View source for Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Lecture 063 on 21-June-2022

== Full Transcript(Not Corrected) ==
Om Jananem Sharadam Devem Ramakrishnam Jagadgurum
Pada Padme Tayo Sritva Pranamami Mohor Moho
In our last class, the discussion was about faith.
Sri Ramakrishna's ultimate teaching is one can progress not only in spiritual life,
but in any field of life only when one has faith.
I also mentioned progress in spiritual life really means progress in faith.
We all start with a belief, but this belief at some point of time is transformed into faith.
Let us not forget the difference between belief and faith.
What we find in the Katha Upanishad, the father of Nachiketa, what he had was belief not faith
because he could decide what to do with that faith, with that kind of belief.
But when the faith possessed Nachiketa and Nachiketa was helpless completely
because faith is like a demon which sits on our head and wants to make us
what it likes us to do, how it likes us to think, what it likes us to speak.
A madman has absolutely no control over his madness
and that is why godmen often appear as madmen.
There is a close similarity there.
So this subject faith, what is faith? That which controls us.
That is why it is called a gift of god.
Then what should we do? We have belief, but are we doing something right
that can transform this belief into faith.
First of all, what is faith? Shastra, Guru Vakyeshu, Satya Buddhi, Avadharana.
Complete faith in the words of the Guru which are nothing but the words of the Shastra,
Upanishads, scriptures, Vedas.
That they contain absolute truth.
Now we will have to discuss something more without faith.
Without faith we can never live. It is impossible.
We cannot live a single minute without it.
The moment we step outside our house and want to cross a street corner
with the faith that the green light has come and all cars will stop
and I can safely cross and those cars will not run over us.
If we do not have that faith, nobody is going to cross the street.
When we submit ourselves for an operation by a surgeon in a hospital
and then we have complete faith.
A surgeon is good and he does his best,
but of course those who have faith in God they go on repeating Durga Durga
or Sri Hari, Sri Hari, Hari Om, Hari Om, etc.
But we entrust our lives.
When we step into a bus, into a taxi,
we entrust our lives into the hands of the driver
or aeroplane or a train or a boat.
Anything can happen.
And we trust our friends that they are friends,
they wish us well and they will never betray us
and when we need they come to our help.
Life is impossible without faith.
Somehow this faith comes to a child towards its mother
and the mother also has that faith that I am the mother.
I have to protect this child even at the cost of offering my life.
And it has something to do with chemistry also.
Scientists have proved a special chemical is generated
when a female gives birth to the offspring,
even tigers they become extraordinarily tender,
protective and sometimes funny things happen.
A dog which is a natural enemy of a bird, a duck, etc.,
it adopts small helpless ducklings and gathers them,
tries to nurse it even though these fellows do not know how to nurse
and this phenomena is there but it is not that the Divine Mother
who is manifesting in the form of every mother.
As what?
So these are some of the examples that life is impossible without faith.
That is why all great people have spoken about this faith.
Now Tolstoy had made a wonderful statement,
faith is the force of life.
You remove faith from life, we become lifeless.
But what happens ironically when it comes to have faith in God,
so many doubts naturally arise in our mind and of course it is natural.
So we question the validity of having faith in that which we do not see
and about which we do not know.
That is where the scripture comes in.
And with this scripture there are some people who say
having faith in the scripture is called blind faith.
So when the same faith that we put in our day-to-day affairs,
every next second we have faith we are not going to die,
everything is going to be okay,
sometimes we might even become enriched much better than we are now.
Somehow that faith sustains us.
But when it is directed towards God,
some people choose to call it blind faith.
Why blind faith?
There are two kinds of faiths, a seeing faith and a blind faith.
This conversation has taken place, a funny conversation has taken place.
Vivekananda Swami, who represents the type of people we are talking about,
when he started visiting Shri Ramakrishna,
and Shri Ramakrishna was just the opposite of Narendra,
had complete faith in everybody.
In the life of Shri Ramakrishna we see something extraordinary.
He used to say,
I will never doubt any person in this world
until that person proves to be unreliable.
Whereas we start, we will not have a belief in somebody
until he proves that he is faithful.
But that is a very irrational foolish faith.
Why?
Because the whole life, even a person whom we trust
and who may be doing the best for us
may turn out to be a traitor.
And how many people, they are called drohis,
mitra drohi, desha drohi, raja drohi, guru drohi.
So many we see all the time in this world.
So there is no way we can trust anybody.
We should never doubt anybody,
but we should trust and say God is there.
We have to apply the same rule to God also.
There is nothing called blind faith
because there is no seeing faith.
Faith means complete belief in something that is unknown and unforeseen.
And every next millisecond is unseen and unforeseen.
So once Swami Vivekananda after hearing Narendra Nath,
after hearing Sri Ramakrishna,
he blurted out,
Oh, this is what people have.
It is blind faith.
Immediately Sri Ramakrishna turned very sharply and said,
Narendra, are there two types of faiths?
One is seeing faith and another is blind faith.
And of course Narendra Nath was very intelligent.
He was very rational.
He understood it is true.
Faith means that about which we do not know
to believe because somebody whom we trust tells us so.
That is a very important condition.
If a Guru tells, we have to have faith, we have to believe.
Why?
Because Guru is one whom we trust.
Father and mother are one whom we trust.
Sri Ramakrishna very often used to give this example of parents.
The mother doesn't want a child to go into a particular room
because there are dangerous things which can endanger, injure the child.
So for that purpose he says there is a bhogi man inside that room.
Don't go.
And the child has 100% faith.
He says, yes, I will never go there because my mother loves me.
She will never tell an untruth.
And the mother is not telling untruth.
There is no bhogi man but there is a danger there.
Bhogi man means danger.
Similarly Sri Ramakrishna gives day to day observed facts.
There is a child and there is another man who doesn't belong to the family,
who doesn't even belong to the caste, say Brahmin mother.
But this person is very reliable and he is serving the family.
So the mother tells the child, this is your elder brother.
Now you go.
And happily the child runs into the arms of the elder person.
Complete faith, this is my elder brother.
We have seen the story of Dada Madhusodhana.
Even though there is no such person existing as Madhusodhana,
this boy had complete faith.
And when he cried, God himself had appeared as Madhusodhana.
We have to recollect.
That is a wonderful story.
So a classical example of a person with blind faith
is an individual who accepts without question
every word in the scriptures as the literal truth,
even though it may directly contradict scientifically proven facts.
When the mind is closed to doubt and reason,
faith becomes rigid, unyielding and easily demolished.
Now we have to discuss what is the relationship between faith and reason.
When we say that sometimes faith directly contradicts known facts
and the most telling example of this is
every day from birth to death,
from early morning, from the time we wake up
until we fall into deep sleep,
we are seeing this world,
we are going through the experience of waking, dream and dreamless.
And this is our reality.
Whereas the scripture tells this is all mithya.
Because first of all these three states are contradicting each other.
Second, most important Vedantic principle.
Whatever we experience is not us.
Whatever I experience is not me.
Many times I have mentioned it,
but it is better to remind ourselves many times
until it becomes a statement of fact.
Now it is only a statement of belief, not even faith.
I see a house, I know I am not the house.
I see a car, even my own car,
I know that it is my car,
but I am not the car.
This is my house, I am not this house.
This is my bed, I am not this bed.
This is my dress, I am not this dress.
But our discrimination stops there
because nobody behaves that whatever he is seeing,
experiencing is himself.
Even a fool doesn't do that.
Everybody knows.
But even though normal people like us
do not identify ourselves,
here is my car, I am the car.
But for practical behavior,
as if I am the car,
let somebody scratch the car,
break the windows.
Of course the car will never feel anything,
but I feel somebody has scratched me.
I feel that somebody has thrown stones upon me
and broken my heart.
So with everything, somebody has taken my money.
As if he had killed me.
We are identifying.
So many types of identifications are there.
Even though I know nothing happens to me
if my house is burned,
my car is stolen,
my dress is taken away,
nothing happens to me.
But then the intellectual knowledge
I am not these things stops there
and it seeps into me
and I feel as if I am lost.
At least this is a good illustration
so far as outside things are concerned.
But the fun starts as soon as we see our body.
How many times?
Every day how many times we run to the mirror
and look at our reflection.
How many times ladies take out their handbag,
take out the mirror
and go on making some adjustments
in the face, etc.
Of course men also do,
but not as frequently.
It's just for illustration sake.
I am seeing my face,
I am seeing my body
and what is this Vedantic principle?
Whatever I experience is not me.
But I am so embedded with this body
as if that is my alter ego
and what to speak of the mind.
Every thought that arises I identify.
So my car is stolen
and then the thought comes
your car is stolen
and that brings a reaction.
It is unjustified,
it is theft
and then soon there is the person
who has taken
he must be the most evil person in this world
and immediately there is a thought of anger.
But that thought belongs to the mind
because I am able to see
but next millisecond
I identify and say
I turn into anger
and my whole body reacts as it were.
And by the way,
this is a very good example.
If we can turn our faith also
into this identity
then our whole life will become transformed
instantaneously.
We know the technique of transforming ourselves
but only with the wrong things
my body, my mind
and every object that we experience in the world.
But here rationality ends here
when I am not what I experience
and what is experienced is
either more or becomes less
or damaged or improved.
It should not bring the reaction
either suffering or depression
or happiness, excessive joy etc.
That is where most of us fail.
So what are we talking about?
Whatever we experience is not we
and whatever we experience
undergoes a change
and that change doesn't belong to me
but that change belongs to that particular object.
If we can keep these two points in mind
practice of Vedanta.
Vedanta means not philosophy,
not Advaita Vedanta
but practical spirituality.
That is what the word Vedanta means.
So there is nothing called blind faith.
Having complete faith in that which we cannot see
but our elders can see,
wise people can see,
our gurus can see,
our scriptures can tell us.
Having faith and behaving accordingly,
bringing up our normal day-to-day behavior
according to our professed faith
that is called spiritual practice
and that is what we need to do.
So many times we call it blind faith.
What is the implication?
That implication is
whatever is reasonable is fact
and whatever is not reasoned
cannot be reasoned about,
unseen, unknown.
It is irrational
and therefore it should not be believed in.
So what is the implication?
Reason and faith in God
do not and cannot coexist
but in fact one must first open the door to doubt
and reason before genuine faith in God can be cultivated.
Seems paradoxical
but we start with doubt.
Is there any way to remove that doubt?
There is no way
because future is unknown to us.
For example, there is a child
and he writes the examination
and expecting the result
he can only have faith
that I have done my best
so I hope reasonably to pass the examination
but until the results come
this is only tentative faith.
It is not proven fact.
When the results come
yes, my faith is justified
but to doubt that I have done
but I don't think I am going to pass
this is called irrational faith.
Even a great scientist like Albert Einstein
once said
true religion does not come through blind belief
but through an extension of our rational knowledge.
We are fools to accept
whatever we read or hear
as the truth
without first subjecting it
to critical scrutiny in the light of reason.
If it passes this test
if our so-called faith
if we use reason
and test it
and it satisfies reason
it should be accepted
and held on to it unswerving faith.
If not, it should be discarded
as mere superstition.
What are we talking about?
What am I talking about?
That faith is okay
but God has given us a way to test it.
Is this really faith
or is it something my superstition
I am turning into a blind believer in it
because no superstition can stand the scrutiny of reason
but if it is faith
it will definitely work.
I will give you a small example.
Here is a college class
and the professor, the lecturer
he teaches to the best of his ability
and tries to remove the doubts of the students
he did his best
and then he knows
I have done my best
and most of my students have understood
but he doesn't have a proof
but reason comes in
I have not skipped over
I have not been lazy
I have tried my level best to teach to them
and by the answers these students of mine gave
when I put the questions to them
it seems that they have really grasped it
and even though he cannot prove it
reason tells him
that most of my students are going to pass successfully
at least in my subject
and then the results after the examination
prove the fact.
This is called you first accept something tentatively with faith
but scrutinize it with complete objective rationality
because rationality is a very dangerous weapon
rationalizing and rationality are diametrically opposed things
rationality is objective analysis and after thorough testing
coming to a definitive conclusion
rationalizing is whatever I believe in is justified
so what we do is
not put it to critical analysis
but to justify
most of the time what we do is
first we act
first we desire
first we acquire
and then rationalize it
we needed it really for this purpose
in fact many things that we acquire
they just sit there
without any use for any time
that also can be applied to the body
to the intellect
to faith
to everything
that is why Sri Ramakrishna's greatest teaching is
bhokta ho le, bhoka hobhi keno
you are expected to be a good devotee
but spirituality doesn't expect you to be a fool
but how can a person not be a fool
because God has given a special faculty called reasoning
and there are practical examples for that
many examples are there
but one popular example is
he had a disciple called Yogananda
and this Yogananda wanted to buy a cooking vessel
he went to the shop, gave a lecture
that one should not cheat
and then said you select for me
and you give it to me
and he paid the money
brought back home
and he found that utensil
very holy utensil
that means full of holes
and he felt ashamed
now in Indians that's why
once sold cannot be returned
so this fact Sri Ramakrishna came to know
and on that occasion he said
God has given you eyes
he has given you buddhi
why did you not open that utensil there
examine it thoroughly
when you are paying the full money
and then he said
bhokta ho le, bhoka hobhi keno
but what is meant is
faith and reason are complementary
and now I want to introduce
some subject
which most of us are not familiar
there is a lot of discussion
about these two facts
what is the revelation
and what is reason
what is the relationship between
reason and revelation
which precedes and which succeeds
and according to Indian philosophers
revelation is unquestionable
because it is not a datum
you can collect over through the five sense organs
therefore you cannot reason
reasoning works only
when a fact is completely known
in fact not one fact
but two facts
supposing you want to find out
that two shirts are there
you want to find out
which shirt is superior
which piece of cloth is superior
if there is only one piece of cloth
you cannot argue and say
which is superior
which is inferior
because only one is available
but the moment the second piece comes
then you can compare, contrast
say this is much better in quality
and price wise also reasonable
that is what we do unconsciously
whenever we go on shopping
of course we become fools also
buy one and get one free
later on we find it is either out of date
or inferior quality
otherwise who is going to give something nice
of course sometimes yes
we do get nice things also
but it is not a very frequent action
that is why
so do not believe without questioning
it doesn't mean you should start with disbelief
this statement
do not believe without questioning
is a statement full of meaning
that is why Swamiji said
if somebody tells you something
if a book tells you
if a scripture tells you
be open minded
listen to it
it doesn't mean you should doubt it
it doesn't mean that you should be sceptical
it doesn't mean immediately you should believe
you first to take it in
then apply the razor sharp analysis
using this weapon called rationality
and if rationality tells
it is ok
it can be believed
then only you believe it
that is why Buddha's famous statement
do not believe because the scriptures tell you so
do not believe that many old people
wise people tell you so
do not believe Buddha tells you so
but listen carefully
put it in the test fire of rationality
and if it is reasonable
then only you accept it
but having accepted it
don't sit quiet
you behave
you change
you alter your behavior accordingly
Swamiji
Swami Vivekananda
that's why he said
be an atheist if you want
but do not believe in anything unquestioningly
this statement should be understood properly
he is not telling you start with disbelief
he is telling
be open minded
take it in
if somebody says
who knows
it may be true
but then immediately
do not have like a superstition
do not believe in it
in Swamiji's life
we get a beautiful incident
when Narendra was a small boy
may be 5-6 years old
he used to go to play
in the compound of his uncle
who was quite aged person
there was a banyan tree
and then the boys used to swing
and the old man
did not want the children
to take any risks and fall
or he may have some other purpose in mind
we don't know
he said
hey don't play here
there is a Brahma Rakshasa here
and it will squash your neck
if you continue to swing here
the boys got very frightened
they wanted to run away immediately
but Narendra started ridiculing them
and said
you brainless fellows
we have been swinging here
for the last 6 months
if really there had been a Brahma Rakshasa
we would have lost our lives months back
it is all this old man
wants to frighten us
don't fall for this trick
and he continued to swing there
along with others
such was the material
out of which Swami Vivekananda was made
Swamiji when he met Sri Ramakrishna
he had this tremendous power of rationality
but his faith in rationality was
even stronger than his faith in God
so even though he was seeing
in front of his eyes
the spotlessly unsullied purity of Sri Ramakrishna
but he could not believe
he had tested him so many times
one incident
perhaps we all remember
and Sri Ramakrishna says
that you see
I cannot bear the touch of a metal
and who cannot bear
we see everybody putting on a ring
whether it is golden or silver or copper
or some kind of magicians
this one
to ward off evils etc
called Kavacha
we call it
everybody we touch
utensils everyday
for cooking
for eating
for drinking
for so many things
and then
here is a man who says
my body cannot bear
the touch of a metal
Vaikaranda said, his old man made a statement
let me test him
Sri Ramakrishna went out
for answering the calls of nature
then Swami Vaikaranda took out one rupee coin
and do you know what he did
he put it under the mattress of Sri Ramakrishna
poor Sri Ramakrishna
soon came back
and then he wanted to sit
as soon as he sat
he jumped up
as though stung by a scorpion
and he said
why am I feeling like this
and then they
immediately
there may be some sharp object
there may be some insect
they removed the bed cloth
nothing was there
then they removed the mattress
and then they found this rupee coin
immediately Sri Ramakrishna was super intelligent
immediately he understood
and he knew also
who might have tested him
he looked directly in the direction of Narendra
Narendra was caught red handed
and he understood
that what Sri Ramakrishna said
is absolute truth
several statements
that Sri Ramakrishna made
with regard to himself
was doubted by Narendranath
and he tested them
in every one of the cases
Sri Ramakrishna came out victorious
and then only
Narendranath said
I cannot believe
that I came into contact
with such a man
whose body
not to speak of his mind
even without his knowing
his very body
cannot bear
the touch of impurity
and every word that came out
of Sri Ramakrishna
is a pure truth
and this is what we are talking about
a scripture is what
a person like Sri Ramakrishna
who is called a Rishi
who is called a mantra drashta
that is a one who became
one with truth
not a discoverer of truth only
but one who became
one with truth
and what is the truth?
God is the truth
a God realized soul
and then whatever comes from their mouth
is the purest truth
and that is what
the scriptures are trying to tell us
scriptures are nothing but
the utterances of realized souls
who became one with truth
and you have no way
until you
prove to yourself
that every one of those statements
are absolutely true
but there are also
other characteristics we have to understand
sometimes back I have mentioned
but then we have to remind ourselves
again and again
how do we know here is a realized soul?
we don't know
if anybody says
or if anybody asks
sir are you a realized soul?
have you seen God?
in fact Narendra himself asked that question
and Sri Ramakrishna's
immediate reply was
yes I have seen God
anybody can tell it
it could be a lie
I have not seen God
if you have not seen God there is no way
anybody can prove or disprove
a statement of the other person
but there is a way
there must be a way
so what is it?
because realization of truth
brings certain changes
in the whole personality
if somebody
is touched by a scorpion
he can't simply keep quiet
he will be jumping up and down
if somebody has
touched a live charcoal
he will be jumping up and down
so if somebody
has eaten some
first class sweet
then he will be also dancing
with joy
some effect should be there of every experience
and here is a person
who says I have experienced
God as what?
as myself
how do we know?
because four characteristics stand out
when? all the time
when? all the time
it is not a particular time
we are happy at particular time
we are hungry
and very tasty food comes
we are happy for a short time
and when some unsavoury
event takes place
and we suffer we are unhappy
we are depressed for a short time again
if anybody says
my whole life
is a most reprehensible
life, a life of suffering
he is telling a lie
she is telling a lie, you know why?
because 90%
of the time
we don't remember
what is suffering
and funny psychology
I hope you are able to grasp
I hope I am able to convey to you
supposing somebody is suffering
and if that suffering doesn't change
the person has no way
to understand what is suffering
if you have not experienced
both darkness
and light, you will not know
either about light or darkness
if a person has experienced
only
continuous light
then if you ask, so where are you?
oh I am seeing light
he can never say that because
he doesn't know what is light
if there are only males
in this world
they will not know they are males
or if only females
they will not know they are females
we know both
only when we know both
if I know darkness
I know what is light
only when I know light
I know what is darkness
so the knowledge of one
inevitably, invariably
brings up the other night
this is light, this is not darkness
this is a man, this is not a woman
this is happiness
this is not unhappiness
if somebody
continuously is experiencing
unhappiness
then he will lose that sense and say
he cannot say I am experiencing
unhappiness
for the simple reason
there is no opposite experience
called happiness
and so
everybody experiences
happiness or unhappiness
only for a short time
and it is happening every few seconds
I would say
and people should believe in it
and you think about it
now what is my point here
that Swami Vivekananda
has tested Sri Ramakrishna
and then asked him also
and then Sri Ramakrishna
was asked
have you seen, sir, God
not only Sri Ramakrishna said
yes I have seen God
but because that answer
will not remove doubts
Sri Ramakrishna said
I can also show God
to you
how do you know that I have seen God
because when I show you God
then you say yes
I have seen God
so this person also must have seen God
that is to say
that the
proof of a fact
must be experienced
by at least
by another person
if not by everybody
but usually a tree is a tree
because everybody sees it as a tree
if one person says
that everybody says
it is not a tree
but I say it is a tree
then he is most probably mistaken
but another way of
looking at it is
every experience must lead us
to some effect
if you have eaten a sweet
joy, happiness
will be dancing on your face
at least for a short time
if you have experienced unhappiness
also your face will show
that you are unhappy
if you have really slept
then complete rest
is seen in your body
you get up, jump up
with fresh energy etc
so four characteristics
have been identified
if anybody had seen God
the first characteristic is
he is continuously happy
24 hours he is happy
for how long? until
the body is dropped
he is continuously happy
what is the cause for happiness?
there is no cause
only cause is not that he is
experiencing happiness
he becomes happiness
first characteristic
he loves everybody
because there is no everybody
there is only himself
in different forms
like you have thousand mirrors in your room
and you are alone
standing there, brilliant light
is there in the room
and you see as many reflections
as the mirrors are
so also a person
Sarvatra, he sees only
Brahma Darshanam
Yomaam Pashyati Sarvatra
Arvanchamayi Pashyati
Tasyaham Na Pranasyami
Sachamayi Na Pranasyati
Bhagavad Gita categorically says
so he who sees me
everywhere and who
everywhere sees
himself as
everybody, everybody as
himself, himself as everybody
there is no God, there is
no world, such a person
is the real Yogi
we all love
ourselves, what is love?
to know that I am
that is called love, nobody
can in fact love
anybody other than
oneself, so here is a person
a dog comes
oh this is me
in the form of dog or to put it
theologically that God
has assumed the form of this dog
and comes to me
we see these things in the life of
Ramana Maharshi and Shri Ramakrishna etc
this is the second
characteristic, there is nobody
nothing which is not
excluded from
this love, third
this person is ready
he treats everybody
as equal
this statement
is given to us in the Bhagavad Gita
Vidya Vinaya Sampanne
a Yogi
who has realized soul
who knows I am the Atman
what is his practical behavior
Vidya Vinaya Sampanne
Brahmane, he sees a
Brahmana and he is very
humble Brahmana and he
is one of the most
learned, Gavi
he sees a cow, Hastini
he sees an elephant
Shuni, he sees a
dog, Swapaka
he who eats the flesh of a
dog, when he comes across
all these people
what does he say, he sees himself
he sees Atman, he sees
Brahman, this is called
Samadarshana, so he
treats everybody as Brahman
and then
what is the fourth characteristic
he is prepared
to help anybody
because he knows
this is me who is realized
in this particular
personality, but this
is me who is still
struggling, but
this person, me
as this personality
does not understand that
I am in fact Brahman
himself, but I will inspire
I will try to see
what best I can do, in fact
it is God only who
lives after God realization
when we see a person
is always happy, loves everybody
treats everybody equally
and is ready to
help, he doesn't expect anything
because we become
unequal in
dealing with other people
when there is some expectation
either of monetary
or objects
or at least
this person loves me more
this person loves me less
and if I am treating somebody
and most of us are like that
as unequal, that means
we have tremendous amount
of expectations and
the objects or persons
who fulfill our expectations
to some extent, we try to
come near to them and the
reverse in the other people
so this is the
effect of God realization
and Swamiji, direct disciples
many devotees
have categorically seen
in Sri Ramakrishna, day and
day after day, they are seeing
these characteristics, never made
the slightest distinction
not only between human beings
but even non-human beings also
so
that is called
so if you see somebody
is telling big things
but he himself
is behaving like an ordinary person
because nobody can hide
his or her behavior
for long, if you see a person
for a minute, for 5 minutes
he may pretend to be great monk
great sanyasini
but he cannot hide himself
for long, if you stay
that's why, there is a funny saying
that if you want to know
about a man, everything
don't go and try to
observe him, go to his
wife and ask him, what type of
husband you have and she will tell
14 generations of what type
of person that person is
similarly vice versa
so Sri Ramakrishna never
discouraged anybody to doubt him
to test him, so what is the
point, great doubts
always precede a great
conversion and once that
conversion occurs, no one
will have greater faith
than that which comes
after the conversion, that's what
exactly happened to Swami
Vivekananda, even through
countless trials and tribulations
misfortunes, his burning
faith in God
and in Sri Ramakrishna was
unswerving and then there is
a wonderful point
that many people observed it
Swami Vivekananda
was misunderstood, misquoted
mistreated, criticized
so harshly
none of us would ever do that
because we are not worthy of being
even criticized and not allowed
to be praised or cherished
or valued
because we are beneath
any person's
notice, so Swami Vivekananda
had to go, even people were
there who wished to do away with
his life, he had
to go through, but
whenever he became
temporarily for a
few seconds because his mind
used to be down deliberately
for completing
the mission of his master
he used to feel
agitated and then you know
he knows the secret
mantra, simply he will say
Shiva, Shiva, Shiva and the moment
he utters Shiva, he becomes
his own real self
completely untouched
unaffected, unmoved
by anything in this world
and when I say by anything
I am not only talking about
the evil, the suffering, the unhappiness
I am also talking
if somebody comes and says
I will give you a billion
dollars, he is not
going to get excited, in fact
that had happened and
I have to share that experience with you
when Swamiji
was in America, in Detroit
there was one of the richest
businessmen
there
and then
somebody suggested to that man
that here is a great
Hindu Yogi, why don't you
go and meet him
and then that person
had come and then
met and Swamiji simply
he did not even look at
this person for a long time
I think it was
Rockefeller, yes
Rockefeller and then
after 15 minutes or so
and that man was fuming
I am such a famous person
and this person even
doesn't take notice of me
by lifting and that too
I am a white skinned man
and this is a brown skinned man
Swami Vivekananda was writing something
he put down his pen
looked at him and said
God has given, no introduction
no telling who are you
God had given you
so much of wealth
you are only a trustee
create a trust and
see that it benefits the world
because that is
the only way you can
praise God and the man
became furious
who the hell are you to give me advice
like this, he went back
and then but you know
a Rishi's words will not go
without effect so
within few days a great
transformation had come and this
Rockefeller he had created
one of the
world's largest
charitable trust
and he wanted Swami
Vivekananda to know
he again came second time and he
said arrogantly
thank me Swami
I have created one of the
largest charitable
trust
and Swami Vivekananda
simply smiled and said
you have to thank me
because the suggestion
came from me so
this even if a
Jeevan Mukta gets anything
it is only Mithya
it is only transitory and it has
no particular value
he doesn't get excited
like you don't get
excited, suppose you had
a dream, somebody had called you
for nice dinner
your one neighbor and then
entertained you with best
dinner in the whole world
and then the other
neighbor came and slapped you
abused you right and left
and you experienced both
happiness and depression
and when you wake up
do these events really affect you
you say they are just
imaginations in my mind
a realized soul
thinks everything that happens
in life is nothing but
your imagination, that is why you say
this Jagat is Sapna
Sapna Joopare
so real faith
is founded upon reason
but it doesn't really
stop there
and what did we say earlier
be open, accept
anything
put it to the scrutiny of
reason, rationality
and objectively
not rationalizing
and when it can stand the test of reason
then only
you have faith in it but don't
stop there, transform it
transform faith
into fact
that is what is called true
spiritual practice
now
where does the faith
stop and where does
rationality stop
which proceeds further
and which stops
it is a tremendous fact
we have to understand
although real faith is founded
upon reason, it doesn't
stop there, it goes
much beyond what
reason can tell, faith
generally means belief in something
reason cannot penetrate
such as the belief in the
existence of God, what reason
can you, can prove
that God exists, that is why
physics must
step over
into metaphysics
because the existence of
God, existence of life
after death, existence of
the other world, all these things
they go into metaphysics
no physics
have no, even a glimpse
peep into that realm
because they are bound by these
five sense organs
so how can we attempt
to understand these lofty
spiritual truths
that we get from our guru
from our scriptures, for example
we are studying this gospel of Shri Ramakrishna
with our rational mind
which is encased by
limitations
rationality, reason
is severely limited
why? because
what reason can reveal
is finite, and the finite
can never comprehend the
infinite, reason can lead us
to a certain point
and beyond that point, faith
must take over and carry us
to the final realization
of God, that's why
Swami Vivekananda said, all
religion is going beyond
reason, but reason
is the only guide to
get there, reason is like
the pole vault
it will take you to some
height, and after
that you have to throw
out the pole vault
and then go beyond the
point of, and jump
to the other side
that's why religion
begins where philosophy
ends
philosophy is based
upon reason
but religion begins
where philosophy ends
what is the purpose of philosophy?
to convince us, first of all
this world cannot solve
our problems, second
there is a source which alone
can solve all our problems
Tapatraya
Avigatha can be overcome
only by knowing
there is something, there is a
state, there is a life
which is beyond the life known
to us, and so
stick to reason, who says?
Swamiji says, stick to reason
until you reach something higher
and you will know it to be
higher because it will not
jar with reason, so
belief, what is called religion
and reason are not enemies
they travel together
and the reason guides
the religion
to some distance
and very lower distance
not far away, and then
says, my friend, here we have
to part, I have no entrance
I have no visa, and you have
to take a leap, that is why
great poet
once he said, it is the journey
of the alone to the
alone, nobody can accompany
you there, and this is what
the saint John of
the cross goes into ecstasy
and he had composed
in one of his ecstatic states
a beautiful poem
very small short poem
it is called
the dark night of the soul
dark night of the soul means
where reason
is the daylight
and when reason stops
the daylight that we know
ends there and there
starts a kind of
light which is beyond reason
and that alone can
guide the soul throughout the
dark night until one
ends up with all light
which is called God
there is no way beyond it
so we have learned
several important points
we start with doubt
and then only
we have to accept
the doubt and then reason
it out and then find out
there is the only way
is to have faith
faith and reason
are not incompatible
not enemies but
reason has a limitation
and we must take
the help of reason until
we reach the point where
reason has to stop
and from there it is a leap
into the unknown by
all by ourselves
so they are friends actually
they are helpers actually
reason is the initial help
beginners help
and then faith comes
when faith comes how do we know
what happens to our life
these are some of the points
in our next class
may Ramakrishna, Holy Mother
and Swami Vivekananda
bless us all with
Bhakti and Shraddha
Jai Ramakrishna

[[Category:Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna]]