Spiritual fervour of Gopal Ma

MASTER: “I went to Benares with Mathur Babu. Our boat was passing the Manikarnika Ghat on the Ganges, when suddenly I had a vision of Śiva. I stood near the edge of the boat and went into samādhi. The boatman, fearing that I might fall into the water, cried to Hriday: ‘Catch hold of him! Catch hold of him!’ I saw Śiva standing on that Ghat, embodying in Himself all the seriousness of the world. At first I saw Him standing at a distance; then I saw Him approaching me. At last he merged in me.

“Another time, in an ecstatic mood, I saw that a sannyāsi was leading me by the hand. We entered a temple and I had a vision of Annapurna made of gold. “God alone has become all this; but He manifests Himself more in certain things than in others.

(To M.) “Perhaps you do not believe in the salagram. ‘Englishmen’ do not believe in it. It doesn’t matter whether you believe in it or not. A salagram should contain the mark of a disc and other signs; only then can it be worshipped as an emblem of God.”

M: “Yes, sir. It is like the fuller manifestation of God in a man with good physical traits.’”

MASTER: “At first Narendra used to say that these were figments of my imagination; but now he accepts everything.”

Sri Ramakrishna was describing the vision of God, when he went into samādhi. The devotees looked at him with fixed gaze. After a long time he regained consciousness of the world and talked to the devotees.

MASTER (to M.): “What do you think I saw? I saw the whole universe as a salagram, and in it I saw your two eyes.”

In silent wonder M. and the devotees listened to these words about his inner experience.

At this moment Sarada, another’ young disciple of the Master, entered the room and saluted him.

MASTER (to Sarada): “Why don’t you come to Dakshineswar? Why don’t you see me when I come to Calcutta?”

SARADA: “Nobody tells me about it.”

MASTER: “Next time I shall let you know. (To M., smiling) Make a list of these youngsters.” (M. and the devotees laugh.)

SARADA: “My relatives at home want me to marry. (pointing to M.) How many times he has scolded me about marriage!”

MASTER: “Why should you marry just now? (To M.) Sarada is now in a very good state of mind. Formerly he had a hesitant look; now his face beams with joy.”

Sri Ramakrishna said to a devotee, “Will you kindly fetch Purna?”

Narendra arrived. Sri Ramakrishna asked a devotee to give him some refreshments. He was greatly pleased at the sight of Narendra. When he fed Narendra, he felt that he was feeding Narayana Himself. He stroked Narendra’s body affectionately.

Spiritual fervour of Gopal Ma

Gopal Ma entered the room. She was a great devotee of Gopala and was blessed with many lofty spiritual visions. Sri Ramakrishna had asked Balarām to send a man to bring her from Kamarhati. As soon as she entered the room she said, “I am shedding tears of joy.” With these words she bowed before the Master, touching the ground with her forehead.

MASTER: “What is this? You address me as ‘Gopala’ and still you salute me! Now go into the inner apartments and cook some curry for me. Put some spicy seasoning in it so that I may get the smell from here.”

(All laugh.

GOPAL MA: “What will they [meaning the members of the household] think of me?” Before she left the room she said to Narendra in a very fervent voice, “My child, have I reached the goal, or have I farther to go?”

It was the day of the Car Festival; so there was some delay in the worship of the Family Deity. When the worship was finished Sri Ramakrishna was asked to have his meal. He went to the inner apartments. The woman devotees were anxious to see him.

Man and woman devotees

Sri Ramakrishna had many woman devotees, but he did not talk much about them to his man devotees. He would warn the men against visiting woman devotees. He would say: “Don’t overdo it. Otherwise you will slip.” To some of his man devotees he would say, “Don’t go near a woman even if she rolls on the ground with devotion.” The Master wanted the men to live apart from woman devotees; only thus would the two groups make progress. He did not like the woman devotees to caress the men as “Gopala”; for too much of this motherly affection was not good; it degenerated in time into a harmful relationship.

After his midday meal Sri Ramakrishna sat in the drawing-room with the devotees. It was one o’clock. A devotee brought Purna from his home. With great joy the Master exclaimed to M.: “Here he is! Purna has come.” Narendra, the younger Naren, Narayan, Haripada, and other devotees were talking with the Master.

Free will

THE YOUNGER NAREN: “Sir, have we any free will?”

MASTER: “Just try to find out who this ‘I’ is. While you are searching for ‘I’, ‘He’ comes out. ‘I am the machine and He is the Operator.’ You have heard of a mechanical toy that goes into a store with a letter in its hand. You are like that toy. God alone is the Doer.

Do your duties in the world as if you were the doer, but knowing all the time that God alone is the Doer and you are the instrument.

“As long as the Upādhi exists there is ignorance. ‘I am a scholar’, ‘I am a Jnāni’, ‘I am wealthy’, ‘I am honourable’, ‘I am the master, father, and teacher’ -all these ideas are begotten of ignorance. ‘I am the machine and You are the Operator’ - that is Knowledge. In the state of Knowledge all Upādhis are destroyed. When the log is burnt up entirely, there is no more sound; no heat either. Everything cools down. Peace! Peace! Peace! (To Narendra) Sing a little.”

NARENDRA “I must go home. I have many things to do.”

MASTER: “Yes, yes, my child! Why should you listen to us? ‘The words of those who have gold in their ears are valuable; no one listens to him who hasn’t even a rag round his waist.’ (All laugh.) You frequent the garden house of the Guhas. I always hear about it. Whenever I ask, ‘Where is Narendra today?’ I am told, ‘Oh, he has gone to the Guhas.’ I should not have said all these things, but you have wrung them out of me.” Narendra kept quiet a few moments. Then he said: “There are no instruments to accompany me. Shall I just sing?”

MASTER: “My child, this is all we have. Please sing if it suits you. You must know how Balarām arranges things. “Balarām says to me, ‘Please come to Calcutta by boat; take a carriage only if you must.’ (All laugh.) You see, he has given us a feast today; so this afternoon he will make us all dance! (All laugh.) One day he hired a carriage for me from here to Dakshineswar.

He said that the carriage hire was twelve ānnās . I said to him, ‘Will the coachman take me to Dakshineswar for twelve ānnās ?’ ‘Oh, that will be plenty’, he replied. One side of the carriage broke down before we reached Dakshineswar.

(All laugh.)

Besides, the horse stopped every now and then; it simply would not go. Once in a while the coachman whipped the horse, and then it ran a short distance.

(All laugh.)

The program for the evening is that Ram will play on the drum and we shall all dance.

Ram has no sense of rhythm. (All laugh.) Anyhow, that is Balarām’s attitude-sing yourselves, dance yourselves, and make yourselves happy!”

(All laugh.)

Other devotees were arriving. Mahendra Mukherji saluted the Master from a distance. The Master returned the salute. Then he salaamed to Mahendra like a Mussulman. The Master said to a young devotee who sat next to him: “Why don’t you tell him I have salaamed to him? He will appreciate it

(All laugh.)

Many of the householder devotees were accompanied by their wives and other woman relatives. They wanted to salute the Master and watch his dancing before the car. Ram, Girish, and other devotees gradually assembled. Many young devotees were present.

Narendra sang:

Oh, when will dawn the blessed day When Love will waken in my heart? When will my tears flow uncontrolled As I repeat Lord Hari’s name, And all my longing be fulfilled? When will my mind and soul be pure? Oh, when shall I at last repair Unto Vrindāvan’s sacred groves? When will my worldly bonds fall off And my imperfect sight be healed By Wisdom’s cool collyrium? When shall I learn true alchemy And, touching the Philosopher’s Stone, Transmute my body’s worthless iron Into the Spirit’s purest gold? When shall I see this very world As God, and roll on Love’s highway? When shall I give up piety And duty and the thought of caste? When shall I leave behind all fear, All shame, convention, worry, pride? Oh, I shall smear my body then With dust from the feet of devotees; Across my shoulders I shall sling Renunciation’s pack, and drink From my two hands a cooling draught Of Jamunas life-renewing stream. Oh, then I shall be mad with love; I shall both laugh and weep for joy! Then I shall swim, upon the Sea, Of blessed Satchidananda; Drunk with His love, I shall make all As drunk as I! Oh, I shall sport At Hari’s feet for evermore!

He sang again:

In dense darkness, O Mother, Thy formless beauty sparkles; Therefore the, yogis meditate in a dark mountain cave Balarām had arranged for kirtan with Vaishnavcharan, the musician Vaishnavcharan sang:

O tongue, always repeat, the name of Mother Durga; Who but your Mother Durga will save you in distress? . . . When Sri Ramakrishna had heard a line or two of the song he went into samādhi. He stood up in that ecstatic mood, The younger Naren supported him. The Master’s face was lighted with a smile. Gradually his body became motionless; his mind appeared to have gone to another realm. All the devotees in the room looked at him in amazement. The woman devotees watched the scene from behind the screen. After a long time he came down from samādhi, chanting the holy name of God. As the Master sat down, Vaishnavcharan sang again: O vina, sing Lord Hari’s name! Without the blessing of His feet You cannot know the final Truth, The name of Hari slays all grief: Sing Hari’s name! Sing Krishna’s name! . . .

Then he sang:

O vina, forgetting to worship Hari, I pass the days of my life in vain. . . .