MAN AND THE WORLD

An eternal portion of Myself, having become a living soul in the world of life, draws to itself the mind and the five senses that rest in Nature.

Three are the gates of this hell leading to the ruin of the soul—lust, wrath and greed. Therefore let man renounce these three.

The man who has escaped these three gates of darkness, O Arjuna, works out his own good and reaches the highest state.

—Bhagavad-Gita

MAN - THE DESTINY OF MAN

[The destiny of man—Real nature of man—Man in bondage—Death and reincarnation]

1. You see many stars in the sky at night, but not when the sun rises. Can you therefore say that there are no stars in the heavens during the day? O man, because you cannot find God in the days of your ignorance, say not that there is no God.

2. He is born in vain, who, having attained the human birth, so difficult to get, does not attempt to realize God in this very life.

3. A man is rewarded according to his thoughts and motives. The Lord is like Kalpataru, the wish-yielding tree of heaven. Everyone gets from Him whatever he seeks. A poor man's son, having received education and become a judge of the High Court by hard work, is apt to think; “Now I am happy. I have reached the highest rung of the ladder. It is all right now." To him the Lord says, “Do thou remain so." But when the judge of the High Court retires on pension and reviews his past, he understands that he wasted his life, and exclaims, “Alas! What real work have I done in this life! “To him the Lord also says, “Alas! What hast thou done! "

4. Man is born in this world with two tendencies— Vidya, the tendency to pursue the path of liberation, and Avidya, the leaning towards worldliness and bondage. At his birth, both these tendencies are, as it were, in equilibrium like the two scales of a balance. The world soon places its enjoyments and pleasures in one scale, and the Spirit, its attractions in the other. If the mind chooses the world, the scale of Avidya becomes heavy, and man gravitates towards the earth; but if it chooses the Spirit, the scale of Vidya becomes heavier and pulls him towards God.

5. Know the One, and you will know the all. Ciphers placed after the figure one gets the value of hundreds and of thousands, but they become valueless if you wipe out that figure. The many have value only because of the One. First the One and then the many. First God, and then the Jivas and the Jagat (creatures and the world).

6. First gain God, and then gain wealth; but do not try to do the contrary. If, after acquiring spirituality, you lead a worldly life, you will never lose your peace of mind.

7. Do you talk of social reform ? Well, you may do so after realizing God. Remember, the Rishis of old gave up the world in order to attain God. This is the one thing needful. All other things shall be added to you, if indeed you care to have them. First see God, and then talk of lectures and social reforms.

8. A new-comer to a city should first secure a comfortable room for his rest at night, and after keeping his luggage there, he may freely go about the city for sightseeing. Otherwise he may have to suffer much in the darkness of night to get a place for rest. Similarly, after securing his eternal resting place in God, a new-comer to this world can fearlessly move about doing his daily work. Otherwise, when the dark and dreadful night of death comes over him, he will have to encounter great difficulties and sufferings.

9. At the doors of large granaries are placed traps containing fried rice (Moon) to catch mice. The mice, attracted by the flavor of the fried rice, forget the more solid pleasure of tasting the rice inside the granary, and fall into the trap. They are caught therein and killed. Just so is the case with the soul. It stands on the threshold of Divine bliss, which is like millions of the highest worldly pleasures solidified into one; but instead of striving for that bliss, it allows itself to be enticed by the petty pleasures of the world and falls into the trap of Maya, the great illusion, and dies therein.

10. A Pundit: The Theosophists say that there are 'Mahatmas'. They also say that there are different planes and spheres like astral plane, Devchanic plane, solar sphere, lunar sphere, etc., and that man's subtle body can go to all these places. They say many other such things. Well, Sir, what is your opinion on Theosophy?

The Master: Bhakti alone is supreme—Bhakti or devotion to God. Do they care for Bhakti? If they do, that is well. It is well if they have God-realization for their aim and goal. But remember, to be engrossed in such trivial things as solar sphere, lunar sphere, astral sphere, etc., is not genuine search after God. One has to do Sadhanas (spiritual practices) in order to get devotion to His lotus feet; one has to weep for Him with the intense longing of the heart. The mind should be gathered up from the different objects and concentrated exclusively on Him. He is not in the Vedas or Vedanta or in any scripture. Nothing will be achieved unless one's heart yearns for Him. One has to pray to Him with intense devotion, and practice Sadhanas. God cannot be realized so easily. Sadhanas are necessary.

11. Will all men see God? No man will have to fast for the whole day; some get their food at 9 a.m., some at noon, others at 2 p.m., and others again in the evening or at sunset. Similarly, one time or other, in this very life or after many more lives, all will, and must, see God.

12. Little children play with dolls in the outer room just as they like, without any care or fear or restraint; but as soon as their mother comes in, they throw aside their dolls and run to her crying, " Mamma, mamma ". You too, O man, are now playing in this material world, infatuated with the dolls of wealth, honor, fame, etc., and do not feel any fear or anxiety. If, however, you once see your Divine Mother, you will not afterwards find pleasure in all these. Throwing them all aside, you will run to Her.

13. There are pearls in the deep sea, but you must hazard all perils to get them. If you fail to get at them by a single dive, do not conclude that the sea is without them. Dive again and again, and you are sure to be rewarded in the end. So also in the quest for the Lord, if your first attempt to see Him proves fruitless, do not lose heart. Persevere in the attempt, and you are sure to realize Him at last.

14. Meditate upon the Knowledge and the Bliss Eternal, and you will have bliss. The Bliss is indeed eternal, only it is covered and obscured by ignorance. The less your attachment to the sense-objects, the more will be your love for God.

15. Mere possession of wealth does not make a man rich. The sign of a rich man's house is that a light burns in each room. The poor cannot afford the oil; therefore they do not arrange for many lights.

This temple of the body should not be kept in darkness; the lamp of Knowledge must be lighted in it. “Light the lamp of Knowledge in your room, and look at the face of the Mother Divine." Everyone can attain Knowledge. There is the individualized self and there is the higher Self. Every individual is connected with the higher Self. There is a gas connection in every house, and gas can be had from the Gas Company. Only apply to the proper authorities, and the supply will be arranged. Then you will have gas-light in your room.

REAL NATURE OF MAN

The digit one may be raised to a figure of any value by adding zeroes after it; but if that one is omitted, zeroes by themselves have no value. Similarly so long as the Jiva (individual soul) does not cling to God, Who is the One, he has no value, for all things here get their value from their connection with God. So long as the Jiva clings to God, Who is the value-giving figure behind the world, and does all his work for Him, he gains more and more thereby: on the contrary, if he overlooks God and adds to his work many grand achievements, all done for his own glorification, he will gain nothing therefrom.

As a lamp does not burn without oil, so a man cannot live without God.

God is to man what a magnet is to iron. Why does He not then attract man? As iron thickly imbedded in mud is not moved by the attraction of the magnet, so the soul thickly imbedded in Maya does not feel the attraction of the Lord. But when the mud is washed away with water, the iron is free to move. Even so, when, by the constant tears of prayer and repentance, the soul washes away the mud of Maya that compels it to stick to the earth, it is soon attracted by the Lord to Himself.

The union of the Jivatman with the Paramatman is like the union of the hour and the minute hands of a watch once in every hour. They are inter-related and interdependent, and though usually separate, they may become united as often as favorable opportunities occur.

The soul enchained is man, but when free from the chain (Maya), it is the Lord.

What is the relation between the Jivatman and the Paramatman? As a current of water seems to be divided into two when a plank of wood is placed against it edgewise, so the Indivisible appears divided into two, the Jivatman and the Paramatman, due to the limitation of Maya.

Water and a bubble on it are one and the same. The bubble has its birth in the water, floats on it, and is ultimately resolved into it. So also the Jivatman and the Paramatman are one and the same, the difference between them being only one of degree. For one is finite and limited while the other is infinite; one is dependent while the other is independent.

The idea of an individual ego is just like enclosing a portion of the water of the Ganges and calling the enclosed portion one s own Ganges.

As a piece of lead thrown into a basin of mercury soon becomes an amalgam with it, so an individual soul loses its limited existence when it falls into the ocean of Brahman.

God is the infinite Being, while Jiva is only a finite being. How then can the finite grasp the Infinite? It is like a doll made of salt trying to fathom the depth of the ocean. In doing so the salt doll is dissolved into the sea and lost. Similarly the Jiva, in trying to measure God and know Him, loses, its separateness and becomes one with Him.

The Lord Himself is playing in the form of man. He is the great juggler and this phantasmagoria of Jiva and Jagat is His great jugglery. The Juggler alone is true, the jugglery is false.

The human body is like a pot, and the mind, the intellect and the senses are like water, rice and potato. When you place a pot containing water, rice and potato on fire, they get heated, and if any one touches them, his finger is burnt, even though the heat does not really belong to the pot, or the water, or the potato, or the rice. Similarly it is the power of Brahman in man that causes the mind and the intellect and the senses to perform their functions; and when that power ceases to act, these also stop work

MAN IN BONDAGE

The true nature of the Jiva is eternal Existence-Knowledge-Bliss. It is due to egotism that he is limited by so many Upadhis (limiting adjuncts), and has forgotten his real nature.

The nature of the Jiva changes with the addition of each Upadhi. When a man dresses like a fop, wearing the fine black-bordered muslin, the love songs of Nidhu Babu spring to his lips. A pair of English boots inflates even a languid man with the delight of vanity; he begins to whistle immediately, and if he has to ascend a flight of stairs, he leaps up from one step to another like a Saheb. If a man holds a pen in his hand, he will go on scratching carelessly on any paper he happens to get.

As the snake is separate from its slough, even so is the Spirit separate from the body.

The Self is not attached to anything. Pleasure, pain, sinfulness, righteousness, etc., can never affect the Self in any way; but they can affect those who identify themselves with the body, as smoke can blacken only the wall but not the space enclosed within it.

The Vedantins say that the Atman is completely unattached. Sin or virtue, pain or pleasure, cannot affect it; but they can inflict sufferings on those who have attachment to the body. The smoke can soil the walls, but can do nothing to the sky.

Men are of different natures according to the preponderance of Sattva, Rajas, or Tamas in them.

Though all souls are one and the same in their ultimate nature, they are of four classes according to their respective conditions. They are Baddha or bound, Mumukshu or struggling for liberation, Mukta or emancipated, and Nityamukta or ever-free.

A fisherman cast his net into the river and had a large haul. Some fish lay in the net calm and motionless, not exerting in the least to go out of it. Others struggled and jumped but could not extricate themselves, while a third class of fish somehow managed to force their way out of the net. In the world men too are thus of three kinds—those who are bound and never strive to be free, those who are bound but struggle for freedom, and those who have already attained freedom.

There are three dolls—the first made of salt, the second made of cloth, and the third of stone. If these dolls are immersed in water, the first will become dissolved and lose its form, the second will absorb a large quantity of water but retain its form, and the third will remain impervious to water. The first doll represents the man who merges his self in the universal and all-pervading Self and becomes one with It; he is the liberated man. The second represents the Bhakta or the true lover of God who is full of Divine bliss and knowledge. And the third represents the worldly man who will not admit even a particle of true knowledge into his heart

Men are like pillow-cases. The colour of one may be red, that of another blue, and that of a third black; but all contain the same cotton within. So it is with man; one is beautiful, another is black, a third holy, and a fourth wicked; but the Divine Being dwells in them all.

The outer layers of cakes are made of rice flour, but inside they are stuffed with different ingredients. The cake is good or bad according to the quality of its stuffing. So all human bodies are made of one and the same material, yet men are different in quality according to the purity of their hearts.

A Brahmin's son is no doubt a Brahmin by birth ; but some of these born Brahmins grow up into great scholars, some become priests, others turn out cooks, and still others roll themselves in the dust before courtesans doors.

It is true that God is even in the tiger; but we must not therefore go and face that animal. It is true that God dwells even in the most wicked beings, but it is not proper that we should associate with them.

The Deity Narayana (God) broods over the water, but every kind of water is not fit for drinking. Similarly, though it is true that God dwells in every place, yet every place is not fit to be visited by man. One kind of water may be used for washing our feet, another for purposes of ablution, and a third for drinking, while there are still others which are unfit even to be touched. Similarly there are different places, of which some may be approached and others visited, while there are still others which should only be saluted from a distance and bidden good-bye.

Beware of the following: the garrulous man; the man who is not open-hearted; the man who makes a parade of his devotion by sticking sacred Tulsi leaves on his ears ; the woman who wears a long veil; and the cold water of the stagnant pool overgrown with rank vegetation, which is very injurious to health.

DEATH AND REINCARNATION

Even at the time of death the 'bound souls' speak of worldly matters only. There is no use in visiting places of pilgrimage, or bathing in the holy Ganges, or counting beads; if there are worldly attachments in the heart, they are sure to manifest themselves at the dying moment. Hence ' bound souls ' indulge in random talks even at that time. A parrot may ordinarily sing the holy name of Radha-Krishna, but when it is attacked by a cat, it cries out ' Kang ', ' Kang '—its natural cry.

Man suffers so much simply for want of devotion to God. One should therefore adopt such means as would help the thought of God to arise in the mind at the last moment of one's life. The means is practice of devotion to God. If this is done during one's life-time, the thought of God is sure to occur to one's mind even at the last hour.

A man's rebirth is determined by what he has been thinking about just before death. Devotional practices are therefore very necessary. If, by constant practice, ones mind is freed from all worldly ideas, then the thought of God, which fills the mind in their place, will not leave it even at the time of death.

When an unbaked pot is broken, the potter can use the mud to make a new one; but when a baked one is broken, he cannot do the same any longer. So when a person dies in a state of ignorance, he is born again; but when he becomes well baked in the fire of true knowledge and dies a perfect man, he is not born again.

A grain of boiled paddy does not sprout again when sown. Only unboiled paddy sends forth the shoot Similarly when one dies after becoming a Siddha, a perfect man, he has not to be born again, but an Asiddha, an imperfect man, has to be born again and again until he becomes a Siddha.

MAYA AS THE COSMIC POWER OF THE LORD

MAYA

[Maya as the Cosmic Power of the Lord—Maya as the deluding power (Avidya)—Maya as the liberating power (Vidya)]

MAYA AS THE COSMIC POWER OF THE LORD

Maya is to Brahman what the snake in motion is to the snake at rest. Force in action is Maya, force in potency is Brahman.

As the water of the ocean is now calm and next agitated into waves, so are Brahman and Maya. The ocean in the tranquil state is Brahman, and in the turbulent state, Maya.

The relation of Brahman to Sakti is that of fire to its burning property.

Siva and Sakti (Intelligence and Energy) are both necessary for creation. With dry clay no potter can make a pot; water also is necessary. So Siva alone cannot create without the help of Sakti.

Desirous of seeing Maya I had one day a vision: A small drop slowly expanded and formed itself into a girl; the girl became a woman and gave birth to a child; and as soon as the child was born, she took it up and swallowed it. In this way, many children were born to her and were devoured by her. Then I knew that she was Maya.

The snake itself is not affected by the poison in its fangs ; but when it bites, the poison kills the creature bitten. Likewise Maya is in the Lord but does not affect Him, while the same Maya deludes the whole world.

MAYA AS THE DELUDING POWER (AVIDYA)

A certain Sadhu lived for sometime in a room in the temple of Dakshineswar. He did not speak to anybody and spent his whole time in meditation on God. One day, all of a sudden, a cloud darkened the sky, and shortly afterwards, a light wind blew away the cloud. The holy man now came out of his room and began to laugh and dance. Upon this the Master asked him, " How is it that you, who spend your days so quietly in your room, are dancing in joy and feeling so jolly today? " The holy man replied, "Such is Maya that envelops this life ! No trace of it was there before; but suddenly it appears in the serene sky of Brahman, creating the whole universe, and is dispersed by the breath of Brahman.

Rama, Sita and Lakshmana went to the forest as exiles. Rama walked in front, Sita in the middle, Lakshmana behind her. Lakshmana was very anxious to have always a full view of Rama ; but as Sita was in the middle, he could not have it. Then he prayed to Sita to move aside a little ; and as soon as she did so, Lakshmana's wish was fulfilled, and he saw Rama. Such is the arrangement of Brahman, Maya and Jiva in this world. So long as the illusion of Maya does not move aside, the creature cannot see the Creator—man cannot see God.

A holy man used to look and smile at the chandelier prism day and night. The reason for his doing so was that he saw various colours through the prism—red, yellow, blue, etc. Knowing these colours to be false, he realized with a smile that the world also was equally false.

Hari, wearing the mask of a lion's head, looks indeed very terrible. He goes where his little sister is playing, and yells hideously. She is shocked and terrified, and shrieks out in pain to escape from the frightful creature. But when Hari puts off the mask, the frightened girl at once recognizes her loving brother and runs up to him, exclaiming, " Oh, it is my dear brother after all ! Such is the case with all men. They are deluded and frightened and made to do all sorts of things by the inscrutable power of Maya or nescience, behind which Brahman hides Himself. But when the veil of Maya is removed from the face of Brahman, one does not see in Him a terrible and uncompromising Master, but one's own most beloved inner Self.

If God is omnipresent, why do we not see Him ? Observing from the bank of a pool thickly covered with scum and weeds, you will not see the water in it. If you desire to see the water, remove the scum from the surface of the pond. With eyes covered with the film of Maya, you complain that you cannot see God. If you wish to see Him, remove the film of Maya from your eyes.

As the cloud covers the sun, so Maya hides the Deity. When the cloud moves away, the sun is seen again; when Maya is removed, God becomes manifest.

The mythical swan can separate milk from the water with which it is diluted, and drink only the milk, leaving the water behind. Other birds cannot do this. God is intimately mixed up with Maya. Ordinary men cannot see Him apart from Maya. Only the Paramahamsa can reject Maya, and reach God in His purity.

If you can find out the nature of Maya, the universal illusion, it will leave you just as a thief runs away when detected.

MAYA AS THE LIBERATING POWER (VIDYA)

In God there are both Vidya Maya and Avidya Maya. The Vidya Maya takes man towards God, whereas the Avidya Maya leads him astray. Knowledge, devotion, dispassion, compassion—all these are expressions of Vidya Maya; only with their help can one reach God.

It is Maya which reveals Brahman. Without Maya, who could have known Brahman ? Without knowing Sakti, the manifested power of God, there is no means of knowing Him.

It is only due to Maya that the attainment of supreme knowledge and final beatitude becomes possible for us. Otherwise who could even dream of all this ? From Maya alone spring duality and relativity; beyond Maya there is neither the enjoyer nor the object of enjoyment.

The cat catches her kitten with her teeth and they are not hurt; but when a mouse is so caught, it dies. Thus Maya never kills the devotee, though it destroys others.

MAYA AS 'WOMAN AND GOLD' - THE BONDAGE OF SEX

[The bondage of sex—Sex and spiritual progress— How to conquer sex ?—Riches and the spiritual aspirant]

THE BONDAGE OF SEX

66. What is Maya ? It is lust which forms an obstacle to spiritual progress.

67. Is it Maya or Meye (woman, sex) which has devoured everything ?

68. Souls enmeshed in worldliness cannot resist the temptation of ' woman and gold' and direct their minds to God, even though these things bring upon them a thousand humiliations.

69. Be careful, O householders 1 Put not too much confidence in women; they establish their mastery over you very insidiously !

70. You cannot live in a sooty room, and at the same time escape being somewhat blackened in spite of all your caution. So also, if a man lives in the company of women, some carnality, however little, is bound to arise in him, to even though he may be very circumspect and has his senses under control.

In reading the sayings contained in this chapter and others, where reference is made to Kamini-Kanchana, 'woman and gold', one must specially bear in mind that the Master is propounding no cult of woman-hatred. The study of his sayings in their entirety, as well as perusal of the Introduction this Volume, will show that his attitude towards womankind was one of profound respect bordering on worship. For he saw in them a symbol of the Divine Mother of the universe in a special sense. It was in this light that he himself viewed all women, and he wanted his devotees also to cultivate the same attitude. But at the same time he impressed on his disciples that when viewed with a sensual eye, ' woman ' was the greatest danger to the spiritual aspirant. Of course, by ' woman ' he meant ' sex ' or ' carnality '; but the great teacher that he was, with deep insight into the workings of the human mind, he preferred to use the concrete for the abstract, and always spoke of the bondage of ' woman ' and not of ' sex '. His motive must have been purely psychological ; for speaking on the same subject to his women devotees, he used to warn them against the dangers from 'man '. Since his teachings were all recorded by men devotees, we naturally get warnings against dangers from ' woman ' only, and not from ' man '. Just as ' woman ' stands for sex, ' gold ' stands for the acquisitive instinct, and is a concrete representation of all the material things that men value and like to possess. The correct English expression for it is ' wealth ' or ' riches'.

71. If pitchers of ice-cold water and bottles of savoury sauces are placed near a man who is suffering from very high fever and is semi-delirious, do you think that it is possible for him, thirsty and restless that he is, to resist the temptation of drinking the water or tasting the sauces? Similarly the worldly man who suffers from the high fever of lust, and is thirsty for sensual pleasures, cannot resist temptations when he is placed between the charms of beauty on one side, and those of wealth on the other. He is sure to deviate from the path of devotion.

72. Once a Marwari gentleman approached Sri Ramakrishna and said, " How is it, Sir, that I do not see God although I have renounced everything?

The Master: Well, haven't you seen leather jars for keeping oil ? If one of them is emptied of its contents, still it retains something of the oil as well as its smell In the same way there is still some worldliness left in you, and its odour persists.

73. ' Woman and gold ', remember, keep men immersed in worldliness and away from God. It is strange that no one has anything but praise for his own wife, be she good, bad or indifferent.

74. As the monkey sacrifices his life at the feet of the hunter, so does a man at the feet of a beautiful woman.

SEX AND SPIRITUAL PROGRESS

Those who wish to attain God or make progress in their devotional practices should particularly guard them-selves against the snares of lust and wealth. Otherwise they will never attain perfection.

Nityananda asked Sri Chaitanya, " Why is it that all my teaching of Divine love produces no tangible result on the minds of men ? " Sri Chaitanya replied, " Because, due to their association with women, they cannot retain the higher teachings. Listen, Brother Nityananda, there is no salvation for the worldly-minded."

When does the indicator of a balance move away from the pointed needle attached to the top? When one of the scales becomes heavier than the other. Similarly the mind runs away from God and gets unbalanced when the pressure of woman and wealth is placed upon it

If there is a small hole at the bottom of a jar of water, the whole water will leak out. Similarly, if there is the smallest tinge of worldliness in the aspirant, all his exertions will come to naught.

Try to gain absolute mastery over the sexual instinct. If one succeeds in doing this, a physiological change is produced in the body by the development of a hitherto rudimentary nerve known as Medha (the function of which is to transmute the lower energies into the higher). The knowledge of the higher Self is gained after the development of this Medha nerve.

The mind steeped in affection for woman and gold ' is like the green betel-nut. So long as the betel-nut is green, its kernel remains adhering to its shell, but when it dries up shell and nut are separated, and the nut moves within, if shaken. So when the affection for woman and gold' dries up, the soul is perceived as quite different from the body.

When the mind is free from attachment to sense-objects, it turns to God and is fixed on Him. The bound soul becomes free in this way. That soul is bound which takes the path leading away from God.

When attachment for wealth and sex is wiped out from the mind, what else is left in the soul ? Only the bliss of Brahman.

HOW TO CONQUER SEX ?

As persons living in a house infested with venomous snakes are always alert, so should men living in the world be always vigilant against the allurement of lust and greed.

On coming across a snake usually we say, " Mother Manasa, please move away showing your tail and hiding your head." So also it is wise to hold aloof from such influences as have a tendency to excite sensuality. It is far better not to come in contact with them than to gain experience by a fall.

A disciple once asked Sri Ramakrishna how he was to conquer lust; for, though he was passing his days in religious contemplation, evil thoughts were arising in his mind from time to time. To him the Master said : "There was a man who had a pet dog. He used to caress it, carry it inabout his arms, play with it and kiss it. A wise man, seeing this foolish behaviour of his, warned him not to lavish such affection on a dog. For it was, after all, an irrational brute, and might bite him one day. The owner took the warning to heart and putting away the dog from his arms, resolved never again to fondle or caress it. But the animal could not at first understand the change in his master, and would run to him frequently to be taken up and caressed. Beaten several times, the dog at last ceased to trouble his master any more. Such indeed is your condition. The dog that you have been cherishing so long in your bosom will not easily leave you, though you may wish to be rid of it. However, there is no harm in it. Do not caress the dog any more, but give it a good beating whenever it approaches you to be fondled, and in course of time you will be altogether free from its importunities.'

' Woman and gold have drowned the whole world in sin. Woman is disarmed when you view her as the manifestation of the Divine Mother. God cannot be seen so long as one's passion for ' woman and gold is not extinguished.

Once a man attains God through intense Vairagya (freedom from worldly passions), temptations of sex disappear, and he finds himself in no danger even from his own wife. If there are two unequal magnets at an equal distance from a piece of iron, which of them will draw it with greater force ? Certainly the larger one. Verily, God is the larger magnet. What can the smaller magnet, woman, do against it?

Snakes are venomous reptiles. If you try to catch them, you are sure to be bitten. But to the man who has learnt the art of snake-charming by the use of magnetised dust, it is not a very difficult affair to catch them. He can play even with seven of them twisted together and coiled round his neck. (Similarly a man of realisation is immune from the dangers of worldly life.)

One day a Marwari gentleman went to Sri Ramakrishna and asked him for permission to present him with some thousands of rupees. But the Master had nothing but a stern refusal for this well-meant offer. He said, " I shall have nothing to do with your money; for if I accept it, my mind would always be dwelling on it." The gentleman then proposed to invest the amount in the name of one of Sri Ramakrishna's relatives to be used by him for the Master's service. To this the Master replied, " No, it would be double-dealing. Moreover, it would always be in my mind that I am keeping my money with so-and-so."

But the Marwari still persisted in his proposal, quoting one of Sri Ramakrishna's own sayings, " If the mind is like oil, it will float even upon an ocean of ' woman and gold'.

At this the Master retorted : " That is true indeed; but if the oil floats on water for a considerable length of time, it becomes putrefied. In the same way, even if the mind were only to float over the ocean of woman and gold,' the continuous contact of the latter for a long period would surely tend to vitiate the mind and make it give out an evil odour.

RICHES AND THE SPIRITUAL ASPIRANT

Referring to the fact that the pursuit of wealth diverts an aspirant from the path of God, the Master once said to a young disciple: " Like a man of the world you have accepted a paid appointment. But you are working for your mother. Otherwise I should have said, For shame ! For shame !' " He repeated this several times and then said, " Serve the Lord alone."

Referring to the degradation that service undertaken for the sake of money brings about, the Master said to a young disciple: "A change for the worse has come over his face. A dark shadowy film seems to have spread over it. All this is due to office work. There are the accounts and a hundred other matters to attend to.'

Money is an Upadhi (a deceptive influence) of a very strong nature. As soon as a man becomes rich, he is thoroughly changed. A Brahmin who was very meek and humble used to come here (Dakshineswar) every now and then. After some time he stopped his visits, and we knew nothing of what happened to him. One day we went to Konnagore in a boat. As we were getting down from the boat, we saw him sitting on the bank of the Ganges, where, in the fashion of big folk, he was enjoying the pure breeze of the river. On seeing me, he accosted me in a patronising tone with the words, "Hallo, Thakkur! How do you do now?" At once I noticed the change in his tone and said to Hriday who was with me, ' I tell you, Hriday, this man must have come by some riches. See what a great change has come over him ! " And Hriday burst into laughter.

Money can fetch you bread alone. Do not consider it as your sole end and aim.

There are some who boast of their wealth and power, of their name and fame, and high status in society ; but all these are for a few days only. None of these will follow them after death.

On two occasions the Lord smiles: First when the doctor comes to the bed-side of a patient who is seriously taken ill and is about to die, and says to his mother, " Why, madam, there is no cause for anxiety at all. I take upon myself the responsibility of saving your sons life." Next He smiles when two brothers, who are busy partitioning their land, take a measuring tape, put it across the land and say, " This side is mine, that side is yours.

There is nothing to be proud of in money. If you say you are rich, there are richer and richer men than you. in comparison with whom you are a mere beggar. After dusk when the glow-worms make their appearance, they think, ' We are giving light to the world." But when the stars begin to twinkle, the pride of the glow-worms is humbled. Now the stars begin to think, " We are illumining the universe.' But after a while the moon ascends the sky, and her silvery light humiliates the stars and they pale away in sadness. Again, the moon grows proud and thinks that by her light the world is lighted and bathed in beauty. But presently the dawn proclaims the ascent of the sun on the eastern horizon. And where is the moon now !

If they who think themselves rich ponder over these facts of Nature, they would never, never boast of their riches and power.

Water always flows out under a bridge but never stagnates; so money passes through the hands of the free, and is never hoarded by them.

He is truly a man to whom money is only a servant ; but, on the other hand, those who do not know how to make proper use of it, hardly deserve to be called men.

MAYA AS AHAMKARA OR EGOTISM - EVILS OF EGOTISM

[Evils of egotism—The difficulty of conquering egotism—'Ripe' ego and 'unripe' ego—How to conquer the ego—Ego in the man of realisation]

The sun can give heat and light to the whole world, but he cannot do so when the clouds shut out his rays. Similarly as long as egotism veils the heart, God cannot shine upon it.

Egotism is like a cloud which keeps God hidden from our sight. If it vanishes by the mercy of the Guru, God is perceived in all His glory. For instance, you see in the picture that Sri I\amachandra, Who is God, is only two or three steps ahead of Lakshmana (the Jiva), but Sita (Maya), coming in between the two, prevents Lakshmana from having a view of Rama.

Ahamkara and Aham —These two words have been variously translated here, accordingly to context, as egotism, the sense of ' I ', the 'I', the ego, the ' I-ness ' and so on. None of these is perhaps an exact equivalent. Indian philosophy and system of spiritual discipline understand by it the basic principle of individuation giving rise to the sense of 'I', the concomitant feeling of separation from God and other individuals, and all other psychical and physical developments following from it. The aim of spiritual life is to root out this prime source of all worldliness, and realise the unity of all existence.

Q. Sir, why are we in bondage like this? Why do we not see God ?

A. Man's ego itself is Maya. It is the veil that shuts out the Light. Verily, with the death of the 'I' all troubles cease. If by the grace of the Lord a man once gains the knowledge that he is not the doer, then he assuredly becomes a Jivanmukta, one freed in this very life, and transcends all fear.

If I hold this cloth before me, you cannot see me any more, though I am still as near you as ever. So also though God is nearer to you than anything else, because of the screen of egotism you cannot see Him.

As long as there is egotism, neither Self-knowledge (Jnana) nor liberation (Mukti) is possible; and there is no cessation of birth and death.

Rice, pulse, potatoes and other things put in cold water in an earthen vessel can be touched with hand until they are heated on a fire. The same statement applies to the Jiva. This body is the earthen vessel; wealth and learning, caste and lineage, power and position are like rice, pulse and potatoes. Egotism is the heat. The Jiva is made hot (haughty) by egotism.

Rain-water never stands on high ground, but runs down to the lowest level. So also the mercy of God re-mains in the hearts of the lowly, but drains off from those of the vain and the proud.

Egotism is so injurious to man that as long as it is not eradicated there is no salvation for him. Look at the young calf and the troubles that come upon it through egotism. As soon as it is born, it cries,

' Ham hai'—' I am', 'I am '. The result of its egotism is that, when it grows up, if it is an ox, it is yoked to the plough, to drag carts full of heavy load; if a cow, it is kept tied to its post and is sometimes even killed and eaten. But still, in spite of all this punishment, the animal does not lose its egotism ; for drums that are made of its hide produce the same sound of 'Ham', I. The creature does not learn humility until the cotton-carder makes bow-strings out of its entrails; for it is then that the animals intestines sing out ' Tu hai '—'Thou art .' The 'I must go and give place to the ' Thou ; and this is not achieved until man becomes spiritually awakened.

Freedom will come when your ' I-hood (egotism) vanishes and you yourself are merged in the Divinity.

When does a man attain salvation ? Only when his egotism dies.

Q. When shall I be free?

A. When that 'I vanishes from you. 'I and mine —this is ignorance; 'Thou and 'Thine'—that is true knowledge. The true devotee always says, " O Lord, Thou art the doer (Karta). Thou doest everything. I am a mere instrument in Thy hands. I do whatever Thou makest me do. All this is Thy glory. This home and this family are Thine, not mine; I have only the right to serve as Thou ordainest.

THE DIFFICULTY OF CONQUERING EGOTISM

The vanities of all others may gradually die out. but the vanity of a saint regarding his sainthood is hard indeed to wear away.

The cup in which garlic juice is kept retains the odour, though washed several times. Egotism is such an obstinate aspect of ignorance that it never disappears completely, however hard you may try to get rid of it.

The dyspeptic knows only too well that sour things are injurious to him, but such is the force of association that the sight of them is enough to make his mouth water. So, even if one tries hard to suppress the idea of I-ness and 'mine-ness , yet when one begins to act, the 'unripe ego asserts itself.

There are few who can attain Samadhi and get rid of the Aham—the feeling of ' I within. Generally it does not go. You may reason and discriminate without end, yet this I comes back again and again. Today you may cut down the Pepul tree, but tomorrow you will see it sprouting again.

Those who seek name and fame are under a delusion. They forget that everything is ordained by the Great Dispenser of all things and that all is due to the Lord and the Lord alone. The wise man says always, " It is Thou, O Lord, It is Thou" ; but the ignorant and the deluded say, " It is I, it is I."

'RIPE' EGO AND 'UNRIPE' EGO

There are two types of egoes, one 'ripe ' and the other ' unripe'. " Nothing is mine, whatever I see, or feel, or hear, nay, even this body itself, is not mine ; I am always eternal, free and all-knowing,'—such ideas arise from the ' ripe ego. " This is my house, this is my child, this is my wife, this is my body,"—thoughts of this kind are the manifestation of the unripe ego.

The ego that asserts " I am the servant of God is characteristic of the true devotee. It is the ego of Vidya (Knowledge), and is called the ripe ego.

What is the 'mischievous I? The 'I' which says, "What! Don't they know me? I have so much money ! Who is so wealthy as myself ? Who dares to surpass me?

The ' I which makes a man worldly and attached to lust and wealth is mischievous. The individual soul and the Universal Being are separated because this ' I comes in between them. If a stick is placed on the surface of water, the water will appear to be divided into two sections. The stick is the Aham—the I . Take that away, and the water becomes again undivided.

HOW TO CONQUER THE EGO

If one ponders over this word ' I , trying to track it down, one sees that it is only a word which denotes egotism. But it is extremely difficult to shake it off. So one must say, " You wicked 'I, if you will not go by any means, remain as the servant of God. The ego that feels itself to be the servant of God is called the ' ripe I .

Sankaracharya had a disciple who had been serving him for a long time but was not still given any instruction by him. Once, while seated alone, Sankara heard the footsteps of someone coming behind. So he called out, Who is there ? The disciple answered, " It is I. The Acharya thereupon said, " If this T is so dear to you, then either expand it to infinity (i.e., know the universe as yourself), or renounce it altogether."

If you find that you cannot drive off this feeling of I , then let it remain as the servant I . There is not much to fear from the ego which is centered in the thought, " I am the servant of God; I am His devotee." Sweets cause dyspepsia, but not sugar candy which is an exception The 'servant I', the ' I' of a devotee, the ' I ' of a child— each of these is like a line drawn with a stick on the surface of water. I' does not last long.

Just as sugar candy has no unwholesome effect like other sweets, so also the ' ripe' ego which considers itself to be the servant or worshipper of God causes none of those evil consequences characteristic of the unripe ego. On the other hand it leads to God, and signifies that one has progressed in Bhakti Yoga or the path of devotion.

What is the nature of the feelings and impulses of one who has the attitude of the servant I ? If his-conviction is true and sincere, then there remains only the forms, the appearance, of his former feelings and impulses. Even if the ego of the servant or the ego of the devotee remains, one who has realised God can hurt none. The whole sting of individuality vanishes from him. The sword becomes gold by a touch of the philosopher's stone. It retains its former shape, but can no longer hurt any one.

If you feel proud, let it be in the thought that you are the servant of God, the son of God. Great men have the nature of children. They are always children before Him; so they are free from pride. All their strength is of God, and not their own. It belongs to Him and comes from Him.

A person who is convinced that everything is clone by the will of God, feels himself to be a mere tool in His hands. He is then free from all bondage even in this very life. " Thou doest Thy work, Lord ; but man says, I do it' ! "

As long as one says, " I know " or " I do not know ", one looks upon oneself as a person. My Divine Mother says : It is only when I have effaced the whole of this Aham (I-ness) in you, that the Undifferentiated Absolute (My impersonal aspect) can be realised in Samadhi." Till then there is the ' I in me and before me.

After a process of severe struggle with one s lower nature and the assiduous practice of spiritual discipline leading to Self-knowledge, one attains the state of Samadhi. Then the ego with all its train vanishes. But it is very difficult to attain Samadhi; the ego is very persistent. That is why we are born again and again in this world.

So long as one is not blessed with the vision Divine, so long as the touch of the philosopher s stone has not transmuted the base metal in one into gold, there will be the illusive feeling: 'I am the doer . And until this illusion ceases, there will persist the idea that gives the sense of distinction between ' I have done this good work ', and I have done that bad work . Maya means this sense of distinction, and it is because of it that the world continues. One reaches Him if one takes refuge in Vidya Maya —that aspect of Divine Power having the preponderance of Sattva—which leads one by the right path. He alone crosses the ocean of Maya, who comes face to face with God—realises Him. A man is truly free, even here in this embodied state, if he knows that God is the true agent and he by himself is powerless to do anything.

THE EGO OF THE MAN OF REALISATION

Will the sense of I never die away completely ? The petals of the lily drop off in time, but they leave their mark behind. So the ego of man entirely disappears (when he realises God), but traces of its former existence remain; this, however, does not produce any evil effect.

The truly wise man is he who has seen the Lord. He becomes like a child. The child, no doubt, seems to have an individuality, a separateness, of its own. But that individuality is a mere appearance, not a reality. The self of the child is nothing like the self of the grown-up man.

Some great souls who have reached the seventh or the highest plane of Samadhi, and have thus become merged in God-consciousness, are pleased to come down from that spiritual height for the good of mankind. They keep the ego of Knowledge (the Aham of Vidya), which is the same as the higher Self. But this ego is a mere appearance. It is like a line drawn across water.

As a piece of rope, when burnt, retains its form, but cannot serve to bind, so is the ego which is burnt by the fire of supreme Knowledge.

A man dreams that someone is coming to cut him to pieces. Frightened, he awakens with a groan and sees that the door of his room is closed from within and that no one is inside it. Even then, his heart continues to beat fast for some minutes. So does our Abhimana, or sense of ' I ', leave behind it some momentum even when it has departed.

134. After the attainment of Samadhi some still retain the ego—the T of the servant or worshipper of God. Sankaracharya kept the ego of Vidya (knowledge) for the teaching of others.

Hanuman was blessed with the vision of God both with form and without it (Sakara and Nirakara). But he retained the ego of a servant of God. Such was also the case with Narada, Sanaka, Sananda and Sanatkumara.

A devotee. Were Narada and others only Bhaktas, or were they Jnanis also ?

The Master : Narada and others had attained the highest Knowledge (Brahmajnana). But still they went on like the murmuring water of the rivulet, talking and singing the praise of God. This shows that they too kept this ego of Knowledge, a slight trace of individuality, to mark their separate existence from the Deity, for the purpose of teaching others the saving truths of religion.

Once the Master asked a disciple of his in a playful mood, " Well, do you notice in me any Abhimana (pride arising from the sense of ' I ) ? Have I any Abhimana ?

The Disciple : Yes, Sir, a little ; but that little has been kept for the following purposes: firstly for the preservation of the body; secondly, for the practice of devotion to God, thirdly, for mixing with the company of devotees; and fourthly, for giving instruction to others. At the same time, it must be said that you have retained it only after a good deal of prayer. I mean, the natural state of your soul is capable of being described only by the word Samadhi. Hence I say that the Abhimana or egoism which you possess is the result of your prayer.

The Master: Yes, but it has been retained not by me but by my Divine Mother. It lies with my Divine Mother to grant the prayer.

BONDAGE OF BOOK-LEARNING - BARRENNESS OF MERE BOOK-LEARNING

[Barrenness of mere book-learning—Vanity of disputation—The true end of learning]

BARRENNESS OF MERE BOOK-LEARNING

One day the late Keshab Chandra Sen carne to Sri Ramakrishna in the temple of Dakshineswar and asked him, ' How is it that even learned people remain so profoundly ignorant of things that truly matter in spiritual life, although they have read a whole library of religious books?" The Master replied, "The kite and the vulture soar high up in the air, but all the time their eyes remain fixed on charnel-houses in search of putrid carcasses; similarly the minds of the so-called learned men are attached to the things of the world, to lust and wealth, in spite of their erudition in sacred lore, and hence they cannot attain true Knowledge."

That knowledge which purifies the mind and heart alone is true Knowledge, all else is only a negation of Knowledge.

What is the use of mere book-learning? The Pandits may be familiar with plenty of sacred texts and couplets. But what is the good of repeating them ? One must realise in one's life the truths embodied in the scriptures. Mere reading will not bring Knowledge or salvation as long as one is attached to the world, as long as one is fond of ' woman and gold .

Our so-called Pandits will talk big. They will talk of Brahman, of God, of the Absolute, of Jnana Yoga,, of philosophy, of ontology, and the rest. But there are very few who have realised what they talk about. They are dry and hard, and good for nothing.

It is easy to utter 'do, re, mi, la, si, do' with the mouth, but it is difficult to play them on an instrument. So it is easy to talk on religion, but difficult to practise it.

A parrot repeats by rote the holy name of Radha-Krishna, but as soon as it is caught by a cat it screams 'kang, kang' betraying its natural cry. Worldly-wise men sometimes repeat the name of Hari (God) and perform various pious and charitable deeds with the hope of worldly gains, but when misfortune, sorrow, poverty and death overtake them, they forget Him and all such deeds.

Can love of God be acquired by reading holy books ? In the Hindu almanac it is mentioned that on a particular day there will be twenty Adas (a unit of measure) of rain-water. But you will not be able to squeeze out of the almanac a single drop! So also many good sayings are to be found in holy books, but merely reading them will not make one religious. One must practise the virtues taught in such books in order to acquire love of God.

In the kingdom of God reason, intellect and learning are of no avail. There the dumb speak, the blind see, and the deaf hear.

To explain God after merely reading the scriptures is like explaining to a person the city of Benares after seeing it only in a map.

The intoxication of hemp is not to be had by repeating the word hemp' even a thousand times. Get some hemp, pound it with water into a solution and drink it; you will then really get intoxicated. What is the use of crying aloud, "O God, O God! " Regularly practise devotion, and you will see God.

This knowledge of God comes not to the person who is proud of his learning or wealth. You may say to such a person, " There is a holy man in a certain place. Do you like to see him? He is however, sure to put forward excuses and say that he cannot go. He thinks he is too big a man to pay a visit to such a person. Such pride is born of ignorance.

Those who have read a little become puffed up with pride. I had a conversation with a certain person on God. He said, "Oh, I know all this." I said to him, Does one who had been to Delhi go about boasting of it? Does a gentleman ever tell us that he is a gentleman ?

Grantha does not always mean a holy scripture, but often it comes to mean a Granthi or a knot. If a man does not read it with an intense desire to know the Truth, and renouncing all vanity, the mere reading of books only gives rise to pedantry, presumption, egotism, etc., which will be an encumbrance on his mind like so many knots. %

Water is dried up at once if poured on a heap of ashes. Vanity is like this heap of ashes. Prayer and contemplation produce no effect upon the heart puffed up with vanity.

VANITY OF DISPUTATION

Water poured into- an empty vessel makes a bubbling noise, but when the vessel is full, no sound is heard. Similarly, the man who has not found God is full of vain disputation about His existence and nature. But he who has seen Him, silently enjoys the bliss Divine.

Common men talk bagfuls' of religion but do not act even a ' grain' of it. The wise man speaks little, even though his whole life is religion expressed in action.

When a large number of guests are invited to a feast, you first hear a tremendous noise produced by them; but it continues only till they commence eating. When the dishes are served and the guests fall to, threefourths of the noise subside. Then comes the course of sweetmeats. The more they are served, the more does the noise subside ; and finally, when the turn comes for curds (the last course), only one sound is heard viz., ' soop-soop'. The feast over, the next thing for the guests to do is to go to sleep 1

The nearer you come to God, the less you are disposed to questioning and reasoning. When you actually attain Him, when you behold Him as the reality,—then all noise, all disputations, come to an end. Then is the time for sleep, i.e., for enjoyment which comes in Samadhi, the state of communion with the Divine.

So long as the bee is outside the petals of the flower and has not tasted the sweetness of the nectar within, it hovers round humming; but when it gets into the flower, it drinks it noiselessly. So long as a man disputes about doctrines and dogmas, he has not tasted the nectar of true faith. Once he tastes that, he becomes silent.

One who has just taken to the study of a foreign language, while talking, constantly resorts to words belonging to that language in order to make a show of his attainments ; but he who knows the language well seldom uses it when speaking in his own mother tongue. Such indeed is the case with those who are well advanced in religion.

At a distance from the market, we hear only a loud buzzing noise; but entering the market, we hear it no longer, and perceive the bargains that are being carried on. Similarly, so long as a person is far away from God, he cannot but be in the midst of the confusion of sophistry, vain argument and discussion; but once he approaches God, all arguments and discussions cease, and he gams a clear and vivid perception of the mysteries of God.

Throw an unbaked cake of flour into hot ghee, and it will make a sort of noise. But the more it is fried, the less is the noise; and when it is fully fried, the bubbling ceases altogether. So long as a man has a little knowledge, he goes about talking and preaching; but when the perfection resulting from true Knowledge is gained, he no more makes vain display.

1When the grace of the Almighty descends on any one he immediately understands his mistakes; knowing this, you should not dispute.

THE TRUE END OF THE LEARNING

Sacred books only point out the way to GocL Once you have known the way, what is the use of books ? Then comes the time for the culture of the soul in solitary communion with God. A person received a letter from his village-home, asking him to send certain things to his kinsmen. When he was going to order for them, he wanted to ascertain from the letter the articles requisitioned. So he searched for the letter, which was then missing. At last, to his great delight, it was found out after a long search. He took it up eagerly, and went through the contents, which ran as follows: " Please send five Seers of sweetmeats, a hundred oranges and eight pieces of cloth. Knowing the contents, he threw the letter aside and set about procuring the articles.

How long then does one care for such a letter ? So long as one does not know the contents. The contents being known once, the next step is to put forth the necessary effort to get the things desired. Similarly the sacred books tell us only the way to God, i.e., of the means for the realisation of God. That being once known, the next step is to work one s way to the goal. Realisation is the goal.

Para-vidya, i.e., higher knowledge, is that by which we know God. All else, mere scriptures, philosophy, logic, or grammar, as such? only burden and puzzle the mind. The Granthas (books) are sometimes Granthis (knots). They are good only when they lead to the higher knowledge.

Many think that knowledge of God cannot be attained except through the study of books. But higher than reading is hearing, and even higher than hearing,is seeing or realising. The hearing of the truth from the lips of the preceptor makes a greater impression on the mind than the mere reading of books; but seeing makes the greatest impression. Better than reading about Benares is Rearing about the place from the lips of one who has actually visited it; but the best is to see Benares with ones own eyes.

Only two kinds of people can attain to self-knowledge : those who are not encumbered at all with learning, that is to say, whose minds are not over-crowded with thoughts borrowed from others; and those who, after studying all the scriptures and sciences, have come to realise that they know nothing.

People talk of errors and superstitions, and feel proud of their book-learning; but the sincere devotee finds the loving Lord ever ready to lend him a helping hand. It matters not if he had been walking along a wrong path for a time. The Lord knows what he wants and in the end fulfils his heart's desires.

Two friends went into an orchard. One of them possessing much worldly wisdom, immediately began to count the mango trees there and the number of mangoes each tree bore, and to estimate what might be the approximate value of the whole orchard. His companion went to the owner, made friendship with him, and then, quietly going to a tree, began, at his host's desire, to pluck the fruits and eat them. Whom do you consider to be the wiser of the two ? Eat mangoes I It will satisfy your hunger. What is the good of counting the trees and leaves and making calculations? The vain man of intellect busies himself uselessly with finding out the ' why' and ' wherefore of creation, while the humble man of wisdom makes friends with the Creator and enjoys His gift of supreme bliss.

One ray of light from my Divine Mother, Who is verily the Goddess of Wisdom, has power to cow down even the most learned of Pandits and make him appear like an insignificant worm crawling upon the earth.

Utter the word Gita, in quick succession, a number of times—Gi-ta-gi-ta-gi-tagi. It is then virtually pronounced as Tagi\ Tagi\ which means one who has renounced the world for the sake of God. Thus, in one word, the Gita teaches, " Renounce, ye world-bound men I Renounce everything, and fix the mind on the Lord.

In the course of his pilgrimage through the southern parts of India, Chaitanya Deva came across a certain devotee who was in tears all the while a Pandit was, reading from the Gita. Now this devotee knew not even the alphabet. He could not follow a single text of the Gita On being asked why he shed tears, he replied, " It is indeed true that I do not know a word of the Gita. But all the while it was being read, I could not help seeing with my inner eye the beautiful form of my Lord Sri Krishna seated before Arjuna in a chariot in the field of Kurukshetra, and giving out all those sublime thoughts embodied in the Gita. This it was that filled my eyes with tears of joy and love.'

This man, who knew not letters, had the highest Knowledge, for he had pure love for God and could realise Him.

RELIGIOUS TEACHERS—FALSE AND TRUE - PITFALLS OF TEACHERSHIP

[Pitfalls of teachership—True teachers] PITFALLS OF TEACHERSHIP

Do you, O preacher, carry the badge of authority? The humblest servant of the king, authorised by him, is heard with awe and respect, and can quell a riot by showing his badge; so must you, O preacher, first, obtain your commission and inspiration from God Himself. So long as you do not have this badge of Divine inspiration, you may preach all your life, but it will be mere waste of breath.

None has patience or desire to dive deep into Divine love. None cares for discrimination and dispassion for worldly things (Viveka and Vairagya), or for devotional practices (Sadhana). On the other hand, all will rush to lecture and to teach with only a bit of book-learning. Strange indeed ! To teach others is the most difficult of tasks. He alone can teach, who gets commission from God after having realised Him.

What do you think of the man who is a good orator and preacher, but whose spiritual powers are undeveloped ? He is like the person who squanders another s property entrusted to him. He can easily advise others, for it costs him nothing since the ideas he expresses are not his own but borrowed.

A well-known speaker was lecturing once in a Harisabha (religious association). In the course of his speech he said, " The Lord is totally devoid of Rasa (sweetness) ; we must make Him sweet by lending to Him the sweetness of our own nature. By Rasa he meant love and other divine attributes. When I heard this, I was reminded of the boy who said that his mother s brother had many horses, and sought to convince his hearers by explaining that they occupied a whole cowshed. Of course, the intelligent could at once see that cowsheds are not meant for horses, that the youngster was telling a lie, and that he had no experience or knowledge of horses.

To say that God is devoid of Rasa was an absurdity, which proved that the speaker was totally ignorant of what he was saying. He had never realised the Supreme Being, Who is the very fountain of eternal love, wisdom and joy.

What is your opinion about the method employed by present-day religious preachers? It is like inviting a hundred persons to a dinner with food enough only for one. It is only pretending to be a great religious teacher with a small stock of spiritual experience.

First install God in the temple of your heart; first realise Him. Speeches, lectures and the rest may be taken up after you have seen God, not before. People talk glibly of God and Brahman, while they are attached to the things of the world. What does all this amount to ? Mere blowing of the conch (Sankha) for Divine Service without God to worship within the temple.

One day as I was going through Panchavati, I heard the frightful. croaking of a frog. I guessed it must have been caught by a snake. When after a long time I was returning that way, I again heard the same noise. Peeping through the bushes, I saw a water snake with a frog in its mouth. It could neither swallow it, nor let it go, and there was no end td the agony of the frog. Then I thought, " Well, had it been the victim of a cobra, it would have been silenced for ever after three croaks at the most (and then there would have been no more suffering either for the frog or the snake). But here the snake's suffering is almost equal to the frogs." So if an unenlightened man takes upon himself in his foolhardiness the responsibility of saving another, there is no end to the misery of both. Neither does the ego of the disciple vanish, nor are his worldly ties cut asunder. If the disciple comes under the influence of an unworthy teacher, he never gets liberation. But under a competent teacher the egotism of the Jiva perishes with three croaks."

There was a professional preacher who could rouse strong devotional feelings in the hearts of his hearers whenever he delivered religious discourses; but personally he was not a man of character. Pained at the kind of life he led, I asked him one day how it was that he moved so many hearts to devotion, while he himself lived such an unworthy life. The man bowed and said, " Yes, Sir, thebroom though a contemptible thing, removes the dust and dirt on the floor and the street!" Of course I could not answer him.¹

¹ This need not be taken as a contradiction of the main theme of this chapter. For the effect which preaching of this type produces is temporary and is unlike the permanent change which the words of men of true spiritual realisation produce in their disciples.

WHO IS A TRUE TEACHER ?

He alone is the true teacher who is illumined by the light of true Knowledge.

As many people have merely heard of snow but not seen it, so many religious preachers have only read in books about the attributes of God, but not realised them for themselves. And as many others have seen snow but not tasted it, so many religious teachers have obtained only a glimpse of Divine glory but have not understood its real essence. Only he who has tasted the snow can say what it is like. Similarly, he alone can describe the attributes of God, who has associated with Him in His different aspects in the relationship of a servant, a friend and a lover, and has realised his oneness with Him in complete absorption in Him.

If one has the idea that one is a leader and has. formed a sect, one's ego is 'unripe. But if one gets commission from God after realising Him, and preaches for the good of others, there is no harm. Sukadeva had such a commission to reveal the Bhagavata to Parikshit.

When the jar is full, it does not make noise any more. So the man of realisation too does not talk much. But what then about Narada and others ? Yes; Narada, Sukadeva and a few others like them came down several steps after the attainment of Samadhi, and out of mercy and love they taught mankind.

There are two classes of perfect men in the world —those who, on attaining Truth, become silent and enjoy it all by themselves without any thought of others; and those who attain Truth, but finding no pleasure in keeping it to themselves, cry out in a trumpet voice to all—" Come ye, and enjoy the Truth with us."

Bees come of themselves to the full-blown flower when the breeze wafts its fragrance all around. Ants come of themselves to the spot where sweets are placed. No one need invite the bee or the ant. So when a man becomes pure and perfect, the sweet influence of his character spreads everywhere, and all who seek the Truth are naturally drawn towards him. He need not go in search of an audience to listen to him.

Ants gather of themselves where tho sweetmeats have fallen. Try to become sugar candy, i.e., have within yourselves the sweetness of an enlightened spiritual consciousness, and the ants (devotees) will come to you of themselves. If you preach without commission from God, your preaching will be powerless, and none will listen to it. One must attain God by devotion or by any other means, and then, if one receives His word, one may teach and preach anywhere and everywhere. For only thus can one get power and strength from Him; and only then can one rightly discharge the responsible duties of a preacher.

Sayings of Sri Ramakrishna

When fire bums, the moths come, one knows not whence, and fall into it. The fire never goes about inviting the moth. Such is the preaching of the perfect. They do not go about inviting others, but hundreds and thousands, of their own accord, go to them—one knows not whence— seeking instruction from them.

What is true preaching like ? Instead of preaching to others, if one worships God all the time, that is preaching enough. He who exerts himself to attain emancipation from birth and death is the real preacher. To him who is free hundreds of people come from all sides anxious to be taught. When a rose blossoms, bees come from all sides uninvited.

When corn is measured out to a purchaser from the granary of a big merchant, the man engaged in measuring out goes on unceasingly with his work, having a constant supply of grain. A petty dealer's store, on the other hand, is soon exhausted. Similarly, it is God Himself Who unfailingly inspires thoughts and sentiments in His devotees, and that is why they are never lacking in what is new and wise. But the book-learned, like petty grocers, soon find themselves short of thoughts and ideas.

Gas-light illumines different parts of the city in varying degrees. But the life of the light, namely, the gas, comes from one common source. So the true religious teachers of all climes and ages are like lamps through which is revealed the life of the Spirit flowing constantly ♦from the one source, the Almighty Lord.

Rain-water falling upon the roof of a house flows down to the ground through spouts shaped grotesquely like a tiger s head. One gets the impression that the water comes from the tiger s mouth, but in reality it descends from the sky. In the same way the holy teachings that come from the mouths of godly men seem to be uttered by those men themselves, while in reality they proceed from God.

THE WORLDLY-MINDED AND THEIR WAYS - CHARACTERISTICS OF THE WORLDLY-MINDED

THE WORLDLY-MINDED AND THEIR WAYS

[Characteristics of the worldly-mindeJ—Fickle devo tion of the worldly-minded—The worldly-minded and spiritual practices]

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE WORLDLY-MINDED

Men are of two classes—men in name only (Manush) and the awakened men (Man-hush). Those who thirst after God alone belong to the latter class; those who are mad after woman and gold' are all ordinary men—men in name only.

As one mask may be worn by various persons, so also various kinds of creatures have donned the garb of humanity. Some are tearing wolves, others are ferocious bears, and some again are cunning foxes or venomous snakes, though they all look like men.

Just as it is the nature of the sieve to reject the fine grains and to keep the coarse ones, so it is the nature of evil souls to reject the good and retain the evil. Just the opposite is the nature of the winnowing basket and of good souls.

There are people who are so situated in life that naturally they have nothing in the world to attract them, but would yet create for themselves some attachment and get themselves bound by it. They neither want nor like to be free. A man who has no family to care for, nor relatives to look after, generally takes a cat or a monkey or a dog or a bird for a pet and fondles it, and thus slakes his thirst for milk with mere whey . Such is the snare that Maya s charm has set for humanity.

The new-born calf looks very lively and gay. It runs and frisks about all day long, only stopping now and then to suck the sweet milk from its dam. But no sooner is the rope tied round its neck than it begins to pine away gradually, and, far from being merry, wears a dejected and sorrowful look, and gets emaciated. In the same way, so long as a boy has no concern with the affairs of the world, he is quite merry and gay. But when he once gets himself locked in the world, as it were, with the strong bar of wedlock, and is harnessed with the responsibilities of family life, all his joy vanishes. He wears a look of dejection, care and anxiety ; no more is there the glow of health on his cheeks, and deep wrinkles gradually furrow his forehead. Blessed is he that remains a boy throughout his life, free as the morning air, fresh as a newly opened flower, and pure as a dew-drop,

As a little boy or girl can have no idea of conjugal pleasure, even so a worldly man cannot at all comprehend the ecstasy of Divine communion.

The worldly man cannot easily resist the lure of woman and gold', and turn his mind to God, although he may be relentlessly buffeted by the miseries and sufferings of life.

A worldly man is best known by his antipathy to-whatever savours of religion. Not only does he himself dislike to hear any hymn or sacred music or the chanting of the holy ' name' of God, but he dissuades others from listening to them. He who scoffs at prayers, religious societies and pious men, is indeed a true worldling.

Sometimes I see worldly-minded men coming to me with pious devotees. These worldly men have no liking for religious conversations. So they become very impatient and restless while the others are having long talks about God and spirituality. They find it very difficult even to sit still, and hence whisper in their friends' ears,. " When are you going ? How long will you stay ?" Occasionally their friends would say, " Wait a little. We are coming presently. Disgusted with their words, these worldly men would reply, " Then you had better continue your talk. We shall go now and wait for you in the boat" (which was to take them back to Calcutta).

While, talking with a worldly man, one can see -clearly how his heart is stuffed with all kinds of worldly thoughts and desires, just as the crop of the pigeon is filled with grain.

The heart of a sinful man is like curly hair. You will never succeed in straightening it, howsoever you may try. So also the heart of the wicked cannot be easily made upright and pure.

The mendicant's calabash jug (Kamandalu) may have been to the four Dhamas (the four chief places of pilgrimage which a Sadhu is expected to visit), yet it remains as bitter as ever. Such is the nature of worldly-minded men.

The potter shapes various forms with unburnt clay, but he cannot work the clay that has once been burnt. In the same way the heart that has been burnt in the fire of worldly desires cannot be acted upon by any higher sentiment, and is incapable of being moulded into any lovely form.

As water can never soak a piece of stone, so religious teachings can produce no impression on a soul in bondage (Baddha-jiva).

As a nail cannot be driven into a stone but enters easily into the earth, so the advice of the pious does not affect the soul of a worldly man while it goes deep into the heart of a believer.

As soft clay easily takes an impression, but not hard stone, so also Divine wisdom impresses itself on the heart of a devotee, but not on a bound soul.

As the water under a bridge enters from one side and passes out at the other, so religious advice given to the worldlings enters the mind through one ear and goes out by the other, without leaving any impression.

What is the characteristic of the worldly-minded man ? He is like the mongoose in the tamer's pot. The mongoose-tamer fixes a pot high up in a wall to serve as a nest for the animal. He ties one end of a rope round the neck of the mongoose while the other end is fastened to a weight. Coming out of the pot, the mongoose goes down the wall and wanders about here and there, but when frightened, runs back into the pot to hide itself there. Unfortunately it cannot stay there long, as the weight at the other end of the rope drags it down from its comfortable home. Similarly, the worldly man is often forced by the chastening influence of the sufferings and miseries of life to soar high above the world and take refuge in God, but the dead weight of the world with all its attraction soon pulls him down.

Seeing the gleaming water pass through the valve of the bamboo trap placed in rice fields, small fish enter the trap with great glee. But having once entered, they cannot come out. Similarly, foolish men enter the meshes of the world, lured by its false glitter; but it is much easier to enter than to escape; and they are caught like little fish and imprisoned for good.

The fettered ones—the worldlings—are never awakened. How sorrows assail them, how frauds deceive them, and how dangers threaten them ! Yet they do not wake up', even as the camel, so fond of the prickly bush and the nettle, does not cease browsing on them though they make its mouth bleed. The man of the world suffers so much, yet in a few days he forgets everything. Perhaps his wife has died or proved faithless; and lo! he marries again. Or perhaps his child has died, and he weeps; but in a short while everything has slipped out of his memory. And the mother of the child, who has been so overwhelmed with grief, is again looking to her toilet, and wearing ornaments and jewels. Parents are impoverished by their daughters marriage, and yet annually children are born to them. And these men, though ruined by law-suits, will yet go for litigation. They have not the wherewithal to provide well for their children, yet they will beget more children every year !

The worldling is sometimes like a snake that has caught hold of a mole which it can neither swallow nor throw out. Possibly he has come to see that there is nothing substantial in the world, that it is all skin and stone like sour-sop (Amrah fruit), yet he cannot forget the world and set his heart on God. If you remove him from worldly environment and place him in holy surroundings, he will lose heart and pine away, even as a worm which lives and thrives on filth will die if kept in a pot of rice.

None would keep milk in an earthen pot which has once been used for preparing curd lest the milk should get curdled. Nor can it be safely used for cooking, because it may crack upon the fire. It is therefore almost useless. So also a good and experienced Guru does not entrust valuable and exalted precepts to a worldly man, for he is sure to misinterpret and misuse them for his own mean ends. Nor will he ask him to do any useful work which may cost a little labour lest he should think that the preceptor is taking undue advantage of him.

Man cannot renounce the world even if he wishes, because he is thwarted by the Karmas that are bearing fruit in the present birth and by the impressions of previous actions left on the mind (Prarabdha and Samskara). Once a Yogi asked a king to sit down near him and meditate upon God. To him the king replied, ' No, Sir, that cannot be. I can remain near you, but still the thirst for worldly enjoyment wjll be with me. If I remain in this forest, perhaps there will arise a kingdom within it as I am still destined to enjoy."

FICKLE DEVOTION OF THE WORLDLY-MINDED

Worldly persons may perform many pious andf charitable acts in the hope of earthly rewards, but at the approach of misfortune, sorrow and poverty, their piety and charity forsake them. They are like the parrot that repeats, ' Radha-Krishna, Radha-Krishna ' the livelong day, but cries, ' Kang, Kang ' when caught by a cat, forgetting the Divine name.

Therefore, I say unto you, preaching religion to such men will prove useless. In spite of all your sermons they are sure to remain as worldly as ever.

A spring cushion is pressed down when one sits upon it but soon resumes its shape when the pressure is removed. So it is with worldly men. They are full of religious sentiment as long as they hear religious talk; but as soon as they enter upon the routine of their daily life they forget all those high and noble thoughts, and become as impure as before.

Iron appears red-hot in the furnace, but becomes black soon after it is taken out. In the same way worldly men are full of religious emotion as long as they are in a temple or in the society of the pious; but no sooner do they leave these associations, than the flood of devotion in them subsides.

As the fly now sits on an unclean sore and next on offerings to God, so the mind of the worldly man is at one time engaged in religious topics and at the next loses itself in the pleasures of wealth and lust.

The heart of the worldly man is like the worm m a dung-hill. The worm always lives in the dung and loves to live therein. If by chance someone takes it out of that filthy habitation and put it on a lotus-flower, it will soon die of the fragrance of the flower. So the worldly man cannot live even for a moment outside the dirty atmosphere of worldly thoughts and desires.

Do you know what worldly people s idea of God is like ? It is like the children's prattle while they play among themselves. Sometimes they swear, saying, " By God, I say ! They learn this from their elders when they hear them taking an oath. Or, at best, it is like the utterance of the dandy who with all his foppish airs goes to a garden in one of his idle promenades, whistling and twirling his stick about, and picks up a flower and exclaims,

O what a beautiful flower God has made !" It is only a^ momentary mood like the sprinkling of a drop of water on a bar of redhot iron. So, I say, you must thirst for Him. You will have to take a deep plunge into the ocean.

THE WORLDLY-MINDED AND SPIRITUAL PRACTICES

A husbandman was watering a sugar-cane field throughout the day. After finishing his task he saw that not a drop of water had entered the field; all the water had run underground through several big rat-holes. Such is the state of the devotee who worships God, secretly cherishing ambitions and worldly desires in his heart.

Though he may be praying daily, he makes no progress, because his entire devotion runs to waste through the rat-holes of these desires, and at the end of his lifelong devotion, he remains the same as before.

Why does the mind become unsteady when engaged in contemplation ? The fly sits at times on the sweetmeats kept exposed for sale in the shop of the confectioner; but when a scavenger passes by with a basketful of filth, the fly leaves the sweets and at once settles on the filth. On the other hand, the bee in search of honey sits only on flowers and never on filthy objects. Worldly men, like flies, get occasionally a momentary taste of the sweetness of Divine love, but their natural hankering after filth soon brings them back to the dung-hill of worldliness. The great Paramahamsas are, however, always absorbed in the contemplation and enjoyment of Divine love.

An evil spirit is exorcised by throwing charmed mustard seeds on the possessed ; but if the evil spirit has possessed the mustard seeds themselves, how can they be of any use in exorcising it ? If the mind with which you contemplate the Deity is tainted with the vicious thoughts of the world, how can you expect to do your religious devotions successfully with such a corrupt instrument ?

A wet match does not ignite, however hard you may strike it; it only smokes. But a dry match lights at once, even with the slightest rubbing. The heart of the true devotee is like the dry match; the slightest mention of the name of the Lord kindles the fire of love in his heart, while the mind of the worldly man, soaked in lust and attachment for wealth, resists all warmth like the moistened match. Though God may be preached to him several times, the fire of Divine love can never be kindled in him.

A worldly man may be endowed with as much intelligence and knowledge as a Jnani, may take as much pains and trouble as a Yogi, and may make as great sacrifices as an ascetic; but all his exertions are in vain since his energies are misdirected, and since he does all these for the sake of worldly honour and wealth, and not for the sake of the Lord.

The soiled mirror never reflects the rays of the sun ; similarly those who are impure and unclean at heart and are deluded by Maya never perceive the glory of the Lord. But the pure in heart see the Lord as the clear mirror reflects the sun. Therefore be pure.

When a certain quantity of pure milk is mixed with double the quantity of water, it requires a good deal of time and labour to condense it into Kshira (condensed milk). The mind of a worldly man is largely diluted with the filthy water of evil and impure thoughts, and he has to work long and hard to purify it and give it the proper strength and consistency characteristic of a truly pious heart.

Q. Why is it that worldly men do not give up everything to find God ?

A. Can an actor coming on the stage throw off his mask at once ? Let worldly men play out their part, and in time they will throw off their false appearance.

The soul that is wholly world-bound is like the worm that lives for ever in filth, and dies there and has no idea of anything better. The soul whose worldliness is of lesser intensity is, however, like the fly that sits now on filth and now on sugar. The free soul alone is like the bee that always drinks honey and tastes nothing else.

The worldly man is like the alligator. As the body of the alligator is not pervious to the strokes of any weapon, and as it cannot be put to death except by striking at the belly, so no matter how much good advice you give to the worldly man, and no matter how much self-disgust you arouse in him, he will never realise his situation fully unless you wean him from the objects of his attachment.

Worldly men will not act up to your advice if you ask them to renounce everything and devote themselves to the lotus-like feet of the Lord. Hence, after much deliberation as to how to attract such souls, Gour and Nitai ] hit upon a plan of alluring them, and said, Come, take the name of Hari, and you will have a nice soup of Magur fish and the caress of a young damsel." These two items tempted many to join them and take the name of the Lord. When by and by they came to have a little taste of the nectar of the holy name, they understood the hidden meaning of Nitai's ¹ teaching. The soup of the Magur fish is nothing but the streams of tears they shed in love of God. The earth is ' the young damsel and to be caressed by her, means to roll on earth in the rapture of Divine love.

1 Lord Cbaitanya and his companion Nityananda.

THE ASCENT OF MAN

He who has not given up sinful ways, whose senses have not been restrained, who is unmeditative, and whose mind is devoid of peace, cannot attain Him even by a highly cultivated intelligence.

O good-looking youth, taking hold of that bow, the mighty weapon of scriptural wisdom (embodied in Om, the sound symbol of the Most High) and fixing the arrow (of the self) rendered sharp by devoted worship, draw it with the mind absorbed in His thought, and hit the mark—even that Imperishable Being.

He in whom are woven the heaven, the earth, the sky, and the mind together with the vital energies, know Him, that Atman alone, and give up all other vain talk. This is the path to Immortality.

The Upanishads

VARIETIES OF ASPIRANTS AND THEIR IDEALS - SOME TYPES OF ASPIRANTS

[Some types of aspirants—Characteristics of true aspirants—Kinship of the spiritually-inclined ~ Ideals of the aspirant entangled in the world —Ideals of the Sannyasin]

SOME TYPES OF ASPIRANTS

Out of the myriads of paper kites that are seen flying in the air, only one or two gets free by the snapping of the string. So out of hundreds of aspirants practising spiritual disciplines only one or two gets free from worldly bondage.

There is a fabled species of birds called Homa. They live so high up in the heavens and love those high regions so dearly that they never come down to the earth. And it is said that they even lay their eggs in the sky, and that their young ones are hatched in mid-air as the eggs fall, pulled down by gravity. No sooner do these fledglings find out that they are falling downwards, than they immediately change their course and instinctively fly up towards their home. Men like Sukadeva, Narada, Jesus and Sankara-charya are like these birds. Even in their boyhood they become free from all attachment to the things of the world and betake themselves to the highest regions of true Knowledge and Divine light.

There are two classes of Yogis, hidden and open. The former go through religious practices in secret and keep themselves hidden from public gaze. The latter carry about them the external symbols of the Yogi, such as a staff, and converse freely on spiritual subjects.

Though it is the general rule that flowers appear first and then fruits, there are some plants and creepers which bear fruits first and then flowers. Similarly, ordinary persons have to go through Sadhanas before they realise God but there is a class of aspirants who realise God first, and then perform the Sadhanas.

Of the grains of paddy fried in a frying pan, the few that leap out of the pan and burst outside are the best fried, for they are without any mark of charring. On the other hand, every one of the properly fried grains in the pan is sure to have some charred mark on it, however small. So of all good devotees, those few who give up the world altogether and go out of it are perfect without any spot, while even the best of those who are in the world must have at least some small spot of imperfection in their character.

Butter churned early in the morning is the best; that churned after sunrise is not so good. Addressing his young disciples who became Sannyasins later on, the Master used to say, M You are like butter charned early in the morning while my householder disciples are like butter churned late in the day.

The young bamboo can be easily bent, but the full grown bamboo breaks when it is bent with force. It is easy to bend the young heart towards God, but the untrained heart of the old escapes the hold whenever it is so drawn.

The parrot cannot be taught to sing when the the vibrating membrane in its throat has hardened too much due to age. It must be taught to sing while young, before the collar line appears on its neck. So in old age it is difficult to learn how to fix the mind on God, but it can be easily learnt in youth.

A ripe mango may be offered to God, or used for some other purpose ; but if it is pecked by a crow even once, it is unfit for any use. It can neither be offered to the Deity, nor presented to a Brahmin, nor may it be eaten by the pure. So boys and girls should be dedicated to the service of God before the impurities of worldly desires taint their hearts. Once worldly desires enter their minds, or the demon of sensual pleasures casts his baneful shadow over them, it is very difficult indeed to make them tread the path of virtue.

The love in the heart of a boy is whole and undivided. When he gets married in time, half of his heart, if not more, is given away to his wife, and when children are born to him, he loses another quarter thereof, while the remaining quarter is divided among father, mother, honour, fame, pride, dress, and the rest; therefore he has no love left to offer to God. Hence if the undivided mind of a boy is directed early enough to God, he may gain His love, and realise Him easily. But it is not quite so easy for grown-up people to do so.

If you ask whether there is any difference between the Jnanis who live in the world and those who renounce it, I would say that the two are the same. Both of them have the same Jnana m common. But if the Jnani is in the world, he has cause to fear; for life in the midst of sensual attractions is attended with the fear of fall, slight as it is. If you live in a sooty room, you are sure to get a little tainted by the soot, however careful you may be.

To some one the Master said: Well, you have now come to seek God when you have spent the best part of your life in the world. Had you entered the world after realising God, what peace and joy you would have found !"

Q. What is the difference between the Sattvic, the Rajasic and the Tamasic ways of worship ?

A. The man who worships from the very depth of his heart without the least ostentation or vanity is a Sattvic worshipper. The man who gives much attention to decorating his house, makes much fuss about music and dancing, and makes all costly and elaborate arrangements for a rich feast when celebrating the worship of the Deity, is a Rajasic worshipper. The man who immolates hundreds of innocent goats and sheep on the altar, has dishes of meat and wine for offerings, and is absorbed only in dancing and singing while conducting worship, is a Tamasic worshipper.

CHARACTERISTICS OF TRUE ASPIRANTS

The flint may remain for myriads of years under water and still not lose its inner fire. Strike it with steel whenever you like, and out flashes the glowing spark. So is the true devotee firm in his faith. Though he may remain surrounded by all the impurities of the world, he never loses his faith in, and love of, God. He warms up with devout enthusiasm as soon as he hears the ' name of the Lord.

Just as gold and brass are tested by a touchstone, so are the sincere and the hypocritical Sadhus distinguished by persecution and calumny.

The railway engine easily drags with it a train of heavily loaded carriages. So the loving children of God, firm in their faith and devotion, feel no trouble in passing through life in spite of all troubles and anxieties, and at the same time they lead many to God along with them.

When does the attraction of the pleasures of the sense die away ? When one realises the consummation of all happiness and of all pleasures in God—the indivisible, eternal ocean of bliss. Those who enjoy Him can find no attraction in the cheap, worthless pleasures of the world.

He who has once tasted the refined crystal of sugar candy finds no pleasure in tasting the dirty treacle. He who has slept in a palace will not find pleasure in lying down in a dirty hovel. The soul that has tasted the sweetness of Divine bliss finds no happiness in the vulgar pleasures of the world.

The lady who has a king for her lover will not accept the addresses of a street beggar. The soul that has found favour in the eyes of the Lord does not fall in love with the paltry things of the world.

It is the nature of the winnowing basket to reject whatever is light and useless, and retain whatever is weighty and good. Such is the nature of all pious souls.

Sugar and sand may be mixed together, but the ant rejects the sand and carries away the grains of sugar. So the holy Paramahamsas and pious men successfully sift the good from the bad.

The water of a rapid stream moves round and round in eddies and whirlpools in some places; but passing these it resumes again a straight and swift course. So the heart of the devotee is caught every now and then in the whirlpool of despondency, grief and unbelief; but this is only a momentary aberration and does not last long.

Wherein is the strength of a devotee ? He is a child of God, and his devotional tears are his mightiest weapon.

The more you scratch the part affected by ringworm, the greater grows the itching, and the more the pleasure you derive from scratching. So the worshippers of God never get tired of singing His praise.

That man whose hair stands on end at the mere mention of the name of God, and from whose eyes flow tears of love—he has indeed reached his last birth.

What happens when an impure woman tempts a pious man and tries to cast her evil influence upon him ? Just as the skin of a ripe mango, when pressed hard, is left in the hand, the stone and the kernel having slipped out of it, so does the mind of the pious man glide away to God, leaving behind its earthly tabernacle to be acted on by the woman.

The truly religious man is he who does not commit any sin even when he is alone, and when no man observes him, because he feels that God sees him even then. He who can resist the temptations of a young and seductive woman in a lonely forest, where he is unobserved by human eye, through the fear that God sees him and who, through such fear, will not even cast an immoral glance at her,—he is truly a religious man. He who finds a bag full of gold in a lonely and uninhabited house, and resists the temptation of appropriating it, he is a truly religious man. But he who practises religion for the sake of show, through fear of public opinion, cannot be called truly religious. The religion of silence and secrecy is the true religion, but it is all sham and mockery when attended with vaunting and vanity.

KINSHIP OF THE SPIRITUALLY-INCLINED

The spiritually-minded belong to a caste of their own, beyond all social conventions.

A woman naturally feels shy to relate to all the conversation she daily holds with her husband. She neither communicates it to anyone nor feels inclined to do so; and if it gets divulged in any way, she feels annoyed. But she would herself relate it to her intimate companion without reserve; nay, she would even be impatient to tell it to her and would find pleasure in doing so. Similarly, a devotee of God does not like to relate to any one but a true Bhakta the ecstatic joy that he experiences in Divine communion; nay, sometimes he is impatient to relate his experiences to such a person and feels happy to do so.

If a strange animal were to approach a herd of cows, it would soon be driven off by the combined attack of the whole herd. But let a cow come, and all the cows would make friends with her, with much mutual licking of bodies. Thus, when one devotee meets another devotee, both experience much delight and are loth to part from each other. But when a scoffer enters their circle, they sedulously avoid him.

Why is it that one who loves the Lord does not like to live in solitude ? The hemp-smoker finds no pleasure in smoking without company. The pious man, like the hemp-smoker, finds no pleasure in chanting the sacred 4 name ' of God away from the company of other devotees.