Master's vision of God
Table of Contents
Saying this, Sri Ramakrishna took the fan from M.’s hand and said: “As I see this fan, directly before me, in exactly the same manner have I seen God. And I have seen- " With these words he placed his hand on his heart and asked Narendra, by a sign, “Can you tell me what I said?”
NARENDRA: “I have understood.”
MASTER: “Tell me.”
NARENDRA: “I didn’t hear you well”
Sri Ramakrishna said again, by a sign, “I have seen that He and the one who dwells in my heart are one and the same Person.”
Yes, yes! Soham-I am He.
MASTER: “But only a line divides the two-that I may enjoy divine bliss.”
(to M.): “Great souls, even after their own liberation, retain the ego and experience the pleasure and pain of the body that they may help others to attain liberation. “It is like coolie work. We perform coolie work under compulsion, but great souls do so of their own sweet pleasure.”
Again all fell into silence. After a time Sri Ramakrishna resumed the conversation.
MASTER (to Narendra and the others): “The roof is clearly visible; but it is extremely hard to reach it. But if someone who has already reached it drops down a rope, he can pull another person up.
Different kinds of samādhi
“Once a sādhu from Hrishikesh came to Dakshineswar. He said to me: ‘How amazing! I find five kinds of samādhi manifested in you.’
“Just as a monkey climbs a tree, jumping from one branch to another, so also does the Mahāvāyu , the Great Energy, rise in the body, jumping from one centre to another, and one goes into samādhi. One feels the rising of the Great Energy, as though it were the movement of a monkey.“Just as a fish darts about in the water and roams in great happiness, so also does the Mahāvāyu move upward in the body, and one goes into samādhi. One feels the rising of the Great Energy, as though it were the movement of a fish. “Like a bird hopping from one branch to another, the
Mahāvāyu goes up in the tree of the body, now to this branch and now to that. One feels the rising of the Great Energy, as though it were the movement of a bird.
“Like the slow creeping of an ant, the Mahāvāyu rises from centre to centre. When it reaches the Sahasrara one goes into samādhi. One feels the rising of the Great Energy, as though it were the movement of an ant. “Like the wriggling of a snake, the Mahāvāyu rises in a zigzag way along the spinal column till it reaches the Sahasrara, and one goes into samādhi. One feels. the rising of the Great Energy, as though it were the movement of a snake.” Rakhal (to the other devotees): “Let us stop here. He has already talked a great deal. It will aggravate his illness.”
Monday, April 12, 1886
About 5pm, Sri Ramakrishna was sitting on the bed in his room in the Cossipore garden house. Śaśi and M. were with him. He asked M., by a sign, to fan him.
There was a fair in the neighbourhood in celebration of the last day of the Bengali year. A devotee, whom Sri Ramakrishna had sent to the fair to buy a few articles, returned. “What have you bought?” the Master asked him.
DEVOTEE: “Candy for five pice, a spoon for two pice, and a vegetable-knife for two pice.”
MASTER: “What about the penknife?”
DEVOTEE: “I couldn’t get one for two pice.”
MASTER (eagerly): “Go quickly and get one!”
M. was pacing the garden. Narendra and Tārak returned from Calcutta.
They had visited Girish Ghosh’s house and other places.
TĀRAK: “We have eaten a great deal of meat and other heavy stuff today.”
Yes, our minds have come down a great deal. Let us practise tapasya.
(To M.) What slavery to body and mind! We are just like coolies-as if this body and mind were not ours but belonged to someone else."
In the evening lamps were lighted in the house. Sri Ramakrishna sat on his bed, facing the north. He was absorbed in contemplation of the Mother of the Universe. A few minutes later Fakir, who belonged to the priestly family of Balarām, recited the Hymn ofForgiveness addressed to the Divine Mother. Śaśi, M., and two or three other devotees were in the room. After the recital Sri Ramakrishna, with folded hands, very respectfully bowed to the Deity.
M. was fanning Sri Ramakrishna. The Master said to him by signs, “Get a stone cup for me that will hold a quarter of a seer of milk-white stone.” He drew the shape of the cup with his finger.
M: “Yes, sir.”
MASTER: “When eating from other cups I get the smell of fish.”
Tuesday, April 13, 1886
It was 8am. M. had spent the night at the garden house.
After taking his bath in the Ganges he prostrated himself before Sri Ramakrishna. Ram had just come. He saluted the Master and took a seat. He had brought a garland of flowers, which he offered to the Master. Most of the devotees were downstairs; only one or two were in the Master’s room.
Sri Ramakrishna was talking to Ram.
MASTER: “How do you find me?”
RAM: “In you one finds everything. “Presently there will be a discussion about your illness.”
The Master smiled and asked Ram by a sign, “Will there really be a discussion about my illness?”
Sri Ramakrishna’s slippers were not comfortable. Dr. Rajendra Dutta intended to buy a new pair and had asked for the measurement of his feet. The measurement was taken.
“Sri Ramakrishna asked M., by a sign, about the stone cup. M. at once stood up. He wanted to go to Calcutta for the cup. MASTER: “Don’t bother about it now.”
M: “Sir, these devotees are going to Calcutta. I will go with them.”
M. bought the cup in Calcutta and returned to Cossipore at noon. He saluted the Master and placed the cup near him. Sri Ramakrishna took the cup in his hand and looked at it.
Dr. Rajendra Dutta, Dr. Sreenāth, Rakhal, Haldār, and several others came in. Rakhal, Śaśi, and the younger Naren were in the room. The physicians heard the report of the Master’s illness.
Dr. Sreenath had a copy of the Gitā in his hand.DR. SREENATH (to his friends): “Everything is under the control of Prakriti. Nobody can escape the fruit of past action. This is called Prārabdha .”