23.
HOW THE MANTRA CAME

THE mantra "Om namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya"

fascinated me greatly in my early days; it so delighted
me that I had always a vision of Sri Krishna in my mind.
I had a premonition that this body would pass away in its
fortieth year, and I wanted to have a darshan of the Lord
before that time. I fasted and practised devotion to
Vasudeva incessantly; I read Sri Bhagavad Gita and Srimad Bhagavatam
with great delight. Then when I read in the
Gita "Jnani tu atmaiva me matam" (In my view, the Jnani
is my own Self ) I was greatly delighted. This line of thought
came to me: "While I have at hand Bhagavan Sri Ramana,
who is Himself Vasudeva, why should I worship Vasudeva
separately?" Be it noted that all this was in my early days
before settling with Bhagavan at His Ashram. So I wanted
one single mantra, a single worship (devata ^[?]), and a single
scripture, so that there might be no conflict of loyalties.
Sri Ramana Paramatman became easily the God to
worship, His collected works easily became the gospel; as
for the mantra, it struck me intuitively that "Om namo
Bhagavate Sri Ramanaya" might be an exact parallel to
"Om namo Bhagavate vasudevaya."

      I counted the letters in this new mantra, and was
very happy to find it also contained twelve letters; I told
this all to Sri Bhagavan, and He gave the mantra His
approval.

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      Advanced practisers (sadhaks) and thinkers may laugh
at this and say: "Why do you need a mantra while the
Ocean of Bliss is there to be immersed into directly?" I
confess that in this I was trying to conform to the
traditional method of practice (upasana) which forms one
of the main elements in bhakti ^[?] (devotion). Bhagavan has
revealed His true nature as the All-Witness; yet there is
the explicit injunction that Advaita must be only in the
attitude and never be interpreted in outer action.

      This is how the mantra first came out.

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