This is one of a series of introductory articles – please see the homepage of tomdas.com for more introductory articles.
See also:
IN BRIEF: HOW TO ATTAIN LIBERATION (MOKSHA)
Recommended Reading: books for Liberation & Self-Realisation
‘The path of Sri Ramana is meant for anyone who craves for happiness…’
These texts, written by Sri Sadhu Om, himself a direct devotee of Sri Ramana Maharshi, clearly, unambiguously and thoroughly explain the path to Self-Realisation, which is the extinguishment of suffering, as taught by Sri Ramana Maharshi.
- Part one focuses on Self-Enquiry (the path of knowledge or Jnana), which is the principal path for liberation/Moksha.
- Part two focuses on Self-Surrender (the path of Bhakti or love/ devotion).
Together these texts summarise the entire Vedanta path, and are consistent with the Vedanta scriptures, but the teachings are arranged practically for those with a genuine yearning for liberation and not just philosophical study.
There is also a text which is considered to be ‘Part three’ called Sadhanai Saram, which means ‘The Essence of Spiritual Practice’, and this text further explains what is given in parts one and two, and goes into more detail about the nature of liberation itself as well as various other topics. Click on the link above to download this as a PDF file.
Sri Sadhu Om (1922-1985), sometimes known as Sri Sadhu Om Swamigal, spent 4 years with Sri Ramana Maharshi from 1946 until Ramana’s death in 1950. He was regarded by many other direct devotees as both Self-Realised and an authority on Ramana Maharshi’s teachings. Sri Muruganar, one of the few devotees of Sri Ramana Maharshi who Sri Ramana openly conceded to be Self-Realised, considered Sri Sadhu Om to be one of the few people who truly understood Sri Ramana Maharshi’s teachings.
We are indeed fortunate to have these clear and precise teachings to hand!
All we have to do is understand them and put them into practice!
Click on the links below to download these precious texts, and then put them into practice:
The Path of Sri Ramana Part One (PDF file)
The Path of Sri Ramana Part Two (PDF file)
UPDATE 2023: a new revised translation in a single volume is now available to purchase, eg. on Amazon, called ‘The Path of Sri Ramana’. There are 60 pages of new additional previously untranslated material, part 2 is now called the supplement, and the biographical section has been removed. Personally I find the older version, available as a PDF on this website, easier to read, however several people who attend satsang meetings with me have informed me they prefer the newer translation which they feel is more precise and more accurate.
“We should not run after the world; we should not look outwards at the world, we should look inwards at Self. Those sannyasis who run after the world achieve neither the world nor Self (God). If we try to chase after our shadow, we will never catch it; but if we go towards the sun, our shadow will automatically come running behind us.
Those sannyasis who are always attending to the world with the aim of teaching the world became spoilt in the end. . . No Sage (jnani) who ever came on earth was the product of an ashramam, math or any such institution. Each one of them stood alone and realized the Truth by himself.
There is no rule that a man can attain true knowledge (jnana) only by becoming an inmate of a religious institution. Therefore, in the name of service to the world, let no one cheat himself and retard his spiritual progress by forming foundations and associations and by preaching, shouting slogans and running magazines”
~ Sri Sadhu Om
The entire path is also explained in more concise form in Ramana Maharshi’s text ‘Who Am I?’ (Nar Yar?). However I have found that many people actually miss the key teachings in ‘Who Am I?’ even though they are plainly written due to the ego’s distortion in interpreting what it hears/reads. After reading ‘The Path of Sri Ramana’, the teachings in ‘Who Am I?’ become crystal clear.
Tom Das 
I can only agree that these works of Sri Sadhu Om are like precious gems. They really deepened my understanding of the practice and the path prescribed by Sri Ramana. Part one contains detailed descriptions on the practice of Self-abidance. Deserves to be studied seriously by all seekers of liberation. Thank you Tom.
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Thank you Seth
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I have listened to the video Turn Within, Abide as the Self several times. Hearing Ramana’s words of wisdom while looking at his image is inspiring. My thoughts (ego) melts into Awareness. Thanks for you efforts Tom.
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You’re most welcome, Ernie 🙏
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I’m curious about your statement that:
“Sri Muruganar, one of the few devotees of Sri Ramana Maharshi who Sri Ramana openly conceded to be Self-Realised, considered Sri Sadhu Om to be one of the few people who truly understood Sri Ramana Maharshi’s teachings.”
Why is it that only a few devotees of Sri Ramana were self-realized or truly understood his teachings? Since he was quite well known world wide, wouldn’t we expect there to be hundreds or thousands of self-realized students? It seems that there are a few possibilities: the teachings could have a low efficacy, they could be too difficult to follow for the majority of people, or they could be too difficult to understand for the majority of people. Whichever one of these is the case, this would seem to suggest that the chances of achieving self-realization are low for an average person such as myself. What would you say to that? Thanks.
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Relatively speaking, we do not know how many people Bhagavan Sri Ramana reached and how many were liberated through ‘His Grace’. However we do know that he stated Muruganar was self-realised.
As for yourself, what choice do you have but to try?
Namaste and best wishes
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Thanks for your reply. Maybe I’m thinking about this in the wrong way, but it seems to me that since there are so many different teachers out there advocating for different techniques, that I should choose the one that has the highest success rate. In your experience as a teacher, what proportion of your students would say have “completed” the path? Some might say to just stick with the teachings that resonate, but I’ve never experienced the sense of devotion to a teacher that you’ve talked about, and there are many teachings that have resonated with me, so it’s difficult for me to settle on one. Thanks again!
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Hi, I figured I should give self-inquiry a fair shot, and I’ve been trying to do it every day for the past couple of weeks. I think I have a better idea of how it works now.
Basically I’ve been trying to follow your advice to ignore or move away from the “body, mind and world” and go towards the Self. I’ve been doing it with my eyes closed since I’m not trying to pay attention to the world. Then I try to notice that I am not my thoughts, and each time I have a thought, I try to let it fade away without grasping for it. I also try to notice that the sensations in the body are not me, and gradually the sense of being located in a body starts to fade away, at this point, one of the following tends to happen:
1. I can no longer locate or find a sense of self, but it still feels like there is one somewhere.
2. I continue trying to go towards the “Self” and there is a sensation kind of like I’m falling out of my body. It’s a similar feeling to being on a roller coaster, with nothing to hold onto. I’ve experienced similar sensations many times after watching non-duality videos. One time, it led to a glimpse of non-duality, but usually there is a strong fear response and I feel like I can’t let go or surrender.
Do you have any advice on how to deal with these issues? Maybe you have a video that covers them but I can find it. Thanks so much.
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please provide source where Murugnar said that Sadhu OM is few of those who understood teachings
namaste
thankful
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