Teachers We Like

Ramana (1879 - 1950) lived in India, where most people don't have much material stuff, where there have been a lot of helpful ideas around for millennia, where it's not that easy to think that any one group has a monopoly on Truth. He was a humble little man with no big ambitions, no ax to grind. He loved the place where he lived, the hill of Arunachala. When he was only 16 he had a life-changing experience in which he thought he was going to die, and in the process realized that the body dies, but the body is not "I," and that "I" is something beyond change, beyond death. His advice to others was "self-enquiry" -- to look inward, to question and seek the source of every feeling and every thought -- who feels? who thinks? who am I? -- until you finally realise that you are NOT the body, you are NOT the ego, NOT the personality, you are simply That, unchanging, eternal, free.

Links:
* Realization.org - Ramana Maharshi
* Sentient.org - Ramana and others

Papaji (1910 - 1997) was shown the Truth by Ramana. He was a vigorous, energetic, happy man who influenced many westerners who came to his Satsang, including Gangaji. As Ramana loved the hill of Arunachala, Papaji loved the River Ganga. His most usual advice to people was to do nothing, to stop trying to climb spiritual mountains; to Be Quiet, to Be Still.

Papaji said:

"You are the unchangeable Awareness in which all activity takes place. Always rest in peace. You are eternal Being, unbounded and undivided. Just keep Quiet. All is well. Keep Quiet Here and Now. You are Happiness, you are Peace, you are Freedom. Do not entertain any notions that you are in trouble. Be kind to yourself. Open to your Heart and simply Be."

Links:
* Realization.org - Papaji
* Website all about Papaji

Gangaji (1942 - ) is one of Papaji's "ambassadors," whom he told to go back home and spread his message. She lives in Ashland, Oregon, but gives retreats and public meetings worldwide. Very sweet, but very practical and ruthless in her way, Gangaji is dedicated to Truth in a very big way, saying that she was commanded to tell the truth regardless of consequences. She invites us to take a critical look at our "stories," the tales we tell ourselves and others about who we think we are and what we think our lives are all about; to realize that there is nothing absolute or eternal about our stories, and that the truth of one's Self lies beyond the stories. In her words, "My core message is that you’re not who you think you are. Who you are can’t actually be thought." Gangaji believes that seekers should "call off the search": stop seeking, stop questioning, stop doing, stop suffering, stop seeking validation in our stories and in the opinions of others, and simply BE in stillness and vigilance.

Gangaji writes:

"Attend to what is already still. Silence can't be followed. Silence doesn't go anywhere. Silence can only be met in silence. I invite you to give up all concepts of your life, your destiny, your purpose, your past, your present, your future, and to see what is untouched by this possessive pronoun of suffering. The invitation of Ramana, who speaks from the core of your own being, calls to you with the simple phrase, be still."

Links:
* Gangaji Foundation website
* An interview with Gangaji

The three teachers above are very BIG, comprehensive teachers. BooBoo-Ji (1991 - 2005) was a very meek, unpretentious little teacher. An Old Soul who had come back many times, in her final incarnation she was a little blue-eyed sled dog in the Yukon who became enlightened in the last year of her life. She sat or lay on the bed beneath a photograph of her guru Gangaji, radiating Unconditional Love and Light. Her presence still lingers strongly in the place where she lived, and her website seems to help many people find peace in times of trouble or depression. BooBoo-Ji's message was entirely without words or thoughts. She was Here, she was Still, and she was Love. And her teaching was enormous.

Link:
* BooBoo-Ji's home page