Of all the works of the Sage Ramana Maharshi, उपदेश सारम् is considered as the supreme legacy of his teaching.
कर्तुराज्ञया प्राप्यते फलम् ।
कर्म किं परं कर्म तज्जडम् ॥ 1 ॥
By the law/will of the Creator, the fruits of actions are realized.
How is action then supreme? It is not. It is inert/insentient.
कृतिमहोदधौ पतनकारणम् ।
फलमशाश्वतं गतिनिरोधकम् ॥ 2 ॥
The results of actions are impermanent and pass away.
Yet, their seeds form an ocean of Karma which becomes a barrier in the progress of a seeker.
ईश्वरार्पितं नेच्छया कृतम् ।
चित्तशोधकं मुक्तिसाधकम् ॥ 3 ॥
Work which is performed as an offering to the Almighty, and done without any expectation of the fruits thereof, helps in purification of the mind and thereby leads one to Liberation or Realization.
कायवाङ्मनः कार्यमुत्तमम् ।
पूजनं जपश्चिंतनं क्रमात् ॥ 4 ॥
Among the actions performed by the body, voice and mind – puja (ritualistic worship), japa (chanting) and contemplation (inner meditation) – each is superior to the other in an ascending order.
जगत ईशधी युक्तसेवनम् ।
अष्टमूर्तिभृद्देवपूजनम् ॥ 5 ॥
Worshipping any of the eight forms (Ether, fire, air, water, earth,
Sun, moon and living beings), thinking they are all forms of God, is good worship (puja) of God.
उत्तमस्तवादुच्चमंदतः ।
चित्तजं जपध्यानमुत्तमम् ॥ 6 ॥
Singing the Lord’s praises is good, but better than that is loud chanting of japa. Better than loud chanting is soft and low-voiced chanting. However, best of all is silent, mental japa or meditation in the mind.
आज्यधारया स्रोतसा समम् ।
सरलचिंतनं विरलतः परम् ॥ 7 ॥
Like an unbroken flow of oil, or a stream of water, continuous meditation is better than that which is interrupted.
भेदभावनात् सोऽहमित्यसौ ।
भावनाऽभिदा पावनी मता ॥ 8 ॥
Meditation without duality, that is meditating as ‘I am
HE’, is superior to meditation which assumes a separation between the Bhakta (devotee) and the beloved Lord.
भावशून्यसद्भावसुस्थितिः ।
भावनाबलाद्भक्तिरुत्तमा ॥ 9 ॥
A state of void, free from thought, is gradually attained,
making abidance in the background state of ‘I AM’ complete. This is supreme devotion.
हृत्स्थले मनः स्वस्थता क्रिया ।
भक्तियोगबोधाश्च निश्चितम् ॥ 10 ॥
Fixing the mind in the Heart (Source) is true Karma (action), Bhakti (devotion), Yoga (action) and Jnana (knowledge).
वायुरोधनाल्लीयते मनः ।
जालपक्षिवद्रोधसाधनम् ॥ 11 ॥
Through breath-control, the movement of the mind is contained, just as a bird is restrained when caught in a net.
चित्तवायवश्चित्क्रियायुताः ।
शाखयोर्द्वयी शक्तिमूलका ॥ 12 ॥
The mind and pranas (as thought and action), which carry out various thought processes and actions within the body, emerge from one common source, the Supreme.
लयविनाशने उभयरोधने ।
लयगतं पुनर्भवति नो मृतम् ॥ 13 ॥
Mind control can be achieved through two modes – either through absorption/abeyance or through complete destruction. In the case of the first mode, the mind emerges again as it is merely absorbed in the void and hence temporarily held in abeyance. In contrast, through the second mode, when the mind is destroyed, it can never emerge again.
प्राणबंधनाल्लीनमानसम् ।
एकचिंतनान्नाशमेत्यदः ॥ 14 ॥
When the mind is held in suspension through breath control, it must then be completely destroyed through one-pointed attention to that ONE reality.
नष्टमानसोत्कृष्टयोगिनः ।
कृत्यमस्ति किं स्वस्थितिं यतः ॥ 15 ॥
What action remains for an exalted Yogi whose mind has been completely destroyed and who is ever established in the Self?
दृश्यवारितं चित्तमात्मनः ।
चित्त्वदर्शनं तत्त्वदर्शनम् ॥ 16 ॥
When attention is withdrawn from objects and focused exclusively on the Self, the Truth is revealed.
मानसं तु किं मार्गणे कृते ।
नैव मानसं मार्ग आर्जवात् ॥ 17 ॥
When one inquires: “What is the mind?”, he finds out that there is no mind. This is the direct path to Reality.
वृत्तयस्त्वहं वृत्तिमाश्रिताः ।
वृत्तयो मनो विद्ध्यहं मनः ॥ 18 ॥
Mind is nothing but a bundle of thoughts. These thoughts depend upon the 'I' thought alone. Hence the mind is nothing but this 'I' thought.
अहमयं कुतो भवति चिन्वतः ।
अयि पतत्यहं निजविचारणम् ॥ 19 ॥
When one turns within and searches
Whence this 'I' thought arises,
The shamed 'I' vanishes –
And wisdom's quest begins.
अहमि नाशभाज्यहमहंतया ।
स्फुरति हृत्स्वयं परमपूर्णसत् ॥ 20 ॥
Where this 'I' notion faded
Now there as I–I, arises
The One, the very Self,
The Infinite.
इदमहं पदाऽभिख्यमन्वहम् ।
अहमिलीनकेऽप्यलयसत्तया ॥ 21 ॥
Of the term, 'I', the permanent import
Is That. For even in deep sleep
Where we have no sense of 'I'
We do not cease to be.
विग्रहेंद्रियप्राणधीतमः ।
नाहमेकसत्तज्जडं ह्यसत् ॥ 22 ॥
Body, senses, mind, breath, sleep –
All insentient and unreal –
Cannot be 'I',
'I' who am the Real.
सत्त्वभासिका चित्क्ववेतरा ।
सत्तया हि चिच्चित्तया ह्यहम् ॥ 23 ॥
For knowing That which is
There is no other knower.
Hence Being is Awareness;
And we all are Awareness.
ईशजीवयोर्वेषधीभिदा ।
सत्स्वभावतो वस्तु केवलम् ॥ 24 ॥
In the nature of their being
Creature and creator are in substance one.
They differ only
In adjuncts and awareness.
वेषहानतः स्वात्मदर्शनम् ।
ईशदर्शनं स्वात्मरूपतः ॥ 25 ॥
Seeing oneself free of all attributes
Is to see the Lord,
For He shines ever as the pure Self.
आत्मसंस्थितिः स्वात्मदर्शनम् ।
आत्मनिर्द्वयादात्मनिष्ठता ॥ 26 ॥
To know the Self is but to be the Self,
For it is non-dual.
In such knowledge
One abides as that.
ज्ञानवर्जिताऽज्ञानहीनचित् ।
ज्ञानमस्ति किं ज्ञातुमंतरम् ॥ 27 ॥
That is true knowledge which transcends
Both knowledge and ignorance,
For in pure knowledge
Is no object to be known.
किं स्वरूपमित्यात्मदर्शने ।
अव्ययाऽभवाऽऽपूर्णचित्सुखम् ॥ 28 ॥
Having known one's nature one abides
As being with no beginning and no end
In unbroken conciousness and bliss.
बंधमुक्त्यतीतं परं सुखम् ।
विंदतीह जीवस्तु दैविकः ॥ 29 ॥
Beyond bondage and release,
Is steadfastness
In service of the Lord.
अहमपेतकं निजविभानकम् ।
महदिदंतपो रमनवागियम् ॥ 30 ॥
All ego gone,
Living as that alone
Is penance good for growth,
Sings Ramana, the Self.
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