WHERE MUST A DEVOTEE LIVE?
If oneself (the ego) rises, all will rise; if oneself subsides, all
will subside. To the extent to which we behave humbly, to that extent (and to
that extent only) will good result. If one can remain controlling the mind
(keeping the mind subsided), one can live anywhere.
Sri Ramana Maharshi in Who am I?
To know of that which is
deemed “Good”, one must surely surrender to It with devotion as well as with
knowledge. These two are in essence one, for the secret of Enlightenment is the
Love of God! Though many of Bhagavan’s disciples flowered in the fullness of jnana, what strikes us most in them is
their total love and bhakti to
Bhagavan.
Thus the Maharshi, the
embodiment of Love, enticed us with His words, with His glance, with His life
that shone upon us as a brilliant sun to know:
“The eternal,
unbroken, natural state of abiding in the Self is jnana. To abide in the Self you must love the Self. Since God is
verily the Self, love of the Self is love of God; and that is bhakti. Jnana and bhakti are thus one and the same…. their purpose is to lead you to dhyana, to meditation, which ends in
Self-realization.” [1]



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