Description

The Life and Teachings of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi       “Distracted as we are by various thoughts, if we would continually contemplate the Self, which is Itself God, this single thought would in due course replace all distraction and would itself ultimately vanish;. The pure Consciousness that alone finally remains is God. This is Liberation. To be constantly centered on one’s own all-perfect pure Self is the acme of yoga, wisdom, and all other forms of spiritual practice. Even though the mind wanders restlessly, involved in external matters, and so is forgetful of its own Self, one should remain alert and remember:’The body is not I.”    ‘Who am I?’ Enquire in this way, turning the mind backward to its primal state. The enquiry ‘Who am I?’ is the only method of putting an end to all misery and ushering in Supreme Beatitude. Whatever may be said and however phrased, this is the whole truth in a nutshell.”    At the age of seventeen, sitting alone at his uncle’s house, the young Venkataraman, as Ramana Maharshi was known then, underwent a spontaneous ‘conversion experience’ that would change his life forever, beginning his spiritual quest. He left home soon after, not stopping until he had reached the shrine of Lord Arunacalesvara at Tiruvannamalai. He never left it.   Hailed as one of the most remarkable and unique practitioners of Advaita Vedanta, Ramana Maharshi saw no difference between his life and teachings. Even Mahatma Gandhi had heard that the Maharshi was known to be and was perhaps a  realized soul, and expressed a wish to meet him several times. That meeting never happened, but thousands of others flocked to him hoping to catch a glimpse of the man who is said to have experienced eternity.   In this absorbing biography, Arvind Sharma chronicles the life of Ramana Maharshi, his solitary and extraordinary spiritual journey, his wisdom and his message. Ramana Maharshi: The Sage of Arunachala will doubtless offer something to the believer and the questioner; the scholar and the layperson.  Video: 1239 Kbps, 29.970 fps, XVID Mpeg-4  Audio: 192 Kbps, 44100 Hz, 2 channels, MPEG Layer-3