Aside from the fact that Sri Ramana Maharshi was at one point a person who
walked upon this earth we are faced with two new aspects: the historical Sri
Ramana as encountered in books and film and the Sri Ramana who is a
Presence (sannidhi). The books are numerous and gives one a fairly good idea
of his personality and how he interacted and taught. They can be inspiring and
informative and are a good starting point to begin one’s own journey.
At a certain point, the books will have fulfilled a general curiosity and need and
it is then that the real journey begins. For how many tourist guides can one read
before embarking on a journey? I am not particularly academic and my
emotions govern my understanding as much as anything. If I consume too much
information at one time I become confused. My modus operandi is generally to
take one snippet of knowledge and apply it, if possible, to my life. This may be
the result of my Catholic upbringing whereby the frequent examination of one’s
conscience was encouraged. Others are able to accumulate large wads of
knowledge and delve into the minutiae of the teaching and be inspired. Others
learn more in a group situation bouncing ideas off one another. It depends on
one’s proclivities. Each sincere approach is valid. It is a question of finding
what is best for you. Sri Ramana’s path can be a lonely one at times and
considerable inner fortitude is required not to fall into despondency at odd
moments due to a seeming lack of progress. This path (marga) does not cater to
recurrent spiritual visions or sentimental validations. It can be a stony path.
There are outer sanctuaries which can sustain us such as Sri Ramanasramam or
Arunachala. And there are online satsangs or physical meetings which nourish a
seeker. All these strengthen our resolve and open up new avenues of
understanding. But the real work is internal. However, one should not
misconstrue and imagine that one is completely alone. This is not true for once
the door is opened to the possibility of Grace the door is never closed again.
As an invisible but living Presence, Sri Ramana now exemplifies a principle
that has nothing to do with a human personality. When we stand on a beach and
watch the waves of the ocean do we ask each one of the waves if they have a
personality or an individual name? No, we don’t because all of them are part of
a greater whole that is indivisible. There may be small differences in mineral
content or colouration. The moods of the ocean may be turbulent or tranquil but
we would not assume that these variances demarcate each splash as different
and independent. Just as mystical visions may vary according to one’s religious
affiliation, but not their validity so too, when we encounter a higher power, we
experience a living force that disregards our idiosyncrasies as ephemeral. That
Presence does not see us as separate self-enclosed individuals but aspects of the
whole. We absurdly think our small vanities and fears are paramount and cling
onto them as if the world would collapse otherwise. It makes no difference to
the Presence. It is not a question of liking or disliking us. When it begins to
actively work on us it is like washing a baby that has dirtied itself.
One day in primary school I came home by the usual route but on the way
discovered to my glee that the road had been retarred. The black treacle was an
irresistible invitation to scoop up some of the glop and play with it. After a truly
interesting time playing with the substance, I headed home covered in black
goo! On seeing me, my mother did not see the important side of my laudable
research into the viscosity of tar. She told me not to come into the house and
went to get brushes and kerosene. She came back and whipped off all my
clothes outside the back door adjacent the garden. To say that she was annoyed
is an understatement. My father in the meantime turned up and watched the
circus unfold with a combination of disbelief and amusement. He decided that
my mother was more than competent and did not involve himself. He discretely
disappeared while the going was good. I could not see what the fuss was about.
Eventually, I was scoured clean and some of my school clothes had to be
discarded.
Spiritual discipline is a bit like this. We cover ourselves, much to our pleasure,
with all types of stuff that tends to stick and make our lives let us say, heavy
with logjams that impede our flow of lightness of perception. We are paying the
price for our foolishness. The guru does not mistake our layer of dirt with who
we are and instead gets to work and cleans us up. Sri Ramana alluded to a sadhu
who suffered grievously and remarked that he got a real beating on the washing
stone. 1 Anand Mayi Ma is said to remark that she enjoyed nothing better than
metaphorically rolling up her sleeves and scrubbing a grimy sishya (disciple). 2
The disciple we have become and the discipline we sustain is there for a
purpose. Once we dedicate our lives to the Path in whatever authentic form,
there is a meaning to our suffering for we know that the rubbing and cleansing
(tapas) dissolves the impediments so that we may see clearly. Until we undergo
the fire of purification we can never truly comprehend the higher teachings. The
only obstacle keeping us from them is our own blindness.
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1 Talks with Ramana Maharshi, Talk 447. “Sri Bhagavan said that a saint Namah Sivaya who was formerly living in Arunachala must have undergone considerable difficulties. For he has sung a song saying: ‘God proves the devotee by means of severe ordeals. A washerman beats the cloth on a slab, not to tear it, but only to remove the dirt.’”
2 Matri Vani. 244. Children of tender age do not want to learn to read and write because they prefer to play. If little boys and girls are to be taught reading and writing, they will have to be persuaded to learn. So also, to begin with, one has to repeat the Name forcibly. Constant practice is needed. Look, when dirt accumulates on a vessel, it has to be scrubbed and polished to become shiny. Rubbing it just once will not make it clean. In order to light a match, friction is necessary; one cannot be sure at what instant fire will blaze forth. With the repetition of the Name it is also similar. By sustained practice success will be accomplished. Become wedded to the yoga of practice.
Letter # 20 - Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi: A Presence
