Letters from Sri Ramanasramam, by Suri Nagamma

It is the same in regard to the attributes of the jiva-satvam,
ghora and jadam. Ghoram means the quality of rajas, and jadam
means the quality of tamas. Both these are parts of Satvam. If
these two are removed, what remains is only Satvam. That is
the truth which is eternal and pure. Call it Atman, Brahman,
Shakti or anything you like. If you know that that is yourself,
everything is lustrous. Everything is Ananda.”
That questioner said, “The ancients say that for a person
who wants to know that real state sadhana, sravana, manana,
and nididhyasana are absolutely necessary till the very end.”
Bhagavan replied, “They are necessary only to get rid of the
various things that come from outside and that too for
purposes of sadhana only, but not for realising the Self. One’s
own self is there at all times and in all places. Sravana, etc.,
are to be resorted to only to get rid of external influences,
but if they are regarded as the most important things they
will be the cause of the development of the feelings of
ahankara, such as ‘I am a pandit’ (learned man), ‘I am a great
man’ and the like. That is a big samsara (family). It is difficult
to get rid of it later on. It is bigger than a wild elephant. It
will not yield ordinarily.

“For that wild elephant, it is said that Guru Kataksham
(the Grace of the Guru) is like seeing a lion in its dream,”
said the questioner. “That is true. If an elephant sees a lion
in its dream, it wakes up startled and will not sleep again
that day for fear that the lion might appear again in a dream.

In the same way in a man’s life which is also akin to a dream,
it is not Guru Kataksham alone, but also sravana, manana,
nididhyasana, etc., that are akin to the sight of a lion in a
dream. As they go on getting these dreams they wake up,
and again go to bed and by efflux of time they may some
day get a lion’s dream called Guru Kataksham in an intense
manner. They get startled and obtain jnana. Then there will
be no more dreams and they will not only be wakeful at all
times but will not give room for any dreams of life but will
remain alert until that true and real knowledge is obtained.

These lion’s dreams are unavoidable and must be
experienced,” said Bhagavan.

With some surprise, that questioner said, “Are sravana
etc. and Guru Kataksha akin to dreams?” “Yes, that is so. For
those who realise the truth, everything is akin to a dream.

That being so, what do you now say is the truth? During
sleep you have no control over this body. You wander about
in various places with different bodies. You do all sorts of
things. At that time everything appears real. You do
everything as if you are the doer. It is only after you wake up
that you feel that you are a Venkiah or a Pulliah, that what
you had experienced in the dream is unreal and that it was
only a dream. Not only that. Sometimes you go to bed after
eating your fill at night — sweets such as laddu and jilebi.

During sleep you dream that you are wandering in all sorts
of places, cannot get food and are about to die of starvation.

When you get up startled, you will be belching. Then you
will realise that the whole thing was a dream. But during
that sleep, did you remember about this (your overeating)?
Another person goes to bed suffering from starvation. In his
dream, he enjoys a feast, eating laddu and jilebi. Will he
remember at that time the fact that he had gone to bed
hungry? No, he wakes up and finds himself terribly hungry.

‘Oh God! It is all illusion, a mere dream,’ he thinks. That is
all. You were existent in the wakeful state as well as in the
dream state and also in the sleeping state. When you are
able to understand your state which had been existent all
the time, you will then understand that all the rest is like a
dream. When that is known, the feeling that the Guru is
different from you will disappear. But then, since this
realisation must come about because of Guru Kataksha, that
Guru Kataksha is likened to a dream of a lion. That dream
must be intense and must imprint itself in one’s mind. It is
only then that a proper wakefulness will come about. For
that, the time must be propitious. If sadhana is performed
relentlessly, some time or other favourable results turn up.

That is all.” So saying, Bhagavan assumed a dignified silence.

The clock struck four. The people in the hall who were
completely absorbed in this spiritual discourse of Bhagavan,
came back to their own consciousness. The voice of Bhagavan
was ringing in my ears. I returned, wondering whether at
any time in this life I would get that lion’s dream of Guru
Kataksha and get it imprinted on my mind.