Now there is the strange fact that Ramana Maharshi himself refused to be ‘the Guru’ of his devotees...or to be exact, he never initiated any of them in the traditional way. Some of them are known to have left him, though they loved and worshipped him, because they thought themselves unable to proceed spiritually without an outer guru. How is this strange attitude of his to be understood? Did the sage shun the responsibility which the guru is expected to take over in respect to his devotee? According to tradition, the guru who accepts a disciple also takes over his karma, bad as it may be.
No. Sri Ramana Maharshi was only being consistent; he lived what he taught...the realisation of the One without a second! When there is only One, Brahman, where is the place for guru and disciple? A guru presupposes a disciple, a disciple a guru; they are invariable ‘two’. Can there be two Selves, the one guiding the other? True guidance is possible only when the Self of the guru and that of the disciple is one and the same Self.
No. Sri Ramana Maharshi was only being consistent; he lived what he taught...the realisation of the One without a second! When there is only One, Brahman, where is the place for guru and disciple? A guru presupposes a disciple, a disciple a guru; they are invariable ‘two’. Can there be two Selves, the one guiding the other? True guidance is possible only when the Self of the guru and that of the disciple is one and the same Self.
-Hunting the I by Lucy Cornelssen
2 comments:
Lucy Cornelssen writes: "Now there is the strange fact that Ramana Maharshi himself refused to be ‘the Guru’ of his devotees...or to be exact, he never initiated any of them in the traditional way."
Many people say this because Ramana Maharshi refused to acknowledge verbally that he was anyone's guru or that he gave initiation.
However, if you take time to read the memoirs of his closest devotees, you discover that he fulfilled the traditional role of guru with them and even in some cases gave initiation, although he apparently tried to hide the fact that he was doing so.
For a striking example, see "Living By the Words of Bhagavan" by David Godman and Annamalai Swami, page 182.
What you say is true. Though Ramana rarely gave initiation to people he did fulfill the role of a Guru to people who had totally surrendered to him like Ramanatha Brahmachari, Muruganar, Kunji swami, Annamalai swami and so on.
I think it is purely Lucy Cornelssen's perspective on Ramana that he did not give initiation but there are facts to prove the contrary.
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