Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Lecture 037 on 22-June-2021

Full Transcript(Not Corrected)

Om Jananem Sharadam Devem Ramakrishnam Jagadgurum Pada Padme Tayo Shritva Pranamami Mohor Moho We are continuing a very wonderful topic. The Moola Sutra, the aphorism that M had raised is invaluable for all of us. We can derive so many meanings with so much of benefit. That's why I am continuing this subject into greater depth as well as diversity. As we know, this was the conversation, Master, well, do you believe in God with form or without form? M, rather surprised, said to himself, How can one believe in God without form when one believes in God with form? And if one believes in God without form, how can one believe that God has a form? Can these two contradictory ideas be true at the same time? Can a white liquid like milk be black? What is the most wonderful idea that we derive from this very statement of M? We are living in a world that is limited by time, space and causation. And that is how the mind is split. The mind looks at anything, including itself, only through the glasses of these three, time, space and causation. So it also is convinced. The mind is also convinced. There cannot be any truth beyond that. This is the paradox of human life. Whereas in this question, can there be a substance, an object, which can be with form, without form, beyond form also? In our last class, we discussed certain concepts. And if you keep those things in mind, then the discussion will become more meaningful, more enjoyable also. Concept of God, according to Vedanta, I just want to give you as a brief introduction because I did already discuss. And that's what Sri Ramakrishna had expressed. God with infinite forms, infinite names and infinite qualities. This is the state of very, very ordinary mind. It cannot think of anything else excepting through forms, names and qualities. And in this, which comes first? Somehow in English language, the word name comes first, then only comes the idea of form. But we should assume that form should come first, then an appropriate name. Why? To distinguish it from every other form and to understand whether that particular form is desirable, not desirable, whether it gives us happiness, unhappiness. So that distinguishing is very much necessary even for survival, not to speak of enjoyment. So this is the lowest concept with forms, with names and with qualities. How many names? Infinite. How many forms? Infinite. How many qualities? Infinite. Why do we say infinite? Because as many minds, so many concepts. That's why Shri Ramakrishna's most pregnant, meaningful word, Jyotho moth, Thotho path. As many opinions or faiths, not opinions really, faiths and so many paths. Because what is the path to infinity? Every single point in infinity is a doorway to infinity. Imagine there is a round tent and then it is open. Any person can enter into that round tent through any of the pathways, anywhere from any angle. This is the palest imagery that we can create. The next higher concept would be God need not have any form, but he will have names. Names means ideas and ideas means qualities, compassion, kindness, forgiveness and all love, etc., etc. And do we include service also in it? It seems to be the concept, very bad concept in fact, that we want to serve God or Guru and God needs to be served. Does, I make fun, does God really require your rotten bananas and rotten apples and rotten mangoes, full of worms inside? He who is infinite, what does he require? He doesn't require anything, but he gives on the other hand. He just wants to know whether we are also reflecting an infinitesimal part of the love that he has for us. Why does he have infinite love for us? It's because he knows we are none other than he and this is the greatest truth. तो आत्मनस्तु कामाय सर्वं प्रियो भवते It's only for the sake of one's own self. Everything becomes dear. No one can love anybody excepting oneself. This is the Upanishadic truth, Upanishadic expression. God without forms, but with infinite names and with infinite qualities. Some people pride themselves. This is called formlessness. All Hindus are idolaters and we are far above them because we don't worship God with any form and all this. But why do they turn towards the Mecca when the time comes? Why do they need to gather at a mosque if God has no form? That means he is everywhere. He can be worshipped everywhere. Then why go? These are all puerile ideas circulating but masquerading as tremendous progress in spiritual life, etc. So long as mind is there, one has to limit him either to a percept or to a concept. Even concepts are nothing but derived from one's own experience. I mentioned it earlier. We will never know what love is if we do not have a loving mother. If we do not know what hatred is, if we do not have a person who hates us terribly, so we cannot have any idea of any concept of anything unless we have the experience. If you see somebody very miserly towards us, towards everybody, but especially towards me, then I conclude he is a very miserly fellow. This is how we derive our concepts, etc. So what is the highest concept? Don't have any concept. That is the highest concept because anything that is infinite can never be pointed out, described for the simple reason. Also, description is needed only when you have two things and you want somebody to get one for you or to remove one from you. When there is only one, who is to get, who is to remove? That is the Hindu concept of God or Hindu concept of God according to the development of one's intelligence, one's understanding of any human being. That's a very important point we have to always bear in mind. Now, Sri Ramakrishna categorically says, in so many places, God assumes or does God really has any form or name or gunas? This is the question. If I believe God is in the form of Krishna, lives in Goloka and his face is like that, peculiarity, if I am an Indian, then God will be Indian, Krishna will be Indian. Can you imagine a Texan with a big horse, a shotgun and cockney hat and he is riding? If somebody points out and says, there goes your Krishna, because they are all, remember in Houston, Texas and other places, they are all cowboys. Who is Krishna? A cowboy. So can he be your Krishna? No, no, no, we are horrified. But if he is an Indian, wears a peacock feather, he must have also a yellow dhoti and pancha and then we are very happy. This is our beloved Sri Krishna like that. We were talking about whether God has any form. Does God assume any particular form? The clear answer is that whether we think God assumes a form, that's a concept in our mind, a thought in our mind. God doesn't have any form. That is also a concept in our mind. Naturally, the question comes this within the realm of time-space causation, beyond the realm of time-space causation. These are all thoughts in our mind. If we can keep this in mind, there is no controversy at all. Let us keep this in mind. Okay, now does God really assume any form? I already answered that. Even to think God assumes a form is a thought in the mind. But does it really matter to discuss these matters? What matters is I want to love God and I want to attain to God and God listens to my prayers and that is absolute certainty. So if I can continue my spiritual practice, then it will be a most wonderful thing. With this background, let us discuss, go a little bit deep into these things. M. Continues the conversation. Sir, I like to think of God as formless. Master, very good. It is enough to have faith in either aspect. You believe in God without form? That's quite alright. But now for a moment think that this alone is true and all else is false. This is the one precious gem of a teaching from Sri Ramakrishna. If only any intelligent human being accepts this teaching of Sri Ramakrishna, then we will not have any quarrels at least on the religious front. Then Sri Ramakrishna continues. Remember that God with form is just as true as God without form. But hold fast to your own conviction. This is another gem. You have your own faith. In fact, nobody can do without having his or her own faith. Nobody can borrow or steal or acquire other person's thoughts, other person's faith or disfaith. That is not going to work out in our life at all. We may pretend to be, but it's not going to work out. In the long run, something will happen and we will be forced to adapt to our own view. I will give you a very short example. Vijayakrishna Goswami, he comes from a lineage who were great devotees of God. But then he joined the Brahmo Samaj and he pledged, I will worship only God without any form. And Sri Ramakrishna was a great fun master. He used to say very often about this Brahmo Samaj and he attended several of their prayer sessions. He said, oh, even a small boy of Brahmo Samaj meditates on the Nirakara Brahma, formless aspect of God, making fun. Even the greatest sages cannot think of God without a particular idea. If anybody thinks I am meditating on a formless aspect of God, he is meditating on his idea of the formless aspect of God, which is nothing but a crystal clearly manifesting thought in the form of time, space and causation. So it is impossible. Now, here is something. God with form is just as true as God without form. But hold fast to your own conviction. This is the most important. You have a conviction, never be put off by that conviction. Why? Because even if you are wrong, then God will correct you, not anybody else. If we understand this, religious conversion is actually a great crime. Here is a person, he is worshipping or he is serving God, thinking of God in a particular way until now and you forcibly try to change that particular deep-seated samskara of his or her and then the person will have very confused idea about God. That's why though Hinduism gives freedom to everybody to think, but unfortunately these missionaries, whether Christian or Islamic, they do not understand this fact that God has produced different types of minds. They require different types of fodder. One path doesn't suit everybody else. If we can remember this, a lot of good they will do. But those who do forcible conversion and this force not only comes in the form of physical threat, usually nowadays it doesn't come. It comes in the form of persuasion, brainwashing or tempting persons with either job or school or marriage or in some particular form. That's why so much of unhappiness is there, so much of injustice is done to people. Anyway, this assertion that God with form and without form are equally true, imagined him. He had never learnt this from his books. What does it mean? It is impossible not to understand this fact. Whether we study Bhagavad Gita, Ramayana, Mahabharata or any of the Upanishads, it is impossible to have a narrow idea that God is either with form or without form. Practically every page in every book proclaims loudly, clearly that God is a concept in our mind. God with form and without form both are thoughts in our mind. So whatever helps, take the help of that. I am going to come to that subject in future. I don't know whether today it is possible. In the earlier days, people used to do Upasanas and our Rishis had developed a very marvellous content, how to do Upasana and they divided Upasanas into three categories which I will discuss when the opportunity comes. M was very surprised and in the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, we get beautiful examples. I will first give you one example. I am not going to read out but I am going to give what is there in substance with my own masala added. Once a man was seen in the temple of Jagannatha. You know Jagannatha's image is made up of a particular type of wood and it is made out of the trunk of a particular tree and once in 12 years this image has to be completely changed. It is an amazing fact and there is something, a small box. It is kept practically in the navel of this image and when a new image is made, a blind folded priest. So it is said in the tradition, he should never lay his eyes upon the box otherwise some dire calamity will fall upon that priest or whoever. So this person will take out that small box, there is an arrangement for that and then transfer it to the new wooden image of Lord Jagannatha and close it so that nobody can see it or touch it and then dispose of the old Jagannatha image. What do they do? Very interesting that they sell it to devotees. Here is a hand, here is a leg, that's what I heard, I don't know how far it is true but this is the cloth worn by, offered to Lord Jagannatha and dressed to Lord Jagannatha etc. So try to make money as much as possible, in any way that is possible. Anyway, what Harsha Ramakrishna was trying to tell, once a sadhu seemed to have come across that image and he had a stick and he wanted to know whether God is with form or without form. He passed it from one side of the Jagannatha to the other side, from the, let us say, left to right and then the stick passed very easily. That means there was no image at all there because there was no obstruction. Then the sadhu thought, oh God is without form. Then he wanted to double check. So he passed it from the right to the left. Then suddenly as soon as the stick touched the image, it got stopped there. Then he thought, oh God is with form. So he understood God is with form, God is without form and he who can be like this can be both with or without any form. This is one of the most wonderful stories narrated by Ramakrishna. Then there is another instance is there. There was once a devotee went to a temple of the Divine Mother and then the Divine Mother was seen invested with a sacred thread. She was wearing a sacred thread. Usually women do not wear sacred thread nowadays. In Vedic times, even there were brahmacharinis who used to be initiated. We get several of them in our Upanishads, especially in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, we get Gargi etc. Now this person was imaged, oh is God invested with the sacred thread? Brahmin must be a brahmana or high caste. Then the worshipper or the owner of the image said, my brother, you seem to be more intelligent than me. I am not sure whether God is with form, without form, whether it is male, he is female, whether he should have a sacred thread or not have a sacred thread. I don't know anything about it. So I thought to be without any problem. Let me also put on sacred thread. If God is with sacred thread, then it's okay. If he is not without sacred thread, then God will understand my ignorance and forgive me. And then said Ramkrishna most often used to teach his marvellous teachings with beautiful songs. And here is one of the most marvellous songs and it is in Bengali. What is this? Shyama maa ki amar kalore. First I will read out, then I will give a brief meaning of it. Shyama maa ki amar kalore. Loke bole kali kali, amar manto bole na kalore. Kalo rupe digambari, hridi paddo kore mor alore. Shyama maa ki amar kalore. Kakhono nilo, kakhono pitho, maa shyama. Kakhono sweto, kakhono pitho, kakhono nila lohitare. Maa er se bhav kehman bujite na pare, gelore janam bhavite. Shyama maa ki amar kalore. Shyama maa, kakhono purush, kakhono prakruti. Kakhono sunna rupa re. Maa er e bhav bhavie, kamala kanto, sahaje pagal holore. Shyama maa ki amar kalore. Shyama digambari, kalo rupe digambari, hridi paddo kore mor alore. Shyama maa ki amar kalore. Shyama maa ki amar kalore. Most marvelous song will give you a very brief meaning. If you have the opportunity, you can go to the YouTube. Many practical illustrations of Sri Ramakrishna's teachings can be found in the YouTube. If you don't get it, you can make your own tube. That's why it is called YouTube. Is my mother, Shyama or Kali, really black? Is my mother really black? So people say Kali is Kalu. Kali is black. But my own mind categorically declares. What does it declare? It doesn't say my mother is black. Why? Because even though she is digambari, without any dress. Kalo rupe digambari, hridi paddo kore mor alore. She lights up the whole of my heart. The lotus of my heart. And what can light up can never be black. Black means darkness. Darkness means that which is ignorance or not having any knowledge. Not even doubtful knowledge. Now light means always that which is right knowledge. That's why knowledge is equated with light. Now here is something digambari. This seems to be weird. Why do you imagine God as digambara? Digambari. Shiva is digambara. And Shivani, Kali, Durga, she is also digambari. What is digambara? That one who is infinite. What can cover her? It is only ignorance can. Can ignorance cover the Divine Mother? No. What does ignorance cover? Very interesting thing. That midday, sometimes there is this burning midday sun. And that sun produces a beautiful thick black cloud. As for instance in rainy season. This is supposed to be rainy season in India. And then when we look at this sun, it is completely covered. And then when we look up, what is it that is covering, that is obstructing me seeing the burning sun? It is the clouds. Thick black clouds. Do you see the fun? As if this small piece of cloud is covering the whole of the sun which is several billion kilometers across. What is the truth? The truth is very wonderful. The cloud is produced by whom? By the sun. And what does the cloud do? It covers up the sun. And how do we know it is covering up the sun? Because sunlight is needed to illuminate, to show us that here is a piece of cloud which is covering the whole of the sun. The sun is as if saying to us that look, my own child has betrayed me. My own child is covering me up, wants to become great in the eyes of people. Anyway, I am making a little bit of fun. You also enjoy that one. What is interesting is, can the cloud, a small bit of cloud, cover the whole of the sun? Yes, of course it can. You don't need a huge piece of cloud. You just open your eye, put your forefinger or smallest finger across your sight and the whole of the world will be covered up by that small finger. So who is covering whom? Are you covering the world or are you covering yourself? That is the question we need to ask. This Divine Mother is Digambari because she is infinite. Because she is infinite, what can cover her? Only infinity can cover her. If she is infinity, is she male or female? So we have to cut up a little bit. Then here comes very beautifully, I will be just very brief. Find out the meaning. This my mother Shama. Shama means black actually. So Shama could be blue also. Shama could be black also. Kakona Shweta, my mother is sometimes white. Kakona Peetha, sometimes she is yellow colour. And then Kakona Neela Lohitare, sometimes blue, sometimes yellow, sometimes white and sometimes there is no colour at all. My mother's Shebhaab Kaman Bujhite Nari is impossible to understand her and trying to find out whether she is of black colour, of white colour or yellow colour or blue colour. Bhavite Bhavite Janam Gelore. The whole life is wasted. Shama Ma Ke Amar Karore. Then continues. Ma, Amar Ma Shama. Kakona Purush, sometimes she is female, male. Kakona Prakruti, she assumes the form of the female. Kakona Shunnarupare or Shunyakara, sometimes she has no form at all. Sometimes man's form, sometimes female form, sometimes there is no form at all. Kamalakanta, my heir, Shebhaab Bhaviye, thinking of what is this divine mystery of the Divine Mother. Kamalakanta, the composer of this particular bhajan. Sahaja Pagal Holori. He has naturally, he has gone mad. What does it mean? The brain has lost its power and then that means he came to understand that do not think anything because your mind is too small to think of the Divine. Just it is enough. Pray to her. Take refuge in her. And when we say her, it means God. I do everything and then by her grace, everything is fine. My mother, it is my mother who binds. It is my mother who liberates. This is all the Leela of my Divine Mother. That's what Sri Ramakrishna says. Then we are coming to understand a most profound this thing that M says, should we not advise people not to worship idols? And then he says, then Sri Ramakrishna became very angry with M and then said, this is one habit of your Calcutta people. You yourself do not have any light and you are wanting to bring light to everybody else. Why don't you try to bring light to your own self first? Then we will see about it. Then Sri Ramakrishna declared that in this world, every image is nothing but pure spirit, Chinmayi. It is not Mrindmayi. It is Chinmayi. I hope you understand what is Mrindmayi. Mrith means clay. Mrindmayi means nothing but clay. Chinmayi means, Chith means pure consciousness. And nothing but it is pure consciousness. And then M could not understand. Of course, could he not really understand it? No, because we are the people for whom M was teaching. M was not an ordinary person just born like any one of us for the sake of, just so that he can come to Sri Ramakrishna and get enlightened and get liberation and get out of this Samsara Chakra. No, sir. Sri Ramakrishna categorically declared, there are certain people who are his eternal companions who are bound to come every time God incarnates. And M was one of them. Girish was one of them. Of course, the six disciples of Sri Ramakrishna, five monastic and one householder called Poorna. Sri Ramakrishna was in the habit of saying, with the coming of Poorna, my Antaranga, my inner circle has become Poorna, means complete. There is nobody, some people belonging to this particular category. So, M could not understand. The significance of this image of spirit, this is again the trick of the language. Spirit and image, both do not go together. Image of spirit, what image can there be? I will narrate some incidents also. They are all so marvelous for us to understand. So, again he counters. But sir, he said to the master, one should explain to those who worship the clay image that it is not God and that while worshipping it, they should have God in view and not the clay image. One should not worship clay. And then one may attribute the various forms and aspects of God that are believed in by people to the work of imagination and may have no faith in them. Yet, God will shower his grace on a person if he believes in a divine power that creates and directs the world and prays with a distressed heart. Oh God, I do not know thy real nature. Deign to reveal thyself to me as thou really art. There is a beautiful hymn called Shiva Mahimana Stotram. Supposed to have been composed by a Gandharva, a higher being than human being who was cursed because of some misdeed he had done which shows the possibility even if we are born as Brahma Loka, as Brahma, then we can still commit mistakes. That's not attaining to the highest truth. Still there is some vacuum is there. So, we can commit some mistake. Even Ramakrishna used to say, if Brahman falls into the clutches of the five elements, he weeps like Rama wept for Sita and Krishna he felt for the misery of the Pandavas and other people. So, it is quite possible. Here, Ramakrishna is answering there. One may attribute the various forms and aspects of God that are believed in by people to the work of imagination. There are some people, they think they are very intelligent. They are the most stupid and arrogant people in this world. These are called idol breakers. So, they think we are very intelligent and the other people are very dull and they need to be brought to light. So, they call this idolatry and we are idol breakers. And then what is Ramakrishna confirming? Assuring people, devotees, no, you proceed in your own way. Do not try to be disturbed by anybody else. So, God will shower his grace on a person if he believes in a divine power that creates and directs the world and prays with a distressed heart. Oh God, I do not know your real nature. Deign to reveal thyself to me as you really are. In that connection, I was talking about Shiva Mahimna Stotram. One of the shlokas in the Shiva Mahimna Stotram goes like that, I do not know, oh Lord, what is your true nature. But whatever be your true nature, in that aspect, I only pray, you know your real nature, nobody else knows your nature, much less puny people like me. Please accept my worship, whatever be your nature and bless me. That is all I want. I am not interested in knowing how much is infinity and how big it is and what benefits one can have, just I have faith, I have a mother and whenever I am distressed, I call Ma and she will come to my rescue. That is more than enough for me. Oh God, I do not know thy real nature. Deign to reveal thyself to me as you really are. And then Sri Ramakrishna continues, God is extremely attentive, my boys. He has heard every time you have prayed to him. He will surely reveal himself to you someday or other, at least at the time of death. Again, very significant statement, says God is extremely attentive. How attentive? Where is he? Is he listening? Is he a million miles away and cocking his ear towards us so that he can hear something? No, he is like that, every mother who has given birth to a new baby, all her mind, wherever she is, is on the baby. I think I narrated it but I will again narrate it. Here is a farmer and they had a newborn baby and the farmer is expecting crops at any time but there should be no rain and once rain comes, it ruins all the crops. So in that state of anxiety, he and his wife along with the small baby, few days old baby, go to bed and then the slightest change in the temperature, immediately the farmer comes out bold, awake. He sits bold upright because he is worried whether there would be rain and his whole family's future upkeep will get ruined because that is what people used to do in those days. Even today, for millions of people, it is like that. But here is the mother, even if it is thundering, lightning, she will not keep awake at all. Then another scenario, the farmer is completely in deep slumber, both the mother and father. The slightest movement on the part of the baby, immediately the mother comes out awake because 99% of her mind is on the welfare of the baby. This is my baby. I have to protect. I will die in that process. Whereas the farmer is not thinking of that. He goes on snoring and slumbering. So this is to illustrate, if we are honest and if we love, all our mind's attention will be on the beloved object which we love really and this is what Sri Ramakrishna is confirming. God is extremely attentive but He is nearer, even than a mother is nearer to her baby. Even though the baby is just on the chest of the mother, even there is a long distance between the mother and the baby. But not between God and us. He knows it. We do not know it. That's why He is extremely attentive. And then what Sri Ramakrishna says, many times we get this doubt. He has heard every time we have prayed. Not a single time He has not listened. Oh, I am sorry. I was diverted. My attention is elsewhere. What did He say? It is never going to happen to us. A little bit of fun. One of our Swamis was asked, does God listen to every prayer of ours? The Swami said, absolutely. Every time you pray, He heard you. And does He answer? Yes, absolutely He answers. Most of the time, the answer is a big no. He will surely reveal Himself to you some day or the other, at least at the time of death. It has become a trite saying that idolatry is wrong and every man swallows it at the present time without questioning. This was the quotation from Swami Vivekananda. One of His most beautiful quotations. It has become a trite saying that idolatry is wrong and every man swallows it at the present time without questioning. I myself once thought so. And to pay the penalty of that, I had to learn my lesson sitting at the feet of a man who realized everything through idols. I allude to Ramakrishna Paramahamsa. If such Ramakrishna Paramahamsas are produced by idol worship, what will you have? The reformers' creed or any number of idols? I want an answer. Take a thousand idols more if you can produce Ramakrishna Paramahamsas through idol worship. And may God speed you. You produce such noble natures by any means you can. Yet, idolatry is condemned. Why? Nobody knows. All men are born idolaters. I will give you an incident from the life of Ramana Maharshi. Once a westerner came to Ramana Maharshi and wanted to advise. Just as M was trying to advise Ramakrishna, I find many people, probably that was his idea, that most Hindus are idolaters and they worship all sorts of images. So, they should be taught. Ramana Maharshi, without looking at him, smiled and said, Show me one man who is not an idolater. Early morning, as soon as he gets up, he wakes himself up with a hot cup of coffee. Then, ceremoniously, he goes into the bathroom. I am adding a little bit of spice. He goes into the bathroom and the bathroom is full of scents and this and that. Then, he decorates himself and all the background music is going on. Then, he will take up a newspaper and goes on reading it until it is time for proper breakfast, especially South Indian breakfast, the masala, dosa, etc. Then, afterwards, leisurely he goes to the office and as soon as he reaches, has another cup of tea and if it is hot, he will put on either AC or fan and then goes on doing a little bit of work. As soon as noon comes, Indians are wonderful enjoyers. Tiffin carriers are there. You pay a little money and amazing people. What a network of uninterrupted supply. Everything in this world may get interrupted. Telephone may get interrupted. Wi-Fi can get interrupted. Aeroplanes, trains, buses, cars, anything can get interrupted. Traffic jam. But these tiffin carriers, they reach, see that, reach. They are serving lakhs of people in every city and yet amazing thing is they are able to see that a particular tiffin carrier from a particular house reaches that particular person without any mistake. And Bill Gates was extremely shocked, I believe, when he came to know how is this system especially run by not such highly educated people are able to manage this. Even computer systems fail. Anyway, that's a part of the fun. What we have to know here is idolatry means believing God can be worshipped in a particular image. That's not the problem. You worship God with form. Worship God without form. It doesn't really matter. But to transform our character, that's most important. So Ramana Maharshi continues that this man from morning, from the time of getting up until the time of his going to bed, what is he doing? He is worshipping his own body and where can be worse idolater than this type of body worship. Anybody who thinks I am the body is the greatest idolater. That's what Swami Vivekananda what is he telling? That all men are born idolaters. In fact, I would say excepting realized souls, every man, every creature is a born idolater. We are only looking after our bodies, our minds, etc. Now, because of this English education, such many illustrating stories, incidents have taken place. Swami Vivekananda says at first I joined the Brahmo Samaj and then I pledged myself I will not worship God with any idol. And then he left that same Brahmo Samaj and started coming to Sri Ramakrishna and his fellow Brahmo Samajist, future Swami Brahmananda Rakhal. He was a man born of this what is called faith in the worship of idols, etc. Narendra Nath saw Rakhal entering into the temple of the Divine Mother and other temples and prostrating and praying and meditating. So he took him aside and gave a thorough scolding. You pledged yourself in Brahmo Samaj that I will never again in life worship any form of God. And of course, Rakhal Maharaj could not reply. But Sri Ramakrishna was there very attentive. Like a loving mother, he took Narendra aside and explained to him. See, everybody has got a different attitude, different understanding. Just because you are a born idol, you are what is called an idol breaker, you don't think that everybody is like that. Everybody is not fit also to break away from the idols. And then Narendra understood for the first time. But that is not the end of it. As he himself mentioned that he was born to imbibe the ideas of Sri Ramakrishna and broadcast them to the whole world. That's why in the earlier statement we found out, I had to sit as a penalty at the feet of one who realized God only through idolatry and if such a character can be produced by worshipping idols, bring a thousand, a million more idols, etc. Earlier I was referring Vijayakrishna Goswami and Sri Ramakrishna, as soon as his eyes beheld him, immediately pulled him out and said, Vijay, what are you doing? I did not say it, but I am saying it. In this God forsaken land, God forsaken organization, in this wretched place, you better worship God because the very blood of your ancestors which is filled with the love of God, the love of Krishna is flowing, blowing in every part of your body. You will never ever progress by following this path of the Brahmosama, Nirakara. And Vijayakrishna Goswami by the grace of Sri Ramakrishna understood it, separated himself, progressed in spiritual life. I don't know how much he progressed. We are not the people fit to judge it. But that's what Sri Ramakrishna's beautiful teaching. It was a beautiful incident. Swami Vivekananda, after the passing of Sri Ramakrishna, travelled very widely in India and then during one of his travels, he entered into Rajputana and then there, probably in 1891 or so, and he reached a city called Alwar, currently in a district in Rajasthan and there, at that time, the ruling king was Mangal Singh, where he met the king of the state, Maharaja Mangal Singh Bahadur or Mangal Singh. And then a beautiful meeting took place. The meeting between Swami Vivekananda and Mangal Singh and the conversation is a historical significance and it should open the eyes of everybody. Now, this Mangal Singh Bahadur, the king of Alwar, was westernized in his outlooks, had no respect for Indian, especially Hindu culture and traditions and it is not unusual. Most of the western education, English educated youth especially, in those days, were taught to look down upon everything Hindu as a trite, as born of ignorance, as worthless, etc. This is called brainwashing. Of course, the only thing that proves in brainwashing is, some brain is there to be washed and then this Mangal Singh, like anybody else, felt very proud because of this English acquired what is called alienated attitude and then he used to spend all his time in the company of westerners in hunting and other luxuries. What do you mean by other luxuries? He was also spending his time in what we call, I don't know, it is not written, in the pleasure of women, etc. Because he was a Maharaja, he had a lot of income and he had the power of life and death over people. That is important for us. So, Swami Vivekananda's news reached this Mangal Singh and then he was invited. So, Swamiji never went and met these people voluntarily. He went and met Mangal Singh and then when Mangal Singh met Vivekananda, then this king started making fun of him because he was in the guise of a wandering monk, Parivrajika. So, the king asked Vivekananda, well, Swamiji, I hear you are a great scholar. You can easily earn a living and live a comfortable worldly life. Then why are you living like a beggar's life and roaming like a vagabond? This is completely anti-Hindu culture, anti-Vedic culture for even a king to question a sannyasin, not to show respect, not to get up from the seat, not to prostrate and give veneration. That itself shows how much down we had gone down and Swamiji was like a lion, fearless. Immediately he retorted, Maharaja, tell me why you are spending constantly your time in the company of westerners and going out on shooting excursions, neglecting your kingly duties. At least I could have understood it if you had been discharging your duties as a king properly. No. Purely selfishly you are getting all your money from the public and you are spending it on your personal pleasures and not doing your duty even to the smallest extent. Everyone present in the court was shocked and taken aback. The king too became confused because until this time nobody had ever challenged him like that. So he tried to give an excuse. Well, I like it. I suppose I enjoy it. And then he continued, don't your Indian rishis and munis waste all their lives meditating and worshipping for the same reason? Now Vivekananda saw some stuffed animals and paintings of the king's huntings in the court's walls. The king used to consider those as his achievements. If I can kill, shoot a tiger, a lion and then skin it, stuff it, oh what a great hunter. That was the stupid pride that was maintained even in these days to some people. Vivekananda Swami fearlessly started criticizing saying, even an animal doesn't kill another animal unnecessarily. How come that you kill them just for amusement? I find it meaningless, cruel. Mangal Singh smiled and replied, the idols you worship are nothing but piece of clay, stones or metal. I find this idol worship meaningless. This king never answered Swami Vivekananda. It was a direct attack on Hindu belief and Swamiji had to give a strong reply to it. He started explaining to the king that Hindus worship God alone using the idol as symbol. But his reply did not convince Mangal Singh. Thereupon Swamiji's eyes fell on a portrait hanging in the wall of the court. Swamiji beckoned a minister and then he told him, look you bring down, whose painting is that? The reply was that is the painting of Maharaja's I don't remember father or grandfather. Then Swamiji thundered, spit upon it. I say spit upon it. In that court, when a king had the power directly to kill or not, indirectly definitely he will kill. Who could insult him like that in front of public, in front of everybody? It was terrible. But Swamiji was not frightened. He was endowed with divine power. Then minister started trembling and said, Swamiji what are you talking about? He said after all, what is it? Is it a live? Is it Maharaja's father? No. It is just a piece of paper. Some scribbling on it. Some colours on it. And that's it. Having said this very briefly, then he turned. Maharaja, you understand that everybody knows this is a piece of paper and with some painting upon it. It is not your father. And yet when they look at it, your noble father, here in brackets I will tell you, how noble Mangal Singh's father was, we don't know. But Swamiji did not offend or did not want to offend that person. He said that your noble father, wretched fellows, how much they ruined India. Only history is opening our eyes. Now, a few people were there. They were great, equivalent to God. But most of them are rogues who sponged upon the poor people's sweat and blood and ruined our country and brought it down to the condition that was present at that time. He said, when a person looks at the portrait, they are reminded of your noble father and that idea brings respect to them. That is the purpose of the portrait. Similarly, when a Hindu looks at a piece of stone or piece of wood, he is not praying to the piece of stone or wood. But the idea of God springs in his mind. Thereby, his faith becomes strengthened. Thereby, his character, faith transforms. Because faith is knowledge. And knowledge, the function of knowledge is to bring about a change in our character, good or bad. But faith in God definitely brings about a very positive change in our character. And that is why first of all, no man can escape. Secondly, these helped people for millenniums. And thirdly, we have to transcend them slowly. But it is not possible by forcibly telling, do not worship an idol or etc. We are all born idolaters. These beautiful ideas, we will talk about in our next class. Om Jananim Sharadam Devim Ramakrishnam Jagat Kurum Pada Padmetayos Ritva Pranamami Mohur Moho May Sri Ramakrishna, Holy Mother and Swami Vivekananda bless us all with Bhakti.