Foreword

The quintessence of religion is self-knowledge. It is an adventure of the spirit, a quest after the real and the immanent, a continuous process of emancipation from the shackles of doctrines, prejudices and practices. True religion is rooted in inner experience, a unique realisation of Being.

"The Thirty Verses" of Sri Ramana, which has now been rendered into English by Sri Anantanarayanan, gives us this religion of the spirit, based on the Indian scriptures, and acceptable to the modern mind. It is an ethical and rational approach, relating the problems of the external world to inner belief and understanding. In an age when the climate of thought is overcast with doubt and dissension, the insistence on inner personal experience as the measure of all things is authentic, and its relevance to the spiritual liberation of individuals as well as nations is obvious.

Sri Anantanaryanan's Introduction, English Translation and Notes bring out not only his devotion to the life and teaching of Sri Ramana, but also his knowledge of Western mysticism and literature, which make his comments often illuminating and always interesting.