Teachings of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa

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