From the Gospel – 1

We wish to present some highly inspiring passages from The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna. We trust a dose of the powerful words of the Master (Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa) everyday will be sufficient to kindle spirituality, renunciation, and earnestness to realize God as well as imparting discrimination to shun lust and greed.

According to Sri Ramakrishna, three qualities – pride, hatred, and fear – obstruct an aspirant in realizing God. Here are some words of the Master regarding pride:

Master: “Oh, how vanity turns a person’s head! There was a scavenger woman in the temple garden at Dakshineshwar. And her pride! And all because of a few ornaments. One day a few men were passing her on the path and she shouted to them, ‘Hey! Get out of the way, you people!’ If a scavenger woman can talk that way, what can one say about the vanity of others?”


“Rain-water never collects on a high mound; it collects only in low land. Similarly, the water of God's grace cannot remain on the high mound of egotism. Before God one should feel lowly and poor.

One should be extremely watchful. Even clothes create vanity. I notice that even a man suffering from an enlarged spleen sings Nidhu Babu's light songs when he is dressed up in a black-bordered cloth. There are men who spout English whenever they put on high boots. And when an unfit person puts on an ochre cloth he becomes vain; the slightest sign of indifference to him arouses his anger and pique.”

One day during the rainy season of 1881, Sri Ramakrishna and a number of devotees visited Surendra’s house…. Surendra approached the Master with a garland and wanted to put it around his neck. But the Master took it in his hand and threw it aside. Surendra’s pride was wounded and his eyes filled with tears. He went to the west porch and sat with Ram, Manomohan, and others. In a voice choked with sadness he said, “I am really angry. How can a poor Brahmin know the value of a thing like that? I spent a lot of money for that garland, and he refused to accept it. I was unable to control my anger and said that the other garlands were to be given away to the devotees. Now I realize it was all my fault. God cannot be bought with money; He cannot be possessed by a vain person. I have really been vain. Why should he accept my worship? I don’t feel like living any more.” Tears streamed down his cheeks and over his chest.

In the meantime, Trilokya was singing inside the room. The Master began to dance in an ecstasy of joy. He put around his neck the garland that he had thrown aside; holding it with one hand, he swung it with the other as he danced and sang. Now Surendra’s joy was unbounded. The Master had accepted his offering. Surendra said to himself, “God crushes one’s pride, no doubt, but He is also the cherished treasure of the humble and lowly.”

Pride, pride, pride. As mentioned in paragraph 2 above, there is no limit to the pride of people. Pride of good features, pride of youthfulness, pride of wealth, pride of good education, pride of charity, there is no end to the list of things that people pride over. Why, even the pride that “I am honest,” “I have never told a lie,” “I have not cheated anybody” will not let a person realize God. We have to keep a constant watch over our actions and should not let pride enter in any form.