Who Am I? (Nan Yar?)

The Teachings of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi

Translation by

Dr. T. M. P. MAHADEVAN

From the original Tamil

Published by

V. S. RAMANAN

PRESIDENT, BOARD OF TRUSTEES

SRI RAMANASRAMAM

TIRUVANNAMALAI, S. INDIA

Introduction

“Who am I?” is the title given to a set of questions and answers bearing on

Self-enquiry. The questions were put to Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi by

one Sri M. Sivaprakasam Pillai about the year 1902. Sri Pillai, a graduate in

Philosophy, was at the time employed in the Revenue Department of the

South Arcot Collectorate. During his visit to Tiruvannamalai in 1902 on

official work, he went to Virupaksha Cave on Arunachala Hill and met the

Master there. He sought from him spiritual guidance, and solicited answers

to questions relating to Self-enquiry. As Bhagavan was not talking then, not

because of any vow he had taken, but because he did not have the

inclination to talk, he answered the questions put to him by gestures, and

when these were not understood, by writing. As recollected and recorded by

Sri Sivaprakasam Pillai, there were fourteen questions with answers to them

given by Bhagavan. This record was first published by Sri Pillai in 1923,

along with a couple of poems composed by himself relating how

Bhagavan’s grace operated in his case by dispelling his doubts and by

saving him from a crisis in life. ‘Who am I?’ has been published several

times subsequently. We find thirty questions and answers in some editions

and twenty-eight in others. There is also another published version in which

the questions are not given, and the teachings are rearranged in the form of

an essay. The extant English translation is of this essay. The present

rendering is of the text in the form of twenty-eight questions and answers.

Along with Vicharasangraham (Self-Enquiry), Nan Yar (Who am I?)

constitutes the first set of instructions in the Master’s own words. These two

are the only prosepieces among Bhagavan’s Works. They clearly set forth

the central teaching that the direct path to liberation is Self-enquiry.

The particular mode in which the enquiry is to be made is lucidly set forth

in Nan Yar. The mind consists of thoughts. The ‘I’ thought is the first to

arise in the mind. When the enquiry ‘ Who am I?’ is persistently pursued,

all other thoughts get destroyed, and finally the ‘I’ thought itself vanishes

leaving the supreme non-dual Self alone. The false identification of the Self

with the phenomena of non-self such as the body and mind thus ends, and

there is illumination, Sakshatkara. The process of enquiry of course, is not

an easy one. As one enquires ‘Who am I?’, other thoughts will arise; but as

these arise, one should not yield to them by following them , on the

contrary, one should ask ‘To whom do they arise ?’ In order to do this, one

has to be extremely vigilant. Through constant enquiry one should make the

mind stay in its source, without allowing it to wander away and get lost in

the mazes of thought created by itself. All other disciplines such as breath-

control and meditation on the forms of God should be regarded as auxiliary

practices. They are useful in so far as they help the mind to become

quiescent and one-pointed.

For the mind that has gained skill in concentration, Self-enquiry becomes

comparatively easy. It is by ceaseless enquiry that the thoughts are

destroyed and the Self realized - the plenary Reality in which there is not

even the ‘I’ thought, the experience which is referred to as “Silence”.

This, in substance, is Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi’s teaching in Nan Yar

(Who am I?).

University of Madras - June 30, 1982

Om Namo Bhagavathe Sri Ramanaya

Who Am I?

(Nan Yar?)

As all living beings desire to be happy always, without misery, as in the

case of everyone there is observed supreme love for one’s self, and as

happiness alone is the cause for love, in order to gain that happiness which

is one’s nature and which is experienced in the state of deep sleep where

there is no mind, one should know one’s self. For that, the path of

knowledge, the inquiry of the form “Who am I?”, is the principal means.

1. Who am I ?

The gross body which is composed of the seven humours (dhatus), I am

not; the five cognitive sense organs, viz. the senses of hearing, touch, sight,

taste, and smell, which apprehend their respective objects, viz. sound,

touch, colour, taste, and odour, I am not; the five cognitive sense-organs,

viz. the organs of speech, locomotion, grasping, excretion, and procreation,

which have as their respective functions speaking, moving, grasping,

excreting, and enjoying, I am not; the five vital airs, prana, etc., which

perform respectively the five functions of in-breathing, etc., I am not; even

the mind which thinks, I am not; the nescience too, which is endowed only

with the residual impressions of objects, and in which there are no objects

and no functioning’s, I am not.

2. If I am none of these, then who am I?

After negating all of the above-mentioned as ‘not this’, ‘not this’, that

Awareness which alone remains - that I am.

3. What is the nature of Awareness?

The nature of Awareness is existence-consciousness-bliss

4. When will the realization of the Self be gained?

When the world which is what-is-seen has been removed, there will be

realization of the Self which is the seer.

5. Will there not be realization of the Self even while the world is there

(taken as real)?

There will not be.

6. Why?

The seer and the object seen are like the rope and the snake. Just as the

knowledge of the rope which is the substrate will not arise unless the false

knowledge of the illusory serpent goes, so the realization of the Self which

is the substrate will not be gained unless the belief that the world is real is

removed.

7. When will the world which is the object seen be removed?

When the mind, which is the cause of all cognition’s and of all actions,

becomes quiescent, the world will disappear.

8. What is the nature of the mind?

What is called ‘mind’ is a wondrous power residing in the Self. It causes all

thoughts to arise.

Apart from thoughts, there is no such thing as mind. Therefore, thought is

the nature of mind. Apart from thoughts, there is no independent entity

called the world. In deep sleep there are no thoughts, and there is no world.

In the states of waking and dream, there are thoughts, and there is a world

also. Just as the spider emits the thread (of the web) out of itself and again

withdraws it into itself, likewise the mind projects the world out of itself

and again resolves it into itself. When the mind comes out of the Self, the

world appears. Therefore, when the world appears (to be real), the Self does

not appear; and when the Self appears (shines) the world does not appear.

When one persistently inquires into the nature of the mind, the mind will

end leaving the Self (as the residue).

What is referred to as the Self is the Atman. The mind always exists only in

dependence on something gross; it cannot stay alone. It is the mind that is

called the subtle body or the soul (jiva).

9. What is the path of inquiry for understanding the nature of the mind?

That which rises as ‘I’ in this body is the mind. If one inquires as to where

in the body the thought ‘I’ rises first, one would discover that it rises in the

heart. That is the place of the mind’s origin.

Even if one thinks constantly ‘I’ ‘I’, one will be led to that place. Of all the

thoughts that arise in the mind, the ‘I’ thought is the first. It is only after the

rise of this that the other thoughts arise. It is after the appearance of the first

personal pronoun that the second and third personal pronouns appear;

without the first personal pronoun there will not be the second and third.

10. How will the mind become quiescent?

By the inquiry ‘Who am I?’. The thought ‘who am I?’ will destroy all other

thoughts, and like the stick used for stirring the burning pyre, it will itself in

the end get destroyed. Then, there will arise Self-realization.

11. What is the means for constantly holding on to the thought ‘Who am I?’

When other thoughts arise, one should not pursue them, but should inquire:

‘To whom do they arise?’ It does not matter how many thoughts arise. As

each thought arises, one should inquire with diligence, “To whom has this

thought arisen?”. The answer that would emerge would be “To me”.

Thereupon if one inquires “Who am I?”, the mind will go back to its source;

and the thought that arose will become quiescent. With repeated practice in

this manner, the mind will develop the skill to stay in its source. When the

mind that is subtle goes out through the brain and the sense-organs, the

gross names and forms appear; when it stays in the heart, the names and

forms disappear.

Not letting the mind go out, but retaining it in the Heart is what is called

“inwardness” (antar-mukha). Letting the mind go out of the Heart is known

as “externalisation” (bahir-mukha). Thus, when the mind stays in the Heart,

the ‘I’ which is the source of all thoughts will go, and the Self which ever

exists will shine. Whatever one does, one should do without the egoity “I”.

If one acts in that way, all will appear as of the nature of Siva (God).

12. Are there no other means for making the mind quiescent?

Other than inquiry, there are no adequate means. If through other means it is

sought to control the mind, the mind will appear to be controlled, but will

again go forth. Through the control of breath also, the mind will become

quiescent; but it will be quiescent only so long as the breath remains

controlled, and when the breath resumes the mind also will again start

moving and will wander as impelled by residual impressions. The source is

the same for both mind and breath. Thought, indeed, is the nature of the

mind. The thought “I” is the first thought of the mind; and that is egoity. It

is from that whence egoity originates that breath also originates. Therefore,

when the mind becomes quiescent, the breath is controlled, and when the

breath is controlled the mind becomes quiescent. But in deep sleep,

although the mind becomes quiescent, the breath does not stop. This is

because of the will of God, so that the body may be preserved and other

people may not be under the impression that it is dead. In the state of

waking and in samadhi, when the mind becomes quiescent the breath is

controlled.

Breath is the gross form of mind. Till the time of death, the mind keeps

breath in the body; and when the body dies the mind takes the breath along

with it. Therefore, the exercise of breath-control is only an aid for rendering

the mind quiescent (manonigraha); it will not destroy the mind (manonasa).

Like the practice of breath-control. meditation on the forms of God,

repetition of mantras, restriction on food, etc., are but aids for rendering the

mind quiescent.

Through meditation on the forms of God and through repetition of mantras,

the mind becomes one-pointed. The mind will always be wandering. Just as

when a chain is given to an elephant to hold in its trunk it will go along

grasping the chain and nothing else, so also when the mind is occupied with

a name or form it will grasp that alone. When the mind expands in the form

of countless thoughts, each thought becomes weak; but as thoughts get

resolved the mind becomes one-pointed and strong; for such a mind Self-

inquiry will become easy. Of all the restrictive rules, that relating to the

taking of sattvic food in moderate quantities is the best; by observing this

rule, the sattvic quality of mind will increase, and that will be helpful to

Self-inquiry.

13. The residual impressions (thoughts) of objects appear wending like the

waves of an ocean.

When will all of them get destroyed?

As the meditation on the Self rises higher and higher, the thoughts will get

destroyed.

14. Is it possible for the residual impressions of objects that come from

beginningless time, as it were, to be resolved, and for one to remain as the

pure Self?

Without yielding to the doubt “Is it possible, or not?”, one should

persistently hold on to the meditation on the Self. Even if one be a great

sinner, one should not worry and weep “O! I am a sinner, how can I be

saved?”; one should completely renounce the thought “I am a sinner”; and

concentrate keenly on meditation on the Self; then, one would surely

succeed. There are not two minds - one good and the other evil; the mind is

only one. It is the residual impressions that are of two kinds - auspicious

and inauspicious. When the mind is under the influence of auspicious

impressions it is called good; and when it is under the influence of

inauspicious impressions it is regarded as evil.

The mind should not be allowed to wander towards worldly objects and

what concerns other people. However bad other people may be, one should

bear no hatred for them. Both desire and hatred should be eschewed. All

that one gives to others one gives to one’s self. If this truth is understood

who will not give to others? When one’s self arises all arises; when one’s

self becomes quiescent all becomes quiescent. To the extent we behave with

humility, to that extent there will result good. If the mind is rendered

quiescent, one may live anywhere.

15. How long should inquiry be practised?

As long as there are impressions of objects in the mind, so long the inquiry

“Who am I?” is required. As thoughts arise they should be destroyed then

and there in the very place of their origin, through inquiry. If one resorts to

contemplation of the Self unintermittently, until the Self is gained, that

alone would do. As long as there are enemies within the fortress, they will

continue to sally forth; if they are destroyed as they emerge, the fortress will

fall into our hands.

16. What is the nature of the Self?

What exists in truth is the Self alone. The world, the individual soul, and

God are appearances in it. like silver in mother-of-pearl, these three appear

at the same time, and disappear at the same time. The Self is that where

there is absolutely no “I” thought. That is called “Silence”. The Self itself is

the world; the Self itself is “I”; the Self itself is God; all is Siva, the Self.

17. Is not everything the work of God?

Without desire, resolve, or effort, the sun rises; and in its mere presence, the

sun-stone emits fire, the lotus blooms, water evaporates; people perform

their various functions and then rest. Just as in the presence of the magnet

the needle moves, it is by virtue of the mere presence of God that the souls

governed by the three (cosmic) functions or the fivefold divine activity

perform their actions and then rest, in accordance with their respective

karmas. God has no resolve; no karma attaches itself to Him. That is like

worldly actions not affecting the sun, or like the merits and demerits of the

other four elements not affecting all pervading space.

18. Of the devotees, who is the greatest?

He who gives himself up to the Self that is God is the most excellent

devotee. Giving one’s self up to God means remaining constantly in the Self

without giving room for the rise of any thoughts other than that of the Self.

Whatever burdens are thrown on God, He bears them. Since the supreme

power of God makes all things move, why should we, without submitting

ourselves to it, constantly worry ourselves with thoughts as to what should

be done and how, and what should not be done and how not? We know that

the train carries all loads, so after getting on it why should we carry our

small luggage on our head to our discomfort, instead of putting it down in

the train and feeling at ease?

19. What is non-attachment?

As thoughts arise, destroying them utterly without any residue in the very

place of their origin is non-attachment. Just as the pearl-diver ties a stone to

his waist, sinks to the bottom of the sea and there takes the pearls, so each

one of us should be endowed with non-attachment, dive within oneself and

obtain the Self-Pearl.

20. Is it not possible for God and the Guru to effect the release of a soul?

God and the Guru will only show the way to release; they will not by

themselves take the soul to the state of release. In truth, God and the Guru

are not different. Just as the prey which has fallen into the jaws of a tiger

has no escape, so those who have come within the ambit of the Guru’s

gracious look will be saved by the Guru and will not get lost; yet, each one

should by his own effort pursue the path shown by God or Guru and gain

release. One can know oneself only with one’s own eye of knowledge, and

not with somebody else’s. Does he who is Rama require the help of a mirror

to know that he is Rama?

21. Is it necessary for one who longs for release to inquire into the nature of

categories (tattvas)?

Just as one who wants to throw away garbage has no need to analyse it and

see what it is, so one who wants to know the Self has no need to count the

number of categories or inquire into their characteristics; what he has to do

is to reject altogether the categories that hide the Self. The world should be

considered like a dream.

22. Is there no difference between waking and dream?

Waking is long and a dream short; other than this there is no difference. Just

as waking happenings seem real while awake. so do those in a dream while

dreaming. In dream the mind takes on another body. In both waking and

dream states thoughts. names and forms occur simultaneously.

23. Is it any use reading books for those who long for release?

All the texts say that in order to gain release one should render the mind

quiescent; therefore their conclusive teaching is that the mind should be

rendered quiescent; once this has been understood there is no need for

endless reading. In order to quieten the mind one has only to inquire within

oneself what one’s Self is; how could this search be done in books? One

should know one’s Self with one’s own eye of wisdom. The Self is within

the five sheaths; but books are outside them.

Since the Self has to be inquired into by discarding the five sheaths, it is

futile to search for it in books. There will come a time when one will have

to forget all that one has learned.

24. What is happiness?

Happiness is the very nature of the Self; happiness and the Self are not

different. There is no happiness in any object of the world. We imagine

through our ignorance that we derive happiness from objects. When the

mind goes out, it experiences misery. In truth, when its desires are fulfilled,

it returns to its own place and enjoys the happiness that is the Self.

Similarly, in the states of sleep, samadhi and fainting, and when the object

desired is obtained or the object disliked is removed, the mind becomes

inward-turned, and enjoys pure Self-Happiness. Thus the mind moves

without rest alternately going out of the Self and returning to it. Under the

tree the shade is pleasant; out in the open the heat is scorching. A person

who has been going about in the sun feels cool when he reaches the shade.

Someone who keeps on going from the shade into the sun and then back

into the shade is a fool. A wise man stays permanently in the shade.

Similarly, the mind of the one who knows the truth does not leave Brahman.

The mind of the ignorant, on the contrary, revolves in the world, feeling

miserable, and for a little time returns to Brahman to experience happiness.

In fact, what is called the world is only thought. When the world

disappears, i.e. when there is no thought, the mind experiences happiness;

and when the world appears, it goes through misery.

25. What is wisdom-insight (jnana-drsti)?

Remaining quiet is what is called wisdom-insight. To remain quiet is to

resolve the mind in the Self. Telepathy, knowing past, present and future

happenings and clairvoyance do not constitute wisdom-insight.

26. What is the relation between desirelessness and wisdom?

Desirelessness is wisdom. The two are not different; they are the same.

Desirelessness is refraining from turning the mind towards any object.

Wisdom means the appearance of no object. In other words, not seeking

what is other than the Self is detachment or desirelessness; not leaving the

Self is wisdom.

27. What is the difference between inquiry and meditation?

Inquiry consists in retaining the mind in the Self. Meditation consists in

thinking that one’s self is Brahman, existence-consciousness-bliss.

28. What is release?

Inquiring into the nature of one’s self that is in bondage, and realising one’s

true nature is release.

SRI RAMANARPANAM ASTU