Message from the Gospel – 8. Discrimination about Food

After presenting some lofty ideals of Sri Ramakrishna, I decided to present some lighter ideas before getting back to heavy subjects again. One such being the choice of food. Some people are extremely fussy about food. I have seen people saying, “I can eat only that and that. I can’t eat this.” Or, “If I eat this, this will happen. If I eat that, something else will happen!” I have also seen another type of people who eat peacefully whatever is given to them. I believe I belong to this second category and never complain about food. So, I used to wonder why people make so much fuss about food. Although I said “I never complain about food”, I must add to that “most of the time”. This is because, I am 100% vegetarian, no eggs even. So, here my discrimination starts! Now, compared to people who may eat eggs and non-veg, I am fussy isn’t it? I used to think, “The more fuss you make about food (or about anything else) the more miserable is your life” but only until I read Sri Ramakrishna’s message in the Gospel regarding food.

There is a discussion about this topic in the Gospel, which will help us understand all about food choices.

MASTER (to Vijay and the other devotees): "A man brought a bottle of consecrated wine for me; but I couldn't even touch it."

VIJAY: "Ah!"

MASTER: "I become intoxicated at the mere thought of God. I don't have to take any wine. I feel drunk at the very sight of the charanamrita. I feel as if I had drunk five bottles of liquor. When a person attains such a state he cannot help discriminating about food."

NARENDRA: "As regards food, one should take whatever comes."

MASTER: "What you say applies only to a particular state of the aspirant's mind. No food can harm a Jnāni.

According to the Gitā, the Jnāni himself does not eat; his eating is an offering to the Kundalini. But that does not apply to a bhakta. The present state of my mind is such that I cannot eat any food unless it is first offered to God by a brahmin priest. Formerly my state of mind was such that I would enjoy inhaling the smell of burning corpses, carried by the wind from the other side of the Ganges. It tasted very sweet to me. But nowadays I cannot eat food touched by anybody and everybody. No, I cannot. But once in a while I do. One day I was taken to see a performance of a play at Keshab's house. They gave me luchi and curries to eat. I didn't know whether the food was handed to me by a washerman or a barber; but I ate quite a little (all laugh).  Rākhāl  had asked me to eat."

(To Narendra) "With you it is all right. You are in 'this' as well as in 'that'. You can eat everything now. (To the devotees) Blessed is he who feels longing for God, though he eats pork. But shame on him whose mind dwells on 'woman and gold', though he eats the purest food – boiled vegetables, rice, and ghee."

Even though, in the above discussion, Narendra (later Swami Vivekananda) said, “One should take whatever comes”, later in his life, he also went through a stage when he felt highly repulsive about certain foods and also about food cooked by certain people.

On another occasion, Narendra told Sri Ramakrishna, referring to Bhavanath (a young devotee), "He has given up fish and betel-leaf."

MASTER: "Why so? What is the matter with fish and betel-leaf? They aren't harmful.  The renunciation of 'woman and gold' is the true renunciation.

The message from the above discussion is that ‘eating’ and ‘not eating’ are just different stages of evolution of life and we may simply accept them without getting unduly concerned about either. Giving up eating some food may imply some amount of self-control but in no way implies true renunciation. As Sri Ramakrishna emphasizes, renunciation of 'woman and gold' is the true renunciation.

Message from the Gospel – 7. Exercise Caution

It is God alone who has become everything. But that doesn’t mean that one should embrace a lion or befriend a fox. Although God dwells in everything, the magnitude of His manifestation is different in different beings. Sri Ramakrishna explains this with a beautiful story.

"In a forest there lived a holy man who had many disciples.  One day he taught them to see God in all beings and, knowing this, to bow low before them all.  A disciple went to the forest to gather wood for the sacrificial fire.  Suddenly he heard an outcry: 'Get out of the way! A mad elephant is coming!' All but the disciple of the holy man took to their heels.  He reasoned that the elephant was also God in another form.  Then why should he run away from it? He stood still, bowed before the animal, and began to sing its praises.  The mahut of the elephant was shouting: 'Run away! Run away!' But the disciple didn't move.  The animal seized him with its trunk, cast him to one side, and went on its way.  Hurt and bruised, the disciple lay unconscious on the ground.  Hearing what had happened, his teacher and his brother disciples came to him and carried him to the hermitage.  With the help of some medicine he soon regained consciousness.  Someone asked him, 'You knew the elephant was coming - why didn't you leave the place?' 'But', he said, 'our teacher has told us that God Himself has taken all these forms, of animals as well as men.  Therefore, thinking it was only the elephant God that was coming, I didn't run away.' At this the teacher said: 'Yes, my child, it is true that the elephant God was coming; but the mahut God forbade you to stay there.  Since all are manifestations of God, why didn't you trust the mahut's words? You should have heeded the words of the mahut God.'

God dwells in all beings.  But you may be intimate only with good people; you must keep away from the evil-minded.  God is even in the tiger; but you cannot embrace the tiger on that account.  You may say, 'Why run away from a tiger, which is also a manifestation of God?' The answer to that is: 'Those who tell you to run away are also manifestations of God - and why shouldn't you listen to them?'

"It is said in the scriptures that water is a form of God.  But some water is fit to be used for worship, some water for washing the face, and some only for washing plates or dirty linen.  This last sort cannot be used for drinking or for a holy purpose.  In like manner, God undoubtedly dwells in the hearts of all - holy and unholy, righteous and unrighteous; but a man should not have dealings with the unholy, the wicked, the impure.  He must not be intimate with them.  With some of them he may exchange words, but with others he shouldn't go even that far.  He should keep aloof from such people."

Sri Ramakrishna says further, "One must be careful about these few things. First, an influential man who has much money and many men under his control. He can injure you if he wants; you must be careful while talking to him; perhaps you may have to approve what he says. Second, a dog. When it chases you or barks at you, you must stand still, talk to it gently, and pacify it. Third, a bull. If it runs after you with lowered horns, you must calm it with a gentle voice. Fourth, a drunkard. If you arouse his anger, he will abuse you, naming fourteen generations of your family. You should say to him: 'Hello uncle! How are you?' Then he will be mightily pleased and sit by you and smoke.

"In the presence of a wicked person I become alert. If such a man asks me whether I have a pipe for smoking, I say, 'Yes, I have.' Some people have the nature of a snake: they will bite you without warning. You have to discriminate a great deal in order to avoid the bite; otherwise your passion will be stirred up to such an extent that you will feel like doing injury in return. The companionship of a holy man is greatly needed now and then. It enables one to discriminate between the Real and the unreal."

May God bless us holy company and wise guidance.

Message from Gospel – 6. God Alone Has Become Everything

Sri Ramakrishna says, “At first one discriminates, 'Not this, not this', and feels that God alone is real and all else is illusory.  Afterwards the same person finds that it is God Himself who has become all this – the universe, maya, and the living beings.  First negation and then affirmation.  This is the view held by the Puranas.  A vilwa-fruit, for instance, includes flesh, seeds, and shell.  You get the flesh by discarding the shell and seeds.  But if you want to know the weight of the fruit, you cannot find it if you discard the shell and seeds.  Just so, one should attain Sarchidananda by negating the universe and its living beings.  But after the attainment of Satchidananda one finds that Satchidananda Itself has become the universe and the living beings.  It is of one substance that the flesh and the shell and seeds are made, just like butter and buttermilk.”

“During the period of struggle one should follow the method of discrimination-'Not this, not this'-and direct the whole mind to God.  But the state of perfection is quite different.  After reaching God one reaffirms what formerly one denied.  To extract butter you must separate it from the buttermilk.  Then you discover that butter and buttermilk are intrinsically related to one another.  They belong to the same stuff.  The butter is not essentially different from the buttermilk, nor the buttermilk essentially different from the butter.  After realizing God one knows definitely that it is He who has become everything.  In some objects He is manifested more clearly, and in others less clearly.”

"When a flood comes from the ocean, all the land is deep under water.  Before the flood, the boat could have reached the ocean only by following the winding course of the river.  But after the flood, one can row straight to the ocean.  One need not take a roundabout course.  After the harvest has been reaped, one need not take the roundabout course along the balk of the field.  One can cross the field at any point.”

"After the realization of God, He is seen in all beings.  But His greater manifestation is in man.  Again, among men, God manifests Himself more clearly in those devotees who are sattvic, in those who have no desire whatever to enjoy 'woman and gold'.  Where can a man of samādhi rest his mind, after coming down from the plane of samādhi? That is why he feels the need of seeking the company of pure-hearted devotees, endowed with sattva and free from attachment to 'woman and gold'.  How else could such a person occupy himself in the relative plane of consciousness?”

"He who is Brahman is the Ādyāśakti, the Primal Energy.  When inactive He is called Brahman, the Purusha; He is called Śakti, or Prakriti, when engaged in creation, preservation, and destruction.  These are the two aspects of Reality: Purusha and Prakriti.  He who is the Purusha is also Prakriti.  Both are the embodiment of Bliss.”

"If you are aware of the Male Principle, you cannot ignore the Female Principle: He who is aware of the father must also think of the mother. He who knows darkness also knows light.  He who knows night also knows day.  He who knows happiness also knows misery.”

“Satchidananda Itself has become the universe and the living beings. It may be asked, 'How has Satchidananda become so hard?' This earth does indeed feel very hard to the touch.  The answer is that blood and semen are thin liquids, and yet out of them comes such a big creature as man.  Everything is possible for God.  First of all reach the indivisible Satchidananda, and then, coming down, look at the universe.  You will then find that everything is Its manifestation.  It is God alone who has become everything.  The world by no means exists apart from Him.”

"All elements finally merge in Ākāśa.  Again, at the time of creation, Ākāśa evolves into mahat and mahat into Ahamkāra.  In this way the whole world-system is evolved.  It is the process of involution and evolution.  A devotee of God accepts everything.  He accepts the universe and its created beings as well as the indivisible Satchidananda.”

"God alone is the Master, and again, He is the Servant.  This attitude indicates Perfect Knowledge.”

Message from the Gospel – 5. Discrimination and Dispassion Are the Protective Shields

When a human being travels through the ocean of life, there is a danger of being attacked by the alligators such as lust and greed. How to save oneself from the alligators? Sri Ramakrishna says, smear your body with turmeric before diving in – the turmeric of discrimination and dispassion.

To the question, "What is discrimination?" by a devotee, Sri Ramakrishna answers, "Discrimination is the reasoning by which one knows that God alone is real and all else is unreal.  Real means eternal, and unreal means impermanent.  He who has acquired discrimination knows that God is the only Substance and all else is non-existent.  With the awakening of this spirit of discrimination a man wants to know God.  On the contrary, if a man loves the unreal – such things as creature comforts, name, fame, and wealth, then he doesn't want to know God, who is of the very nature of Reality.  Through discrimination between the Real and the unreal one seeks to know God.”

He says further, "'Woman and gold' is impermanent.  God is the only Eternal Substance.  What does a man get with money? Food, clothes, and a dwelling-place - nothing more.  You cannot realize God with its help.  Therefore money can never be the goal of life.  That is the process of discrimination.

 

Consider - what is there in money or in a beautiful body? Discriminate and you will find that even the body of a beautiful woman consists of bones, flesh, fat, and other disagreeable things.  Why should a man give up God and direct his attention to such things? Why should a man forget God for their sake?"

Regarding dispassion, Sri Ramakrishna says, "If you want to realize God, then you must cultivate intense dispassion. You must renounce immediately what you feel to be standing in your way. You should not put it off till the future. 'Woman and gold' is the obstruction. The mind must be withdrawn from it.”

On another occasion he explains, "Do all your duties, but keep your mind on God.  Live with all – with wife and children, father and mother – and serve them.  Treat them as if they were very dear to you, but know in your heart of hearts that they do not belong to you."

"A maidservant in the house of a rich man performs all the household duties, but her thoughts are fixed on her own home in her native village.  She brings up her Master's children as if they were her own.  She even speaks of them as 'my Rāma' or 'my Hari'.  But in her own mind she knows very well that they do not belong to her at all.”

Attachment brings bondage. Non-attachment ensures freedom. Therefore, says Sri Ramakrishna, “When you plunge in the water of the ocean, you may be attacked by alligators.  But they won't touch you if your body is smeared with turmeric.  There are no doubt six alligators - lust, anger, avarice, so on¹ - within you, in the 'heart's fathomless depths'.  But protect yourself with the turmeric of discrimination and renunciation, and they won't touch you.” 

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¹The six passions of the mind or the six enemies that ruin a human being are lust, anger, avarice (greed), blind attachment, pride, and jealousy.

Was Sri Krishna Guileful?

The word ‘Guile’ has the following meanings listed in Word 2010: Cunning, Astuteness, Treachery, Slyness, Wiliness, Cleverness, Craftiness, and Deviousness. ‘A guileful person’ may be taken to mean a person marked by skill in deception.

Sri Ramakrishna says, “A man of guile will never be able to realize God” (see Ganappa blog, Message from the Gospel -1. Do not Pretend). This message was fresh on my mind when I was reading the chapter titled ‘Krishna’s Guile’ in the book, The Difficulty of Being Good by Gurcharan Das. The book reviews some of the main characters of the great Indian epic Mahabharata in the context of their role toward upholding dharma. The chapters of the book have been titled Yudhishthira’s  Duty, Draupadi’s Courage, Arjuna’s Despair, and Bhishma’s Selflessness, etc.

The chapter titled ‘Krishna’s Guile’ discusses how the main warriors of the Kaurava side were killed one-by-one by unfair tricks and how Krishna master-minded each one of those killings. For example, on the 12^th day of the Kurukshetra war, Arjuna pierces Bhishma with 25 arrows keeping Shikandi in front knowing that Bhishma would not fight Shikandi as Shikandi was a woman in a previous birth. (Bhishma did not die immediately as he had a boon to choose his time of death.) On the 15^th day of war, Drona was misinformed that his son Ashwattama had been killed, whereas it was indeed an elephant of the same name. Krishna forces Yudhishthira to tell this lie by trusting which Drona lays down his armour and sits down to meditate. Dhrishtadyumna utilizes that moment and kills the unarmed Drona. On the 17^th day of war, when Karna was trying to lift the sunken wheel of his chariot caught in a slush of water, Krishna asks Arjuna not to miss the moment but to strike him. Although Arjuna did not want to take advantage of Karna’s moment of distress, Krishna urges Arjuna to finish the enemy. On the final 18^th day of war, Bhima strikes Duryodhana’s thigh with the maze and wins the duel. (In a fair combat, the opponent should not be hit below the navel.) Then the war ends.

Even though all this was known to me, I had looked upon them as a necessity. My line of thinking used to be, “Kauravas were bad. They had to be killed by all means.” However, after reading the chapter, ‘Krishna’s Guile’, I felt very much disturbed. Was Krishna guileful?

The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna quotes a song that Sri Ramakrishna used to sing. In the song Sri Krishna tells a cowherd girl Chandravali that He would not hesitate to grant moksha (salvation = no more birth) to His devotees but He would hesitate to grant bhakti (pure love). The reason being, owing to the pure love of King Vali, He is standing as His door-keeper in the Hell and, again, due to the love of the pure-hearted cowherd boys of Vrindaban, He had to lift the Govardhan mountain to protect them.

I had always perceived Sri Krishna as a God of exceptional love and compassion, who became a charioteer for the sake of His friend Arjuna but the book is calling Him guileful. Then what about Sri Ramakrishna’s message that a man of guile will never be able to realize God? Sri Krishna, who is worshiped as God, seems to be full of guile. Did we choose to worship a wrong person as God? Again and again the same thought struck me. Whenever I sat down for meditation, I was not able to concentrate on my chosen deity. The peace I used to derive after every session of meditation seems to have gone forever. Although I did not stop my meditation sessions and continued my routine, they became too lifeless and monotonous.

After suffering for a couple of days, one fine day, I got the answer to all my doubts during morning meditation. I am back to my normal self,  happy and peaceful. As I felt that the same doubts may appear for others as well, I decided to write this blog and share my understanding.

Many years ago, I had a habit – whenever I felt people are troubling me, it may be my boss giving too much work or a colleague disturbing me too often for petty issues – I would simply pray to God, “I am not able to take this anymore. Please lift your Gadha (maze).” Immediately, I would add a rejoinder, “Just lift your Gadha and scare them. Do not bring it down, they don’t have the strength to take the power of your Gadha.” Very soon, my troubles would subside and I would feel peaceful. I believed that God must have scared the trouble-makers with His maze. In recent times, I had not prayed for such help, probably because I have grown more mature and my prayers these days have been, “Please help me understand the lesson you are trying to teach me through these pain and suffering. I am too dumb to understand your hidden message.”

During meditation, I remembered my old prayer. I felt as though God asked me, “Why did you expect me to raise my Gadha for your sake?” Immediately, I understood. The Pandavas were guileless and they were devoted to Sri Krishna. So He took the responsibility to protect them. He declares to Arjuna at the beginning of the Kurukshetra war that He had already decided to finish the Kuru race, and all the Kauravas will be killed irrespective of whether Arjuna fights them or not. Then He carries on His mission. 

As Sri Krishna declares in the Bhagavad Gita, He had nothing to gain or lose from the Kurukshetra war. Why should He participate in the war at all? His single responsibility was to establish dharma which fell when Draupadi was dragged into the court of Dhritharashtra and when Dusshasana attempted to disrobe her.

I also remembered a line of a sloka I recite everyday: it refers to God as ‘Kapata naataka soothra dhara’ meaning ‘master-mind of the cunning drama of life’. God is indeed a master-mind of cunningness. He has to be. Only then wicked people will be punished and good people will be saved.

I also understood that there is no clash between the teaching of Sri Ramakrishna and the behavior of Sri Krishna. Sri Ramakrishna asked humans to be guileless if they wish to realize God. Pandavas were guileless and therefore they had Sri Krishna on their side. Sri Ramakrishna never said God should be guileless. The all-powerful God will assume various forms as per the need of his devotees. To save Sugreeva, Sri Rama hid behind a tree and killed Vali. To protect Prahlada, God assumed a man-lion form Narasimha and killed Prahlada’s father Hiranyakasipu. The same way, to protect the guileless Pandavas, Sri Krishna had to use guile.

All my doubts vanished and Sri Krishna's compassion filled my heart. 

Message from the Gospel – 4. Woman (Man) and Gold Are the Obstacles

Throughout the Gospel, there are many references to ‘woman and gold’ and Sri Ramakrishna emphasizes time and again how they obstruct spiritual progress.

A point to be noted here is that the teachings of Sri Ramakrishna recorded in the Gospel are day-to-day conversations of Sri Ramakrishna with his devotees. As the audience happened to be men, he used the words ‘woman and gold’. If the audience were women, he would have probably said, ‘man and gold’. Generalizing, we may say, any type of attraction towards the opposite sex is a weakness, an obstacle, as it takes away the mind from God. It is a negative quality and should be eliminated.

The second obstacle to spiritual progress is gold. Although the word ‘gold’ has been used, it may be generalized as ‘greed’. A worldly person, no doubt, has to undertake materialistic pursuits. There is no harm in working hard and earning money in the right way. But when people become greedy, they start indulging in illegal activities to usurp others’ wealth, and their degradation begins. Greed pushes them to commit all possible crimes.

Sri Ramakrishna says, " 'Woman and gold' alone is the obstacle to yoga.  Always analyse what you see.  What is there in the body of a woman? Only such things as blood, flesh, fat, entrails, and the like.  Why should one love such a body?”

"A man practises spiritual discipline, but his mind is on 'woman and gold' – it is turned toward enjoyment.  Therefore, in his case, the spiritual discipline does not produce the right result.”

"A man may live in a mountain cave, smear his body with ashes, observe fasts; and practise austere discipline; but if his mind dwells on worldly objects, on 'woman and gold', I say, 'Shame on him!' But I say that a man is blessed indeed who eats, drinks, and roams about, but who keeps his mind free from 'woman and gold'.”

“'Worldliness' means 'woman and gold'."

“'Woman and gold' is the cause of bondage. 'Woman and gold' alone constitutes samsara, the world. It is 'woman and gold' that keeps one from seeing God. (Holding the towel in front of his face) Do you see my face any more? Of course not. The towel hides it. No sooner is the covering of 'woman and gold' removed than one attains Chidananda, Consciousness and Bliss.”

MASTER (to Kedār, Vijay, and the other devotees): "He who has renounced the pleasure of a wife has verily renounced the pleasure of the world. It is 'woman and gold' that hides God. You people have such imposing moustaches, and yet you too are involved in 'woman and gold'. Tell me if it isn't true. Search your heart and answer me."

VIJAY: "Yes, it is true."

Kedār remained silent.

MASTER: "I see that all are under the control of woman. One day I went to Captain's house. From there I was to go to Ram's house. So I said to Captain, 'Please give me my carriage hire.' He asked his wife about it. She too held back and said: 'What's the matter? What's the matter?' At last Captain said, 'Ram will take care of it.' You see, the Gitā, the Bhagavata, and the Vedānta all bow before a woman!” (All laugh.)

"A man leaves his money, his property, and everything in the hands of his wife. But he says with affected simplicity, 'I have such a nature that I cannot keep even two rupees with me.'”

"A man went to an office in search of a job. There were many vacancies, but the manager did not grant his request. A friend said to the applicant, 'Appeal to Golapi, and you will get the job.' Golapi was the manager's mistress.”

"Men do not realize how far they are dragged down by women. Once I went to the Fort in a carriage, feeling all the while that I was going along a level road. At last I found that I had gone four storeys down. It was a sloping road.”

"A man possessed by a ghost does not know he is under the ghost's control. He thinks he is quite normal."

VIJAY (smiling): "But he can be cured by an exorcist if he finds one."

In answer to Vijay, Sri Ramakrishna only said, "That depends on the will of God." Then he went on with his talk about women.

MASTER: "Everyone I talk to says, 'Yes, sir, my wife is good.' Nobody says that his wife is bad. (All laugh.) Those who constantly live with 'woman and gold' are so infatuated with it that they don't see things properly. Chess-players oftentimes cannot see the right move for their pieces on the board. But those who watch the game from a distance can understand the moves more accurately.”

"Woman is the embodiment of māyā. In the course of his hymn to Rāma, Nārada said: 'O Rāma, all men are parts of Thee. All women are parts of Sita, the personification of Thy māyā. Please deign to grant that I may have pure love for Thy Lotus Feet and that I may not be deluded by Thy world bewitching māyā. I do not want any other favour than that.' "

"But on attaining the state of the paramahamsa one becomes like a child. A child five years old doesn't know the difference between a man and a woman. But even a paramahamsa must be careful, so as not to set a bad example to others."

MASTER (to Bankim): "'Woman and gold' alone is the world; that alone is māyā. Because of it you cannot see or think of God. After the birth of one or two children, husband and wife should live as brother and sister and talk only of God. Then both their minds will be drawn to God, and the wife will be a help to the husband on the path of spirituality. None can taste divine bliss without giving up his animal feeling. A devotee should pray to God to help him get rid of this feeling. It must be a sincere prayer. God is our Inner Controller; He will certainly listen to our prayer if it is sincere.”

The two great Indian epics Ramayana and Mahabharata describe how great men fall due to lust and greed. Ramayana describes how Ravana, in spite being an accomplished warrior and a great devotee of Shiva, fell due to his lust to possess Sita. On the other hand, Mahabharata teaches that Duryodhana’s greed to rule the entire kingdom and his unwillingness to part with even five villages as requested by Yudhishthira led to the complete destruction of Kauravas.

Remembering the lessons taught by the two great epics, let us pray like Narada, “Oh God! Please grant that I may have pure love for Thy Lotus Feet and that I may not be deluded by Thy world bewitching māyā. I do not want any other favour than that.”