In the vision of Ramana Maharshi, what is often called “maintaining” abidance in the Self is, strictly speaking, a matter of allowing the mind’s old habits to fall away. The Self, as pure awareness or the simple “I-am,” does not come and go and therefore does not require preservation. What appears to waver is only attention, pulled outward by latent tendencies (vāsanās) and the deeply ingrained idea “I am the body-mind.” Thus the real task is not to hold on to some special state, but to cease reconstituting the ego-knot that imagines separation and doership.

The principal means for this is the continued practice of Self-inquiry. Whenever thoughts, emotions, or disturbances arise, the recommended approach is to turn attention back and ask, “To whom has this arisen?” and then trace that sense of “I” to its source. This is not an intellectual exercise but a direct, experiential turning toward the bare feeling of being, the “I-am,” until the mind subsides into its origin. In this way, each arising thought or tendency becomes an occasion to recognize that it is merely an appearance in awareness and not the true identity.

As this inward turning is repeated, the residual vāsanās lose their force. Old patterns may still appear by momentum, yet they are met with non-identification rather than indulgence or suppression. The understanding is quietly maintained that the body and mind carry on their destined activities, while the true nature remains the formless knower, untouched and unmodified. This loosens the sense of personal agency and prevents the subtle reassertion of the ego as “the one who practices” or “the one who maintains realization.”

Over time, what initially seems like deliberate effort—frequent inquiry, conscious remembrance of the Self, and careful non-identification—ripens into a more effortless abidance. The background of silent awareness becomes evident even amid ordinary activities, and the need to “return” diminishes as the mind’s tendency to wander outward weakens. Association with teachings, texts, or companions that point back to this inner stillness can support this maturation, not by giving anything new, but by repeatedly directing attention to what has always been present. In the mature state, abidance in the Self is simply the natural condition, free of strain, in which the sage rests as pure being without the sense of a separate doer.