Shinji Takahashi talked too much. Ramana Maharshi was too silent. — Silence and eloquence, which one creates a legend?

There are broadly two types of religious figures.

Those who talk, and those who remain silent.

In my previous article, I analyzed the charismatic figure Shinji Takahashi. This time, I will take up a person at the opposite extreme—Ramana Maharshi. By comparing them, certain things become visible.

The man who talked too much

Shinji Takahashi talked. He gave lectures, wrote books, opened spiritual paths, made people speak in tongues, and made them recall their past lives. He created an organization called GLA and even established a publishing company called Sanpo Shuppan.

What happened as a result?

The teachings spread. But at the same time, the room for verification also expanded. Disciples were recorded on videotape. Sisters created separate communities and called each other demons. A person named Ryuho Okawa appeared, claimed to have inherited the teachings, and later denied it.

The more one talks, the more contradictions are born. When contradictions are born, cracks appear.

The man who was too silent

Ramana Maharshi was born in South India in 1879. One day at the age of 17, he was suddenly struck by the fear of death. He lay on the floor and observed death from within. After that experience, his sense of self is said to have undergone a fundamental transformation.

What he did after that was—to keep sitting at the foot of a mountain called Arunachala.

He did not create an organization. He did not systematize his doctrine. He did not seek money. He did not rank his disciples.

He left behind almost only one teaching.

“Inquire, ‘Who am I?’”

What silence created

Strange things happened around Ramana.

Visitors would suddenly burst into tears in front of Ramana, who sat in silence. People appeared who reported that their long-standing suffering had vanished. And almost no trouble occurred in the community.

Because he did not talk, he was not verified. No contradictions were born. Sisters did not split. No ridiculous scenes were recorded on videotape.

And because he did not talk—those around him talked.

Biographies contain striking episodes. There is a scene where, in his youth, he threw all his money into a river and ran toward the mountains.

However, it is hard to believe that Ramana himself told this story. The moment one says, 'I was so selfless,' one is no longer selfless. It is likely a saintly legend that was either passed down by someone who witnessed it or created later.

In religious studies, there is a concept called 'hagiography.' The life of a saint is mythologized after the fact. The more silent the person was, the larger the space left for those around them to tell their story.

Ramana became a legend because he was too silent.

Why did no trouble occur?

What I find most difficult to explain about Ramana is not the spiritual phenomena or the prophecies.

The fact that people gathered and, for a long period, almost no trouble occurred.is the reality.

Even in families, trouble occurs. Even in a community of ten, after the head priest leaves, the bad-mouthing begins. Yet, this was maintained for decades without an organization, rules, or enforcement.

Structural reasons can be explained. Without an organization, there is no struggle for rank. If money does not move, there are no financial troubles. The inward question of 'Who am I?' is unlikely to be directed toward judging others.

However, it is doubtful whether that alone can fully explain it.

As one hypothesis—it is possible that the people around Ramana were actually changing neurologically by living the question. Research has confirmed that the brain structure of long-term meditation practitioners changes. As self-inquiry deepens, attachment to others and the spirit of competition fade away.

In other words, it was not Ramana who performed the miracle, but the people around Ramana—a reversal hypothesis. Ramana was merely a catalyst.

One could call this the 'Ramana was just a human being' theory.

Harmless lost souls

Ramana makes people lose their way.

There is no answer to the question, 'Who am I?' The more you inquire, the more the contours of yourself dissolve.

However, that state of being lost is a state of being lost within oneself.

In Shinji Takahashi's community, there was a phone attack lasting over an hour against the mother of a high school student who tried to leave. There was verbal abuse that lasted for days. That was a state of being lost that harmed others.

Even if you get lost in Ramana's question, no one will attack you with phone calls. There is no organization, no hierarchy, and no demands for money.

Harmless lost souls versus harmful lost souls—this may be one axis for measuring the danger of religion.

An unexplainable margin

However, even here, an unexplainable margin remains.

The report that something fundamentally changed during his near-death experience at age 17 comes from the person himself. Whether that experience is neuroscientifically explainable remains unanswered at this time.

I wrote that for Shinji Takahashi, 'one unexplainable margin remained'.

For Ramana Maharshi, almost everything is a margin.

Because he did not speak, it cannot be verified. Silence created a legend, but at the same time, it preserved the mystery.

Speaking and remaining silent

Shinji Takahashi talked too much. That is why he was scrutinized, contradictions were found, and his community split. Yet, 'one unexplainable margin' remained.

Ramana Maharshi was too silent. That is why he became a legend, the mystery was preserved, and no trouble occurred. However, he remained full of unexplainable margins.

I have no intention of answering the question of which one was right.

There is only one thing I can say.

If you speak, you will be verified. If you remain silent, you will become a myth.

And neither stopped humans from continuing to hold a 'sense of something greater'.

There are infinite things I do not know. I have simply explained what I could explain. What I could not explain, I leave as a margin.

That is the only honest attitude I can take.

[Co-authored with a machine - Draft]

#Religion #Spiritual #RamanaMaharshi #Neuroscience #Meditation #Charisma #ShinjiTakahashi #PersonalExperience #Philosophy #AnalyzingWhatWasSeen