107 Quotes of Nisargadatta Maharaj: Radical Wisdom for the Modern Seeker
Picture a small, noisy street corner in Mumbai. The air is thick with the scent of cheap tobacco and the humidity of the Arabian Sea. In a humble mezzanine room above a bidi shop, a man sits. He isn't wearing robes, he doesn't own a sprawling ashram, and he certainly isn't interested in your money. This is Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj, the "grandfather of Truth" for the modern spiritual seeker.
He was a simple shopkeeper by trade, but a lion of Advaita Vedanta by realization. If you are tired of spiritual fluff and ready for something that cuts through the noise like a diamond blade, you have arrived at the right place.
This collection isn't just a random list; it’s a curated progression. We have organized these quotes of nisargadatta maharaj to walk you through the architecture of your own consciousness-from the realization of the "I Am" to the total freedom of the Absolute.
The Foundation: Understanding the "I Am"
Before you can fly, you must know where you are standing. Maharaj’s primary teaching focused on the "I Am"-that undeniable sense of presence that exists before you add any labels to it (like "I am tired" or "I am a success"). It is the first door.
1. "The 'I Am' is the only permanent thing. All else is movement."
2. "Establish yourself firmly in the 'I am'. This is the beginning and also the end of all endeavor."
3. "To know that you are, is natural. To know what you are is the result of deep investigation."
4. "The only true statement is 'I am'. All else is mere inference."
5. "Hold on to the sense 'I am' to the exclusion of everything else. When thus the mind becomes completely silent, it shines with a new light and vibrates with new knowledge."
6. "You are not your body, but you are the dweller in the body."
7. "My advice to you is very simple – just remember yourself. 'I am', is it not enough?"
8. "Don't ask 'Who am I?' Just look at the 'I am'."
9. "The 'I am' is a thought, while awareness is not a thought; there is no 'I am' in awareness."
10. "Without the 'I am', there is no world."
11. "Be friendly with your own self. Do not take your self to be the body."
12. "There is no such thing as a person. There are only restrictions and limitations. The sum total of these defines the person."
13. "The conviction 'I am' is the only capital you have. Multiply it."
14. "Investigate what you are. Don't just accept what others say about you."
15. "You are the source of your world. You are the creator, preserver, and destroyer."
16. "The sense of 'I am' is your greatest asset. Shake off all other attachments."
17. "Your being is the beginning and the end of the universe."
18. "To find yourself, you must forget everything else."
19. "You are the stillness that watches the movement."
20. "The 'I am' is the bridge between the dreamer and the dream."
The Architecture of Resilience: Finding Stillness in the Storm
Life throws heavy weather at us. Maharaj was no stranger to the grit of existence. He taught that while pain is physical and inevitable, suffering is a mental choice we make by resisting what is.
As the psychiatrist Viktor Frankl once noted, "Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms-to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances." Maharaj takes this further-you don't just choose your attitude; you realize you are the space in which the circumstances happen.
21. "Pain is physical; suffering is mental. Beyond the mind, there is no suffering."
22. "Acceptance of pain is the ending of pain."
23. "The world is like a sheet of paper on which something is typed. The reading is the mind; the paper is the 'I am'."
24. "Desire is the memory of pleasure and fear is the memory of pain. Both make the mind restless."
25. "Suffering is a call for enquiry, all pain needs investigation."
26. "Don't try to escape from suffering. Face it, watch it, let it be."
27. "It is the resistance to the inevitable that causes the pain."
28. "When you are in the 'I am', you are safe. The world can crash, but you remain."
29. "You are not the victim of the world; you are its witness."
30. "Let things happen. Do not try to control the uncontrollable."
31. "Peace is not the absence of chaos, but the presence of the Self."
32. "Your nature is happiness. You don't need to chase it; you just need to stop obstructing it."
33. "The mind creates the abyss, the heart crosses it."
34. "Stop looking for happiness in the world. It is like looking for your glasses while they are on your nose."
35. "Nothing can trouble you but your own imagination."
If you are struggling with the weight of the world, remember that healing often begins with acceptance. For more on this perspective, read these Buddha self love quotes for healing and peace, which align beautifully with Maharaj’s view on internal stillness.
Transcending the Mind: Breaking the Mirror of Ego
The mind is a wonderful tool but a terrible master. Maharaj viewed the mind as a mechanical process-a bundle of habits and memories that we mistake for "ourselves." He often urged seekers to smash the mirror of the ego to see what lay behind it.
36. "The mind is a collection of memories. You are not the memory."
37. "To transcend the mind, you must know the mind."
38. "The mind creates the problem and then tries to solve it. This is the trap."
39. "You cannot fight the mind with the mind. You can only step out of it."
40. "Thoughts come and go. You are the one who remains."
41. "Silence is the language of the Real. Words are just noise."
42. "The mind is interested in what happens, while awareness is interested in the mind itself."
43. "Don't believe your thoughts. They are just guests visiting your house."
44. "The person you think you are is just a concept."
45. "Ego is the 'I am' identifying with the body."
46. "Freedom is freedom from the need to be someone."
47. "The mind is a merchant; it always wants to trade."
48. "Stop analyzing. Just be."
49. "The mind is always in the past or the future. You are here and now."
50. "Understanding is not a mental process; it is a flash of light."
51. "The mind cannot know the Truth, because the Truth is beyond the mind."
52. "Let the mind do what it wants. You stay in the 'I am'."
53. "You are the sky; the thoughts are the clouds."
54. "The greatest hurdle is the belief that you are the doer."
55. "When the mind is quiet, the Self speaks."
The Art of Noticing: Presence as a Prayer
Maharaj’s method was radical simplicity. He didn't ask for hours of chanting. He asked for witnessing. It is the art of watching the movie of life without shouting at the screen.
Poet Mary Oliver famously wrote, "Instructions for living a life: Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it." Maharaj would agree, but he would add one question: Who is paying attention?
56. "Be the witness. That is enough."
57. "Watching yourself is the highest meditation."
58. "Don't change anything. Just watch."
59. "The witness is not a person. It is the light of awareness."
60. "When you watch the mind, the mind disappears."
61. "To watch is to love."
62. "The witness is the only reality in a world of illusions."
63. "See the false as false, and the true will reveal itself."
64. "You are the screen on which the movie of life plays."
65. "Just look. Don't interpret."
66. "The observer is the observed."
67. "Awareness is the only agent of change."
68. "Don't get involved in the drama. Stay in the balcony."
69. "The witness is always free."
70. "Your only duty is to be aware."
Wisdom and Love: The Great Balance
There is a misconception that non-duality is cold or uncaring. But as the ego dissolves, what remains is a profound, impersonal love. It is the recognition that "I" am in everyone.
71. "Wisdom says I am nothing. Love says I am everything. Between the two, my life flows."
72. "Love is not a feeling; it is the law of life."
73. "True love is seeing yourself in others."
74. "When you know that you are everything, you love everything."
75. "Love is the expression of the Self."
76. "To love is to share existence."
77. "Without love, truth is just a theory."
78. " Compassion is the natural state of the realized man."
79. "Don't love the person; love the Self in the person."
80. "Love asks for nothing. It only gives."
81. "The entire universe is made of love."
82. "When the ego dies, love is born."
83. "You are the love you seek."
84. "Kindness is wisdom in action."
85. "Love is the refusal to separate."
This blend of divine affection and wisdom mirrors other great traditions. For a parallel perspective, consider these Lord Krishna quotes on love, which speak to the same universal truth Maharaj points toward.
The Wild Work of Becoming: Claiming Your Freed Self
Realization is destructive. It burns away the false. As Toni Morrison wrote, "Freeing yourself was one thing, claiming ownership of that freed self was another." Maharaj demands that we have the courage to stand in the fire until only what is real remains.
86. "You must die before you die."
87. "Give up all you have, and you will get all you need."
88. "The search for reality is the most dangerous of all undertakings for it will destroy you."
89. "You are not a drop in the ocean; you are the ocean in a drop."
90. "Don't be afraid to lose what you never had."
91. "Realization is not gaining something; it is losing everything false."
92. "The courage to be nothing is the greatest courage."
93. "Step into the fire of self-discovery."
94. "The only thing that dies is the idea of who you are."
95. "Liberation is not for the faint-hearted."
96. "Destroy the walls you have built around yourself."
97. "Be like a lion; don't listen to the sheep."
98. "The truth will set you free, but first it will shatter you."
99. "Don't hold onto anything. Let it all go."
100. "You are already free. Just realize it."
For those in the midst of this transformation, it helps to remember the inherent value of your own spirit. These Buddha quotes on self love and wisdom can provide a gentle balm during the intense process of shedding the ego.
Practical Wisdom: How to Sit with It
How do you apply this? Maharaj didn't offer complex rituals. He offered a simple direction: Look within.
101. "Sit quietly and watch the mind."
102. "Spend some time every day in silence."
103. "Keep coming back to the sense of 'I am'."
104. "Don't worry about progress. Just be earnest."
105. "Earnestness is the only qualification required."
106. "Trust the teacher within you."
107. "The answer is not in the words; it is in the silence that follows."
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Who was Nisargadatta Maharaj?
A: He was an Indian spiritual teacher and a guru of the Inchagiri Sampradaya (lineage). Unlike many gurus who lived in secluded ashrams, he was a humble shopkeeper in Mumbai who sold bidis (cigarettes) and taught Advaita Vedanta from his home. He is best known for his direct, no-nonsense style of teaching.
Q: What is the main message of "I Am That"?
A: I Am That is a compilation of talks that points readers toward the understanding that their true nature is not the body or the mind, but the pure awareness (the "I Am") that perceives them. The central message is that by stabilizing in this awareness, one realizes they are the Absolute reality.
Q: What is Advaita Vedanta in simple terms?
A: Advaita Vedanta is a school of Hindu philosophy that teaches non-duality. "Advaita" literally means "not two." It posits that there is no separation between the individual soul (Atman) and the universal reality (Brahman). In simple terms: You and the Universe are one thing.
Q: Did he have a guru?
A: Yes, his guru was Sri Siddharameshwar Maharaj. Nisargadatta credits his realization entirely to his trust in his guru’s words. His guru told him, "You are not the body, you are the Supreme Reality," and Nisargadatta meditated on this until it became his lived experience.
Returning to the Silence
Reading these quotes of nisargadatta maharaj is not an academic exercise; it is an invitation to stop. The words are merely fingers pointing at the moon-don't mistake the finger for the moon itself.
As Rumi wisely said, "Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself." Maharaj offers us that wisdom. He hands us the mirror and asks us to look until the person holding the mirror disappears, leaving only the light.
Which of these quotes stopped your mind? Sit with it. Let it work on you. The silence it leaves behind is who you really are.
