Below is Ramana's Dhyana instructions: sure sounds like TM IN ALL THE IMPORTANT ways, and Ramana was not a Vedic scholar -- hardly educated at all. The TM method of saying the mantra is in Ramana's words below. TM had to market itself with the "specialness of the mantra selection process" to add a mystic of expertise to the sales pitch. TM is indeed ancient, and as we all know, mantra selection is purely arbitrary and can be done by a monkey in a cheap suit.
Edg Question: How is meditation to be practised? Sri Ramana Maharshi: Meditation is, truly speaking, atmanishtha (to be fixed as the Self). But when thoughts cross the mind and an effort is made to eliminate them the effort is usually termed meditation. Atmanishtha is your real nature. Remain as you are. That is the aim. Question: But thoughts come up. Is our effort meant to eliminate thoughts only? Sri Ramana Maharshi: Yes. Meditation being on a single thought, the other thoughts are kept away. Meditation is only negative in effect in as much as thoughts are kept away. Questioner: It is said `Atma samstham manah krtva' (fixing the mind in the Self). But the Self is unthinkable. Sri Ramana Maharshi: Why do you wish to meditate at all? Because you wish to do so you are told `atma samstham manah krtva'. Why do you not remain as you are without meditating? What is that `manah' (mind)? When all thoughts are eliminated it becomes `atma samstha' (fixed in the Self). Questioner: If a form is given I can meditate on it and other thoughts are eliminated. But the Self is formless. Sri Ramana Maharshi: Meditation on forms of concrete objects is said to be Dhyana, whereas the enquiry into the Self is Vichara or Nididhyasana (uninterrupted awareness of being). Question: How is Dhyana practised- with eyes open or closed? Sri Ramana Maharshi: It may be done either way. The point is that the mind must be introverted and kept active in its pursuit. Sometimes it happens that when the eyes are closed the latent thoughts rush forth with great vigour. It may also be difficult to introvert the mind with the eyes open. It requires strength of mind to do so. The mind is contaminated when it takes in objects. Otherwise, it is pure. The main factors in Dhyana is to keep the mind active in its own pursuit without taking in external impressions or thinking of other matters. Question: How do I prevent myself falling asleep in meditation? Sri Ramana Maharshi: If you try to prevent sleep it will mean thinking in meditation, which must be avoided. But if you slip into sleep while meditating, the meditation will continue even during and after sleep. Yet, being a thought, sleep must be got rid of, for the final natural state has to be obtained consciously in jagrat (the waking state) without the disturbing thought. Waking and sleeping are mere pictures on the screen of the native, thought-free state. Let them pass unnoticed. Question: What is to be meditated upon? Sri Ramana Maharshi: Anything that you prefer. Question: Siva, Vishnu and Gayatri are said to be equally efficacious. Which should I mediate upon? Sri Ramana Maharshi: Any one you like best. They are all equal in their effect. But you should stick to one. Top < To top of this page Index Alphabetical [Index to Pages] Question: How do I meditate? Sri Ramana Maharshi: Concentrate on that one whom you like best. If a single thought prevails, all other thoughts are put off and finally eradicated. So long as diversity prevails there are bad thoughts. When the object of love prevails only good thoughts hold the field. Therefore hold on to one thought only. Dhyana is the chief practice. Dhyana means fight. As soon as you begin meditation other thoughts will crowd together, gather force and try to sink the single thought to which you try to hold. The good thought must gradually gain strength by repeated practice. After it has grown strong the other thoughts will be put to flight. This is the battle royal always taking place in meditation. One wants to rid oneself of misery. It requires peace of mind, which means absence of perturbation owing to all kinds of thoughts. Peace of mind is brought about by Dhyana alone. Question: What is the difference between Dhyana (meditation) and Vichara (investigation)? Sri Ramana Maharshi: Both amount to the same. Those unfit for investigation must practise meditation. In meditation the aspirant forgetting himself meditates `I am Brahman' or `I am Siva' and by this method holds on to Brahman or Siva. This will ultimately end with the residual awareness of Brahman or Siva as being. He will then realise that this is pure being, that is, the Self. He who engages in investigation starts by holding on to himself, and by asking himself `Who am I?' The Self becomes clear to him. Mentally imagining oneself to be the supreme reality, which shines as existence-consciousness-bliss, is meditation. Fixing the mind in the Self so that the unreal seed of delusion will die is enquiry. Whoever meditates upon the Self in whatever bhava (mental image) attains it only in that image. Those peaceful ones who remain quiet without any such bhava attain the noble and unqualified state of Kaivalya, the formless state of the Self. Questioner: Meditation is more direct than investigation because the former holds on to the truth whereas the latter sifts the truth from the untruth. Sri Ramana Maharshi: For the beginner meditation on a form is more easy and agreeable. Practice of it leads to self-enquiry, which consists in sifting the reality from unreality. What is the use of holding on to truth when you are filled with antagonistic factors? Self-enquiry directly leads to realisation by removing the obstacles which make you think the self is not already realised. Meditation differs according to the degree of advancement of the seeker. If one is fit for it one might directly hold on to the thinker, and the thinker will then automatically sink into his source, pure consciousness. If one cannot directly hold on to the thinker one must meditate on God and in due course the same individual will have become sufficiently pure to hold on to the thinker and to sink into absolute being. Meditation is possible only if the ego is kept up. There is the ego and the object meditated upon. The method is therefore indirect because the Self is only one. Seeking the ego, that is its source, the ego disappears. What is left over is the Self. This method is the direct one. Question: Is the practice of concentration between the eyebrows advisable? Sri Ramana Maharshi: The final result of the practice of any kind of Dhyana is that the object on which the seeker fixes his mind ceases to exist as distinct and separate from the subject. They, the subject and object, become the one Self, and that is the Heart. Question: Why does not Sri Bhagavan (Sri Ramana) direct us to practise concentration on some particular centre or Chakra? Sri Ramana Maharshi: Yoga Sastra says that the sahasrara (the Chakra located in the brain) or the brain is the seat of the Self. Purusha Sukta declares that the Heart is its seat. To enable the sadhaka to steer clear of possible doubt, I tell him to take up the thread or the clue of `I'-ness or `I am' ness and follow it up to its source. Because, firstly, it is impossible for anybody to entertain any doubt about this `I' notion. Secondly, whatever be the means adopted, the final goal is the realisation of the source of `I am'-ness, which is the primary datum of your experience. If you therefore practice self-enquiry, you will reach the Heart, which is the Self. --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Vaj <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > On Nov 16, 2007, at 8:45 AM, shempmcgurk wrote: > > > The "uniqueness" that was referred to here was the effortless and > > ease of the TM Technique. This WAS discussed conceptually by the TMO > > and MMY and, indeed, what was emphasized from Step One of the 7-Step > > Program. > > > > As anyone knows who reads my posts here on FFL, I have alot of > > complaints about MMY and the TMO. But this is the one thing that > > should not and cannot be taken away from the man: he promoted and > > made available to the world a technique to obtain enlightenment that > > was easy and effortless to do. And although I can't "prove" it (this > > can only be something that one can declare subjectively), it is this > > effortlessness that makes it the most effective self-development > > technique around. > > > > This concept of effortlessness, simplicity, and universal application > > is an incredible accomplishment and despite all the screw-ups since > > the introduction of the flying technique (which, IMHO, signalled the > > beginning of the descent of the Movement), this puts MMY head and > > shoulders above any spiritual master of the past 5,000 years. > > > > Let's not take THAT away from him... > > > He took it away from himself when he declared that TM was NOT > effortless....it is "easy" but then so are many, many other > meditation methods. > > Any real yogi familiar with Patanjali will be well aware that as long > as there are supports (alambanas) there will always be some effort. > > Effortless meditation or non-meditation can only occur without > supports or props like mantras, etc. >
