[Advaita-l] Ramana Maharshi's self-inquiry and traditional advaita vedanta

[jaldhar at braincells.com]

On Tue, 22 Dec 2020, Akilesh Ayyar via Advaita-l wrote:

> https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PLxfuCblbZuGea4uNH_3KkteYXOmLUm8dn&time_continue=742&v=vmv5RmZx-mM&feature=emb_title
>
> Ramana Maharshi's simple self-inquiry instruction -- to attempt to chase
> and locate the "I" -- may seem, at first glance, to be quite different from
> the more scriptural and thinking-based instruction of traditional advaita
> vedanta. But this difference is only on the surface. Both ultimately come
> to exactly the same method from just slightly different angles: quiet the
> mind and discern away the unchanging by investigating the "I" thought. By
> doing so, the normal I disappears and an intuition is generated which
> destroys ignorance. What is left is the Self, which was always there, but
> simply was't recognized because of that ignorance.

The shortest composition of Shankaracharya is called ekashloki which
teaches Vedanta in one shloka.  So even in the tradition it is not 
required to go through volumes of texts to grasp brahmavidya.  Then why is 
there so much?  Because the teaching has to be calibrated to the quality 
and capability of the sadhaka.  And very few will be prodigies like 
Ramana.  Even in his case, if you remember there was a recent thread in 
this list talking about his familiarity with Sanskrit and classical Tamil. 
To know such things and renounce them when there utility is complete is 
one thing.  To not know them at all is not mystical but merely illiterate.

I find that a lot of Ramana devotees (and this includes Indians as 
well as foreigners) miss this distinction.  They are like a foolish college
student who has heard that Bill Gates dropped out of university before 
completing his degree and became a billionaire so if he drops out, he will 
become a billionaire.  Shrutiyukta logic can dispel this whole class of 
delusions.

-- 
Jaldhar H. Vyas <jaldhar at braincells.com>