Maharshi Quotes & Sayings

The revelation or intuition arises in its own time and one must wait for it. — Ramana Maharshi

What introverted mind calls peace, outside as power is shown; Those who have reached and found this truth, their unity have known. — Ramana Maharshi

If it is asked whether the wise man derives any benefit from the discharge of domestic duties, it may be answered that, as he has already attained the state of complete satisfaction which is the sum total of all benefits and the highest good of all, he does not stand to gain anything more by discharging family duties. — Ramana Maharshi

Enlightened enquiry alone leads to liberation. Supernatural powers are all illusory appearances created by the power of maya (mayashakti). Self-realization which is permanent is the only true accomplishment (siddhi). Accomplishments which appear and disappear, being the effect of maya, cannot be real. They are accomplished with the object of enjoying fame, pleasures, etc. They come unsought to some persons through their karma. Know that union with Brahman is the real aim of all accomplishments. This is also the state of liberation (aikya mukti) known as union (sayujya). — Ramana Maharshi

The Seeker himself becomes the knower. The thing to be known is already there. There is nothing to be known afresh. More-over there are no two things. There is only the seer, the knower. — Ramana Maharshi

He that sees the Lord in the temple, the living body, by seeking Him within, can alone see Him, the Infinite, in the temple of the universe, having become the Endless Eye. — Ramana Maharshi

If you are vigilant and make a stern effort to reject every thought when it rises, you will soon find that you are going deeper and deeper into your own inner self, where there is no need for your effort to reject the thoughts. — Ramana Maharshi

By happy fraternity amongst themselves, the embodied beings get the supreme peace. Then all this earth shines like one house. When the men, the embodied beings treat each other with equal
respect and have good brotherly feelings amongst themselves, great peace and harmony abound. Then all this earth shines like one house. The whole world shines like the one dwelling house of
the entire human family. — Ramana Maharshi

If you make the thief the policeman there will be lots of investigation but no arrests will ever be made. — Ramana Maharshi

The ultimate Truth is so simple. It is nothing more than being in the pristine state. This is all that need be said. till, it is a wonder that to teach this simple Truth there should come into being so many religions, creeds, methods and disputes among them and so on! Oh the pity! Oh the pity! — Ramana Maharshi

Why should we ... constantly worry ourselves ... as to what should be done and how, and what should not be done and how not? We know that the train carries all loads, so after getting on it why should we carry our small luggage on our head to our discomfort, instead of putting it down in the train and feeling at ease? — Ramana Maharshi

To the extent we behave with humility, to that extent good will result. — Ramana Maharshi

Happiness is your real nature. You identify with yourself with the body and mind, feel it's limitations, and suffer. Realize your true self in order to open the store of happiness. That true self is the reality, the Supreme Truth, which is the self of all the world you now see, the self of all the selves, the One real, the Supreme, the Eternal self - as distinct from the ego or the bodily idea for the self. — Ramana Maharshi

Every person I've known has had an effect on me, as have people whom I've not met in the physical in this life, but whom I've met inwardly, teachers from other eras - Sri Ramana Maharshi, Sri Ramakrishna and Lao Tse. — Frederick Lenz

See who is the doubter, who is the thinker. It is the ego. Hold it; the other thoughts will die away - the ego will be left pure. See the source from where the ego arises and abide in it. That is pure consciousness. — Ramana Maharshi

Suffering is the way for Realization of God. — Ramana Maharshi

Ramana Maharshi and Rumi would agree: the joy of being human is in uncovering the core we already are, the treasure buried in the ruin. — Coleman Barks

The Self itself is the world; the Self itself is 'I'; the Self itself is God; all is Siva, the Self. — Ramana Maharshi

Thoughts come and go. Feelings come and go. Find out what it is that remains. — Ramana Maharshi

D.: There are six centres in the body and there are corresponding
centres in the world.
M.: Yes. What is in the world is in the body; and what is in the body
is in the world also. — Sri Ramana Maharshi

This perception of division between the seer and the object that is seen, is situated in the mind. For those remaining in the heart, the seer becomes one with the sight. — Ramana Maharshi

If a man considers that he is born, he cannot avoid the fear of death. Let him find out if he has been born or if the Self has any birth. He will discover that the Self always exists, that the body that is born resolves itself into thought and that the emergence of thought is the root of all mischief. Find from where thoughts emerge. Then you will be able to abide in the ever-present inmost Self and be free from the idea of birth or the fear of death. — Ramana Maharshi

Everything in the world was my Guru. — Ramana Maharshi

The man who has the sense of the body being himself cannot possibly worship God as formless; whatever worship he makes will be worship in form alone, not otherwise. — Ramana Maharshi

Pure Consciousness, which is the Heart, includes all, and nothing is outside or apart from it. That is the ultimate Truth. — Ramana Maharshi

A realized one sends out waves of spiritual influence in his aura, which draw many people towards him. Yet he may sit in a cave and maintain complete silence. — Ramana Maharshi

Love is verily the heart of all religions. — Ramana Maharshi

We are in our Self. We are not in the world. — Ramana Maharshi

If one wants to abide in the thought-free state, a struggle is inevitable.
One must fight one's way through before regaining one's original primal state.
If one succeeds in the fight and reaches the goal, the enemy, namely the thoughts,
will all subside in the Self and disappear entirely. — Ramana Maharshi

When one makes the mind stick to one thought, the mind becomes rock-steady and the energy is conserved. — Ramana Maharshi

There is nothing like 'within' or 'without.' Both mean either the same thing or nothing. — Ramana Maharshi

Aim high, aim at the highest, and all lower aims are thereby achieved. It is looking below on the stormy sea of differences that makes you sink. Look up, beyond these and see the One Glorious Real, and you are saved. — Ramana Maharshi

Every moment there is creation, every moment destruction. There is no absolute creation, no absolute destruction. Both are movement, and that is eternal. — Ramana Maharshi

From where does this "I" arise? Seek for it within; it then vanishes. This is the pursuit of wisdom. When the mind unceasingly investigates its own nature, it transpires that there is no such thing as mind. This is the direct path for all. The mind is merely thoughts. Of all thoughts the thought "I" is the root. — Ramana Maharshi

Discover your undying Self and be immortal and happy. — Ramana Maharshi

The body which is matter says not 'I'. Eternal Awareness rises not nor sets. Betwixt the two, bound by the body, rises the thought of 'I'. This is the knot of matter and Awareness. This is bondage, jiva, subtle body, ego. This is samsara, this is the mind. — Ramana Maharshi

Be equally indifferent to both and abide in the faith of God. That will be so only when one's faith is strong that God looks after all of us. — Ramana Maharshi

The world is so unhappy because it is ignorant of the true Self. Man's real nature is happiness. Happiness is inborn in the true Self.
Man's search for happiness is an unconscious search for his true Self. The true Self is imperishable; therefore,
when a man finds it, he finds a happiness, which does not come to an end. — Ramana Maharshi

The self cannot be found in books. You have to find it for yourself, within yourself. — Ramana Maharshi

There is no doubt whatsoever that the universe is the merest illusion. — Ramana Maharshi

Because truth is exceedingly subtle and serene, the bliss of the Self can manifest only in a mind rendered subtle and steady by assiduous meditation. — Ramana Maharshi

You are the witness of the three bodies: the gross, the subtle, and the causal, and of the three times: past, present and future, and also this void. In the story of the tenth man, when each of them counted and thought they were only nine, each one forgetting to count himself, there is a stage when they think one is missing and do not know who it is; and that corresponds to the void. We are so accustomed to the notion that all that we see around us is permanent and that we are this body, that when all this ceases to exist we imagine and fear that we also have ceased to exist. — Ramana Maharshi

One can know oneself only with one's own eye of knowledge, and not with somebody else's. Does he who is Rama require the help of a mirror to know that he is Rama? — Ramana Maharshi

If you go on working with the light available, you will meet your Master, as he himself will be seeking you. — Ramana Maharshi

Knowing the Self, God is known. — Ramana Maharshi

Experiences such as, 'I went; I came; I was; I did,' come naturally to everyone. From these experiences, does it not appear that the consciousness 'I' is the subject of those various acts? Enquiry into the true nature of that consciousness, and remaining as oneself, is the way to understand, through enquiry, one's true nature. — Ramana Maharshi

Peace is for the purification of one's mind. Power is for the growth of the community. Having established the community with power, one should then establish supreme peace. — Ramana Maharshi

The entire Universe is condensed in the body, and the entire
body in the Heart. Thus the Heart is the nucleus of the whole Universe. — Ramana Maharshi

Instead of indulging in mere speculation, devote yourself here and now to the search for the Truth that is ever within you. — Ramana Maharshi

The thing to do is to concentrate on the seer and not on the seen, not on the objects, but on the Light which reveals them. — Ramana Maharshi

When the mind, one-pointed and fully focused, knows the supreme silence in the Heart, this is true learning. — Ramana Maharshi

The Self is the one Reality that always exists, and it is by the light of the Self that all other things are seen. — Ramana Maharshi

All bad qualities centre round the ego. When the ego is gone, Realisation results by itself. There are neither good nor bad qualities in the Self. The Self is free from all qualities. Qualities pertain to the mind only. — Ramana Maharshi

The Lord of the Universe carries the entire burden of this world. You imagine you do. You can hand all your burdens over to His care. Whatever you have to do, you will be made an instrument for doing it at the right time. Do not think you cannot do it unless you have the desire to do it. Desire does not give you the strength for doing. The entire strength is the Lord's. — Ramana Maharshi

Bliss is a thing which is always there and is not something which comes and goes. That which comes and goes is a creation of the mind. — Ramana Maharshi

The experience of silence alone is the real and perfect knowledge. — Ramana Maharshi

Doubts never end. If one doubt is removed, another takes its place. It is like removing the leaves of a tree one by one. Even if all the leaves are clipped off, new ones grow. The tree itself must be uprooted. — Ramana Maharshi

Such happiness is relative and is better called pleasure or satisfaction. — Ramana Maharshi

There is no seeing. Seeing is only being. — Ramana Maharshi

As you are, so is the world. — Ramana Maharshi

God has no resolve; no karma attaches itself to Him. — Ramana Maharshi

The state we call realization is simply being oneself, not knowing anything or becoming anything. — Ramana Maharshi

When there are thoughts, it is distraction: when there are no thoughts, it is meditation. — Ramana Maharshi

Realisation is nothing new to be acquired. It is already there, but obstructed by a screen of thoughts. All our attempts are directed to lifting this screen and then realisation is revealed. — Ramana Maharshi

See who is in the subject. The investigation leads you to pure consciousness beyond the subject. — Ramana Maharshi

Your concentration must come as easily as the breath. Fix yourself on one thing and try to hold onto it. All will come right. Meditation is sticking to one thought. That single thought keeps away other thoughts. The dissipated mind is a sign of its weakness. By constant meditation it gains strength. — Ramana Maharshi

Realization is to get rid of the delusion that you have not realized. — Ramana Maharshi

The enemy hates the ego, which the seeker wants to kill; thus, like the anvil to the goldsmith, he is actually a friend. — Ramana Maharshi

Keep the remembrance of your real nature alive, even while working, and avoid haste which causes you to forget. Be deliberate. Practice meditation to still the mind and cause it to become aware of its true relationship to the Self which supports it. Do not imagine that it is you who are doing the work. Think that is the underlying current which is doing it. Identify yourself with the current. — Ramana Maharshi

There is no mind to control if you realise the self. The mind having vanished, the self shines forth. In the realised man, the mind may be active or inactive, the self remains for him. — Ramana Maharshi

Society is the body; individuals are its members, its limbs. Just as the various limbs help and co-operate with one another and thus are happy, so each must unite with others in being helpful to all in thought, speech and action ... One may see to the good of one's own group, i.e., the group that is immediate to him, and then proceed to others. — Ramana Maharshi

How to get rid of the mind? Is it the mind that wants to kill itself? The mind cannot kill itself. So your business is to find the real nature of the mind. Then you will know that there is no mind. When the Self is sought, the mind is nowhere. Abiding in the Self, one need not worry about the mind. — Ramana Maharshi

The deeply learned ones know the mind as the directly expressed meaning of the supreme knowledge. The heart is the meaning aimed at. The Supreme is none other than the heart. — Ramana Maharshi

In Hindu parlance he had 'realised the Self'; that is to say, he had realised by direct experience that nothing existed apart from an indivisible and universal consciousness which was experienced in its unmanifest form as beingness or awareness and in its manifest form as the appearance of the universe. — David Godman

Does a man who is acting on the stage in a female part forget that he is a man? Similarly, we too must play our parts on the stage of life, but we must not identify ourselves with those parts. — Ramana Maharshi

When the mind is left without anything to cling to, it becomes still. — Ramana Maharshi

Giving up all notions about country, caste, blemishless community,asrama (status as a bachelor, family man, ascetic or one who has renounced the world) and associated matters, hold on to and practise always meditation upon the Self, your own natural state. — Ramana Maharshi

Grace is ever present. All that is necessary is that you surrender to it. — Ramana Maharshi

Speaking of Self-realizatio n is a delusion. It is only because people have been under the delusion that the non-Self is the Self and the unreal the Real that they have to be weaned out of it by the other delusion called Self-realizatio n; because actually the Self always is the Self and there is no such thing as realizing it. — Ramana Maharshi

Grace is within you. Grace is your self. Grace is not something to be acquired from others. If it is external, it is useless. All that is necessary is to know its existence is in you. You are never out of its operation. — Ramana Maharshi

Our identification with the mind and body is the chief reason for our failure to know our self as we truly are. — Ramana Maharshi

You are all searching for the silence of the mountain. But you're looking for something outside. This silence is accessible to you right now, inside the center of your own being. — Ramana Maharshi

Silence is most powerful. Speech is always less powerful than silence. — Ramana Maharshi

The State of liberated Being can be reached only by "dying"; but (this) dying does not consist in destruction of the body; one should understand that true death is the extinction of the ideas "I" and "mine." — Ramana Maharshi

I am not the perishable body, but the eternal Self. — Ramana Maharshi

Even as one and the same person is called by different names according to the different functions he performs, so also one and the same mind is called by the different names: mind, intellect, memory, and egoity, on account of the difference in the modes - and not because of any real difference. — Ramana Maharshi

Good thoughts keep off bad thoughts. They must themselves disappear before the state of realization. — Ramana Maharshi

The macrocosm is in its entirety in the body. The body is in its entirety in the heart. Therefore heart is the summarised form of all the macrocosm. — Ramana Maharshi

Concentration of the mind is in a way common to both Knowledge and Yoga. Yoga aims at union of the individual with the universal, the Reality. This Reality cannot be new. It must exist even now, and it does exist. — Ramana Maharshi

We are always peace. To get rid of the idea that we are not peace is all that is required. — Ramana Maharshi

Doubts arise because of an absence of surrender. — Ramana Maharshi

Meditation applies the brakes to the mind. — Ramana Maharshi

That alone is Real which exists by itself, which reveals itself by itself and which is eternal and unchanging. — Ramana Maharshi

The place where even the slightest trace of the 'I' does not exist, alone is Self. — Ramana Maharshi

The body dies, but the spirit that transcends it cannot be touched by death. — Ramana Maharshi

The only useful purpose of the present birth is to turn within and realize the Self. — Ramana Maharshi

One of two things must be done. Either surrender because you admit your inability and require a higher power to help you, or investigate the cause of misery by going to the source and merging into the Self. Either way you will be free from misery. God never forsakes one who has surrendered. — Ramana Maharshi

The mind of one meditating on a single object becomes one-pointed. And one-pointedness of mind leads to abidance in the self. Real attainment is to be fully conscious, to be aware of surroundings and the people around, to move among them all, but not to merge consciousness in the environment. One should remain in inner independent awareness. — Ramana Maharshi

You need not aspire for or get any new state. Get rid of your present thoughts, that is all. — Ramana Maharshi

If one watches whence the notion 'I' arises, the mind gets absorbed there; that is tapas. When a mantra is repeated, if one watches whence that mantra sound arises, the mind gets absorbed
there; that is tapas. — Ramana Maharshi