Messages from Swami Dayatmananda

26 October 2018

Truthfulness

'Once it so happened that there was a swelling in his legs. He was still at Dakshineswar. Mahendra Kaviraj asked him to take lemons. Brother Yogen used to bring two fresh lemons every day. Master would take them daily. But one day he could not take them. Yogen was astonished. On enquiry it was found that from that day the garden had been leased out to another man for a year. As the Master was given to truth he could not take the lemons that day, for the permission to take the fruits had been obtained not from the new lessee but from the old owner, who, after the leasing out, had no right over the fruits.'

'On the occasion of the Master's last birthday celebration at Dakshineswar during his lifetime Narottama sang kirtana there. There was quite a crowd then; about 250/300 devotees took prasada that day. That day, when the Master touched Loren Babu, he (Master) passed into samadhi. Since that time there was a division among the devotees of the Master. In one party there were Ram, Girish, Manomohana, Kedar and others. They used to call the Master an Incarnation of God. In the other group were Balaram, Kishori, Suresh, Prankrishna and others.

It was on this occasion the Master made it known to the devotees that Maya was no other than Ishwara Himself. 'The creatures and creation are but He. Jivas are His manifestations. Avataras also are His manifestations but with a difference. But ultimately all are He, all are one... The same one who Incarnated as Rama and Krishna has Incarnated this time (showing himself) as Ramakrishna'.

A devotee once asked Latu Maharaj, how lust could be brought under control, rather be driven off completely. Latu Maharaj replied, 'Do one thing. Keep a photo of the Master. Whenever the fell urge would come, look at it intently, prayerfully. You will see all unworthy desires have vanished. Do it.'

To another devotee he said, 'Do you think passions and desires leave us so easily? Constant remembrance of our guru or Chosen Deity is a great help in this matter, I should say, the most powerful means to its achievement. One who has this has advanced far enough towards the goal. It is the Lord who will give you the proper wisdom and will to turn the passions to your advantage. Depend on Him, have unbroken faith in His words, you will see He will give you the strength to conquer them; He will create circumstances, favourable to your growth. If you take refuge in Him with heart and soul all your difficulties will be removed. But your dedication must be wholehearted.'

The disciple: 'Maharaj, we have not seen Him, how can we dedicate ourselves to Him? We do not know the method. Will it do if we say, "Lord be kind to us, bestow your grace on us", and keep quiet?'

Latu Maharaj: 'My boy, He is showering His grace unceasingly. Your very life is dependent on it. Very good, you say, you do not know Him. Granted, but you know His name. Why don't you advance with the name as your only guide? Is it not a fact that you send your application to the manager of a firm without seeing him? You know him later during the interview. And what do you write in your application? Stating your qualification, you promise unswerving obedience to him and pray for the favour. All this you do without knowing him. Don't you?'

Disciple: 'Yes, Maharaj, we do.'

Latu Maharaj: 'Do the same thing with the Lord. But this application is not something to be sent. It is to be written in the pages of one's own mind, which the Lord sitting within it reads. But the drafting must be factual. Our prayers must be sincere, our words must ring true. When we say, "May we not forget your name; I have taken refuge in you; kindly make me your servant; remove all doubts that you are our Master, Guru, father, mother, everything, that I am your son; find me my auspicious path; save me from your bewitching Maya; I have not seen you, only heard your name; my Lord, make me your own," we must mean it wholly, fully. Then only He might one day deign to bestow His grace on you. When that auspicious moment comes all your hard, soul-burning attempts would come to an abrupt end. Nothing more will remain for you to do. He will take full charge of you and guide you on to the goal, give you your destined work to do, to show you the method; and lead you to its fulfilment.'

27 October 2018

Musings of M. (From M. the Apostle and the Evangelist)

M: (to himself, wonderingly)—Where does this feeling, (that I am the doer) come from? Just as the fish cannot live without water—and if one keeps it out of water it tosses about—Similarly we cannot also live without air. Where is kartagiri (doership) in this?

"The child drinks the mother's milk. So it lives. We also do the same. The Big Mother's milk (Jagadamba's) we are always drinking. Air, water, food—everything is Her milk. During the winter, She is Herself on the body, in the form of cotton and wool, protecting the body. That's also drinking Her milk."

M. sits down on the north side of the terrace. Overwhelmed with emotion he sings:—You are Tara. Though you have assumed the three gunas, You are even beyond the limitless. I know You, merciful Mother! You are the one to free me from all trials and tribulations. You live on sea, You live on land and you are at the root of the Beginning. You live in all the bodies, in all hearts, both with and without form: You are Sandhya, you are Gayatri. You are the nurse of the Universe, O Mother! You enable one to cross the ocean of the world, You, the Ever-Beloved of Shiva.

O Ma, the Controller of the hearts! You are ever awake within. Night and day I live in your lap. Why have you so much affection, love for this worthless child? You are, as though mad in Your Love. Sometimes lovingly, sometimes with all Your force, You make me drink Your nectar and tell me sweet tales. How You love me! It cannot be calculated.

Again and again You redeem me, You are the Redeemer of the fallen! Oh! I have found the secret now: Ma is mine and I am Hers. I must walk the path of virtue, listen to You. Sucking at your breast I must be strong and brave, And sing joyfully, "Victory to You, Mother Eternal!"

M. remains silent for a while. Then he resumes his talk.

M.: It's just like a puppet dance. The wire drops, immediately it's the end.

He again sings a song:

Ever blissful Kali, the Charmer of the mighty Mahakala. You dance alone, You sing alone clapping Your hands. O Mother! You are the First Cause, Eternal, of the form of the Void, wearing the moon on Your forehead. When the universe did not exist, where did you find your string of severed human heads? You alone are the Mover in every body; we move as you move us. We dance as you make us dance; we speak as You make us speak. But the restless Kamalakant, calling Your names says: 'Ma, the Destroyer of all, holding Your sword now, You have eaten up both virtue and vice!'

M: That is why the rishis, in their search for the Real found Him alone! Thakur also said: "What more shall I think of? I see, that the Mother alone pervades all."

"It is like the pulling of the string of the handpulled ceiling fan through a hole—a man sitting outside pulls at its string, but as the puller is not visible one may say there is nobody. Likewise, people say that the creation is automatic. They cannot see its predisposition. That's why they say that God does not exist."

29 October 2018

THE HOLY MOTHER

A Devotee: I asked the Mother, "Mother, how shall I live my life?"

Holy Mother replied, "As you are doing now. Ever pray to Him yearningly in constant recollection and contemplation of Him."

"Mother, I am frightened at the sight of even great souls—Mahapurushas—slipping from the Ideal."

"If one lives amidst objects of enjoyment, one is naturally overcome by them. Do not cast your eyes even on a wooden representation of a woman or ever go near it."

"But, is it not true that it is God who inspires man to every action?"

"Yes, it is true. But is man conscious of it? He thinks, in his blind infatuation that he is the doer, he does not rely on God. Whoever surrenders himself to God is saved. A Sadhu must be always alert. His path is very slippery, and a slippery path has to be trod with exceedingly careful steps.

Is it a fun to be a Sannyasin? He must not even look at a woman, and when he walks the street, his eyes should be fixed on his big toes. Just as the collar of a dog saves it from being killed as a street dog, even so does the ochre-robe of a Sannyasin save him from harm. His is the royal road, and every one makes way for him."

30 October 2018

The True Gentleman by John Walter Wayland

The True Gentleman is the man whose conduct proceeds from good will and an acute sense of propriety, and whose self-control is equal to all emergencies; who does not make the poor man conscious of his poverty, the obscure man of his obscurity, or any man of his inferiority or deformity; who is himself humbled if necessity compels him to humble another; who does not flatter wealth, cringe before power, or boast of his own possessions or achievements; who speaks with frankness but always with sincerity and sympathy; whose deed follows his word; who thinks of the rights and feelings of others, rather than his own; and who appears well in any company, a man with whom honour is sacred and virtue safe.

As a human being man possesses virtue, even nobility; he also possesses human limitations and imperfections. We honour the man who exploits his strengths and controls his weaknesses...whose conduct proceeds from good will... The man of good will has a genuine interest in other people. He likes his fellow men because of their virtues and in spite of their faults. A man of good will is willing to co-operate with others. He doesn't wait to be asked to help when he knows his help is needed. He responds voluntarily and warmly and will almost certainly like those with whom he cooperates.

Develop a good sense of humour. The man who has a sense of humour knows that life can be a wonderful experience. The man who has forgotten or never learned how to laugh is a sad case. He lives out his life as if it were the last act of a Wagnerian tragedy and makes everyone around him as miserable as he is himself. But the man who has learned to laugh—especially at himself—has gone far in developing the attractive personality of a gentleman.

Can you laugh with others, even though they may be laughing at you?

Be flexible. To be flexible means to be able to give a little here and there, to admit readily that you're wrong when you're wrong—and do it gracefully. It means keeping an open mind, being willing to accept new ideas, a different outlook, or being prepared to change your opinion. If you are a gentleman, you will make an honest attempt to see the best qualities in others. With this knowledge of his own dignity, the gentleman can move out in life with hope and ambition, two important ingredients in good personality.

31 October 2018

11th December, 1912

The Holy Mother, while in Banaras, used to listen to the reading of the Kasi Khanda. One evening, after the reading of the book, she was engaged in conversation with the disciple.

Disciple: Do all that die in Banaras gain liberation?

Mother: The Scriptures say, "Yes."

Disciple: What is your direct experience? The Master saw that Siva Himself whispers the holy Mantra (Taraka-Brahma) into the ears of the dead.

Mother: I don't know about it, my child; I have not seen anything of this kind.

Disciple: I cannot believe unless I hear something from you on this point.

Mother: Well, I shall tell the Master, "R does not want to believe. Please show me something about it."

I referred to the destruction of temples in many places in India during the Mussalman rule and said, "There was so much oppression. What did God do to prevent it?"

Mother: God has infinite patience. People worship Siva by pouring water in jugs over His head day and night. Does it affect Him in the least? Or they worship Him, covering the image with dry clothes. Does it trouble Him at all? God's patience knows no limit.

The following morning the Holy Mother said to Khagen Maharaj, "Yesterday night I lay awake on my bed when I suddenly saw the image of Narayana of the Seth's temple of Brindavan standing by my side. The garland of flowers round the neck of the Deity hung up to the feet. The Master stood with folded hands in front of the image. I thought, 'How could the Master come here?' I said, 'R does not want to believe.'

The Master said, 'He must. This is all true.' He meant that one dying in Banaras does gain liberation. That Narayana image told me two things. One was: 'Can one ever get the knowledge of Reality unless one knows the truth about God?' The other thing I do not recall."

Khagen Maharaj: Why did the Master stand with folded hands before the image of Narayana?

Mother: That was his characteristic attitude. He was humble before all.

I called on the Mother in the morning and asked her, referring to the conversation of the previous day: "Please tell me if one dying in Banaras gains liberation. What have you seen?"

Mother: The Scriptures say so. Besides, so many people come here with this faith. What else can happen to him who has taken refuge in the Lord?

Disciple: It is, of course, true that he who has taken refuge in God will be liberated. But take the case of those who have not surrendered themselves to God, who are not His devotees, or who belong to other faiths,—will they also get liberation by dying at Banaras?

Mother: Yes, they too. Banaras is permeated with the spirit of God. All living beings of this place, even the moths and insects, are filled with divine consciousness. Any being that dies here, be it a devotee, an atheist, one belonging to another religion, or even an insect or moth—will surely be liberated.

Disciple: Are you speaking the truth?

Mother: Yes, it is true, indeed. Otherwise how can you explain the glory of the holy place?

Nearby there were some sweets that had been offered to the Lord. A fly, buzzing about, sat on my arm. Pointing to it, I said, "Even this fly?"

Mother: Yes, even that fly. All living beings of this place are filled with the spirit of God. Bhudev wanted to take home two young pigeons that had been caught in the niche over the staircase. I said to him, "No, no; you must not take them away. They are inhabitants of Banaras."

1 November 2018

Teachings of Swami Shivananda (Peace Hard To Attain)

Place: Monastery at Belur Math. Time: Thursday, October 28, 1920.

Presently a monk, who had come from a branch centre a few days previously, unburdened his mind, saying: 'Maharaj, though I have been practising meditation to the best of my ability, I find hardly any joy in it. Most often I find I go through my practice as through a routine. That does not satisfy my heart nor does it give me any peace.'

Swami Shivananda said very quietly: 'Look here, my boy, peace is not such an easy thing to attain. The way to peace is very difficult, full of thorns. "Sharp as the blade of a razor and hard to cross is the way to Self-knowledge"—so the sages have described it.'

These are the actual words of the illumined seers. The path is indeed extremely difficult, however easy it may seem to those who have not entered it. Great effort is required to make progress in the realm of the Spirit. But if one sincerely wants to realize God, it is certainly true that he will receive His grace. You must have read in the life of Sri Ramakrishna that even he had to go through tremendous spiritual discipline before gaining the vision of the Mother.

'Spiritual efforts without sincere love for God are fruitless. Sincere love is what counts. The Master used to say that when the three attachments—that of a devoted wife for her husband, of a mother for her child, and of a miser for his wealth—become one, then one realizes God. If anyone feels the same intense longing as would result if these three attachments were united, only then does he have God-vision. Sincere love brings God-realization and in that alone is genuine peace and joy.

'Of course, without the grace of God one cannot have such love overnight, and that is why regular practice is necessary. One should cry to God, laying bare the heart. "O Lord, be merciful to me. I am an ordinary man. How can I hope to realize Thee unless Thou vouchsafest to appear before me? Have mercy on me, O Lord; have mercy on this weak being." Pray this way to Him every day. The more you cry to Him the more your mind will be cleansed. The Lord will reveal Himself to the pure transparent mind.

'Pavhari Baba said to Swami Vivekananda: "Remain lying at the door of your guru like a dog." Swamiji repeated this remark to us many times. As a dog never leaves his master's home to go elsewhere, whether he is fed or not, whether his master beats him or is kind, in the same way one must be completely resigned to the Lord. He who can take refuge at His feet and stay resigned under all conditions and circumstances till the last, will indeed obtain divine grace.

You have no reason to worry, because you have taken refuge in him and found shelter in his Order. As the Master used to say: "The child whose hand is held by the father has no fear of falling." Know for certain that the Master will save you as long as you remain in his Order.

'Though you did not see Sri Ramakrishna in the flesh, you see us, his devoted servants, and through us you hear his words. It is indeed unusual good fortune, because the next generation of monks will not see even us. It was with this in mind that Swamiji founded the Order.

In the body of the Order the spirit of the Master is manifestly present and will be so for many centuries for the good of the world. From now on he will do his work through the instrumentality of the Order. Constantly bear in mind that loyalty to the Order is loyalty to the Master. Swamiji founded this monastery in direct obedience to the wish of Sri Ramakrishna. Our words, also, are for the good of the world and for your good. We say what is true. We have not come to the world to mislead people.

Be convinced that our Master is gracious to those who take refuge in him. He protects those in every way who are wholly resigned to him with their body, mind and soul. You have given up worldly attachments in order to realize God and find peace. Look up to the Master for everything. He will certainly bless you and bring you peace.

'You are expected to live his commandments and pursue the path he chalked out. Purity and guilelessness should be your watchword. The Master forgives all failings except hypocrisy and self-deception.'

Monk: 'Please bless me that I may always remain in his fold. Sometimes I feel very unhappy because of the many undesirable thoughts which cross my mind. Please instruct me how to be rid of them.'

Mahapurushji (Swami Shivananda) said with great tenderness: 'My boy, I bless you with all my heart. May you remain in his shelter and attain the consummation of your life! Just ignore the bad thoughts. Don't you know Sri Ramakrishna is the very embodiment of radiant purity? If you meditate on his blessed form and repeat his holy name, impure thoughts will hang their heads in shame and disappear in no time. The moment an impure suggestion comes to your mind, cry to Him fervently and pray: "Lord, I am weak. Protect me. Unless thou savest me, who else will do so? Am I not thy servant and have I not taken refuge in thee?" Talk to him in this way about your weaknesses. He will certainly listen to your prayers.'

2 November 2018

The Master would say, 'How to know that a man has advanced in meditation? Birds will settle on his head taking him to be something inert.'... 'A snake will glide over his body from side to side and he will not know it.'... 'His meditation will continue unbroken in all circumstances with eyes shut or open, while talking or walking or engaged in any work.'

Below are some testimonies to show that Latu Maharaj's condition was like this at this time. Swami Advaitananda says, 'One day Latu was meditating on the bank of the Ganges. Latu used to take his seat at a place where water did not rise during the flood tide. But that day it came up to where he was sitting in meditation. Water was still rising and Latu was unaware of it. I observed it and in anxiety reported the matter to the Master. He came hurriedly and saw Latu was surrounded by water. He crossed the water and brought back Latu from his meditation to normal consciousness.'

The next is also from Senior Gopalda:

'One day Latu was meditating, he lost consciousness of his body and fell down and started rubbing his face against the ground. An indistinct sound of pain was coming out of his throat. I got afraid and called the Master there. When he saw Latu in that condition he laid Latu down on his back in an instant and went on forcibly rubbing his chest with his knees. After some time Latu slowly came to his normal condition. Then the Master asked him, "Did you not see Mother Kali today? Keep quiet. Don't shout, otherwise people will assemble here in numbers."

Hearing the Master's words Latu kept quiet, all right, but since that day whenever Latu would meditate his eyes, face, and chest would turn blood-red. It lingered on for some time long after his meditation was over.'

The third incident is from Latu Maharaj's own lips.

At Balaram Babu's residence one devotee asked Latu Maharaj if it is good to see devas [gods] and devis [goddesses] other than one's Chosen Deity. To this Latu Maharaj replied:

'To see visions of gods and goddesses is always good. The same Chosen Deity assumes various forms. It is His sport to manifest Himself as many gods and goddesses. Everything is in that One, so why should people make distinction in showing respect to them?'

The devotee's doubts were not solved, so he took up the matter over again. Said he, 'Maharaj, our scriptures have described these deities differently. There (in the scriptures), for meditation purpose, these deities have been given different forms, their method of worship is different. The mantra for bowing down to them are all different. Still in meditating on one, other deities also appear. Is it not strange? So I ask if such visions are conducive to our spiritual progress.'

Latu Maharaj: 'You fellows are full of differentiation, cannot give up differences. Well, would you concede that all these deities are but one in essence? They are different in forms, that is all. What does it matter if in essence they are but one? Take for example you yourself. You are a man. When you are angry your appearance changes, you assume a terrible form. Again when you laugh do you have the same terrible form? When you cry you assume a third form. With the sway of emotions altered, your appearances undergo corresponding changes. Would you say you have yourself changed for all that? Whatever might be your moods if somebody calls you by name do you not respond? It is exactly the same with the various forms of the deities.

The Master used to say, "The chameleon changes its colours. It is sometimes red, sometimes green, sometimes yellow, brown, violet, blue, etc. All men do not see all its colours, so each attributes to it that colour which he has seen. But one who has seen it in all these colours at different times knows that the same creature assumes so many colours. Similarly, one who goes on meditating on his Chosen Deity and does not give up seeing Him in one form is blessed with other visions of Him and comes to understand that though names and forms differ his Chosen Deity is the same."'

Our probationer Latu saw in meditation various devas and devis. We mention them all here together: Sri Rama, Hanuman, Vishwanatha, Mother Kali, Sri Krishna, Yogamaya. He might have seen many others, but we do not know them.

3 November 2018

(From Memoirs of Swami Adbhutananda)

Here we feel tempted to make a special mention of his vision of Yogamaya. It took place at Dakshineswar. A part of the story we have heard from Rakhal Maharaj and another part from Sri Biharilal Sarkar.

'One night the Master woke us up at dead of night. He said, "Should you sleep away the night? Have you come here for that?" He woke all of us up, gave individual instructions and sent us away to different parts of the garden to meditate. That night he sent Latu to meditate under the Bilwa tree. When Latu returned from his meditation the Master said, "Tonight Leto has returned from the jaws of death."'

This much we heard from Rakhal Maharaj. Below is what we heard from Biharilal Babu. He said, 'It is not a matter of joke to take seat on a pancha mundi asana* for meditation—an asana, sitting on which a sadhaka has realized the Deity. Nobody can do this unless his body and mind have been fully purified and he is fully established in Brahmacharya, the vow of absolute celibacy. Many gods and demigods appear in their subtle forms, send chilling terrors into the occupants of the seat, do not allow them to sit on it, sometimes throw them out of it. If the occupant has not conquered fears fully he cannot sit on it.

It is for this reason that the Master would not send anyone and everyone to meditate under the Bilwa tree. He had his select ones for that. One night such a strong-willed sadhaka as Latu got frozen with fear. At the end of his meditation Latu could not get up from his seat, such terrible figures had he seen during meditation that he had no strength left to move. At that moment the Master saved him. From a distance the Master called out, "Are you very much terrified, my boy? Why is this fear? From whom? Come away with me." When Latu heard the Master's voice courage returned to him. It is not possible for all to sit on that seat. The Master had his realization of Mother sitting on that seat. Hence its great power.

During this period the Master warned them repeatedly, 'My boys, be extremely cautious, Yogamaya is testing you all. If you pass these tests of Hers all the knots of Maya will be untied one by one. Then you will see that there is no distinction between God with forms and the formless Lord.' We hear that the Master said many things about Yogamaya. But unfortunately nobody took notes of them. We asked Latu Maharaj many times about Her. But every time we met with the rebuff, 'Of what avail is hearing about Her? Practise and know Her infinite powers and graces. Who is there who can speak about an infinitesimal part of Hers? Infinite are Her occult powers. If She but expresses just a few of them, Mother Earth, noted for Her patience, shakes in fright, what to speak of puny man.'

We would like to paint one more picture of Latu's meditation. This too occurred under the Bilwa tree. That night he was immersed in deep meditation. Consciousness of the external world including his own body was totally lost. He was then under the grip of what is called yoga-nidra, a sleep-like relaxation in meditation when the individual willpower is nil and when various visions and experiences come and go of themselves making the sadhaka a passive observer. During that time various divine figures appear. They are endowed with all kinds of powers and can give any boon to the sadhaka. In the sadhakas there remains at that time only a residuum of passive observance, otherwise everything is calm and quiet, motionless as figures on a canvas. Latu was in that condition.

He sat for meditation at midnight, now the dawn broke; twilight spread her beauty on the eastern horizon; Latu was still sitting motionless. Not finding his boy to serve him at that hour, the Master came out in search of him. Coming near the Bilwa tree the Master saw two dogs keeping watch over Latu at a distance. He did not proceed farther. In the meanwhile the day broke and the first rays of the morning sun lit up the horizon, some falling on the face of superconscious Latu and brought him slowly to the conscious plane. He opened his eyes and was beside himself with joy when he saw his Master standing at a little distance watching his beloved disciple. He left his seat and prostrated himself at the feet of the Master.

While both were returning to the Master's room, the Master said to Latu, 'Do you know, my boy, (Universal) Mother sent two Bhairavas (demigods of terrible powers and followers and associates of Shiva and Mother) in the guise of dogs to protect you?'

This narrative also is from the lips of Biharilal Babu.

*Panchamundi literally means 'of five heads or skulls'. It is an asana prepared by the tantrika sadhakas under which are buried five heads: of a jackal, a snake, a dog and a bull, and in the middle that of a man; or alternately five skulls, all of men.

4 November 2018

Teachings of Swami Premananda

Remain some days in Jayrambati with the Holy Mother. Serve her. Thereby be blessed and realize the object of human life. This is my earnest wish. With what patience, forgiveness, and forbearance does she lead her life at home! Never before has such an ideal life been visible in this world. If such an example does not result in your remoulding your life, then there is no hope for you.

Seeing the Holy Mother is equivalent to seeing Sri Ramakrishna. Only in her native village can we perceive the Holy Mother's real nature. What substance she has! You will learn how large-hearted and loving she is. Seeing her makes egotism and conceit fly away. Try to learn thoroughly her ways and manners. She has infinite compassion for all mankind. We should become full if we were to get but a particle of that compassion.

Brahmacharya means performing the ritualistic worship, doing japa, meditating and studying with faith and reverence. Austerity means making the lips correspond with the heart. Does this state consist only in uttering a few mantras while taking the vows of Brahmacharya in a formal way?

A devotee has asked the Swami whether the picture of Sri Krishna can be kept in the shrine of Sri Ramakrishna. Pictures of all gods and goddesses, of all religions, can be kept there. Sri Ramakrishna was a great leader in all sects of all religions.

Do not see the defects of one another; see the good, the merits only. As Sri Ramakrishna said, be like the winnowing basket that retains the good grain, while rejecting the chaff. Do not be like a sieve that lets the good material drop through and holds back what is worthless.

We should move about freely, seeing the world as the manifestation of Rama. To hate and injure anyone is to hate and injure Rama, who pervades the whole world.

5 November 2018

Teachings of Swami Vijnananandaji Maharaj

As you think, so you become. As thoughts of love help in expanding the self, so do thoughts of anger and jealousy lead to its contraction. Unless one can restrain one's passion, anger, etc. it is impossible to get anywhere near God. If you want to control your passion, anger, etc., you have to meditate on the Master and the Holy Mother and you will then be free from all degrading thoughts.

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 a bad 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 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.

When, therefore, our entire existence depends on Him, why should we form an attachment for worldly things? Worldly attachments draw people away from God and scorch them in the wildfire of the world.

The Bible describes God in all His three forms, with attributes, without attributes, and as incarnate.

Let us make our minds pure, the rest will be easy; and we shall attain spiritual bliss comparable to nothing else in life. Our worldly pleasures are but a speck of dust, when weighed against that great mountain of joy.

6 November 2018

Revelation of Sri Ramakrishna as Kali (From Sri Ramakrishna the Great Master)

21. The disease aggravated

The month of Aswin passed and that of Kartik and the day of the worship of Kali were approaching; but no improvement in the physical condition of the Master was seen. The good effect the treatment produced at first was fast disappearing and there was apprehension lest the disease should assume a serious turn. But the bliss and the cheerfulness of the Master's mind appeared to the devotees to increase rather than decrease. Although Dr. Sarkar visited him frequently now as before and changed medicines repeatedly, he did not get the expected result and considered the change of the season to be the cause; and that condition, he thought, would pass as soon as the cold of winter increased a little.

22. The description of the wonderful Bhavasamadhi of the Master on the occasion of the annual worship of Kali

The devotees witnessed an extraordinary spiritual manifestation at the time of the annual worship of Kali also, as at the worship of Durga. At one time Devendranath had a desire to bring an image and worship Kali in it. Thinking that it would be a matter of great joy if he could carry that resolve into practice in the presence of the Master and his devotees, he made a proposal to perform that worship at the Shyampukur house.

But the devotees thought that the Master's body would get more exhausted on account of the zeal, excitement and noise at the time of the worship and tried to dissuade him. These words of the devotees appeared to be reasonable to Devendra, who consequently gave up that idea. But on the day before the worship, the Master said all of a sudden to a few devotees, "Collect all the ingredients for a brief worship; Mother Kali must be worshipped tomorrow."

Happy to hear him say so, they began consulting others. But as they had no other instruction from the Master regarding the preparation for the worship except the aforesaid words, all kinds of suggestions were offered. Unable to come to a decision regarding such important matters as whether the worship was to be performed with sixteen ingredients or five, whether cooked rice was to be offered or not, who was to officiate as priest, etc., they decided at last to keep ready sandal-paste, flowers, incense, light and fruits, roots and sweets only, and wait for further instruction from the Master, which they might afterwards follow.

But the Master gave them no more instruction even when the whole of that day and a half of the following day on which the worship was to take place had passed.

23. The preparation for the worship

It was sunset and it was 7 p.m. Seeing that the Master did not suggest to them anything more regarding the worship and was sitting quiet on his bed, they washed clean a portion of the floor to the east of his bed, brought the collected articles and placed them there. While he was at Dakshineswar the Master sometimes worshipped himself with sandal-paste, flowers and other ingredients. Some of the devotees had witnessed it. At last they came to the conclusion that on that occasion also he would worship the universal Consciousness and Its Power in the symbol of his mind and body or perform the scriptural worship of the self as one with the Mother of the universe. It was therefore no wonder that they should place the ingredients of the worship near the Master's bed in the aforesaid manner. The Master did not in any way dissuade them from doing it.

24. The Master sat silent

All the articles were gradually brought. Incense was burnt and lamps were lighted and the room became illumined and filled with fragrance. Seeing that the Master was still sitting quietly the devotees sat beside him; some among them awaited his command and looked at him with a concentrated mind and some others meditated on the divine Mother of the universe. The room was thus completely silent; and although there were thirty or more persons in it, the room seemed to be vacant altogether. Some time passed that way; but the Master even then sat quietly without himself beginning to perform the worship or asking any one of us to do it.

25. Girishchandra came to a decision and offered flowers at the lotus feet of the Master who entered into Bhavasamadhi

The elderly devotees, Mahendranath, Ramchandra, Devendranath, Girishchandra and others, as well as the young devotees, were present. Of them all, Girishchandra, the Master sometimes said, had a super-abundance of faith. Many of them were now surprised to see the Master take that attitude regarding the worship.

But Girish had a different sentiment surging in his heart. It struck him that the Master had no need to worship Kali for his own sake. If it was suggested that he had a desire to perform the worship under the impulse of selfless devotion, why was he sitting thus quietly without doing so? It did not seem so. Might it not be then that these preparations were meant for the devotees so that they might be blessed by worshipping the Mother of the universe in the living image of the Master's person? It was certainly that. Thinking so, he was beside himself with joy and, suddenly taking the flowers and sandal-paste that were lying there before all, offered handfuls of them at the lotus feet of the Master uttering, "Victory to Mother".

At this all the hairs of the Master's body stood on end and he entered into profound ecstasy. His face radiating effulgence, his lips adorned with a divine smile and both his hands assuming the attitude of granting boons and freedom from fear—all indicated the manifestation of the divine Mother in him. These events occurred in such a short time that many of the devotees who were near Girish, thought that he saw the Master in ecstasy first and then offered flowers etc., at his holy feet over and over again, and to those who were a little farther away it seemed that the luminous image of the Devi suddenly appeared before them in the body of the Master.

26. The devotees worshipped the Master in that state of Bhavasamadhi

It is superfluous to say, that there was no limit to the joy of the devotees. Each of them managed to take flowers and sandal-paste etc., from the tray, and uttering a Mantra according to his liking, worshipped the lotus feet of the Master and filled the room with the repeated sounds of 'Jai' (Victory).

Some time passed this way when the ecstasy of the Master came to an end and he was in a state of partial consciousness. The fruits, roots, sweets, etc., collected for the worship were then brought before him and were given him to eat. He, on his part, took a little of all those things and blessed the devotees so that their knowledge and devotion might increase.

Afterwards they took his Prasada and sang the glory of the Devi and the greatness of Her name till a late hour in the night.

The devotees experienced a joy they had never felt before, at this especial worship of the divine Mother that year, the memory of which remained fresh in their minds ever after. And whenever sorrows and miseries came and they became dejected, that serene face of the Master, brightened with a divine smile and his hands promising boons and freedom from fear, appeared before them and reminded them that they were all under the protection of the Divine.

7 November 2018

Teachings of Swami Vijnanananda

The greatest need is to concentrate on Him when we are dying.

The best time for meditation is midnight. You can then achieve results very soon. Nature is in a quiet mood then and the concentration is easier.

Every day you should regularly practise meditation. That helps you to concentrate your mind.

One should try to help others as far as possible, but without beating one's drum. For the rest of the time, one should be all by oneself. In this way concentration of mind will be gradually achieved.

Everybody complains that he cannot concentrate his mind on God, because it is assailed by all sorts of thoughts. Why not put up a "No admittance" notice and refuse to let those thoughts crowd into the mind?

Don't give up japa and meditation simply because you cannot concentrate your mind properly.

My only advice to you all is to forsake idleness. An idle brain is the devil's workshop. You must do everything with concentration and diligence.

Within everybody there is consciousness. This consciousness pervades the earth, the sun, the moon, the stars, the sky, the air, etc., down to the minute being, and it is because of this consciousness that there is motion in everything.

In the transcendental state, i.e. the state of complete union with the Infinite, there is no outward consciousness; only a slight feeling remains there.

Contemplation on Him should enable us to gain lordliness over our passions and become masters of our souls.

The question that arises in my mind is, where shall we be after giving up this mortal frame? I asked Mahapurush Maharaj who told me that we would be in the Ramakrishna Loka where we would be keeping company with the Master.

To contemplate on the Master all the time and not to forget him even for an instant is to be in his company. That is Ramakrishna world—to think of him all the time with heart and soul, never losing him even for a moment.

One should not ask for anything from God, but remain satisfied with whatever He is pleased to give. Real welfare lies in using things properly, wrong use of things brings misfortune.

You should be satisfied with whatever you can secure for keeping the body fit, and then, go on working selflessly for God.

There is a Hindi couplet which says that jewels, elephants, and houses, indeed, all wealth is just valueless compared to contentment.

It is all so difficult, you cannot have contentment so long as you are subject to worldly desires. Once they disappear, you are free.

Purity, Truthfulness, and honesty should make the cornerstone of your life. And there should be faith. With these a man will have contentment in life, whatever circumstances he may happen to be in. Contentment in all circumstances is the mark of religious life.

When we have control over our passions, we shall succeed; we shall ourselves then feel that we are advancing towards God.

When the mind is completely under your control, it will have nothing to exist on except noble thoughts.

After the dissolution of the mortal frame, the soul takes a subtle form and more intensely reaps the harvest of previous deeds.

God pervades everything. But, of course, it is a joyful experience. He is inside and outside. When you realize that He is within you, the senses get controlled once for all; and it is for this that you have renounced everything, do you understand?

This universe—the entire creation and all living beings—has been there from the beginning of time. Nothing new is happening; the same process has been going on in different ages, just like a lump of clay being made into a particular image and then broken and made into another image. This is how the process of creation has been going on; nothing new, only a repetition.

8 November 2018

Reminiscences of Sri Ramakrishna's God-intoxicated state

Oh, what a state of mind I passed through! When I first had that experience, I could not perceive the coming and going of day or night. People said I was insane. What else could they say? They made me marry. I was then in a state of God-intoxication. At first I felt worried about my wife. Then I thought she too would eat and drink and live like me.

I visited my father-in-law's house. They arranged a kirtan. It was a great religious festival, and there was much singing of God's holy name. Now and then I would wonder about my future. I would say to the Divine Mother, 'Mother, I shall take my spiritual experiences to be real if the landlords of the country show me respect.' They too came of their own accord and talked with me.

Oh, what an ecstatic state it was! Even the slightest suggestion would awaken my spiritual consciousness. I worshipped the 'Beautiful' in a girl fourteen years old. I saw that she was the personification of the Divine Mother. At the end of the worship I bowed before her and offered a rupee at her feet. One day I witnessed a Ramlila performance. I saw the performers to be the actual Sita, Rama, Lakshmana, Hanuman, and Bibhishana. Then I worshipped the actors and actresses who played those parts.

At that time I used to invite maidens here and worship them. I found them to be embodiments of the Divine Mother Herself.

One day I saw a woman in blue standing near the bakul-tree. She was a prostitute. But she instantly kindled in me the vision of Sita. I forgot the woman. I saw that it was Sita herself on her way to meet Rama after her rescue from Ravana in Ceylon. For a long time I remained in samadhi, unconscious of the outer world.

Another day I had gone to the Maidan in Calcutta for fresh air. A great crowd had assembled there to watch a balloon ascension. Suddenly I saw an English boy leaning against a tree. As he stood there his body was bent in three places. The vision of Krishna came before me in a flash. I went into samadhi.

Once, at Sihore, I fed the cowherd boys. I put sweetmeats into their hands. I saw that these boys were actually the cowherd boys of Vrindavan, and I partook of the sweetmeats from their hands.

At that time I was almost unconscious of the outer world. Mathur Babu kept me at his Janbazar mansion a few days. While living there I regarded myself as the handmaid of the Divine Mother. The ladies of the house didn't feel at all bashful with me. They felt as free before me as women feel before a small boy or girl.

Even now the slightest thing awakens God-Consciousness in me. Rakhal used to repeat the name of God half aloud. At such times I couldn't control myself. It would rouse my spiritual consciousness and overwhelm me.

9 November 2018

[Note: The date shows as "8 November 2018" in the message but timestamp is 09/11/2018]

(From M. The Apostle and the Evangelist)

A Young Man—All religions, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Jainism, Zoroastrianism show the way to eternal peace by wiping out the sorrow of man for ever. The Hindu dharma, the Vedic dharma does the same. So, what is special about the Hindu dharma?

M.—One, in Hinduism the jiva is the image of God;

Two, every jiva will attain deliverance one day. This is not to be found in any other religions.

Three, the Hindus believe in Advaita (doctrine in which only the Brahman is true and real), Vishishta-advaita (doctrine that regards Brahman and universe as identical and real) and Dvaita (doctrine that regards the Brahman and universe different from each other and real), in all the three bhavas.

Four, the Vedic dharma broadly gives four paths for God-realization: Bhaktiyoga, Karmayoga, Rajayoga and Jnanayoga. Five, the doctrine of re-birth.

Six, in Hinduism there are a lot of emotions for establishing relationship with God—shanta, dasya and so on. In other religions, it is one or at the most two. In Hinduism, sadhana can be carried out in so many bhavas.

Seven, Hinduism believes in the Law, not in the individual.

Eight, in Hinduism one believes that liberation can only come in a human body.

Mohan—They say that Thakur was the embodiment of Sanatana dharma. What is the significance of this?

M.—The set of eternal values of which the Sanatana dharma is composed has been fully manifested in Sri Ramakrishna. That is why he is called its embodiment. Take for example, truth. If Thakur once said that he would not take water he did not do so even when pressed a hundred times. Once he did not take water for six months. He said that he would go to Mani Mullick's house. So, he reached his house in Baranagore late at night and said, 'See I have come'. Once he said, 'I will go to answer the call of nature at three o'clock.' He went for it even when he felt no pressure. He was the solid embodiment of celibacy.

Once somebody brought sweets for him with the money he had earned by dishonest means. He could not touch them. A person brought a lemon without asking the master of the garden. Thakur would not put it in his mouth. He was never able to store. He could not carry even a clod of earth in his hand. He could not touch money. He never thought of harming even an ant.

"He always saw that it was the Mother Herself who was living as jiva-jagat (the living creatures and the world). Not even for a moment did he separate himself from the Mother."

10 November 2018

(From M. The Apostle and the Evangelist)

A Young Man—All religions, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Jainism, Zoroastrianism show the way to eternal peace by wiping out the sorrow of man for ever. The Hindu dharma, the Vedic dharma does the same. So, what is special about the Hindu dharma?

M.—One, in Hinduism the jiva is the image of God;

Two, every jiva will attain deliverance one day. This is not to be found in any other religions.

Three, the Hindus believe in Advaita (doctrine in which only the Brahman is true and real), Vishishta-advaita (doctrine that regards Brahman and universe as identical and real) and Dvaita (doctrine that regards the Brahman and universe different from each other and real), in all the three bhavas.

Four, the Vedic dharma broadly gives four paths for God-realization: Bhaktiyoga, Karmayoga, Rajayoga and Jnanayoga. Five, the doctrine of re-birth.

Six, in Hinduism there are a lot of emotions for establishing relationship with God—shanta, dasya and so on. In other religions, it is one or at the most two. In Hinduism, sadhana can be carried out in so many bhavas.

Seven, Hinduism believes in the Law, not in the individual.

Eight, in Hinduism one believes that liberation can only come in a human body.

Mohan—They say that Thakur was the embodiment of Sanatana dharma. What is the significance of this?

M.—The set of eternal values of which the Sanatana dharma is composed has been fully manifested in Sri Ramakrishna. That is why he is called its embodiment. Take for example, truth. If Thakur once said that he would not take water he did not do so even when pressed a hundred times. Once he did not take water for six months. He said that he would go to Mani Mullick's house. So, he reached his house in Baranagore late at night and said, 'See I have come'. Once he said, 'I will go to answer the call of nature at three o'clock.' He went for it even when he felt no pressure. He was the solid embodiment of celibacy.

Once somebody brought sweets for him with the money he had earned by dishonest means. He could not touch them. A person brought a lemon without asking the master of the garden. Thakur would not put it in his mouth. He was never able to store. He could not carry even a clod of earth in his hand. He could not touch money. He never thought of harming even an ant.

"He always saw that it was the Mother Herself who was living as jiva-jagat (the living creatures and the world). Not even for a moment did he separate himself from the Mother."

M. (to all present)—Thakur did not like dry discussions, academic discourses. His effort was always to see how a man's mind could be tied to the feet of the Lord. He would say, 'I don't even want to know what is there in the Vedas, in the puranas, what is where. Grant me pure devotion at Your Lotus feet.'

"Seeing the bhaktas in discussion he would sometimes apologise to the Mother, 'Mother, what else can they do but discuss at times?'

As the saying goes, just by talking one cannot cook rice, so one has to carry out spiritual practice. He used to ask us to practise tapasya, austerity. When one has gained true faith in God, when one loves Him with one's heart and soul, all intellectual doubts disappear themselves. Why did they who were known as great intellectuals behave like earthworms at Thakur's feet? His was a direct knowledge, the knowledge of others was born of intellect. There is difference of heaven and earth between the two. By keeping the company of sadhus, by living alone by calling Him with a yearning heart, one gains love for Him. Loving Him brings liberation."

Morton School, the staircase room on the fourth level. M. is talking about God to the bhaktas surrounding him all around. When questioned by the Elder Jiten, M. explains different aspects of the Sanatana dharma or the Vedic dharma.

M. (to the bhaktas)—The rishis earned everlasting joy after God-realization. They made a durable arrangement for transmitting that joy to the society. Their socio-religious arrangement is also everlasting in a way—the supreme joy and peace from God-realization. So they would not let man turn away from God in any situation. Just note, what a beautiful arrangement this is: Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha.

Dharma, that is, truth and so on. Taking recourse to it to earn wealth (artha). Fulfil desire (kama) according to the scriptures and attain liberation (moksha) that is God-realization. It is like having mother on one side, the father on the other and the children in between. When that is so the children cannot fall. This is an incomparable discovery.

"This arrangement is as deep as it is broad, and it is equally lasting. So many cycles of Satya, Treta, Dwapara and Kali come and go, this arrangement lasts unbroken.

They say, 'Son, Just don't live as a worldly man, giving up dharma, that is, God and His basic law. Rather, adopt them and do what you like.'

The Hindu view of life holds true amidst the endless whirlpools of time—this is the first arrangement.

The second, the discovery of the four paths—Jnanayoga, Rajayoga, Bhaktiyoga and Karmayoga. First, they placed the man behind a fence; then they put him on one of the paths suited to his nature. By treading this path he will finally attain his goal. He will then rid himself of all sorrows and gain lasting happiness and peace.

The End is also infinite, ever existing i.e. sanatana; and the means also the same. The former truly sanatana, the latter relatively true."

11 November 2018

(From M. The Apostle and the Evangelist)

Question — Why did God create vice and virtue?

Answer: He did not. We have done it. We are the creators of vice and virtue. This is my personal belief. It is by one's own sanskaras, good and bad that vice and virtue come into being. The work done in ignorance, that which keeps us away from God, is sin. That which brings God near is virtue.

According to the Evolution Theory, the first stage is that of minerals, then of trees, animals, and men, successively. The man has first ignorance, thereafter he gets knowledge. Ultimately divinity, man-God.

What was the Buddha in his previous births, all this is found in the Jataka tales. Animal, bird and any number of other states he went through before he became the Enlightened one. Sri Krishna has said, "I am born many a time." Similarly, as one goes on birth after birth, in the end one becomes a paramahamsa. On becoming a paramahamsa one has touched "the target in the game of hide and seek". His play can no longer go on. His work is finished, now he is God himself. Dog, cat — all living beings will have to attain godhood one day in this way. This is called mukti, this is what is named attainment of self-rule.

In today's talk, M. has nicely dwelt upon practice. Practice means to think of the same one thing again and again. This very thing is called tapasya. The mind is drawn towards worldly pleasures and enjoyments like a restless child. To bring it back home and settle it down, sometimes by love, sometimes by teaching, sometimes by beating, the way mothers do to the children. Home, that means His lotus feet. This is beautiful indeed! And prayer too. Both of these are also high concepts. By practising them, one will be saved. One should always pray: O Lord, grant me right thinking, keep my mind at Thy lotus feet. Thakur used to pray, O Mother, "Don't enchant me with your world-bewitching Maya."

And the company of the holy too. Practice, prayer and holy company — these are priceless words. Company colours the man, so the need of holy company. By bad company, how low Bharat had gone down! But now it is rising again.

12 November 2018

(Swami Turiyananda)

Swami: "In order to realize the Self, you have to scale the highest peak of renunciation."

"Is it easy to detach the mind from all objects? Only a hero can do that. The external objects are ever trying to enter into your mind and conquer you. In the mind itself there are many layers, one upon another. It is no use merely closing the eyes and ears."

X wants to finish studying Raja Yoga quickly. But we poured out our very life in this quest. We have been doing this ever since our childhood. Yet even now the mind has not been purified. There are still attachment and hatred in it.... O Lord, make me the servant of the servant of Thy servant!

Egotism is no good; it is extremely pernicious. Egotism is like drinking wine, it leads astray the senses. The Master used to say that water accumulates only in a low land. Only in humility the good qualities of the mind and heart become manifest. Pride always holds the head high. That which is elastic and unbreakable like steel, that indeed is strength. He alone is strong, who can live in harmony with different natures in a spirit of amicable compromise.

Make yourself for ever His, then there will be no more fear. Swamiji (Vivekananda) used to say, "Since you have been born on earth, leave a lasting mark on it."

"If you want to preach, you must also give something. Preaching is not merely lecturing to a class or explaining a book. You have to give them something. Therefore you must accumulate spirituality beforehand.

And never pride yourself on your having gained control over the passions. If you do, they will at once raise their heads. Ever pray to him, 'O Lord, save me from them.'"

"There are several obstructions to concentration: Laya, Vikshepa, Kashaya, Rasasvada.

Laya is the mind being overcome by Tamas (inertia)— the mind falls asleep and loses consciousness. Most aspirants are held down by Laya.

Vikshepa is the scattering of the mind on multifarious objects.

Kashaya is finding meditation distasteful—one feels disinclined to meditate. But one must still persist.

Rasasvada is the mind being fascinated by the vision of divine forms and refusing to ascend higher.

Passions will last so long as the body lasts. But through His grace they cannot raise their heads."

13 November

Swami Turiyananda said: "A little casual reading of the scriptures and a little meditation are not enough to realize the Lord. You must yearn to see Him. The heart must pant and pine for Him. The Master said to us, 'It is because I had such intense longing for the Mother that She gave me every convenience— She gave me this Kali Temple and Mathur Babu. If there is sincere longing for God, everything becomes favourable.'"

"There is no other way than Bhakti."

Swami S.: "Quite true. Meditate on His lotus-feet; the senses will withdraw of themselves and the mind will lose itself in Him. Ramaprasada says in a song that devotion is at the root of all spiritual achievements. Ramaprasada was in a sense the ideal of Shri Ramakrishna. The Master used to say, 'Mother, Thou hast revealed Thyself to Ramaprasada; why shouldst Thou not reveal to me?' The Master's teaching is Bhakti tempered with Jnana."

Swami: "'When will that day come when the very utterance of the name of God will bring tears to my eyes?' (To the devotee) Do you cry when you take His name? Ah, what a supernal condition! Just consider! The very utterance of His name makes you cry!"

"When I first used to go to the Master, I would often feel inclined to cry. One night I cried much on the riverside near the Bakula tree. Just at that time the Master in his room was enquiring where I had gone. When I returned to him, he asked me to sit down and said, 'The Lord is greatly pleased if one cries to Him. The tears of love wash away all mental impurities accumulated through ages. It is very good to cry to God.'"

"Another day I was meditating in the Panchavati grove. My concentration became very deep. Just then the Master came towards me from the side of the Jhau tree. As soon as he looked at me, I burst into tears. The Master stood still. I felt something creeping up inside my bosom, and I was overcome by an irrepressible fit of shaking. The Master remarked that this crying was not for nothing, it was a sort of ecstasy. I then followed him to his room where he gave me something to eat. The awakening of the Kundalini was an easy matter for him. He could do this even without touching, by merely standing nearby."

15 November 2018

Vairagya Dindima of Adi Sankaracharya (A Proclamation of Dispassion) THE DRUM-BEAT OF AWAKENING A Story

Long long ago there lived in a well-known village in North India a good soul whose sole vocation was providing spiritual instruction to earnest seekers. He was a saintly person who ever kept to the hard path of austere living. He was rooted in righteousness and always had his gaze fixed on the distant but definite goal of self-perfection.

In him were seen in a happy combination most, nay all, of the qualities of the Daivi Sampat, the Divine Wealth, as elaborated in the Bhagavad Gita. He was a lovable and inspiring personality and he drew many pious souls to his presence. He was as much interested in helping others to ascend the steep way of soul-glory, as he was desirous of making his own life a poem of virtue and worth.

Many were the persons in the neighbourhood of his village and also in distant regions who owed their spiritual awakening to this holy man, and regarded him with reverence and gratitude. He was simple but profound, humble but great, unassuming but deep-souled.

Years passed, and the influence of this worthy saint, like the force of spring, was in an increasing measure providing the healing touch to many hearts which might otherwise have withered.

In due course old age came on the great benefactor and he felt he would not live long. Like every other pious Hindu he wished to spend his last days in the Holy City of Viswanatha, Varanasi, and give up his body at the feet of that Lord of the Universe, and have it cremated at the Manikarnika burning ground, for tradition holds that on those who die at Kasi, Parameswara bestows salvation. But he was now too old to think of footing the distance to Banaras.

When therefore he was preparing himself to give up the plan of moving to Kasi, four of his admiring devotees offered to carry him in a palanquin and take him to the holy Shivapuri. The saint agreed and was being so carried. The going was however slow, for the palanquin-carriers were not professional ones, and moreover a quick march was not thought to be advisable as it would be rather an inconvenience to the saint whose health showed alarming signs of decline as the journey proceeded. The palanquin had covered only half the distance when one day the saint told his carriers that he was not destined to reach Kasi as his last moments had come.

He asked them to tell him where exactly they were at the moment. The carriers were very sad that their plan of taking the saint to Kasi had been thwarted and they looked round and told him that just then they were passing a hamlet inhabited by uncultured outcastes and untouchables. On hearing the news the saint's mind pictured to itself the pitiable condition, the economic distress and the uncultured atmosphere that normally go with a slum, and at that moment life left him.

All through his life this saint had managed to keep his mind steadfastly fixed on God and God's manifold glories; even in the palanquin he had been either meditating on the Divine Entity or singing devotional songs. But it so chanced that death overwhelmed him when in a short respite from his wonted reflection on Providence his thoughts were hovering - in compassion and sympathy of course - on the poor dwellers in the slum near which he was being carried.

Now it is a cosmic law that is inescapable that the last thoughts of a dying man determine the nature of his next birth. Therefore the saint was reborn as a child of an untouchable couple in the very same slum area where he breathed his last. But the very many past good impressions in his mind and the healthy attitude and righteous outlook that had always been his nature were still his equipment even though he was now a child of the slum.

His father was the State Drum-beater whose business was to beat the drum, draw people's attention and then announce Government's orders and instructions to the citizens for implementation by them. It was also his job to go round the streets of the capital city at night and by beat of drum warn the people to be awake and guard themselves against thieves and robbers who went about in dark nights for house-breaking and way-side robbery.

The State Drum-beater (who got the saint as his son) had earned a name for honest work and responsible discharge of duties. Though he held a petty office his integrity had made him well known to the king who often consulted him in regard to improving the arrangements in the capital city for safety of persons and possessions.

But the birth of a son had not made the Drum-beater happy at all, for the son as he grew up hardly learnt to speak a word and chose to keep away from contact with people. He shunned society though he never did anything wrong. The parents did their best to make him normal, but in vain. The boy displayed no interest in anything and seemed to be hard of hearing, slow of understanding, dull-witted, averse both to play and work. The father had to leave him to himself.

The truth about this strange boy however was something different. He was not stupid and backward. In fact by merely watching his father beat the drum he had acquired skill in drum-beating (the hereditary occupation of the family), but he let no one know of it.

He retained the memory of the last moments of his previous birth and remembering how a mere association (in thought) with the slum and its unedifying environment had had such an impact on him as to actually make him take birth in a slum, he had resolved even at birth to avoid any sort of voluntary active involvement in the affairs of his environment. He yearned to live as a philosopher, watching but not participating, a looker-on at the drama of life.

Once the drum-beating father had to be away from the city for a day on some urgent business of his own, but at that time there was a scare in the city about expert thieves being busy, and the chief guard of the city refused to grant him leave of absence from work even for a night. The Drum-beater was in tears, because the business which compelled him to ask for leave was so very important to him.

The king saw him in this condition in the palace grounds and asked him why he was weeping. On being told of the cause of his remorse, the king said that leave would be granted to him if he would provide a substitute, as capable as he, to take his place. The Drum-beater could think of no one who would take his place. Then he had an idea, and said, "My son is now quite grown up to officiate for me. I shall coach him up well and make him beat the drum as well as I beat it." He knew what a good-for-nothing youth his son was, but there was no other way out of the predicament and he hoped that his son would do the work tolerably well and that by God's grace nothing very serious would happen.

The king who was soft-hearted let the father go, but at evening he began to wonder if he had done the right thing in overruling the chief guard and letting the veteran Drum-beater be absent from the city even for a night; for he had heard all the rumours current in the city about spies, enemy agents, smugglers, etc.

He was sure that the Drum-beater's son could not be a satisfactory substitute for his father and so resolved to go himself round the city in disguise at night and ensure its safety. It was not unusual for kings in those days to go round the city at night in order to mingle with the common folk and study their condition and also to know the nature of the public reaction to their rule. So on the dark night the king, dressed like a wayfarer, was going through the streets and lanes of the city.

The Drum-beater's son widely regarded as a dunce and an idiot was also going round the city not knowing that he shared the honour of the nocturnal vigil with royalty. After a time when towards the end of the first quarter of the night the city lay hushed in sleep, the king was surprised to hear the drum-beat a little away from where he was, and the beating was loud and long.

This gladdened the king who said to himself, "The son is even better than the father, for if at the father's beat the drum has roared like a lion on all the nights, at the son's beat tonight it volleys and thunders. Listening to this yell even Kumbhakarna cannot quietly slumber on. The city is in no danger whatever. People at home will surely be compelled to be wakeful."

But soon he was surprised to hear the sweet tune of a verse coming over the air. In the silence of the night the verse resounded and reverberated all over the city.

आशाया बध्यते जन्तुः कर्मणा बहुचिन्तया। आयु क्षीणँ न जानाति तस्मात् जाग्रत जाग्रत॥

Aashaya baddhyate loke, karmana bahu chintaya, Aayuh ksheenam najanati, tasmat jagrata, jagrata.

People are bound in this world by desires, actions and manifold anxieties. Therefore they do not know that life is slowly decaying and is wasted away. Hence, wake up! wake up!!

कामक्ष्च क्रोधक्ष्च लोभक्ष्च देहे तिष्ठन्ति तस्कराः। ज्ञनरत्नापहाराय तस्मात् जाग्रत जाग्रत॥

Kama krodhascha lobhascha, dehe tishtanthi taskarah, Jnana ratnapa haaraya, tasmat jagrata, jagrata.

There lurk thieves in the frame viz., lust, anger and greed to steal the jewel of wisdom. Hence, wake up! wake up!!

सम्पदः स्वप्नसँकाशाः यौवनँ कुसुमोपम्। विधुच्चन्चचँल आयुषँ तस्मात् जाग्रत जाग्रत॥

Sampadah swapna sandeshah, youvanam kusumopamam, Vidyut chanchalam aayushyam, tasmat jagrata.

Health and wealth like dreams, wither away like flowers at the sight of scorching Sun. Day-by-day, we are nearing to the last days of this body. Hence, wake up! wake up!

माता नास्ति पिता नास्ति नास्ति बन्धुः सहोदरः। अर्थँ नास्ति गृहँ नाति तस्मात् जाग्रत जाग्रत॥

Mata naasti pita naasti, naasti bandhuh sahodarah, artho naasti griham naasti, tasmat jagrata, jagrata.

You have no mother, no father, no relatives, no brothers, no wealth, no house, (nothing will remain forever, nothing will follow you after death). Hence, wake up! wake up!!

जन्म दुःखँ जरा दुःखँ जाया दुःखँ पुनः पुनः। सँसारसागरँ दुःखँ तस्मात् जाग्रत जाग्रत॥

Janma dukham, jara dukham, jayadukham punah, Samsara sagaram dukham, tasmat Jagrata, Jagrata.

Birth is full of pain, old age is full of miseries, spouse is again and again the source of all miseries and pains. This ocean of Samsara is full of grief. Hence, wake up! wake up!!

Soon it was dawn, and the king returned to the palace, happy to have discovered a sage in his city. The Drum-beater's son too returned to his hut, hoping that his philosophical drum-beating had roused at least a few slumbering souls to wakefulness.

When the father came back to the city he had an urgent summons from the king to appear at court forthwith along with his son. The father was naturally alarmed, fearing that his son had kept the watch so ill that the king was about to punish him. But on reaching the palace gates he was astonished to see his son being garlanded and being led to the king's presence with music and other signs of honour.

The king told the father, "Your son is no fool. He is a great sage. It is a pity we did not discover his genius and worth all these years. I have resolved to keep him at court. It is for him to choose any office in the kingdom and it will be bestowed on him at once."

The chief minister, the court pundit, and several other high state officials wondered which one of them was going to be relieved of his office in order to find a place for the strange favourite of the king.

And great was their relief when the newcomer told the king, to the surprise of all, "I shall choose a job befitting my birth and social position. Make me the Chief Executioner, the Senior Beheader, of the criminals in the kingdom who are sentenced to death by your courts."

The king was very much puzzled by the nature of the profession the Drum-beater's son preferred to get into, but while several others regarded the would-be Executioner as eccentric, the king remembered the adage that the strange conduct of great men may perplex ordinary folk, but always has a background of supreme sense to it, and let him have what he demanded.

Orders were issued to the effect that criminals who were given the capital sentence were to be handed over to the new officer to be beheaded by him as and when and how he chose. In a hut close to the field where executions were carried out lived the Drum-beater's son who had thus opted for the ghastly job.

Soon were installed in that bloody field of execution two lovely images of Narayana and Mahadeva.

When the criminals were sent to him the Drum-beater's son used to tell them delightful stories about Vishnu and Siva for days and days. He was a marvellous storyteller and would make the simple-hearted, rustic prisoners actually visualize the scenes in the stories he narrated to them. The criminal tendency in them which had led them to a sentence of death was looked upon by him as just a disease, and he knew the disease was curable. He therefore never cursed them, but slowly toned up their souls.

But the law had to take its course and the sentence of death had to be carried out, and at a time when he found the condemned ones in a particularly God-minded mood, singing or dancing in devotion or chanting the Lord's names, he would go behind them and chop off their heads in a trice. And as the last thoughts of the beheaded ones were invariably related to God, because of the sublime way in which he arranged the setting of the execution, the victims of the State law had enviable rebirths, in which they rapidly strode towards perfection.

The bloody act of beheading became in the hands of the holy executioner the blessed service of soul-redeeming.

16 November 2018

Queen Madalasa

Long ago there lived a Hindu king who had a daughter of extraordinary beauty. Her name was Madalasa. Besides charming appearance she was endowed with many spiritual qualities which lent her a rare glow— both external and internal.

The fame of her beauty had spread so far that a demon, Patalketu by name, wanted to marry the princess. Like a greedy spider he spread his web of tricks round all the people of the palace, and one day he stole her.

Madalasa, thus kidnapped, did not lose her presence of mind. She began looking for a way of escape from the clutches of the demon but could not find any. Then she went on praying to the Lord for her deliverance.

Prayer never fails and after some days King Ritaddhaja arrived there. There was no one who was braver and worthier than the king. Then a battle took place between Patalketu and King Ritaddhaja. After a fierce fight the king rescued Madalasa from the clutches of the demon and returned to his kingdom to marry her. Thereafter the queen became a part of Ritaddhaja's very being.

All worldly pleasures are transitory by nature. Soon the demons attacked the army, and Ritaddhaja had to go and fight them. The wicked demons meanwhile spread a rumour that the king had died in the battle-field. Hearing this heart-breaking news queen Madalasa had given up her body.

In the meantime, Ritaddhaja has won the battle and rushed to the palace to meet his beloved. But alas, there was no more that lotus-faced, lustrous-eyed beauty. The king completely broke down. He saw nothing but dense darkness all around.

Nagaraj, a great devotee of Lord Shiva, was the bosom friend of Ritaddhaja. Seeing the immeasurable sorrow of his friend, he made up his mind and left for the Himalayas. There, by dint of his penance, he pleased Lord Shiva and got back the queen's life.

The very sight of Madalasa and the reunion filled her beloved with profound joy. The stream of life in the palace again began to flow merrily, the birds began to twitter and the flowers bloomed in the world of Ritaddhaja.

Thus days passed on. Previously all people loved Madalasa for her compassionate nature. But from now on, the king as well as the other members of the palace also began to respect her as if she was the personification of divinity. They smelt an unusual fragrance in her presence, saw a divine glow in her face and wondered at an aura of serenity always emanating from her countenance. Though they marvelled at her composure, they did not know that by the grace of Lord Shiva Madalasa had attained Self-knowledge, that the small river had now turned into an infinite ocean of bliss!

Sometime later, a son, Vikranta, was born to the royal couple. But Madalasa so much desired that all her children should obtain freedom in this very life that she personally began to take all care of them. And, as she rocked the new-born Vikranta to sleep she would sing "Tat tvam Asi, Tat tvam Asi." She would say in ecstatic mood, "O my child, you are neither the body nor the mind: you were never born and therefore you will never die. You are imperishable, ever free. You are that One Indivisible Brahman."

Thus the child used to drink the bliss of Eternal Truth from his very birth. As a result, when he grew up the superficial happiness of this material world appeared too dross to him. He renounced the world to realize the Ultimate Truth.

Three more sons were born to the royal couple. Two of them grew up in the same way and they followed the same path of renunciation and God-realization.

The king naturally became very anxious. "Who will be the heir to the throne?"—he wondered. One day he went to Madalasa and said to her: "My dear queen, three of our sons have already renounced. Now please train your youngest, the fourth son, in such a way that he can be an ideal king in future who would renounce the transitory world only in mind."

"All right," said Madalasa. She began to train Alarka in such a way that he became an ideal householder. He was well-versed in the scriptures and lived a pious life. Knowing fully well the ephemeral nature of this world, he performed all his duties unattached.

This is a story of Vedanta which depicts the picture of an ideal mother. Every nation needs plenty of such enlightened mothers so that they can mould the character of their children who will become a blessing to the world.

The story of Madalasa was very dear to Swamiji because of its bold message.

In a lecture called "Vedanta in its application to Indian life" he said: "People get disgusted ... at my preaching Advaitism.... The only 'ism' that we require now is this wonderful idea of the soul — its eternal might, its eternal strength, its eternal purity, and its eternal perfection. If I had a child I would from its very birth begin to tell it, 'Thou art the Pure One, Tat Tvam Asi'."

17 November 2018

Passion Transformed Life of Tulasidas by C.K. Handoo

Indian lore is full of beautiful episodes from the lives of saints where one can find illustrations. They are the living lessons which help us overcome the turmoil of Maya and transform worldly attachment into transcendent love. In the lives of Bilvamangala and Tulasidasa, we witness such transformation. They are shining examples which speak for themselves. The events are so touching and colourful that they leave an indelible mark on our minds. Here, such an episode in the life of Tulasidasa, the medieval saint of India, will be retold.

Tulasidasa lost his parents when he was very young. There was none to tend the orphan boy. The tradition goes that a maidservant came forward to nurse the boy and that she was Mother Durga herself. Anyway, Tulasi grew up and went to a Ramayat saint, named Naraharidasa, at Chitrakuta, for education. Having completed his education, he came to visit his parental home. The good neighbours cordially received the learned young man. They were reluctant to let Tulasi go and advised him to marry and settle down there. Bridal offers came from all quarters; so at last Tulasi, though unwillingly, gave his consent and got married.

The bride's father was charmed to see Tulasi's scholarship and devotion. The bride, Ratnavali, was as beautiful as she was good, and Tulasi was completely captivated by her sweetness and charm. He also proved himself a devoted husband. He loved Ratna so much that if she were a single moment out of his sight, he would become restless with an agony in his heart. Gradually he became completely infatuated.

But everything has a limit in this world. Violent delights have violent ends. Fire and powder, when they meet each, consume themselves completely.

One day when Tulasidasa had gone to a neighbouring village for work, Ratnavali's brother came to visit her, and she left with him for her parental home without her husband's permission. Formerly, when Ratnavali had been invited by her parents, Tulasi had refused her permission out of extreme attachment. At that time in India, girls were married at a very young age, and naturally they were rather fond of their parents. They would feel more free at their parental homes than at their fathers'-in-law where they had some restrictions. So young Ratna did not miss the chance to see her kith and kin after a long time.

On his return home, finding his beloved absent, Tulasi was very much upset. The pangs of separation were unbearable. After making inquiries of the maidservant and obtaining the necessary information, he crossed the river at night and reached his destination. He called loudly and knocked hard at the door of his father-in-law. In the dead of night, Ratnavali awoke and, recognizing her husband's voice, opened the door for him.

The mind of man works in mysterious ways. Nobody knows what happens on account of what. Sometimes harsh, biting words cannot disturb the mind; at other times, a mild, sweet reproof can create a terrible upset. Anyhow, Ratnavali was disturbed and ashamed to see the unbecoming manner of her husband.

She mildly reproached him: "Don't you feel ashamed that you have followed me here? Fie on your love, my dear! If this your devotion to my frame of skin and bone were given to Rama, the fear of the world, you would surely overcome."

These words of Ratna pierced Tulasi's heart like an arrow. What force was in them! Instantly Tulasi's lust was transformed and his dormant spirituality aroused. Binding attraction turned into burning dispassion. Then and there, at the gate of his father-in-law's house, he turned on his heel. Ratnavali's brother tried to pacify him but to no avail.

In anguish, Tulasi suddenly remembered the words of Naraharidasa, his guru: "If you have your spiritual welfare at heart and wish to realize God, keep away from 'woman and gold', says Narahari."

After leaving the house of his father-in-law, Tulasidasa came to Prayag, had a bath for purification at the holy confluence of the Ganga and the Jamuna, and took the vows of Sannyasa. Tulasi, with all his energy, started to turn the wheel of his life in another direction. People were startled to see his severe austerity. In time he had the vision of Ramachandra.

The biographers of Tulasidasa have depicted very beautifully the circumstances of his God-vision. According to the instruction of the great devotee Hanuman, Tulasi was waiting for Sri Rama with sandal-paste at the busy bathing ghat at Chitrakuta. Suddenly Sri Rama, disguised as a handsome young boy, came before Tulasi and said: "Baba, give me some sandal-paste."

Tulasi was overwhelmed with joy and drank in, with unwinking eyes, the enchanting beauty of Ramachandra. The Lord again asked for the sandal-paste, but Tulasi was in an ecstatic mood: he could neither speak nor move. The Lord then bent down, took a little paste with His own finger, applied some to His own forehead as well as Tulasi's, and disappeared. Thus Tulasi was blessed by God Himself.

Ratnavali, the sweet wife of Tulasidasa, could not forget her beloved husband. She kept track of him. Once she wrote a letter:

Of slender waist and golden skin am I. With women comrades I live secure. My heart may burst, I don't fear. But I do care that you may be caught, By other damsels fair.

Tulasidasa replied in the following words:

Devotion's sweetness I have tasted, Through the teachings of my wife. With matted hair I live, secure, In Rama's love alone, my life.

This correspondence was in dohas, small Hindi couplets. Their poetic beauty is beyond description.

Ratna's doubts about her husband were dispelled. She was fully satisfied and praised the devotion and renunciation of her husband. Amongst the wise, some said that Ratnavali was Sarasvati, the Goddess of wisdom; while others said that God had spoken through her to destroy the delusion of His favourite devotee. The fascinating story of Tulasi and Ratna does not end here. The story continues.

Many years had elapsed and a curtain of forgetfulness had fallen between the two souls. Tulasi had aged. His old memories had been completely erased by the repeated remembrance and overwhelming visions of Rama. Though a pilgrim of God like Tulasidasa is himself a moving holy place, yet he had a desire to see his Chosen Ideal, Sri Rama, in the places of pilgrimage.

He started his journey. On the way, by chance and unknowingly, he became a guest at his father-in-law's house. Ratna, who was no more young, came to receive the holy guest. Neither Tulasi nor Ratna could recognize each other. She arranged his food, but Tulasi refused to partake of it as he was strict in his rules. He himself started to cook his own food. After a short time, Ratna recognized her beloved husband, but she did not disclose the fact. On the contrary, she carefully concealed her emotion.

Again the sweet game started. Ratna mischievously asked: "Sir, shall I bring a chilli for you?" Tulasi replied: "Thank you, madam; I don't need it. There is one in my bag." She asked him to have this and that, but Tulasi's reply was negative. Ratna wanted to wash his feet but Tulasi did not allow her. Night came. Ratna passed a sleepless night. She was thinking deeply of her saintly husband. Her mind was turning over this thought: How was it that her husband had renounced the vital things of life, but still could not give up trivial things?

Next morning Ratna asked: "Sir, do you recognize me?" Tulasi: "No." Ratna again asked: "Do you know where you are?" Tulasi gave a negative reply. Then Ratna disclosed her identity and sought to remain in his company. Tulasi flatly refused her request.

Ratna saw that Tulasi was carrying in his bag gopi-chandana (sacred yellow earth of Vrindavan) and camphor for his daily worship. This suggested a way to tease him. If he could carry these accessories with him, then, she asked, why not a humble woman? She insisted that either he carry her along with him in his bag or depend on discrimination and renunciation alone.

This was the last blow for Tulasidasa. He admitted that his wife was wiser than himself. Immediately he got rid of the few articles he possessed, giving the bag to a Brahmana.

It is said that Tulasi did not forget his debt to Ratnavali. In an indirect and subtle manner, he tried to convey his gratitude to her through the women characters of Ramacaritamanasa, his magnum opus, the famous Hindi version of the Ramayana.

Lust brings bondage, love brings freedom. Lust springs from body-consciousness and love from God-consciousness. Deluded people cannot discriminate between lust and love. Discrimination is the beacon of spiritual life. Ratnavali (literally, a garland of gems) is for ever blessed that she was the cause whereby divine nectar, through the Ramacaritamanasa, was sprinkled over the people of India.

(Reprinted from Prabuddha Bharata, April, 1971)

18 November 2018

Abhayam (Fearlessness)

(The sixteenth Chapter of the Bhagavad Gita begins with a description of the spiritual treasures endowed with which one attains the wisdom hinted at in the end of the fifteenth Chapter.)

Fearlessness is one of the first qualities Sri Krishna advises all spiritual aspirants to cultivate. Fear is the result of selfishness, and the cause of selfishness is ignorance about the real nature of man.

All of us are subject to various types of fear: fear of old age, disease, death, etc., and even fear of fear. Then there are all sorts of irrational fears known as phobias. But the greatest of all fears is of the loss of individuality.

Fear is an existential condition. If fear were not there, no creature would survive for long. A fear which helps one to survive and lead a righteous life is good, but a fear which makes life a living hell is to be got rid of.

The opposite of fear is courage. The greatest of all courages is the "Courage to Be."

How do we cultivate this courage? Through reliance on God and a philosophical outlook on life.

Accept the inevitable with equanimity and poise.

Every spiritual aspirant knows that whatever happens is for his good and through every event, God is slowly leading him forward. This faith makes him face life with courage and strength.

Prayer and a righteous life can equip us all with strength and courage to be.

Satva samshuddhih (Purity)

Purity is an essential condition of spiritual life. Purity is the very bed-rock of spirituality; without it none can advance in the spiritual path. It is impurity which obstructs our vision of God.

Impurity arises from ignorance. Ignorance gives rise to egoism; we forget our real nature and identify ourselves with non-self i.e., the body and mind. The ego gives rise to attachment and aversion; it is because of the ego we have intense clinging to life.

What is purity? That which dispels delusion and reveals our real nature to us is purity. Purity manifests in thought, speech and deeds. As we go on practising spiritual disciplines our mind becomes pure (Satvik), and like a clean mirror starts reflecting the divine. This reflection of the divine further intensifies our longing for God-realisation.

As the mind becomes purer it makes us aware of impure thoughts, desires, motives etc., and also shows us the way out.

"Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God."

19 November 2018

Jnana Yoga Vyavasthitih (Steadfastness)

One of the most important spiritual qualities is steadfastness in the practice of knowledge.

What is knowledge? Sri Ramakrishna says: "Do you know what ignorance means? It is the feeling: 'This is my house; these are my relatives; I am the doer; and the household affairs go on smoothly because I manage them.' But to feel, 'I am the servant of God, His devotee, His son' - that is a good attitude.

"To know many things is ajnana, ignorance. To know only one thing is Jnana, Knowledge - the realization that God alone is real and that He dwells in all.

"Do not forget Him but remember that all men must one day walk down the same path. We stay in the world only a couple of days." Knowledge means that God alone is real and all else is temporary. Knowledge means that the goal of life is the realization of God. Knowledge means that this world is only a temporary place. Knowledge is to remember God always and to keep the mind calm, balanced and rational, and to practice discrimination between the Real and the unreal.

One who is treading the path of knowledge strives to remember that he is a child or a servant or a devotee of God.

Whatever be the circumstances of life a devotee forges ahead with his practice. Through regular practice he achieves steadfastness.

Steadfastness of knowledge is a sure sign of spiritual progress.

20 November 2018

Dana (Charity)

Sri Krishna tells us that charity is one of the divine qualities; certainly it is a great and necessary virtue.

But what is Dana i.e., charity? It is not merely giving a gift, or helping or serving. It is an attitude, a way of looking at the world. Kindness, compassion, respect, sweet speaking, and prayer for the welfare of others are some of the expressions of charity.

Charity is love of God and love of man.

Charity is living a simple life; it is a way of reducing selfishness and egotism; it helps us develop non-attachment towards the world. It is a way of sharing and caring, loving and serving. Charity is an inevitable expression of love. In a way it is a way of giving back to the world what we receive from it.

Real charity is to offer oneself to God and see the Divine in all beings.

There are three types of charity - material, intellectual and spiritual. Of these spiritual charity, helping one to reach God, is the highest. No other charity can be compared to spiritual charity.

Charity should be practised with sincerity, humility, devotion, reverence and without expecting any return. Charity is done purely for pleasing the Lord.

Holy Mother used to say: "Those who have wealth must measure it out, and those who do not have should pray for the welfare of the needy."

Dama (Sense-control)

Dama is sense-control. One who aspires to Self-knowledge cannot be too careful about control of the senses. Unless the senses are controlled it is impossible to control the mind.

What does sense-control mean?

Does it mean that we close our eyes, ears etc. Obviously this cannot be the meaning, for besides being impossible to stop them functioning, it is unwise to do so. Sense-control means:

Using all the senses to discharge one's duties with proper care and attention. This improves our concentration and will-power. Besides it gives a sense of fulfilment.
Using the senses in a way that does not agitate the mind but on the contrary promotes spiritual progress. For example, let the eyes enjoy divine forms, let the ears hear devotional music or let one talk and hear about spiritual things as far as possible.
Let all the senses be directed towards God. If we can remember God and try to do actions to please Him then the senses will gradually turn towards Him. Karma-Yoga is of great help here.

The control of the senses is a difficult task, but through constant practice and through the grace of God it is possible.

"A man becomes a saint by conquering the senses. Is there anything impossible for a man who has subdued his passions? He can even realize God, through His grace." (Sri Ramakrishna)

Swami Subodhanandaji Maharaj Today is his birthday

Once Khoka Maharaj was going to Kolkata from Belur Math by steamer. On the way, a few young men from Bali started criticizing Swamiji.

Maharaj boldly told them: "Do you give any donations to Belur Math? If so, please stop from today. What will you gain by criticizing Swamiji? Neither will your criticism make Swamiji's hands fall off, nor will your praise help him grow two more hands."

When he heard that those young men did not help Belur Math, Maharaj said: "Then why do you criticize unnecessarily? Can you appreciate the monks? You work like slaves under English officers and you are supposed to flatter them; if you make any mistake, they will kick you out with their boots."

A few days later, one of those young men came to Belur Math and apologized to Khoka Maharaj: "Maharaj, the other day, out of sheer ignorance, we did wrong. Your words came true. One of us was kicked out of the office by an English officer."

Khoka Maharaj's compassion knew no bounds. Once, when he was staying in Shantipur, he met one Dr Lahiri. The doctor was in the habit of drinking alcohol. One evening, while drunk, he used very foul language while talking with Khoka Maharaj. That very night the doctor came down with a high fever. Khoka Maharaj went to see him the next morning. The doctor was then lying down in his drawing room. He still had a high fever and was restless with pain. Maharaj sat beside him and began to gently stroke his forehead.

When the doctor saw him, he called out to his sister and said: "Come and see who is attending upon me! These people don't know what it is to be angry. Though I behaved so rudely to Maharaj, he has come to serve me today!"

Maharaj once told Dr Lahiri: "You have earned a lot of money by practicing medicine. From now on, don't take any fees from poor people. Spend the rest of your life serving the poor."

The doctor followed this advice and gradually even gave up drinking.

The parents of Khoka Maharaj were great devotees. After Maharaj had embraced monastic life, some friends of his father asked him to try to bring back his son. But at this his father said: "Living a householder's life, we haven't been able to realize God. What is the harm if he tries to do so as a monk? He has done what is right. If he realizes God, what can be a matter of greater joy?"

When Khoka Maharaj went to meet his mother after becoming a monk, she blessed him and said: "Whatever you do, do it with all your heart and soul. Have a firm grasp on your ideal. I bless you that you may realize your goal and be happy under all circumstances."

21 November 2018

From M. The Apostle and the Evangelist

M: On the coming of an avatara, persons with their mind tuned to Him, are able to hear Him. Otherwise, you see, so many people hear Him: but how many receive his message? Just a few. Those who have such a machine installed in their heart, because of the actions of their past lives, can only catch the silent message of the avatara.

A Bhakta: Which message?

M: Amritasya putrah. O man, you are the child of immortal bliss, you are not a human being. Your home is in BrahmapurI, the abode of Brahman. Eating, sleeping, procreating and fearing, these are not the right actions for you people. Your only duty is to return home, win back your real wealth and reside in the abode of Brahman realizing your true Self. Win immortality and live for ever.

"This message is being propagated night and day. Those who have the machine within, rightly tuned and pure, can only imbibe His great teaching. Those who have their minds and soul covered by the hard iron lid of life cannot hear this message, they cannot imbibe it.

"On the other hand persons whose lids have become a little loose try to seek it here even while living within the extremely tight bonds of existence and feel restless. One day they also clearly hear and catch the message, which is always ringing, even while living through the cruel cycle of life and death. Their very life then becomes divine."

"This very man then becomes a God-man."

22 November 2018

Swami Vijnananandaji

The Master was the living embodiment of purity, and he had the simplicity of a child. It seemed strange to him that anyone would wish to lose himself in the ephemeral pleasures of the world when there is eternal happiness within his reach. To Sri Ramakrishna, the only purpose of human life is to realize God and to attain unending joy in him.

If man can detach his mind from the objects of the sense world, he will have the vision of the Reality. He will see Brahman and the light of Brahman everywhere in the universe. Man burns in the fire of worldliness, forgetting the peace that is in God because of his inordinate craving for material objects. Sri Ramakrishna lived continuously immersed in the consciousness of the Blissful Mother, and so the fire of worldliness never touched him.

His heart was filled with the joy of Brahman; he lived intoxicated by that joy; and his only sorrow was that he could not give it to all mankind, although he was always eager to share his bliss with each and every one. Compared to the wisdom and bliss that result from the vision of Brahman, all secular knowledge and worldly pleasures are like dust.

Sri Ramakrishna saw Brahman everywhere; we, on the other hand, sense and experience only the world appearance.

Once I asked the Master if God was with or without form.

Sri Ramakrishna replied, "He is with as well as without form. And he is beyond both form and formlessness."

I inquired again, "If God is all, is this cot also God?"

He answered emphatically, "Yes, this cot is God, this glass, this utensil, this wall—everything is God." As he spoke, I experienced an inner transformation and was lifted beyond the mundane consciousness. My heart was illumined, and I saw the light of Brahman everywhere.

Sri Ramakrishna was unique in every way. His photograph symbolizes the awakening of the kundalini. It shows him immersed in the ocean of bliss. When I look at his photograph, many spiritual visions come to me.

Swamiji and Maharaj also used to have many visions through his image, but they did not divulge their experiences.

One day the Master showed me his photograph and said, "Meditate on this image. I am living there."

Those who have taken refuge in Sri Ramakrishna's name will be looked after by him. He will do everything for them.

On one occasion I was massaging the Master's feet, when a gentleman came to visit him from Konnagar. After he left, Sri Ramakrishna said, "You know, I can see the inside of a man's mind just like objects in a glass case." I thought to myself, "Well, then he can also see everything in me. What a dangerous man he is!" But he would only speak of the goodness in others, not of their evil deeds or tendencies.

In Sri Ramakrishna we found manifest the aspects of other divine incarnations of the past. When I first heard him say, "He who was Rama, he who was Krishna, is born as Ramakrishna," I did not believe him. I thought to myself, "He may be talking nonsense, but anyway, he is a holy man and very sincere." Much later, during my college days, the Master once again remarked in a very serious mood, "In my incarnation as Krishna I played with the shepherds and shepherdesses at Vrindavan." This time also I did not accept his words either.

He knew my doubts and so began to talk of the deep love of the shepherdesses for Sri Krishna. He explained how they had surrendered their all, mind, body, and soul to their beloved. While talking about this divine attraction, Sri Ramakrishna suddenly became speechless and lost all outward consciousness. He was deeply absorbed in samadhi. I also experienced an ecstatic joy and felt a dense atmosphere of divine love in the orbit of his power.

For the first time I realized the true significance of Sri Krishna's divine play with the shepherds and shepherdesses, and my doubt that the Master was a reincarnation of Sri Krishna was completely removed. When Sri Ramakrishna returned to normal consciousness, he laughed like a little boy. I kept silent.

Wherever great souls live, they create a spiritual atmosphere around themselves. Whoever comes within their orbit is elevated to a higher consciousness. One can feel a spiritual power like an electric current emanating from them and entering into him. It is a strange phenomenon. One has to experience it to know what it is.

One time, when I touched the feet of Swamiji [Vivekananda], I felt a shock like that of an electric current from him. Maharaj [Swami Brahmananda] also had great power to transmit spirituality to others.

One day he was deeply absorbed in meditation. I was seated near him. I began to feel a nerve current within me and also became absorbed. To transmit such spiritual power to another, even without the knowledge of the recipient, is the manifestation of the greatest spirituality.

Maharaj was a spiritual dynamo, and at the same time he was full of fun. What compelling attraction those two great souls, Swamiji and Maharaj, possessed! They drew others to themselves by their magnetic power of love. Whoever came within their orbit was gradually freed from evil tendencies, and the veil of ignorance was lifted.

23 November 2018

Guru Nanak

Today is the birthday celebration of Sri Guru Nanak. Sri Ramakrishna had high regard for Guru Nanak. Talking of him he quotes Guru Nanak: "I was about to eat the food of unholy people, when I found it stained with blood."

Once Sri Guru Nanak met some Yogis. They wanted to show him their superiority. The Yogis began to display their miraculous powers, created thunder and lightning, and raised terrifying cries as of howling beasts. Stones began to fly, and a commotion as of the world falling to pieces was produced.

All through, the Guru sat unperturbed, composed. After the Yogis had finished with the display of their occult powers, he spoke in a calm voice, rising from the depth of his soul:

"Reverend Sirs, I have little to show in the way of the marvels practised by you. My sole support is the Word of God and holy company.

"What are miracles worth? Were I to wear the vesture of fire, Lodge in a house of snow and feed on iron; Were I to drink at a gulp all the suffering of mankind; Were I to drive the earth about; Were my will omnipotent and bind the universe in obedience; what even then? God's greatest gift is not such powers; Great is one in whom is devotion to His Name."

After this he called upon them to betake themselves from their retreat to the world of men, to relieve suffering and teach true religion.

Said he:

"Reverend Sirs, the moon of righteousness lies hidden under the darkness of iniquity; The dark night of evil hath covered the earth; I have set out to find the light of Truth; Those like you who are holy, have hidden themselves in mountain caves; Who might then save the world? Ignorant mendicants know little besides smearing themselves with ashes; The whole world is in the grip of ruin for lack of a guide."

Guru Nanak's spiritual-moral teaching disarmed the Yogis, who acknowledged the superiority of his way, in which the spiritual life led man to the path of service and compassion.

24 November 2018

Swami Vijnanananda

Swamiji and Maharaj could not be compared. Each was unsurpassed in his own way. Each was complementary to the other. Swamiji's ideals were given the practical shape by Maharaj.

Swamiji preached knowledge and action, but inwardly he was a great devotee. His heart was tender and affectionate. What deep love he had for all of us, his brother-disciples, and especially for Maharaj! His attitude toward Maharaj was:

"The son of the guru is to be regarded as the guru himself." Yet he would not spare us, not even Maharaj, if we made any mistakes.

One day I was supervising the building of the embankment of the Ganges in front of the Belur monastery. The sun was hot, and I felt very thirsty. I noticed Swamiji seated on the veranda on the second floor, drinking lemonade. I was wishing I too had a cool drink. No sooner did this thought come to mind than an attendant brought me a glass with the message that Swamiji had sent this drink for me. I was very happy and put the glass to my lips. But what a disappointment! It was empty excepting a few drops. I felt rather hurt that Swamiji would play such a practical joke on me. However, I thought that as long as a holy man had sent me his prasad, I should accept it. To my great surprise, as soon as I had finished those few drops, I was satisfied.

Later in the day, when I met Swamiji, he teased me, "Did you drink the lemonade?"

I said, "Yes, I did, and my thirst was quenched." Swamiji looked pleased.

At one time a doubt arose in my mind. Sri Ramakrishna had taught that a monk must not even look at pictures of women, not to speak of associating with them. He had also told me particularly to be careful and not to look at any woman, even if she was deeply devoted to God. Yet Swamiji travelled all over the world, delivered lectures everywhere, and associated freely with women in the West. For this reason I wondered if Swamiji was really following Sri Ramakrishna's teachings in spirit.

One day, finding Swamiji alone in his room, I brought up the topic and mentioned what the Master had taught us. As Swamiji was listening, he became very serious. After a little while he said, "Peshan, it is not as easy to understand Sri Ramakrishna as you think. Do you know, he obliterated from my consciousness all distinction between man and woman. Through his grace I have realized that there is no sex in the Atman. Furthermore, Sri Ramakrishna came for the good of all. Do you think he came only to save the men? His grace makes no distinction between races and sexes. Of course, you must follow his instructions to you, but he taught me differently. Not only that he taught me, but now as ever he is holding me by the hand and guiding me, and I do as he makes me do."

I was sorry that I had ever doubted Swamiji and kept silent. Then Swamiji smiled at me and continued, "The mother power, the source of all divine energy, needs to be awakened in all women, whether of the East or of the West. Don't you realize that our Holy Mother was born to kindle this power in all women? Only the beginning has been made. A great spiritual awakening will come in women all over the world."

At the Belur monastery I slept in the little room opening onto the veranda. Swamiji often walked there. I recall one night when he was pacing up and down the veranda, singing to himself, "Thou art the Saviour, Mother." He repeated this line over and over again. At times I could see him standing motionless in ecstasy, with tears of joy running down his cheeks. And so he continued until dawn.

25 November 2018

From M. The Apostle and The Evangelist

A Devotee: Thakur saw a number of monkeys sitting in the Panchavati. Well, will these monkeys also attain liberation? Thakur's sight did fall on them.

M: Yes. There were many monkeys in Dakshineswar in those days. Even now one can see some of them. The monkeys had Thakur's darshan. Blessed they are!

If you ask, but did they know that he was an Avatara? The answer to it is: but Thakur knew that he was an Avatara. His holy sight fell on them. Don't we believe in previous life? What is there to wonder at if they have been liberated by having his darshan.

About Vedanta people say one attains liberation in a human body. In the Bhagavata, the commentary on Vedanta, they say that like human beings, other creatures are also liberated by the grace of the company of Avataras.

Once Chaitanya Deva was asked why he didn't write a commentary on Vedanta. He answered: 'Had there been no Bhagavata one could have written it. The Bhagavata is a commentary on Vedanta.'

"The trees and all that there is in Dakshineswar and Kamarpukur are all gods, rishis and gandharvas. It is for enjoying the sport of the Avatara that they assumed these forms. Thakur saw them all enveloped in divine light, that is to say, personified consciousness. By his grace some bhaktas (Once M. visited Kamarpukur and saw the whole village enveloped in a divine light!) also saw them as illumined beings.

"The bhaktas have also seen the trees and the other life in Vrindavan enveloped in a divine light—divinely illuminated is Shyam, divinely illuminated is his Abode.

"There are but two sights—one is the sight of reason, and the other is that of bhakti. In the eye of a Bhakta all this is true.

"Thakur used to say, I have seen the Mother in Her aspect of God-with-form. And I have also seen Her as formless God. She is both with form and without form. Besides, she has any number of other aspects too. There is no end to Her aspects. It is the same thing but there are two views of it.

"Those who have said that liberation comes in a human body are correct, the other belief is also correct. There is no contradiction between the two. They are complementary to each other. They have stressed birth as a human being. So man may become conscious, he may make the fullest use of human life.

"What is impossible for Him? He who has created this universe in the twinkle of an eye can also destroy it in the same way?

"All of you want a reason for all this. How far can your reason go? The moment the fever goes a little higher you begin to wail. You become unconscious—this helpless human intellect cannot go far.

"Modern biologists only have the lower sight (Apara)—a sight bounded all around. The solution to all problems can only be had from the point of view of the scriptures, the Vedas, the Avataras.

"He who has uninhibited faith in Thakur, he who believes in all these, does not have to strain his intelligence. He is blessed by the garland of pearls of the Mother of the universe round his neck."

26 November 2018

Renunciation of Kama-Kanchana

Disciple: Shri Ramakrishna used to say, that a man cannot progress far towards God-realisation unless he first relinquishes Kama-Kanchana (lust and greed). If so, what will become of householders? For their whole minds are set on these two things.

Swamiji: It is true that the mind can never turn to God until the desire for lust and wealth has gone from it, be the man a householder or a Sannyasin. Know this for a fact, that as long as the mind is caught in these, so long true devotion, firmness, and Shraddha (faith) can never come.

Disciple: Where will the householders be, then? What way are they to follow?

Swamiji: To satisfy smaller desires and have done with them for ever, and to relinquish the greater ones by discrimination—that is the way. Without renunciation God can never be realised—even if Brahma himself enjoined otherwise!

Disciple: But does renunciation of everything come as soon as one becomes a monk?

Swamiji: Sannyasins are at least struggling to make themselves ready for renunciation, whereas householders are in this matter like boatmen who work at their oars while the boat lies at anchor. "Is the desire for enjoyment ever appeased—It increases ever and ever".

Disciple: Why? May not world-weariness come, after enjoying the objects of the senses over and over for a long time?

Swamiji: To how many does that come? The mind becomes tarnished by constant contact with the objects of the senses and receives a permanent moulding and impress from them. Renunciation, and renunciation alone, is the real secret, the Mulamantra, of all Realisation.

Disciple: But there are such injunctions of the seers in the scriptures as these: 'To restrain the five senses while living with one's wife and children is Tapas.', "For him whose desires are under control, living in the midst of his family is the same as retiring into a forest for Tapasya."

Swamiji: Blessed indeed are those who can renounce Kama-Kanchana, living in their homes with their family! But how many can do that?

Disciple: But then, what about the Sannyasins? Are they all able to relinquish lust and love for riches fully?

Swamiji: As I said just now, Sannyasins are on the path of renunciation, they have taken the field, at least, to fight for the goal; but the householders, on the other hand, having no knowledge as yet of the danger that comes through lust and greed, do not even attempt to realise the Self; that they must struggle to get rid of these is an idea that has not yet entered their minds.

(Swami Vivekananda) THE CONVERSATIONS AND DIALOGUES

27 November 2018

Yajna or Sacrifice

It is said in the Vedas that the Lord (Purusha) made a sacrifice of himself for the sake of creation, and he is sustaining it through continual sacrifice; for it is he who is manifest in the form of the sun, the moon, air, water, fire, earth etc.

Creation came out of sacrifice; hence sacrifice is the law of life; Life is a continual act of sacrifice. Willingly or unwillingly everyone is forced to participate in this sacrifice.

We receive and we give out. If we do not give we will not be able to receive or die! Lord Krishna tells us in the Gita that one who does not live a life of sacrifice lives in vain, that is he remains ignorant and suffers.

One of the most important spiritual qualities is to make life a sacrificial act.

In Vedic times the ancient seers used to light a fire and perform varieties of sacrificial rites. Most of these were performed either for the fulfilment of some personal desires or for the general welfare.

In course of time the Vedic seers acquired a holistic vision. They understood that the whole universe is an integrated whole and that everything depends upon everything else, both the living and the non-living.

This understanding gave rise to the concept of the five great sacrifices (Pancha Maha Yajnah).

Of all sacrifices Brahma-Yajna, seeing Brahman in everything, is considered the best; it is the goal of all spiritual endeavour.

Sacrifice becomes valid only when it entails some amount of loss, pain or inconvenience. Spiritual life is an attempt to transform every action into an act of sacrifice. For an act to become a sacrifice it must fulfil four conditions:

It must entail some amount of deprivation.
It must be done without the expectation of any return.
It must be done for pleasing the divine only.
It must help reduce selfishness and egotism, and must be done unselfconsciously.

There are, again, four stages through which the sacrificial journey progresses.

The first stage of sacrifice is where we feel enormous gratitude for all that life is providing us, including loss, failure, pain, suffering etc.; for pain is a great teacher and leads us Godward.

In the second stage we express our gratefulness in some form of return—charity, service, prayer etc.

In the third stage we feel strongly that the whole world is a manifestation of God and that everything in it really belongs to Him only.

In the last stage one becomes firmly established in this knowledge, and joyously participates in the divine sport, Leela.

Swami Vivekananda described Sri Ramakrishna as 'pranarpana', i.e., one who has offered his life as a sacrifice at the altar of humanity. Christ accepted crucifixion for the sake of mankind. The same may be said of Rama, Krishna, Buddha and every great person. It is through sacrifice that one becomes great and glorious.

Greatness is directly proportionate to sacrifice, sacrifice of time, energy, wealth, comforts etc. Giving up of selfishness, self-pity, sloth, pessimism, fault-finding, stubborn false opinions, bearing criticism and calamities calmly, sincerely attempting to reduce one's ego, all these, are spiritually helpful forms of sacrifice.

Complete self-surrender (Atma-Yajna) to the divine is the ultimate act of sacrifice.

Lives of great men all remind us, We can make our lives sublime, And, departing, leave behind us Footprints on the sands of time. (H. W. Longfellow)

28 November 2018

Swadhyaya or Scriptural Study

Sri Krishna advises an aspirant to practise Swadhyaya, study of the scriptures; it also means study of one's mind. Scriptures are the foundation of every religion. It is seen that religions without a scripture vanish quickly.

What are Scriptures? They are the spiritual realisations of saints and mystics, the records of their experiences of the Ultimate Reality, translated into local language and idiom.

Truths about the existence of God, the after-life and the other-world cannot be known through the five senses; they can be known only through scriptures. Mystics through their experience assert these truths. Hence we can accept them only through faith until our own experience confirms them.

Since Reality is One, its experience must be the same for all. "All jackals howl to the same note", said Sri Ramakrishna.

The Vedas proclaim: "Truth is One. Sages call It by various names".

The seeming differences are due to language only and interpretations.

Swami Vivekananda clarifies: "Truth is of two kinds: (1) that which is cognisable by the five ordinary senses, and by reasonings based thereon; (2) that which is cognisable by the subtle, super-sensuous power of Yoga; and knowledge acquired by the second is called the Vedas.

"The person in whom this super-sensuous power is manifested is called a Rishi, and the super-sensuous truths which he realises by this power are called the Vedas.

"This Rishihood, this power of super-sensuous perception of the Vedas is real religion. And so long as this does not develop in the life of an initiate, so long is religion a mere empty word to him."

Spiritual functions of Scriptures:

a) It is from scriptures that we come to know of God, the goal of life, and the various paths which lead us to Him. We also come to know what should or should not be done, which qualities true devotees should acquire, which defects one should overcome etc. Since human beings are different in their nature and temperament they require different paths. Scriptures provide different pathways suitable to different temperaments so that everyone can reach the one goal, God.

b) Scriptures give us the benefit of holy company. Sri Ramakrishna used to advise spiritual aspirants to cultivate holy company—association with holy men and sincere devotees of God. Their association is extremely effective in bringing home to us the reality of God and spiritual life.

Devotees are the witnesses of God. Through them God Himself is manifested; through them we receive contact with God Himself. It is literally true that even a moment spent in the company of a true devotee produces lifelong results. Unfortunately real devotees are rare. What should we do then? We may read the scriptures and the lives of saints—for they are also wonderfully effective.

A scripture is not a mere book; it is another form of God. Sri Ramakrishna once had a vision where he found God, scripture and devotee as three manifestations of the same Reality. He used to say: "Bhagavan (the Lord), Bhagavata (His word or scripture) and Bhakta (devotee) are all one and the same."

c) Scriptures console and give us hope. Life is painful. The pain is felt all the more by the struggling aspirant (since the aspirant grows refined and soft). At times all hope vanishes and despair takes possession. Every aspirant, beginner and advanced alike, has to pass through these dry periods, the "dark nights of the soul". But a study of the lives of saints shows us clearly that everything must come out all right, at least, at the end.

d) Scriptures give us inspiration. 'Familiarity breeds contempt'—there is a lot of truth in this saying. Spiritual practices tend to become repetitive and mechanical after a time.

At this period regular study of scriptures and the lives of holy men provides us with inspiration and slowly takes us towards our goal.

e) Scriptures provide us with right guidance. Men are weak, irrational, and are easily misled by passions. It is easy to forget the goal and go in the wrong direction. Yet most often people tend to justify their actions rather accept their mistakes and correct their behaviour. It is here that regular devout study of scriptures can help immensely.

f) Scriptures reinforce our faith. Faith is like a muscle. Muscles grow strong through regular exercise and become weak through lack of it. Similarly faith also can be strengthened through regular study of scriptures and holy lives. Through a constant barrage of atheistic ideas with the help of powerful media whole nations can be brainwashed and made atheistic, materialistic or fanatical, resulting in wars and bloodshed—recent history proves this fact abundantly.

A similar technique, however, can be turned to our spiritual advantage. Scriptures can help us to de-hypnotise ourselves by constantly reminding us of our divine nature, and our goal in life.

g) The power of Truth is irresistible. Since scriptures are nothing but varied expressions of Truth they cannot but lead us in the direction of God. When scriptures are studied regularly with devotion they seep into the very depths of our unconscious.

They purify us, washing away age-old impressions, filling our minds with holy thoughts, and ideas, and slowly but steadily they lead us towards the Ultimate Reality.

However if we forget the true aim of scriptures, instead of liberating they bind us.

"The Grantha does not always mean a holy scripture, but often it comes to mean a 'Granthi' or a knot. If a man does not read it with an intense desire to know the Truth it will be an encumbrance on his mind like so many knots. It is useless to pore over the holy scriptures if one's mind is not endowed with discernment and dispassion". (Sri Ramakrishna)

'Look for truth in the Bible; not eloquence. Every verse should be read in the spirit with which it was written. Read the devout and simple books as gladly as the learned and profound. People die, but God's Word will never pass away. If you want to make your Scripture reading worthwhile, read with humility, simplicity, and faith. Don't try to appear learned. Listen in silence to the words of the holy men, and take pleasure in the teachings of the elders. They spoke with good reason'. (Of The Imitation of Christ)

29 November 2018

Tapas — Austerity

The Upanishads tell us that the creator performed austerities before creating the world. Millions of devotees regard Sri Ramakrishna as an Incarnation, yet he performed super-human austerities to realise God. Holy Mother had to go through the ordeal of five fires. We will not come across a single saint or mystic who has realised God without austerities.

At one time Swami Brahmananda practised severe austerities at Brindavan. Seeing Maharaj thus absorbed in contemplation and neglecting food and sleep, Swami Subodhananda one day asked him: "You are the spiritual son of God Incarnate; he has already done everything for you. Through his grace you have attained samadhi. Where is the need for these austerities?"

"What you say is true," Maharaj answered. "The Master did everything for us. But I have to make these experiences my own."

Varuna was a knower of Brahman. His son Bhrigu, an ardent seeker, requested him to teach the knowledge of Brahman. The teacher gave a few hints and asked him to go and perform austerity: "Seek to know Brahman through austerity; for austerity is Brahman".

Any type of creative expression is the result of austerity. Thus we see that nothing great can be achieved without undergoing hardship.

We hear of people fasting for days, observing silence for years, standing on one foot for a long time, flagellating themselves severely etc. We even hear of Yogis lying on a bed of nails! We mistake these for austerities.

Once a disciple asked Swami Brahmananda,

Q: "Maharaj, is that what austerity means"?

Swami: "Remember God constantly. Remember him when you eat, when you sit, when you lie down; remember him whatever you do. By such repeated practice you will find that, when you go to meditate, it will be easy to remember God and become absorbed in him. As your mind becomes absorbed in meditation, a fountain of joy will spring up within you. Give no time to idle cares or idle talk."

So what is austerity? Usually austerity is defined as an act of privation and hardship, but suffering caused by sickness, poverty or oppression etc., cannot properly be called austerity.

Any act undertaken for a noble purpose, especially, for spiritual progress, and done voluntarily, and which involves some sort of privation and hardship can be called austerity.

As mentioned earlier austerity is unavoidable if one wants to achieve greatness in any field. Austerity should not be felt to be a hardship. Austerity burns up evil tendencies and purifies the body and mind. It springs from freedom and helps one to be master of oneself.

The Bhagavad Gita mentions three types of austerity, pertaining to the body, speech and mind.

"Worship of the gods, the twice-born, the preceptors, and the wise; purity, straight-forwardness, continence, and non-injury are called the austerity of the body."

"Speech which causes no vexation, and which is true, as also agreeable and beneficial, and regular study of the Vedas—these are said to form the austerity of speech."

"Serenity of the mind, kindliness, silence, self-control, honesty of motive—this is called mental austerity."

The only purpose of austerity is to make the body and mind fit instruments capable of taking us to God. If we are undergoing hardships and privations but they are not making us pure and are not leading us to God then we must suspect that there is something wrong with our motive.

If our purpose is God-realisation, then we need not go to the top of a mountain or to deep forests infested with wild animals. Life affords us enough opportunity to practise more than our share of austerity.

To calmly put up with sickness, discomfort, inclement weather, traffic jams, is an austerity. To live with hope and optimism under adverse circumstances is an austerity. To live in harmony with others whether at the office or at home is a great austerity. Giving up unnecessary talk, harmful activities; fault-finding, entertaining negative thoughts, controlling food, are also austerities.

To love God, to practise regularly japa, meditation, and the study of holy books etc., are big austerities.

If we look around we can find many opportunities for the practice of austerity.

In later years Swami Brahmananda used to say: "It is easy to practise austerity by not allowing the mind to come into contact with sense-objects, but it is hard to get rid of the mental craving itself.

"The mind deludes us in many ways. We must control it and direct it along the right path. What is austerity? It is to direct the mind towards God in order to taste divine bliss. In this age it is not necessary to practise physical austerities, such as standing on your head. The path in this age is to create the desire to chant the Lord's name, to be compassionate towards all beings, and to serve holy men. Real austerity consists in the control of the passions.

"Real austerity is based upon these three principles: First, take refuge in the truth. Truth is the pillar to which you must always hold while performing any action. Second, conquer lust. Third, renounce all cravings. Observe these three principles. That is real austerity, and the greatest of these is to conquer lust." (Eternal Companion)

30 November 2018

Jai Ramakrishna

Arjavam — Straightforwardness

Straightforwardness is one more quality Sri Krishna advises all spiritual aspirants to acquire. Straightforwardness is an indispensable virtue which must be practised by all aspirants desirous of realising God.

During the time of his sadhana Sri Ramakrishna used to keep the company of small children. By observing them he wanted to learn their purity, innocence and detachment.

Straightforwardness is the opposite of guile, deceit, crookedness, hypocrisy etc. It is akin to truthfulness. To be frank, to think, speak and act with one accord is straightforwardness. To make the mind, speech and action one is straightforwardness.

Straightforwardness also means uprightness. Only those who lead a righteous life can really become straightforward for they will, then, have nothing to hide or to be afraid of.

There are many aspirants who are sincere and pure. Unfortunately some of them are too outspoken, often hurting and creating problems both for themselves and others. The case of Golap Ma, a woman disciple of Sri Ramakrishna comes to mind. Many times Holy Mother, Sri Sarada Devi, warned her to be careful and not to speak out harshly. She did not heed and had to suffer as a result.

There are few of us who can claim we are straightforward. Apparently we may feel sometimes we are being straightforward, but often it may turn out to be a case of pure rashness. A rash or impulsive way of speaking is not a sign of straightforwardness.

Straightforwardness invariably follows simplicity. Simplicity, as many misunderstand, is not having less number of things. If this were the case all poor people would be simple people.

Simplicity is a great virtue; it is the result of conquering desires and depending solely on God. Because a simple person depends for everything on God he has nothing to hide or fear. Therefore he can afford to be straightforward. Such straightforwardness not only does not harm anyone, it often helps one go to God.

Straightforwardness leads the way to true faith. Sri Ramakrishna says: "Unless one is guileless and broad-minded, one cannot have deep faith. A guileless man easily realises God. He who can resign himself to the will of the Almighty with simple faith and guileless love realises the Lord very quickly".

But it is not easy to be guileless. Unless one practises spiritual disciplines for a long time, it may be for many lives even, one cannot become guileless.

Sri Ramakrishna says: "One cannot be guileless and liberal-minded without much austerity, or unless it is one's last birth. When a man has performed many good actions in his previous births, in the final birth he becomes guileless. Unless a man is guileless, he cannot so easily have faith in God."

Practice of spiritual disciplines makes one unworldly. Even a trace of worldliness does not allow one to be straightforward or guileless.

Sri Ramakrishna says: "The worldly man is a hypocrite. He cannot be guileless. He professes to love God, but he is attracted by worldly objects. He doesn't give God even a very small part of the love he feels for 'lust' and 'gold'. But he says that he loves God. One cannot be guileless without a great deal of spiritual discipline in previous births. Spiritual instruction produces quick results in a guileless heart. Unless a man is guileless, he doesn't receive the grace of God."

Bayazid was a great Sufi master. He advises that a believer be straightforward and completely humble as a servant. According to him straightforwardness is the last step on a three-stepped stairway leading to nearness of God.

He says: "The first step is consistency, where a traveller strives to embody Islam's theoretical and practical dimensions. Success in this continuous effort brings one's carnal self under control.

"The second step is settlement or tranquillity, where an initiate purifies his or her inner self of the vices contaminating the spirit and heart (e.g., show, fame, and vanity, all of which cannot be reconciled with servant-hood), thereby purging the heart of all that is not God.

"The third step is straightforwardness, where the doors of Divinity and creation are slightly opened to the traveller, and the Divine gifts are bestowed in the form of wonder-working and blessings, although he or she neither desires nor seeks them.

"Straightforwardness, the last station of the way, means living without deviation from loyalty to God and under His direct protection; it is an environment in which Divine gifts and favours are bestowed."

"So long as people pursue straightforwardness on the path of belief in Divine Unity and fulfil their covenants with God and His Messenger by fulfilling the Divine ordinances, Divine gifts and bounties will flow abundantly."

Straightforwardness takes one to God quickly.

Daily Messages - 2018

Messages from Swami Dayatmananda

26 October 2018

27 October 2018

29 October 2018

30 October 2018

31 October 2018

1 November 2018

2 November 2018

3 November 2018

4 November 2018

5 November 2018

6 November 2018

7 November 2018

8 November 2018

9 November 2018

10 November 2018

11 November 2018

12 November 2018

13 November

15 November 2018

16 November 2018

17 November 2018

18 November 2018

19 November 2018

20 November 2018

21 November 2018

From M. The Apostle and the Evangelist

22 November 2018

Swami Vijnananandaji

23 November 2018

Guru Nanak

24 November 2018

Swami Vijnanananda

25 November 2018

From M. The Apostle and The Evangelist

26 November 2018

Renunciation of Kama-Kanchana

27 November 2018

Yajna or Sacrifice

28 November 2018

Swadhyaya or Scriptural Study

Spiritual functions of Scriptures:

29 November 2018

Tapas — Austerity

30 November 2018

Arjavam — Straightforwardness

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