Message from the Gospel – 32. Sign of Perfect Knowledge

"There is a sign of Perfect Knowledge.  Man becomes silent when It is attained.  Then the 'I', which may be likened to the salt doll, melts in the Ocean of Existence-Knowledge-Bliss Absolute and becomes one with It.  Not the slightest trace of distinction is left.”

"As long as his self-analysis is not complete, man argues with much ado.  But he becomes silent when he completes it.  When the empty pitcher has been filled with water, when the water inside the pitcher becomes one with the water of the lake outside, no more sound is heard.  Sound comes from the pitcher as long as the pitcher is not filled with water.”

"People used to say in olden days that no boat returns after having once entered the 'black waters' of the ocean.”

"All trouble and botheration come to an end when the 'I' dies.  You may indulge in thousands of reasoning, but still the 'I' doesn't disappear.  For people like you and me, it is good to have the feeling, 'I am a lover of God.'”

Message from the Gospel – 31. Enjoy Fish Soup and Embrace a Young Woman

Do you think Sri Ramakrishna would have ever said that?

Worldly people are totally indifferent to God and spiritual practices. How to attract them to God? How to make them understand that they are wasting their precious human birth? Some trick should be played to divert people from their ignorant life full of hopeless materialistic pursuits.

About such people, Sri Ramakrishna says, "Many people visit the temple garden at Dakshineswar.  If I see some among the visitors indifferent to God, I say to them, 'You had better sit over there.' Or sometimes I say, 'Go and see the beautiful buildings.'" (Laughter.)

"Sometimes I find that the devotees of God are accompanied by worthless people.  Their companions are immersed in gross worldliness and don't enjoy spiritual talk at all.  Since the devotees keep on, for a long time, talking with me about God, the others become restless.  Finding it impossible to sit there any longer, they whisper to their devotee friends: 'When shall we be going? How long will you stay here?' The devotees say: 'Wait a bit.  We shall go after a little while.' Then the worldly people say in a disgusted tone: 'Well, then, you can talk.  We shall wait for you in the boat.'" (All laugh.)

"Worldly people will never listen to you if you ask them to renounce everything and devote themselves whole-heartedly to God.  Therefore Chaitanya and Nitai, after some deliberation, made an arrangement to attract the worldly.  They would say to such persons, 'Come, repeat the name of Hari, and you shall have a delicious soup of magur fish and the embrace of a young woman.' Many people, attracted by the fish and the woman, would chant the name of God.  After tasting a little of the nectar of God's hallowed name, they would soon realize that the 'fish soup' really meant the tears they shed for love of God, while the 'young woman' signified the earth.¹  The embrace of the woman meant rolling on the ground in the rapture of divine love."

"Nitai would employ any means to make people repeat Hari's name.  Chaitanya said: 'The name of God has very great sanctity.  It may not produce an immediate result, but one day it must bear fruit.  It is like a seed that has been left on the cornice of a building.  After many days, the house crumbles, and the seed falls on the earth, germinates, and at last bears fruit."

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¹ Mother Earth is considered to be a beautiful woman, ‘Booma Devi’, and is  believed to be the consort of Maha Vishnu. Rolling on the ground is therefore a form of embracing the beautiful Bhooma Devi.

Message from the Gospel – 30. How Long Should One Perform Spiritual Disciplines?

When love of God fills the heart, there is no more any need for reading the holy texts and scriptures. No need to perform austerities. No need of performing Sandhya Vandan or reciting of the Gayathri mantra. All these can be stopped when our eyes shed tears spontaneously on hearing the name of God or anything related to God, such as His kindness, love for His devotees, etc. Sri Ramakrishna describes this very beautifully with various examples.

 

"There are four stages of life: brahmacharya, garhasthya, Vanaprastha, and sannyas.  During the first three stages a man has to perform his worldly duties.  The sannyasi carries only his staff, water-pot, and begging-bowl.  He too may perform certain nityakarma, but his mind is not attached to it; he is not conscious of doing such work.  Some sannyasis perform nityakarma to set an example to the world.  If a householder or a man belonging to the other stages of life performs action without attachment, then he is united with God through such action.”

"In the case of a paramahamsa, like Sukadeva, all karmas – all puja, japa, tarpan, sandhya, and so forth – drop away.  In this state, a man communes with God through the mind alone.  Sometimes he may be pleased to perform outward activities for the welfare of mankind.  But his recollection and contemplation of God remain uninterrupted."

"It is by no means necessary for a man always to be engaged in his duties.  Actions drop away when one realizes, God, as the flower drops of itself when the fruit appears.” 

  

"He who has realized God no longer performs religious duties such as the sandhya.  In his case the sandhya merges in the Gayatri.  When that happens, it is enough for a person to repeat just the Gayatri mantra.  Then the Gayatri merges in Om.  After that one no longer chants even the Gayatri; it is enough then to chant simply Om.  How long should a man practise such devotions as the sandhya? As long as he does not feel a thrill in his body and shed tears of joy while repeating the name of Rāma or of Hari.  People worship God to win money or a lawsuit.  That is not good."

Sri Ramakrishna said: "When, hearing the name of Hari or Rāma once, you shed tears and your hair stands on end, then you may know for certain that you do not have to perform such devotions as the sandhya anymore.  Then only will you have a right to renounce rituals; or rather, rituals will drop away of themselves.  Then it will be enough if you repeat only the name of Rāma or Hari, or even simply Om." Continuing, he said, "The sandhya merges in the Gayatri, and the Gayatri merges in Om."

"Without having realized God one cannot give up rituals altogether. How long should one practise the sandhya and other forms of ritualistic worship? As long as one does not shed tears of joy at the name of God and feel a thrill in one's body. You will know that your ritualistic worship has come to an end when your eyes become filled with tears as you repeat 'Om Rāma'. Then you do not have to continue your sandhya or other rituals.”

"When the fruit appears, the blossom drops off. Love of God is the fruit, and rituals are the blossom. When the daughter-in-law of the house becomes pregnant, she cannot do much work. Her mother-in-law gradually lessens her duties in the house. When her time arrives she does practically nothing. And after the child is born her only work is to play with it. She doesn't do any household duties at all. The sandhya merges in the Gayatri, the Gayatri in Om, and, Om in samādhi. It is like the sound of a bell: t-a-m. The yogi, by following in the trail of the sound Om, gradually merges himself in the Supreme Brahman. His sandhya and other ritualistic duties disappear in samādhi. Thus the duties of the Jnāni come to an end."

As the Master talked of samādhi, he himself went into that state. His face radiated a heavenly light. Bereft of outer consciousness, he could not utter another word. His gaze was indrawn and transfixed in communion with the Self. After a long time the Master began to recognize the world around him.

A BRAHMO: "Sir, have you read the Panchadasi?"

MASTER: "At first one should hear books like that and indulge in reasoning.  But later on-

Cherish my precious Mother Syama
Tenderly within, O mind;
May you and I alone behold Her,
Letting no one else intrude.

"One should hear the scriptures during the early stages of spiritual discipline.  After attaining God there is no lack of knowledge.  Then the Divine Mother supplies it without fail.

"A child spells out every word as he writes, but later on he writes fluently. 

"The goldsmith is up and doing while melting gold.  As long as the gold hasn't melted, he works the bellows with one hand, moves the fan with the other, and blows through a pipe with his mouth.  But the moment the gold melts and is poured into the mould, he is relieved of all anxiety.

"Mere reading of the scriptures is not enough.  A person cannot understand the true significance of the scriptures if he is attached to the world. Though with intense delight I learnt many poems and dramas, I have forgotten them all, entrapped in Krishna's love.

A devotee described the Convocation of Calcutta University, saying that the meeting looked like a forest of human heads.

MASTER: "The feeling of the Divine is awakened in me when I see a great crowd of people.  Had I seen that meeting, I should have been overwhelmed with spiritual fervour."

Message from the Gospel – 29. Better than Reading…

MASTER (to the pundit): "There are many scriptures like the Vedas. But one cannot realize God without austerity and spiritual discipline. 'God cannot be found in the six systems, the Vedas, or the Tantra.'

"But one should learn the contents of the scriptures and then act according to their injunctions. A man lost a letter. He couldn't remember where he had left it. He began to search for it with a lamp. After two or three people had searched, the letter was at last found. The message in the letter was: 'Please send us five seers of sandesh and a piece of wearing-cloth.' The man read it and then threw the letter away. There was no further need of it; now all he had to do was to buy the five seers of sandesh and the piece of cloth."

"Better than reading is hearing, and better than hearing is seeing. One understands the scriptures better by hearing them from the lips of the guru or of a holy man. Then one doesn't have to think about their non-essential part."

Hanuman said: 'Brother, I don't know much about the phase of the moon or the position of the stars. I just contemplate Rāma.'

"But seeing is far better than hearing. Then all doubts disappear. It is true that many things are recorded in the scriptures; but all these are useless without the direct realization of God, without devotion to His Lotus Feet, without purity of heart. The almanac forecasts the rainfall of the year. But not a drop of water will you get by squeezing the almanac. No, not even one drop.

"How long should one reason about the texts of the scriptures? So long as one does not have direct realization of God. How long does the bee buzz about? As long as it is not sitting on a flower. No sooner does it light on a flower and begin to sip honey than it keeps quiet.

"But you must remember another thing. One may talk even after the realization of God. But then one talks only of God and of Divine Bliss. It is like a drunkard's crying, 'Victory to the Divine Mother!' He can hardly say anything else on account of his drunkenness. You can notice, too, that a bee makes an indistinct humming sound after having sipped the honey from a flower.

Message from the Gospel – 28. Don’t be Dogmatic

Dogmatic means arrogant or forceful assertion of unproved principles as if authoritative and unchallengeable. Sri Ramakrishna criticizes people who have dogmatice views regarding God and religion. He says, "With sincerity and earnestness one can realize God through all religions.  The Vaishnavas will realize God, and so will the Saktas, the Vedantists, and the Brahmos.  The Mussalmans and Christians will realize Him too.  All will certainly realize God if they are earnest and sincere.”

"Some people indulge in quarrels, saying, 'One cannot attain anything unless one worships our Krishna', or, 'Nothing can be gained without the worship of Kāli, our Divine Mother', or, 'One cannot be saved without accepting the Christian religion.' This is pure dogmatism.  The dogmatist says, 'My religion alone is true, and the religions of others are false.' This is a bad attitude.  God can be reached by different paths.”

"Further, some say that God has form and is not formless.  Thus they start quarrelling.  A Vaishnava quarrels with a Vedantist.”

"One can rightly speak of God only after one has seen Him.  He who has seen God knows really and truly that God has form and that He is formless as well.  He has many other aspects that cannot be described.”

"Once, some blind men chanced to come near an animal that someone told them was an elephant.  They were asked what the elephant was like.  The blind men began to feel its body.  One of them said the elephant was like a pillar; he had touched only its leg.  Another said it was like a winnowing-fan; he had touched only its ear.  In this way the others, having touched its tail or belly, gave their different versions of the elephant.  Just so, a man who has seen only one aspect of God limits God to that alone.  It is his conviction that God cannot be anything else.”

 

 (To the goswami) "How can you say that the only truth about God is that He has form? It is undoubtedly true that God comes down to earth in a human form, as in the case of Krishna.  And it is true as well that God reveals Himself to His devotees in various forms.  But it is also true that God is formless; He is the Indivisible Existence-Knowledge-Bliss Absolute.  He has been described in the Vedas both as formless and as endowed with form.  He is also described there both as attributeless and as endowed with attributes.”

"Do you know what I mean? Satchidananda is like an infinite ocean.  Intense cold freezes the water into ice, which floats on the ocean in blocks of various forms.  Likewise, through the cooling influence of bhakti, one sees forms of God in the Ocean of the Absolute.  These forms are meant for the bhaktas, the lovers of God.  But when the Sun of Knowledge rises, the ice melts; it becomes the same water it was before.  Water above and water below, everywhere nothing but water.  Therefore a prayer in the Bhagavata says: 'O Lord, Thou hast form, and Thou art also formless.  Thou walkest before us, O Lord, in the shape of a man; again, Thou hast been described in the Vedas as beyond words and thought.'”

"But you may say that for certain devotees God assumes eternal forms.  There are places in the ocean where the ice doesn't melt at all.  It assumes the form of quartz."

KEDĀR: "It is said in the Bhagavata that Vyāsa asked God's forgiveness for his three transgressions.  He said: 'O Lord, Thou art formless, but I have thought of Thee in my meditation as endowed with form; Thou art beyond speech, but I have sung Thee hymns; Thou art the All-pervading Spirit, but I have made pilgrimages to sacred places.  Be gracious, O Lord, and forgive these three transgressions of mine.'"

MASTER: "Yes, God has form and He is formless too.  Further, He is beyond both form and formlessness.  No one can limit Him."

Message from the Gospel – 27. Ever-Free Homa Bird

Sri Ramakrishna says that his disciples Narendra (later Swami Vivekananda) and Rakhal (later Swami Brahmananda) belong to the class of the ever-free.  He says, “They are never entangled in the world.  When they grow a little older they feel the awakening of inner consciousness and go directly toward God.  They come to the world only to teach others.  They never care for anything of the world.  They are never attached to 'woman and gold'.”

"The Vedas speak of the homa bird.  It lives high up in the sky and there it lays its egg.  As soon as the egg is laid it begins to fall; but it is so high up that it continues to fall for many days.  As it falls it hatches, and the chick falls.  As the chick falls, its eyes open; it grows wings.  As soon as its eyes open, it realizes that it is falling and will be dashed to pieces on touching the earth.  The moment it sees the ground, it turns and shoots up toward its mother in the sky.  Then its one goal is to reach its mother."

"Ah, what a nice character Rakhal has developed! Look at his face and every now and then you will notice his lips moving.  Inwardly he repeats the name of God, and so his lips move.”

 

"Youngsters like him belong to the class of the ever-perfect.  They are born with God-Consciousness.  No sooner do they grow a little older than they realize the danger of coming in contact with the world.” 

"Youngsters like Narendra and Rakhal are like that bird.  From their very childhood they are afraid of the world, and their one thought is how to reach the Mother, how to realize God.”

"You may ask, 'How is it possible for these boys, born of worldly parents and living among the worldly-minded, to develop such knowledge and devotion?' It can be explained.  If a pea falls into a heap of dung, it germinates into a pea-plant none the less.  The peas that grow on that plant serve many useful purposes.  Because it was sown in dung, will it produce another kind of plant?”

"Those who are born as the companions of an Incarnation of God are eternally perfect. For some of them that birth is the last.”

It may not be possible for everyone to be ever-free. But, by being aware of it and reminding oneself about it, and also aspiring for it, it may be possible to move a little closer to the goal.