A TO Z INDIA ● MARCH 2022 ● PAGE 6
India and Culture :
Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi
Kokila
Q : What of idols ? M : They have a deep significance . Worshipping them is a method of concentrating the mind . The mind is apt to move externally . It must be checked and turned within . Its habit is to dwell on names and forms , for all external objects possess them .
Certain names and forms are symbolic concepts used to divert the mind away from external objects and make it dwell within itself . Thus the idols , mantras , sacred syllables , rites etc , are all meant to give food to the mind in its inward course so that it may become capable of being concentrated . Only after this can the supreme state be reached - Conscious Immortality .