Teachings of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa

June 15, 1884  PRATAP: "Revered sir, are those who live with you making progress in spiritual life?" MASTER: "I tell people that there is nothing wrong in the life of the world. But they must live in the world as a maidservant lives in her master's house.' Referring to her master's house, she says, 'That is our house.' But her real home is perhaps in a far-away village. Pointing out her master's house to others, she says, no doubt, 'This is our house', but in her heart she knows very well that it doesn't belong to her and that her own house is in a faraway village. She brings up her master's son and says, 'My Hari has grown very naughty', or 'My Hari doesn't like sweets.' Though she repeats, 'My Hari' with her lips, yet she knows in her heart that Hari doesn't belong to her, that he is her master's son. "Thus I say to those who visit me...

June 15, 1884  MASTER: "To love these objects, regarding them as one's own, is māyā. But to love all things is daya, compassion. To love only the members of the Brahmo Samaj or of one's own family is māyā; to love one's own countrymen is māyā. But to love the people of all countries, to love the members of all religions, is daya. Such love comes from love of God, from daya. "Māyā entangles a man and turns him away from God. But through daya one realizes God. Sages like Sukadeva and Nārada always cherished daya in their hearts." Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Chapter 23, Festival at Surendra's house

June 15, 1884  MASTER (To Pratap): "Let me tell you something. You are a learned and intelligent and serious-minded soul. Keshab and you were like the two brothers, Gaur and Nitai. You have had enough of lectures, arguments, quarrels, discussions, and dissensions. Can such things interest you any more? Now gather your whole mind and direct it to God. Plunge deep into God." PRATAP: "Yes, sir, you are right. That is surely my only duty now. But I am doing all these things only to perpetuate Keshab's name." MASTER (with a smile): "No doubt you say now that you are doing all this to keep his name alive; but in a few days you won't feel that way. Listen to a story. A man had built a house on a hill. It was only a mud hut, but he had built it with great labour. A few days after, there came a violent storm and the hut began to rock. The man became very anxious to save it and prayed to the god of the winds...

June 15, 1884 Master sang in his sweet voice:   Dive deep, O mind, dive deep in the Ocean of God's Beauty; If you descend to the uttermost depths, There you will find the gem of Love. Go seek, O mind, go seek Vrindāvan in your heart, Where with His loving devotees Sri Krishna sports eternally. Light up, O mind, light up true wisdom's shining lamp, And let it burn with steady flame Unceasingly within your heart. Who is it that steers your boat across the solid earth? It is your guru, says Kubir; Meditate on his holy feet. The Master continued, addressing Pratap: "Did you listen to the song? You have had enough of lectures and quarrels. Now dive deep into the Ocean of God. There is no fear of death from plunging into this Ocean, for this is the Ocean of Immortality. Don't think that this will make you lose your head. Never for a moment harbour the idea that by thinking too much of G...

June 15, 1884  DEVOTEE: "What, sir, are the signs of God-vision?" MASTER: "Yes, there are such signs. It is said in the Bhagavata that a man who has seen God behaves sometimes like a child, sometimes like a ghoul, sometimes like an inert thing, and sometimes like a madman. "The man who has seen God becomes like a child. He is beyond the three gunas; he is unattached to any of them. He behaves like a ghoul, for he maintains the same attitude toward things holy and unholy. Again, like a madman, he sometimes laughs and sometimes weeps. Now he dresses himself like a dandy and the next moment he goes entirely naked and roams about with his cloth under his arm. Therefore he seems to be a lunatic. Again, at times he sits motionless like an inert thing." Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Chapter 23, Festival at Surendra's house 

June 20, 1884 MASTER: "You may feel a thousand times that it is all magic; but you are still under the control of the Divine Mother. You cannot escape Her. You are not free. You must do what She makes you do. A man attains Brahmajnana only when it is given to him by the Ādyāśakti , the Divine Mother. Then alone does he see the whole thing as magic; otherwise not. "As long as the slightest trace of ego remains, one lives within the jurisdiction of the Ādyāśakti . One is under Her sway. One cannot go beyond Her. "With the help of the Ādyāśakti , God sports as an Incarnation. God, through His Śakti, incarnates Himself as man. Then alone does it become possible for the Incarnation to carry on His work".  Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Chapter 23, Festival at Surendra's house 

June 15, 1884 MASTER: "Once upon a time a wood-cutter went into a forest to chop wood. There suddenly he met a brahmachari. The holy man said to him, 'My good man, go forward.' On returning home the wood-cutter asked himself, 'Why did the brahmachari tell me to go forward?' Some time passed. One day he remembered the brahmachari's words. He said to himself, 'Today I shall go deeper into the forest.' Going deep into the forest, he discovered innumerable sandal-wood trees. He was very happy and returned with cart-loads of sandal-wood. He sold them in the market and became very rich. "A few days later he again remembered the words of the holy man to go forward. He went deeper into the forest and discovered a silver-mine near a river. This was even beyond his dreams. He dug out silver from the mine and sold it in the market. He got so much money that he didn't even know how much he had. "A f...

June 15, 1884 MASTER (to Pratap): "It is not in England alone that one sees attachment to worldly things. You see it everywhere. But remember that work is only the first step in spiritual life. God cannot be realized without sattva-love, discrimination, kindness, and so on. It is the very nature of rajas to involve a man in many worldly activities. That is why rajas degenerates into tamas. If a man is entangled in too many activities he surely forgets God. He becomes more and more attached to 'woman and gold'. "But it is not possible for you to give up work altogether. Your very nature will lead you to it whether you like it or not. Therefore the scriptures ask you to work in a detached spirit, that is to say, not to crave the work's results. For example, you may perform devotions and worship, and practise austerities, but your aim is not to earn people's recognition or to increase your merit. "To work ...

June 15, 1884  "The misfortune that befalls a man on account of his egotism can be realized if you only think of the condition of the calf. The calf says, 'Hamma! Hamma!' that is, 'I! I!' And just look at its misfortune! At times it is yoked to the plough and made to work in the field from sunup to sundown, rain or shine. Again, it may be slaughtered by the butcher. In that case the flesh is eaten and the skin tanned into hide. From the hide shoes are made. People put on these shoes and walk on the rough ground. Still that is not the end of its misfortunes. Drums are made from its skin and mercilessly beaten with sticks. At last its entrails are made into strings for the bow used in carding cotton. When used by the carder the string gives the sound 'Tuhu! Tuhu!', 'Thou! Thou!'-that is, 'It is Thou, O Lord! It is Thou!' It no longer says, 'Hamma! Hamma!', 'I! I!' Only then does the...

May 25, 1884 MASTER (to Vijay and the others): "The musician sang rightly: 'A sannyasi must not look at a woman.' This is the sannyasi's dharma. What a lofty ideal!" VIJAY: "Yes indeed, sir." MASTER: "Others learn from the sannyasi's example. That is why such strict rules are prescribed for him. A sannyasi must not look even at the portrait of a woman. What a strict rule! The slaughtering of a black goat is prescribed for the worship of the Divine Mother; but a goat with even a slight wound cannot be offered. A sannyasi must not only not have intercourse with woman; he must not even talk to her" VIJAY: "Young Haridas talked with a pious woman. For that reason Chaitanya banished him from his presence." MASTER: "A sannyasi associated with 'woman and gold' is like a beautiful damsel with a bad odour. The odour makes her beauty useless. "Once a Mārwāri ...

March 23, 1884   MASTER: "To be able to realize God, one must practise absolute continence.  Sages like Sukadeva are examples of an urdhvareta.   Their chastity was absolutely unbroken.  There is another class, who previously have had discharges of semen but who later on have controlled them.  A man controlling the seminal fluid for twelve years develops a special power.  He grows a new inner nerve called the nerve of memory.  Through that nerve he remembers all, he understands all. "Loss of semen impairs the strength.  But it does not injure one if one loses it in a dream.  That semen one gets from food.  What remains after nocturnal discharge is enough.  But one must not know a woman. "The semen that remains after nocturnal discharge is very 'refined'.  The Lahas kept jars of molasses in their house.  Every jar had a hole in it.  After a year they found that the molasses had crystall...

March 23, 1884   MASTER (to Mahimacharan):  "What I said about aspirants practising continence is true.  Without chastity one cannot assimilate these teachings. "Once a man said to Chaitanya: 'You give the devotees so much instruction.  Why don't they make much progress?' Chaitanya said: 'They dissipate their powers in the company of women.  That is why they cannot assimilate spiritual instruction.  If one keeps water in a leaky jar, the water escapes little by little through the leak.' " Mahima and the other devotees remained silent.  After a time Mahima said, "Please pray to God for us that we may acquire the necessary strength." MASTER: "Be on your guard even now.  It is difficult, no doubt, to check the torrent in the rainy season.  But a great deal of water has gone out.  If you build the embankment now it will stand". Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Chapter 20, Rules for Householders and Monks

April 5, 1884   MASTER (To Prankrishna): "The fact is that one must have the 'spiritual eye'.  You will develop that eye as soon as your mind becomes pure.  Take for instance the Kumari Puja.  I worshipped a virgin.  The girl, to be sure, had all her human imperfections; still I regarded her as the Divine Mother Herself. "On one side is the wife and on the other the son.  Love is bestowed on both, but in different ways.  Therefore it comes to this, that everything depends upon the mind.  The pure mind acquires a new attitude.  Through that mind one sees God in this world.  Therefore one needs spiritual discipline". Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Chapter 21, A Day at Dakshineswar

March 23, 1884 MASTER: "There are two signs of knowledge.  First, an unshakable buddhi.  No matter how many sorrows, afflictions, dangers, and obstacles one may be faced with, one's mind does not undergo any change.  It is like the blacksmith's anvil, which receives constant blows from the hammer and still remains unshaken.  And second, manliness-very strong grit.  If lust and anger injure a man, he must renounce them once for all.  If a tortoise once tucks in its limbs, it won't put them out again though you may cut it into four pieces".   Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Chapter 20, Rules for Householders and Monks

April 5, 1884 MASTER: "Then build them a separate home.  That will be a different thing.  You will defray their monthly expenses.  How worthy of worship one's parents are!  Rākhāl  asked me if he could take the food left on his father's plate.  'What do you mean?' I said.  'What have you become that you cannot?' But it is also true that good people won't give anyone, even a dog, the food from their plates." GIRINDRA: "Sir, suppose one's parents are guilty of a terrible crime, a heinous sin?" MASTER: "What if they are? You must not renounce your mother even if she commits adultery.  The woman guru of a certain family became corrupt.  The members of the family said that they would like to make the son of the guru their spiritual guide.  But I said: 'How is that? Will you accept the shoot and give up the yam? Suppose she is corrupt; still you must regard her as your Ishta. ...

May 24, 1884  MASTER: "Proof? God can be seen. By practising spiritual discipline one sees God, through His grace. The rishis directly realized the Self. One cannot know the truth about God through science. Science gives us information only about things perceived by the senses, as for instance: this material mixed with that material gives such and such a result, and that material mixed with this material gives such and such a result. "For this reason a man cannot comprehend spiritual things with his ordinary intelligence. To understand them he must live in the company of holy persons. You learn to feel the pulse by living with a physician." ACTOR: "Yes, sir. Now I understand." MASTER: "You must practise tapasya. Only then can you attain the goal. It will avail you nothing even if you learn the texts of the scriptures by heart. You cannot become intoxicated by merely saying 'siddhi' over and...

May 25, 1884 MASTER: " 'Woman and gold' is the cause of bondage. 'Woman and gold' alone constitutes samsara, the world. It is 'woman and gold' that keeps one from seeing God. (Holding the towel in front of his face) Do you see my face any more? Of course not. The towel hides it. No sooner is the covering of 'woman and gold' removed than one attains Chidananca, Consciousness and Bliss.   "Let me tell you something. He who has renounced the pleasure of a wife has verily renounced the pleasure of the world. God is very near to such a person." The devotees listened to these words in silence. MASTER (to Kedār, Vijay, and the other devotees): "He who has renounced the pleasure of a wife has verily renounced the pleasure of the world. It is 'woman and gold' that hides God. You people have such imposing moustaches, and yet you too are involved in 'woman and g...

May 25, 1884 MASTER: "Do your worldly duties with a part of your mind and direct most of it to God. A sādhu should think of God with three quarters of his mind and with one quarter should do his other duties. He should be very alert about spiritual things. The snake is very sensitive in its tail. Its whole body reacts when it is hurt there. Similarly, the whole life of a sādhu is affected when his spirituality is touched." Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Chapter 22, Advice to an Actor