Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi : Love and Love alone ...
Akhilandamma
' Unnai Vidamal Iru ': One day when I went up the hill with all the required foodstuff to serve a bhiksha , a swami told me , since it was a full moon day , it was an auspicious time to receive upadesa from great souls .
I approached Bhagavan , bowed , stood up and said , “ Bhagavan , kindly tell me something .” Bhagavan stared at me and asked , “ About what am I to tell you ?” I was both puzzled and nonplussed . A mixture of fear and devotion along with an eagerness to hear Bhagavan ’ s gracious words welled up within me , rendering me incapable of speech . I just stood mutely . Bhagavan understood my predicament . No one can hide anything from him . He can understand the state of mind of anyone who approaches him , merely by looking at him . He looked at me graciously and said , ‘ unnai vidamal iru ’, that is , ‘ Be without leaving yourself .’
I could not comprehend the meaning of this high-level upadesa , but as soon as the words came from Bhagavan ’ s mouth I felt an immense satisfaction and wonderful effulgence in my mind . These gracious words welled up in my mind again and again like the rising of tides . The feeling they produced gave me an indescribable happiness . I stood there delighting myself in the feelings produced by this one phrase . Even today , the sound of that upadesa rings in my ears and bestows immense peace on me .
Though I didn ’ t understand what Bhagavan had told , I immediately experienced the state that the words were indicating without ever really understanding what they meant . I came to understand through this exper- ience that in Bhagavan ’ s benign presence a single gracious utterance can produce the fruit and the fulfillment of all spiritual practices such as sravana [ hearing ], manana [ thinking or reflection ] and nididhyasa [ contemplation or abidance ].
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