Third day of the Durga Puja

Monday, September 29, 1884

It was the third day of the Durga Puja. The Master had been awake in his room at Dakshineswar since early morning. The morning worship in the Kāli temple was over and the orchestra had played the morning melodies in the nahabat.

Brahmans and gardeners, basket in hand, were plucking flowers for the worship of the Divine Mother. Bhavanath, Baburam, Niranjan, and M. had spent the night at Dakshineswar, sleeping on the porch of the Master’s room. As soon as they awoke they saw Sri Ramakrishna dancing in an ecstatic mood.

He was chanting: “Victory to Mother Durga! Hallowed be the name of Durga!” He was naked and looked like a child as he chanted the name of the Blissful Mother. After a few moments he said: “Oh, the bliss of divine ecstasy! Oh, the bliss of divine drunkenness!” Then he repeatedly chanted the name of Govinda: “O Govinda! My life! My soul!”

The devotees sat on their beds and with unwinking eyes watched Sri Ramakrishna’s spiritual mood. Hazra was living at the temple garden. Lātu was also living there to render the Master personal service. Rākhāl was still at Vrindāvan. Narendra visited Sri Ramakrishna now and then. He was expected that day.

The devotees washed their faces. The Master took his seat on a mat on the north verandah. Bhavanath and M. sat beside him. Other devotees were coming in and out of the room.

MASTER (to Bhavanath): “The truth is that ordinary men cannot easily have faith. But an Isvarakoti’s faith is spontaneous. Prahlada burst into tears while writing the letter ‘ka’. It reminded him of Krishna. It is the nature of jivas to doubt. They say yes, no doubt, but-

Hazra can never be persuaded to believe that Brahman and Śakti, that Śakti and the Being endowed with Śakti, are one and the same. When the Reality appears as Creator, 617Preserver, and Destroyer, we call It Śakti; when It is inactive, we call It Brahman.

But really It is one and the same thing-indivisible. Fire naturally brings to mind its power to burn; and the idea of burning naturally brings to mind the idea of fire. It is impossible to think of the one without the other.

So I prayed to the Divine Mother: ‘O Mother! Hazra is trying to upset the views of this place. Either give him right understanding or take him from here.’ The next day he carne to me and said, ‘Yes, I agree with you.’ He said that God exists everywhere as All- pervading Consciousness.”

BHAVANATH (smiling): “Did what Hazra said really make you suffer so much?”

MASTER: “You see, I am now in a different mood. I can’t shout and carry on heated discussions with people. I am not in a mood now to argue and quarrel with Hazra. Hriday said to me at Jadu Mallick’s garden house, ‘Uncle, don’t you want to keep me with you?’ ‘No,’ I said, ‘I am no longer in a mood to get into heated arguments with you.’

“What is knowledge and what is ignorance? A man is ignorant so long as he feels that God is far away. He has knowledge when he knows that God is here and everywhere.

When a man has true knowledge he feels that everything is filled with Consciousness.

At Kamarpukur I used to talk to Shibu, who was then a lad four or five years old.

When the clouds rumbled and lightning flashed, Shibu would say to me: ‘There, uncle! They are striking matches again!’ (all laugh) One day I noticed him chasing grasshoppers by himself. The leaves rustled in the near-by trees. ‘Hush! Hush!’ he said to the leaves. ‘I want to catch the grasshoppers.’ He was a child and saw everything throbbing with consciousness. One cannot realize God without the faith that knows no guile, the simple faith of a child.

“Ah, what a state of mind I passed through! One day something bit me while I was sitting in the grass. I was afraid it might have been a snake, and I didn’t know what to do. I had heard that if a snake bites you again immediately after its first bite, it takes back. its own venom. At once I set out to discover the hole so that I might let the snake bite me again. While I was searching, a man said to me, ‘What are you doing?’

After listening to my story, he said, ‘But the snake must bite in the very same place it has bitten before.’ Thereupon I went away. Perhaps I had been bitten by a scorpion or some other insect.

“I had heard from Ramlal that the autumn chill was good for one’s health. Ramlal had quoted a verse to support it. One day, as I was returning from Calcutta in a carriage, I stuck my head out of the window so that I might get all the chill. Then I fell ill.” (all laugh)

Sri Ramakrishna entered his room and sat down. His legs were a little swollen. He asked the devotees to feel his legs and see whether or not the pressure of their fingers made dimples. Dimples did appear with the pressure, but the devotees said that it was nothing.

MASTER (to Bhavanath): “Please ask Mahendra of Sinthi to see me. I shall feel better if he reassures me.”

BHAVANATH (with a smile): “You have great faith in medicine. But we haven’t so much.”

MASTER: “It is God who, as the doctor, prescribes the medicine. It is He who, in one form, has become the physician. Dr. Gangaprasad asked me not to drink water at night. I regarded his statement as the words of the Vedas. I look upon him as the physician of heaven.

Hazra entered the room and sat down. The Master talked awhile about different things and then said to Hazra: “You see, many people were at Ram’s house yesterday. Vijay, Kedār, and others were there. But why did I feel so deeply stirred at the sight of Narendra? I found that Kedār belonged to the realm of Divine Inebriation.” Presently Narendra arrived, and Sri Ramakrishna was exceedingly happy.

Narendra saluted the Master and began to talk with Bhavanath and others in the room. M. was seated near by. A long mat was spread on the floor. While talking, Narendra lay on it flat on his stomach. The Master looked at him and suddenly went into samādhi. He sat on Narendra’s back in an ecstatic mood.

Bhavanath sang:

O Mother, ever blissful as Thou art, Do not deprive Thy worthless child of bliss! . . . Sri Ramakrishna came down from the plane of samādhi. He sang: Repeat, O mind, my Mother Durga’s hallowed name! O Gauri! O Narayani! to Thee I bow. Thou art the day, O Mother! Thou art the dusk and the night. As Rāma Thou drawest the bow, as Krishna Thou playest the flute; As Kāli all-terrible, Thou hast silenced Śiva, Thy Lord. The ten Embodiments of Divine Śakti art Thou, And Thou the ten Avatars; this time save me Thou must! With flowers and vilwa-leaves did Yaśoda worship Thee, And Thou didst bless her by placing Krishna, the Child, in her arms. Wherever I chance to live, O Mother, in forest or grove, May my mind, day and night, dwell at Thy Lotus Feet; Whether at last I die a natural or sudden death, Oh, may my tongue repeat Durga’s name at the end! 619Thou mayest send me away, O Mother, but where shall I go? Tell me, Mother, where else shall I hear so sweet a name? Thou mayest even say to me: “Step aside! Go away!” Yet I shall cling to Thee, O Durga! Unto Thy feet As Thine anklets I shall cling, making their tinkling sound. When, O Mother, Thou sittest at mighty Śiva’s side, Then I shall cry from Thy feet, “Victory unto Śiva!” Mother, when as the Kite, Thou soarest in the sky, There, in the water beneath, as a minnow I shall be swimming; Upon me Thou wilt pounce, and pierce me through with Thy claws. Thus, when the breath of life forsakes me in Thy grip, Do not deny me the shelter of Thy Lotus Feet! From the world’s bondage free me, 0 Spouse of the Absolute! Thy two feet are my boat to cross this world’s dark sea. Thou art the heavens and the earth, and Thou the nether world; From Thee have the twelve Gopalas and Hari and Brahma sprung. Whoever treads the path, repeating “Durga! Durga!” Śiva Himself protects with His almighty trident.

Hazra was sitting on the northeast verandah counting the beads of his rosary. The Master went and sat in front of him, taking the rosary in his own hands.

MASTER (to Hazra): “You see, I cannot use the rosary. No, perhaps I can. Yes, I can with my left hand. But I cannot repeat the name of God with it.”

With these words Sri Ramakrishna tried to perform a little japa. But hardly had he begun when he went into samādhi. He sat in that state a long time, still holding the rosary in his hand.

The devotees looked at him with wonder in their eyes. Hazra also watched the Master without uttering a word. After a long time Sri Ramakrishna regained consciousness of the outer world and said that he was hungry. He often said such things to bring his mind down to the normal plane. M. was going to bring something for him to eat. The Master said, “No, I shall first go to the Kāli temple.”

He went across the cement courtyard toward the Kāli temple. On the way he bowed with folded hands to the twelve Śiva temples. On the left was the temple of Radhakanta. He went there first and bowed before the image. Then he entered the Kāli temple and saluted the Mother.

Sitting on a carpet, he offered flowers at the Mother’s holy feet. He also placed a flower on his own head. While returning from the temple he asked Bhavanath to carry the green coconut offered at the temple, and the charanamrita.

Coming back to his room, accompanied by M. and Bhavanath, he saluted Hazra, who cried out in dismay: “What are you doing, sir? What is this?” The Master said, “Why should you say it is wrong?” Hazra often argued with the Master, declaring that God dwelt in all beings and that everybody could attain Brahmajnana through sadhana. He had an exaggerated idea of his own spiritual progress.

It was about noon. The gong and the bells announced the worship and offering in the various temples. The brahmins, the Vaishnavas, and the beggars went to the guest- house to have their midday meal. The devotees of the Master were also to partake of the sacred offerings. He asked them to go to the guest-house. To Narendra he said: “Won’t you take your meal in my room? All right. Narendra and I will eat here.” Bhavanath, Baburam, M., and the other devotees went to the guest-house.