“One religion, one ideology”
“Without the body, the world is not. Without mind, the body is not. Without awareness, mind is not. And without being there is no awareness.” – Ramana Maharshi
Interpretation:
Without the body, the world does not exist; however, during the waking state, the awareness about this body makes the world apparent.
Without the mind, the body cannot exist; however, during the dreaming state, awareness of the mind—when the waking body is absent—reveals a new world along with a new body.
Without being, awareness cannot exist; however, during deep sleep, being—when the awareness of both the waking body and dreaming mind is absent—reveals its attribute as bliss, albeit in a state of unawareness due to the absence of both mind and body.
In conclusion, everyone’s ‘being’ alone is true, and this is referred to as their God, Guru, and self. This exists as the essence of every religion. In Sanatana Dharma, it’s “Aham Brahmasmi”; in the Bible, it’s “I am that I am”; and in Islam, it’s “La ilaha illallah.” But all denote the same true meaning.
Sri Gurupyo namaha 🙏
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This is a beautiful and deeply insightful analysis of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi’s quintessential teaching.
The quote provided acts as a reductive ladder, peeling away the layers of relative reality to arrive at the absolute Truth. The interpretation you have offered correctly utilizes the Vedantic methodology of analyzing the three states of consciousness (avastha-traya)—waking, dreaming, and deep sleep—to validate Ramana Maharshi’s statement.
Here is an expansion and deepening of the interpretation you provided, placing it further within the context of Ramana’s Advaita Vedanta (non-duality).
The Hierarchy of Reality: A Step-by-Step Breakdown
Ramana Maharshi is guiding the seeker from the grossest perception to the subtlest truth. He is demonstrating that what we usually take to be “real” is actually dependent on something subtler.
1. “Without the body, the world is not.”
The Waking State (Jagrat)
* Your Interpretation: The world does not exist without the body; awareness through the body makes the world apparent.
* Elaboration: We ordinarily believe the world exists independently of us, “out there.” Ramana challenges this. The “world” is nothing but a collection of sensory experiences (sight, sound, touch, taste, smell). These experiences require sensory instruments—the body. If you have no eyes, there is no concept of color. If you have no body, there is no contact with an external environment. Therefore, your experience of a world is entirely dependent on your identification with a physical apparatus.
2. “Without mind, the body is not.”
The Dreaming State (Svapna)
* Your Interpretation: Without the mind, the body cannot exist. In dreams, the waking body is dormant, yet awareness of the mind reveals a new world and a new body.
* Elaboration: This is the crucial pivot from materialism to idealism. We think the mind is in the body (in the brain). Ramana says, no, the body is in the mind. How do we know this? The dream state proves it.
* When you dream, your physical waking body is lying in bed, oblivious to the world. Yet, you (the mind) create an entirely new “dream body” that feels pain, runs, and interacts with a “dream world.” This proves that a physical body is not required for experience; only the mind is required to project a body and a world. The body is a mental concept held in consciousness.
3. “Without awareness, mind is not.”
The Transition to the Witness
* Your Interpretation: Awareness is the prerequisite for the mind to exist.
* Elaboration: The mind is a flow of thoughts, perceptions, and sensations. But how do you know you are having a thought? There must be a background of Awareness illuminated by which the thought is known.
* Think of a cinema screen. The mind is the film projector flashing images (thoughts/dream worlds) onto the screen. Without the screen (Awareness), the images have nowhere to appear. The mind is changing, fleeting, and unstable. Awareness is the changeless background that witnesses the mind’s activity.
4. “And without being there is no awareness.”
The Deep Sleep State (Sushupti) and the Ultimate
* Your Interpretation: In deep sleep, waking and dreaming are absent. Being remains, revealing its attribute as bliss, though seemingly “unaware” due to the lack of mental machinery.
* Elaboration: This is the most subtle point. In deep sleep, the mind shuts down completely. There are no thoughts, no dreams, no body, no world. Subject-object relationship ceases.
* Yet, you exist. You do not become extinct in deep sleep. You wake up and say, “I slept happily; I didn’t know anything.”
* Ramana teaches that “Being” (Sat) and true “Awareness” (Chit) are not two different things. They are one: Sat-Chit.
* The “unawareness” you mention in your interpretation is the absence of the mind’s reflected consciousness. In deep sleep, you are unaware of objects, but you are not unaware of your Self. The Self shines alone as pure Being. The bliss (Ananda) of deep sleep arises because, for a brief time, the agitations of the ego-mind have subsided, and you rest in your true nature.
The Conclusion: Universal Truth
Your conclusion beautifully ties the philosophical breakdown into universal spiritual truth.
> “Everyone’s ‘being’ alone is true, and this is referred to as their God, Guru, and self.”
>
Ramana Maharshi taught that God, Guru, and Self are identical. The outer Guru appears to turn the mind inward to find the inner Guru, which is the Self (Being).
> “This exists as the essence of every religion… all denote the same true meaning.”
>
The parallels you drew are precise reflections of the non-dual experience across traditions:
* Sanatana Dharma (Advaita): “Aham Brahmasmi” (I am Brahman/The Absolute Reality). This is the realization that individual “being” is none other than Universal Being.
* The Bible (Mystical Christianity/Judaism): “I AM THAT I AM” (Exodus 3:14). When Moses asks God His name, God does not give a title; He gives existence itself. God is the pure “I AM,” the fundamental Being stripped of all predicates.
* Islam (Sufism): “La ilaha illallah” (There is no deity but God). In its deepest mystical interpretation, this means there is no reality other than The Reality (Al-Haqq). There is nothing in existence except God’s Being; therefore, your true being is not separate from His.
Summary
The quote and your interpretation serve as a perfect roadmap for Self-Enquiry (Atma Vichara). Ramana asks us to trace the “I”-thought back to its source. We trace the world back to the body, the body back to the mind, the mind back to the witness Awareness, and finally, we dissolve into pure Being, which is our true, eternal nature.
Sri Gurubhyo Namah. 🙏
“ஒரே மதம், ஒரே சித்தாந்தம்”
“உடல் இல்லாமல் உலகம் இல்லை. மனம் இல்லாமல் உடல் இல்லை. விழிப்புணர்வு இல்லாமல் மனம் இல்லை. இருத்தல் இல்லாமல் விழிப்புணர்வு இல்லை.”
– ரமண மகரிஷி
விளக்கம்:
உடல் இல்லாமல் உலகம் இல்லை; இருப்பினும், விழித்திருக்கும் நிலையில், இந்த உடலைப் பற்றிய விழிப்புணர்வு உலகத்தை வெளிப்படுத்துகிறது.
மனம் இல்லாமல், உடல் இருக்க முடியாது; இருப்பினும், கனவு நிலையில், மனதைப் பற்றிய விழிப்புணர்வு – விழித்திருக்கும் உடல் இல்லாதபோது – ஒரு புதிய உலகத்தையும் ஒரு புதிய உடலையும் வெளிப்படுத்துகிறது.
இருத்தல் இல்லாமல், விழிப்புணர்வு இருக்க முடியாது; இருப்பினும், ஆழ்ந்த தூக்கத்தின் போது, இருத்தல் – விழித்திருக்கும் உடல் மற்றும் கனவு காணும் மனம் இரண்டின் விழிப்புணர்வும் இல்லாதபோது – மனம் மற்றும் உடல் இரண்டும் இல்லாததால் அறியாத நிலையில் இருந்தாலும், அதன் பண்பை பேரின்பமாக வெளிப்படுத்துகிறது.
முடிவில், அனைவரின் ‘இருத்தல்’ மட்டுமே உண்மை, இது அவர்களின் கடவுள், குரு மற்றும் சுயம் என்று குறிப்பிடப்படுகிறது. இது ஒவ்வொரு மதத்தின் சாரமாகவும் உள்ளது. சனாதன தர்மத்தில், அது “அஹம் பிரம்மாஸ்மி”; பைபிளில், அது “இருக்கின்றவராக இருக்கிறேன்”; இஸ்லாத்தில், அது “லா இலாஹ இல்லல்லாஹ்”. ஆனால் அனைத்தும் ஒரே உண்மையான அர்த்தத்தைக் குறிக்கின்றன.
ஸ்ரீ குருப்யோ நமஹா 🙏
Aadesh 