Yesterday night when I retired to bed, I could sense the slight unease in my being, almost as if I was not at home in this world or in my own being.
Then my thoughts turned towards my guru Ramana Maharshi, and I asked him mentally, “Bhagavan, I understand ALMOST EVERYTHING in spirituality, and yet why is there this unease? C’mon, help me out here.”
Then somehow it struck me that I should start chanting my guru’s name, the well-known mantra that is based on his name.
No sooner than I started doing that, and continuing to do it and which I plan to continue to do (along with whatever else I may do on the spiritual path), the unease has disappeared totally and a certain peace and calmness has descended on me — no restless of any kind now, zilch.
Mysterious, isn’t it, how what cannot be given by all of one’s heavy-duty philosophical understanding is got in no time merely by doing nama japa.
Talking of nama japa, those interested in knowing more about it, check out “Chapter 11 Mantras and Japa” in David Godman’s book “Be As You Are: The Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi”, which is available for free download here: https://archive.org/details/beasyouaretheteachingsoframanamaharshidavidgodman1985_202004_344_i
However, let me give a few extracts on nama japa and its efficacy from the book “Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi” (which is available for free download here — https://selfdefinition.org/ramana/Talks-with-Sri-Ramana-Maharshi–complete.pdf):
Service, like prayers, japas and even business done in God’s name, lead to the highest goal – Self-Realisation. (Talk 406)
Japa means clinging to one thought to the exclusion of all other thoughts. That is the purpose of japa; it leads to dhyana which ends in Self-Realisation. (Talk 413)
Every form must have a name. That name denotes all the qualities of God. Constant japa puts off all other thoughts and fixes the mind. That is tapas. One-pointedness is the tapas wanted. The question what tapas is was asked in order to know what purpose to serve. It will take the form required for the purpose. … Dhyana may be external or internal or both. Japa is more important than external form. It must be done until it becomes natural. It starts with effort and is continued until it proceeds of itself. When natural it is called Realisation. Japa may be done even while engaged in other work. That which is, the One Reality. It may be represented by a form, a japa, mantra, vichara or any kind of attempt. All of them finally resolve themselves into that One Single Reality. Bhakti, vichara, japa are only different forms of our efforts to keep out the unreality. The unreality is an obsession at present. Reality is our true nature. We are wrongly persisting in unreality, that is, thoughts and worldly activities. Cessation of these will reveal the Truth. Our attempts are directed towards keeping them out. It is done by thinking of the Reality only. Although it is our true nature it looks as if we are thinking of the Reality. What we do really amounts to the removal of obstacles for the revelation of our true Being. Meditation or vichara is thus a reversion to our true nature. (Talk 401)
They (mantra japa) are helpful. What is mantra? You are thinking of the simple sounds of the mantra. Repetition of the same excludes all other thoughts. The single thought of the mantra japa remains. That too drops away giving place to the Infinite Self, which is the mantra itself. Mantra, dhyana, bhakti, etc., are all aids and finally lead to Swarupa, the Self, which is they themselves. After a few minutes Maharshi continued: Everyone is the Self, indeed infinite. Yet each one mistakes the body for the Self. To know anything, illumination is necessary. Such illuminating agency can only be in the form of light which is however lighting the physical light and darkness. So then that other Light lies beyond the apparent light and darkness. It is itself neither light nor darkness but is said to be Light because It illumines both. It is also Infinite and remains as Consciousness. Consciousness is the Self of which everyone is aware. No one is away from the Self. So each one is Self-realised. Yet what a mystery that no one knows this fundamental fact, and desires to realise the Self? This ignorance is due to the mistaking of the body for the Self. Realisation now consists in getting rid of this false idea that one is not realised. Realisation is not anything newly got. It must be already there in order that it may be permanent. Otherwise Realisation is not worth attempting. After the false notion ‘I-am-the-body’ or ‘I have not realised’ is removed, Supreme Consciousness or the Self alone is left over, which is however called Realisation in the present state of knowledge. However, the truth is that Realisation is eternal and already there, here and now. Finally, Realisation amounts to elimination of ignorance and nothing more or less. (Talk 482)
Dhyana, bhakti, japa, etc., are aids to keep out the multiplicity of thoughts. A single thought prevails which too eventually dissolves in the Self. (Talk 485)
The object of mantra japa is to realise that the same japa is already going on in oneself even without effort. The oral japa becomes mental and the mental japa finally reveals itself as being eternal. That mantra is the person’s real nature. That is also the state of realisation. … The japa becomes mental and finally reveals itself as the Self. That is samadhi. (Talk 527)
The utterance and then remembrance and later meditation are the successive stages finally ending in involuntary and eternal japa. The japakarta (doer of japa) of that kind is the Self. Of all the japas, ‘Who am I?’ is the best. (Talk 72)
Mantra japa leads to elimination of other thoughts and to concentration on the mantra. The mantra finally merges into the Self and shines forth as the Self. (Talk 78)
‘Who am I?’ is the best japa. What could be more concrete than the Self? It is within each one’s experience every moment. Why should he try to catch anything outside, leaving out the Self? Let each one try to find out the known Self instead of searching for the unknown something beyond. (Talk 81)
You are always repeating the mantra automatically. If you are not aware of the ajapa (unspoken chant) which is eternally going on, you should take to japa. Japa is made with an effort. The effort is meant to ward off other thoughts. Then the japa becomes mental and internal. Finally, its ajapa and eternal nature will be realised. For it will be found to be going on even without your effort. The effortless state is the state of realisation. (Talk 312)
Japa is meant only for stilling the mind. (Talk 322)
When the japa becomes mental where is the need for the sounds thereof? Japa, becoming mental, becomes contemplation. Dhyana, contemplation and mental japa are the same. When thoughts cease to be promiscuous and one thought persists to the exclusion of all others it is said to be contemplation. The object of japa or dhyana is the exclusion of several thoughts and confining oneself to one single thought. Then that thought too vanishes into its source absolute consciousness, i.e., the Self. The mind engages in japa and then sinks into its own source. … Japa helps to fix the mind to a single thought. All other thoughts are first subordinated until they disappear. When it becomes mental it is called dhyana. Dhyana is your true nature. It is however called dhyana because it is made with effort. Effort is necessary so long as thoughts are promiscuous. Because you are with other thoughts, you call the continuity of a single thought, meditation or dhyana. If that dhyana becomes effortless it will be found to be your real nature. (Talk 328)
If I say “Do – Rama, Rama” to one who has not struggled through books like you, he will do it and stick to it. If I say so to one like you who have read much and are investigating matters, you will not do it for long, because you will think, “Why should I do it? Above all, who am I that should be repeating the mantra? Let me find who I am before I proceed further”; and so you will stop japa and begin investigation. … A simple man, not learned, is satisfied with japa or worship. A Jnani is of course satisfied. The whole trouble is for the book-worms. Well, well. They will also get on. (Talk 336)
One should not use the name of God artificially and superficially without feeling. To use the name of God one must call upon Him and surrender to Him unreservedly. After such surrender the name of God is constantly with the man. (Talk 426)
The Master referred the gentleman to an article in the September number of Vision, a monthly journal issued by the Anandasram, Kanhangad: PHILOSOPHY OF THE DIVINE NAME ACCORDING TO ST. NAMDEV — The name permeates the entire universe densely; who can tell to what depths in the nether regions and to what height in the heaven It extends? The ignorant fools undergo the eighty-four lakhs of species of births, not knowing the essence of things. The Name is immortal. Forms are innumerable but Name is all that. The Name itself is form and form itself is Name. There is no distinction between Name and form. God became manifest and assumed Name and form. Hence the Name the Vedas have established. Beware, there is no mantram beyond the Name. Those who say otherwise are ignorant fools. Name is Keshava Himself. This is known only to the loving devotees of the Lord. The all-pervading nature of the Name can only be understood when one recognises his own ‘I’. When one’s own name is not recognised, it is impossible to get all-pervading Name. When one knows oneself then one finds the Name everywhere. None can realise the Name by the practice of knowledge, meditation or austerity. Surrender yourself at first at the feet of the Guru and learn to know who the ‘I’ in you is. After finding the source of that ‘I’, merge your individuality in that Oneness – which is Self-existent and devoid of all duality. It is that Name that permeates the three worlds. The Name is Paramatman Itself where there is no action arising out of dvaita (duality). (Talk 441)
LITERAL TRANSLATION OF NAMDEV’S “PHILOSOPHY OF THE DIVINE NAME.” (Talk 448)
I. The Name permeates densely the sky and the lowest regions and the entire universe. Who can tell to what depths in the nether regions and to what height in the heavens It extends? The ignorant undergo the eighty-four lakhs of species of births, not knowing the essence of things. Namdev says the Name is immortal. Forms are innumerable, but the Name is all that.
II. The Name itself is form; and form itself is Name. There is no distinction between Name and form. God became manifest and assumed Name and form. Hence the Name the Vedas have established. Beware, there is no mantra beyond the Name. Those who say otherwise are ignorant. Namdev says the Name is Keshava Himself. This is known only to the loving devotees of the Lord.
III. The all-pervading nature of the Name can only be understood when one recognises his ‘I’. When one’s own name is not recognised, it is impossible to get the all-pervading Name. When one knows oneself, then one finds the Name everywhere. To see the Name as different from the Named creates illusion. Namdev says, “Ask the Saints.”
IV. None can realise the Name by practice of knowledge, meditation or austerity. Surrender yourself first at the feet of the Guru and learn to know that ‘I’ myself is that Name. After finding the source of that ‘I’, merge your individuality in that one-ness, which is Self-existent and devoid of all duality. That which pervades beyond dwaita and dwaitatita, that Name has come into the three worlds. The Name is Para Brahman itself, where there is no action arising out of duality.
When Sri Bhagavan had read this, a certain musician came into the hall and began to sing Tyagaraja Kirtanas in Telugu. One of them says: “Find the source of the sound which is transcendental (mooladhara sabda) by diving deep like a pearl-diver diving for pearls.” Then again another song was: “For a man who has controlled his mind where is the use of tapasya? Give up ‘I-am-the-body’ idea and realise ‘I am not; Thou art all’.”
