The Virupasksha Years--Ramana Maharshi

8/12/2019 The Virupasksha Years--Ramana Maharshi

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Virupaksha Years

ection : irupaksha ears

irupa sha ears, 1899-1916

Te ormless and imperishable Real stands revealed in the Aruna Hill, the embodied Presenceo the three-eyed God. Since the Cave namedVirupaksha sustains the very devotees who dwellwithin the Heart-cave o that God, well may wecall it Mother.1

Bhagavan Ramana

Ramana stayed in the Virupaksha Cave or seventeenyears rom 1899 to 1916. Ramana was just a young lad otwenty years when he shifed rom Gurumurtam to theVirupaksha Cave. Ramanas eelings towards this cave are

expressed in the stray verse extracted above. He considers it appropriate to call it Mother because it sustainsthe very devotees who give themselves wholly to theAruna Hill, the embodied orm oLord Siva.

Tis cave is situated on the easternslopes o the Aruna Hill. It is a uniquecave, which has the shape o the mystic syllable Om. It is named aferVirupaksha Deva, a saint who livedand has been buried there in the 13thcentury. Many momentous events in

Ramanas li e took place during theyears o his stay here. It was here thathis mother Azhagammal came tolive with him permanently in the lastyears o her li e. She surrendered hersel totally to him and was guided byhim on the inward path. Her liberation at the sacred hands o Ramana isan epoch-making event. 2

Another event o immense signi cance is Ramanas rst spokenupadesa to a disciple, which was

given to Ganapati Muni in 1907.3 ill then Ramana hadremained silent outwardly as well.

It was again at Virupaksha that Ramana communicated the experience o his enlightenment throughhis spiritual instructions to Gambhiram Seshier andSivaprakasam Pillai.4

In writing about the Virupaksha years o Ramana,one might say that it is not a biographers account butalmost an autobiographical account by Ramana himsel .

Hornets

In the initial years an attempt was made by the trusteeso the Virupaksha Math, who owned the cave, to levy asmall charge or the entry. Ramana did not want any kindo inter erence with his accessibility. Hence he moved outo the cave to a level path o ground outside it and satunder the shade o a tree there. When the agent triedto levy a ee there also, Ramana shifed to the nearbySadguruswami cave or a short time. Te trustees, realizing the inconvenience caused, stopped levying the ee sothat Ramana could return to the Virupaksha Cave.

An event while at this cave as narrated by Ramana is

ascinating. In those days I used to go all by mysel . Fanswering calls o nature I used to stroll along taking water with me, but going wherever water may be availab

Virupaksha Cave

It was on one such occasion, on one morning, that I camacross the banyan tree o which I have spoken ofen.As I was walking on the bed o a hill stream, I saw

big banyan tree on a boulder, with big leaves. And crossthe stream, I wanted to get to the other bank and vie rom there this big tree. When I accidentally put my l oot near a bush on the way to the other bank, so that thhornets clustered round my lef leg up to the knee anstarted stinging it. Tey never did anything to my right le

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I lef the leg there or some time, so that the hornets couldin ict ull punishment on the leg which had encroachedon their domain. Afer a time, the hornets withdrew andI walked on. Te leg got swollen very much and I walkedwith difficulty and reached Ezhu Sunai (Seven Springs)about 2 a.m.

Jadaswami, who was camping there then, gave me

some buttermilk mixed with jaggery, which was all thathe could provide by way o ood. Tis is what actually hap pened. But aferwards, people have gone and written thatI had purposely set out to explore and nd the banyan treedescribed in thepurana as the one on the northern peako the Hill, where Arunachala is said to be residing as asiddha . I never had any such idea. When I saw or the rsttime a remarkable banyan tree on a huge and precipitousboulder, I was prompted by curiosity to have a look at it. Meanwhile, the hornets stung me and I orgot all about thetree. 5 Te last words, I orgot all about the tree, showRamanas sense o humor.

Ramana also composed a stray verse on this incident,which is extracted below:

Apology to Hornets

When I was stung by hornets in revengeUpon the leg until it was in amed, Although it was by chance I stepped uponTeir nest, constructed in a lea y bush,What kind o mind is his i he does not At least repent or doing such a wrong? 6

Composition o the ive ymns

We have an account o how the Decad on Arunachalaand Eight Verses on Arunachala came to be composed byRamana spontaneously.

One morning, when he was sitting on the verandahin Virupaksha Cave, the words Karunaiyal Ennaicameto him very insistently, but he took no special notice othem. It seems the same thing happened the ollowingmorning also. Ten Bhagavan composed the rst stanzao Te Decad on Arunachala . Te next morning the wordsbeginning the second stanza similarly came to him andhe composed the second stanza; and so the thing went onevery day, till the last two stanzas were composed on oneday. On that day, afer composing the two last stanzas,Bhagavan, it seems, started or giripradakshina (goinground the hill). One o his disciples, Aiyaswami, broughta piece o paper and pencil and told another disciple whowas going with Bhagavan, Bhagavan has been composing one stanza every morning or some days now, andtoday he has composed two stanzas. More may come to

him today. In case they do, have this paper and pencilwith you so that the same may be recorded. Bhagavanactually composed the rst six stanzas o the Arunachala Ashtakam (Eight Verses on Arunachala). It seemsEchamma rst got Te Marital Garland o Letters published. Narayana Reddi came to know o the Padikamand Ashtakam soon aferwards and wanted to publish

them. Ten Bhagavan composed two more stanzas orcompleting the Ashtakam and the Decad (Padikam) andEight Verses ( Ashtakam) were published by NarayanaReddi. Tis is how the Padikam and Ashtakam in the FiveHymns on Arunachala came to be composed. 7

Te most amous o Ramanas Five Hymns on Arunachala is Te Marital Garland o Letters with there rain Arunachala Siva. Tis was also mostly composedduring Ramanas circuits o Arunachala. Te story o theneed or composing these 108 verses has been mentionedby Ramana. In order to eed Ramana and the ellow devotees at the Virupaksha Cave it became necessary to beg

or alms in the streets o iruvannamalai. Palaniswamiwanted Ramana to compose a new devotional hymn sothat Ramanas group may be identi ed by the people othe town. Afer it was composed a party o our led byPalaniswami would start out to town, blow a long blast ontheir conches, and start chanting Te Marital Garland oLetters. Tis was an announcement to the towns peoplethat Bhagavans party had lef the cave on their beggingmission. Te party would give another blast when theyreached the oot o the hill. A third call would be sounded at the entrance o the street. All the residents o thestreet would be ready with their offerings and the partywould march along the street singing and some collecting the offerings. Te ood collected was ample, it seems,or all who gathered near Bhagavan and even all o themonkeys etc. Te Marital Garland o Letters was specially composed or use by the begging party. Bhagavanhumorously added, Marital Garland o Letters ed us or many years. 8

amana with Children

Even though Ramana remained silent in the rst yearso stay at Virupaksha Cave, many children would climbup to the cave and sit or long periods just to be in hispresence. Afer 1907, sometimes Ramana would jointhe children in their play. He played marbles with themand re erred to this later as ollows: Te holes dug orthe purpose must be there even now. Tose children sometimes used to bring packets o sweetmeats and we all usedto share them. During Deepavali they used to put aside myshare o the crackers and bring them up to me. We used to re the crackers together. 9

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Ramana has also narrated how two children wereemotionally moved when he was about twenty-two andliving in the Virupaksha Cave. It seems he was sitting ona rock near the cave and a boy about 8 or 10 came there,looked at Bhagavan and, not being able to bear the sighto such a young and bright person taking to such a hardli e o penance, was so moved by compassion that he

started to sob and sobbed violently or some time.Bhagavan said, Who could say what was the reason or his sobbing and why tears owed out o him merelyat his seeing me? Bhagavan continued in a reminiscentmood later in the day and added that another boy, also

about 8 or 10 years old, met Bhagavan another day atVirupaksha Cave. He took such pity on Bhagavan thatthe ollowing conversation took place between them.Bhagavan was sitting on a rock near the cave, all alone,and the boy met him there.

Boy: Why are you here all alone, like this?Bhagavan: I had some trouble at home and so hav

come away like this.Boy: Ten how about your ood?Bhagavan: I eat i anybody gives me anything to eat.Boy: I have a good master. I shall take you to him.

First, you may have to volunteer your services ree. I heapproves o your work, hewill give three pies a day andgradually increase it to sixpies, and so on.

Bhagavan added, Terewas no doubt that the boy wavery much concerned ov

what he considered my sa plight and that he was move 10by great and genuine pity.

Some OtherIncidents

One day Ramana was doinga small masonry job whensome visitors came up inorder to see the Swami. Hetold them, Swami has gonout. When they were returning down the hill, they metEchamma who told themthat the person whom theyhad met was none other thanthe Swami. She later askedRamana why he had misledthe men, to which Ramanareplied, Do you want me t go about with a bell arounmy neck announcing I amthe Swami or to have a labon my orehead that I am thSwami? 11

In 1912, a group o devotees headed by VasudevaSastri, wished to celebrateRamanas birthday or therst time. Ramana opposedit saying that the true birthis only when one becomes


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Te inside o the Virupaksha Cave as it is today

Sel -aware. But Vasudeva Sastri pleaded with him say- her that she could do so in the cave nearby. She agreed and12ing, It is or our sake and Bhagavan should not object. started cooking. She said to me, Venkatarama, I am cook-

Tus they celebrated it that year or the rst time. Since ing today. You should not take any other ood! I said yes,then the celebration known as jayanti has been a very but afer she lef, I ate with the others as usual. When she

13important occasion or all the disciples and devotees o had cooked, I ate that ood also.Ramana. Once Ramanas grandmother came to see him. An old relative o Ramanas known or his abusiveTis is Ramanas account o it. She came while we were tongue came along. He was really a good-natured manthere and said that she would cook ood or hersel . We told and meant no ill to anybody. Soon afer he came, he

asked jocularly, What Venkataraman, itseems you have become a big Swami! Haveyou grown horns on your head? 14

While at Virupaksha, Ramana alsowrote in prose a amil translation o Vivekacudamani , a sacred scripture composedby Adi Sankara. Right rom Gurumurtamdays, Palaniswami used to bring Ramanaspiritual books rom the library in the town.At Virupaksha also he continued to do so.Tus Ramana became more and more acquainted with the sacred lore o Vedanta.In his early years in Virupaksha Cave, hewould occasionally visit Padmanabha Swami, popularly called Jatai Swami becauseo his matted hair. Te Swami had severalSanskrit books through some o which Ramana would glance, and remember all thathe had read. We have already seen that even

Samadhi o Virupaksha Deva

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Virupaksha Years

as a boy at school he was remarkable or his prodigiousmemory. A scholar once came to the cave and lef a copyo Sankaracharyas Vivekacudamani, a metrical manual oVedanta, which expounds the truth o Advaita in a clearand comprehensive manner. Ramana read it and also ametrical amil version produced by Palaniswami. Tenit occurred to him that a prose translation would be very

use ul or aspirants who did not know Sanskrit, so heundertook the translation which came to be printed andpublished under the ollowing circumstances. UddandiNayanar, who was the rst regular devotee to be attachedto Ramana, was calledaway in 1897 to theheadquarters o the ascetic order to which hebelonged. Seven yearslater, he returned witha hundred rupees as hisoffering. Te Master re

used to accept it, sincehe had no use or moneyand would not touch it.Nayanar lef the moneywith a devotee askinghim to utilize it or anygood cause o whichthe Master approved. Itwas spent on printingthe translation o theVivekacudamani.15

In those years

there used to be tigers and leopards onArunachala. Ramanahad no ear because thesign o a jnani is desirelessness and earlessness. Hence the wildanimals would not

hill and the other down. When I came out o the caveand asked, Swamiji, werent you a raid when the two animals were playing so close to you? Bhagavan said with asmile, Why have ear? I knew as I saw them that, afer while, one o them would go up the hill and the other dow And they did. I we get rightened and say, Oh! A tigeTey will also get rightened and say, Oh! A man! an

will rush orward to kill us. I we do not have ear, they twill not have any ear, and will then move about reely an peace ully. In spite o all that Bhagavan had said, Sastry

16added, My ear never lef me.Ramana would

never take anythingwithout sharing itwith all those present.As a result ofenthere would not beenough ood to goaround. Ramana has

narrated what used tohappen. When I wain Virupaksha CaveSundaresa Iyer useto go out into the tow or bhiksa and bringus ood. At times, therused to be no curror chutney. People teat were many whilthe ood obtained walimited. What were w

to do? I used to mix into a paste and pourhot water over it tomake it like gruel, anthen give a glass uto each and take onmysel . Sometimes wall used to eel that i

be rightened o him.An interesting incident is recorded by Vasudeva Sastri.In the broad daylight Swamiji and I were seated on therock outside the cave. In the valley below, a tiger and aleopard were playing with each other and Bhagavan wassmiling as he watched the riendly movements o the twoanimals. I was however in a terrible right and requestedBhagavan to come into the cave. He was adamant and satthere motionless. As or mysel , I sought the shelter o thecave. Te two animals played about or a while, looked atSwamiji in the same way pets do, and without any ear orexpression o anger went their own way, one going up the

would be better i whad at least some salt to mix with it. But where was monto buy salt? We should have had to ask someone or itonce we began to ask or salt, we would eel like askingdhal, and when we ask or dhal, we would eel like aski or payasam, and so on. So we elt that we should not a or anything, and swallowed the gruel as it was. We usto eel extremely happy over such a diet. As the ood wsattvic, without spices o any kind, and there was not evsalt in it, not only was it healthy or this body, but there w

17also great peace or the mind.

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Te entrance to Virupaksha Cave

e ost igni cant vent fernlightenment

Te rst biographer, B.V. Narasimha Swami, had inter viewed Ramana about an incident which happened in1912 while he was staying at the Virupaksha Cave. Tisinterview is given as an appendix to Narasimha Swamisbiography under the heading, A strange and remarkableincident in the li e o Sri Maharshi. 1 Te signi cance othis event is there ore likely to be lost sight o .

In 1912, Ramana, Palaniswami, and Vasudeva Sastri,

and a ew others went rom Virupaksha Cave to Pachiamman Koil or taking an oil bath as acilities or such a bathwere available in plenty in that place. Afer bathing theyreturned cutting a path across the hill or themselves.

Te sun was airly hot even at about 10 a.m. when theyreached the tortoise rock. Ramana began to eel aint andwhat happened is best stated in his own words. Suddenlythe view o natural scenery in ront o me disappeared anda bright white curtain was drawn across the line o my vision and shut out the view o nature. I could distinctly seethe gradual process. At one stage I could see a part o the prospect o nature yet clear, and the rest was being cov

ered by the advancing curtain. It was just like drawing aslide across ones view in the stereoscope. On experiencingthis I stopped walking lest I should all. When it cleared, Iwalked on. When darkness and aintness overtook me asecond time, I leaned against a rock until it cleared. Andagain or the third time I elt it sa est to sit, so I sat near therock. Ten the bright white curtain had completely shut outmy vision, my head was swimming, and my blood circulation and breathing stopped. Te skin turned a livid blue. It

was the regular death-like hue and it gotdarker and darker. Vasudeva Sastri tookme in act to be dead, held me in his embrace and began to weep aloud and lament my death. His body was shivering. Icould at that time distinctly eel his claspand his shivering, hear his lamentation,

and understand the meaning. I also sawthe discoloration o my skin and I elt thestoppage o my heartbeat and respiration, and the increased chilliness o theextremities o my body. Yet my usualcurrent was continuing without a breakin that state also. I was not a raid in theleast, nor elt any sadness at the condition o my body. I had closed my eyesas soon I sat near the rock in my usual posture but was not leaning against it.

Te body which had no circulation nor respiration main

tained that position still. Tis state continued or some tenor feen minutes. Ten a shock passed suddenly throughthe body, circulation revived with enormous orce, as alsorespiration; and there was perspiration all over the body atevery pore. Te color o li e reappeared on the skin. I thenopened my eyes, got up and said, Let us go. We reachedVirupaksha Cave without urther trouble. Tat was theonly occasion on which both my blood circulation and res piration stopped. 2

At the time o enlightenment, which happenedon July 17, 1896, Ramana had only the sudden ear odeath. However, in order to go through the experience

o what death means, he stretched himsel like a corpseas though rigor mortis had set in and held his lips tightlytogether and his breath. It was not a physical death butan experience o death intensely elt as part o investigation to nd out and discover Who am I? Still I elt withinmysel the I was there, the sound was there, the eelingitsel I was there. What was that? I elt that it was a orceor current, a center o energy playing on the body workingon despite the rigidity or activity o the body though existing in connection with it. 3 Tis experience that the trueI was a current or a orce or center that constituted thereal I stayed with him or the rest o li e.

Te second experience is different in that there wasa physical death or 10 or 15 minutes. Te heart beat andthe blood circulation had stopped and the body had become cold and blue. But the experience o awareness othe heart current as the I remained. Tis is the mostsigni cant aspect o this experience. Even while narrating the experience Ramana has clearly stated, Yet myusual current was continuing as usual without a break inthat state also.

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Ramana himsel has re erred to this incident in thecourse o his conversation with B.V. Narasimha Swami,years later, in 1937. Te relevant portion reads as ollows:I used to eel the vibrations o the Heart, which resemblethose o a dynamo, even in school. When I developed rigormortis many years ago in iruvannamalai, every objectand sensation disappeared, except these vibrations. It was

as i a dark screen was drawn be ore my eyes and shut theworld completely rom me, but o course I was all alongconscious o the Sel , with a vague eeling that someone wascrying near me. Tis state continued till just be ore I re gained physical consciousness, when I elt something rush

rom the Heart to the lef chest and re-establish li e in thbody. 4

One shudders at the thought as to what would havehappened i the li e orce had not re-established itsel inRamanas body.

But then it had to happen only in that way in the di vine scheme o things. One who is aware o the li e o

Ramana will also be aware that the earmarked role orRamana in the divine scheme was to guide seekers otruth, as the inner and outer guru, on the direct path osel -enquiry or Sel -knowledge. Tis role as the sadguruwas to be or about another ve decades in the body rom

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the date o this experience. Ramanas steady Sel -aware ness and accessibility ensured this.

"The Virupasksha Years"Features in

Timesless in Time: Sri Ramana Maharshi 2006 World Wisdom, Inc

Sri Ramana Maharshi, Foreword by Eliot Deutsch All Rights Reserved. For Personal Usage Only

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The Virupasksha Years--Ramana Maharshi