The quintessence of Ramana Maharshi’s teaching is found in a small booklet called ‘Who am I?’ This little booklet contains the first set of instructions given by Ramana Maharshi. They are direct from his unique experience of self-realization. The original set of questions was asked by Sivaprakasam Pillai which was later presented by Ramana Maharshi in prose form.
The power of the teaching can be realized by anyone who puts it into practice. In Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi 80 we read “Let him find out to whom are the thoughts. Where from do they arise? They must spring up from the conscious Self. Apprehending it even vaguely helps the extinction of the ego. Thereafter the realisation of the one Infinite Existence becomes possible. In that state there are no individuals other than the Eternal Existence. Hence there is no thought of death or suffering.” The full teaching may be downloaded here “Who Am I?”. Here is an adapted version for easy reference.
Who am I?
Every living being longs to be happy, untainted by sorrow; and everyone has the greatest love for himself, which is solely due to the fact that happiness is his real nature. Hence, in order to realise that inherent and untainted happiness, which indeed he daily experiences when the mind is subdued in deep sleep, it is essential that he should know himself. For obtaining such knowledge the enquiry, ‘Who am I?’ in quest of the Self is the best means.
Source: http://www.sriramanamaharshi.org/teachings/instructions/
Ramana Maharshi
Ramana Maharshi /ˈrʌmənə məhʌˈrɪʃi/ was an Indian sage and jivanmukta. He was born Venkataraman Iyer, but was and is most commonly known under the name Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi. He was born in what is now Tiruchuli, Tamil Nadu, South India. Wikipedia
Born: December 30, 1879, Tiruchuli, India
Died: April 14, 1950, Sri Ramana Ashram, Tiruvannamalai, India