Ramana Maharshi, born Dec. 29, 1879 and died in 1950, was one of the greatest spiritual teachers of modern-day
India. At the age of seventeen he at attained a profound experience of the true Self without the guidance of a Guru and thereafter remained conscious of his identity with the Absolute (Brahman) at all times. After some years of silent seclusion he finally began to reply to the questions put to him by spiritual seekers from all over the world. He followed no particular traditional system of teaching, but rather spoke directly from his own experience of nonduality. He wrote virtually nothing; his teaching took the form of conversations with visitors (transcribed by followers), brief instructions and a few songs. His method of instruction was to direct the questioner again and again to his true self and to recommend, as a path to realization, a tireless form of self-inquiry featuring the question “Who am I?”

The transcribed conversations of Ramana Maharshi are known among spiritual seekers the world over and prized for their great inspirational power, which transcends all religious differences. This classic book of Sri Ramana’s instructions draws together three works in question-and-answer format which contain the essence of Maharshi’s teachings: Who am I, Spiritual Instruction, and Maharshi’s Gospel. A biographical sketch and glossary are also included.

Truly speaking, pure Consciousness is indivisible; it is without parts. It has no form and shape, no “within” and “without.” There is no “right” and “left” for it. Pure Consciousness, which is the Heart, includes all, and nothing is outside or apart from it. That is the ultimate Truth.

From this absolute standpoint, the Heart, Self, or Consciousness can have no particular place assigned to it in the physical body… How can That, in which everything is contained, be itself confined as a tiny part within the physical body which is but an infinitesimal, phenomenal manifestation of the one Reality?...

But the experience of Consciousness can be with bodily awareness as well as without it.

“Sri Ramana Maharshi can be appreciated by any tradition. He was perhaps the brightest light, East or West, in the modern era, and his words never fail to enlighten. He is really unique in so many ways, and this book is a wonderful glimpse of his intense radiance, which blinds the ego and discloses the Divine in every word and gesture.” —Ken Wilber, author of No Boundary