Talks With Ramana Maharshi: On Realizing Abiding Peace and Happiness [Paperback]

Ramana Maharshi (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2000

This spiritually significant work is a profound series of dialogues between one of the great sages of our time and his inquirers. These "Talks" offer a genuinely universal approach to Truth, by directly pointing to the certainty of our essential nature. By applying even a few of these passages to our life, we can become aware of the ever-present, abiding Reality.Through the wise words of this beloved sage, we are clearly and consistently shown how to reclaim our innate Freedom--simply by looking in the right place and discovering what has always been present. A fundamental shift of attention is all that is required. By approaching these dialogues in the spirit of inquiry, one has the opportunity to awaken to a greater Reality: that of our own Being, our true Self.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

The great Indian sage Ramana Maharshi (1879-1950) had the unique gift of embodying the highest wisdom in the most ordinary manner. His words, full of insight and understanding, express the authentic experience of Enlightenment. For decades, they have guided people from diverse backgrounds and traditions to the Source of enduring peace and happiness.

Product Details

• Paperback: 506 pages
• Publisher: Inner Directions; 2nd edition (August 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1878019007
• ISBN-13: 978-1878019004
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.9 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 28 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #272,666 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

80 of 81 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rock bottom, March 1, 2003

By 

FABRICIO M. R. Silva "fabricio" (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Talks With Ramana Maharshi: On Realizing Abiding Peace and Happiness (Paperback)

A devotee comes along and asks "why is there no meditation during dreaming?" Ramana's response: "Ask it in the dream."

Most of the answers from Ramana Maharshi in this huge volume of ultimate spiritual Q&A are as disconcerting as this one -- which by the way has a double entendre for those who know the advaita equalization of waking life and dreams (the devotee did not get he WAS INDEED asking "in the dream"...). What strikes the reader first is the brilliance of this humble man, his razor-sharp intelligence. But as we turn the pages and ponder his words in hundreds of dialogues, little by little we realize we are dealing here with the real thing: a man who has crossed over to the other shore, a jivanmukta ("liberated while alive"). I have read quite a lot in the last few years on philosophy and spirituality, and my feeling regarding this book is one of reaching rock bottom: you simply cannot go deeper.

The question "Did you exist in deep sleep?", for example, sounds to me the best argument for the unreality of the ego, which Ramana sometimes call the "small I". Very ingenious. No one denies, while awake, his own existence in deep sleep. But whence comes our certainty, if we where unconscious? It comes from a silent witness. If you understand that the same witness is the indestructible background of the bundle of thoughts we call "mind", it is game over for the ego and the suffering it brings to you.

My limited exposure to advaita vedanta suggests that it may not be suitable for some (perhaps most) spiritual seekers, because it may be misconstrued as nihilistic. If you want to take the risk, this may be one of the best books to read. Overall, a very fine edition, compleat with sanskrit glossary, anotated vedanta bibliography and full thematic index. A work of love.

60 of 61 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The only book that never leaves my side, January 21, 2003

By 

TruthWillOut (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Talks With Ramana Maharshi: On Realizing Abiding Peace and Happiness (Paperback)

Ramana Maharshi's technique of Self-realization is simplicity itself. This should already be indication enough that he has discovered the profoundest truth. This book is a bit like a Mozart score. When you look at the pages there doesn't seem to be very much there. It all seems so simple. Yet when you play the Mozart, as when you apply the principle of Self-Inquiry, something very unexpected and altogether miraculous happens.

When one correctly applies the single and singular principle he expounds in these talks, the result is well-nigh infallible. Which is not to say that one sees bright lights or is consumed with ecstasy or anything of the sort--that's not what is supposed to happen anyway. What happens simply is that the mind is stilled, and the true nature of mind, ego, and Self is glimpsed. With practice, this glimpse turns into a gander and then turns into a wide open view.

Alas, as one very wise reviewer below put it, many people "enjoy being lost." What Maharshi makes absolutely crystal clear in these talks is that Realization is right there for taking, and always has been, and always will be. In other words, "The Kingdom of Heaven is within." Those who do not realize do so because, in the final analysis, they either enjoy being lost or they are profoundly afraid of what realization implies--even those who claim to be seeking the way. And so the endless rounds continue: the books, the tapes, the discussion groups and meditation retreats, the trips to India and Tibet, the fumbling attempts at Tantric Yoga, the crystals, the gurus, etc. This is all well and good: the Self is always still there, watching, and will still be there when one has tired of the spiritual circus.

My own words crumble and dissolve in the face of Maharshi's very modest-seeming but singularly pure and profound wisdom. I don't know what else to say except that Maharshi's words show the way, and then provide the guidance and inspiration to abide in the Self that is always already there. I give this book all the stars in the cosmos!

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The last book you'll ever need, November 8, 2006

By 

Ed "Ed" (Rio de Janeiro - RJ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Talks With Ramana Maharshi: On Realizing Abiding Peace and Happiness (Paperback)

If I could, i'd give it 100 stars. I have no words to describe this book. Buy it. Download it from the Net (its available for free on Ramana's website). Buy many copies. Give it to friends who are truly spiritualy minded. Buy other copies. Why?

I could give many reasons: the sheer brilliance of his answers, the keen wits of his arguments, the love, humbleness and peace that flow from this pages like nothing i've seen before. But i'll give none. Someone said in a review above: this book is Rock bottom. Couldn't agree more. Thats the book i'd take to a desert island. For sure! This is it. The real thing.

However, as well pointed by other reviews, its not suitable for everyone. It might be good to start with a smaller one (like "Who Am I?", available for free on Ramana's official website).

You'll either LOVE this book or dislike it, like some previous reviews. Thats ok. Ramana would say: nevermind the others, let them be. Find out who you are. All others will be fine in due course. Brilliant. Truthful. Humble. Rock bottom.

Examples? Just a few:

God? Reply: Forget about God. You exist right here and right now. No one denies that. Find out who you are first, then inquire about God, if you feel inclined to do so.

Siddhis (Occult powers)? Reply: Forget about siddhis. They are all manifestations of the duality, therefore ilusory. Do not seek them. Its imaterial to spiritual realization. Find out who you are.

Help others? Reply: Realize your true Self. Interfere the least possible with the affairs of others and be compassionate. Thats the most effective help, indeed the only true help. The silence of the sages accomplishes more than all the speeches of men.

Yoga and other practices? Reply: They are good as aids to Realization, but not essential. The Self IS always. Can you not exist now? Do you need to do anything to be as you are, to abide in your true nature? Simply turn the mind within and seek your source. Asanas, pranayama, etc, may be left aside. Self-enquiry alone will do.

The guru? Reply: The guru is within. The guru is the Self. This body you call Ramana is not the guru. Do not prostrate before me with your body, but keep the mind in its source. THAT is true prostration.

And right before his death: " They say i'm going to die. But i'm not going anywhere. I am here. Where else could I go?"

If you grasp the depth of these words, then you will know why i took the time to review this book. Thats my only review, and probably the last.

Like many said above: you simply can not go deeper.

Do yourself a HUGE favor and get this book, even if you hate it afterwards. It is well worth the shot.