Both Ramana Maharishi and Sri Ramakrishna are revered spiritual figures in modern Hinduism, each with a profound influence on the spiritual landscape. Despite some similarities in their teachings—centered on the realization of the Self and the transcendent nature of divine experience—they present different approaches and philosophies. Here’s a comparison of their teachings and practices: Ramana Maharishi: Background: Birth Name: Venkataraman Iyer. Lifespan: 1879 - 1950. Primary Locale: Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India. Main Work: "Who am I?" (Nan Yar). Core Teachings: Self-Inquiry (Atma Vichara): Central to Ramana’s teachings is the practice of self-inquiry. He advocates continually asking oneself "Who am I?" to lead the mind inward and reveal the true Self, which is beyond the ego and the mind. This method is considered a direct path to self-realization and focuses on the inner journey. Non-Duality (Advaita): Ramana’s teachings align closely with Advaita Vedan...

The word one describes so many facets of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi’s life. Bhagavan is the foremost example of complete one-pointedness of devotion. Bhagavan surrendered to one God, Arunachala, staying at one place, Tiruvannamalai, the abode of Arunachala, for the entire period of his life from his flight from home in 1896 to his Brahmanirvana in 1950. Bhagavan had one lesson for everyone, and it can be summarized as: ‘Enquire and find out who or what you are. Leave all discussions about the world and its ways, even about noble intentions like the desire to serve humanity, and first solve the mystery about yourself.’ What is Self-enquiry but one-pointed attention to one’s own true essence? To do Self-enquiry is to withdraw attention from the many (the world, the variety seen in the world) and focus all attention to the One, i.e., the Self. It is a negation of the subject-object duality in such a manner that the subject alone remains. All his life, Bhagavan taught Self-enquiry, an...

Learning, listening, reflection, contemplation, clinging to grace, divine silence, supreme abode, unassailable peace, yoga, 'tapas' (intense spiritual practice), 'dharma' (right action), 'dana' (charity) - all of them mean the same, the destruction of the 'I am the body' delusion. Know that the eradication of the 'I am the body' idea is charity, spiritual austerity and ritual sacrifice, it is virtue, divine union and devotion: it is heaven, wealth, peace and truth: it is grace, deathless death, final liberation and bliss. The idea 'I am the body' shrinks the absolute fullness of being that belongs to God, the supreme. The understanding 'I am not the body' destroys the ego and is the genuine worship of God. The experience of the supreme Self will only arise after the death of the 'I am the body' delusion. When the 'I am the body' belief that arose through non-enquiry, dies, the deluding bewilderment that eng...

Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi That which has a beginning must also end. Only when the ever-present consciousness is realized will it be permanent. Consciousness is indeed always with us. Everyone knows ‘I am!’ No one can deny his own being. The man in deep slumber is not aware; while awake he seems to be aware. But it is the same person. There is no change in the one who slept and the one who is now awake. In deep sleep he was not aware of his body; there was no body-consciousness. In the wakeful state he is aware of his body; there is body-consciousness. Therefore the difference lies in the emergence of body-consciousness and not in any change in the Real Consciousness. The body and body-consciousness arise together and sink together. All this amounts to saying that there are no limitations in deep sleep, whereas there are limitations in the waking state. These limitations are the bondage; the feeling ‘The body is I’ is the error. This false sense of ‘I’ must go. The real ‘I’...

An examination of the ephemeral nature of external phenomena leads to vairagya (dispassion). Hence enquiry (vichara) is the first and foremost step to be taken. When vichara continues automatically, it results in contempt for wealth, fame, ease, pleasure, etc. The ‘I’ thought becomes clearer for inspection. The source of ‘I’ is the Heart – the final goal. If, however, the aspirant is not temperamentally suited to Vichara Marga (to the introspective analytical method), he must develop bhakti (devotion) to an ideal – may be God, Guru, humanity in general, ethical laws, or even the idea of beauty. When one of these takes possession of the individual, other attachments grows weaker, i.e., dispassion (vairagya) develops. Attachment for the ideal simultaneously grows and finally holds the field. Thus ekagrata (concentration) grows simultaneously and imperceptibly – with or without visions and direct aids. In the absence of enquiry and devotion, the natural sedative pranayama (breath regula...

What Is Maya? The answer to it is found in the Kaivalya Navaneeta of Sri Ramana Maharshi. What is maya? The answer is: It is anirvachaniya or indescribable. To whom does it come? The answer is: To the mind or ego who feels that he is a separate entity, who thinks ‘I do this’ or ‘This is mine’. Where does it come from and how did it originate? The answer: Nobody can say. How did it arise? The answer is: Through non-vichara, through failure to enquire ‘Who am I?’ If the Self and maya both exist, does this not invalidate the theory of Advaita? The answer is: It need not, since maya is dependent on the Self as the picture is on the screen. The picture is not real in the sense that the screen is real. If the Self and maya are one, could it not be argued that the Self is of the nature of maya and that it is also illusory? The answer is: No, the Self can be capable of producing illusion without being illusory. A conjuror may create for our entertainment the illusion of people, a...

Chit means Consciousness or Pure Knowledge. Ambaram means dress or garment. And it also means space or ether . Hence Chidambaram and Chidakasa are synonymous. The principle of Chidakasha is explained as follows by Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi: Chidakasha (Chit-ether) is Pure knowledge only. It is the source of the mind. Just at the moment of rising up, the mind is only light; only afterwards the thought I am this rises up; this I-thought forms the jiva and the world. The first light is the pure mind, the mind-ether or Iswara. Its modes manifest as objects. Because it contains all these objects within itself it is called mind-ether. Why ether? Like ether containing objects it contains the thoughts, therefore it is the mindeether. Again, j u s t as the physical ether though accommodating all the gross objects (the whole universe) is itself the content of the mind-ether, so also the latter itself is the content of Chit-ether. The last one is Chit itself. There are no things conta...

Sri Ramana Maharshi explains the easiest path to atma darshanam – the realization of the Self. Of all the methods of dedicating oneself to Paramatman (the Supreme Being), the easiest and the best method is the repetition of the mantra of one’s own chosen deity. Japa promotes a constant flow of loving prayer from within for inner illumination. This wakes up a subtle thirst that steadily increases, leading to a strong current of continuous yearning for the Divine, known as vyakulata. When this yearning develops into deep absorption (dhyana), Divinity reveals itself from within. This is Atma-darshanam. In brief, Sri Ramana Maharishi explained that the aspirant first repeats the mantra out loud with all possible diligence and devotion. Then, as his or her loving attitude intensifies, the repetition gradually becomes internalized. As the body, senses and mind get purified and become free from their selfish nature, the whole being gets tuned to the Divine. The power of the mantra enter...

These were some of the final words of Sri Ramana Maharshi. Let the body, the result of fructifying karma, rest or move about, live or die, the Sage who has realized the Self is not aware of it, just as one in drunken stupor is not aware of his clothing. The jnani who has found himself as formless pure Awareness is unaffected though his body be cleft with a sword. Sugar-candy does not lose its sweetness though broken or crushed. "When we have finished a meal do we keep the leaf-plate on which we have eaten it?" A jnani rejoices to be relieved of the body by death as a servant rejoices to lay down his burden at the place of delivery. They take this body for Bhagavan and attribute suffering to him. What a pity! They are despondent that Bhagavan is going to leave them and go away; where can he go, and how?" Do you know what moksha (Liberation) is? "Getting rid of nonexistent misery and attaining Bliss which is the only existence, that is the definition of moks...

The fear of death, or rather the death experience was the forerunner of Self-realization in the case of Bhagavan Sri Ramana. This is of great significance. He had made no preparatory effort. He had not even heard of terms like 'Brahman', 'Self and the like. How he faced the death experience without getting scared and how he realized the Truth in a flash can be properly described only in the words of the Maharshi. Maharshi says: I just felt I am going to die' and began thinking what to do about it. It did not occur to me to consult a doctor, or my elders or friends; I felt that I had to solve the problem myself, there and then. The shock of the fear of death drove my mind inwards and I said to myself mentally, without actually framing the words: 'Now death has come; what does it mean? What is it that is dying? The body dies.' And I at once dramatized the occurrence of death. I lay with my limbs stretched and stiff as though rigor mortis had set in and imi...

On the silence of Sri Ramana Maharshi by Swami Tapovan Maharaj Silence is Truth. Silence is Bliss. Silence is Peace. And hence Silence is Atman. To live this Silence as such is the Goal. It is moksha. It is the end of the endless cycle of births and deaths. Sri Ramana Maharshi was an embodiment of such Silence. He was the Silence Itself. Therefore he did not preach the Silence. Only when one comes back to the 'noisy' from the Silence, can one preach the Silence. How can the Silence preach Itself through Silence? Nearly thirty-five or forty years ago, I had the good fortune of having the darshan of Maharshi at Tiruvannamalai when he was living there in a cave along with his mother and brother. One midday, a young brahmachari at that time, I went up the Hill to the cave, saw the Maharshi and, placing a bunch of bananas at his feet, bowed and sat before him. At the same moment some monkeys jumped on to the scene, scrambled for the fruits and ran away with them. Maharshi look...

A few teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi. That which is the support, the soul, the source, the purpose and the power of all this world, the Reality behind all this appearance, That indeed exists. Let That, the Truth, abide in our heart. In the company of sages, attachment vanishes; and with attachment, illusion. Freed from illusion, one attains stability, and thence Liberation while yet alive. Seek therefore the company of sages. When one has learned to love the company of sages, wherefore all these rules of discipline? When a pleasant, cool southern breeze is blowing, what need is there for a fan? Disciple: 'Who is God?' Master: 'He who knows the mind.' Disciple: 'By what light do you see?' Master: 'The sun by day, the lamp by night.' M: 'By what light do you see these lights?' D: 'The eye.' M: 'By what light do you see the eye?' D: 'The mind.' M: 'By what light do you know the mind?' D: 'My Self.' ...

Ramana Maharshi has clearly demonstrated through words and his life that Self is beyond the understanding of mind and intellect.  As a man awakening from a dream no longer sees any of the dream persons, so the one who has awakened from the sleep of ignorance, and who is therefore alone as the sole reality, does not see anyone as other than his own real Self. Whatever is describable in words or thinkable by the mind is, for that reason alone, finite. Because the real Self is beyond the reach of the mind and the intellect, those who are established in the Self call it ‘the infinite’. Whatever is said concerning the supreme reality by the sages or by Vedanta has for its purpose only the removal of the mistaken notions of the disciple. Vedantas indicate the truth of the Self by negating all else (that could be mistakenly believed to be the Self). Since the Self, shining alone as the sole existing reality, can neither be known nor taught, the teachings of the Guru do n...

In a famous incident, Ramana Maharshi shows God to a person. Once a person approached Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi and said, “O, Bhagavan, can you show me God?” Ramana Maharshi replied, “I can show you, but I do not know whether you will see Him.”  The man felt insulted and said, “If you can show Him to me, why can I not see Him? I have eyes.” The man insisted, “No, you show me and I will see.” So Ramana Maharshi sat in front of him.  Then just raised one finger and started moving it from one side to another. Five, ten, fifteen minutes went by. The man was still expecting some vision of God to appear. Finally, the man asked, ‘I thought you were going to show me God. Where is He?” Ramana Maharshi said, “I told you I can show you God, but you may not be able to see Him.” The man said, “But you have not shown me anything.” “For twenty minutes I have been showing you God,” Ramana Maharshi said. “How can that be?” asked the confused man. ...

Sri Ramana Maharshi during a question answer session stated that realization is only removal of camouflage.   What comes as a flash disappears as such. That which has a beginning must also end. Only when the ever present consciousness is realised will, it be permanent. Consciousness is indeed always with us. Everyone knows 'I am!' No one can deny his own being. The man in deep slumber is not aware; while awake he seems to be aware. But it is the same person. There is no change in the one who slept and the one who is now awake. In deep sleep he was not aware of his body ; there was no body- consciousness. In the wakeful state he is aware of his body ; there is body-consciousness. Therefore the difference lies in the emergence of body-consciousness and not in any change in the Real Consciousness. The body and body-consciousness arise together and sink together. All this amounts to saying that there are no limitations in deep sleep, whereas there are limitations in...

A collection of thoughts on reality by Sri Ramana Maharshi If Reality did not exist, could there be any knowledge of existence? Free from all thoughts, Reality abides in the Heart, the Source of all thoughts. It is, therefore, called the Heart. How then is one to contemplate it? To be as it is in the Heart, is Its contemplation. Those who know intense fear of death seek refuge only at the feet of the Lord. Who has neither death nor birth. Dead to themselves and their possessions, can the thought of death occur to them again? Deathless are they. From our perception of the world there follows acceptance of a unique First Principle possessing various powers. Pictures of name and form, the person who sees, the screen on which he sees, and the light by which he sees : he himself is all of these. All religions postulate the three fundamentals, the world, the soul, and God, but it is only the one Reality that manifests Itself as these three. One can say, ' The three are real...

How can one act at all without ego? Will life bloom in all its fullness only when one's life is egoless? These are some of the doubts and fears which arise and from time immemorial the great seers of Sanatana Dharma (Hinduism) have answered these doubts and quelled the fears. Egoless life is outside the sphere of our experience. Action without the actor, a mind without sloth, and outward movement, are unknown to us and therefore we fear the logical consequence of the pursuit of self-enquiry resulting in the 'loss' of the mind in the Self. Sri Ramana Maharshi assures that in this death of the mind or ego is the birth of true life. In an egoless state one is born anew in a totally different dimension in which the fountain of joy endlessly overflows. One is, as it were, inundated by it. There is constant renewal, a totality of perception, and perfection in action. What does egoless living really mean? What is the birth and death of the ego? The rising of the I-thought of ...

The term upadesha is of great significance in Hinduism and Sri Ramana Maharshi explains it. The term ‘upadesha’ literally means restoring an object nearest to its true and proper place. The mind of the disciple having become differentiated from its true and primal state of Pure Being, or the Self, which the scriptures describe as Sat Chit Ananda, Being Consciousness Bliss, slips away from it and, assuming the form of thought, ever runs after the objects of sense gratification. Thus, the mind gets buffeted and battered by the vicissitudes of life and becomes weak and dispirited. Now, Upadesa, or spiritual instruction, consists in the Master restoring the mind of the disciple to its primal state and effectively preventing it from slipping away from the state of Pure Being, of absolute identity with the Self, or, in other words, the spiritual Being of the Master. The term ‘upadesa’ may also be understood as presenting an apparently distant object to one’s near view; i....

There is neither creation nor destruction, neither destiny nor free will, neither path or achievement. This is the final truth. Be as you are. Reality must be always real. It is not with forms and names. That which underlies these is the reality. It underlies limitations, being itself limitless. It is not bound. It underlies unrealities, itself being real. Reality is that which is. It is as it is. It transcends speech. It is beyond expressions ‘existence, non-existence’ etc. You are awareness. Awareness is another name for you. Since you are awareness there is no need to attain or cultivate it. All that you have to do is to give up being aware of other things, that is of the not-Self. If one gives up being aware of them then pure awareness alone remains, and that is the Self. Your own realisation is the best help you can give to others, but there are no others to be helped. Work performed with attachment is a shackle, whereas work performed with detachment does not affect, ...

Real treasure is not gold or diamond but everlasting bliss which cannot be extinguished by any earthly force. Ramana Maharshi distributed the real treasure for free during his lifetime. Here is a miniscule part of that treasure. If we progress, the world progresses. As you are, so is the world. Without understanding the Self, what is the use of understanding the world ? Without Self Knowledge, the knowledge of the world is of no use. Dive within and see the treasures that are locked up there. Cut open your heart and see the world through the eyes of your Supreme Self. Tear down the veils and you will see the divine majesty of your own Self. People that are on the lower rungs of the ladder waste their energies by being preoccupied with questions like will there be a prophet, will someone come to save the world, will the world will be rejuvenated…etc. Everyone is an Avatar of God. One who knows the Truth sees everyone else as a manifestation of God. Those who have eyes ca...