Get Stronger Everyday

I have often seen people expressing their displeasure in carrying out tasks assigned to them. “Why should I do this?” “This is not my job.” “Oh, what I have been reduced into?”

My mother used to tell us, her children, “No work is degrading. As long as you are cooking food or cleaning vessels in your house, or mopping the floor of your house, or as long as you are cleaning the toilets of your house, you don’t have to feel bad. If you are doing these in someone else’s house, then you have to feel bad.” According to her, one must study well and become an engineer, doctor, or scientist. Household activities and other such jobs are meant for the uneducated. But I go one step ahead and believe that even if all the above-mentioned jobs are performed for a living (i.e. to earn money), there is no need to feel bad or ashamed. As long as we are not earning by cheating somebody or doing heinous crimes such as murder, etc., there is no reason to feel bad.

Everybody is not fortunate enough to get a good education and get into good jobs. In spite of all our limitations, if we can still hold on to values such as truth and honesty, we have nothing to regret, and I feel one may live with peace of mind.

In fact, what is more important is the attitude with which we perform the task. There is a beautiful story which most of you may be aware of. There was a saint who had mastered the holy scriptures and was revered by everybody in his neighborhood as a holy man. In the house opposite to his, lived a prostitute. The saint used to sit outside his house to meditate on God and would see the men entering and leaving the prostitute’s house. He would curse the woman and think what kind of life she is living. He used to put one stone every time he saw a man enter her house. In course of time, a heap of stones piled up in front of his house. The prostitute, on the other hand, used to see this saint with reverence and pray to God everyday to forgive her for the life she has chosen to live. When they died, the saint went to hell and the prostitute went to heaven. The saint was furious and wanted to know what crime he had committed. He was told that the number of his crimes equaled the number of stones of the heap collected in front of his house.

Never ever regret that you have been reduced to perform a low profile job. Remember, nobody can reduce you. Take it as a test from the Almighty. Perform every task that comes your way with the utmost sincerity. That sincerity will qualify you for bigger and better jobs. Here are the words of Swami Vivekananda:

            By doing well the duty which is nearest to us,

            the duty which is in our hands,

            we make ourselves stronger.

Get stronger everyday, both physically and mentally. Every work performed with sincerity and dedication takes us one step closer to the goal.


R. Padma

Get and Forget?

I heard this recently in a talk:

Humans get and forget, God gives and forgives

Even if it may not be right to generalize it as humans, in the majority of humans this nature is indeed observed.

Forgetting is good, if we can forget all the bad things others did to us.

When we can give something good, however small the gesture may be, even if you can make another person smile, you have given a moment’s joy – then we are moving from being human to being God. And when we learn to forgive, however bad the crime or mistake may be, we are indeed becoming God.

So, what is Godliness? It is being kind, being honest, being truthful, to be able to give rather than to get, and, above all, to be able to forgive.

Let us give as much as we can, let us forgive everyone, young and old, without exception…

Lessons to learn from the lives of Sri Ramakrishna’s disciples – Part 11

Sri Ramakrishna’s entire life demonstrated one theme ‘Religion is realization of God’. The goal of being born as a human gets fulfilled only when one is able to realize God -- feel God, see God, and talk to God. It is possible only for humans. Therefore, human life is considered special, precious. We have to sense God to be convinced that there is a God. Otherwise, this human birth is considered to have gone waste.

When Narendra (later Swami Vivekananda) asked Sri Ramakrishna whether he has seen God, he replied, “Yes, I see God as I am seeing you, only a lot more clearly.”

The next question is ‘How to achieve that?’ “Can you cry for God vision? People shed jugs of tears for family, children, wealth, etc. But who wants God?” was his answer.

For God realization, one has to develop an intense longing to see God. It will not happen overnight. It has to be cultivated, nurtured.

What are the obstacles in the path of a person seeking God realization? ‘Lust and greed’, says Sri Ramakrishna. As long as one craves for material gains and sexual pleasures, one cannot realize God. Although it may not be possible to get rid of them overnight, one should start restraining oneself from material and sexual pleasures as much as possible, and start spending more time thinking and meditating on God. Here is an anecdote from the life of Swami Subodananda, affectionately known as ‘Koka Maharaj’ as he was the youngest (probably 16 or 17 years old when he renounced his wealthy parents and chose to become a monk) disciple of Sri Ramakrishna. The following incident happened when Swami Subodhananda was practicing austerities in Haridwar.

He was suffering from fever for two months. One day he was too weak and could not lift even the water pot to drink some water to quench his thirst. When he went near the pot, he fell unconscious. When he regained his consciousness, he was overwhelmed by self-pity and cried: “Master, I am suffering terribly. There is none to look after me. You didn’t give sufficient strength even to drink a glass of water by myself.” Thinking thus, he fell asleep. Then he saw [in a dream or vision] the Master [Sri Ramakrishna] stroking his body with his hand and he said, “Why are you anxious? Don’t you see I am always near you? What do you want – attendants or money?” Swami Subodhananda replied, “I want neither of those things. I can’t avoid disease as long as I have a body. May I never forget you: that’s all I want. Be with me wherever I go.”

Early in the morning, he heard a voice from outside, “Swami, please open the door.” When he opened the door, he saw a young monk who told him, “Please tell me what you need. I shall beg food for you.” Swami Subodhananda told him, “I don’t need anything.” When he enquired how the monk knew about him, the monk said that he had arrived there a few days before to perform a religious rite at Brahmakunda. The previous night, Mother Durga appeared in his dream and said, “You will get more virtue by serving that sick monk in the cottage than by performing this religious rite.” So, early in the morning, he went to the cottage and understood that his dream was true. Tears trickled from the eyes of Swami Subodhananda. He controlled his emotions and told the monk to leave him as he preferred to live alone.

On the same day, another monk received fifty rupees by money order. He came to Swami Subodhananda and said, “”You are suffering from fever. You need food and medicine. Please use this money.” The swami declined his offer. Early next day morning the young monk came to the swami again and told him that Mother Durga appeared in his dream again and exhorted him to serve the swami. The swami told him politely that he really did not need any service and perhaps Mother Durga wanted the monk to serve someone else. The young monk left. Then Swami Subodhananda prayed earnestly to Sri Ramakrishna, “Please don’t tempt me anymore. I am glad that you crushed my pique.” The young monk came on the third day also but never again.

Reading the above anecdote in the book God Lived With Them by Swami Chetanananda made me wonder “What an amazing level of renunciation Swami Subodhananda had?”

“I will not ask for money, or servants. I will not even ask for good health since as long as a body exists there is scope for illness. Please ensure that I will never forget your name. Be with me always” This is what Swami Subodhananda asked. He has shown us the way. It is not easy to be all-sacrificing as he was. But if we can try to emulate even a percentage of that renunciation, we will soon realize the power and kindness of God.

Lessons to learn from the lives of Sri Ramakrishna’s disciples – Part 10

The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna quotes the words of Sri Ramakrishna, “The goal of human life is to love God. The point is to love God even as the mother loves her child, the chaste wife her husband, and the worldly man his wealth. Add together these three forces of love, these three powers of attractions, and give it all to God. Then, you will certainly see Him.”

Swami Ramakrishnananda, one of the direct monastic disciples of Sri Ramakrishna, had intense love and devotion to his Master Sri Ramakrishna. He went to Madras and established the Madras branch of Ramakrishna Mission at the behest of Swami Vivekananda. He had to face lot of hurdles in his mission but his love for his Master helped him overcome all those hurdles. Here are some interesting anecdotes from his life.

Once, there were no provisions in the temple (at Madras) storeroom to prepare food for offering to Sri Ramakrishna at 4:00 p.m. (the normal time of offering evening snacks to Sri Ramakrishna). At 3:00 p.m. the matter was conveyed to Swami Ramakrishnananda, and it greatly upset him. He took it as a test from the Master. He did not become angry with the monks for not informing him beforehand; all his anger was solely turned against the Master. He burst out, “You want to test me? I will eat sand and do Swamiji’s [Swami Vivekananda, who sent him to Madras] work here. You are testing me, I know. But you should also know my grim resolve. I would rather die and perish here than budge an inch from this place. Do your worst, if you will!” His face glowed in terrible anguish and fervour; he began to pace back and forth in the hall.

At 3:30 p.m. someone knocked at the front door. Mr. Kondaih Chetty, an old student of the swami, came with some flour, ghee, sugar candy, and dried fruits. He also offered five rupees as donation. The swami burst out in childlike glee, and bade the monks to bring two stoves, and made some nice preparations for the offering. At 4:00 p.m. the refreshment was offered to the Master as usual.

The building of Madras Monastery had developed cracks and when it rained water would seep in through the roof in several places. At such times, Swami Ramakrishnananda would go to the shrine to see whether water was leaking through the ceiling. One night it began to drip inside the shrine, exactly on Sri Ramakrishna’s picture. The swami stood there holding an umbrella till the night passed and the rain stopped. He did not move the picture to a safer side because that would wake his Master from sleep at an untimely hour, which would be wrong.

Swami Ramakrishnananda kept the Master alive in his mind through his intense love. His service to his Master is now legendary in the Ramakrishna Order. Swami Bodhananda recalled about Swami Ramakrishnananda, “His offering of flowers, his waving of the big fan on the Master’s bed on hot and sultry nights, his cooking the meals for the offering, his deftness, neatness, promptness, and thoroughness in every detail left an indelible impression on the mind of the beholder. Even the hardest heart would be moved by his superhuman devotion.”

Love cannot be defined. A real lover gets joy and finds fulfillment in life by serving and giving his everything to the beloved. Swami Ramakrishnananda’s love for his Master indeed brought to life the teaching of his Master that love for God should be as intense as the combined love of a mother for her child, a chaste wife for her husband, and a worldly man for his wealth. Swami Ramakrishnananda's life was a demonstration of how to love and serve God.

Lessons to learn from the lives of Sri Ramakrishna’s disciples – Part 9

Sri Ramakrishna often used to say, “Bhagavatha, Bhaktha, Bhagwan” to mean that the holy scripture, the devotee, and the God, all the three are equal. Therefore, service to devotees is service to God. Sri Ramakrishna’s disciples followed this teaching of the Master (Sri Ramakrishna). Here is an anecdote from the life of Swami Premananda displaying this quality.

Once during the birth anniversary of Sri Ramakrishna, M. (Mahendranath Gupta, the recorder of the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna) came to Belur Math to pay his homage to the Master. He was not well. After saluting the Master in the shrine, M. sat under the mango tree in the courtyard. He carried some puffed rice for refreshment and enquired if there is any curd (yogurt) in the storeroom. A young monk went to check and found a pot of curd that had not yet been offered to the Master; for that reason, it could not be given to M. (The usual procedure followed in temples and other Hindu religious institutions is to offer everything to God and then distribute the offerings to the devotees. Nothing is consumed without offering it at the feet of God.)

While the monk was returning from the storeroom, Swami Premananda learned from him that M. needed curd. Swami Premananda immediately took the pot and, standing in front of the Master’s picture, offered it to him with closed eyes. He then gave it to the monk to serve M.

Afterwards Premananda told a monk with emotion, “Today the Master saved me from a grave error. Do you know M. was an immediate companion of the Master? The master eats food through the mouths of these devotees. Have you not read in the Gospel, where the Master says that if you feed one of them, you will attain virtue equivalent to feeding one thousand monks? In the Ramakrishna incarnation, M. is the Sage Vyasa [the recorder] and again the Sage Narada [the singer]. Day and night the gospel of the Master comes from his lips like a fountain. The Master saved me today from a serious mistake.”

Service to devotees is service to God. From the advaita point of view, God manifests in every living being. That’s why Swami Vivekananda went one step further and emphasized the importance of serving the poor and destitute.

Once, in 1901, some laborers were engaged in leveling the grounds of the monastery. One day, he arranged a feast for them and, when the meal was over, he told them, “You are Narayanas. Today I have entertained the Lord Himself by feeding you.”

Later, addressing the inmates of Belur Math, he said, “See how simple-hearted these poor, illiterate people are! Will you be able to relieve their misery to some extent at least? …Let us go from village to village, devoting ourselves to the service of the poor. … Let us, through the force of our character and spirituality and our austere living, convince the rich about their duties to the masses, and get money and the means wherewith to serve the poor and the distressed. …Unless they are elevated, the Great Mother India will never awake! What are we good for if we cannot provide facilities for their food and clothing? Alas, they are ignorant of the ways of the world and hence fail to eke out a living though laboring hard day and night for it. Gather all your forces together to remove the veil from their eyes. What I see clear as daylight is that the same Brahman, the same Sakti, is in them as in me! Only there is a difference in the degree of manifestation— that is all.”

A little later he said: 'After so much tapasya, austerity, I have known that the highest truth is this: "He is present in all beings. These are all the manifested forms of Him. There is no other God to seek for! He alone is worshipping God, who serves all beings."'

Anyone who exploits a fellow human, near or distant, offends God and will pay for it sooner or later. All of us are children of the same God, and the same God is residing in the heart of each one of us. Hence service to fellow humans is service to God.

Lessons to learn from the lives of Sri Ramakrishna’s disciples – Part 8

Sri Ramakrishna disapproved of wastage of resources. Once, in Dakshineshwar, he asked a devotee to light the oil lamp in his room. The devotee used four match sticks and yet could not light the lamp. Then the Master (Sri Ramakrishna) got down from the cot and lighted the lamp himself. He said to the devotee, “The householders save their hard-earned money and give it to the monks. Is it proper to misuse their money?” Another day, Latu (later Swami Adbuthananda) was about to use a match stick to ignite the Master’s tobacco, and he scolded Latu, “Go to the kichen and get the fire from there.”

Sri Ramakrishna’s disciples followed this teaching completely. At the Belur Mutt, Swami Premananda, one of the direct disciples of Sri Ramakrishna, would watch the activities of the newly joined brahmacharins very carefully. If someone peeled a potato too deeply, the swami would remind him that the vegetables had been bought with the devotees’ hard-earned money and great sacrifice of their comfort; it was not proper for the monks to misuse those things. Swami Premananda could not tolerate any waste and he imprinted this idea in the minds of newcomers.

My eyes filled with tears when I read the above details in the book God Lived With Them by Swami Chetanananda.

This careful use of funds is followed even today in every branch of Ramakrishna Mission. Some months ago, I visited the Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama at Belgaum, in Karnataka, India. I heard that there is no cook at the ashram and the brahmacharins themselves cooked the food. The various daily activities of the ashram are divided among the inmates, a few of the brahmacharins are given the work of puja (daily worship), some take care of the garden, cooking work is assigned to some, and cleaning vessels to some others.

It is very true that devotees donate money sacrificing their comforts. We can be rest assured that every penny of our hard-earned money donated to any branch of Ramakrishna Mission will be carefully utilized as Sri Ramakrishna himself had shown the way by leading his life accordingly and also by training his disciples to value the resources at their expense.

Lessons to learn from the lives of Sri Ramakrishna’s disciples – Part 7

Sri Ramakrishna understood the universality in the teachings of various religions of the world by practicing each religion for a certain period of time and realizing God through each of them.

When he was working as a priest of the Kali temple at Dakshineshwar (near Calcutta), he was seized by a desire to know whether the image in the temple is just a stone or the existence of such a Goddess is true. He yearned for a vision of the Mother of the Universe, Goddess Kali, and after many months of struggle he got a vision of the Divine Mother. Mother Herself then became the teacher and initiated him into the truths he sought.

His next desire was to get a vision of Lord Krishna. For this he practised Vaishnavism under the guidance of a vaishnava monk. He was amazed to find that it is the same Goddess Kali who is also visualized as Krishna! There are numerous sects in Hinduism and each sect claims its own deity as the ultimate God. Sri Ramakrishna practiced every sect of Hinduism and found they all reached the same goal.

He then aspired to know the truth of the various religions of the world. So he sought teachers of other religions. He found a Mohammedan saint and placed himself under him; he underwent the disciplines prescribed by him, and to his astonishment found that when faithfully carried out, these devotional methods led him to the same goal he had already attained. He gathered similar experience by following Christianity as well.

He went to all the sects he could find, and whatever he took up he went into it with his whole heart. He did exactly as he was told, and in every instance he arrived at the same result. Thus from actual experience, he came to know that God is unique. The goal of every religion is the same, that each is trying to teach the same thing, the difference being largely in method and more so in language.

Therefore he emphasized that through earnestness and yearning, all lovers of God will ultimately reach the same goal. His disciples followed this teaching of their Master (Sri Ramakrishna) and there are many instances in their lives when they supported and blessed non-Hindu devotees. Here are a few interesting anecdotes.

In January 1925, Swami Shivananda visited Cuddapah, a small town in the state Andhra Pradesh in India, where Hindu and Muslim devotees had together established ‘Ramakrishna Samaj’. Later the swami recalled his meeting with a highly esteemed muslim who had received the title of Khan Bahadur from the British Government. Khan Bahadur belonged to the Sufi sect of Islam but was very devoted to Sri Ramakrishna. Almost every morning and evening during the period of his stay, the swami found Khan Bahadur seated in a corner of the shrine room of the Samaj in deep humility, intently looking at the portrait of Sri Ramakrishna on the altar. He was convinced that the Prophet Muhammad was born as Sri Ramakrishna for the good of the world.

In September 1926, Swami Shivananda inaugurated the building of a new ashrama in Ootacamund. Learning that he was there, a muslim doctor and his family came all the way from Bombay to see him. In the course of the conversation, the doctor told the swami that his wife was particularly eager to speak to him. Subsequently, the doctor’s wife saluted the swami with great devotion and disclosed many intimate things relating to her spiritual life. Since childhood she had been a devotee of Krishna. She worshipped child Krishna and occasionally had visions of him. After reading about the life and teachings of Sri Ramakrishna, she became very much devoted to him. It was her conviction that her chosen deity Krishna was born again as Sri Ramakrishna. Swami Shivananda observed that she had profound love and devotion for Sri Ramakrishna. She was quite intense in her spiritual practices and Sri Ramakrishna had blessed her in many ways. While leaving she asked the swami to touch her head with his hand as it had once touched Sri Ramakrishna! Then she wept a lot. Swami Shivananda was greatly moved by her devotion and he told himself again and again, “Glory be unto the Lord! Blessed is Thy power.”

Sri Ramakrishna never encouraged a narrow outlook regarding religious faiths. Let us always remember his message, “As many faiths, so many paths.”

Lessons to learn from the lives of Sri Ramakrishna’s disciples – Part 6

In Part 5 we defined the meaning of ‘initiation’ (in a footnote) and how it helps a person in gaining spirituality. Of course, it is a very rudimentary definition since the writer of this blog is only a beginner in the path of spirituality and in no way be considered spiritually evolved. After writing the blog, we came across some good points about initiation that we wish to share in this part.

Swami Saradananda, a direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna, once told the monks about the role of Guru and how a real Guru takes responsibility for the spiritual growth of the disciple: “It is not easy to give initiation. You will have to work for your disciples. An illumined guru has to perform special japam for their inner growth and spiritual welfare. The relationship between the guru and disciple is established by God. The real guru takes the burden of his disciples. He works for them through silent prayer and meditation. He has no rest until all of them have become illumined.”1

It reminds the beautiful story of the Good Shepherd that Jesus Christ told his followers. A shepherd had 100 sheep. One day, one of the sheep strayed away. When the shepherd counted his sheep and found there were only 99, he left all those 99 sheep and went in search of his lost sheep. He would not rest until he found it and brought it back. God is like that shepherd. When people do bad things they are lost from God and it makes Him very sad. But He would keep calling them gently until they find their way and return to Him.

Some people get initiation but after sometime they lose interest and stop practicing japa and meditation. Once, a young monk told Swami Brahmananda that he is practicing japa and meditation mechanically and not getting any taste for it and asked what should be done. The swami said, “In the beginning it is best to form a routine and follow it strictly. It does not matter whether you like or dislike it. … Do it for a period of at least four years. …if you have not made tangible progress, come back and slap my face.”2

Swami Brahmananda also said, “The effect of holy company definitely yields positive results. A bee hidden in a flower offered in worship touches the feet of God. Similarly, by association with a holy man one surpasses even the gods and attains liberation.”3

We always aspire for the choicest food, finest clothes, best institutions to get educated and renowned organizations to work with. It is equally important to seek the company of holy people.

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1,2,3 From the book God lived with them by Swami Chetanananda.

Lessons to learn from the lives of Sri Ramakrishna’s disciples – Part 5

Sri Ramakrishna looked upon every woman as the Blissful Mother – the Divine Mother, Goddess Kali. He would stand before those women whom society would not touch, and falling at their feet bathed in tears, saying, "Mother, in one form Thou art in the street, and in another form Thou art the universe. I salute Thee, Mother, I salute Thee."

Swami Vivekananda says, “Think of the blessedness of that life from which all carnality has vanished, which can look upon every woman with that love and reverence when every woman's face becomes transfigured, and only the face of the Divine Mother, the Blissful One, the Protectress of the human race, shines upon it!”

Only when one develops such an attitude it becomes possible to forgive and bless even people who have wandered from the path of virtue.

In Part 3 of this series we presented anecdotes from the life of Swami Brahmananda to show how he carried forward this attitude of Sri Ramakrishna and blessed even the sinners. Here is an episode from the life of Swami Shivananda expressing a similar attitude:

One morning Swami Shivananda (known as Mahapurush) was sitting on his cot. He seemed solemn and indrawn but suddenly said to the attendant standing near, “Will you go and see if there is someone who wants initiation?”1 When the attendant went out, he found a young woman from a village who wanted initiation. However, when enquired, he found out that she had kept bad company and gone astray, and had led a sinful life. In a sad tone she asked, “May I not see him [Mahapurushji] once?”

When the attendant returned, Swami Shivananda asked very earnestly, “Tell me, is someone there?” The attendant replied very reluctantly, “Maharaj it is a lady who wants initiation, but…” Mahapurush remarked, “What of that? Ask her to bathe in the Ganges and come to me after visiting the shrine. Sri Ramakrishna is the redeemer of the fallen. He came especially to uplift them. What will happen to them if he does not come to their rescue? One could not then call him the savior of the fallen.”

When the woman came to him after bath for initiation, he spoke to her as if he knew everything about her life: “What is there to fear, my daughter? You will certainly be blessed since you have taken refuge in Sri Ramakrishna, our Master and savior. Say this, 'Whatever sins I have committed in this life and in lives past, I offer them here [i.e., to the Master] and I will sin no more.' ” After initiation, the woman appeared to be an altogether new person.

There is a saying, “Every saint has a past, every sinner has a future.” An illumined guru purifies the minds of impure souls.

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1Initiation is the process of providing a mantra to a devotee who wants to get initiated into spiritual life. The mantra is usually the name of a God whom the Guru (spiritual teacher) thinks ideal for that specific devotee. Reciting the mantra kindles the spiritual fire in the devotee. As a small seed in course of time becomes a huge tree, cultivation of the habit of regular recitation of the mantra at specific hours of a day will yield great results in course of time. Readers who are hearing this for the first time may wonder whether it is really necessary to get such an initiation. Is it not sufficient to recite the name of my favorite God? In a majority of the cases, the Guru may suggest the name of one’s favorite God as the mantra for the devotee. But there may be some exceptions as well. The difference between them is exactly the same as taking the medicine prescribed by an expert physician after consultation and taking something of one’s choice and hoping that it will cure the illness. Another advantage in getting the mantra from a great Guru is that it is very powerful and yields great results even with little effort (even if it is the same as the one already being used for japa).

The most important point in the whole process is trust. The devotee should have complete faith in the Guru and recite the mantra regularly. Readers of this blog interested in getting such an initiation should contact the nearest branch of Ramakrishna Mission. Most of the branches have websites and one may even get information by writing to a branch of their choice.

Lessons to learn from the lives of Sri Ramakrishna’s disciples – Part 4

Mysterious is the divine will. A washerman donated two acres of land for setting up a branch of Ramakrishna Math! It happened in Nilgiri Hills, Tamil Nadu, India.

Swami Shivananda, revered as Mahapurush Maharaj, was a direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna. Once when he was at Madras he contracted malaria and the doctors advised him to rest at a cool place. Accordingly, arrangements were made to send him to Springfield near Kunoor in Nilgiri Hills. When he went there he liked the place and wanted to open a centre there for the monks to practice sadhana.

God decided to fulfill His devotee’s wish. A washerman had a dream in which his chosen deity, Sitala, said to him, ‘Very soon some people will come to you for a piece of land to establish a monastry. Be sure to give them what they want.’ On getting this dream for three consecutive nights, he thought, ‘Nobody is coming to me for land.’ One day while searching for the land, the local devotees met the washerman and told him what they were looking for. Immediately he said, ‘For all these days I have been searching for you. Please come along and take two acres of land from my 22 acres.’ Forthwith, he executed a registered deed of transfer for it. Detailed plans were then made so that an ashrama could be established quickly.

True indeed are the words of Swami Vivekananda: “Are you unselfish? Then God is with you.”

Lessons to learn from the lives of Sri Ramakrishna’s disciples – Part 3

The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna quotes Sri Ramakrishna’s words regarding sin: “He who says day and night, ‘I am a sinner, I am a sinner’ verily becomes a sinner.” “One should have such burning faith in God that one can say, ‘What? I have repeated the name of God, and can sin still cling to me?” “If a man repeats the name of God, his body, mind, and everything becomes pure.”

Swami Brahmananda upheld his master’s views regarding sin and sinners. Once he said to a monk, “If you can’t make a bad man good, why did you become a monk?” He was a friend and savior of the dejected, fallen, and lowly. Tara, an actress, described in her memoirs how Brahmananda’s love and blessings changed her life. Once she was depressed and restless, and life seemed unbearable to her. In such an unhappy state of mind, she went to Belur Math with Binodini, another actress of Bengal. It was past noon when they reached the Math. Swami Brahmananda had finished his lunch and was about to go to his room to rest. At that moment, the two ladies went and prostrated before him. Maharaj (Swami Brahmananda was referred that way) said, “Hello, Binode! Hello, Tara! So you have come! You are too late. We have finished our lunch. You should have let us know that you were coming.”

They could see how worried he was about them. He immediately ordered fruit prasad, and arrangements were made to fry luchis for them. They first went to the shrine and then had prasad, and afterwards were shown around the Math by a swami. Maharaj did not have his rest that day.

Tara wrote that although she had reverence for holy men, faith and respect, the thought that she was impure – a fallen woman, put fear in her heart. Hence when she touched Swami Brahmananda’s feet, she did it with much hesitation. Maharaj asked her, “Why don’t you come here often?” She replied, “I was afraid to come to the Math.” Maharaj said with great earnestness, “Fear? You are coming to Sri Ramakrishna. What fear can there be? All of us are his children. Don’t be afraid. Whenever you wish, come here. Daughter, the Lord does not care about the externals. He sees our inmost heart. There should be no fear in approaching Him.” She could not hold back her tears. Her lifelong sorrow melted as the tears fell from her eyes, and she realized: “Here is my refuge. Here is someone to whom I am not a sinner, I am not an outcast.”

Once Swami Brahmananda told a young man who had committed an immoral act [probably adultery] and was ashamed to show his face, “Look, if a mosquito sits on the horn of a buffalo does it feel it or register any pain? Know us to be like that.”

Another time he said, “Remove all fear and weakness from your mind. Never debase yourself by thinking about sin. Sin, however great it may seem in the eyes of man, is nothing in the eyes of God. One glance of His can uproot the sins of millions of births in a moment. In order to divert human beings from the path of sin, scriptures mention heavy punishments for the sinner. Of course every action bears a result, and evil actions disturb one’s peace of mind.”

Let us always remember these precious words of Sri Ramakrishna, “God is our Father and Mother. Tell Him, ‘O Lord, I have committed sins, but I won’t repeat them.’ Chant His name, and purify your body and mind. Purify your tongue by singing God’s holy name.”

And pray earnestly as Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi had said, “If a child dirties up the floor or the clothes of its mother, will the mother discard the child as bad? She will only clean the child and lifts it up. The same holds true of God as well. God will forgive you for all your mistakes if only you pray earnestly.”

Lessons to learn from the lives of Sri Ramakrishna’s disciples – Part 2

In this blog we narrate an interesting episode from the life of Swami Brahmananda, who was revered as the spiritual son of Sri Ramakrishna. Swami Brahmananda was a spiritual giant and President of the Ramakrishna Mission for more than 20 years.

After the passing away of Sri Ramakrishna in 1886 and until the formation of the Ramakrishna Order in 1897, Sri Ramakrishna's monastic disciples went to various holy places of India as wandering monks to practise sadhana. Sometime in 1893, Swami Brahmananda was on pilgrimage to Brindavan and other holy places of north India. He was accompanied by Swami Turiyananda. One day, when they were in Ayodya, Swami Turiyananda went to beg for food and was given some boiled kachu (an edible root). As soon as they had eaten, their throats began to sting and burn, and gradually their mouths and tongues swelled. Swami Turiyananda ran in search of lemon, an antidote for the allergy. It was out of season, but still he found a lime grove and after careful searching found a lemon in one of the trees and with the permission of the owner of the grove, took the fruit and ran to Swami Brahmananda. It immediately relieved his painful throat.

That night Brahmananda lamented, addressing Sri Ramakrishna, “Master, why did you take me from home if you could not provide a morsel of food? Tomorrow morning if I get hot kichuri [rice and lentils cooked together] and pickles, I shall understand that you are with me.”

The next morning the swamis went to bathe in Sarayu River. A monk arrived and said to Brahmananda: “Swami, I understand that both of you fasted yesterday. Please come to my cottage and have some prasad which I offered to Lord Rama.” The monk served hot kichuri and pickle to the swamis. They greatly enjoyed the meal. The monk then said: “Blessed am I! For the last 24 years I have been practicing sadhana here to have a vision or hear the voice of Lord Rama. Today the Lord has blessed me.” Tears trickled from the eyes of the monk. At Brahmananda’s request, the monk elaborated: “While I was sleeping last night, I saw Lord Rama touched my body with his soft hand and said: ‘Get up. I am hungry. Cook kichuri and offer it to me. Tomorrow morning you will see two devotees bathing at the ghat of Sarayu River. They are fasting. Offer my prasad to them.’ It is by your grace I had the vision of Lord Rama.”

While returning to their cottage, Brahmananda related to Turiyananda the mystery behind the incident.

This anecdote is mentioned in the book God lived with them by Swami Chetanananda (published by Advaitha Ashrama). God, indeed, lives with the devotees and answers their earnest prayers.

The devotee, in turn, should have unshakable faith -- not only in God but also in his/her abilities. As Swami Vivekananda says, “Faith, faith, faith in ourselves, faith in God - this is the secret of greatness. If you have faith in three hundred and thirty million of your mythological gods, and in all the gods which foreigners have introduced into your midst, and still have no faith in yourselves, there is no salvation for you. Have faith in yourselves and stand upon that faith and be strong.”

Lessons to learn from the lives of Sri Ramakrishna’s disciples – Part 1

Ganappa is one-year old today! In celebration of the first anniversary, we wish to present a series of articles providing interesting episodes from the lives of Sri Ramakrishna’s disciples.

Humility is the hallmark of nobility. It is the greatest of all the noble virtues. Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa practiced humility in his life and also instilled this noble quality in the lives of his disciples. When Keshab Chandra Sen asked him how he looked upon himself, he told, “I am the dust of the dust of your feet.” Every one of his monastic disciples without exception had imbibed this quality of their master.

Swami Vivekananda, the foremost disciple of Sri Ramakrishna, stated about the uniqueness of his guru: “The man at whose feet I sat all my life – and it was only a few ideas of his I try to teach – could [hardly] write his name at all. All my life I have not seen another man like that, and I have travelled all over the world. When I think of that man, I feel like a fool, because I wanted to read books and he never did… He was his own book.”

Swami Vivekananda once paid a touching tribute to Sri Ramakrishna as follows: “my teacher, my master, my hero, my ideal, my God in life.” “If there has been anything achieved by me,” he said with deep feeling, “by thoughts, or words or deeds, if from my lips has ever fallen one word that has ever helped anyone in this world, I lay no claim to it; it was his. But if there have been curses falling from my lips, if there has been hatred coming out of me, it is all mine, and not his. All that has been weak has been mine; all that has been life-giving, strengthening, pure and holy has been his inspiration, his words, and he himself. Yes, my friends, the world has yet to know that man.”

There may be many students who think highly of their teachers. But for a world-renowned saint as Swami Vivekananda (about whom John Wright, a professor of Harvard University, wrote  “Here is a man more learned than all our learned professors put together.”) to think and say such words, it shows his extraordinary humility.

Condemn not...

People brought a woman who had committed adultery to Jesus Christ. They told him, “This woman has led an impure life. According to Moses, such people should be killed by hitting them with stones. What do you say?” Without looking at them, Jesus was writing on the floor with his feet. They again insisted, “What do you say?” Jesus said, “Ok, the punishment may be carried out. But the first stone should be thrown by the one among you who has not committed any sin.” He again continued to write on the floor with his feet. There was silence and when he raised his head after a few minutes all had left except for that woman, who was looking with amazement at the whole thing. She wept and fell at his feet asking for forgiveness. He told her that she will be forgiven and asked her not to sin anymore.

Although everybody was eager to throw stones, there was no one to throw the first stone. Why? There was no one in the crowd who had not sinned.

Here is an episode that happened in the life of Swami Vivekananda. Once the Swamiji was invited by Raja Ajit Singh of Khetri to visit him and bless his new born son. Swamiji consented and went to Khetri to attend the birthday function. One evening, the maharaja invited him to attend a dance performance in his palace. However, Swami Vivekananda sent word that, as a monk, he was not permitted to enjoy secular pleasures. The girl who was supposed to give the dance performance was hurt when she heard the message and sang the following song, which reached the Swamiji’s ears:

Look not, O Lord, upon my sins!
Is not same-sightedness Thy name?
One piece of iron is in the image in the temple,
And another, the knife in the hand of the butcher;
Yet both of these are turned to gold
When touched by the philosophers’ stone.
So, Lord, look not upon my evil qualities…

Swamiji was greatly moved. This dancer, whom society condemned as impure, had taught him a great lesson: Brahman, the ever-pure, ever-free, ever-illumined, is the essence of all beings. He immediately realized his mistake and joined the party. He later said, “That incident removed the scales from my eyes. Seeing that all are indeed the manifestation of the One, I could no longer condemn anybody.”

Let us never forget the eternal message of Vedanta:

As the different streams having their sources in different places all mingle their water in the sea, so, O Lord, the different paths which men take, through different tendencies, various though they may appear, crooked or straight, all lead to Thee.

Vishwaroopa of Lord Sri Ramachandra

During the Mahabharata war, Lord Krishna showed his vishwaroopa (superhuman appearance) in the battlefield of Kurukshetra and preached the Bhagavad Gita to Arjuna to convince him to fight the battle. This, I think, is known to majority of the Indians or, at least, to most of the Hindus.

Have you heard of the vishwaroopa of Lord Sri Ram? Purandara dasa, a great devotee of Vishnu and composer of Carnatic music (from Karnataka state, India), talks about the vishwaroopa of Lord Sri Ram in one of his songs. According to the song, Lord Rama showed his vishwaroopa on the battlefield, during the Ram–Ravan war at Lanka.

In the epic Ramayana, when Lord Sri Ram’s wife Sri Sita was abducted by Ravana in the forest, he took monkey-king Sugreeva’s help to rescue Sri Sita. Sugreeva being a monkey-king, his army comprised of monkeys and bears and Ravana’s army was comprised of raakshasas.

Poet-saint Purandara Dasa mentions in a song that when Ravana entered the battlefield and started fighting, the monkeys and bears saw his amazing power and started running away from the battlefield. Understanding their panic, Lord Sri Ram decided that he should not remain a human anymore. He displayed his divinity (superhuman nature) by becoming every being in the battlefield. As a result, every raakshasa on Ravana’s side saw the raakshasa in front of him as Lord Sri Ram and he being their enemy the raakshasas started killing each other.

What happened on the other side of the battlefield? Sugreeva’s army comprising monkeys and bears also saw Lord Sri Ram. Each monkey and bear saw the monkey or bear in front of him as Lord Sri Ram. For them it was a sight to behold, the man of their dreams standing in front of them. Overwhelmed with joy, the monkeys and bears hugged each other and started dancing. So, at the end, everyone in the battlefield saw in front of him Lord Sri Ram only.

Although it was the same Lord Sri Ram who appeared in every being on the battlefield, the raakshasas wanted to kill him as they considered him as their enemy, whereas the monkeys and bears wanted to embrace him as he was their friend. What a beautiful thought Purandara dasa, the composer of the song, had? The song goes like this:

“When you see there, it is Rama
 When you see here, it is Rama
 Wherever you see, only Rama is present (in the battlefield)…”

Even if God appears in front of a person, he will appear like a demon if that person has devilish tendencies. On the other hand, to those who are good, everyone will appear as divine and they would look upon every being as their own.

How nice it will be if we can visualize what Purandara dasa was able to see…


R. Padma

Honey bee versus House fly

Honey bees always alight only on flowers and suck the honey. They never sit on filth. They will never alight on anything else but flowers.

House fly will sometimes sit on sweetmeat, sometimes on a rotting wound, and will also sit on filth. It will feed on any of these things.

The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna says “Those who are able to devote their minds constantly on God are like bees which light only on flowers and sip their honey. Those who live in the world, in the midst of ‘woman and gold’, may direct their attention to God; but their minds dwell also on ‘woman and gold’. They are like common flies, which light on a piece of candy, then on a sore or filth.”

Lust and greed are the villans. Careful choices would transform house flies into honey bees. That is the power of being a human. Everything is in the mind. Whenever the mind aspires for something lowly, chide it and say “What a shame? Should I remain a house fly and sit on filth? I have the power to become a honey bee. I will become a honey bee.”

Each soul is potentially divine. The goal is to manifest this divinity within, by controlling nature, external or internal. Do this either by work, or worship, or psychic control, or philosophy – by one, or more, or all of these – and be free.
– Swami Vivekananda

Manifest the divinity in you.

Guru Gobind Singh is alive

Guru Gobind Singh Ji infused the spirit of both sainthood and soldier in the minds and hearts of his followers to fight oppression in order to restore justice, peace, righteousness (Dharma) and to uplift the down-trodden people in this world.

Is it possible to be a saint and soldier at the same time? Are they not the two extremes of human personality? They seem to be so unless we see a live example. Once we see such an example, we will be even more amazed…

When I read the above blue-highlighted words in SikiWiki about Guru Gobind Singh, the 10th Guru of Sikhism, I felt those words are 100% true. Why? What made me say that it is one hundred percent true? Well, it is my personal experience. Although I am a Hindu, I am married to a Sikh and he symbolizes every word of the first paragraph of this article. My husband has a detached attitude towards life, more detached than any sanyasi. That doesn’t mean he is a recluse. He is lively, friendly, but has very simple habits – he lives on the simplest food and clothing. He has been postponing the purchase of a new bike for himself although his bike has become very old and everyday he has to travel 80 km to work and return home.

My husband has immense courage and never hesitates to fight for justice, peace and righteousness. Recently, he saw an auto-driver chasing/bullying a lady driving a car. My husband followed the auto-rickshaw and warned the driver severely. It would have left the auto-driver in such fear that he would never ever indulge in such eve-teasing. This is in spite of my husband having an average build and not knowing any martial art. I am convinced that courage of the mind is more powerful than physical strength.

Uplift of the downtrodden, yes, my husband donates whole-heartedly to almost every person who approaches him for charity. Financial assistance for educating orphan children, medical aid for poor, conducting the marriage of poor girls, providing livelihood for poor women by training them to stitch, and donating them sewing machine – these are some of the causes for which my husband had donated in the last few years. He is not rich, he doesn’t earn much, but he has a big heart.

I started to write an article on Guru Gobind Singh. Instead, I wrote all about my husband. Does it not show the power of Guru Gobind Singh? Both Wikipedia and Sikiwiki say that Guru Gobind Singh ji was born in 1666 at Patna, Bihar and died in 1708 at Nanded, Maharashtra. I disagree. Even 300 years after his death, if he is inspiring his followers to lead a life of purity, simplicity (saintliness), courage (soldier) to fight injustice, and kindness to help the poor and downtrodden, it only means that he did not die in 1708.

Guru Gobind Singh Ji is alive, he is living in every one of us who wish to follow his ideals, inspiring us, motivating us, and guiding us.

Do not criticize…

I have seen people commenting, “Just by going to temple, doing a pradakshina, and breaking a coconut, what do they achieve? They have no real love of God.’’

The first sign of pure devotion is tolerance. Do not criticize. Know that each and every individual is progressing. The progress is different for different people. If you do not want to break a coconut or put flowers for a picture or idol, it is your wish. You may worship in your own way. But do not criticize any form of worship unless it causes injury to another (for example, animal sacrifice).

Nothing goes waste. Even the one who breaks a coconut as a form of worship, with the intention that it will be useful for making chutney later on in the day, loses nothing. In fact, even such people are better compared to the person who buys a cigarette or alcohol with that money or puts fire to somebody’s house.

Even the person who goes to a temple as a matter of habit, rather than with pure devotion and love of God, is still better than a person who goes to a movie hall or spends time in useless internet chat.

In course of time, love and devotion for God will spring from the heart of that person who is doing those acts of breaking a coconut or visiting a holy place. The progress may be slow, but the path is not wrong.

Every one is progressing. The theory of evolution is true for every individual. If possible, guide them and show the light. But, do not criticize… because criticism often leads to bitterness and repulsion. Moreover, the time and money may go into wrong places as mentioned above (instead of buying coconut and flowers, they may buy cigarettes or alcohol; and instead of visiting a holy place, they may visit the wrong places). May be, this is what is happening now in the case of many individuals. They strayed away into a wrong path and ruined themselves.

Now there are people who break coconuts, visit holy places and do a lot of crime as well! What can we say about such people? One fine day, even such people will realize their folly and light will shine in their heart.

Time is precious. This human birth is very precious. Let us utilize every minute of our life in constructive activities.