This page is a transcription from English to Portuguese and Spanish of a rare video/documentary from 09/01/1946, about the life of Ramana Maharshi (1879–1950), which shows a little more about the personality of this mystic man, considered one of the greatest Indian seers. According to Paul Brunton (1898-1981), who experienced a long conviviality with him and who went through an intense moment of spiritual enlightenment, claiming to be the seer: “one of the last spiritual supermen in India, from a simple and modest temperament, yet surrounded by an atmosphere of authentic grandeur and not a trace of pretension”. 1
Due to the precariousness of the filming equipment at that time, the audio is interrupted for a moment, suffering cuts, confusing the narrative. And, to not produce a translation that could betray the presenter's message, what was not understood was omitted.
In addition to images of the spiritual hermitage, of Maharshi and devotees, the local life and mountain surroundings, there is also an image of a rare visit by Paramahansa Yogananda (1893-1952), alongside Brunton, greeting him.
Brunton was a British author of spiritual books. He is best known as one of the early popularizers of neo-Indian spiritualism in Western esoterism, mainly through his best-selling book, A Search in Secret India, particularly in chapter IX, The Hill of the Holy Beacon, where he meets Maharshi; in the book A Hermit in the Himalayas, and The Message of Arunachala, a book he dedicated especially to the Maharshi.
Paramahansa Yogananda, an Indian monk and yogi, who introduced the knowledge of self-realization to the West through his best-selling book, Autobiography of a Yogi, considered one of the most important works on spirituality and according to millions of copies still being sold, it is considered the book that changed the lives of its readers. Yogananda is considered “the best known and best-loved of all the Indian spiritual masters who came to the West. Through the strength of his character and his skilful imparting of perennial wisdom, he showed the way for millions how to transcend barriers to the liberation of the soul.”
Another inspired author on the life of the great seer was Mouni Sadhu (1897-1971); in his book Days of Great Peace, which became a best-seller, and Huberto Rohden (1893-1981), spiritual author, theologian, educator, who in a good-humoured memory of his visit to the hermitage in 1969, describes the disappointment he had when he met the hermitage of Maharshi, in the book My Experiences in Palestine, Egypt and India, in chapter My Disappointment in Arunáchala. According to Rohden: “I became even stronger in the conviction that the greatest tragedy for a great master is to have disciples after death. They took me to the small room where Maharshi lived his last days. There were his books and manuscripts. On the wall was a niche, with some bananas, pieces of coconut and other fruits. Faced with my strangeness and question, they explained that those foods were there and constantly replaced because the Maharshi's soul might want to feed... Poor master, so misunderstood by his so-called disciples!"
The video explores a ceremonial date, 09/01/1946 of a Tuesday, which commemorated the fiftieth anniversary of Maharshi's arrival at the foot of the sacred mountain soil of Arunáchala, located in Tiruvannamalai district in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, India.
On that day, thousands of pilgrims from all over the country arrived at the historic mountain sanctuary, in devotion to the holy seer, to revere and absorb the energy emanating from him, who through a life of severe austerity and deep contemplation reached spiritual wisdom and unique serenity, being considered one of the most important seers of all time.
Ramana Maharshi, a good man who lived in a world surrounded by dramas and dilemmas.
“Twice, daily and punctually, he walked around his beloved mountain and was so attached to it that he claimed that this mountain was the Divinity itself and that it was, according to ancient tradition, the spiritual heart or the centre of the Earth, and that walking around Arunachala was the happiest moment of his life!
He himself circled all over this mountain and insisted that pilgrims and their devotees take this approximately eight-mile hike as an important spiritual exercise.
Generally, the Maharshi seemed indifferent and didn't witness anything happening around him, but that didn't make him unaware of what was going on under certain circumstances.
First, he insisted that devotees and visitors not be prevented from visiting him, as he should be accessible to everyone at all times, even on his deathbed, when strength failed him and not even his head could lift. He even insisted that all visitors, upon arrival, were immediately fed a well-cooked, nutritious food. He himself, for many years, participated in and supervised the preparation of food.
The Maharshi was adamant that no preference should be given to him regarding food or convenience, saying that what was good for him was good for everyone, even if it was in the preparation of special food or medicine. He asked the attendants to distribute the food first to everyone and only ate after everyone was satisfied.
In his company, one could observe a total absence of distinction between women and men, caste or creeds, race and religion, between a prince and a peasant, or between an ascetic and a householder. People of all religions approached him, and he never instructed anyone to change their creed or abandon their faith, and he answered all questions patiently.
This principle of equality extended beyond human beings to plants and animals. His love and affinity for non-humans could only be compared to the wonderful son of Christ, St. Francis of Assisi. All animals approached him, and their silent languages were known to him. When he spoke, they understood and obeyed him; he arbitrated fights between monkeys and was also known to converse with tigers and wild snakes; the entire kingdom of nature accepted him as his guardian and defender.
All animals felt his grace and acted intelligently in his presence. He considered all life as his equal, and every animal that approached the hermitage deserved his space and resources. He said that they were the owners of the land, all the time, and that we men came to occupy what belongs to them, and that they could also speak and demand their rights. Despite this, he maintained the idea that, from man to the smallest of animals, they were the same manifestation of the Supreme Self, the Imperishable One, and that even they can progress spiritually and attain liberation on rare
occasions.
And this was demonstrated through the life of a cow that had accompanied him for over 20 years. His pet named Lakshmi exhibited a rare devotion to the Maharshi and showed intelligence in all matters, and she reciprocated that kind devotion. He said that the true teaching takes place in perfect silence, through the deeply introverted mind, but that does not mean that verbal teachings cannot be given and that although he authorized the practice of different spiritual exercises, he nevertheless emphasized the practice of the path of self-inquiry.”
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1)- The documentary location site is the: https://youtu.be/mYztHXDngoI
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