In David Godman’s presentation of Ramana Maharshi’s teaching, desire and attachment are treated as movements of the egoic mind that obscure the ever-present Self. Desire is not framed as a moral failing, but as a symptom of ignorance: the basic misidentification of consciousness with the body and mind. From this “I am the body” idea arise likes and dislikes, hopes and fears, and the restless search for fulfillment in objects, relationships, and experiences. Attachment is the natural extension of this process, a clinging to what is impermanent that perpetuates suffering and keeps attention turned outward. Both desire and attachment thus function as fundamental obstacles to Self-realization, not because they are “bad” in themselves, but because they continually reinforce the sense of a separate, lacking individual.

The text emphasizes that the remedy is not harsh repression but a radical change of perspective through Self-enquiry. When a desire appears, the recommended approach is to turn attention away from the object and toward the subject: to ask, in effect, “To whom has this desire arisen?” By tracing the movement of desire back to the desiring “I,” the underlying ego-sense is exposed and gradually weakened. As abidance in the Self deepens, the inner peace and completeness of one’s real nature begin to outshine the allure of external satisfactions. In this way, dispassion and detachment are presented not as feats of willpower or external renunciation, but as natural by-products of recognizing the Self.

Attachment to persons, possessions, and roles is treated in the same light. It is seen as another form of clinging to name and form, rooted in the false identification with the body-mind. Yet the teaching does not require abandonment of worldly duties or relationships; rather, it points to an inner freedom in which actions continue but without bondage, possessiveness, or anxiety about results. Love is reinterpreted as the recognition of the same Self in all, free from the constriction of personal attachment. Even the desire for liberation itself is acknowledged as a higher, purifying impulse that turns the mind inward, though it too ultimately dissolves when the seeker, the seeking, and the sought are recognized as one Self.

Throughout, the practical stance is consistent: desire and attachment are neither to be indulged nor violently suppressed, but quietly undermined at their source. Persistent Self-enquiry, sometimes supported by devotion and surrender, allows the egoic “I” that experiences lack and clings to objects to fade. When that false center loosens, desires naturally subside and attachments lose their grip, while life on the surface may continue much as before. What changes is the inner standpoint: from a restless seeker bound by craving and fear, to the silent awareness in which all desires arise and subside without leaving a trace.