The Real Seer

Sri Ramana Maharshi

• If the eye that sees be the eye of flesh, then gross forms are seen; if that eye be assisted by lenses, then even invisible things are seen to have form; if the mind be the eye, then subtle forms are seen; thus the seeing eye and the objects seen are of the same nature; that is, if the eye be itself a form, it sees nothing but forms. But neither the physical eye nor the mind has any power of vision of its own; the real eye is the Self; as He is formless, being the pure and infinite Consciousness, the Reality, He does not see forms.
• The mind is nothing but the stream of thoughts, that passes over Consciousness. Of all these thoughts, the first one is the thought 'I am this body'. This is a false thought; but because it is taken as true, it is possible for other thoughts to arise. So the mind is just an outgrowth of the primary ignorance, and is therefore unreal.
• If I am eternal and perfect, why am I ignorant? Answer: Who is ignorant? The real Self does not complain of ignorance. It is the ego in you that so complains. It is that which also asks questions. The Self does not ask any question. And this ego is neither the body, nor the real Self, but something arising in between the two. In sleep there was no ego, and you had no sense of imperfection or ignorance then. Thus the ego is itself imperfection and ignorance. If you seek the truth of the ego and thus find the real Self, you will find that there is no ignorance.