Brief Life Sketch of Bhagavan Ramana - 11

Hare Krishna Friends,
Let us continue with the divya charitram of Sri Bhagavan.

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As time went by, people throughout the world came to know that Sri Bhagavan was the living embodiment of all that is taught in the Bible, Tirukkural, Gita and Upanishads, and were attracted to His Feet. Forgetting the national differences such as Indian and foreigner and the religious differences such as Hindu, Muslim, Christian etc, from far and abroad they flocked to the Feet of the Master and adored Him, for such was their conviction that He was indeed the Guru of their own religion! Many among them achieved true knowledge, some by merely seeing Him, some by living in His divine presence, some by dedicating themselves wholeheartedly to His service and some by following His teachings.

The first president of India , Dr.Rajendra Prasad, once went to the ashram of Mahatma Gandhi and said, “Bapuji, I have come to you for peace!” The abode of peace was known well to Gandhiji and hence he advised, “If you want peace, go to Sri Ramanashramam and remain for a few days in the presence of Sri Ramana Maharshi, without talking or asking any question.” Dr.Rajendra Prasad accordingly arrived at Sri Ramanashramam on 14th August 1938. Though those who accompanied him spent their time in asking Sri Bhagavan questions regarding spiritual matters and in visiting all the places on the Hill where Maharshi had lived, Dr.Rajendra Prasad did not move away from the presence of Sri Bhagavan. Besides, according to the advice of Gandhiji, he spent the whole of that week without raising any question or doubt. At the time of his taking leave of Sri Bhagavan, he approached Him and humbly enquired, “O Bhagavan, it was Gandhiji himself who sent me here. Is there any messages that I may take to him?”

Sri Bhagavan graciously answered: “The same Power which works here is working there also! Where is the need for words when heart speaks to heart?” There are unique words of wisdom revealing the secret that it is the one Supreme Thing alone that governs the whole universe through all the innumerable jeevas! Just like Dr.Rajendra Prasad and Gandhiji, all men of high position and power, all great poets, scholars, politicians, philosophers, and religious leaders who lived in the country during His time praised the glory of His Jnana.

The golden jubilee of Sri Ramana's coming to stay at Thiruvannamalai was celebrated in 1946. From the day He set foot in Thiruvannamalai, He did not move away even for a minute, but lived there continuously for fifty-four years. In 1947 His health began to fail. He was not yet seventy, but looked much older. Towards the end of 1948 a lump appeared below the elbow of his left arm. Though at first it seemed to be very small, even after two operations it grew bigger and bigger, bleeding continuously and profusely, and proved to be a sarcoma. All kinds of treatment were tried, including radium application, but in vain. Even after the fourth operation, which was done on the 19th of December 1949, the disease was not cured. Though this operation was a major one, Sri Bhagavan still refused to be given chloroform. When asked by a devotee whether there was any pain, Sri Bhagavan replied, “Even the pain is not apart from us!” Just as the teeth which bite our tongue are not other than us, and just as the thief who beat Sri Bhagavan was not viewed by Him as other than Himself, so also, even the disease which was ravaging His body was not other than He (Self). So wonder-inspiring was His Jnana!

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Regards,
Neel

Brief Life Sketch of Bhagavan Ramana - 10

Hare Krishna Friends,

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Arunachalam, the sacred Hill, is the primal and foremost form of Lord Shiva. Indeed it is Shiva Himself. Sages not only show us the path, but also set an example by treading upon it themselves. In this manner, Bhagavan Sri Ramana Himself often did Arunachala-pradakshinam (walking barefoot around the sacred Hill having it at one’s right-hand side) in the company of His devotees. It is described in the puranas how this Giripradakshinam was the sole means by which Unnamulai Ambikai (Abhita Kuchalamba), the consort of Sri Arunachaleshwara, became Ardhanarishwari (when her form combined with that of the Lord). It was on the occasion of one such pradakshinam that Sri Bhagavan composed the renowned “Sri Arunachala Aksharamanamalai”. Many thousands of His devotees now recite this hymn as a means to remember Arunachalam, which bestows Liberation when merely thought of.

At Ramanashramam, the doors of the small Hall where Sri Bhagavan lived were open day and night, and to all. In a life such as His, which was shining as a vast open space of mere consciousness where was the necessity to hide Himself and how to do so? Even in the middle of the night devotees were free to go and see Him in the Hall. “Defects alone need to hide, a pure heart need not” is a wise saying of saint Auvayyar! To have the darshan of Sri Bhagavan was a great fortune which was not bound by any condition and which was open to all people and at all times. When He gave a warm welcome even to the thieves who came at night, saying, “You may come in and take whatever you want,” what better proof is required of Sri Bhagavan’s sense of equality?

It was at 11:30 in the middle of the night of the 26t of June 1924. Though at that time Sri Ramanshramam consisted of only a few thatched sheds, some thieves came thinking it to be a rich mutt. They tied to break in through the windows by smashing them, and threatened to destroy everything. The noise woke up the devotees who were sleeping in the shed where Sri Bhagavan was lying. Bhagavan invited the thieves to come in through the proper doorway and asked the devotees to give them a hurricane lamp so that they could look for whatever they wanted, yet they shouted angrily, “Where are you keeping your money?” “We sadhus who live by begging have no money. From what you can find here, you may take away anything that you want. We will come outside,” so saying, Sri Bhagavan came out of the shed. Fnding that there was very little for them to take, the thieves bet the Ashramites with sticks, and one blow even fell on the thigh of Sri Bhagavan. “If you are still not satisfied, beat the other thigh as well,” said Sri Bhagavan feeling sorry for them!

Was this to be the limit of His kindness towards the thieves? No, He also prevented a young devotee who, unable to bear the sight of Sri Bhagavan being beaten, jumped up with an iron bar in retaliation. Sri Bhagavan advised him, “Let them do their dharma (i.e.role). We are sadhus, we should not give up our dharma. In future, the world will blame only us if any wrong happens. When our teeth bite our tongue, do we break them and throw them away?”

“Though others do wrong to one, it is best not to return the same in wrath.”
-Tirukkural, verse 157

Some days later the police caught the thieves and brought them before Sri Bhagavan, and an officer asked Him to identify the one who had beaten Him on that night. Sri Bhagavan at once replied with a smile, “Find out whom I beat (in a previous birth), for it is he who has beaten me now!” He never denounced the criminal!

“Conquer the foe by your worthy patience and for ever forget the wrong done to you on account of ignorance.”
-Tirukkural, verse 157

“The right way of punishing the wrong-doer is to do good to him and to forget his wrong.”
-Tirukkural, verse 314

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Regards,
Neelakantan

Brief Life Sketch of Bhagavan Ramana - 08

Hare Krishna Friends,


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Around 1907, a great Sanskrit poet Ganapati Shastri known also as Ganapati Muni because of the austerities he had been observing came to visit Sri Ramana. He had the title Kavya-kantha (one who had poetry at his throat), and he was also addressed as Nayana (father) by many. He was an ascetic (tapasvi) who had performed many millions of Mantra Japas, but he was still not able to understand what real tapas is. Hence he approached Sri Ramana and said: “I have learnt all the Vedas, performed million of Mantra Japas, undergone fasting and other austerities, yet I still do not know what tapas really is. Please instruct me.” Sri Bhagavan replied “If watched where from the “I” starts, there the mind merges; that is tapas.” However when Ganapathi Shastri further asked, “Is it possible to attain the same state through Japa?”, Sri Ramana replied: “When a Mantram is pronounced, if watched where from the sound starts, there the mind will merge; that is tapas”. To the scholar this came as a revelation; he felt the grace of the sage enveloping him. Sri Kavyakantha Ganapathi Shastri declared: “He is no ordinary Soul. He is the perfect Jnana Guru. Since He ever remains in natural Self-abidance, He is verily Bhagavan Maharshi”, and praised Him in verses as “Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi”. It is only from that day Sri Ramana was known by this name. He composed hymns in Sanskrit in praise of the sage, and also wrote the Ramana-Gita explaining His teachings.

Bhagavan Sri Ramana Himself is a unique and divine poet. His poetic genius in Tamil, His mother-tongue, breathes a fresh life into the sacred style of the poets of the yore. Besides being compact and terse, the flow of His sublime Tamil poetry is noble and pregnant with new and rich import. To say the truth, Bhagavan Raman is a Vedic Rishi who has given us Tamil Upanishads. Further, not only was He a poet in Tamil but also in Sanskrit, Malayalam and Telugu. He was the first to have been able to compose Telugu verses in Venba, an extremely difficult Tamil metre.

Mother Tamil has been adorned by Him with ever so many gems of Jnana in the form of verses of unsurpassed worth! However, Bhagavan Ramana was not a merely a writer He never had an intention (Sankalpa) to write anything. Indeed, intentionlessness (Nissankalpa) was the state in which He lived from the day He set foot in Arunachalam. However, then was the world blessed with at least some words of instruction of Bhagavan Sri Ramana. Do we not admit the existence of God, the Supreme power who creates, sustains and destroys the world? It is that same power who, having the prayers, doubts and questions of the devotees as its motive and using Sri Bhagavan’s mind, speech and body as its instruments, gave through Him spiritual instructions for the salvation of humanity. Sometimes, sweet and precious Tamil verses would flow from Him in answer to the question of devotees. The instructions of Sri Bhagavan which we now have are those which escaped from His lips in this manner. Of all of them, when collected and edited, make up His complete works. Among them five stotras (hymns) and three sastras (scriptures) are the important works. The stotras are “Sri Arunachala Stuthi Panchakam” (five hymns of Sri Arunachala) and the sastras are “Upadesha Undhiyar”, “Ulladu Narpadu” and “Guru Vachaka Kovai”.

In response to Sri Muruganar, the foremost devotee of Sri Bhagavan and a great Tamil poet, Sri Bhagavan not only composed in Tamil “Upadesha Undhiyar” but also He compiled “Ulladu Narapadu” which is an unequalled Upanishad, by revising some of His previous verses and composing many new ones. “Guru Vachaka Kovai” is the treasure house of Sri Ramana’s instructions collected and preserved in Tamil verses by Sri Muruganar, all of them being the day to day sayings of Sri Bhagavan from the very early days. These three important works of Sri Bhagavan which have come into existence having Sri Muruganar as the sole motive form “Sri Ramana Prasthana trayam” (the three works of divine authority on Moksha by Sri Ramana).

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We will continue with this the next day.

Regards,
Neelakantan

Brief Life Sketch of Bhagavan Ramana - 07

Hare Krishna,

My humble prostrations to all. Let us continue with the life sketch of Bhagavan Ramana.

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Soon after His mother’s first visit, Sri Ramana moved to Virupaksha cave. It was in those years that the swarm of disciples gathered around Him to drink the nectar of instructions flowing from the fully bloomed lotus of Jnana. Yes, ‘When the tree yields ripe fruit, does one need to call the fruit-bats?”. Sri Bhagavan’s mere gracious and silent presence shone as the Sun-of-Self and cleared the doubt of the devotees and blossomed their hearts. The young Sri Ramana was only about 20 years old at that time, but the disciples who came to Him with a hunger Jnana were much older and very learned!

chitram vata tharor mole vruddha sishya Guror Yuva
gurostu mounam vyakhyanam sishyasthu chhina samshayaha
- Dakshinamurthy Dhyana Slokas


“How wonderful! Young was the Guru who shone under the Banyan tree and aged were the disciples who came! Silence was the speech given by the beloved Guru, and the doubts in the disciple’s mind were cleared!”


-the same wonder happened in the presence of Sri Ramana!

Though the world was able to receive some instructions from Him in writing, and later orally also, there were many aspirants whose doubts have all been cleared and who have been saved by His mere silent presence.

“Silence is the unequalled eloquence-
the state of grace that raise within”

-Sri Bhagavan

‘Silence is the unfailing teaching (Upadesha). Writing or speech cannot stand equal to it; sometimes they may even be an obstruction!’ - Thus says Sri Ramana.

One of the books that was brought to Bhagavan during this period was Sankara's Vivekacudamani which later on He rendered into Tamil prose. There were also some simple unlettered folk that came to him for solace and spiritual guidance. One of them was Echammal who having lost her husband, son, and daughter, was disconsolate till the fates guided her to Ramana's presence. She made it a point to visit the Svami every day and took upon herself the task of bringing food for him as well as for those who lived with him.

In 1900, Gambhiram Seshayyar who was making efforts on the path of Raja Yoga often visited Sri Ramana and, whenever Bhagavan opened His eyes from Samadhi, would ask Him questions regarding Spiritual practices. Gambhiram Seshayyar would give Sri Ramana a piece of paper and a pen to write His replies; the replies written by Sri Ramana on such occasion were afterwards edited by Sri Natananandar and Published by the Ashram in the original Tamil under the title “Vichara Sangraham”. The work “Nan Yaar?” (Who am I?) was received from Sri Ramana in a similar manner by Sri Sivaprakasham Pillai. Though small in size, this work has now become famous on account of its power to save humanity by showing the right way to the Supreme benefit. The answer given by Sri Ramana to the questions of Sri Natananandar have become the work “Upadesha Manjari”.

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We will continue the next day.

Regards,
Neelakantan

Brief Life Sketch of Bhagavan Ramana - 06

Hare Krishna Dear Friends,

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Sri Ramana stayed in Arunachaleshwara temple for few months, but He did not like people often crowding around to see Him; preferring to be alone, He moved to Gurumurtham temple, which was fairly far away from the town, and for about one and a half years He remained there in Samadhi. Locally he was known as Brahmana-Svami.

In the meanwhile, the note which He left in Madurai had been found, whereupon His elder brother Nagaswami, his mother (Azhahammal), uncle and other relatives and friends had begun to search for Him in many places, but had so far been disappointed. At last they came to know of His whereabouts through one Annamalai Tambiran, who had been serving Sri Ramana in Gurumurtham temple. Since Subbaiyar the uncle with whom Sri Ramana had been living in Madurai, had recently passed away, Nellaiyappaiayar, Subbaiyar’s younger brother, started at once for Thiruvannamalai. He came to Gurumurtham, but no matter how much he entreated Him to come back to Madurai, Sri Ramana remained silent. Having failed in his attempt, Nellaiyappaiyar returned home empty-handed.

Seeing his fruitless effort, Azhahammal herself came to Thiruvannamalai accompanied by Nagaswami as soon as she could. At that time (December 1898) Sri Ramana was staying on Pavazhakundru, an eastern spur of Arunachalam. When His mother saw the pitiable condition of His body, she burst into tears and prayed:

“My dear child, come back to Madurai. How can I possibly bear to live comfortably in a home when you are lying here on stones and thorns? Don’t be stubborn my boy, please don’t show such dispassion! Your mother’s heart is torn apart. Come home, my child!” She wept bitterly and implored Him in ever so many ways. Nagaswami also repeatedly pleaded and repented: “Alas! I didn’t really mean it when I spoke in that way; I never imagined that it would bring about such a calamity!” Though they stayed and appealed for ten days, not even the slightest sign either of consent or of refusal appeared on the face of Sri Ramana. He remained as silent as ever. Some of the onlookers, being unable to bear with this pitiful sight, gave Sri Ramana a piece of paper and a pencil, and begged Him, “Svami, your mother is sobbing and her heart is bleeding; graciously give your reply, at least in writing; you need not break your silence!”.

He wrote:-

“According to the Prarabdha (i.e. destiny) of each one, He, its Ordainer, being in every place will make it play its role. That which is not to happen will never happen, however hard one tries. That which is to happen will not stop, in spite of any amount of obstruction. This is certain! Hence, to remain silent is the best.”

What a steadfastness born of Self-knowledge! What steadfastness free not only of affection, but also of aversion! What could the devotees and His mother do? She returned home afflicted.

Do not many among us wonder why Sri Ramana behaved in such a fashion towards His mother, since is it not a well-known fact that not only all human beings, but also birds and beasts enjoyed His gracious benevolence?

So long as Azhahammal was filled with motherly affection and showed the motherly ignorance of attachment: “You are my child. I am your mother, your protector! Come home with me’, was it not the task of Sri Ramana to remove the ignorant outlook and thus save her? Therefore, by the sword of such silence He was cutting at the knot of attachment in her. His idea was not to abandon her, but to take her finally as His own; it was only the first step to make her renounce everything and to come to the feet of Bhagavan, the embodiment of Jnana. Moreover, on another occasion, in 1914, when His mother came to see Him and happened to suffer from a high fever, Sri Ramana composed four verses, whereupon the fever subsided. She then returned to Madurai.

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We will continue with the account the next day. Have a nice weekend.

Regards,
Neelakantan

Brief Life Sketch of Bhagavan Ramana - 05

Hare Krishna Friends,

Wish you all a very Happy Sri Rama Navami. Let us continue with the account of Bhagavan Sri Ramana.

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The first place of Ramana's residence in Thiruvannamalai was the great temple of Arunachaleshwara himself. For a few weeks he remained in the 1000 pillared mantapam. But can the foolish world understand the greatness of Sages? Some wicked people and mischievous children pelted stones at him as he sat in meditation and started troubling him. Though indifferent to them, Sri Ramana shifted himself to obscure corners and even to an underground vault known as Patala-lingam where no one dared to go even in day-time as it was so dark. Undisturbed he spent several days in deep absorption. He was established in oneness with the Reality – the state transcending the knowledge of the world and body- how could there be hunger and thirst to such a body? On the damp ground where Sri Ramana was sitting were many ants, termites, mosquitoes, flies and centipedes. They began to eat away the lower side of His thighs and blood started oozing out. The oozing blood clotted, pus formed, and mixed with the mud, thus sealing the body to the ground. Yet He was not disturbed by this, for He knew nothing of it. Do we not read stories in the puranas about Rishis such as Valmiki who were immersed in tapas while ant-hills grew over their bodies and birds made nest and lived on their heads? By living thus before our eyes, Sri Ramana has proved in modern times that these stories were not false!

There was at the time in Thiruvannamalai a great soul by name Sri Seshadri Svami. Those who did not know him took him for a madman. Some good folk understood his exalted state and revered him. He was able to recognize the genuine greatness of the Jnana of Sri Ramana. One day, having just come of the Patala Lingam, Sri Seshadri Svami informed Venkatachala Mudaliar, a devotee of his, “There is a small Svami inside, go and see”; so saying he walked away. Though it was day time, Venkatachala Mudaliar took a lantern and along with some others entered the Patala Lingam. They called Sri Ramana loudly, but as there was no response they lifted His body. Alas, because the body was sealed to the earth and was now forcibly separated, blood rushed out through the fresh wounds! On seeing this they were awe-struck. Carefully and gently they brought the body out and kept it in the vicinity of Subrahmanya temple. Even then Sri Ramana did not regain body-consciousness, but remained in Samadhi.

From then on there was some one or other to take care of Ramana. The seat of residence had to be changed frequently. Gardens, groves, shrines - these were chosen to keep the Svami. Some devotees, prompted by their conviction that Sri Ramana was God in human form, engaged themselves with great fervor in His service. Once in many days, whenever He opened His eyes, they would feed Him with a little milk, crushed bananas, or liquid food. The outward activities of Sri Ramana such as taking food and answering to the calls of nature went on just like those of a sleeping child. On those occasions when His eyes did not open for some days, they would themselves open His mouth and try to pour in at least a small quantity of liquid mixture. The Svami himself never spoke. Not that he took any vow of silence; he had no inclination to talk. At times the texts like Vasistham and Kaivalyanavanitam used to be read out to him.

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Hari Om,
Neelakantan

Brief Life Sketch of Bhagavan Ramana - 04

Hare Krishna Friends,

Thanks for your message Hariram. Hope by the Sadguru’s grace, each one of us will develop the firm conviction (Maneesha) as mentioned in your message soon. Let us continue further with Ramana’s divya charithram.

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There was a curse on Venkataraman's family. In truth, it was a blessing - one out of every generation should turn out to be a mendicant. This curse was administered by a wandering ascetic who, it is said, begged alms at the house of one of Venkataraman's forbears, and was refused. A paternal uncle of Sundaram Aiyar became a sanyasin; so did Sundaram Aiyar's elder brother. Now, it was the turn of Venkataraman, although no one could have foreseen that the curse would work out in this manner. Dispassion found lodgment in Venkataraman's heart, and he became a parivrajaka.

About noon, Venkataraman left his uncle’s house and walked to Madurai Railway Station. In those days, the three rupees which He had taken thinking it to be the approximate train fare was exactly the right amount to go from Madurai to Thiruvannamalai. But what was to happen? Not knowing that He could go all the way to Thiruvannamalai by train, He took a ticket for Tindivanam instead and got into the train. During the journey a Maulvi (Islamic priest) sat near Him and talked to Him of his own accord, informing Him that there was train-service to Thiruvannamalai and that one need not go to Tindivanam but could change trains at Viluppuram. This was a piece of useful information. By dusk, Venkataraman was hungry; he bought two country pears for half an anna; and strangely enough even with the first bite his hunger was appeased. About three o'clock in the morning the train arrived at Viluppuram. Venkataraman got off the train there with the intention of completing the rest, of the journey to Thiruvannamalai by walk.

At daybreak He went into the town, and was looking out for the sign-post to Thiruvannamalai. He saw a sign-board reading 'Mambalappattu' but did not know then that Mambalappattu was a place en route to Thiruvannamalai. Before making further efforts to find out which road he was to take, he wanted to refresh himself as he was tired and hungry. He went up to a hotel and asked for food. He had to wait till noon for the food to be ready. After eating his meal, He proffered two annas in payment. The hotel proprietor asked him how much money He had. When told by Venkataraman that He had only two and a half annas, he declined to accept payment. It was from him that Venkataraman came to know that Mambalappattu was a place on the way to Tiruvannamalai. Venkataraman went back to Viluppuram station and bought a ticket to Mambalappattu for which the money he had was just enough.

It was sometime in the afternoon when Venkataraman arrived at Mambalappattu by train. There He got down and walked 10 miles in the direction of Arunachalam. Late in the evening, He reached Araiyaninallur temple which is built on a rock. He waited for the temple doors to be opened, entered and sat down in the pillared hall. He had a vision there - a vision of brilliant light enveloping the entire place. It was no physical light. It shone for some time and then disappeared. Venkataraman continued sitting in a mood of deep meditation, till he was roused by the temple priest who wanted to lock the doors and go to Viratteshwara temple three quarters of a mile away at Kizhur for service. Venkataraman walked down with the priest to Viratteshwara temple. After the puja was over, Sri Ramana who was tired and hungry asked the priest for some prasadam (the food consecrated by being offered to God). The priest refused, but the temple piper (Nadaswaram vidwan) whose heart was moved on seeing this rude behavior of the priest pleaded with him “Sir, kindly give him at least my portion of the prasadam.” On account of the request of that virtuous man, a little food was placed on the hands of Sri Ramana. When Venkataraman asked for some drinking water, he was directed to a Sastri's house which was at some distance. While in that house he fainted and fell down. A few minutes later he rallied round and saw a small crowd looking at him curiously. He drank the water, ate some food, and lay down and slept.

Next morning He woke up. It was the 31st of August, 1896, the day of Sri Krishna Jayanthi. Venkataraman resumed his journey and walked for quite a while and He happened to come to the house of Muthukrishna Bhagavathar. He asked the Bhagavatar for food and was directed to the housewife. The good lady was pleased to receive the young Sadhu and feed him on the auspicious day of Sri Krisna's birth. After the meal, Venkataraman went to the Bhagavatar again and told him that he wanted to pledge his gold ear-rings for four rupees in order that he may complete his pilgrimage. The Bhagavatar examined the ear-rings, gave Venkataraman the money he had asked for, took down the youth's address, wrote out his own on a piece of paper for him, and told him that he could redeem the rings at any time. The pious lady gave him a packet of sweets that she had prepared for Janmashtami. Venkataraman took leave of the couple, tore up the address the Bhagavatar had given him - for he had no intention of redeeming the ear-rings and went to the railway station. As there was no train till the next morning, he spent the night there. On the morning of the 1st of September, 1896, he boarded the train to Thiruvannamalai. The travel took only a short time. Alighting from the train, He hastened to the great temple of Arunachaleshwara which had occupied His heart from childhood and which had now robbed off His mind and drawn Him near.

All the gates stood open - even the doors of the inner shrine (sanctum-sanctorum). The temple was then empty of all people - even the priests. He went directly to the inner shrine of temple and surrendered Himself completely. The intense heat that was in his body at once subsided. The journey of the Soul, the river, had ended once for all at its destination, the ocean of bliss. Sri Ramana came out of the inner shrine, perfectly contended with treasure-the fullness of Jnana. Since all freedom of mind, speech and body had been surrendered to Arunachaleshwara, Sri Ramana became effortlessly silent.

When someone approached him and asked, “Swami, will you have your head shaved?” Sri Ramana nodded affirmatively being convinced that it was the will of Sri Arunachaleshwara. He was conducted to the Ayyankulam tank where the barber shaved his head. His long, fine and wavy hair which was like a beautiful black creeper was in no time removed and a clean head remained. Then He stood on the steps of the tank and threw away his sacred thread, the sign of His caste. From his dhoti he tore off a piece for a loin cloth and discarded the rest together with the remaining money which was tied in a corner. The packet of sweets given by the loving lady in the Bhagavatar’s house was discarded to the tank as well. He did not even take bath after being shaved. But on his way back to the temple, there was an unexpected downpour. Perhaps this shower from the sky was a ceremonial bath (Avabritha-snanam) given by Sri Arunachaleshwara to His divine son on completion of the greatest tapas! Sri Ramana reached the temple and sat absorbed in Samadhi in the 1000 pillared mantapam.

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Regards,
Neelakantan