Om Hrim Ritam Lecture 05 on 22 September 2019

Full Transcript (Corrected)

ॐ

जननीम् सारदाम् देविम् रामकृष्णं जगद्गुरुम् ।

पादपद्मे तयोः श्रित्वा प्रणमामि मुहरमुहुहु ।।

Oṃ jananīm Sāradām devīm Ramakrishnam jagadgurum |

Pādapadme tayoḥ śritvā praṇamāmi muhurmuhuhu ||

In our last class, we discussed the second verse of the Oṃ Hrīm Ṛtam hymn. The essence of that verse is that any of the paths—devotion, knowledge, or karma—is more than sufficient to lead one to the goal of self-realization or God-realization. Even though I understand this intellectually, there is no response in my mind or heart. That means my behavior has not changed much. Therefore, O Lord, I take refuge in You. The essence of this particular hymn is Sharaṇāgati. Śharaṇāgati requires faith that the one to whom we are surrendering ourselves must be completely capable of helping us. The person or being to whom we surrender must be capable of helping us. Otherwise, although he may be a good person, this is insufficient. This is being expressed as the glory of Sri Ramakrishna. Sri Ramakrishna means not merely Ramakrishna the person, but God in the form of Sri Ramakrishna. What does that mean? It means that Ramakrishna is also God. If we say “Ramakrishna also is God,” it does not exclude others. For instance, if we say “Rāma is God,” it implies only Rāma is God. However, if we say “Rāma is also God,” it includes Kṛṣṇa as God, Rāma as God, Ramakrishna as God, or any Guru as God. So, he says:

Tejas taranti tarasa tvayi tṛpta-tṛṣṇāḥ

Rāge kṛte ṛtapathe tvayi Rāmakṛṣṇe |

Martyāmṛtaṁ tava padaṁ maraṇormi-nāśaṁ

Tasmāt tvameva śaraṇaṁ mama dīnabandho ||3||

First, let us analyze and understand the word-by-word meaning. Tejaḥ tarasa taranti—tarasa means very quickly. Taranti means they cross over. Cross over what? Tejaḥ means Rajo Guṇa. What binds us is Rajo Guṇa. But those people who take refuge in Sri Ramakrishna quickly cross over this Saṁsāra Sāgara (ocean of worldly existence). Now, here we must understand what it means to say, “those who believe in you.” Is it only lip service, or is much more involved? In my last class, I explained this a little. Śharaṇāgati must qualify or fulfill six qualities: I will never do whatever displeases the one to whom I am surrendering. I will always do what pleases him. I will choose him alone because he alone can save me. I will transfer all my responsibilities to him. Responsibilities include two aspects: the things that I need to do and the results of my actions. For instance, if I am happy, I cannot credit myself for it because it is his gift. If he gives me unhappiness, I will also accept it as prasādam. Both are required. This is called transferring responsibility - I will do my best, but whatever the outcome, I will accept it fully. I will live ever after with great humility. What is that humility? To feel: “I did not surrender to you. I don’t have the capacity to surrender myself to you. It is only your grace that took my hand and pulled me towards you.” In Girish Chandra Ghosh’s case, Sri Ramakrishna asked him to “give me your power of attorney.” Girish simply said yes. At that moment, he did not fully understand the depth of the request. Many years later, he realized how hard it is. It means you cannot even think one thought as your own, claiming, “This is my thought.”

Tejaḥ tarasa taranti - people cross over the saṁsāra of both Rajas and Tamas. Rajas means tejaḥ - restlessness, but it also includes Tamas. The people who can cross over are described as tvayi tṛpta-tṛṣṇāḥ, those with an intense thirst, longing only for the Divine and for nothing else. Tvayi tṛpta means they are completely and utterly fulfilled upon attaining the Divine. To achieve this, one must be attached to the Divine in some form or another. Rāge kṛte - Rāga means tremendous attachment, specifically for God. However, it is often through worldly attachment that we develop the capacity for such devotion, as the world acts as a gymnasium for strengthening the muscles of Rāga or even Dveṣa, since hatred is also a form of attachment, where the object of dislike dominates one’s thoughts. Thus, when we redirect this attachment solely to the Divine, Rāge kṛte signifies the capability to attach oneself entirely to God. But what do we mean by “you”?

Ṛtapathe - previously, we discussed what Ṛtam is. It is the cosmic law. What is the cosmic law? It is the intrinsic nature of everything. For instance, it is the nature of a scorpion to sting, a mosquito to bite, and a thorn to prick. They cannot give up their nature. Similarly, it should be the nature of a human being to act in accordance with their humanity. But what does it mean to be human? To err is human nature. Everyone makes mistakes, especially children, who constantly commit errors. Yet, we understand and forgive them. If a child breaks something accidentally, we may feel sad, but we do not punish the child. However, as the child grows and gains understanding, we begin to hold them accountable. Can we extend this same compassion to other adults? Often, we do not. We expect them to know what to do and what not to do. But in reality, they are like children. If people truly understood that their harmful actions would return to them with compounded consequences, would they commit those actions? Similarly, if they knew that good deeds would bring compounded rewards, wouldn’t they compete to do good? People would even argue, "No, it’s my turn to do good!" This lack of understanding is Māyā. Māyā gives us scriptures that outline rules - what to do and what not to do - but it withholds the conviction to follow them. This conviction is śhraddhā. At some point, śhraddhā will arise. Rāge kṛte ṛtapathe - with attachment to truth, one walks the path of Ṛtam. Patha means path, and tvayi Rāmakṛṣṇe - O Ramakrishna, in you. What is "you"? You are the path of truth and Dharma. How do we know this? From the Īśāvāsya Upaniṣad:

Hiraṇmayena pātreṇa satyasyāpihitaṃ mukham

Tattvaṃ pūṣannapāvṛṇu satyadharmāya dṛṣṭaye || 15 ||

- Īśāvāsya Upaniṣad

I am Satyadharma - a follower of Satya (truth) and Dharma, and you, Sri Ramakrishna, are the embodiment of both Satya and Dharma. Therefore, I wish to see your face directly, face to face, because I have the right to do so, having followed your footsteps. This is also referred to as the imitation of Christ. Martyāmṛtaṁ tava padaṁ maraṇormi-nāśaṁ -Maraṇa means death and Ūrmi means waves. So, how many maraṇas have you experienced? Countless, from past births. Śaṅkarācārya offers a profound insight here, distinguishing between two types of death: visible and invisible. Visible death is when a person physically dies, when breathing stops, the heart ceases to beat, and a doctor certifies death which is observable by everyone. However, there is also an invisible death: every millisecond, the old version of "me" dies, and a new "me" is born. If we fast-forward this process, we see how we evolve—first as a baby, then as a child, an adolescent, a youth, and then into old age. The full circle completes, which is the invisible death. Sri Ramakrishna advises us to beware of death, for time is constantly consuming us.

Āyur naśyati paśyatāṁ pratidinaṁ yāti kṣayaṁ yauvanaṁ

Pratyāyānti gatāḥ punarna divasāḥ kālo jagadbhakṣakaḥ |

Lakṣmīḥ toya-taraṅga-bhaṅga-capalā vidyuc calaṁ jīvitam

Tasmān māṁ śaraṇāgataṁ śaraṇada tvaṁ rakṣa rakṣādhunā ||

        - Śivāparādha-kṣamāpaṇa-stotram

My life diminishes as I watch, youth wanes day by day, The days that have passed do not return; Time is the devourer of the world. Wealth is as fickle as the waves in water, and life is as fleeting as lightning. Therefore, I, who have come to seek refuge, implore you, O giver of refuge—protect me, protect me now.

As we keep observing, even a moment that was just a second ago is gone, it’s over. You can’t go back, not even one second. Martyāmṛtaṁ tava padaṁ - your lotus feet, O Lord. What kind of lotus feet are these? They are not like our physical feet. The term "lotus feet" represents a high idealism. What can they give? Martyāmṛtaṁ - they have the power to transform every mortal into an immortal. Tasmāt - therefore, O Lord, I take refuge in you: Tasmāt tvameva śaraṇaṁ mama dīnabandho tvameva śaraṇaṁ mama dīnabandho. I would like to mention Sri Ramakrishna's lotus feet. Did I narrate M’s dream in the last class about his wish to go to Bhavanipur? I think I did. This incident is recorded in the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna. One day, Sri Ramakrishna asked M, “Do you have any dreams?” M replied, “Yes.” Then Sri Ramakrishna asked, “What was the dream?” M described it: “One day, I went to the seashore, where many boats were tied up. However, no boat was traveling because of a big storm, and the passengers were disappointed. I was among them. I thought, ‘I urgently need to reach my destination. How am I going to get there?’ Suddenly, I saw an old Brahmin walking on the water and moving very quickly. I asked him, ‘Sir, where are you going?’ He answered, ‘I am going to Bhavanipur.’ I said, ‘Oh, I also need to go to Bhavanipur. Can I follow you?’ He replied, ‘No. I am moving very fast. But you can come if you observe carefully where my feet are moving. Follow my footsteps. There is a hidden bridge underneath the water. That’s how you will reach your destination.” With that, the dream ended. Upon hearing this, Sri Ramakrishna exclaimed, “I am thrilled! My hair is standing on end. You better get quickly initiated by a Guru.” What is the symbolism here? It means to follow the footsteps of Sri Ramakrishna. But what does “follow the footsteps of Sri Ramakrishna” truly mean? This reminds me of the story of Paramānandaiah and his foolish disciples. One day, Paramānandaiah told his disciples, “I am going on a pilgrimage. Watch the āśrama carefully because thefts have been occurring frequently.” The disciples replied, “Yes, sir, we will watch.” After a few days, he returned and found the entire āśrama looted. Shocked, he asked, “Didn’t I tell you to watch?” They answered, “Yes, sir, we were watching. When the thieves came, we were watching. When they gathered the materials, we were watching. When they bundled everything and left, we were watching. You told us to watch, and we did exactly that.”

This is not called following the footsteps. What does that mean? Lead the life of Sri Ramakrishna. Like Imitation of Christ – a beautiful book. Have you read Imitation of Christ? It is one of the most beautiful books. One of the novice masters in 12th-century Catholicism, Thomas à Kempis, had written this book. There are many translations, but one particular translation is the most beautiful translation in the world. So this is very important. What did Sri Ramakrishna do? How did he live? How did he pray? How did he control his mind? This is called following the footsteps of Sri Ramakrishna. We have to follow accordingly, like small children, babies. Baby's footsteps. Have you noticed? A cat is going somewhere. The kitten also slowly follows. A small puppy follows its mother. Maybe they are not as capable as the adult, but we have to try our level best. So this is called Martyāmṛtaṁ tava padaṁ and also ṛtapatha. Ṛta means truth. And the path that leads to truth also must be truth only. Satyena Vidhitā Panthā. The way to the higher worlds is strewn with truth. That means untruth takes us the opposite way. So what is the truth here? Follow the five commandments of Sri Ramakrishna. Remember the five commandments? First, develop love for God. Sing God's glories. Then, four ways to develop love for God. Cultivate holy company (Bhakti yoga). Now and then, go into solitude. Nirjana-sthān. Nirjana-sthān literally means a solitary place where there is no human being. But here the meaning should be taken as “I have nobody who can help me. No human being can ever help me”. How can one bound person help the other bound person?

I narrated a story previously. Do you remember the one about a king and his minister's daughter? It is worth recollecting once more. There was a king, and there was a brāhmaṇa who used to teach him the scriptures. The scriptures state that if you get a real teacher and he explains to you properly, you will be free from all bondage. So the king, after a lot of study, said, "Why are you not capable of releasing me from my bondage?" The poor man did not know how to answer. The king said, "Come back tomorrow with an answer, otherwise, I will chop off your head." The fellow was worried and could not eat. He had an 8-year-old daughter. The daughter asked him, "Dad, why are you worried? You are not eating." He narrated what had happened. The daughter said, "Eat wholeheartedly, sleep soundly, and tomorrow morning take me with you. I will answer the king's question." The next morning, she went along with her father. The king was told, "My daughter will answer your question." The daughter said, "You have to obey whatever I ask you to do for a few minutes. Ask your servants to bind you and also ask my father to be bound." Then she said, "O King, release my father." The king said, "How is it possible? I am bound. Unless I am free, I cannot help him." The daughter replied, "That is the answer to your question. My father himself is bound. How can he free you?" Talking about scriptures, etc., is a different issue, but it is really not possible. So, this is the truth. We have to truly follow the footsteps, and slowly, by the grace of God, we will also be free. That is why it may take lives—many, many lives—but what does it matter? Every time, you are becoming happy, happier, and happiest. That is why always keep in mind that spiritual progress and increasing happiness are synonymous. If anybody says, "I am progressing in spiritual life," and you ask how, they may reply, “Previously, I used to do one thousand japa, now I am doing ten thousand.” If you say, “Previously, I could tolerate you for one hour, now I can't tolerate you even for a second,” can you call that spiritual progress?

Because man grows in three things. If he is progressing in spiritual life, a sādhaka (spiritual aspirant) grows in three ways. What are the three ways? What is the name of God? Sat-Cit-Ānanda. Growth in Sat means goodness. Sat means purity. Sat means truth. Sat means health, existence. So if I am healthy, if I am good, if I am pure, if I am truthful more than before, that means I am going towards God. Now you may say—what is the relationship between being good and being healthy? The answer was given by Raja Maharaj. He says a person who meditates, i.e., one who can meditate well, his health also improves. If we can meditate well, two things will happen. The first thing is that the mind becomes very calm and quiet. If anybody says, "I am able to meditate well, but my mind is not so calm and serene," there is something deeply wrong with that meditation. Secondly, here is the thing: when a person is capable of meditating, that means he is capable of understanding the thoughts of his mind and gaining control over them. Therefore, he will cherish only positive thoughts. Meditation means good positive thoughts. Will there be positive thoughts also about health? Some problem comes, and his attitude will be, “What does it matter? Everybody is suffering. I am also suffering. I don't care a little bit.” So that gives him tremendous strength. And then, when the mind is calm, the body also functions in a much better way - sāttvika. So this is one way. Another way to understand is, as a person's meditation becomes deeper, his sattva guṇa grows. The moment Sattva guṇa begins to grow, his tastes also undergo a change. What does a tamo guṇi do? To him, three-days-old stale food is very dear.

Yātayāmam gatarasaṁ pūti paryuṣitaṁ ca yat |

Ucchiṣṭamapi cāmedhyam bhojanaṁ tāmasapriyam ||

- Bhagavad Gita (17:10)

Foods that are overcooked, stale, putrid, polluted, and impure are dear to persons in the mode of Tamo Guṇa.

Tamo guṇi’s food is ucchiṣṭam – pre-tasted or polluted. Somebody has already eaten a part of it. Even a dog might come and share the food with him also. Amedhyam – impure. Then, pūti – means putrid food, which is two or three days old, rotting food. Paryuṣitaṁ means leftover food. But somehow, that fellow likes it. Dry fish is very favorite. If a person promotes himself to rajas, what type of food do you think he likes?

Kaṭv-amla-lavaṇāty-uṣhṇa- tīkṣhṇa-rūkṣha-vidāhinaḥ

Āhārā rājasasyeṣhṭā duḥkha-śhokāmaya-pradāḥ

- Bhagavad Gita (17:9)

Foods that are too bitter, too sour, salty, very hot, pungent, dry, and full of chillies, are dear to persons in the mode of Rajas. Such foods produce pain, grief, and disease.

Ati uṣhṇa - tīkṣhṇa-rūkṣha-vidāhinaḥ. That which is burning from top to bottom or bottom to top. Ati uṣhṇa - very hot (spicy). Uṣhṇa means spicy food.  Rūkṣha means dry food. They just enjoy very sour, very salty, and very hot, spicy food. All this biryani and other things they call is like that kind of food. So, for just one second of enjoyment, 23 hours and 59 minutes of terrible payment. Yes, that is the truth. If a person has grown to Sattva, then he naturally likes:

Āyuḥ-sattva-balārogya-sukha-prīti-vivardhanāḥ  |

Rasyāḥ snigdhāḥ sthirā hṛidyā āhārāḥ sāttvika-priyāḥ ||

- Bhagavad Gita (17:8)

Persons in the mode of Sattva prefer foods that promote life span, and increase virtue, strength, health, happiness, and satisfaction. Such foods are juicy, succulent, nourishing, and naturally tasteful.

The food is slightly cooked, maybe a bit of salt, maybe a bit of pepper is added to it, and he enjoys it. The point is that many people consider this a great austerity. No, no, it is not an austerity. It is a great joy for a person to eat Sāttvika food. I could not have believed this when I went to Argentina. We went to a Chinese restaurant, and there were at least 50 varieties of only these grains, leaves, etc. I said, "Why did this Swami bring me here? Can this food be eaten?" After eating that food, I felt like I had never tasted such tasty food in the whole world, in my whole life. You know, the food was slightly boiled and lightly spiced as they added some things to it. But everything had its own original flavor. You know their philosophy? Every vegetable and every fruit has its own special flavor. So, the culinary skill lies in how to bring about that natural flavor to the front and make people enjoy it. We all love children. Why do we love children? Because, you know, they are so innocent. Why are they so innocent? Because they eat only Sāttvika food such as well-boiled rice, a little bit of dal, and pure ghee. It is so tasty that the child can eat only that, and that’s his nature also. But slowly, in Andhra, they introduce Avakāya pickle and all those things. That's a different issue. What am I trying to tell you? That as we change our diet, our qualities - Tāmas or Rajas or Sattva also grow. And as we are growing in quality, our liking for these things also simultaneously grows. They grow together. So, when a person is capable of meditating, he is getting so much joy that he doesn't require that kind of stupid joy from Rājasika foods and other things. He derives the highest happiness from Sāttvika food. Naturally, Sattva gives the highest type of happiness. When a person eats Sāttvika food, what do you think is its effect upon physical health? Good health. Although some diseases could come from outside like Dengue fever etc. it be helped. But my unproven suspicion is that mosquitoes also don't like a Sāttvika person. Maybe he is not so tasty.

Anyway, so what are we talking about? Those people who are totally satisfied in You, O Lord, whose goal is You, and those who follow Your footsteps, those who observe truthfulness and Dharma, such people quickly overcome Rajas and enter into the Sāttvika state and go beyond the Sāttvika state also. Why? Because Tava Padam, Your lotus feet, Martyāmṛtaṁ tava padaṁ - maraṇormi-nāśaṁ - Martyāmṛtaṁ, even they have the power to convert mortal beings into immortal beings. Maraṇormi-nāśaṁ means they completely destroy the waves of Martyā.  Martyāmṛtaṁ means what? One attains liberation by just loving You. Loving You means converting our life into the teachings of Sri Ramakrishna. That is an important point. Otherwise, verbally, we are all the greatest devotees of God. But action-wise, we just travel in the opposite direction. The first thing we have to resolve in spiritual life is this conflict between what we talk and what we do,  and what we think, what we talk, and what we do. That has to be resolved. Now here is something which I want to point out to you. It is the most wonderful thing for us to understand. What was the definition of truth according to Sri Ramakrishna? Mon Mukh Ek Karo - you make your thought, your speech, and your action one. This is called the path of truth. This is what every devotee of Sri Ramakrishna must attain. Even though I know all these things, yet I am helpless. I am not able to follow it. I understand it very clearly, but something is pulling me back. Therefore, Tasmāt tvameva śaraṇaṁ mama dīnabandho - I take refuge in You, O friend of the lowly. Then, going further:

Kṛtyaṁ karoti kaluṣaṁ kuhakāntakāri

Kṣṇāntaṁ śivaṁ suvimalaṁ tava nāma nātha |

Yasmād aham aśaraṇo jagadekagamya

Tasmāt tvam eva śaraṇaṁ mama dīnabandho || 4 ||

He is describing the glory of the name of Ramakrishna. So where does Ramakrishna's name end? It ends in the letter Kṣṇāntaṁ - tava nāma nātha. Oh Lord, Your name tava nāma ends with the letter ṣṇa. Ramakrishna. What type of name is it? śhivaṁ - it only confers auspiciousness - Sarva-maṅgala māṅgalye. So this auspiciousness is of two types: Abhyudaya and Niḥśreyasa - for those who seek worldly happiness, seek only God, because He will give you the highest worldly happiness. What is the highest worldly happiness a person can get? Brahma Loka. Brahma Loka is the highest limit of the Saṁsārik happiness. But if you want even higher than this, the highest which is infinite and eternal, that is called Brahmānanda-loka. Brahma-Loka-Ānanda and Brahmānanda-Ānanda - these are completely different. One is limited, another is unlimited. Within the limited, Brahma-Loka-Ānanda is the highest. That is what he is telling: śhivaṁ. Then he says, what is Your glory? Kuhaka-anta-kāri. You are the destroyer. Antakāri means he who puts an end to Kuhaka which means hypocrisy, deceitfulness. Here it means Māyā. What does Māyā tell? Oh, this table is real. But in fact, what is real? Or to give a classical example, this snake is real. But what is really real? The rope. Who is the rope in this case? God, Brahman. So Māyā's power is that it makes the infinite finite, it makes the all-pervading as limited, and it makes the eternal as a short time. That is called Kuhaka, deceitful. But You are capable of destroying this deceitfulness. What a beautiful word we have here. So this is called Kuhaka-anta-kāri. How does Sri Ramakrishna do it? Most of the time, what we are doing are impure actions: kaluṣaṁ. The way we act, we think, we speak is kaluṣaṁ. Now kaluṣa is also of two types. What is kaluṣa? Physically speaking, there is good water, and some dirt, dust, or something is mixed in it. What does it become? Kaluṣa, impure. Telling lies, or stealing something, or injuring other persons - what we call Pāpa-kārya. This is the lowest type of Pāpa. The highest type of Pāpa is what the Īśāvāsya Upaniṣad states:

Asuryā nāma te lokā andhena tamasāvṛtāḥ |

Tāṃste pretyābhigacchanti ye ke cātmahano janāḥ || 3 ||

- Īśāvāsya Upaniṣad

Those who do not recognize their own divinity, neglect to manifest divinity, and do everything probably good in this world, like Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, this is called the second type of impurity. But those who take refuge in you—what happens? You destroy [the impurity] because your very nature is Kuhaka.  Kuhaka also means darkness, ignorance. So how does God do it? Not by doing something. Does the sun remove darkness? What happens? As soon as the sun rises, as soon as you light a lamp, it doesn't need to do anything. By its very presence, darkness totally gets destroyed. Oh Lord, by your very nature, what is your nature? jyotira jyoti ujjvala hṛdi kaṇdhara - you are the light of the lights. So that is how, what does He do? Kaluṣaṁ kṛtyaṁ karoti. What is the meaning of kṛtyaṁ here? It means pure. Every impurity is turned into purity. That is the glory of Sri Ramakrishna. Because by turning to Sri Ramakrishna, an untruthful person becomes truthful, an adhārmic person becomes dhārmic, and an unhealthy person becomes healthy. Now, you may say, "Why are you bringing health and other things into it?" Because what Sri Ramakrishna and Swami Vivekananda taught is called holistic philosophy. He never said, “You be a very unhealthy person, but you just take the name of Sri Ramakrishna, and your unhealthiness will remain like that, but your mind will attain Brahma Loka.” No! Our philosophy is a holistic philosophy. Everything must be harmonized. Otherwise, it is like this: I often give this example: suppose you assemble the engine of a Formula One car with the body or frame of an Ambassador car, what will happen? Both will get damaged. The engine will get ruined, and the frame will also get ruined.

What am I talking about? The body and the mind must be healthy; otherwise, Sādhana is not possible. That is why, what is the very first step of yoga? Śhuddhi: Āhāra-Śhuddhi, Nāḍī-Śhuddhi, and then only Yama and Niyama etc. will follow. Because having an unhealthy body doesn't serve two purposes. Neither can one become a Bhogi nor can one become a Yogi. So, the foundation of either bhoga or yoga, enjoyment or spiritual progress, is a healthy body. That is why Yogāsanas are prescribed. Why are they called Yogāsanas? Why are they not called physical exercises? Because they are specifically meant for people who are Yogis. They take limited food, limited activities, but convert that Sattvika food, yogic food, into full energy. And these Yogāsanas are meant for that. Otherwise, an obese person, if he wants to do Yogāsanas, will not be able to really do them. The only asana he can comfortably do is Śhavāsana. Therefore, this body, mind, and spiritual practice must become harmonious. That is what Sri Ramakrishna will do. Kaluṣam karma kṛtyam karoti. Instantaneously, it becomes purified.

I will give an example. Once, a devotee came to Sri Ramakrishna, and Sri Ramakrishna was in a prophetic mood. He looked at him and said, "This fellow is not going to realize God in this life." The person, eager to realize God, knew that Sri Ramakrishna had the ability to foresee the future. The moment Sri Ramakrishna uttered those words, he became disheartened. Then he asked, "Sir, why is it that I cannot progress in spiritual life?" Sri Ramakrishna replied, "You know, there is some shortcoming in either your legs or hands" - I don't remember which, but they were very weak. The devotee saluted Sri Ramakrishna and went away. He did not visit Sri Ramakrishna for 2-3 years. During that time, he joined a gymnasium and made his body absolutely fit, like Muhammad Ali.

The title of Muhammad Ali’s autobiography is “I Am the Greatest.” It is a wonderful book. Every spiritual aspirant must read it because he did not become the greatest by simply sitting and listening to explanations of this Arātrīkam hymn. How did he become great? Let me explain. He was a world-class boxer. Before any major boxing match, boxers have their own gurus. The guru will tell them what food to eat, what activities to do, what exercises to perform, and how many hours to rest, almost like a military regimen. They can't do whatever they like. Muhammad Ali graphically describes this in his book. Two months before a match, he had to get up at 4 a.m., jog for six miles, and then climb a hill, which would take about two hours. I don't remember the exact details, but after that, he would have breakfast. And what breakfast would that be? Not idli and chutney. He had to eat cereals and other things like Ensure, among others. After breakfast, he would go to the gym. In the gym, there were sandbags for practicing punches. Nowadays, they have electronic gadgets, but previously, sandbags were used for training. When you punch them, they react and come back to hit you. Today, there are machines that react even before you do. For example, in table tennis, there is a machine that predicts exactly where the ball will land, helping players improve their reactions. Similarly, for boxing and wrestling, there are punching bags that come toward you unpredictably, which requires a higher level of alertness. This is how boxers train all day. They are told when to sleep, how to sleep, and everything is controlled. But the most important thing in his training regime was that, as a married man, his teacher prohibited him from having sex for two months before the match. If that is the level of discipline required to win a title, what about attaining God-realization?

What struck me greatly was the requirement to observe celibacy for two months before the match. He explains later in the book that celibacy does not make him dull. On the contrary, it makes him absolutely alert. In boxing, the opponent’s punches can come with lightning speed that sometimes you can't even see them coming. You have to anticipate and react faster than the opponent expects. This level of intuition doesn’t come easily; it requires complete focus. And that focus is compromised by indulging in sensual pleasures. If this is the condition for a married man, what can be said about spiritual aspirants? This is why it is most important to control thoughts at the simplest level. The moment such thoughts begin to rise, a person must be able to say, "Oh, this thought is arising, and it is not desirable. I am going to get rid of it." So, that is what is being said here: O Lord, tava nāma nātha Kṣṇāntaṁ - your name is śhivaṁ. It confers the highest auspiciousness. What is auspiciousness? As I mentioned earlier, for a worldly person, a devotee of God will be freed from artha (distress) and arthārthī (desiring material gain). He will get whatever he desires. Take the example of Dhruva. Dhruva got the highest kingdom, which, even today, is considered a symbolic one. But in the Chaṇḍī, we see that the Vaishya attained Samādhi, and the King became the ruler of this world.

Sūryāj janma samāsādya Sāvarṇiko Manuḥ smṛtaḥ |

Devīprabhāva samyukto bhaviṣyati na saṃśayaḥ ||

- Chaṇḍī (11- 43)

He became Savarṇiko Nāma Manu, all by the grace of God. That is what Sri Ramakrishna gave - Martyāmṛtaṁ: he transformed human life into immortal life for those who take refuge in Him. There are three examples to illustrate this: Rāśhika, Kālīpāda Ghoṣh, and Pratāp Chandra Hājra. They simply took refuge in Him and prayed, “Bāba, please come. We have no hope of attaining Mokṣa. You take us when we leave this body.” And that's exactly what Sri Ramakrishna did for them. This is what we know. But we don’t know how many others He blessed in the same way. The Holy Mother initiated a railway porter somewhere near Vishnupur in the same manner. Do you think he attained liberation? Yes, he did. In this life, he remained a porter, but by the grace of the Holy Mother, he attained liberation. Sri Ramakrishna used to say that if a blind man goes and takes a bath in the Gaṅgā, his blindness will not disappear, but he will gain Mukti in the next life, after death. In this world, nothing changes immediately. So, what do we do? Kṛtyaṁ karoti kaluṣaṁ - whatever impure activities we may have done, O Lord, your very name purifies them.

Kūjantam Rāma Rāmeti madhuraṁ madhurākṣaram |

Āruhya kavitaśākhām vande Vālmīki kokilam ||

In this Rāmanāma, composed by Tulsidās, Vālmīki is compared to a cuckoo. This cuckoo has climbed the tree called Rāma and, in the sweetest manner, it keeps on cooing Rāma, Rāma, Rāma - madhuraṁ madhurākṣaram (the sweetest of sweet syllables). Āruhya kavitaśākhām -the highest poetry emerged from an illiterate person, all by the grace of God. Everything happens by the grace of God. What does this mean? O Lord, first, You transform every impure action into a pure one, every sinful deed into the greatest meritorious act, and You put an end to this very Saṃsāra. Then, You confer the highest bliss and the highest position anyone can attain, which is the transformation of a mortal into an immortal. But, I lack that kind of devotion, that faith, and that purity. Therefore, Tasmāt tvameva śaraṇaṁ mama dīnabandho - "That's why this phrase “I take refuge in You, O friend of the lowly," is repeated four times. Hence, this hymn is known as the Śaraṇāgati Gadyā.  Later, the next two lines are added to this hymn:

Oṁ sthāpakāya ca dharmasya sarvadharmasvarūpiṇe |

Avatāravariṣṭhāya Rāmakṛṣṇāya te namaḥ ||

I salute Ramakrishna, the greatest manifestation of God. I will explain to you – Sri Ramakrishna, who is the very embodiment of every Dharma, and who is the greatest establisher of Dharma, and who is the very embodiment of Dharma. He is both the truth and the way to the truth. He is Dharma, and He is also the way to Dharma – salutations to you. This was composed separately. Navagopal Ghosh's wife was the first devotee who built a small shrine for Sri Ramakrishna. She invited all the direct disciples, including Swamiji, Swami Brahmananda, and others. They all went. Swamiji himself cooked Pāyasaṁ and he himself offered it to Sri Ramakrishna. Then, these two lines came from his mouth spontaneously: Oṁ sthāpakāya ca dharmasya sarvadharmasvarūpiṇe | Avatāravariṣṭhāya Rāmakṛṣṇāya te namaḥ ||

First point we have to consider is about Avatāravariṣṭhā – He is the greatest avatar. What do you mean by the greatest? This comparison is a silly comparison. So if you say "When I was 5 years old, I was very foolish. When I was 10 years old, one wisdom tooth had grown. I became a little wiser. And when I was 25 years old, my wisdom grew a little more. When I was 50 years old, I became even wiser. Now I am 80 years old. Therefore, I am the greatest compared to myself," does it make any sense? Comparison must always be with something other than yourself. So, Rāma was one Avatāra, Krishna was one Avatāra, Chaitanya, Jesus, Buddha, Muhammad, and so many others are all Avatāras. Compared to them, Sri Ramakrishna is the greatest Avatāra. Is that what Swami Vivekananda meant? Because who are all of these Avatāras? He who was Rāma and He who was Krishna, He only became Ramakrishna. So does it mean to say, "Me, I am the greatest?" No. What does it mean? It means the greatest ideology a person could create; that person is the greatest manifestation of Avatārahood, not Avatāra. Avatārahood means what? The qualities of an Avatāra.

So, I will give you some illustrations. Rāma, Krishna, and so many Avatāras are there. Daśhāvatāra, for example. Who is considered by Hindus as the greatest Avatāra? Sri Krishna, who is called the Pūrṇāvatāra. Why was he called Pūrṇāvatāra? Is he something really Pūrṇa? Does that mean Pūrṇa has come down to this earth? By the very definition, Avatāra means limited. God can never become limited. It is impossible. Then what does it mean? It means that he manifested the highest ideal to the largest number of human beings. What does that mean? He was an ideal child, ideal brother, ideal student, ideal father, ideal teacher, ideal lover, ideal husband, ideal philosopher, ideal spiritual being. Whatever way you take, he is the most ideal person on earth. That is why widows can adopt him as a son, young women can love him as a lover. Rukmini and others loved him as chaste wives love their husbands. And all the Gopas considered him as the greatest friend. All the Gopis considered him as the greatest beloved. Nanda and Yashoda considered him as the greatest, most loving, beautiful child. So when he was teaching the Gita, what did he manifest? As the highest teacher. When he was the disciple of Sandipani, he manifested as an ideal Śiṣhya. You know, whatever role he played, he was best at it. When he was driving Arjuna’s chariot, he was the greatest driver on earth. No accident happened. Accidents happened to other people, but nothing happened to him because his chariot was under his complete control. So in that sense, that incarnation which manifests the greatest number of relationships, idealisms, that is the greatest. That is the first point.

The second point is power. So in this age, who exhibited the greatest power? Sri Ramakrishna. How many people knew when Krishna came? How many people in this world knew about him? Very few people knew. Now practically, millions and millions of people know about Sri Ramakrishna. Every day, they are singing Khandana, Oṃ Hṛim Ritām in their own homes. If they don’t come to the ashram, they are putting that on their digital devices. Either they are singing or they are listening. How many people know Krishna? Only now, in this Kali Kāla, this Hare Krishna movement has spread his name to the whole world. Above all, what is Avatāravariṣṭha? He who establishes the most ideal, practical ideal for a particular age, he is an Avatāravariṣṭha. Only in that sense, not in the sense of, "He was greater than Jesus, greater than Buddha." No, that's not the idea. Swamiji was never fanatical about it. So that is the meaning of Avatāravariṣṭha.

Then, Sarvadharmasvarūpiṇe – He is the embodiment of all the Dharmas. According to Hinduism, Dharmas are divided into two categories: Āśhrama and Varṇa. Varṇa means, according to the development of qualities, Brāhmaṇa, Kṣatriya, Vaiśya, and Śūdra. Even now, they exist. Who is a Brāhmaṇa? A great thinker is a Brāhmaṇa. Not only a thinker, but a person who lives a pure life is a Brāhmaṇa. Who is a Kṣatriya? The fellow who, for the good of other people, exercises his muscular power, etc., is the Kṣatriya. Who is a Vaiśya? He who sells for the benefit of other people and for his own benefit, he is the true Vaiśya. And the person who frankly says, "I don’t have that brain power, you tell me what I have to do, I will discharge whatever you ask," he is called a Śūdra. So, this is called the establishment of what is called job satisfaction job. Psychologists advise, "If you take this job, you will get 100% job satisfaction." So that is called Dharma. Sri Ramakrishna caters to all those things.

Sarvadharma means Āśhrama Dharma. What I described earlier was Varṇa Dharma. What I am describing now is Āśhrama. Āśhrama means each one of us has got our own duties according to our age. A simple example: what is your Dharma now? To study well, to pass examinations well, and if you feel like getting married, to lead a Gṛhastha-Āśhrama life. Here he is, 60 years, 65 years old, still running to the shop. He says, "I don’t get time, my mind becomes restless if I don’t sit here." The story is there, you know, in a village, two old men were there. They did not have any work as nobody would give them any work because whatever they did was sloppy. A feast was going on, but nobody invited them. They themselves came voluntarily. Just before serving, these young people, with buckets, were ready to serve. The old men came in the middle, and since people respect them because of their age, they paid attention. They just commanded these youngsters to do this and that, which was rather redundant and unnecessary. They say, "Hey, come here, what are you serving? Sir, rice. Where are you going to serve? To that row. Yes, go and serve in that row. What is this? Sambar. Where are you going? I am going to serve. Yes, go that side." Like that, they would command two or three people and feel highly satisfied, as they felt, "We also rendered some service to society," and then disappear. Sri Ramakrishna used to see priests playing cards. Sri Ramakrishna said, at this age, what is their Dharma? They should devote more time to God, studying scriptures, or trying to advise other people, living the ideal life, and also encouraging others to live. That is the Dharma of the adults. Whereas a young child's Dharma is to skip, to run, to eat, to grow, to study, to absorb like a sponge, and prepare himself. Sri Ramakrishna had come to establish both Āśhrama Dharma as well as Varṇa Dharma. But who can establish?

You yourself practice first. That is indicated in Sarvadharma Svarūpiṇe. As a child, he practiced first-class learning. But don't make him your ideal, because as soon as he went to school, he put his signature and then took off to Manik Raja's mango grove to play and enact dramas. He never attended school properly. In that respect, he is not an ideal for us. Because, supposing Ramakrishna signs up to attend my class, how many times do you think he will come? If he comes once, I consider myself blessed. Okay, at least once you have come, at least will you keep your eyes open and listen to what I am saying? The moment I say something, he will go into Samādhi. Even after my class is over, he might not come down from Samādhi. Who is going to get joy out of this kind of student? So I am advising you, in that respect, don't follow him. Other aspects are there; you can follow him.  So what I am trying to say is that Sri Ramakrishna practiced himself first and then taught. That is called Sarvadharma Svarūpiṇe. He was an ideal son, he was an ideal playmate, ideal brother, ideal Guru, ideal Śiṣhya, ideal in every respect. Even in social meetings, he was a great idealist. So first, he practiced and then he preached and established. There is one law we were talking about. What is that law? Unless you have something, you can't give it to others. If you don't know science, you can't give it to others. If you don't have money, you can't give money to others. If you are not happy, you can't give happiness to others. But if you are unhappy, you can give a lot of your unhappiness to others. You can go on making the whole world miserable. That’s why Swami Vivekananda used to say, the day you are unhappy, don't come out of your room. Just sit there in your room because the world is already very unhappy. You don't need to come and add to it.

Oṁ sthāpakāya ca - He who established Dharma. But there is also a historical movement. It is called Dharma Chakra Pravartana - beginning of the establishment of Dharma. Buddha started it when he went back to Bodhgaya or Kashi and when those five disciples who abandoned him. When did Sri Ramakrishna start Dharma Sthāpana? On 11th September 1893 at Chicago through that address Swami Vivekananda gave at the Parliament of Religions.

Śhṛṇvantu viśhve amṛtasya putrāḥ

Āryā dhāmani divyāni tastu

Vedaṁ ayetaṁ puruṣaṁ mahāntam āditya-varṇaṁ tamasaḥ parastāt

Tvam eva vidhitvātimṛtyum eti, nānyaḥ panthā vidyate ayanāya

- Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad

His whole teaching there is Dharma Sthāpana. This is what religion means. This is how you have to live your life. And there will be different religions because of different temperaments. There is no need to quarrel with each other. All of you are going only towards the one single goal, which is God. This is the essence of Vedānta: “Each soul is potentially divine. Manifest your divinity. That is your goal. And manifest it either through Karma Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, Rāja Yoga, Jñāna Yoga, by one or more or all of these together and be free.” This is the whole of religion. Doctrines, dogmas, books, temples, all these are secondary details. So, this was the hymn that spontaneously came out of Swami Vivekananda’s mouth when he went to perform puja at Nistarini Devi's place. And that verse has been appended after Swamiji composed this hymn. And now, this has become a regular thing.

The summary of what we discussed about this hymn is as follows:

Sri Ramakrishna is both the goal and the path. He is the refuge, and to achieve success in life and spiritual progress, we must take refuge at His feet. This refuge can be found through the paths of Bhakti, Karma, meditation, or knowledge, whichever path is followed with sincerity. Ultimately, the teaching of the hymn is to surrender oneself to God, and nothing else. The first hymn Khandana describes who Sri Ramakrishna is. The second hymn, Oṃ Hrīm Ṛtam emphasizes taking refuge in Him, practicing Sādhana with His guidance, and through His grace, achieving success and realization of God.

Oṃ jananīm Sāradām devīm Ramakrishnam jagadgurum |

Pādapadme tayoḥ śritvā praṇamāmi muhurmuhuhu ||