Quotes by Swami Rama

"The Sanskrit word for 'action' is 'karma', derived from the root 'kri' which means 'to do'.
One does action and gets remunerated for it, in turn transferring 
this remuneration to others for work done by them. 
Thus, fruit has arisen out of action, and action out of fruit.
From time immemorial, life has been conducted in this manner.
This is called the wheel of karma. 
To act with the motive of gaining fruits is to invite bondage. 
Relinquishing the fruits frees us from all miseries."

"Love and attachment are two different things. Love means giving
selflessly, excluding none and including all. Attachment is possessing
something. In reality, it is bondage. There is a vast difference
between love and attachment. Western people say, "How can you live
without attachment?" Well, you can live wonderfully without
attachment. You can live on love. Love and attachment are poles
apart. One is the cause of freedom. The other is the cause of bondage."

"First your teacher introduces you to the real teacher within you, 
which is called your own conscience. Then you start counseling 
within: "I should not do this because it is not helpful. This is 
creating an obstacle for me." The teacher inspires you, gives you 
strength--that strength which is already within you. The teacher 
introduces you to your own conscience and says, "My child, look 
within and be guided by this."

"You really do not need to know many things, 
but you definitely need to practice what you know."

Source: http://www.iloveulove.com/wisdom/wisdomquotes2.htm

On meditation...

"When you practice meditation, 
nitially you come in touch with yourself and all your thought patterns;
you come to understand your inner dialogue. 
Then, you learn to discriminate—to select and reject; 
and finally, you learn how to work with yourself."

On searching for God...

"You are searching for something without understanding that it is within you. 
Search within. This is a direct approach. 
Do not search for God outside. God is already within you. 
When you come to know that God dwells within you, 
then your life will totally change and you will be transformed. 
When you have perfect control over the modifications of the mind, 

you will attain the highest level of consciousness or samadhi.” 

From: Yoga the Sacred Science, volume one by Swami Rama


On who we are...

"I have come to share my joy truthfully with you.
I say, ye human beings, among all the species on the earth, you are the greatest.
You are the greatest for you can change your destiny, you can build your destiny,

you can enlighten yourself.”

From: Conscious Living: A Guidebook for Spiritual Transformation by Swami Rama


On God, the One unborn...

“His tray of lapis forms the sky where sun and moon as lanterns lie;
Like precious gems the stars are strewn upon His tray beside the moon.
The perfume of the scented trees is carried by the gentle breeze
And blossoms of the earth adorn His holy feet,

the One unborn." 

Sri Guru Granth Sahib Volume I, in English Verse Transcreated by Swami Rama

Source: http://tantra-massage.co.za/pages/quotes.php

The poor long for riches, the rich long for heaven, but the
  wise long for a state of tranquility.

Source: http://www.inspirational-quotations.com/peace-quotes.html

Invocation - From Advaita Vedanta Standpoint

In Brahman, there is not separation.

Then, who is there to see?
The Reality, which is without encumbrances, is, itself, the most natural state of samadhi. 
It is in that state that the sorrow and scourge of worldly life have their end.
That which is the end of attachment
Is to be understood as the final doctrine.
It is also verified by the Vedas and the Guru,
And the actual experience of the Self.
Enough with this.
Brahman is that Eternity in which there is no illusion or maya.
The one who has experienced it
Will realize the meaning of this.
The one thing that we must do
Is to discard concepts projected by the mind, at any level,
Through Self-Realization,
And then there is the eternal paradise of Bliss.

— - Sant Ramadasa (Samarth Ramdas) in his Dasboadh

Sri Ramana Maharshi's Enlightenment, July 17 1896

This is a first person account by Ramana of his enlightenment: “One day I was alone in the first floor of my uncle’s house. I was in my usual state of health. But a sudden and unmistakable fear of death seized me. I felt I was going to die. Why I should have so felt cannot now be explained by anything else in the body. I did not however trouble myself to discover if the fear was well grounded. I did not care to consult doctors or elders or even friends. I felt I had to solve the problem myself then and there.”

“The actual inquiry and discovery of ‘Who am I?’ was over on the very first day, after a short time. Instinctively I held my breath and began to dive inward with my inquiry into my own nature … I stretched myself like a corpse and it seemed to me that my body had actually become rigid—‘I’ was not dead—‘I’ was, on the other hand conscious of being alive, in existence. So the question arose in me, “What was this ‘I’?” I felt that it was a force or current working, despite the rigidity or activity of the body, though existing in connection with it. It was that current or force or center that constituted my personality, that kept me acting, moving, etc. The fear of death dropped off. I was absorbed in the contemplation of that current. So further development or activity was issuing from the new life and not from any fear.”

What happened after this was narrated by Ramana to Narashima Swami.

“That changed my mental attitude and habits. I had formerly some preferences and aversions. All these dropped off and all food was swallowed with equal indifference. I would put up with every burden imposed on me at home, every slight at my expense by the boys. Studies and duties became a matter of utter indifference and I was going through studies turning over pages mechanically.”

After his enlightenment, there was no change in the state of Ramana’s steady Self-abidance.

Source: http://www.satramana.org/html/who_am_i_.htm