Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Lecture 152 on 02-December-2025

Full Transcript (Not Corrected)

Opening Invocation

OM JANANIM SHARADAM DEVIM RAMAKRISHNAM JAGADGURUM PAHADAPADMETAYOH SRIDHVA PRANAMAMI MUHURMUHU

ओम् जननीम् शर्दाम् देवेम् रामक्रिष्णम् जगत् गुरुम् पादपत्मे तयोस्रित्वा प्रणमामि मुहुरु मुहु

Introduction: The Universe as Divine Play

We are continuing the Gospel of Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa. Now the Master said, "The Divine Mother is always playful and sportive. This universe is her play."

We were discussing this point in our last class, and there I quoted, Lokavat tu līlā kaivalyam. This is what one of the sūtras in the Brahma Sūtras says—in the second chapter, first section, thirty-third: "The creation is merely a sport of Brahman."

So does it look like God created us for fun? This is the question that comes. This was the point we were discussing in both the Chāndogya Upaniṣad, especially with regard to Pañcāgni Vidyā. Practically the whole of the last but one class was about Lokavat tu līlā kaivalyam.

The Problem of Reality and Perception

What is the problem? We think this is not līlā, but it is real. And that creates a problem because there is also a division in our perception. This creation is consisting of both sukha as well as duḥkha—happiness and unhappiness.

When we are happy, we never complain. Only when we are unhappy, even for a very short time, that is when we start thinking. In fact, God created this only for us to think.

When we are happy, even the mind becomes merged. We go beyond time, space, and causation. But when unhappiness comes, we are acutely conscious of time, space, and causation. That is why even one millisecond of misery is unforgettable.

And then our heart will be longing: When am I going to get out of this?

The Nature of Spiritual Life

So what is spiritual life? Slowly to recognize—not only to get out of this creation—creation means our individuality. Individuality means finiteness. Finiteness means many-ness. If I am small, I know I am small only in comparison with something else.

And paradoxically, I don't say I am small, because when I compare myself with something smaller, I say I am bigger. I know better. I am a more powerful person, more knowledgeable person. I belong to an upper class, upper caste, etc. But we are not complaining at that time. Complaining comes only when momentary unhappiness acutely reminds us of our limitation.

Unhappiness is acute remembrance of limitation. For example, when you are hungry, that is a limitation. "I should not be hungry." So what is eating food? Removing this limitation. As soon as our stomach is full, we don't feel any longer that I am limited so far as food is concerned. So we have to be acutely aware of that.

Evil and the Path to Sainthood

Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa elsewhere was asked by a devotee, "Why did God create evil people?" And he gave an extraordinary answer. He said, "So that people can become saints." He is really pointing out this truth: that if there were to be no evil people—evil means what? Those who cause unhappiness. It doesn't mean only people. Anything that makes us unhappy is limited.

So growth is a limitation. A child doesn't want to grow. He wants to continue playing. He becomes addicted to mother fussing over him, doing everything for him. He can only play. That is why the first day in school is a torture to the child, until he discovers ways of forgetting himself through play, etc. So growth is a limitation.

Youth is a limitation—terrible limitation. People don't understand. Youth is both a marvelous opportunity to grow in our potentialities, but youth also is a fertile field for us to suffer. Perhaps I don't get a person whom I love. I want to love someone, but someone doesn't want to be loved by me. And I don't want to be loved by someone, and that someone wants to love me. So what are wanted, I am not getting. And what I don't want, I may be getting in plenty. Unwanted things come in plenty.

The Nature of Creation as Drama

So everything—the whole creation—is like a drama. And a drama will not be complete unless there are elements of both comedy as well as tragedy. So that is the very nature of this creation.

But that is not the important point. Anything that is a līlā is a concept. It is real-like, not real. It is as if it is absolutely true, but not true. It is as if unavoidable, but it is played in fun.

When a king or a rich man plays the role of a beggar in a drama, he feels extremely happy. Especially as people—audience—go on appreciating that person, he becomes even more happy, even though he knows in his heart of hearts, "This is only a make-believe, a play. I am not really a poor, wretched person suffering."

So even the stage is beautifully arranged, but it looks as though he is living in a slum area. But it is all play. He knows it is not true. When we come to know something is terrible, something is most painful, but it is not real—it is only a make-believe, as if—then that becomes most enjoyable. That is the real point of līlā.

Why Does God Want to Play?

This brings us to another question: Why does God want to play līlā? You mean to say He is not happy? He is bored? So He wants to pass some time? No. That is His nature. That is an unimportant, secondary point.

The primary point is: Who is asking the question, "Why does God want to create?" The created being is asking, or Brahman is asking? Brahman is never asking. So from the absolute point of view, there is no creation at all. The question of the creature asking about, discussing about, debating about creation doesn't arise at all.

But for now, we have to have faith in the scripture and take it for granted. And that is what the Upaniṣads have told. That is what the Brahma Sūtra made clear.

Nitya Līlā: Eternal Play

But here in this Gospel, this is exactly what Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa was saying: "The Divine Mother is always playful and sportive." Always means what? Nitya līlā—always, from the beginning to the end. That is to say, so long as we are in this creation as individual jīvas, so long it is all nitya līlā.

Our birth is līlā. Our growth, sustenance, living is līlā. And the dissolution of our body is also līlā.

But according to Vedānta, it is only one-fifth of our personality which goes—that is to say, the physical body. All the other four kośas will be there. Until we get out of all the five kośas, this concept of līlā should continue.

And this concept of līlā is the finale, so to say, of the concept. Three other concepts are there. These are highly philosophical views.

Coping with Life: Why the Questions Arise

How to cope with life? All of us have to go through it. And again, why do we want to cope with life when everything is going on? A baby is happily engaged in playing, even by himself, alone. Give some toys. He doesn't ask anything. And he is very well absorbed, concentrated, and very happily concentrated. You want to pull him out—he protests. He doesn't want to give it up. And what is it that makes him not give up? His being happy. He doesn't want to be torn away from that happiness.

But when it comes to the other side of the coin, which is misery, unhappiness, difficulty, suffering—then only all these questions will come.

Concepts of Paradise

So all these questions—whether God created, why He created, and why did He create in this particular way—Swami Vivekānanda used to ridicule. Our concept of heaven differs upon our geological and physical conditions.

So if a person is born in a place where rainfall is very, very scarce, then his concept of paradise will be: it will be always mildly raining. The temperature will be like spring temperature, neither cold nor hot. All the flowers are blooming, etc.

But if he is born—Swami makes fun—like in a place like England, most of the time it is raining and he is miserable. He wishes that it should be dry, and only occasionally, and that too only at nighttime, it should rain. That is called his concept of paradise.

A man who loves food—paradise will be full of infinite varieties of eatables. If a person likes the company of the opposite sex, then heaven, paradise will be full of young, beautiful men as well as women. So paradise will be full of them. And if a person is starved of love, paradise will be full of loving.

The Story from Durgā Saptaśatī

In fact, this is one of the desires. When a person becomes a devotee of God, he had already experienced the betrayal of trust. "I loved this person," and nowhere else do we get this so beautifully depicted as in the Durgā Saptaśatī. There were two persons: a very rich, super-rich person, and another, a powerful king. Both were kicked out of their homes, mostly by their own people, their own families.

So they meet in the hermitage of a sage. And then the question was put: that even though we have been betrayed, our hearts were broken by the very people whom we loved, but still our hearts cannot stop thinking about them all the time.

Then the sage says so beautifully that it is all because of Mahāmāyā. And this is what Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa is telling: This is the Divine Mother's play.

The Eternal Nature of Divine Play

And how long? Not that she ever becomes—the whole creation is nothing but from the beginning to the end, always playful, always sporting. This universe is her play. We are all her playmates.

First we are like pieces of a chess board. But then later on, as we progress, we become aware. Then we understand: She is our mother. She wants to play, and we want to play. So it is a play between the devotee and the deity.

That is what Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa—these profound truths, which is the very essence—so if and when we become Brahman, the question doesn't arise, because the questioning power called mind itself will be blown away, destroyed. There is no mind, so therefore no question. "I am Brahman. I will be Brahman. I know I am Brahman." But I will not question. I will not be self-aware. "I am aware I am so and so"—unconsciously I am separating myself from my body and mind.

But when I am Brahman, there is no body-mind—pure consciousness. And it doesn't question: "Why am I pure consciousness? Am I 100% pure consciousness? Are there other smaller amounts of small consciousnesses?" The question doesn't arise.

So this was Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa's most marvelous concept. But then it is his experience.

The Ignorant Perception of Reality

What is our experience? That's why we are called ignorant people: that this world is not līlā. It is the very reality. It is absolutely true. That is why a definition of reality has to be given.

The word in Sanskrit for this English word "reality" is called satyam. So what is the definition our ṛṣis have given? Whatever is not affected by time. There is no past, present, and future. That which is beyond time. That means which remains the same. It never changes. That is called satyam.

And once we understand, we believe that this is the truth: that everything is satyam. Brahman is satyam. We believe it. And then a quest will start for it. And when we attain it, that is called jñānam. What jñānam? Satya jñānam. And what is that jñānam? Aham anantam—"I am one." Anantam means infinite. And infinite means not uncountable number of things put together. Anantam means one without a second—ekam eva advitīyam. That is what is called experiential knowledge.

Three Philosophical Attitudes Toward Suffering

Until that time, we have got three options. Whatever happens in this world is beyond our capacity. Because there's no need for any scripture to tell us: "Okay, what is your problem?" "I have got headache." "What is the problem?" You go, or you might be having some medicine cabinet—some Anacin. You take one tablet and it will get rid of your headache, at least temporarily. So there are many solutions.

You are hungry—get food and eat. Doesn't matter whether it is tasty food, spicy food. Food is food. In fact, the less spicy, the better. So there is a solution. You are thirsty—there is water. There is a solution. You don't need first-class cold drink. In fact, that is very bad actually for health.

So like that, many small, small problems in life can be solved. Some, of course, cannot be solved because of our limitations. So we have to encounter cold, heat, other people's oppression, or some people's praise. This reality is a fact of life. So as I said, we never have any problem with that which is a happy event. But we have terrible problem with the other event. That is where philosophy really starts. Deep thinking really starts.

So when we cannot remedy our own misery, we have to go through it. How do we cope with that? And for that purpose, there are three attitudes.

First Attitude: Accidental Nature

Those who do not believe in past life, one's own responsibility, or God, or higher beings, law of nature—they have only one solution: "Well, it is nature. It is accidental." And we have to accept whatever I cannot understand, solve. "That is nature." This is the worst of the philosophical attitudes, because it doesn't bring consolation. Most often, it doesn't bring consolation.

But even there are some people—so they have their own philosophy: you will have to put up with everything cheerfully in life. There are some Western philosophies there. But this is what is called: everything that happens beyond my control, I cannot understand, I cannot counter. So for that purpose, we have to say it is accidental.

Second Attitude: God's Will

And then when man progresses further, then he says, "There is a creator. I believe in a creator. He is called God. And everything is happening"—everything means whatever is beyond my control, whatever cannot be countered, remedied by me. That is what is called everything outside my control. "It is all God's will." Inshallah—Muslims call it Inshallah, the will of God. Hindus also call it, "It is Rāma's will," like that they will do.

So even if you still remember Rāmakṛṣṇa's beautiful story of a weaver who was forced to carry some stolen goods, and he was taken to a magistrate, and he narrated the whole thing. He really believed it is Rāma's will. But our problem is we only say that—we don't really mean it.

So this is the second attitude: a kind of, "Okay, it is God's will. I cannot help it. So I have to go through." Regret is there.

Third Attitude: Karma Siddhānta

But there is a third attitude, and mostly Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, and Sikhism believe that it is all due to what I have done in my past—in my past indicates in my previous births. Previous birth—belief in previous birth means belief also in future births.

So how long? For that also, the scriptures, respective scriptures of each one of the followers, they say there will come a time when you will go beyond this saṃsāra, creation, and you will be permanently free from all these limitations, problems.

So these people—and Hinduism very much emphasizes—most Hindus claim they believe in this system. And that is called Karma Siddhānta. It is not accidental. It is not God's will. God only brings about these things because I deserved it. If I deserve happiness, that also comes. As we were talking about it: when we are happy, we don't question God. Only when we are unhappy, the question will arise.

The Purpose of Questioning

And it is a good thing, because if we do not question, then we will never make an attempt to get out.

First, we have to question: Why am I suffering?

Then we have to find out: What is the root cause of this suffering?

Third, we have to find out: Is there any remedy? Is there any way to get out of this suffering?

And only when we are convinced there is a definite way—and fourth, we want proof: Has anybody got out? Yes, there are so many people who have got out. We call them saints. We call them God-realized souls. So there are people like that.

The Fourth Attitude: Looking Inward

And that is the fourth attitude. So life is meant so that we slowly remove our attachment. We become progressively detached. Until we have the capacity, we will not look outward, but we will look inward. This is called: there is a solution. It is not outside. It is inside, within us. So that is how we turn our attention inwards.

And that time will come. Hindus believe everybody is destined, sooner or later. According to the proper time, we will be forced. It is not an option to turn away from the outside. But when will that come? Only when we learn our lessons. Then we look inside. And then our longing for God-realization grows.

And this is the teaching of Buddha, of Jesus, of Rāma, of Kṛṣṇa, of Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa, Holy Mother, Swamiji, etc.

The Meaning of Kālī and Nitya Līlā

So far, when Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa taught these words: the whole creation is nothing but līlā. It is called nitya līlā. That is why earlier we have seen Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa telling, "Kālī means kāla. Kāla means creation. Creation means līlā. Nitya Kālī means nitya līlā." So this is what Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa is telling.

The Question: Why Not Give Freedom to All?

Then a Brahmo devotee is putting this question: "But Sir, if she likes, she can give freedom to all. Why then has she kept us bound to the world?"

Very legitimate question. Why cannot she? She has the power. And she doesn't lose anything.

The Ocean Analogy

There is a beautiful Bengali song. It says, "O Mother, if you give me one person mukti, you will not lose anything." If a person—or let us say an ocean—you approach and say, "Give me a few tumblers full of water," and the sea will give. But if it refuses, we can accuse it, saying, "You can give. And do you lose anything? Will it become less?" Because the ocean will always be full. Again rainfall will come.

And actually, however many people, whatever quantity of water we take from the ocean, it will never become less. Slowly it will dry up—oceans will dry up, and one day you will find a complete, empty, big pool without any water. Such a thing never arises. Small pools, small rivers, small lakes—they can become dry. But the ocean will never become dry.

And what will you lose? "O Lord, if you give me mukti—not only me, if you give mukti to all the number of jīvas in this world—what do you lose? Why are you not giving?" Marvelous question. And this is our question also, even though we don't put it in this particular manner.

The Desire for Eternal Life and Knowledge

But what are we saying? "Let me be living forever. Let me know everything." So a speculator, if he comes to know, "Tomorrow this stock price will be skyrocketing, and after tomorrow this company is going down"—if anybody has got that knowledge a few days earlier, he will become enormously rich. But what happens? That also depends upon a person's fate only.

For some mysterious reason, this knowledge will not come at the right time. There are people who are wise beforehand, afterwards. But when the exact time comes, they are not wise.

The 2008-9 Economic Crash

That is why in, I think, 2008-9, there was a huge economic crash. And so many people—they take huge amount of money to give advice to others. They are advising which stocks to invest in, etc. And there are some people who are world-famous: "You invest here and you are safe to do that."

And then you know what happened? Even these so-called—they are called pundits, wise people—even they were caught. They were shocked because they did not see it coming. And there were people who were seeing it coming. They were cautious. They were not playing all these stocks. And they were saved.

Actually, I was at that time in UK. And some stocks were going up. We have a stockbroker. We pay quite a good amount of money. And his business is to see that we will never lose. And then we have a meeting once in three months: how we are doing. And because they have to explain themselves.

So at that time, one of us questioned, "Why are you not investing? We have so much money into this particular stock."

And then I still remember his words ring: "Swami, we want long-term overall profit, not short-time. So anything that goes up like this is sure to crash down. So I would not advise you to force us to invest in these particular stocks."

I don't know anything about these affairs. So we listened. Actually, some of us were not very happy about it. But then within a few months, this crash came down from the heaven, as it were. And you know, millions and millions of people have lost. But our centre has not lost a single penny.

Then what happened? The value has gone down. But then the man said, "If you wanted money urgently for your immediate needs, then the value has become less. But if you are quite happy with whatever you are getting regularly, and you don't touch these things, you will see within a few years your stock will be very safe." So we have not lost. We have not gained immediately. But we have not lost a single penny.

So people cannot see the long-term effects.

Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa's Reply: The Divine Mother's Will

So Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa has heard this question of the Brahmo devotee: "What does the Divine Mother—after all, she is infinite. If she gives to all the souls, and the souls are not infinite (they may be quite a big, uncountable number of people), if all of them get mukti, of course there would be no creation then. There would be no līlā then. What will she lose?"

But we never look from the cosmic point of view—only from a very limited individual point of view. This is what he is asking: "That if she likes, she can give freedom to all. Why then has she kept us bound to this world?"

And Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa's again marvelous reply—that is God Himself replying—said, "That is her will. She wants to continue playing with her created beings."

The Game of Hide and Seek

And then he gives a beautiful example: "In a game of hide and seek, the running about soon stops if in the beginning all the players touch the granny. If all touch her, then how can the game go on? That displeases her. Her pleasure is in continuing the game."

Therefore the poet said:

"Out of a hundred thousand kites, at best but one or two break free,

And thou dost laugh and clap thy hands, O Mother, watching them."

Understanding the Play as Make-Believe

Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa's marvelous reply is: you see, if we come to know that all the unhappiness that we experience, or every creature—you see, whether it is David Attenborough's nature documentaries, everywhere there is a struggle, everywhere there is death, everywhere a very cruel way of doing—you have to turn and read a bit of history. You will see people could have been killed in a second, their miseries could come to an end, at least temporarily. But how cruelly people were tortured, were killed—not one or two, but in millions and millions.

Like, for example, Jesus Christ himself was crucified. Crucifixion is a way of killing. You just take a sword and cut off the head—it just takes a few seconds. But this torturing—what is the meaning? How can we explain? And the whole history is nothing but full of these events.

Is it happening now? Yes. Every single second it is happening.

The Key to Understanding

So what is the point? If we think it is real, then the misery will be terrible. But once we have the realization: it is nothing but līlā. Līlā means make-believe. It is a drama. It is a cinema. It is a drama. It is a conscious dream.

We all have dreams, but they are unconscious dreams. We think, just like waking state, whatever we are experiencing in our dream is an absolute truth. It is the waking state. Only when we come out of it, we understand: it is my own imagination. Nothing is real.

Drama as the Best Example

So a drama is a better example. It is happening on this stage. We are all seeing it, but we pay money to watch it. Why? Because we are enjoying it. And this enjoyment is called aesthetic enjoyment—kalānanda—because it is so realistic, especially when some people act. How wonderful it is!

But here also there is something I found very interesting. What is it? I have seen so many incidents that are depicted in our cinemas that we witness. They are actually things that are happening outside all the time.

So when these things are happening outside in our waking state, and they are all very real, not make-believe—how much torture a person who is being tortured and torn limb by limb, or fingers, feet, bit by bit, they are being cut off, like the crucifixion of Jesus Christ—so how much pain the person has to undergo! Not only the pain, but even thinking about it—mentally, mental pain added to the physical pain, that mental imagination: "Oh, I am going through this intolerable pain"—how much it adds to the agony!

It is happening. Every single day it is happening. And we ourselves are doing it. How we torture, kill animals for our tingling of the tongue. It is nothing but titillation of the tongue. Nothing but that. So these are all happening.

The Divine Mother's Perspective

So Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa is telling: "That is her will." This is the first point.

Before we proceed further, we have to understand the second point. What is the second point? Just like a drama, the Divine Mother knows this is not real. "I am playing." Just like in our dream, we are creating people who torture us. Of course, people who give us pleasure also. Who are those people? I myself have become my enemy in my dream. I myself have become a friend in my dream. I am the sweetest object in my dream. I am the bitterest object in my dream. So everything is nothing but my own imagination.

But when we are dreaming, what is the problem? I do not know it is a dream. I know it is a reality. But in a drama, in a cinema, it is something which is make-believe. Same thing is going on. And if some people play it so realistically, then the persons, the spectators, will have that aesthetic enjoyment. They experience the happiness and unhappiness both, but at the same time consciously aware that this is make-believe. This is not real. This is the condition of the Divine Mother.

But as I mentioned earlier, she consciously became unconscious—if there is such a concept—and as if she is undergoing her own this thing.

So this is what Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa meant: "That is her will. She wants to continue playing with whom? With her created beings." Who are those created beings? Herself!

The Hide-and-Seek Analogy Continued

"So in a game of hide and seek, this is the nearest analogy we can have, the running about soon stops if at the very beginning all the players touch the granny. Then where is the touch-the-granny play? It is not there. If all touch her, then how can the game go on? That displeases her. Her pleasure is in continuing that game.

"Therefore the poet said: Out of a hundred thousand kites, at best but one or two break free. And who makes them free? It is only the Divine Mother again. It is her will. And thou dost laugh and clap—as if, 'Oh ho! That kite of mine has become free!'—even though she herself has done it, as if unconsciously she did it, as if by mistake she did it, and the kite breaks free. And then, 'Oh ho, you have escaped my hands. How delighted I am!'"

So that also she claps. What about other times? Then also she is happy. When the kite is being played with, she is happy. When the kite breaks free, she is happy. All the time she is very happy. That is why: sadānandamayī Kālī—Mother Kālī is always ānandamayī. Ānanda means what? Forgetfulness of time. So being in this sṛṣṭi, not aware of being in this sṛṣṭi—that is called ānandamayī.

The Role of the Mind

And then Rāmakṛṣṇa continues. What is our problem? We say, "It is all fine. I cannot intellectually understand this teaching, but my mind never listens to me. It understands, but it doesn't want to do what it understands. It knows this is not a suitable food, but it is stubborn. It wants that food only."

The Mind as Divine Spy

That is why Rāmakṛṣṇa is telling: It is as if the Divine Mother said to the human mind in confidence, with a sign from her eye, "Go and enjoy the world." As if Mother had lent the mind to each one of us and said, "You serve this jīva, but you make him believe—him or her—make him believe you are his servant, her servant. But secretly report to me whatever this person is doing."

As if the mind is kept as a spy! And even today that is how people employ spies—as if they are very believable, confidential people. "So go and enjoy the world. Nothing is going to happen."

So how can one blame the mind? Because if it is the Divine Mother's will, who can blame?

The Grace of the Divine Mother

"The mind can disentangle itself from worldliness if, through her grace, she makes it turn towards herself. Only then does it become devoted to the lotus feet of the Divine Mother."

Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa is echoing what Bhagavān—what she herself had said in the Gītā in the form of Bhagavān Śrī Kṛṣṇa:

Sarva dharmān parityajya mām ekaṃ śaraṇaṃ vraja

Ahaṃ tvā sarva pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ

So Śrī Rām—the path that is shown to all of us through Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa is: "My children, take refuge in the Divine Mother. You cannot achieve anything."

This is what many times I have repeated, and I will repeat.

The Limitation of Yogas

So the question is: we all read through Swami Vivekānanda there are infinite paths. Any path can take you to God. Importantly, there are Karma Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, Rāja Yoga, and Jñāna Yoga. Any one of them, or all of them together—by one or more or all of them together, if you sincerely practice them, then you will become free.

But no, it is not possible. This is the teaching of Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa.

The Purpose of Yoga Practices

So what do these yogas do? It is like a person who has done his level best, whatever is possible. At the end he realizes: that what he has done is nothing. It cannot give him what he really wants. But at that stage comes this complete self-surrender. Then he realizes: "I have done my best. More than this I cannot do. Now I have no other option but to surrender myself to You, and Your grace alone can save." So then that śaraṇāgati bhāva—then only real, true, 100% śaraṇāgati bhāva will come. Then the idea "I can do" completely vanishes.

That is the purpose of every yoga. What is the purpose? To know that all efforts are useless—only the grace of God. But that firm idea that only God can release me will come only when we exhaust our egotism in the form of self-effort.

So therefore Rāmakṛṣṇa is telling: that every yoga is practiced only by the mind. But mind cannot achieve, because through the limited, the unlimited cannot be achieved. Through the finite, one cannot attain the infinite. This is a great law.

The Mind Must Turn by Grace

So how can one blame the mind? **"The mind can disentangle itself from worldliness if, through her grace, she makes it turn. She should make it turn toward herself."**

This is what in the Gospel is called "Give me the power of attorney." Only then does it become devoted to the lotus feet of the Divine Mother.

The Song of Complaint to the Divine Mother

Whereupon Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa, taking upon himself as it were the agonies of all householders, sang a song complaining to the Divine Mother. The Bengali song—it starts: Āmi āi khepe mori—"O Mother, I die of grief only because of this."

So this is the English translation:

"Mother, This Is the Grief"

"Mother, this is the grief that sorely grieves my heart,

That even with Thee for Mother, and though I am wide awake,

There should be robbery in my house."

Many and many a time I vow to call on Thee,

Yet when the time for prayer comes round, I have forgotten Thee!

What a beautiful statement of our mental condition! We are convinced that God exists. We are convinced only His grace can save us. We are convinced that the only goal of life is to take shelter at the feet of the Lord or Divine Mother. But in spite of all that, what happens?

"O Mother, this is the grief that sorely grieves my heart. On one side I am trying my best, but on the other side, what is happening? Even with Thee for Mother—I know You are watching me. I know You know everything. I know You can do everything. I know that You are doing everything. You are also awake, and though I am also wide awake—and there should be robbery in my house!"

The Robbery of Knowledge

What is this robbery? That is losing what is called jñānam—knowledge, the knowledge that I am the child of the Divine Mother. I have forgotten.

"How many and many a time I vow to call on Thee!" So many times, like New Year's resolution. This New Year's resolution is to put my last New Year's resolution into practice! Like that, how many times we decide: "No, from now onwards I am going to follow this routine. I am going to surrender myself to God." Many and many a time. How many millions of times I have taken this: "I vow to call on Thee."

Yet when the time for prayer comes round, some excuse will come: "I have an urgent work. I will quickly finish it and then come and sit for meditation." Even if I am able to do that, how many alien, ungodly thoughts crop up in my mind!

The Devotee's Realization

But then after a long time, the spiritual aspirant wakes up. You know what he understands? "Now I see it is all Thy trick. I thought the fault was mine, but now I clearly understand: it is all Your trick. You are tricking me all the time!"

"As Thou hast never given..." And then the prayer turns against the Mother. Until now, "I depend upon You." And now, "You are to blame." Until now, "I am at fault. I dug my own grave, and I am drowning in the poisonous waters that came up into this grave which was dug with my own hands." But now I see: it is all Your trick!

So the devotees pray. This is also one of the great spiritual practices.

"As Thou Hast Never Given, So Thou Receivest Not"

"As Thou hast never given, so Thou receivest not."

Just like a mother—if she doesn't give something to the child, simply she says, "Give me something." Mother asks the child. If the mother had given, say, a chocolate, and then says, "Baby, I love you. You love me?" "Yes, yes, I love you." "Give me a little bit of that chocolate which you have." The child—most of the children—they refuse to give. But some children they think, "I must give to my mother." So a teeny weeny bit with their tiny fingers they try to break and give it to the mother.

But if the mother has never given, how is the baby to give? That means: if God has not given us something—whether He gives us knowledge, whether He gives us wealth, whether He gives us some intelligence to do something, to sing well, to write well, to speak well, to administer well, to discover well—then only can we use it in her service.

"As You have never given, so You also cannot receive."

The Logic of Divine Giving

Simple fact is: not that I don't want to give, but since I have nothing to give—and only when You give me something I become capable of giving to You—You will not receive. So am I to blame for this? If You are going on trying to blame me, You don't give me anything. First You give me.

If You have given me this body, I am going to use it in Your service. If You have given me the intelligent mind, I am going to serve You with that intelligent mind. So You have not given. Hast Thou but given—if You only have given even a teeny weeny bit—surely then Thou hadst received! Definitely You would have received, because I love You, and the nature of love is to give everything.

Very interesting. And this is what Saint Francis de Sales so beautifully depicts in his beautiful book—I forgot the title—The Way to Devotion or something like that. He says: the mother gives a sweet to the child and then says, to test, "Baby, will you give me a little?" And the child refuses to part with it, even though it knows it is only my mother who has given it. It has forgotten. "It is mine! Once it comes into my hands, it belongs to me, so I am not going to give it to you."

So if You had given me, I am not like that child, because I am truly devoted to You and I love.

True Love Means Willingness to Give

Now the point Saint Francis—not of Assisi, de Sales of France—he says: the child says, "If the mother asks, 'Baby, do you love me?' Says, 'Mom, I love you very much, but I will not give.'" That is not love!

What is love? Even before anybody asks—mother asks, "Ma, you take this?" Of course the mother will not take—that is a different issue. The baby does not know that. But mother will be very happy: "My child is showing complete willingness to give up everything for me. I am so happy with that gratefulness."

So love and the willingness to give up everything—prāṇārpaṇa, jagatāraṇa, kīrtana, kāli tore—so here is the devotee:

The Complete Song

"Am I to blame for this, O Mother?

Hadst Thou but given, surely then Thou hadst received.

Out of Thine own gifts I should have given to Thee."

Glory and shame, bitter and sweet, are Thine alone.

This world is nothing but Thy play.

Then why, O Blissful One, dost Thou cause a rift in it?

A rift in the bliss! Says Ramprasad:

"Thou hast bestowed on me this mind,

And with a knowing wink of Thine eye

Bidden it at the same time to go and enjoy the world.

And so I wander here forlorn through Thy creation,

Blasted as it were by someone's evil glance,

Taking the bitter for the sweet,

Taking the unreal for the real!"

What a marvelous thing!

The Impact of the Song

Having spoken—sung—this song, superb singer—everybody's heart not only enjoys as we enjoy other people's singing, but he had the ability to lift our minds to the very meaning, albeit temporarily, to that same plane which he himself was continuously enjoying.

The Teaching: Delusion Through Māyā

So he says: "Men are deluded through her māyā and have become attached to the world."

Says Ramprasad: