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SAMADHI

Q: Bhagavan speaks of samadhi, trance. I take it to mean the total loss of body consciousness. I am afraid I shall never be able to attain it. I find it hard to send myself to sleep even. Is it necessary before Self-Realization?

Bhagavan: (laughing) You have to take chloroform in that case. Samadhi is itself the state of the Self. What do you understand by total loss of body consciousness? You do not imagine it to be falling into a sort of catalepsy or deep sleep. In samadhi the mind is in jagrat, but, being free from thoughts, it enjoys the bliss of sushupti, in which the mind is withdrawn. In samadhi, the mind is so alert that it experiences Brahman. If it were not so fully awake, how would it know Brahman? In fact, it itself becomes Brahman. Does trance convey that idea? If not, it is the wrong word for samadhi.

C. Do Karma yogis and Bhaktas also pass through samadhi?

Bhagavan: Samadhi is merging in the Heart through concentration and mind control. Karma and bhakti yogis also attain samadhi if they practice. In fact, most of them attain mukti eventually by the vichara method.

- Guru Ramana