Daily Messages - 2019

Messages from Swami Dayatmananda

11 January 2019

Jai Ramakrishna

From M. The Apostle and the Evangelist

The fifth part of the Kathamrita is under print. As M. is indisposed he is helped by Swami Raghavananda. He is with M. these days.

Swami Raghavananda wants to read out the fifth part to the sadhus.

The topic is: Shyam Bazar of Thakur's native place, followed by the description of the Hari Sabha of Jorasanko.

Thakur is telling about his state in the Hari Sabha—he was in such a state of bhava that it looked as if his body would not last.

'M.: When the account of Gaya was being read out in Thakur's presence, we saw him sobbing and weeping. You see, his past had come back to his mind. He knew who he was—svayameva atmana atmanam vetha tvam purushottama' (Gita 10:15)—Verily You alone know Yourself by Yourself, O Purushottama.

Antevasi: Is it what happened to Chaitanya Deva in Gaya?

M.: Yes. When Chaitanya Deva went to Gaya to perform the rites for his dead father, he went into a deep bhava—he had the vision of God. When Thakur heard it, he began to sob and weep.

Antevasi: Where, in Dakshineswar?

M.: Yes, in Dakshineswar.

Antevasi: The readers of the Kathamrita think that Thakur would not go to Gaya for the reason that he had been born as an avatara there. When the incident of Chaitanya born as an avatara would come to his mind, he would give up his body—this nobody remembers.

'M.: That's why he would not go to Puri also. Chaitanya Deva was there for twenty years. Towards the last twelve years, he was in the mahabhava. Remembering all those things the body would not last, that's why he wouldn't go there. Chaitanya Deva is now Sri Ramakrishna. He himself said: Christ, Chaitanya and I are one.'

'M. (to all present): Thakur said to Swami Vivekananda on the first day, Have you heard of Gaur of Nadia (Chaitanya)? I am he.'

He replied, 'Yes, I hear people saying Gaur, Gaur.' "Our house had not been partitioned till then. It was in that room in front, that Swamiji told me this.

And he also said, 'Mahashaya, has this person gone mad? He says, that he is the same as that Gaur of Nadia.'" (All laugh).

Antevasi: Well, how did Swamiji take it—in what bhava?

M.: What bhava? He was just a boy then. On the top of it he was an English-educated boy.

M. and Swami Raghavananda (in one voice): He did not believe in reincarnation.

Antevasi: I have been corrected. I thought that because Thakur claimed that he was an avatara of Chaitanya Deva that Swamiji had called him mad.

M.: Swamiji took it the same way as any young man would do. He knew English, so he had become all the more sceptical. He did not believe in reincarnation. You see, the Englishmen do not believe in it.

"That's why Thakur swore by it and said it so emphatically to all. You see, all those who had been educated in English used to visit him. Thakur would say, 'Verily I say, the Mother has come—She who stands in front and talks to me.' Only this could make the sceptics believe. Thakur made ordinary men see God as much is possible in these days of disbelief."

M. (laughing): Narendra said: How much he pulls me with great affection here, while I sleep comfortably in my Simla home!

Just see, he who called Thakur a mad man later wrote a hymn with this—'tasmat tvameva sharanam mama dinbandho'—that is to say, O friend of the lowly, You alone are my refuge.

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12 January 2019

Jai Ramakrishna

Teachings of Swami Premananda

Let the mouth be closed, and action speak.

Is a person worthy to be called a human being if he cannot give up selfishness, if he cannot give up his pleasures of the senses?

To take the name of Sri Ramakrishna, and at the same time to be selfish! Is there any progress for such a hypocrite? Think wisely and firmly; and act accordingly.

Be completely desireless, but act. Do not be swayed by words of praise or blame, or let your actions be influenced by the opinions of others.

I see no evil in you. Who knows but that you may be a saint tomorrow? God plays with us by putting on various masks. We act under the control of our samskaras [tendencies]. We are all toys in the hands of the good Lord, and he is our refuge.

Trust in the Lord and act. You will then succeed. If you depend on men, you will meet with failure.

But we have lost this truthfulness, and that is why we have come to such a pass groaning under the crushing weight of misery and degradation. Now all our efforts must be directed first to retrieve it; not by mere empty speech, but by sincere action, pledging all our heart and soul to it.

Be active also. Free yourself from all sense of ego, and work selflessly. Be very careful that no sense of leadership or any trace of selfishness enter into you. Whatever you do, do as the servant of the Lord.

"Do or die!" Make this your motto. Rome was not built in a day, neither can the ideal character be formed in one day. It is the sum-total of your every thought and action that makes up your character. Remember this and every moment guard well your thoughts and actions. This is an age when we need workers who seek no results for their actions—and are completely devoted to God. No talk, but action; show by the example of your life.

It is not a lazy man's job. Be up and doing!

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13 January 2019

Jai Ramakrishna

On Adversity

It is no easy thing to dedicate oneself heart and soul to the Lord. Many people boast: 'I have surrendered myself and my all to God. I do only what he tells me to do.' But if we observe their lives we see differently. For the good they do they claim the credit and they boast of their achievements, but when adversity or trouble overtakes them they cry out against the Lord and blame him for their misfortunes. (Swami Brahmananda)

At the time of happiness everybody can remain calm, can discriminate, but one is established in it only if one can remain so even in adversity. At that time man has to summon up great strength. If he yields to weakness then, grief will overwhelm him—will altogether ruin him. (Swami Turiyananda)

Nothing can bar the progress of what God intends to make successful. Unless one passes through the school of adversity, one cannot properly be called a man. We learn much from our troubles.

You should not lose heart in adversity. Kunti, the mother of the Pandavas, prayed to Sri Krishna to beset her with adversities, since in adversity alone is He more frequently remembered! (Swami Ramakrishnananda)

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14 January 2019

Jai Ramakrishna

Swami Ramakrishnananda

Do not sit like that [with chin resting on palm of hand], it is a pensive attitude. You should always cultivate a cheerful attitude.

If you can place yourself at the feet of a true Teacher, your egotism will gradually wear away by that very attitude of yours of a servant.

Divine Mother does not like us to call ourselves Her servants... We are her children to Her, not servants. Always think of yourself as Her child.

[Describing the true attitude of a Jnani:] The story is told that Maya, the personified creative force, came one day to a Jnani or sage and said:

'Am I not very great? See, I have created so many worlds, suns and moons and stars. I am the ruler of such a vast universe.'

'You are the Queen of Zero,' said the sage.

Angry at the lack of regard for her greatness she touched him and he became a camel. He was put in the desert, made to carry heavy burdens over the hot sands and subjected to such cruel treatment that Maya herself at last had pity upon him and released him. Then she asked him if he would not now fall down and worship her.

He only laughed saying, 'I have neither camel's body nor mind. You are not hurting me. You are only slapping your own cheek.' Maya exclaimed angrily, 'You are still incorrigible!' Again she touched him and this time made him an ass. As an ass he was beaten, forced to carry evil-smelling burdens, and to live a miserable existence.

Then once more Maya came to him and asked him to bow down to her. 'Why should I? I am not suffering. The ass's body belongs to you, not to me,' he replied.

At last Maya seeing she could not disturb the serenity of his mind fell prostrate before him saying, 'It is you who are greater.'

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15 January 2019

Jai Ramakrishna

Where Many Live Together Friction May Occur—Patience and Forgiveness Necessary

Place: Belur Monastery

Time: Friday, July 26, 1929

It was afternoon. Mahapurushji had just finished his shave. Seeing a monastic worker of the orphanage at Baranagore, he called him to his side.

In the course of conversation the Swami said:

If the mind has a natural leaning towards God, one can make time and opportunity for spiritual practice. What is essential is earnestness. If you cannot carry on your spiritual practice here, you won't be able to do so anywhere. The Master used to say, "He who has it here, has it there too."

That is a statement full of truth, my child. Call upon God and pray to Him with great sincerity. He will give you an abundance of devotion and faith. Why should you go? You are doing the Lord's work. Is it a small matter?

Monk: 'In season and out of season, K. says whatever comes to his mind.' Saying this, he started crying.

Mahapurushji: I had a feeling there was a misunderstanding between you two. Why does he use abusive language? I know very well that you do not deserve that treatment. You are a gentle, good-natured person. Why don't you ask K. to come and see me some time? I will explain matters to him.

Do not take it to heart, my child. You know, when pots that are together are moved, friction is inevitable. Do not take it seriously. Misunderstandings are bound to occur sometimes and they are straightened out eventually. It takes two hands to clap. Let him say whatever he wishes. Just endure it all quietly. You will have to be a little humble. You will have to sacrifice a little.

You have dedicated your body, mind and soul to the Master's work. You have renounced everything for his sake. You will have to do this much also for his work. You should practise forbearance, you should sacrifice for his work. The Lord will bless you abundantly.

Monk: Please bless me so that I can do it.

Mahapurushji: Certainly you will be able to. You have my hearty blessings, my child. But you must pray to the Master sincerely, too. He will give you greater strength. You have come here renouncing everything for his sake. There is nothing that he will withhold from you. How will his work go on if you all do not live at peace in one place?

Be patient for his sake, paying no attention to what people say, good or bad. You are all sadhus and have come here with the idea of improving yourselves. You do not have any other desire or wish in your life. You want Him alone. Temporary misunderstandings are inevitable when several work together. They aren't something to be blamed for; it is quite natural. Such misunderstandings come and go; they cannot touch your inner Self, because the main objective of your life is the realization of God. Such petty matters as attachment and aversion cannot deeply affect you. This is what we feel.

Whenever you can, practise japa, meditate upon God and pray to Him sincerely. The moment you have a feeling of weakness or of lacking in anything, tell the Master about it. If you pray very sincerely, you are bound to get a response. Repeat his name often. The repetition of his name will purify your body and mind, washing away all impurities. You have renounced everything in order to be sadhus. The realization of God is the aim of your life, my child.

Your ideal is "to remain unaffected by praise or blame, to be silent and contented with a little". Balance in praise or blame, silence and being satisfied with whatever comes—this is the state you should aim at. You should be absorbed in God. What does it matter to you what people say about you?

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16 January 2019

Jai Ramakrishna

Anguish / Anxiety / Anxious

Sorrow, bereavement, pain and anguish—this is what the world consists of. Real joy or peace is very rare in this world, and this round of birth and death that is ours, no one can check.

Hari Maharaj used to say: 'The body knows its pain; O my mind, be at peace!' What a beautiful statement! Pain and anguish belong to the body. He who dwells within the body is not affected by them: He is Bliss itself.

There is no need to be anxious about it. Whatever be the Lord's pleasure is definitely for the good of all. (Swami Shivananda)

Throw away all fear and anxiety. Think, 'We are the children of God', then weakness will find no loophole to creep in.

Away with all quarrels and factions. We have come here for only a very short time; why such anxiety for tidying things up? Let others do as they like.

Fear, worries, and anxieties dwell where there are hypocrisy, evil motives, and selfishness. (Swami Premananda)

Just see! Our God is only a verbal affair! A little meditation, a little Japa—this is a poor sort of spiritual life. The heart must burst hungering for Him. An intense anguish must fill it and life should seem to go out without Him—only then it will be right.

A sea is no more than a mud-puddle when you have crossed it. All anxiety and trouble are at the initial stage. (Swami Turiyananda)

Actually very few of us believe in God all the time. How do we know this? Because we allow anxieties and fears to arise in our minds.

All your anxieties and worries come from egotism and selfishness. Let go your little self and they will disappear.

When worries and perplexities rise in our mind it shows we have ceased to believe in God and in that He is caring for us. If we have real faith in God, we can never grow anxious.

Blessed is the man who has faith. He is the happiest of all men because he is free from all anxiety.

You should not be anxious of the future. Whatever takes place here, on this earth, is for our good, for all things are disposed by God. In the meantime, it should be our duty to be dutiful.

It is through sheer ignorance that we bring on ourselves all sorts of groundless anxieties. To work you have the right, but not the fruits thereof. The leader should be a man having not the least egoism. Not "I" but "Thou"—this should be his motto. Remember this and go on working and you are sure to come out victorious... Do not try to have everything done all at once.

It is the greatest relief when we get rid of egotism. It is as if a heavy burden rolled off. At once all our doubts and fears, anxieties and troubles disappear.

Whenever anxiety rises in you, you become an atheist; you do not believe in God and that He cares for you.

If you have real faith you can never grow anxious. Do your duty never grow anxious and do not think of the future. (Swami Ramakrishnananda)

(From What The Disciples Said)

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17 January 2019

Jai Ramakrishna

Argumentation

It is excellent to see only the good. From a pile of mixed sand and sugar, the ant extracts only the sugar. What do we have to do with quarrels and disputes? (Swami Premananda)

Don't argue unnecessarily just to prove your point. It ruins the spiritual atmosphere. Let people do whatever they like; you should live according to your own ideal. (Swami Adbhutananda)

Once, while I was at Belur, a gentleman came and expressed his regret that we had not married and had renounced the world. By all sorts of arguments, he demonstrated that our supreme Guru Shiva was also married. Owing to ignorance, man tries to support his views with numerous intellectual arguments, and the result is philosophizing. But he gets over all these, once he is blessed with true insight.

The Master used to say, 'The world is an evil place, and you should renounce it.' There was no argument behind it, because he knew that no one can get over his unhappiness without renouncing the world. Once it is realized that a thing is bad, the best thing is to discard it, there is no question of arguing about it.

You better leave these debates and arguments alone. We have got a brain of very limited capacity; and for realizing God, all this hair-splitting is of no use. What you require is burning faith in Him. In order to be firmly established in that faith, you may raise one or two valid points, but nothing more. Our arguments are just like armchair discussions; they lead us nowhere. We argue about God and then go home and lie down in bed. That is not religion, and it does not contribute to peace of mind.

Faith is the foundation of spiritual life. Too much of argumentation is of no avail... In order to be firmly established in that faith, you may raise one or two valid points, but nothing more. Unless you have faith, arguments and discussions will only cloud the issue and create confusion. (Swami Vijnanananda)

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18 January 2019

Jai Ramakrishna

Teachings of the Direct Disciples

On Astrology

(Swami Saradananda)

An enlightened soul does not use occult powers nor does he take recourse to astrology. For astrological calculations are in many cases unreliable.

A true guru has super-sensuous powers. He visualizes the inner body of the disciple and instructs him in accordance with his past and future impressions. This is what seeing the past and the future means. Telling the past and the future by divination with numbers or by the use of astrology is not infallible in most cases.

By consulting the readings of the horoscope people always lose faith in their own capacity and become weak-minded. Readings of the horoscope are made from the movements of the planets and stars, but from those movements nobody can say how far a man's capacity will be manifested. For that reason, self-effort can change the readings of the horoscope this way or that way.

Atheism

(Swami Ramakrishnananda)

The theists are in the core of their hearts true theists as they are always searching for God, though indirectly. Those whose minds are busily engaged in the search for God directly or indirectly cannot be atheists.

Attachment

(Swami Brahmananda)

Do your duties conscientiously, and without attachment. Always remember that you are an instrument in the hands of God and that God himself is the only doer.

Sri Ramakrishna used to say that a man will surely attain God if he possesses in an intense degree three kinds of love—the love a chaste wife feels toward her husband, the attraction of the worldly man for the world, and the attachment the miser feels toward his hoarded wealth. This means that the mind must be one-pointed and completely free of all desires but the desire to know God.

If you can perform every action as worship of the Lord, then only will you like to work and feel no attachment to the fruits of your actions.

Without divine attachment and divine love the mind becomes dry and restless.

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19 January 2019

Jai Ramakrishna

Teachings of the Direct Disciples

Swami Shivananda

[To the question: "Holy sir, we are worldly people. We have so many attachments and are confronted by so many obstacles. What are we to do?"]

Pray to the Lord! Talk to him!

If anyone feels the same intense longing as would result if these three attachments were united [that of a devoted wife for her husband, of a Mother for her child, and for a miser for his wealth], only then does he have God-vision.

What counts is not the mere renunciation of external attachments; inner attachments must also be given up.

Do not be attached, my child. Lust and gold destroy the manhood of man.

You have to do His work without any attachment. Know it for certain that, if one goes on performing one's duties under the sincere belief that one is doing God's work, one can never suffer spiritually. God protects such a one for ever.

As a result of association with the holy one reaches the state of being freed from all worldly attachments. All wants and desires are then destroyed root and branch, and one feels the nearness of God.

This process of evolution and involution is only another form of the twin forces of attraction or attachment and repulsion or dispassion. It is because of attraction or attachment that souls are drawn to this world, coming back and forth and playing their different embodied roles.

On account of holy association one attains the most covetable state of desirelessness. It destroys attachments at their very roots and brings one very close to God.

Look here. Nothing will accrue to you if you do not have right and proper attachment, affection and love for the Master.

Swami Premananda

To love the devotees of the Lord brings no attachment, it creates no bondage.

Attachment is bondage; yet again, attachment opens the door to liberation to one who becomes attached to God or the guru or to illumined souls.

One must have true Nishta—steadfast, whole-hearted devotion and attachment to that aspect of God which one has chosen to realize. But let that not produce repulsion for the other aspects.

Swami Turiyananda

[To the question: "How to know whether one is progressing towards Him or not?"]

One can know it oneself. Others also can know it. All his passions, lust, anger and greed will wane, his attachment for the objects of the senses will diminish, and he will have peace at heart.

If there be a hole of attachment in the mind, the result of Japa will run out through it.

Nag Mahashaya once said to me, 'Bless my father that he may have true devotion to God.'

'He has already got it,' I replied, 'He is constantly repeating the name of God. What more do you want?'

Nag Mahashaya rejoined, 'What is the use of rowing a boat which is at anchor? My father is much attached to me. What good will his Japa do?'

'If he is not to love a son like you, whom else should he love?' said I. 'Don't say so, don't say so' he cried out, 'only bless that he may lose all attachment for me.'

Death is no more terrible when there is no attachment. One must throw out all attachments. All the trouble is due to love being centred on specific objects. When you dive into the Ganges you don't feel any weight, although there are tons of water overhead. But one feels so burdened when one places a pot of water on one's head! Even the spine may give way!

Attachment to the body is the last and strongest bondage. The parental affection of monkeys is very great. The mother carries the dead body of her young one even after the flesh has dropped off and the skeleton alone is left. But even they, as all other animals, forget everything about their young ones when their own life is at stake.

Even the least attachment for anything gives the mind a loop-hole to direct you as it pleases. You become a slave to it, which is not the case if you are unattached. Lust, attachment, and the like are one and the same thing, varying only in intensity. One must turn the mind away before it gets attached to any object. Otherwise it becomes an impossible task afterwards.

Never think of transient things. That way you can escape attachment.

The common man takes to those activities which tend to perpetuate the bond of attachment. And this is true of the whole world. The only exceptions are the monks, who have found out the evanescence of the world and renounced it.

Attachment and aversion are at the root of all evil. Hence the injunction to relinquish them. For, free of them, one can do with impunity whatever one likes.

Attachment is made up of the ideas of 'me' and 'mine'.

They are fearless because they are unattached. When Mother is known, attachment goes. The world then becomes so small, so insignificant—a little mud puddle.