religion, at least one word which could reveal the transcendental Supreme Thing in the Heart, as clearly as a mountain on a plain, then all the researches and arguments found in the scriptures of that religion would become nothing but the hubbub of a cattle market.
Sadhu Om: It is asserted in this verse that at least one word or saying
[Mahavakya] which easily reveals the fact that Self is the Supreme Reality will be found in every true religion existing on earth. Some of those pointed out by Sri Bhagavan are:
in Hinduism, “Tat twam asi”, “Aham Brahmasmi”, etc.
in Islam, “Anal Hak”; [see verse 962]
in Judaism and Christianity, “I AM THAT I AM”.
These words clearly show that God is the Reality of the first person, ‘I’.
342
Various religions teaching various principles have come into existence in order to suit the various levels of maturity of the minds of the people. Therefore it is wisest to have an outlook of equality upon these religions, which should be encouraged [and not condemned].
For the one who has obtained the Eye of Self-Knowledge by diving deep within himself, there is no other thing to be seen or known. Why? Because, having lost the wrong knowledge that he is the body-form, he has rightly known himself to be the
Formless.
Sadhu Om: According to the maxim, “As the eye, so is the sight”
[refer to
Ulladu Narpadu verse 4], so long as we know ourself as the name and form of a body, we will see the world and God as names and forms, and hence they will also appear to be separate from us. But when we realise that we are not the body-form, then the world and God, which previously appeared as mere names and forms, will disappear, and Self alone will shine as the Formless and Limitless One. For those who are in this State of Self-Knowledge, nothing will remain to be seen or known.
Refer also to verse 54 of this work.
344
Those who have sought for God within the moving temple, this body, and seen Him here clearly and without any confusion, will certainly see Him shining even in the vast temple, this wondrous universe.
Sadhu Om: The Tamil original also gives room for the last line of this verse to be interpreted as: “… will certainly see Him in the idols installed in all the temples which have been wonderfully constructed in this world.”
345
For those who have known without delusion the truth of God – how He resides and shines within, as the Soul to the soul – even the presence of a worm, which is usually rejected by others, will shine as the beloved Presence of the Supreme Lord.
“The Soul to the soul” means Self (Atman), which is the Source and Life of the individual soul
(jiva).
346
For those who shine as Self, which is Grace – since their mind, which is the form of ignorance, has died – everything and every place will be found to be supremely Blissful in their divine view, which emerged as Self-Existence.
347
To those who see with their physical eyes, God appears to be a lustrous form; to the eyes of great yogis, He appears as their Heart-lotus; to the brahmins who perform
yajnas, He appears as the fire of the yajna; but only to Jnanis, who have the Eye of Limitlessness, does He appear everywhere.
Sadhu Om: Those who see God as a lustrous form, a heart-lotus, or a fire, are only seeing a mental image, and thus for them God is only visible in those particular limited places. But since the
Jnani’s mind, which was limited by time and space, has been destroyed, He alone attains the True Seeing of God, and hence He sees god everywhere. Thus it is stressed in this verse that only a
Jnani is able to truly see everything as God, and that others can only try to imagine the existence of God in everything.
348
Merely remaining as the Eye [i.e. Self], which is the One Space of Consciousness, by having annihilated the idea ‘I am the body-form’ and by having lost all the conceptions of the mischievous mind, is rightly and perfectly seeing God.
Refer also to Ulladu Narpadu verse 8, as explained in
The Path of Sri Ramana Part II, Appendix 4b, pp. 232-234.
349
When the tricky senses are controlled, when mental conceptions are removed, and when one is unshakably established as Self in the Heart, then the Knowledge which shines in that State of firm Self-Abidance is the Real God [Shiva].
350
Such a True Seeing, which is devoid of illusion and deception, is the State in which one shines as the Ocean of Bliss. Only in the Supreme Silence which is thus achieved in Self-Abidance, will the soul never again have a downfall.
When scrutinized, is there any existing thing such as ego, the troublemaker, except a mere name [‘I’]? Certainly not! If at all anything exists [for the name ‘I’], it is truly Self, just as the thing which exists for the false [name] snake is truly a rope.
The falsity of ‘I’, the ego, is stressed in this verse. Refer also to
Upadesha Unidyar verses 19, 20, and 21.
352
When the ego dies, its base, the supreme Self, shines in all Its fullness. No harm comes to You, Self, when the ego dies. Therefore don’t be afraid.
The final sentence may also mean ‘Therefore, don’t be worried’.
353
Those who have sacrificed their mind as an offering to Shiva in the blazing fire of the supreme
Jnana-Tapas [i.e. self-enquiry], are Shiva Himself. Knowing thus, we should also perform this Sacrifice and attain the State of formless
Shiva'.
The second sentence may also be translated as ‘ Knowing them
[Jnanis] to be Shiva Himself, we should worship them and thereby attain the State of formless Shiva.
354
Do not doubt, with fear, what will happen when you completely lose your individuality
[jiva-bodha]. The true State of Self will then Itself be yours, just as one will permanently remain firm on the ground when one loses one’s hold on the branch of a tree.
Sadhu Om: Immature devotees often used to ask Sri Bhagavan, “It is only this individual
jiva that longs for all kinds of achievements, including moksha, so if this individuality is destroyed by
vichara, how can Moksha be achieved, and by whom?” Hence, in this verse, Sri Bhagavan assures such people by saying, “Fear not, when the ego or individuality is annihilated, the State which remains will reveal Itself as the true State of Self, in which everything is accomplished”.
There is an old Tamil saying which says that if one loses one’s hold on a branch, one will be ruined, and hence it is rather strange and beautiful that Sri Bhagavan uses the same simile to assure us that loss of individuality is the highest attainment, and that it should not be feared. The significance of this simile can best be understood from the following story: A man was once seen standing under a tree, but clinging to a branch above his head, as if for dear life. When his friends asked him why he was clinging with so much fear to the branch, he replied that if he let go he would fall to the ground. Wondering at his foolishness, his friends pointed out to him that he was already standing on the ground, and that he therefore had nothing to fear; after much trouble they persuaded him to let go of the branch, whereupon he discovered the truth of their assurance. Those who fear to lose their individuality are just like this man; but clinging to their individuality they are gaining nothing, and if they once let go of it they will know for themselves that there are always the Ever-Blissful Self, and that there was never anything for them to fear.
355
Since in sleep, where the world loses its reality, everyone truly knows his existence and the non-existence of ‘I am this’ [i.e. his individuality], all must accept the Reality of the indestructible Self.
Refer to Upadesa Undiyar verse 21.
356
The State in which the thought ‘I’ [i.e. the ego] does not rise even a bit is the State ‘I am
Brahman’. Does anyone become non-existent in sleep, where the thought ‘I’ does not rise?
Sadhu Om: It is made clear in this verse that, just as we experience no loss of our Self-Existence in sleep, where the individuality subsides, so even in
Jnana, where the individuality is permanently destroyed, there is no loss for WE, the Self-Existence. Therefore there is no need for us to fear the loss of individuality.
The idea in the first sentence of this verse is also expressed in
Ulladu Narpadu verse 27.
357
If we scrutinize properly, the state of ‘I’-lessness is our Real State of Consciousness, in which the inertness of the fleshly body is fully removed. Does one not survive the loss of individuality [in sleep] without being affected? Know this truth by abiding in the State of Wakeful-Sleep [i.e.
Turiya or Jnana].
358
To remain without ‘I’ is the State of Jnana – Self; truly, it is the blissful and peaceful State ‘I am Shiva’. Know that the same is the
Kaivalya [i.e. Non-dual] State of Brahma-Nirvana, which is glorified as the State of transcending birth and death.
Refer to Ulladu Narpadu Anubandham verse 13, in which Egolessness alone is said to be the State of all greatness.
When the ego, ‘I am the body’, is annihilated, the unlimited and unbroken ‘I’ [Self] shines forth. The shining forth of this ‘I’ is not fictitious like the ego, which takes birth in a filthy body on earth and suffers in bondage.
Sadhu Om: The feeling ‘I am the body’ is the ego. In this mixed consciousness the attribute ‘the body’ alone is the impurity. When this impurity, the body-identification, is removed, That which remains as ‘I am’ is Self, which is also called the pure ‘I’ or
Suddhahankara.
360
Know that the natural, unbroken and ever-existing Heart, ‘I’, which shines free of delusion, is the
Suddhahankara [pure ‘I’] which is seen in Jivanmuktas, since it has no sense of doership in any activity.
361
Those who live a perfect life of Mei-Jnana, attained by the destruction of the impure ego – ‘I am this fleshy body’ – will be revelling in Self, unmindful of the body, with great Peace devoid of desire.
Only when one’s own Source, the Heart, is known through enquiry, will the false first person, ‘I’, fall down; and only when that false first person falls abashed, will the true First Thing, Self, spring forth in all its Glory.
363
When the insubstantial ghost, the ego – which rises from the darkness of ignorance and whose dance is itself all this universe – is enquired into, it disappears like the bridegroom’s friend [in the story], and when it disappears, Self, the Sun, rises up tearing away the darkness of ignorance,
Maya.
Sadhu Om: A stranger once entered a marriage-house and posed before the bride’s party as the bridegroom’s best friend; and with the bridegroom’s party he posed as if he were a member of the bride’s family. Thus for five days he passed his time happily, eating well and bossing the servants, but on the last day when enquiries began to be made about him, he disappeared. Similarly, the ego rises and poses both as
Chit [Consciousness – the nature of Self] or as jada (inertness – the nature of the body), though it truly belongs neither to Self nor to the body. Thus it enjoys its special position until it is enquired into, whereupon it disappears.
364
The ending of the ego, by its drowning into the Space of Silence, is our [true life of] living as the Space of
Jnana. Therefore when the ego disappears, like a false dream, into its Source, the Real ‘I’ [Self] will shine forth spontaneously.
365
This body is the cross. The ego – the identification ‘I am the body’ – is Jesus. The killing of the ego through
Self-enquiry is the crucifixion of Jesus. The survival of Self from the death of the ego, and Its shining forth as the Supreme Thing is His Resurrection.
Refer to verse 973.
366
The death of the ego in the unlimited Silence – the non-dual Truth – and the shining forth of Self is the
Kaivalya-Siddhi [i.e. the attainment of Oneness]. In that State of
Jnana, pure Bliss will gloriously blaze forth as one’s own [true] Nature.
If the jiva, who is ever deluded and is always suffering from a feeling of deficiency, wants to get rid of all his miseries and to be happy, he need only know the Supreme One, his Lord, to be his own Self.
368
Not even the least of one’s miseries will cease unless one knows That, by forgetting Which one becomes deluded by the mighty agent – worldly
Maya.
369
Let him who weeps over the death of his wife and children, weep first for the death of [his] ego – ‘I am the body’ – and attend to his own Self, then all his miseries will die completely.
370
If you love others only for their bodies or their souls [i.e. their egos], you will suffer from grief when their bodies die and their souls depart. Therefore, in order to be free from such grief, have true Love towards Self, which is the real Life of the soul.
A person’s soul is nothing but his ego, the identification ‘I am the body’. The true Life is Self, and not the soul or ego.
Desire makes even an atom appear as great as Mount Meru before it is achieved, and vice versa after it is achieved, and thus [desire] makes one always poor. Hence we have never seen any bottomless abyss that is as impossible to fill as desire, which can never be satisfied.
372
O good-hearted aspirants who want perfection, instead of trying to avoid poverty – which is a deficiency created by the mind – by acquiring wealth, it is better to acquire
shanti, mental peace.
Sri Muruganar: Poverty is truly created not by a deficiency of wealth, but by the deficiency of the wandering and desirous mind. Hence, poverty is not removed by acquiring wealth, it is removed only by subsiding the mind.
373
Will the mind which drowns in love for the Feet of the Lord start to dance in ecstasy, jumping as before into the delusion of married life and sexual pleasure?
374
The false delusion of the jiva can never be
lost, unless Self – the pure Sat-Chit, which is the one Reality ever
shining within, without a second – is realised.
375
Those who have desire are afflicted by the wretched anger when their desire is obstructed, and so it is certain that desire is inherent in anger. Therefore, when all the [six] vices are dying, desire dies last.
The six vices are desire, anger, miserliness, confusion (i.e. the inability to discern the truth), pride and jealousy.
376
When it is said that having a desire even for the supreme State of Silence is failing to observe the great
Sat-Achara, is it Achara to have desires for the worthless body and other worldly things?
Sadhu Om: Achara means observing high principles in life, and having any kind of desire is
anachara. The greatest of all principles is Sat-Achara [or Brahmachara], which is nothing other than abiding as
Sat [i.e. Self].
For one who is observing Sat-Achara, which is the perfect state of Love, even the desire for Liberation should be considered to be wrong, because desire implies a movement of the mind towards a second or third person, whereas Love has the form of unbroken and unmoving Existence. This is the significance of the ancient saying, “Cut the desire even for God”.
Though the meaning of Achara should be understood in this way, we find in our midst people who boast that they are observing
acharas and that they are therefore certainly above all others in life. They maintain untouchability, they hide themselves while eating, they take great care in wearing their clothes in a particular manner, etc., yet at the same time they are mistaking the filthy body to be themselves and they have innumerable ugly desires. Can their behaviour be considered to be
Achara? Surely not. Therefore, unless one attains Atma-Nishta
[i.e. perfect Self-Abidance], all one’s boasting about observing
acharas is meaningless.
377
He who never thinks, “I want this; I do not have that”, will be ever contented with only those things which come to him according to his
prarabdha. Will such a person leave his state of contentment and worry himself foolishly?
378
Except for the one who has completely cut the tie of desires, the false appearance [that he is a suffering
jiva] will not cease. Therefore, without any hesitation, one should cut even the desire for the great Divine Happiness.
Refer again to verse 376 and its note.
379
O foolish mind who is suffering due to the desire for the petty pleasures of this world and of the next, if you remain quiet [i.e. without desire] you will certainly attain that State of Bliss which surely transcends the pleasures of these two.
The annihilation of the delusion of the freedom of the individual is the attainment of the painless Freedom of Self. This is the one supreme Knowledge which exists equally in all religions, which have so many branches.
Sadhu Om: Since Dharma [i.e. righteousness] is the root of all religions and since Egolessness alone is the essence of all
dharmas, it is shown here that egolessness is the only Truth, existing equally in all religions.
381
The [repeated] births, which are caused by [the ignorance of] not knowing Self, will not cease by any other means [but knowing Self]. Only the real Self-Knowledge, which shines after the annihilation of the dense delusion – the ego, ‘I am the body’ – will cut bondage.
382
Great Jnanis, who never see anything as bondage except the rising of innumerable
chitta-vrittis, do not see anything as Liberation either, except the death of all
chitta-vrittis. This is the Truth!
383
The [impure] mind, which deludes itself as it if were limited, is the
jivatman [i.e. individual soul], who suffers as if he were bound. If it remains still, without likes, dislikes or wonder, that [pure] mind is itself the
Paramatman [i.e. Self].
The Tamil phrase translated here as ‘as if it were limited’, may also mean “…as if it were a drunkard, …”.