From the Gospel – 17

MASTER: "For you, as Chaitanya said, the disciplines to be practised are kindness to living beings, service to the devotees, and chanting the name of God.”

(To Surendra) "Why do I say all this to you? You work in a merchant's office. I say this to you because you have many duties to perform there.

You tell lies at the office. Then why do I eat the food you offer me? Because you give your money in charity; you give away more than you earn. 'The seed of the melon is bigger than the fruit', as the saying goes.

I cannot eat anything offered by miserly people. Their wealth is squandered in these ways: first, litigation; second, thieves and robbers; third, physicians; fourth, their wicked children's extravagance. It is like that.

 

Your giving money away in charity is very good. Those who have money should give in charity. The miser's wealth is spirited away, but the money of the charitable person is saved. He spends it for a righteous purpose. At Kamarpukur I have seen the farmers cutting channels to irrigate their fields. Sometimes the water rushes in with such force that the ridges around the fields are washed away and the crops destroyed. For this reason the farmers make holes here and there in the ridges. Since the water escapes through the holes, the ridges are not destroyed by the rush of the water. Furthermore, the escaping water deposits soft clay in the fields, which increases their fertility and gives a richer crop. He who gives away in charity achieves great results. He achieves the four fruits: dharma, artha, kama, and moksha." 

The devotees listened with great attention to Sri Ramakrishna's words.

SURENDRA: "I cannot meditate well. I repeat the Divine Mother's name now and then. Lying in bed, I repeat Her name and fall asleep."

MASTER: "That is enough. You remember Her, don't you?

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Editor’s note: Instead of wasting money in law suits, or losing it to thieves and robbers, or spending it on medicines and doctor fees, it will be a wise step to donate money to a noble cause. How much ever less be the income, by spending at least 10% of the earning in charity, one gets the ticket for a safe and peaceful journey of life.