Indian sage Ramana Maharshi unlocked absolute nondual consciousness as a teenager by aggressively holding his breath and artificially simulating the rigid paralysis of his own…

A closer look

While other yogis spent decades chanting mantras or twisting into literal pretzels, Ramana Maharshi cut straight to the chase. At age 16, terrified of dying, he laid stiff on the floor, held his breath, and asked, "If this body is dead, who is experiencing it?" This radical, instantaneous self-inquiry shattered his ego forever. His method required absolutely no complex rituals, just an aggressively stubborn investigation into the source of your own thoughts.