The Introduction to Sri Ramana Maharshi presents one of the most extra ordinary cases when it comes to self awareness…

Ramana Maharshi is widely regarded as one of the most important Indian gurus in history. He was born in 1879 in the town of Madurai part of the Tamil Nadu region, in the South of India. Ramana Maharshi was the second of three sons in a religious family.  Ramana Maharshi ‘s own path in life was foretold by a family legend which said that they were cursed to have one child in each generation who would always renounce the material world and live a religious life.

 Ramana Maharshi Early Life

Ramana Maharshi was a slightly unusual child, with one of his most noticeable traits being his ability to stay sound asleep in any circumstances. Whether he was travelling on his father’s back or being hit with a stick, he would not wake up. Because of this trait he was given the nickname Kumbhakarna, which is a character in the Ramayana who fell asleep for months on end.

Ramana Maharshi ‘s life was transformed at 16 years  old when he experience an awakening, a realization of  his true nature.  During this altered state of consciousness he experienced what he realized was his own death. This loss of individual selfhood was later recognized by him as enlightenment. At this time he became fascinated by the word Arunachala. While the word at that time had no meaning to him, Ramana Maharshi was delighted when he discovered that in fact it was a real place.

Ramana Maharshi and life at Arunachala

Several weeks after his awakening he travelled by train for four days to the holy mountain of Arunachala which is now known as Tiruvannamalai. After arriving at the mountain he went directly to the central shrine. There he abandoned his material life and dedicated himself to his life calling.

In the following ten years he would spend his time meditating and practicing silence and non-attachment. As his reputation as a teacher developed, others began to come from near and far to visit him. Some of these visitors also brought religious books, and Ramana Maharshi became knowledgeable in all aspects of the religions of Southern India.

At first it was difficult for visitors to learn much about Ramana Maharshi because of his commitment to the discipline of silence. However over time Ramana Maharhshi began a more normal life at the ashram and was able to help people with the problems that they were experiencing. His followers built a temple and ashram for Maharshi were he was able to receive his guests. At meal times Ramana Maharshi would eat with these guests and received no special treatment. Ramana Maharshi was a great lover of animals and the ashram become a sanctuary for many different creatures.

Among Ramana Maharshi ‘s teachings was to renounce mental and physical pleasures. He said through this process you could enter a state where you could experience the oneness of the self and of the universe. He also stated that the person who was unattached could live in the world but not be emotionally attached to the results of their actions.

Ramana Maharshi  died in 1950 after developing cancer. At the time of his death he was meditating and the last words heard from his lips were the sacred syllable OM.