My son's answers...

I speak to my son over phone when I am in office and his answers amaze me. Conversation:

I: Ramana, what are you doing?
Ramana: I am standing.

Sometimes, he says "I am sitting" or "I am eating" or "I am speaking."

What amazes me is that his answers are coming from the present: just what he is doing right then. When you ask yourself the same questions, the answers are very different. Our answers have the tinge of past/future whereas kids speak of the present.

Ramana's answers remind of Bhagavan Ramana asking us to be in the present!

Jai Ramana Bhagavan.

Mountain Path - ebooks on SriRamanaMaharshi.org

http://www.sriramanamaharshi.org/bookstall/mountainpath.html

Excerpt from the web page there -
"Access Past Issues of 'The Mountain Path':

We are currently in the process of converting, all the past issues of 'The Mountain Path' from 1964 up to the most recent issue, into eBook format. To access the past issues in eBook format, from 1964 to 1970, 1986 to 1997 and 2003 to 2008, click below."

Just amazing! Imagine reading the first edition of Mountain Path!!! Incredible. The Ashram has once again come out with this wonderful projects in the benefit of Bhagavan's devotees.

Blog entries on Openmoko and Linux...moved...

All posts on Openmoko and Linux are now at: http://openology.blogspot.com...but, some might end up here too :-)

Upadesha Saram - talks by Swami Ishwarananda of Sri Chinmaya Mission

I got 2 CDs of the talks on Upadesha Saram by Swami Ishwarananda of Sri Chinmaya Mission from a devotee of Bhagavan. I found this colleage in my office to be a devotee and when I spoke with him about he being a Bhagavan devotee, he passed these CDs to me.

Beautiful I must say! There is meditation accompanied by the talks. One special mention is for the verse -
uttamastavAduccha mandataHa |
chittajam japadhyAnamuttamam ||

Swamiji starts the meditation with loud om namaH shivAya, then reduces the chanting volume and then finally stops it (before beginning this, he says that at the end, please chant it within yourselves).

What more can you ask for?
om namo bhagavathe sri ramanAya.

Openmoko Freerunner

After a full year of waiting, I have my own Openmoko Freerunner phone! From the moment I saw it, opened it, the feeling cannot be described in words. Nothing else/less will do.

Got it to my hands in Bangalore from IDA systems in Jaipur. This one costs quite a bit in India (priced at $399 in the USA to $489 taking Rupee 45 to a dollar when I bought it). It sure is a lot more than the international price. But, here's what one of my friends had to say- This price is nothing in comparison to what it offers.

Some even asked me the USP (Unique Selling Point), some were surprised at the cost factor, but, never mind the thing as I have been waiting for it for more than an year. It sure is worth the wait.

I am now using Qtopia on it and using it as my fulltime phone!!!

I forgot, the stylus you see is not the default. I bought just to use a lighter one. And, this phone is using the AirTel GSM network.

Openmoko reerunner

Bhagavan's biography reached today (April 14th)

I had placed an order for Bhagavan's 8 volumed biography in English with Sri Ramansramam Book Depot. The waiting ended today, April 14th which is Bhagavan's Maharnirvana day! Bhagavan's way.

Dad asked me to come home early to chant Aksharamanamalai. He was there at Sri Ramansramam last year sitting with the group of people opposite Bhagavan's Mahanirvana room while we were doing the Giripradakshina.

Om Ramana.

Back from another visit to Tiruvannamalai

Went there for Sri Lakshmana Swamy's darshan, but the official darshan is on 3 days: Jan 1st, Deepam day and December 25th. I thought it was the Tamil new year's day (April 14th). We were there pretty early, at 0630 and the Swamy and Sri Saradamma came in their car back to their house. The car came in slowly, so, we could get their darshan for a few seconds. It was like a bonus!!! After they went in, Sri Saradamma was giving some instructions to 2 people there and we got a few more glimpses of the mother. No one else turned up for the darshan and the few who were there also left, so, we found out our *mistake* and got going.

Went to Skandasramam and Virupaksha Guhai with Attimber, Shiva and Meenu. All of us enjoyed it to the core. While coming down, the stones were really really hot, so, we had to dance like lord Shiva while climbing down.

In the evening, we started the Giripradakshina from the temple and started chanting Arunachala Shiva, Arunachala Shiva, Arunachala Shiva, Arunachala... Mom also came along, only dad chose to stay back at Sri Ramanasramam. Saro asked: Will the entire path be so crowded and noisy? I said no. Later, it occurred to me that - when we start on the Giripradakshina, there is a lot of noise, but as we proceed further, the noises reduce and finally it becomes very very silent. Is that why Bhagavan prescribed walking around Arunachala? We finished the walk at 0145 in the night!!! Meenu and Shiva enjoyed the Idukku Pillayaar darshan.

Next morning, we sat for a while in the old hall, visited the bookshop and started back to our places.

This visit was amazing! We stayed at Sri Seshadri Swami's ashram. One of the Videos I got was *Guru Ramana - His Living Presence" which contains interview snippets with Bhagavan's devotees. Amazingly well done and a true inspiration for all. I've e-mailed Arunachala Ashrama, New York asking them if I could get the entire set and the entire length interviews.

Om Sri RamaNarpaNamastu.

Why does the 'I' thought get lost?

I was wondering: Sri Ramana says that in every thought there is the 'I' thought, so, how can we know if it is there and why does is get hidden?

Initially, I dismissed it as something trivial and instead thought it is good to find the 'I' instead of thinking as to why it is lost. Then, while speaking with Bhatta, I got an answer.

Every thought that comes is about something, or someone and when it occurs, the only thing I know is about what is being thought. So, I become that something or someone and in the process, have lost myself.

So, If I can just BE and not BECOME, what else is needed?
Jai Sri Ramana!!!