MAHA YOGA
A Garland of Sonnets
By OM (Oleg Mogilever, St. Petersburg, RUSSIA), 1986
Translated from the Russian by OM, 2004 Edited by Alan Jacobs, 2004
I
Sadguru is clearing the Path only for His devotees, Granting great Grace within and from heaven, And how lucky is one, who embarks on vichara, Yearning only for Atman as his God the Self.
Th...e Master, activated by his own Heart, Did not let Himself to dream, but left home, When He heard the call of Arunachala: “Leave it to Me, forget about the mundane!”
It seemed He was bearing His flesh by tapas, But the dagger of truth, into the heart of death, Was thrust into this youth by Direct Cognition.
Now for aspirants we’re given the living clue And everybody must repeat His experiment – The purpose came to light by His experience.
II
The purpose came to light by His Experience. “Yes, the body perishes. But it’s not my Self!” The fear of death is a most illusive snake Disappearing in the radiance of True Knowledge.
If ego is then the life of the world, and is Real But if it is only a myth, only the lila of Being. Where is the Truth? “The Self will soon appear When all forms and names are discarded.
Joking apart, there’s no Path more serious. ‘ Know Thyself ‘ – here’s the Practice, not a slogan, This maha yoga will work only for valiant ones.
2
You must travel through a blazing fire, Through the test of the bottomless well. O, seeker, don’t forget to wear your courage! ”
III
“O, seeker, don’t forget to wear your courage! It will support you in the sea as a lifebelt, If there is no any sign of hope from without, When impossible return to all normal footholds.
Catching sight of ego-self, inquiring, Keep attention on Self, but closing eyelids Don’t let consciousness, oh ignoramus, sleep, Let your self-enquiry act like a riding whip!
Dispelling a stream of thought-forms Be vigilant, courageous and rigorous Doing away with all ego’s sculptures.
In order to keep the unshakeable course Tirelessly increase your spiritual resource – Keep a strong mumuksha beneath the garment! ”
IV
“Keep a strong mumuksha beneath the garment, A craving for Liberation, that powerful Will Which shall transform your Dream into a deed, Into effort of your Search, into the Path of Jnana.
In order to get the better of the old monkey – The mind as ego-self, stand firmly at your post, Know your aspiration as your second suit, Do the work continuously, without any flaw.
Always only abiding always into ‘That’ You shall feel yourself, boundless OM, As Bliss, Knowledge, and Existence.
So, my dear, be always on the watch, Inquire into a question, who’s regarded as you? Every moment don’t lose sight of the Task! ”
3
V
“Every moment don’t lose sight of the Task! Open wide the gift of inner sight! Only by a mood of earnest devotion Can one disperse the mirage of the universe.
It will lead away an adept with himself In order to stop the stream of his attention On the abode of eternal Fire-of-Existence, Desiring to destroy every available face.
The thought-ores dissolve without delay, Pursuing the source of these falsities, Not giving way to speech, to food, to dream!
Amidst nightmare of mental illusions In order to tear the mythical bonds It is necessary everywhere to see the Essence! ”
VI
“It is necessary everywhere to see the Essence! That Lotus of the glory, embodied at the Heart, That hidden, secret Reality-Doorway, A scarlet flame on the bridge with a bonfire.
That way drive thy herds, the Sadhak, The indefatigable Cerberus of thoughts, And they will vanish in the crater of the Heart. You will be aware of the shore as only Silence. O, my dear! Be always watchful! Don’t miss out on your inborn Gift: You are the Unity of Being and Knowledge!
But to really experience this level You must first give up deceptive bonds, – Only by uninterrupted acts of Worship.”
4
VII
“Only by uninterrupted acts of Worship And whole-hearted commited devotion You’ll burn bridges to sensual objects And be consolidated on the Path of Knowledge.
Give up by vichara your passions and whims When an obtrusive thought arises. The crutch of words has no need for you. Keep silence by subduing the heat of deeds.
O, dear, feel acutely the Heart’s air, Live in ‘Who am I?’ forgetting world and its breather, The Path of Self-enquiry is your true Path.
Know, only by the ascent of an earnest Search Amidst mirages of samsara’s reservoirs It is possible to win back your Primogeniture.”
VIII
“It is possible to win back your Primogeniture! When a kiwi bird in ancient times exhausted a vast sea With its beak, drop by drop, Siva’s Grace came! There is no grief! Like this labour dissolves hosts of vasanas
If without thinking about heaps of obstructions You are invariably on vigilant Patrol, Being on the watch of ego – the root of thoughts, Questioning ‘Who am I?’ there and here.
There are no more any sins, diseases and troubles! After casting them away as delirium of reasoning O, my dear, get down into thy bottomless well,
The Heart’s Path will lead thee forward, To that Reality which only lives alone. . . . . . . . . . . So aspire, being fully embodied in your Search!”
IX
“So aspire, being fully committed in the Search! Let since earliest times, play of the fuss Not bother you, the dedicated adept, No more the greedy stings of a mosquito.
5
Without any expectations go on the Path! To Oneself! It is time, after leaving fruitless rooms of books, To practice the Return-to-thy-foundations Experiencing the world as a myth, a mirage.
A family, a work, the body are only shadows Of your true Nature, shining everywhere, Not ever having either birth or death.
As soon as ego arose and rushed boldly to the battle ‘Who am I?’ untill duality is still with you You are the Self-enquiry! The thread of Life there is only in ‘THAT’! “
X
“You are the Self-enquiry! The thread of Life there is only in THAT! The other is delusion, fraud and Illusion. The spiritual sabre of ‘Who am I?’ Will kill thought by this question of all questions.
But that daughter of distinctions, as before, without permission Still strives to disturb your Camp, your Eternal nature. Very sharp is the way of Knowledge, which removes all outgrowths.
O, my dear, throw off upadhis of the body, Give up all, to the very last one. To the death, end drive of the ego, the imposter in Self. . . . . . . . . . . . Constantly staying at vichara Cognize the unity with no end: Your goal is a Heart of Being.”
XI
“Your goal is a Heart of Being. THAT. Which is inaccessible to vacillating thought And to a word – son of that shadow of Life, IT is within all parts, beyond life of ego-‘I’. A Single, Imperishable, Fatherland of all and everything. The authentic bliss lies beyond mirages of a day. There are not any further Truths behind IT. THAT is the Truth Itself.
Is thy warrior’s armor firm? Has thy sword of sacrifice hardened? You must without doubt, stop your profane life.
6
It will be burnt down on that sacred Bonfire Where your real Home is manifesting – In the infinitely innermost Flame that’s there.”
XII
. “In the infinitely innermost Flame that’s there Is living your Atman, Guru, ‘I am’ living Which is not subject to good and evil – Your Master is invariably calling.
Have you heard my Voice through walls of illusion? Burn it to ashes by your Self-enquiry! Know only Love to Me, Practice it without any fear or treason.
Not losing your attention, oh my dear, Go through nights of Ignorance to the imperishable dawn Without breaking out of touch with Me.
We will meet in the source of Fire. And not before and not later. Only then ego – nail of the universe – loses its power.”
XIII
The ego – nail of the universe – loses its power Into the arms of Guru – the Self of all, The Great Bhagavan Sri Ramana. His sacred teachings are listened to now.
Sravana. By finding the Direction, Love and Devotion for quest of THAT, It’s possible to realize the purpose of Life – BE and enjoy felicity in awareness: “All is One”.
“ The Lord, I am Thine! Now – forward! To the Meeting! THOU art my Self… Not empty words but only this Path Will bring forward the era of Happiness – Being.
Let the Self-enquiry dry up a sea of vasanas, May tamas, rajas and their grief vanish And the Truth is shining as ‘I – I’! ”
7
XIV
And the Truth is shining as ‘I – I’ Into Itself, by Itself, in its Nature, By Consciousness which brings the adept to Bliss. Bliss, carried through the fiery coach.
“O, Guru! Save me by Thy Grace! As a doll of salt is put into the ocean When she comes make it sound, Let ego dissolve in the Heart, in Self!
O, so thin is the bridge – as the edge of a razor – To THAT, who ALONE knows the result of battle. Oh Lord, give me powers for not turning aside from the way!
I am going to Thee, checking the course with Thee, It is the boundless Aspiration to the Truth.” . . . . . . . . . . Sadguru is clearing the Path only for His devotees.
XV (The main Sonnet)
Sadguru is clearing the Path only for His devotees, The purpose came to light by His Experience: “O, seeker, don’t forget to wear your courage, Keep a strong mumuksha beneath the garment.
Every moment don’t lose sight of the Task, It is necessary everywhere to see the Essence, Only by uninterrupted acts of Worship It is possible to win back your Primogeniture.
So aspire, being fully commited in the Search! You are the Self-enquiry! The thread of Life is only in THAT! Your goal is a Heart of Being.
In the infinitely innermost Flame that’s there The ego – nail of the universe – loses its power And the Truth is shining as ‘I – I’! ”
Om Sri Ramanarpanamastu
A Garland of Sonnets
By OM (Oleg Mogilever, St. Petersburg, RUSSIA), 1986
Translated from the Russian by OM, 2004 Edited by Alan Jacobs, 2004
I
Sadguru is clearing the Path only for His devotees, Granting great Grace within and from heaven, And how lucky is one, who embarks on vichara, Yearning only for Atman as his God the Self.
Th...e Master, activated by his own Heart, Did not let Himself to dream, but left home, When He heard the call of Arunachala: “Leave it to Me, forget about the mundane!”
It seemed He was bearing His flesh by tapas, But the dagger of truth, into the heart of death, Was thrust into this youth by Direct Cognition.
Now for aspirants we’re given the living clue And everybody must repeat His experiment – The purpose came to light by His experience.
II
The purpose came to light by His Experience. “Yes, the body perishes. But it’s not my Self!” The fear of death is a most illusive snake Disappearing in the radiance of True Knowledge.
If ego is then the life of the world, and is Real But if it is only a myth, only the lila of Being. Where is the Truth? “The Self will soon appear When all forms and names are discarded.
Joking apart, there’s no Path more serious. ‘ Know Thyself ‘ – here’s the Practice, not a slogan, This maha yoga will work only for valiant ones.
2
You must travel through a blazing fire, Through the test of the bottomless well. O, seeker, don’t forget to wear your courage! ”
III
“O, seeker, don’t forget to wear your courage! It will support you in the sea as a lifebelt, If there is no any sign of hope from without, When impossible return to all normal footholds.
Catching sight of ego-self, inquiring, Keep attention on Self, but closing eyelids Don’t let consciousness, oh ignoramus, sleep, Let your self-enquiry act like a riding whip!
Dispelling a stream of thought-forms Be vigilant, courageous and rigorous Doing away with all ego’s sculptures.
In order to keep the unshakeable course Tirelessly increase your spiritual resource – Keep a strong mumuksha beneath the garment! ”
IV
“Keep a strong mumuksha beneath the garment, A craving for Liberation, that powerful Will Which shall transform your Dream into a deed, Into effort of your Search, into the Path of Jnana.
In order to get the better of the old monkey – The mind as ego-self, stand firmly at your post, Know your aspiration as your second suit, Do the work continuously, without any flaw.
Always only abiding always into ‘That’ You shall feel yourself, boundless OM, As Bliss, Knowledge, and Existence.
So, my dear, be always on the watch, Inquire into a question, who’s regarded as you? Every moment don’t lose sight of the Task! ”
3
V
“Every moment don’t lose sight of the Task! Open wide the gift of inner sight! Only by a mood of earnest devotion Can one disperse the mirage of the universe.
It will lead away an adept with himself In order to stop the stream of his attention On the abode of eternal Fire-of-Existence, Desiring to destroy every available face.
The thought-ores dissolve without delay, Pursuing the source of these falsities, Not giving way to speech, to food, to dream!
Amidst nightmare of mental illusions In order to tear the mythical bonds It is necessary everywhere to see the Essence! ”
VI
“It is necessary everywhere to see the Essence! That Lotus of the glory, embodied at the Heart, That hidden, secret Reality-Doorway, A scarlet flame on the bridge with a bonfire.
That way drive thy herds, the Sadhak, The indefatigable Cerberus of thoughts, And they will vanish in the crater of the Heart. You will be aware of the shore as only Silence. O, my dear! Be always watchful! Don’t miss out on your inborn Gift: You are the Unity of Being and Knowledge!
But to really experience this level You must first give up deceptive bonds, – Only by uninterrupted acts of Worship.”
4
VII
“Only by uninterrupted acts of Worship And whole-hearted commited devotion You’ll burn bridges to sensual objects And be consolidated on the Path of Knowledge.
Give up by vichara your passions and whims When an obtrusive thought arises. The crutch of words has no need for you. Keep silence by subduing the heat of deeds.
O, dear, feel acutely the Heart’s air, Live in ‘Who am I?’ forgetting world and its breather, The Path of Self-enquiry is your true Path.
Know, only by the ascent of an earnest Search Amidst mirages of samsara’s reservoirs It is possible to win back your Primogeniture.”
VIII
“It is possible to win back your Primogeniture! When a kiwi bird in ancient times exhausted a vast sea With its beak, drop by drop, Siva’s Grace came! There is no grief! Like this labour dissolves hosts of vasanas
If without thinking about heaps of obstructions You are invariably on vigilant Patrol, Being on the watch of ego – the root of thoughts, Questioning ‘Who am I?’ there and here.
There are no more any sins, diseases and troubles! After casting them away as delirium of reasoning O, my dear, get down into thy bottomless well,
The Heart’s Path will lead thee forward, To that Reality which only lives alone. . . . . . . . . . . So aspire, being fully embodied in your Search!”
IX
“So aspire, being fully committed in the Search! Let since earliest times, play of the fuss Not bother you, the dedicated adept, No more the greedy stings of a mosquito.
5
Without any expectations go on the Path! To Oneself! It is time, after leaving fruitless rooms of books, To practice the Return-to-thy-foundations Experiencing the world as a myth, a mirage.
A family, a work, the body are only shadows Of your true Nature, shining everywhere, Not ever having either birth or death.
As soon as ego arose and rushed boldly to the battle ‘Who am I?’ untill duality is still with you You are the Self-enquiry! The thread of Life there is only in ‘THAT’! “
X
“You are the Self-enquiry! The thread of Life there is only in THAT! The other is delusion, fraud and Illusion. The spiritual sabre of ‘Who am I?’ Will kill thought by this question of all questions.
But that daughter of distinctions, as before, without permission Still strives to disturb your Camp, your Eternal nature. Very sharp is the way of Knowledge, which removes all outgrowths.
O, my dear, throw off upadhis of the body, Give up all, to the very last one. To the death, end drive of the ego, the imposter in Self. . . . . . . . . . . . Constantly staying at vichara Cognize the unity with no end: Your goal is a Heart of Being.”
XI
“Your goal is a Heart of Being. THAT. Which is inaccessible to vacillating thought And to a word – son of that shadow of Life, IT is within all parts, beyond life of ego-‘I’. A Single, Imperishable, Fatherland of all and everything. The authentic bliss lies beyond mirages of a day. There are not any further Truths behind IT. THAT is the Truth Itself.
Is thy warrior’s armor firm? Has thy sword of sacrifice hardened? You must without doubt, stop your profane life.
6
It will be burnt down on that sacred Bonfire Where your real Home is manifesting – In the infinitely innermost Flame that’s there.”
XII
. “In the infinitely innermost Flame that’s there Is living your Atman, Guru, ‘I am’ living Which is not subject to good and evil – Your Master is invariably calling.
Have you heard my Voice through walls of illusion? Burn it to ashes by your Self-enquiry! Know only Love to Me, Practice it without any fear or treason.
Not losing your attention, oh my dear, Go through nights of Ignorance to the imperishable dawn Without breaking out of touch with Me.
We will meet in the source of Fire. And not before and not later. Only then ego – nail of the universe – loses its power.”
XIII
The ego – nail of the universe – loses its power Into the arms of Guru – the Self of all, The Great Bhagavan Sri Ramana. His sacred teachings are listened to now.
Sravana. By finding the Direction, Love and Devotion for quest of THAT, It’s possible to realize the purpose of Life – BE and enjoy felicity in awareness: “All is One”.
“ The Lord, I am Thine! Now – forward! To the Meeting! THOU art my Self… Not empty words but only this Path Will bring forward the era of Happiness – Being.
Let the Self-enquiry dry up a sea of vasanas, May tamas, rajas and their grief vanish And the Truth is shining as ‘I – I’! ”
7
XIV
And the Truth is shining as ‘I – I’ Into Itself, by Itself, in its Nature, By Consciousness which brings the adept to Bliss. Bliss, carried through the fiery coach.
“O, Guru! Save me by Thy Grace! As a doll of salt is put into the ocean When she comes make it sound, Let ego dissolve in the Heart, in Self!
O, so thin is the bridge – as the edge of a razor – To THAT, who ALONE knows the result of battle. Oh Lord, give me powers for not turning aside from the way!
I am going to Thee, checking the course with Thee, It is the boundless Aspiration to the Truth.” . . . . . . . . . . Sadguru is clearing the Path only for His devotees.
XV (The main Sonnet)
Sadguru is clearing the Path only for His devotees, The purpose came to light by His Experience: “O, seeker, don’t forget to wear your courage, Keep a strong mumuksha beneath the garment.
Every moment don’t lose sight of the Task, It is necessary everywhere to see the Essence, Only by uninterrupted acts of Worship It is possible to win back your Primogeniture.
So aspire, being fully commited in the Search! You are the Self-enquiry! The thread of Life is only in THAT! Your goal is a Heart of Being.
In the infinitely innermost Flame that’s there The ego – nail of the universe – loses its power And the Truth is shining as ‘I – I’! ”
Om Sri Ramanarpanamastu
