I Am That (Nisargatta Maharaj)
A Classic Advaita Vedanta Text
[My 4-star Amazon review (May 13, 2013) of “I Am That: Talks with Sri Nisargatta Maharaj” by Nisargadatta Maharaj.]
As most of the 200 + reviews here attest to, “I Am That” is an outstanding Advaita Vedanta text and a great read. In fact, the book is such an engrossing read—thanks to the intimate question-answer format with the inimitable and charismatic Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj—that after rereading it for the third time, I debated whether to give it five stars or four. But because the book is not without considerable flaws, I finally decided on four—and I’ll explain why.
First off, even though “I Am Now” rates as an outstanding Advaita Vedanta text when compared against the books of the various Advaita Vedanta (and neo-Advaita Vedanta) post Ramana Maharshi (1879-1950), it pales in comparison versus Ramana Maharshi’s teachings.
The questions in “I am That” are all softballs, fine for beginners but lacking meat for serious seekers interested in the esoteric dimension of spiritual life. Unlike Ramana Maharshi’s “Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi’’ (avoid the dumbed-down Inner Directions version) and “Sri Ramana Gita,” “I Am That,” never broaches the functions of the Hridayam (Spiritual Heart) and the Amrita Nadi (Immortal “Nerve” Channel) in the Self-realization process. And whereas Maharshi, almost like a Kashmir Shaivism guru, moves beyond the limited radius of Advaita Vedanta (a static, reductive philosophy) and talks about Shakti and Kundalini (another name for the dynamic Self, according to Maharshi), Maharaj talks vauely about merging one’s consciousness with one’s life-force (which is NOT Shakti, Divine Power).
Whereas “I Am That” is good at describing the Self-realized state (at least from Maharaj’s perspective), it is poor at prescribing a specific, detailed practice for realizing the Self. Contrast this with Ramana Maharshi’s Self-enquiry method, which is based on undermining the false ego-‘I,’ and “falling into the Heart,” and thereby realizing the transcendental ‘I,’ or Self.
I recommend “I Am That” because it is a good, basic Advaita Vedanta text and a great read--but if you want to encounter Advaita Vedanta on a higher level, move on to Ramana Maharshi. And if you want to encounter Dharmas superior to Advaita Vedanta (which doesn’t account for the Self as Siva-Shakti; only as Siva), then move on to Hindu Kashmir Shaivism, Tibetan Dzogchen, and Adi Da’s Daism.
[My 4-star Amazon review (May 13, 2013) of “I Am That: Talks with Sri Nisargatta Maharaj” by Nisargadatta Maharaj.]
As most of the 200 + reviews here attest to, “I Am That” is an outstanding Advaita Vedanta text and a great read. In fact, the book is such an engrossing read—thanks to the intimate question-answer format with the inimitable and charismatic Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj—that after rereading it for the third time, I debated whether to give it five stars or four. But because the book is not without considerable flaws, I finally decided on four—and I’ll explain why.
First off, even though “I Am Now” rates as an outstanding Advaita Vedanta text when compared against the books of the various Advaita Vedanta (and neo-Advaita Vedanta) post Ramana Maharshi (1879-1950), it pales in comparison versus Ramana Maharshi’s teachings.
The questions in “I am That” are all softballs, fine for beginners but lacking meat for serious seekers interested in the esoteric dimension of spiritual life. Unlike Ramana Maharshi’s “Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi’’ (avoid the dumbed-down Inner Directions version) and “Sri Ramana Gita,” “I Am That,” never broaches the functions of the Hridayam (Spiritual Heart) and the Amrita Nadi (Immortal “Nerve” Channel) in the Self-realization process. And whereas Maharshi, almost like a Kashmir Shaivism guru, moves beyond the limited radius of Advaita Vedanta (a static, reductive philosophy) and talks about Shakti and Kundalini (another name for the dynamic Self, according to Maharshi), Maharaj talks vauely about merging one’s consciousness with one’s life-force (which is NOT Shakti, Divine Power).
Whereas “I Am That” is good at describing the Self-realized state (at least from Maharaj’s perspective), it is poor at prescribing a specific, detailed practice for realizing the Self. Contrast this with Ramana Maharshi’s Self-enquiry method, which is based on undermining the false ego-‘I,’ and “falling into the Heart,” and thereby realizing the transcendental ‘I,’ or Self.
I recommend “I Am That” because it is a good, basic Advaita Vedanta text and a great read--but if you want to encounter Advaita Vedanta on a higher level, move on to Ramana Maharshi. And if you want to encounter Dharmas superior to Advaita Vedanta (which doesn’t account for the Self as Siva-Shakti; only as Siva), then move on to Hindu Kashmir Shaivism, Tibetan Dzogchen, and Adi Da’s Daism.
