Ramana Maharshi did not teach a system.
He pointed to what is already true, now, before the mind moves.
He pointed to what is already true, now, before the mind moves.
His central teaching is simple:
Find out who you are.
Not as belief, not through effort, but through quiet, sustained attention.
Find out who you are.
Not as belief, not through effort, but through quiet, sustained attention.
He did not tell you what to believe.
He asked you to turn inward and see clearly:
Who is this “I” that says I am suffering?
Who is this “I” that seeks, questions, hopes?
He asked you to turn inward and see clearly:
Who is this “I” that says I am suffering?
Who is this “I” that seeks, questions, hopes?
Trace the “I” thought to its root.
Stay with it.
Follow it inward—not outward into its stories.
What remains when the thought dissolves?
Stay with it.
Follow it inward—not outward into its stories.
What remains when the thought dissolves?
Not nothing.
But That which is aware of nothing and everything.
The Self. Pure, formless, timeless.
But That which is aware of nothing and everything.
The Self. Pure, formless, timeless.
Ramana did not ask you to become something.
He revealed that you are already That—
the formless Awareness in which all forms arise.
He revealed that you are already That—
the formless Awareness in which all forms arise.
The body changes. The mind fluctuates. The world appears and disappears.
But You, the knower of all this, never come and go.
You are not in time. Time appears in You.
But You, the knower of all this, never come and go.
You are not in time. Time appears in You.
This path Self-Inquiry (ātma-vichāra)—
is not a technique, but a direct turning of attention inward.
The end of seeking. The recognition of the Self as ever-present.
is not a technique, but a direct turning of attention inward.
The end of seeking. The recognition of the Self as ever-present.
To know the Self is not to become enlightened.
It is to discover that you were never bound.
It is to discover that you were never bound.
Quotes from Ramana Maharshi:
“Who am I? The Self alone is real.”
“The only useful purpose of the present birth is to turn within and realize the Self.”
“That which is does not even say ‘I am’. For, does any doubt rise that ‘I am not’?”
“There is no greater mystery than this: being Reality ourselves, we seek to gain Reality.”
“Your own Self-Realization is the greatest service you can render the world.”
“Self-inquiry is the one infallible means, the only direct one, to realize the unconditioned Absolute Being that you really are.”
“Happiness is your nature. It is not wrong to desire it. What is wrong is seeking it outside when it is inside.”
“You are awareness. Awareness is another name for you. Since you are awareness, there is no need to attain or cultivate it.”
“The ‘I’ thought is the root of all other thoughts. If the ‘I’ thought is destroyed, all other thoughts are destroyed.”
“The Self is self-luminous without darkness and light. It is the consciousness which pervades all things.”
