Sat-Darshana Bhashya and Talks with Maharshi

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Sat-Darshana is Vasishta Ganapati Muni’s inspired Sanskrit Translation of Sri Ramana’s Ulladu Narpadu(Forty Verses on Reality).

Kapali Sastriar, a close disciple of the Muni and scholar-sadhaka of the highest order, has elucidated with clarity and profundity the meaning of these verses in his Sanskrit Bhashya (commentary).

In this book Kapali has complied not only his English translation of Sat-Darshana and his Bhashya, but also his recorded conversations with Sri Ramana. These “Talks” cover the full range of the Maharshi’s teaching and prepare the ground for cultivating a deep insight into Sri Ramana Maharshi’s seminal teachings in the form of forty verses.

The Talks with Sri Maharshi are mainly selected from conversations that D has had with him since 1912. Some of these were later incorporated into the Ramana Gita and one or two booklets. These talks are given with a view to introduce the general reader to the main work, the philosophy of Sat-Darshan. The conversations with Sri Ramana Maharshi have been generally in Tamil, intermixed with a few English and Sanskrit words. We do not say ‘you’ in talking to him, nor does he refer to himself as ‘I’. They are used here for he purpose of the English version. The name of D is not mentioned as it is considered unnecessary for the purpose of the subject.

The translation of the Sat-Darshana slokas is in free verse. The English rendering of the Bhoomika (introduction) as well as the Bhashya (commentary in Sanskrit) is faithful to he spirit of the original. But in some places it is interpretative and amplified in order to make the English appear not a translation but a work readable without reference to the Sanskrit original. The English translation of the commentary on the 44th, the last verse, is not given as the one important subject dealt with therein, namely, the higher value of the revealed word or scripture is to be found substantially in the closing pages of the Bhoomika.

The rules of transliteration of Sanskrit words, in Roman, script had to be overlooked because of printing inconvenience: but wherever a Sanskrit word occurs it is preceded by its English equivalent.

In the closing part of the book is printed the original Tamil Ulladu Narpadu of Sri Maharshi, of which sat-Darshan is the Sanskrit version, in order to be of use to the Tamil knowing reader.