New enlarged e-book edition of Happiness and the Art of Being
Yesterday I posted on my website at www.happinessofbeing.com/resources/happiness_art_being.html a revised and enlarged second e-book edition of Happiness and the Art of Being.
Since I published the first e-book edition on 15th December 2006 I have revised it thoroughly, making many small amendments and incorporating a considerable number of additional explanations, together with translations of several more passages from the original Tamil writings of Sri Ramana.
Though I have incorporated the equivalent of about 80 pages of new material in this second e-book edition, the actual number of pages has increased only by about 32 pages, up to more than 570 pages, because the software that I have used to create the PDF file of this edition has produced a more compact but still very readable font, thereby ensuring that the printed version of this book will be a somewhat less massive volume.
Since the beginning of February I have posted in this blog most of the major additions that I have now incorporated in this second e-book edition. I have not incorporated any major addition in the introduction, in chapter 1, 'What is Happiness?', or in chapter 7, 'The Illusion of Time and Space', but the following is a list of most of the major additions or modifications that I have incorporated in the other eight chapters. For each addition, I have listed the page numbers at which it now appears in the new edition, a link to the article in this blog in which I posted it (if I did do so), and finally in brackets the page number of the location in the first edition in which I incorporated it.
Chapter 2, 'Who am I?':
- 111-112: The consciousness that we experience in sleep (119)
- 119-125: Our imaginary sleep of self-forgetfulness or self-ignorance (127)
- 125-129: Are we in this world, or is this world in us? (127 continued)
- 129-135: Our waking life is just another dream (127 continued)
- 135-140: Only the absolute clarity of true self-knowledge will put an end to all our dreams(127 continued)
- 140-141: Our self-consciousness is the absolute reality (127 continued)
- 152-154: Our real 'I' is formless and therefore unlimited (137)
- 161-165: Our body, mind and other adjuncts are not 'I' (145-146)
Chapter 3, 'The Nature of Our Mind':
- 173: One paragraph has been expanded into two paragraphs (153)
- 173-179: The foundation of all our thoughts is our primal imagination that we are a body (154)
- 190-191: One paragraph has been amended and expanded into two paragraphs (166)
- 206-211: Everything is only our own consciousness (182)
- 219-220: Contemplating 'I', which is the original name of God (190)
- 234-235: By self-attentiveness we can experience our true self-consciousness unadulterated by our mind (206)
Chapter 4, 'The Nature of Reality':
- 246-247, 266-267, 271 and 284: The Nature of Reality - additions to chapter 4 of Happiness and the Art of Being (219, 240-241, 244 and 258-259)
- 302-306: Objective knowledge will disappear along with our mind when we know ourself as we really are (277)
- 307-311: Non-duality is the truth even when duality appears to exist (278)
- 311-313: Everything is just an expansion of our own mind or ego (279-280)
- 324-325 and 327-328: What is True Knowledge? - additions to chapter 5 of Happiness and the Art of Being (291-292 and 294-295)
- 337-339: 'I am' is the most appropriate name of God (304-305)
- 347-348: The true import of the word 'I' (314)
- 356-357: I think because I am, but I am even when I do not think (323)
- 363-364: The 'unconsciousness' that we seem to experience in sleep (329-330)
- 377-379: The transcendent state of true self-knowledge is the only real state (343-344)
- 420-421: The true science of consciousness and drik drisya viveka (389)
- 450-454: Overcoming our spiritual complacency (422)
- 452-453: The fear of death is inherent in our love for our own being (422 continued)
- 454-457: Taking refuge at the 'feet' of God (422 continued)
- 457-460: The state of true immortality (422 continued)
- 492-495: Knowing our source by a 'sharp intellect' or kurnda mati (457-458)
- 547: My translation of verse 9 of Upadesa Undiyar has been added (515)
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4 comments:
Dear Michael,
thank you for letting us participate in the edition and revision of your book. The abundant material doesn't encourage quick response.
However the statements about un/consciousness in sleep in particular were helpful to me.
Good luck with publishing the paper-book.
Hans
Eagerly looking forward to the book in the material shape as this is too lofty a theme to be read over the internet but for some cursory glances which are also very useful. Looking at the fact that in recent times there are very few good writings on the exalted theme of self-enquiry, this is a god-send gift. May Bhaghavan confer on you the Beatitude of self-realization, which is the one and only purpose of life, all the other being meaningless meanderings in the unreal non-self.
I should like to read the entire text even in the internet. Which is the only panacea for people like me who are not able to plunge into deep meditation, that is self-enquiry. It is grand substitute to keep ourselves anchored to the true Self in some form. Since the theme is only on the unadulterated path given to humanity, it will go a long way in creating a good samskara in the subterranean depths of the consciousness. Why a mere samskara, by Bhgahvan's grace let the entire existence be conferred this exalted state of awareness of the Self, to quote the Bodhisatva ideal.
Thank you Michael. I have enjoyed reading the initial edition of your book. I went through the chapters very carefully and slowly. It enhanced and improved my understanding of Sri Ramana's teachings considerably. I am looking forward to reading your latest additions to the book. Thank you again
Robert
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