For those of us who were close to him, he was and will always remain Bernard. For those who met him later, he gradually, through contacts and exchanges with the researchers who had sought him out, became known by his name, Bernard Harmand.
François - Emmanuelle - Alain - Vincent
It was at his instigation that this virtual garden of testimonies related to Ramana Maharshi and Nisargadatta Maharaj was born, the two essential figures of Advaita Vedanta, of whom Bernard sometimes humorously and reverently described himself as a sounding board. Quite simply because they had been his guiding lights, his compass, and his guides, and the intensity of his devotion to them had led him to achieve what he was seeking:
Bernard passed away on October 4, 2026 at 1:50 PM. His body has ceased to function, but he remains intensely present in our hearts and thoughts. He was our beacon, our compass, our guide, tirelessly pointing in the right direction, sometimes with humor, sometimes with seriousness, always with love, never imposing anything.
He stayed with us until he was completely exhausted, ravaged by 18 years of cancer which he miraculously survived by lending his body to the latest research, undergoing grueling chemotherapy and other invasive procedures. He had become a living laboratory for medicine. We watched him weaken year by year, then month by month, day by day, yet his radiance never waned. It was truly impressive.
He saw himself as neither a teacher, nor a guru, nor the custodian of anything. He humbly bore witness to his experiences and the path that had led him to what some call Realization. His quest, which he often told us he had so loved, led him through the Christian world in which he had grown up, with, since childhood, an unwavering devotion to the Virgin Mary, before reaching a decisive turning point in 1978 with his "Encounter" with Ramana Maharshi. He himself recounts the main stages of this encounter via the button below.
Reading Arthur Osborne's book, Ramana Maharshi and the Path of Self-Knowledge (published by Les Deux Océans), radically changed the direction of his research. It remained his primary reference book, which he recommended to all those who questioned him.
Another book proved even more radically decisive. It was while rereading for the umpteenth time a passage from SOIS, interviews with Nisargadatta still published by Les Deux Océans, that Bernard experienced in September 1995, in his words, "the last experience at the start of which there was an individual and at the return... no return...", or as he often called it: the fall offstage.
While his readings were decisive, a meeting proved equally so. It took place in 1979 after a year of correspondence. He told us little about it, except for their long walks side by side in the park of the Gretz ashram, immersed in a profound silence where all questions vanished. He never referred to him as his master, but it was tantamount to the same thing. He was simply his swami. Then head of the Ramakrishna Vedanta Centre in Gretz-Armainvilliers, Swami Ritajananda strengthened his bond with Ramana Maharshi. He himself had met him in his youth in Tiruvannamalai. He assured Bernard that while Ramana Maharshi's Realization was exceptional, this Realization was not, and above all, that it was meant for him. Time has proven him right.
After meeting Bernard, benefiting from his presence, his guidance, and above all, his unwavering and boundless love, we felt compelled to share and make this invaluable treasure accessible. For yes, it is a certainty for us that encountering a realised being anchors and propels the quest into a new dimension. With Bernard's complicity, we compiled a series of documents published by Les Deux Océans.
Être simplement (2003)
Questions and answers collected by Christophe
Tout par Amour (2014)
Biography written by Alain with the complicity
of François-Pierre
Tout est parce que vous êtes (2004)
Correspondence and testimonies. Collective formatting.
La recherche du Bonheur (2006)
CD directed by Emmanuelle and Vincent
Vous n'êtes pas ce que vous croyez être (2018)
Interviews presented by Alain
Today, we wish to pay tribute to our master, to whom we owe so much, and to keep alive the incandescent power of his testimony in service to those who question the mystery of Existence and humbly but ardently yearn for "the other side." We will regularly publish new documents from our archives, which you will find on our digital media.
After his realization, seekers came to meet Bernard. For a time, he agreed to lead a few group satsangs, a practice he quickly abandoned for two main reasons. In his view, these gatherings brought together too many people who lacked the necessary commitment to receive what he was sharing. For him, the spiritual quest had to be a matter of life and death. He spoke of fervor. He liked to quote Ramakrishna, for whom spiritual aspiration should be as intense as the urgency of breathing for someone whose head is held firmly underwater. Furthermore, he often reminded everyone that the search can only be personal. The group satsangs ultimately proved to be nonsensical, even counterproductive. He continued, however, to meet seekers individually, sometimes 2 or 3, when a profound attunement of heart and mind emerged between them.
In our library you will find excerpts from Bernard's correspondence, as well as testimonies about Ramana, Nisargadatta, Elisabeth...
