The Vedanta Kesari July 2016 issue

The Vedanta KesariTHE LION OF VEDANTA

A Cultural and Spiritual Monthly of the Ramakrishna Order since 1914

103rd

Year of Publication

July 2016

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Ganga Arati, Haridwar

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2T h e V e d a n t a K e s a r i J U L Y 2 0 1 6~ ~

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INDIA’S TIMELESS WISDOM

Seeing a grinder in action, Kabir laments, no grain remains intact that come between the two grinding stones!

JULY 2016

A CULTURAL AND SPIRITUAL MONTHLY OF THE RAMAKRISHNA ORDER

Started at the instance of Swami Vivekananda in 1895 as Brahmavâdin,it assumed the name The Vedanta Kesari in 1914.

For free edition on the Web, please visit: www.chennaimath.org

VOL. 103, No. 7 ISSN 0042-2983

Cover Story: Page 6

CONTENTS

The Vedanta Kesari 103rd

Year of Publication

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Gita Verse for Reflection 245

Editorial The Practice of Prayer—A Perspective 246

Articles Youth and Their Problems: Lessons in Coping with Life from Swami Vivekananda 261

Swami Satyapriyananda

Holistic Development through Religious Harmony :The Vision and Mission of Swami Vivekananda 256

T V Muralivallabhan

Reminiscences Reminiscences of Sargachhi 252

Swami Suhitananda

Travelogue A Pilgrimage to the Monastery of Sri Totapuriji—Dera Baba Ladana in Haryana 267

A Monastic Sojourner

New Find Unpublished Letters of Swami Saradananda 275The Order on the March 277Book Reviews 280

Feature Simhâvalokanam (On Meditation) 251

4T h e V e d a n t a K e s a r i J U L Y 2 0 1 6

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Cover StoryN N

Ganga Arati, Haridwar

Held as one of the most sacred centres of pilgrimage, Haridwar or Hardwar draws thousands of pilgrims every day. Situated in the state of Uttarakhand, it is also known by its ancient names of Mayapuri and Gangadwara. Mayapuri refers to the temple of Mayadevi, a form of the Divine Mother, and Gangadwara indicates that the sacred Ganges, after flowing for 253 kilometres from its source at Gaumukh, enters the plains of North India first at Haridwar.

Haridwar is regarded as one of the seven holiest places (Sapta Puri) to Hindus and a bath in Ganga is believed to relieve one of all sins and impurities. According to the Hindu tradition, during samudra manthana, the churning of oceans, Haridwar along with Ujjain, Nashik and Prayag is one of four sites where drops of Amrita, the elixir of immortality, inadvertently spilled over from the pitcher while being carried by the celestial bird Garuda. To mark this, the Kumbha Mela, which draws millions, is held every 12 years in all these four places. Brahma Kund, the spot where the Amrita fell, is located at Har Ki Pauri (literally, ‘footsteps of the Lord’) and is considered to be the most sacred ghat of Haridwar. Every evening, arati, the waving of lights, is performed to Mother Ganga at Har Ki Pauri and other ghats along the Ganga in Rishikesh and elsewhere. Thousands witness the Arati with devotion and a sense of sanctity, inspiring an atmosphere of awe, peace and religious fervour.

Late Smt. Ram Pyari and Sri Gopinath Allahabadia Rs.3100 Mr. Ravi Sharma Rs.2000

DONORS

EACH SOUL IS POTENTIALLY DIVINE. T HE GOAL IS TO MANIFEST THE DIVINITY WITHIN.

The Vedanta KesariVOL. 103, No. 7, JULY 2016 ISSN 0042-2983

Gita Verse for ReflectionTr. by Swami Tapasyananda

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Who can work without any attachment? That is the real question. Such a man is the same whether his work succeeds or fails. His heart does not give one false beat even if his whole life-work is burnt to ashes in a moment. ‘This is the sage who always works for work’s sake without caring for the results. Thus he goes beyond the pain of birth and death. Thus he becomes free.’ Then he sees that this attachment is all delusion. The Self can never be attached. . . .Then he goes beyond all the scriptures and philosophies. If the mind is deluded and pulled into a whirlpool by books and scriptures, what is the good of all these scriptures? One says this, another says that. What book shall you take? Stand alone! See the glory of your own soul, and see that you will have to work. Then you will become a man of firm will.

—Swami Vivekananda, CW, 1:463-464

—Bhagavad Gita, 15. 3-4

For one involved in worldly life, the form of the World-Tree is not visible, nor its origin, nor its end, nor its foundation. Cutting asunder the firmly rooted Asvattha (World-Tree) with the powerful axe of non-attachment, and saying, ‘I seek refuge in that Primeval Person from whom this eternal cosmic activity has streamed forth’, man should seek that Status, attaining to which there is no more return to this life of Samsara.



Editorial

When faced with challenges and difficulties, one often turns to a Superhuman Power, seeking help and succour. Man seeks a helping hand in the hour of darkness and crises. As someone remarked: ‘Prayer is not a check, request asking for things from God. It is a deposit slip—a way of depositing God’s character into our bankrupt souls.’ Or as Sri Ramakrishna said,

Everyone can attain Knowledge. There are two entities: Jivatma, the individual soul, and Paramatma, the Supreme Soul. Through prayer all individual souls can be united to the Supreme Soul. Every house has a connection for gas, and gas can be obtained from the main storage-tank of the Gas Company. Apply to the Company, and it will arrange for your supply of gas. Then your house will be lighted.1

Not only is prayer the time-tested way to face challenging situation, it is an effective and a highly dependable aid to self-improvement and self-mastery. Regular and sincere prayers help one overcome many of the lower tendencies and passions which come in the way of one’s character-building. Indeed, prayer helps one tide over all situations however challenging and trying they may be. Developing a healthy personality requires calmness and a burning faith in a Higher Power. It helps one to be strong as well as humble. A sincere prayer goes a long way in achieving this.

Says Alexis Carrel, the French surgeon and biologist who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in

1912 for pioneering vascular suturing techniques,

Prayer is the most powerful form of energy one can generate. The influence of prayer on the human mind and body is as demonstrable as that of the secreting glands. Prayer is a force as real as terrestrial gravity. It supplies us with a flow of sustaining power in our daily lives.

Four Types of DevoteesSri Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita2

that four kinds of persons worship and pray to God—the distressed, the seeker of enjoyment, the seeker of knowledge, and the wise. According to one’s needs and sense of urgency and reality, one’s prayer takes its shape.

The distressed ones pray to God for solving their pressing problems and seek His help to overcome some crises. It is like praying before an examination when one has not prepared for it. To them God is like a crises-solver.

The seekers of enjoyment pray to God for fulfilling their desires for success in life. By success they mean achievements in some field, fame, power, health, beauty, finding a good house, job and so on. When they find all their efforts fruitless, they look up in helplessness to God for the fulfillment of their desires. To them God is a candle by which they can find out their lost objects.

The seekers of God pray to God for devotion, purity, holiness, strength and all other virtues which take one nearer to God. To them God and going near Him itself is the aim of all their prayers.

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The Practice of Prayer—A Perspective


The ‘wise ones’ pray to God as a beloved one speaks to one’s friend. They seek nothing from God but God Himself. To them God is the sole reality of life and they are always in communion with Him. To them God is a constitutional necessity.

It is natural for the man of spiritual illumination to worship God, to meditate on him and to speak of his glory out of his overflowing love and devotion. But the case of the others is different.

‘Troubled by the challenges of life or worried by the awareness of sin, and realizing the uselessness of human aid, the care-worn soul turns to the divine for safety and protection. And so great is this need that even skeptics in their helplessness and despair have been heard to cry out to the Almighty for solace and support. The so-called agnostic’s prayer—“O God, if there be a God, save my soul, if I have a soul”—however humorous it may sound, contains a deep truth of human existence,’ says Swami Yatiswarananda in his compilation of prayers, Universal Prayers. He further writes,

Very touching is the prayer that rises forth from the heart of Sri Yamunacharya: ‘O Lord, first of all do Thou hear my prayer. I am speaking only the truth and not falsehood. Unless Thou bestowest Thy mercy on me, Thou will never get one more deserving than myself.’ ‘Thou art the father, the mother, the husband and the son. Thou art the dear friend, the relative, the teacher and the goal of the universe. I am Thine own, Thy servant and attendant; Thou art my only refuge. I have taken shelter in Thee, and verily, O Lord, does my burden rest wholly on Thee.’3

Here are some nuggets from the Universal Prayers:

O Lord, With the passing of every day the duration of life is seen to shorten and youth to

decay. The days that are gone do never come back. Verily time is the devourer of the world. Fortune is as fickle and short-lived as ripples on the surface of water, while life is momentary like the flash of lightning. Therefore, O Thou refuge of all do Thou even now protect me who seek refuge in Thee.4 Do Thou forgive me, O Lord, for all my sins committed with my hands, feet, speech, body, ears, eyes and mind, while doing actions enjoined or otherwise. Glory unto Thee, O Thou Lord beneficent, Thou God of gods, Thou ocean of mercy.5

O Lord, with a dull intellect and imperfect insight I whirl in this unsubstantial world of births and deaths uncongenial to the practice of devotion. Thou shouldst in Thy infinite mercy save me. Is there a creature more miserable than myself? And is there anyone more skilled than Thyself in saving the miserable? Therefore, in the three worlds, who but Thee shall be my savior?6

Further Aspects of PrayerWhile belief in the existence of God is

primary to the act of prayer, the core of prayer is sincerity and earnestness. ‘Prayer is not eloquence, but earnestness; not the definition of helplessness, but the feeling of it; not figures of speech, but earnestness of soul.’ What matters is the earnestness with which one prays. Sri Ramakrishna said that all sincere prayers are heard though God has His own way of answering them. Words are secondary; it is innermost feelings that matter.

In all ages and religions, spiritual seekers have given natural expression to their innermost yearnings and noblest sentiments through hymns, psalms, praises and prayers. These contain their earnest prayers uttered in the fullness of their hearts—untouched by worldly cares and wants. Often it is the awareness of limitations and imperfections, or the sense of misery and helplessness that

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makes the weary and struggling souls turn to the omnipotent for solace and succour. Language is secondary (though it has its own beauty and charm); it is the intensity of feeling behind the language that really matters. Earnestness is the point.

One can pray anytime and anywhere. One can pray constantly, though in the beginning it is helpful to have set timings—at least once or twice a day. One may take the help of sitting in front of an image or picture of a deity but it is not mandatory. What is important is sincerity of purpose. Shraddha, deep faith and a positive outlook, is central to how much benefit we derive from the act of prayer. Like any other action, prayer too is an action and it must bear its result but Shraddha alone brings it to a complete fruition. We may recall one of the significant statements of Swamiji in this context,

Never help came from anywhere but from yourself. In your ignorance, every prayer that you made and that was answered, you thought was answered by some Being, but you answered the prayer unknowingly. The help came from yourself, and you fondly imagined that someone was sending help to you. There is no help for you outside of yourself; you are the creator of the universe.7

Prayers from the Great OnesSri Ramakrishna laid much emphasis on

prayer as an effective spiritual exercise. He asked almost everyone who came to him for spiritual guidance or for solving his difficulties in life to pray to God. Not only did he himself pray, at times, he would even demonstrate how to pray. He prayed thus:

I prayed to Divine Mother: ‘Mother, here is Your virtue, here is Your vice. Take them both and grant me only pure love for You. Here is Your knowledge, here is Your ignorance. Take them

both and grant me only pure love for You. Here is Your purity, here is Your impurity. Take them both, Mother, and grant me only pure love for You. Here is Your dharma, here is Your adharma. Take them both, Mother and grant me only pure love for You.’8

‘O Mother, please dwell in my heart.’9

‘O Mother! O Embodiment of Om! Mother, how many things people say about You! But I don’t understand any of them. I don’t know anything, Mother. I have taken refuge at Your feet. I have sought protection in You. O Mother, I pray only that I may have pure love for Your Lotus Feet, love that seeks no return. And Mother, do not delude me with Your world-bewitching Maya. I seek Your protection. I have taken refuge in You.’10

Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi, the spiritual consort of Sri Ramakrishna, emphasised the importance of prayer repeatedly. She said,

Pray to God with tears in your eyes whenever you want illumination or find yourself faced with any doubt or difficulty. The Lord will remove all your impurities, assuage your mental anguish, and give you enlightenment.11

Open your grief-stricken heart to the Lord. Weep and sincerely pray, ‘O Lord, draw me towards You; give me peace of mind.’ By doing so constantly you will gradually attain peace of mind.12

One who makes a habit of prayer will easily overcome all difficulties and remain calm and unruffled in the midst of the trials of life.13

Likewise here are some of Arjuna’s prayers from the Bhagavad Gita:

O Lord, with my nature overpowered by weak commiseration, with my mind thrown into confusion about duty, I supplicate Thee. Tell me decidedly what is good for me. I am Thy disciple. Instruct me who have taken refuge in Thee.14

Thou art the imperishable, the Supreme Being, the one to be known. Thou art the great refuge of

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this universe. Thou art the unchanging guardian of the eternal religion. Thou art, I know, the most ancient being.15

Salutations to Thee before and to Thee behind. Salutations to Thee on every side. O Lord, Thou art everything. Infinite in power and infinite in prowess, Thou pervadest all. Therefore Thou art the all.16

Thou art the father of the world, of the moving and the non-moving. Greater than the greatest, Thou art the one object of worship. There is none equal to Thee in all the worlds. Who, then, can excel Thee, O Thou of incomparable power?17

Therefore, I prostrate myself before Thee in adoration, and crave Thy forgiveness. Forgive me, O Lord, as a father forgives his son, a friend his friend, a lover his beloved.’18

Swami Turiyananda, a direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna, and a staunch Vedantin, was a firm believer in the place of prayer in spiritual life. He wrote in one of his letters19:

God is extremely compassionate. If one takes one step towards God, he comes a hundred steps, nay a thousand steps, toward him. It is absolutely true. It is a matter of doing and not talking. If someone could say wholeheartedly, with mind and speech united, ‘Lord, I take refuge in you; I have none else,’ the Lord will definitely accept him. It cannot be otherwise. One must say and feel:

Thou art my mother and father; Thou art my friend and companion; Thou are my wealth and wisdom; Thou art my all in all, O Lord.20

Can the Lord keep from accepting a person who prays like this? Now the question is: Who is truly praying and thinking in this way? Lord Chaitanya said:21

So vast is thy mercy, O Lord! How huge, then, is my wretchedness Who finds, in this empty life and heart, No devotion to thy name.

One needs love and longing, then only will one get the results of spiritual life. Pray: ‘Master, give me longing for you; give me devotion.’ The Master answers the sincere prayer. Pray sincerely and wholeheartedly, then the Master will be pleased. When he is pleased, you will attain everything, your heart will be filled with love and devotion, and your life will be blessed. . . .’

Says Swami Brahmananda, a direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna:

Pray to the Lord with all your heart! Then alone you will long for him. When one is hungry one enjoys food. When one has no appetite one does not care even for delicacies. And that is why people don’t taste the nectar of His [God’s] name.

Whatever you do, whether you are sitting or lying down, or eating, pray constantly: ‘O Lord, make me able to understand and receive that grace which I know you are ready to give.’22

Swami Vivekananda spoke of the importance of prayer thus:

Say day and night, ‘Thou art my father, my mother, my husband, my love, my lord, my God—I want nothing but Thee, nothing but Thee, nothing but Thee. Thou in me, I in Thee, I am Thee. Thou art me.’ Wealth goes, beauty vanishes, life flies, powers fly—but the Lord abideth for ever, love abideth for ever. If there is glory in keeping the machine in good trim, it is more glorious to withhold the soul from suffering with the body—that is the only demonstration of your being ‘not matter’, by letting the matter alone.

Stick to God! Who cares what comes to the body or to anything else! Through the terrors of evil, say—my God, my love! Through the pangs of death, say—my God, my love! Through all the evils under the sun, say—my God, my love! Thou art here, I see Thee. Thou art with me, I feel Thee. I am Thine, take me. Do not go for glass beads leaving the mine of diamonds! This life is a great chance. What, seekest thou the pleasures

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of the world?—he is the fountain of all bliss. Seek for the highest, aim at that highest, and you shall reach the highest.23

Indeed, being prayerful helps one live a life of fearlessness and strength drawn from a Divine Source.

Prayer for AllA true devotee does not restrict his

prayers to his welfare only. With his expanded heart fixed in God, he prays for the good of all. His heart goes out for the wellbeing and wel-fare of everyone for he sees his own good in the good of all. He thus prays:

May the clouds pour rain in time. May the earth be blessed with crops. May this our country be free from calamity. May holy men live without fear.

May all be freed from dangers. May all realise what is good. May all be actuated by noble thoughts. May all rejoice everywhere.

May all be happy. May all be free from disease. May all realise what is good. May none be subjected to misery.

May the wicked become virtuous. May the virtuous attain tranquillity. May the tranquil be free from bonds. May the freed make others free.

May the Lord, the destroyer of sin, the presiding Deity of all sacred activities, be satisfied. For, He being pleased, the whole universe becomes pleased. He being satisfied, the whole universe feels satisfied.24

Beginning with prayer for oneself, thus, the devotee’s heart expands and he includes the whole creation in his prayers. That is the nature of true prayer—it expands the heart of the practitioner and he begins to include everyone in his awareness and prayers.

Says Swami Vijnanananda, a direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna,

Always have the good of the universe at heart and let this become a part of your daily prayer . . . May all be happy and blessed; May the world, the whole universe, be blessed—keep these good wishes always aflow in your mind. And let this be a part of your daily prayer.25

1. Gospel, p.2052. Bhagavad Gita, 4.163 Universal Prayers, Swami Yatiswarananda, Sri

Ramakrishna Math, Mylapore, Chennai, p.314. ibid, p.1805. ibid, p.1806. ibid, p.1837. CW, 3.268. Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, p.138-399. ibid, p.26310. ibid, p.29911. Teachings of Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi, Sri

Ramakrishna Math, Chennai, p.912. ibid, p.1913. ibid, p.10

14. Bhagavad Gita, 2.715. ibid, 11.1816. ibid, 11.4017. ibid, 11.4318. ibid, 11.4419. Spiritual Treasures, p. 9520. Prapanna Gita21. Shikshashtakam, 222. What the Direct Disciples Said About it, Advaita

Ashrama, p. 41023. CW, 6.26224. Universal Prayers, Pp. 239-24325. What the Direct Disciples Said About it, Advaita

Ashrama, p. 422, points number 2 and 13

References

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From the Archives of The VedanTa Kesari

S i m h â v a l o k a n a m

(July, 1916-17, p. 68-69)

On Meditation

FAMILIAR TALKS BY SWAMI RAMAKRISHNANANDA

Meditation means complete self-abandonment. To meditate successfully one must get rid of this ego. You know, before a great glory all little glories disappear, so before the effulgent glory of God this little ego will completely vanish, as the stars vanish when the sun rises. The moment you have given up everything and understood your own helplessness, at that moment God-vision will come. If you can reach this state and hold it even for a few moments, you will see how quickly God will begin to rise up in your mind; and when you will be able to remain in that state, God will always be present there.

But, you say, I cannot see Him with these eyes of mine, I cannot hear Him with these ears, I cannot touch Him with these hands, how then am I to perceive Him? You can never perceive Him in this way, These senses are made for the creation, not for the Creator. To go to the Creator, you must throw aside these instruments which take you directly to the creation. When, however, you have been able to put down the ego and go beyond the mind and senses meditation will come of itself. This is the easiest way to get it,—by the practice of ‘Not I, not I, but Thou.’

God dwells in the heart of every man. He is the nearest thing to each one of us, but the mind has been dragged out so long by the things of this world that it is difficult for it to come home. Therefore with the sword of wisdom one must cut asunder all these worldly attachments. People often say to me: ‘I find it so difficult to concentrate my mind. It goes to my business, to my house hold affairs and it seems impossible to hold it on God. Why is this?’ The answer is; ‘Because your mind does not belong to you. You have sold it to your business, to your worldly affairs, how can you expect to command what is not yours?’ With a divided mind you can never hope to gain the power of concentration and meditation and without these the vision of Truth is unattainable. Christ said that only the pure in heart shall see God. The mind as we know it, is merely a collection of desires, it is made up of desires. Get rid of selfish desires and nothing remains but the Paramatman or the Divine Self. There is no difference between the purified mind and the Self of man.

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||7||26.3.1959

Revered Premesh Maharaj said to the attendant: Hold fast to the following —

1. Who is Sri Ramakrishna to me? (Knowledge)

2. I am eternally related to him. (Yoga)3. To have an attraction towards him.

(Devotion)4. Work with a view to pleasing him.

(Work)The day we are physically ill, the whole

world seems to be full of sorrow. The day we are all right, one is pleased with everything. It means when the medium is healthy all things become pleasing. The body is the medium—I am the seer. The body is an instrument. Whatever I see or feel is all a mechanical process.

4.4.1959

Reminiscences of SargachhiSWAMI SUHITANANDA

(Continued from the previous issue. . .)

Sargachhi is located in Murshidabad district of West Bengal and is well-known to the devotees of Ramakrishna Order for being associated with Swami Akhandananda, a direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna. The following writing is about another revered monk who lived in Sargachhi, Swami Premeshananda (1894-1967), a disciple of Holy Mother and well known for encouraging many young men and women, as also many married people to live a life of spirituality and service. The following reminiscences in Bengali, Sargachhir Smriti, is by Swami Suhitananda, the General Secretary of Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission, Belur Math. He was a personal attendant of Swami Premeshananda for several years and while serving him noted his conversations and teachings in his diary. The same is being serially published in the Udbodhan (our Bengali monthly published from Kolkata) from its Jyaishtha, B.S. 1419 issue. These reminiscences have been translated by Sri Shoutir Kishore Chatterjee, a long-standing devotee from Kolkata. English words and expressions which appear in the original have been put within single inverted commas ‘ ’. The numbers ||1||, ||2||, etc., denote the serial numbers of the Udbodhan instalments.

(Observing that the attendant was reading the Gita)

Maharaj: If anybody reads the Gita, I become beside myself with joy; the reason is —the Gita is a treatise on the Science of Man. Any civilized society can get inspiration from the Gita. Verily the Gita dwells on the life of Man. Everybody needs to read this book—members of no community would hesitate to read the Gita.

6.4.1959Most of the time Maharaj kept silent.

Sometimes he said: I look at these plants and trees, birds and animals, creatures and men, one after another, and my heart shudders. They will have to come back to this world birth after birth. Yet all these are doing fairly well. All the various creatures, the various plants and trees I see, are creatures only

Reminiscences

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from the outside—but each is a particle of consciousness. That consciousness has put these bodies on itself and is peeping out of one or other of these forms.

11.4.1959Attendant: What is meant by

attainment of mukti (salvation)?Maharaj: Mukti is already

there—it is not something to be attained. What one attains is lost afterwards; so mukti is already there. Ramakrishna-loka is above the worlds (loka-s) entitled bhu, bhuvah, svaha, mahaha, jana, tapa and satya. There it is a state full of consciousness (chaitanyamaya)—chinmaya shyam, chinmaya dham (Krishna is consciousness, his abode is consciousness).

The state of Maharaj’s health was very bad. A boy had come. He had appeared at the Intermediate Examination—that is why he was here. He would join the Order. Maharaj gave him a lot of instructions. In particular, he spoke about harmonizing the Yogas of Knowledge, Work and Devotion.

In the afternoon, while walking by the side of the road, Maharaj showed that a peasant was tilling a field. He said: Do you observe any difference between us? There is not a bit of difference between me and that peasant. I know ‘intellectually’ that I am the ‘witness’ of this body and mind, but he doesn’t. I know the road and have the ‘guide book’ in my hand, but it may happen that he would get hold of a guide and reach before me. That is why I say that we have to think of the Atman or the Chosen Deity. The goal is not to do good to others or to gain others’ acclaim. The goal is mukti—to take oneself beyond the body, mind and intellect. It is seen

that more one practises Ishvara-pranidhana (devotion / surrender to God), more perfect a monk becomes. Always watch out that other worthless thoughts do not arise in your mind. Always one thought—I am the witness of

body, mind and vital force. Otherwise think of the disport of Thakur or the

life of Chaitanya-deva. We are supported by the hard-earned money of devotees. So we have to spend money after due deliberation; we should not waste money.

21.4.1959Maharaj: Look. More I see

around me, more I understand why Swamiji has spoken about

harmonizing the four Yogas. Jnana, Karma, Bhakti and Raja Yoga—all four are one. Through Jnana Yoga we know—what is God? As if God is in the room upstairs. We have to go upstairs. How should we go? For that we have to use the staircase. That staircase is Raja Yoga. Can we go unless we feel an attraction? That is why we need Bhakti Yoga. Through devotion we feel attraction, and then, all the efforts we make for going to Him represent Karma Yoga. There is a verse:

Antah Shaiva bahir Shaktah sabhayah Vaishnavo bhava |Naanaa-rupadharah kaula vicharanti mahitale ||

The devotees of Ramakrishna would be like that. There would be knowledge inside them; they would be spirited like the Shaktas: in society they would be as modest as the Vaishnavas. They would be gentle, sweet, well-behaved, and yet of pure character.

Attendant: In Kathamrita, fifth part (the reference here is to the original Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna in Bengali as published from Kathamrita Bhavan) there are several essays

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by Master Mahasaya (‘M’). What purpose do they serve?

Maharaj: Kathamrita is of Thakur’s. But ‘M’ has included his own writings in the fifth part. His conviction was that one should not do work before attaining God. But this holds in the case of persons who are of high calibre. We are persons of low calibre; we feel attraction for God as we engage ourselves in doing work.

Attendant: What is the difference between a renouncer and a monk?

Maharaj: Renouncer—the father of Montu had performed all his duties in the world – shraadha, tarpana, yoga, etc.—but in a detached way. That is why at the time of death he showed signs of seeing God. I am a monk —I have no duties whatsoever.

27.4.1959A gentleman who was a bachelor used

to perform an act of service in the office. In those days it took a lot of time to procure envelopes and postcards. For the benefit of all, he used to purchase envelopes and postcards worth 20 rupees and keep those in a box. Whoever wanted took envelopes and postcards according to his need, placing in the box the requisite money as the cost thereof.

One day he was asked, ‘Do you get the right amount in return?’ He smiled nicely and said, ‘Can that ever happen?’—‘Do you feel remorse?’—‘Why should I feel remorse? I just take it for granted that I won’t get anything. So whatever I get, is my gain.’ He got an ‘offer’ from his employer—he could opt for taking either a lump-sum money at a time or a monthly pension. He asked Premesh Maharaj about it. Maharaj said: You are a simple-minded fellow—all others together would cheat you of your money. Also, attracted by money, some people would gather around you and waste your time. You opt for pension.

And practise doing japa from sunrise to sunset.

I later heard from Maharaj that the gentleman would practise japa sitting on the same seat from sunrise to sunset every Sunday, and barring exceptional circumstances, would devotedly obey the command of Maharaj.

Maharaj: He says that I have had direct realization (aparokshanubhuti) but presumably I do not acknowledge it. The fact of the matter is, in course of hearing stories about London from the father, I appear to have been in London. Just like that, in course of discoursing about scriptures, I would be able to make any aspirant understand—what is knowledge of Atman? What is Chit (consciousness)? Chit is just this ‘I’, ‘I’, which all the creatures say. When the knowledge of Brahman obtains, do the different sheaths (koshas) open one after another?—It is like the bursting out of light in a flame in a room that has remained dark for thousand years. The subject sees clearly—I am separate from this body, vital force, mind and intellect.

1.5.1959Dr. Chaudhuri often came from

Berhampur to see Maharaj.Dr. Chaudhuri: Maharaj, the case of

people like you is distinct. You are situated very high.

Maharaj: Nothing can happen before one’s suffering is over.

Doctor: In that case, your suffering had been over already. But how could it happen eating half-boiled things like that at home?

Maharaj: It had not happened. I was in the jail. My term of imprisonment was for 17 years. Suddenly George V came to this country. All were set free. Like that, suddenly Mother came, and I got my opportunity. I did not have to undergo the 17 years’ prison term

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anymore. We are actually distressed devotees (arta bhaktas).

13.5.1959Maharaj: Those who are unable to give

their whole mind to God, yet for whom nothing in the world holds any attraction—are endowed with sattvaguna.

However beautiful a man may be, nothing can happen unless he is worked upon into shape. I look at all the boys of the school and think how beautiful they are—but all would be spoiled without being worked upon.

There exists only one self-made man in the world—that man is Ramakrishna Paramahamsa Deva. All others had to be worked into shape. Had Swamiji not fallen into lathe machine of Thakur, he would have perhaps become a gigantic person in society.

The real thing is that life has to blossom. If, instead of remaining in a half-ripe state feigning to be a monk, one marries and if one’s life blossoms, then perhaps one may attain salvation in some three or four births.

15.5.1959Attendant: Is it better to renounce with

great difficulty or is it better to finish off by experiencing enjoyment?

Maharaj: If somebody has reached the last ‘stage’ of ‘evolution’, then he would find pleasure in nothing but God. Otherwise he would exhaust his life by constructing temples,

buildings and ‘hostels’, by doing good to others and by delivering the world. The father with his son has gone to see an ‘exhibition’. The son’s face has become red in the sun and sweat is dripping from it. The father said to the son, ‘Let us go back.’ But the son said, ‘No papa, we have not seen that side. Let us go after seeing that.’ The father forced him to come back. But, in the afternoon, when the father was asleep, he stealthily came and saw the remaining part.

Do not raise any topic other than spiritual before me—it causes much suffering to me. But what should you do? Some things have to be discussed—one has to know about things like one’s personal food, stay and movement.

Just as Thakur’s direct disciples were his attendants, if he wills, we too can be born as his attendants. This time we would make progress through spiritual practice. From the state of creatures we would attain the state of Divinity. Those who attain salvation even in this life, remain in the blissful sheath (anandamaya kosha). If God wills, they can be companions in His disport. A resident of Dhaka named Tarak wrote to Mother, ‘Mother, this time I could not see any of your disports. Please see to it so that I may see that next time.’ Mother said, ‘Well, son, it will be so.’ But I don’t want to see disport any further. For there it is bliss alone, whereas here it is happiness and misery, bliss and absence of bliss—one has to experience both. (To be continued. . .)

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Vedanta believes in the potential divinity of all souls. It does not believe in standardization of people. Every soul must be free to manifest its inherent divinity. Preserve your own ideas and try to assimilate the ideas of other religions. We Hindus believe in a change of the heart, purification of mind, but we are never satisfied until we are united with God. That is our creed, if you may call it so. Our creed is the creed of God.

—Swami Yatiswarananda


Part 2Role of Religion and Spirituality

Swami Vivekananda was the first person to introduce the need of religious harmony for the progress of the world, on an international platform in the most scientific manner, yet without losing the spiritual content. Cultural historian Thomas Berry sees religion, along with education and business as the major societal drivers of change.

Religion is an important driver in society that influences all aspects of life, since 80-90 percent of the world population belong to one or the other of the ten thousand or so religions of this world.10 Religion is the sum total of the belief system, rituals and, practices followed by the people in quest of God. Spirituality is the ultimate realization of the self/God/ almighty reached by following the methods prescribed by the religions.

The effort to build a harmonious, sustainable, peaceful and secure world could advance dramatically if religious people and institutions on one hand and policy makers and advocates of modern sustainable development on the other, were to embrace

Holistic Development through Religious Harmony

The Vision and Mission of Swami VivekanandaT V MURALIVALLABHAN


each other’s central concerns. Religions possess one or more of five sources of power:11

1. They shape people’s world view and wield moral authority

2. Have the ear of multitude of adherents3. Strong financial and institutional

assets4. Strong generators of social capital5. An asset in community buildingIf all these five sources of power are

properly synchronized in thoughts and harmonized in actions, the socio-economic and spiritual capital generated would be sufficient to find permanent solutions to the above crises and fill the world with prosperity, progress and peace. Hence religious harmony can be a strong instrument in assuring individual, family, community, nation and the world with peace and development. In spite of scientific studies, technological inventions, social innovations and political policies to assure peace and prosperity in society, these problems of the world have assumed alarming proportions, and hence it is time to search for cultural and religious options, for permanent solutions.12

Dr. T V Muralivallabhan is a well-known Resource Person in the area of Indian culture, Eco spirituality and Environmental education, and is also, the Coordinator of Sri Ramakrishna Adarsh Sanskrit College, Sri Ramakrishna Math, Pala, Kerala, and former Principal of NSS college, Vazhoor, Kottayam, Kerala.

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The ‘Global Ethic’ proposed at the World Religions Conference held in Chicago in 1993 observed that the planet could not be changed for the better, unless the inner transformation of the individuals takes place by the awakening of the spiritual powers through reflection, meditation, prayer or positive thinking. Swami Vivekananda who teaches with emphasis about the potential divinity enshrined in each soul, has great relevance, while defining, discussing, designing and implementing various models of development by international experts.

Swamiji’s Vision and Mission on Development

Swami Vivekananda says, ‘Man has wanted to look beyond, wanted to expand himself; and all that we call progress, evolution, has been always measured by that one search for human destiny, the search for God.’13

Swamiji also says that there was nothing like religion that had brought to man more blessings, and yet at the same time, there was nothing that had brought more horror than religion. He adds that variety is the law of nature and hence birth and growth of more and more religions are quite natural. But that doesn’t mean that they are contradictory. He says, ‘I believe that they are not contradictory; they are supplementary. Each religion, as it were, takes up one part of the universal truth, and spends its whole force in embodying and typifying that part of great truth. It is therefore addition, not exclusion . . . and this is the march of the humanity.’14 Therefore, the message is that there is enough space in each religion’s part of the universal truth, for mutual understanding, cooperation and harmony.

Add Spiritual Capital

Swamiji made it further clear in the following words.

I accept all religions that were in the past, and worship with them all; I worship God with every one of them, in whatever form they worship Him. I shall go to the mosque of the Mohammedan; I shall enter the Christian’s church and kneel before the crucifix; I shall enter the Buddhist temple where I shall take refuge in Buddha and in his law. I shall go to the forest and sit down in meditation with the Hindu, who is trying to see the light, which enlightens the heart of everyone.15

This approach of Swamiji, rooted in him from the realization of the eternal values of Hindu culture and wisdom, made him the lighthouse of modern approaches to religion, spirituality and development. This is spiritual capital which is the foundation and a pre condition of all forms of development. He said,

The spectacular achievements in science and technology, and the radical socio-political changes made the need of an integral view of life capable of bringing about an all-round reconciliation of conflicting ideas and ideals of the modern age and fulfilling the aspirations of the human soul newly emancipated from centuries of superstitions and dogmatism.16

Swamiji said that he was proud to belong to a religion which had taught the world both tolerance and universal acceptance. He also said that Indians not only believed in universal toleration, but also accept all religions as true. He concluded the historic thrilling speech by giving the message of universal unity from quoting Bhagavad Gita. The concluding remarks were like cold water poured upon the fire of fanaticism and persecution that prevailed in the world, in the name of religion in the world.

Swamiji experienced the universal unity and harmony from his guru, Sri Ramakrishna,

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who was the king of Ecstasy, derived from the experience of real religious practice. From this great guru, Swamiji learned that the best form of true religion was to see Shiva reflected in living humans, and especially in the poor.

During his travels, Swamiji lived like a ‘mendicant monk, sometime having his meal cooked by a cobbler, sometime sharing his pipe with a sweeper, sometimes living in the palaces of Kings and Princes’ thus not only preaching, but also practicing the ideals of harmony and unity, beyond caste, colour, creed , and religion. He also warned people not to quarrel about caste and religion because, ‘the moment you quarrel, you are not going Godward, you are going backward, towards brutes.’17

How to bring Harmony in and among Religions?

Without a spiritual counterbalance, the materialistic emphasis in modern thinking about development may actually be detrimental to the personal and societal betterment it purports to bring about.18

Swamiji first recognizes that to bring harmony in religion is very difficult. But his vision became very clear, when he divided religion into three parts—philosophy, mythology and rituals. When the spirit of these three aspects is realized by every follower of all the religions, the individual reaches the realm of universal religion, where peace and harmony prevails. The Universal religion of Swamiji recognizes the natural necessity of variation. He adds, ‘through high philosophy or low, through the most exalted mythology or the grossest, through the most refined ritualism or arrant fetishism, every sect, every soul, every nation, every religion, consciously or unconsciously is struggling upward towards God; every vision of truth that man has is a vision of Him and of none else.’19 The

realization that God could be reached through different paths, is the basis of peace and harmony in universal religion.

The mission for realizing this vision was education. Swamiji believed that education should help bring out the perfection which is already in man. This perfection is the reflection of the divinity in man. Divine quality makes a man capable of achieving physical, mental, intellectual and spiritual development. This development helps institutions, communities, nations and the world as a whole reach the zenith of secular and spiritual progress. At this level, all forms of traditional and modern capital—material, financial, environmental, human, social and spiritual—act and interact with one another and blend the human physical, mental, intellectual and spiritual faculties to form the basis of a divine development model.

Thus, the idea of development that Swamiji conceived was of an integrated and holistic nature consisting of the spiritual and secular aspects. While the most modern development models like sustainable development and inclusive growth are more inclined to material welfare only, Swamiji’s ideas of development depict a complete picture of the interrelatedness and interconnections between the internal and external nature.

Swamiji owed the intricacies of spirituality from the ‘Seraphic Master’ who had spent his whole life at the feet of the Divine Beloved, the Mother—the Living God. But, the consciousness of his mission only came and took possession of him after years of direct experience, wherein he saw with his own eyes and touched with his own hands the miserable and glorious body of humanity—his Mother India in all her tragic nakedness.

Swamiji worked for the regeneration of the Mother country, the resurrection of the

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spiritual powers of India and their diffusion throughout the universe.”20

The first step in the mission of Swamiji was to tackle the twin problems of poverty and ignorance from his own motherland. Swamiji went to the West on behalf of the people and the poor.

The Math and the MissionThe Ramakrishna Math and Mission

is the best example of Swamiji’s idea of developing mother India. The objectives, policies, programmes and the work culture of the Math and Mission centres all over the world have shown a secular modus operandi of development with spiritual convictions.

The Ramakrishna Math and Mission Centres and the Sri Sarada Math centres are the institutions that give a body and spirit to the message and teachings of Sri Ramakrishna, Holy Mother and Swamiji. The aims of the Math and Mission, as defined in the Memorandum annexed to the act of registration of 1909, are divided into three classes:

1. Charitable work2. Missionary works (organization and

publications)3. Educational works.Apart from the regular spiritual services,

the institution offers emergency services during times of natural or man-made disasters, both inside and outside the country.

Through the 123 Ramakrishna centres in India and 40 foreign centres, these institutions are rendering yeomen service in the field of education, health, rehabilitation, service to the tribals, women, youth and religion and spirituality. Right from its beginning, the Mission has been engaged in the relief

activities of the people affected by flood, earth quake, fire, tornado, etc. In the year 2003-2004, the organization extended help to 2,55,000 people belonging to 759 villages in India, by spending about 26 million rupees.21 In the health sector, the Mission is giving free medical aid and treatment to millions of poor people in the remote villages of India with its 15 hospitals, 120 outdoor dispensaries and 46 mobile dispensaries. In the educational sector, the mission has 1 University, 12 colleges, 428 schools, 2 language schools, 4 polytechnics, 119, hostels, 6 orphanages, 2 centres for the differently-abled, and 270 Non-formal educational institutions. The activities of the Mission for women, tribals and the youth are also appreciable.

Along with these secular welfare activities, the spiritual and religious activities are also worth mentioning. The Math and the Mission are promoting ‘Sarvadharma Samabhavana’ culture in which all systems of beliefs are equally treated. Festivals of all religions are celebrated and the sannyasins of the Math play a positive role to bring down tensions in the name of religions in various parts of India.

The Ramakrishna Math and Mission is an institution where the oneness of the universe is taught and practised. Harmony of religions and peace in the society are its core messages. In a globalised world order, where cutthroat competition and the consequent conflicts are threatening the world peace and harmony, the holistic development model preached and practiced by the Math and Mission based on the ultimate divinity and the inherent and infinite potentiality of human beings will make the future more perfect.

(Concluded.)

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vvv


10. World Watch Report No. 164, 200211. Ibid, p-512. World Summit on Sustainable Development,

Report, 200213. CW, 2:35914. CW, 2:36515. CW, 2:37416. Swami Vivekananda’s Address at the World’s

Parliament of Religions, Belur Math, 1993, p-5

17. CW, 3:13218. CW, 3:919. CW, 2:38320. Romain Roland, Life of Vivekananda21. President, Ramakrishna Math, Trichur,

Ramakrishna Mathavum Ramakrishna Missionum (Malayalam), 2010. For latest statistics, please visit Belur Math website: www.belurmath.org

References

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Rights versus Duties

All the prophets and great religious personalities were lovers of the poor. They came for all and not for the rich alone. Our society also was built on a socialistic outlook. Our law givers never talked of rights but only of duties. Duties were fixed for everyone from the king to the man in the street, and also for the four castes, which were to serve society according to capacity of each, without claiming any privilege for their services. So also duties were fixed for the members of the four Ashramas or stages of life. It was all duties and no rights. Everyone was expected to work for the nation through his prescribed duties. The present day outlook lays stress on rights rather than on duties, which is alien to our culture. Through the honest performance of duties one can not only serve the nation, but also progress spiritually. By fighting for rights this cannot be done. Swamiji has again and again pointed out to us that ‘the twin ideals of India are renunciation and service.’

—Swami Vireswarananda, 10th President of the Ramakrishna Order


Enduring Physical Sufferings and Extreme Strain

Unaccustomed to the severe winters of the Midwest, Swamiji suffered intensely from cold; travelling by train from each one-night stand to the next was gruelling; accommodations in small town-hotels, where he sometimes had to stay, were primitive in the extreme. Then, too, the constant demands of the lecture platform told on him. Everywhere he went people flocked about him, and clergymen—particularly Unitarians —beseeched him to lecture from their pulpits. But if the Swami spoke time and again to enthusiastic audiences, he also had to run the gauntlet of innumerable irritating questions that disclosed both a monumental ignorance of Hindu culture and erroneous ideas of Indian life. Some questioners flatly contradicted him on subjects on which they were in entire ignorance; then he fell upon them like a thunderbolt. Or, perhaps he would retort with sarcastic humour.

A number of university men who had taken up ranch life and become cowboys wanted to put Swamiji to the test. So they invited him to lecture to them. When he arrived they escorted him to a wooden tub, which was to serve as a platform. The Swami commenced his discourse and soon became

Youth and Their ProblemsLessons in Coping with Life from Swami Vivekananda

SWAMI SATYAPRIYANANDA


A former editor of Prabuddha Bharata, the author is a resident of Ramakrishna Math, Belur Math.

absorbed in it. Suddenly there was the deafening noise of firing, and shots whizzed past his ears! But he went on with his lecture to the end, as though nothing had happened. He had withdrawn into that innermost consciousness of which he was speaking. When he had finished, the cowboys crowded round him and pronounced him ‘a right good fellow’.

Indeed, the Swami had many odd experiences. One, he related as a joke on himself. He was exhausted when he arrived at a particular town. The secretary of the reception committee showed him courteously into a small, dark room. It contained a rather frail and rickety armchair. Seeing it only dimly, the Swami sat down on it, when, it gave way in the most awkward manner. He could not extricate himself. So he just had to stay in that uncomfortable position and wait for the secretary to come to escort him to the platform. At last the secretary came, calling, ‘Come, Swami; the audience is waiting for you!’ ‘Well, then,’ Swamiji cried out, ‘it will have to wait till you break this chair and extricate me from the nice plight I am in!’

Once a Negro porter, who had seen him being welcomed by a reception committee, came up to him and said that he would like to shake hands with one of his own people who

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had become a great man. The Swami warmly clasped his hand and exclaimed, ‘Thank you! Thank you, brother!’ He never minded being mistaken for one of them.

In barbers’ shops of northern as well as southern cities, he was for this very reason not infrequently shown the door with scant courtesy. Several times in important cities of the south he was brusquely refused admittance to hotels because of his dark colour, but even in such situations he refused to say that he was an Oriental. When the hotel proprietors who had turned him away, read of his lectures in the papers the next morning or heard his name spoken everywhere with deference they would hurry to him and apologize. When asked why he had not told them who he was, Swamiji revealed his inner nature by saying, ‘What! Rise at the expense of another! I did not come to earth for that!’

The Swami received invitation after invitation to speak in churches and to clubs and private gatherings. Most of these he accepted, thinking each to be an opportunity of spreading the truths of Vedanta, of giving spiritual help, and of presenting the true needs of India before the American people. He gave himself and his time unstintingly in service, until the mental and physical strain became intense.

Often he had to deliver extempore twelve to fourteen lectures a week, sometimes even more. The exertion was so great that after a time he felt as though he had exhausted himself intellectually. In this difficulty he was aided in wonderful ways. For instance, at dead of night he would hear a voice shouting at him the thoughts that he was to speak on the following day. Sometimes it would come as from a long distance, speaking to him down a great avenue; then it would draw nearer and nearer. Or it would be like someone

delivering a lecture alongside of him, as he lay on his bed listening. At other times two voices would argue before him discussing at great length subjects that he would find himself repeating the following day from the platform or the pulpit. Sometimes these discussions introduced ideas that he had never heard of or thought of previously.

Withstanding Reactions Ever since his triumph at the Parliament

of Religions, resentment toward him had been smouldering among the more orthodox and narrow members of the Christian clergy. From time to time, in the wake of his tour through the Midwest, that resentment had flared up in whispered slander and acrimonious sermons. But in Detroit, the opposition exploded in full with unrestrained force. Many missionaries openly and vehemently denounced the Swami and ‘his false doctrines’ from their pulpits. The Detroit newspapers flamed with letters to the editors, bitterly attacking him on the one hand, fervently supporting him on the other. The Swami made no effort to defend himself or to pacify his detractors. On the contrary, he had no patience with small-mindedness or fanaticism.

Sometimes notes and letters were sent to persons who had invited him to their homes stating that he was not what he represented himself to be and floated all kinds of calumnies against him. Occasionally this malice had the desired effect, and the Swami would find the doors of his hosts-to-be closed to him! But in most instances, the error would be discovered after a time, and those who had rebuffed him would call and apologize and become greater friends than ever.

For many months after the Parliament of Religions the Swami had no united support or recognition from India. An unaccredited

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delegate to the Parliament, long unrecognised officially by his own country, he stood alone against all this opposition and criticism. This gave great advantage to those who would harm him and cast doubt upon his standing in India and upon his honour. Yet amid all these difficulties and distractions the Swami kept his equanimity, trusting the Lord and consoling himself with the thought that the highest-minded Christians—clergymen and distinguished laymen alike—were his avowed admirers. Many espoused his cause and were even his followers. Above all, he knew that if it was the will of God that his message should be broadcast, nothing on earth could stand against him. He would ask, ‘Why should I attack in return? It is not the monk’s place to defend himself. Besides, Truth will have its way. Truth shall stand.’

Through his lectures and talks the generality of Americans appreciated the depth and beauty of Hindu religion and culture. ‘I am the one man who dared defend his country,’ he was to write on May 6, 1895, to an Indian disciple, ‘and I have given them such ideas as they never expected from a Hindu.’

Swamiji discovered that the Slayton Lyceum Lecture Bureau (which he had engaged for travelling and speaking across America) was exploiting and defrauding him. He wrote to Mrs. Hale, ‘I am thoroughly disgusted with this Slayton business and am trying hard to break loose. I have lost at least $5,000 by joining this man . . . I hope to do some private lecturing here and then go to Ada [Ohio] and then back to Chicago. . . . President Palmer has gone to Chicago to try to get me loose from this liar of a Slayton. Pray that he may succeed. Several judges here have seen my contract—and they say it is shameful fraud and can be broken any moment, but I am a monk—no self-defence.’ But by the time

the Swami returned to Detroit in March, Mr. Palmer had dealt with the lecture bureau and got the fraudulent contract annulled. Thus the Swami’s tour with the lecture bureau through the mid-western and southern States of America came to an end between the first and second visits to Detroit, and he was free.

Envious of Swamiji’s personal success at Chicago’s Parliament of World Religions in 1893, the Brahmo leader Pratap Chandra Mazoomdar had kept up a long campaign of vituperative slander against Swamiji’s character, rousing many Bengalis to his cause of defaming Swamiji. However, Swamiji ignored the false slander against him in America and India, and demonstrated indifference towards the accolades Americans were simultaneously heaping upon him. His only concern was:

I have an old mother. She has suffered much all her life and in the midst of all she could bear to give me up for the service of God and man; but to have given up the most beloved of her children—her hope—to live a beastly immoral life in a far distant country, as Mazoomdar was telling in Calcutta, would have simply killed her.

‘I Have a Message for the East’Speaking in Madras, the Swami said,

Now I come to reform societies in Madras. They have been very kind to me. They have pointed out that there is a difference between the reformers of Bengal and those of Madras. . . Madras is in a very beautiful state just now. It has not got into the play of action and reaction as Bengal has done. Here there is steady and slow progress all through; here is growth, and not reaction. In many cases, and to a certain extent, there is a revival in Bengal; but in Madras it is not a revival, it is a growth, a natural growth. . . Some of these societies try to intimidate me to join them. . . A man who has met starvation face to face for fourteen years of

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his life, who has not known where he will get a meal the next day and where to sleep, cannot be intimidated so easily. A man, almost without clothes, who dared to live where the thermometer registered thirty degrees below zero, without knowing where the next meal was to come from, cannot be so easily intimidated in India. This is the first thing I will tell them—I have a little will of my own. I have my little experience too; and I have a message for the world which I will deliver without fear and without care for the future. To the reformers I will point out that I want root-and-branch reform. Where we differ is in the method. Theirs is the method of destruction, mine is that of construction. I do not believe in reform; I believe in growth. I do not dare to put myself in the position of God and dictate to our society, ‘This way thou shouldst move and not that. That is my position.’

In another lecture he said, ‘My plan is to start institutions in India, to train our young men as preachers of the truths of our scriptures, in India and outside India. Men, men, these are wanted’—sincere to the backbone. ‘A hundred such and the world becomes revolutionized.’ He describes what his ideal of patriotism is: a heart to feel for the millions who have become next-door neighbours to brutes; a head to conceive a way out of their misery; and strong hands and mind to execute even in the face of opposition what one thinks is the right thing to do. He defined a traitor in strong terms as being one having been educated at the expense of the masses does not pay the least heed to them. He observes:

This national ship . . . my friends . . . has been ferrying millions and millions of souls across the waters of life. . . . But today, this boat has sprung a leak; and would you therefore curse it? Let us go and stop the holes. Let us gladly do it with our hearts’ blood. . . . And if we cannot let us sink together but never utter a curse.

In another speech he said, ‘This is the great practical application of the Upanishads, that they give us strength. They tell us that we are essentially Spirit—omnipotent and omniscient.’ ‘If the fisherman thinks that he is the Spirit, he will be a better fisherman; if the student thinks that he is the Spirit, he will be a better student.’ From this faith in the truth about ourselves, strength will come and fear will go; freedom will come and privilege will go. ‘Liberty is the first condition of growth.’

He pointed out that religion was the life-centre of the country and that the role India had to play in the harmony of nations was to freely distribute religious ideas and ideals when other nations needed it. It is therefore incumbent on all Indians, especially the youth, to inherit the ancient religious ideas which India represents. Aping the West was not the way, for a sheep in lion’s clothing does not become a lion. And, said he, if India gave up its religious mooring and takes to other ideals, in three generations it will be an extinct nation.

Speaking gloriously on the greatness of India, Swami said,

If there is any land on this earth that can lay claim to be the blessed Punya Bhumi, to be the land to which all souls on this earth must come to account for Karma, the land to which every soul that is wending its way Godward must come to attain its last home, the land where humanity has attained its highest towards gentleness, towards generosity, towards purity, towards calmness, above all, the land of introspection and of spirituality—it is India. Hence have started the founders of religions from the most ancient times, deluging the earth again and again with the pure and perennial waters of spiritual truth. Hence have proceeded the tidal waves of philosophy that have covered the earth, East or West, North or South, and hence again must start the wave which is going to spiritualise the material civilisation of

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the world. Here is the life-giving water with which must be quenched the burning fire of materialism which is burning the core of the hearts of millions in other lands. Believe me, my friends, this is going to be.

In spite of inspiring the Indians to be proud of their national heritage yet Swamiji had to face some other unsavoury on the Indian soil too.

Swamiji’s Experiences on the Indian SoilAt Cranga nore, before Swamiji’s going

to the West, people saw him sitting, early one morning, under a banyan tree near the Kali temple. The Swami tried to enter the temple to offer worship to the deity; but the temple guards prevented him. It was difficult to know the caste of people, especially of those who came from outside Kerala, and therefore there was this custom. Without getting annoyed, he returned to the tree after bowing down to the Devi from outside. His ochre robes and brilliant eyes attracted the attention of a young man, who approached him with the intention of having some fun; but the young man came away disappointed, when he found that the Swami was not as he had thought him to be. Just then two princes of the Cranganore palace came to the temple, and the young man just mentioned brought them to the Swami sitting under the banyan tree. The two princes were well versed in the scriptures. They could see from the Swami’s features that he was not an ordinary person. They had an argument in Sanskrit over the issue of caste consideration. The Swami, however, did not want to interfere with their local tradition, even though the princes were later prepared to allow a person of his calibre to enter the temple. They argued with the Swami for two days, and were defeated. On the third day they approached the Swami with the desire to have his holy

company. When they reached the place where he was, they found him meditating. After the Swami had come back to normal consciousness, he conversed with the princes in Sanskrit.

The public celebration of Sri Rama- krishna’s birthday fell on 27 February, 1898. The observation by such a public celebration had been started by Surendranath Mitra and other devotees in 1881, while Sri Rama krishna was still alive, and had been cele brated annually at Dakshineswar. It had continued each year since then, and had given everybody an opportunity to gather in one place for a shared purpose, with broth erly feelings. However, in 1898, the Trustees of the Kali temple at Dakshineswar raised the objection that the place would be defiled if the foreign disciples of the Swami attended the festival. . . Ultimately, the birth anniversary [public celebration] of Sri Ramakrishna was celebrated at the Radha Ramanji Thakurbari of Purnachandra Daw. This was at Bally, on the same bank of the Ganges as Belur, but slightly up the river. . . A grand success as it was, it put to shame Trailokya Babu, to whom, or to whose action of objecting to the celebration at Dakshineswar, none among the thousands who took part in it at Bally, gave a thought. . . All the four western disciples of Swamiji—Miss Muller, Mrs. Ole Bull, Miss Josephine MacLeod and Miss Margaret No-ble—participated in the celebration.

The Grand CulminationOn 1st May 1897, at the house of Balaram

Bose in Calcutta Swamiji formulated his plans of the objects of the Ramakrishna Mission Association. Master Mahashaya and even some of Swamiji’s brother-disciples saw in that scheme an imitation of western methods. They claimed that it was quite different from what

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Ramakrishna had taught: living in seclusion, chanting the name of God, remembering the Lila of the incarnation, and discrimination between what is real and what is unreal. Sri Ramakrishna had specifically pointed out that when God appeared before one, would one ask for building schools, colleges, hospitals and dispensaries, or would one ask for the love of the lotus feet of God. Swamiji had to burst out saying that they little understood Ramakrishna and that they were trying to limit Ramakrishna to their little understanding of him. It was Holy Mother who supported Naren by pointing out that the case of Ramakrishna was entirely different in that he had four suppliers of needs. If the monks do not engage in service activities, why society would support them and their time instead of being spent in religious practices would be spent on getting a morsel of food. She was definite when she said that those who would not listen to Naren were free to leave.

Swamiji did burst upon society like a bomb shell and it followed him like an obedient dog.

His Inner StrengthThe secret of this unimaginable spirit

behind Swamiji’s tremendous activities, in spite of opposition from all quarters is his faith in himself, his faith in his Guru Ramakrishna, his tremendous love for humanity and his tremendous appreciation of India’s heritage and contribution to world thought. He had come with a mission, to remove the miseries of humanity, and this he had to do no matter what people may say. In fact Ramakrishna had asked him, what will you think if people speak ill of you? It was an indication of the fierce resistance Naren was to meet at every

stage with none to depend on other than Ramakrishna.

Once the Holy Mother had seen in a vision that Ramakrishna rushed past Naren and merged in the Ganges and that Naren was sprinkling that water on all present, both of the East and the West, and that they were getting liberated immediately.

Swamiji always believed that before Sri Ramakrishna entered Mahasamadhi, She whom he called Kali, had taken possession of himself and would not give him rest until Her work was accomplished to perfection. He looked upon himself as a ‘voice without a form’, the voice of Sri Ramakrishna without his form. He was the mouth-piece for all that Ramakrishna spoke through him. Being rooted in the indwelling god and possessed of immense faith in oneself, Naren could accomplish in less than forty years tremendous transformations for which the world will be forever indebted to Swamiji.

He would say, you little know what infinite possibilities lie hidden behind that frail form of yours waiting to become manifested. He would ask everyone to manifest that infinite potential. He would say: after all I am just a Calcutta boy playing in the streets of Calcutta, who used to sit at the feet of the saint of Dakshineswar and listen with rapt wonderment to the nectarine words that fell from his lips. If I could do so much how much more each one of you will accomplish. On the last day of his mortal existence he said, only a Vivekananda can understand what this Vivekananda has done and yet how many Vivekanandas will be born in time. Yes, that Vivekananda will take his seat in your heart if you imbibe the spirit of Vivekananda. Will that not be nice for the youth of India!

(Concluded.)

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Sri Totapuri was the Vedanta teacher of Sri Ramakrishna. He came to Dakshineswar during his pilgrimage and recognized Sri Ramakrishna, whom he met on the Ganga embankment of the Kali temple, as the most competent recipient for Vedanta Sadhana and accordingly stayed there for months and taught him whatever he knew.

A wandering monk of Naga tradition, Totapuriji initiated Sri Ramakrishna into Vedic sannyasa and under his directions Sri Ramakrishna soared into the heights of Nirvikalpa Samadhi. Sri Ramakrishna in turn taught Sri Totapuri the subtle truths of Bhakti and Saguna Brahman in his own inimitable simplicity and purity. Students of Sri Ramakrishna’s extraordinary divine life are transported into a different realm while reading this fascinating phase of his life.

A Pilgrimage to the Monastery of Sri Totapuriji —Dera Baba Ladana in Haryana

A MONASTIC SOJOURNER

Tracing the Monastery An extraordinary teacher that he was,

Totapuri was surely one of the luminaries in the spiritual firmament. And naturally one wants to know more about him. Where was he born, grew up, how and when he became a monk, where did he do his sadhana, how long did he live—all these and many more one wishes to know. Little, however, is known, thanks to scanty documentation and preservation of records. Whatever little is known about Totapuriji is in Sri Ramakrishna’s biography by Swami Saradananda, Sri Rama- krishna and His Divine Play, and that is insufficient to be made into a full-fledged biography.

Of course some fascinating details about Totapuriji are known—he was tall, of a well-built make, carried a brass pot and tongs in his hands, with little or nothing to cover his person (which is why Sri Ramakrishna addressed him a Nangta or the naked one). Little is known about his life before his meeting with Sri Ramakrishna or later. This is what Divine Play mentions about him:

In likelihood he belonged to the Naga Sampradaya of Hindu monks, having left his home very early, lived with his Guru, meditated long hours and had attained the highest spiritual experience called nirviklpa Samadhi. A few charming incidents related to his 11 months’ stay at Dakshineswar have been narrated by Sri Ramakrishna.

The road to Ladana

Travelogue

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About Ladana monastery, Sri Rama- krishna and His Divine Play describes:

There were seven hundred naked spiritual aspirants [in the monastery]. . . Those who were beginning to learn meditation were asked to do so on cushions; for they might feel an ache in their legs if they were to sit and meditate on hard seats, and their unaccustomed minds might come to think of their bodies instead of God. Then afterwards, the deeper their meditation became, the harder were the seats on which they had to sit. And at last they had to sit on pieces of skin only or on the bare ground to practice meditation. They were also made to observe strict rules regarding everything, viz., eating, drinking, etc. As regards their dress, the disciples were also made to practice gradually how to remain naked. As man is bound by eight fetters of shame, hatred, fear, egoism regarding one’s birth, lineage, custom, pretentiousness and so on, they were taught to give them up one by one. Afterwards when they developed deep concentration of mind they had to go and travel from one place of pilgrimage to another, at first with other monks and later alone and then return. The naked sannyasins had such rules.

That one only who was found amongst the naked sannyasins to have attained the true state of Paramahamsa was elected by all to the seat of the Mahanta [head] of the community when it fell vacant. . . They placed that person alone on the Mahanta’s seat from whose mind the attraction for gold was found to have really vanished and gave him the charge of money and other valuable property.

Having said it all, the one question that one poses is—is nothing connected with Totapuri available now! Did not Swami Saradananda write Totapuri’s monastery was somewhere near Ludhiana in Punjab? And that is where our revisiting of the whole issue started. Ludhiana is actually, we learn, Ladana—now in Haryana, and not in Punjab.

This is what the article titled ‘The Math Belonging to the Guru of Srimat Totapuri’ by Swami Alokananda (a monk of the Ramakrishna Math) in the November 1974 issue of Prabuddha Bharata, the English monthly from Advaita Ashrama, Mayavati, says. The article provides many little known but significant details of Ladana and gives a charming picture of the place. It is a narrative based on the author’s visit to Ladana.

There is one book in Odiya on Totapuriji which tries to place his monastery in Puri. The book also gives details of his life.

One important book that gives a detailed description of Ladana and its connection with Sri Totapuriji is in Hindi. Written by Vaidya Vanmali Dutt Sharma, the book titled Haryana Ki Vedant Parampara Aur Baba Totapuri, was published in 1986 from Kurukshetra. Now out of print, the book puts together many scattered facts, mostly known and a few new, about Ladana and its monastery.

A Recent VisitWe visited Ladana some months ago (in

September 2015). It is located near Kaithal, an important and ancient town (also a district) in the state of Haryana. From town one has to pass through a number of villages one of them being Manas, one of the Tirthas mentioned in

Entrance to the Baba Ladana Dera

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The temple dedicated to Baba Rajpuriji in the place where the earlier monastery was located inside the village

Entrance to the school located on the place of the monastery inside the village


the Mahabharata. The whole area is dotted with several such little known places of pilgrimage connected with Mahabharata.

One can travel to Ladana either from Chandigarh or from Delhi—it is almost mid-distance, and it may take around three hours to reach it depending on traffic and other factors.

Ladana is a village of around 5000 plus residents. According to the local tradition, it was a place in earlier times where loading of goods (in Hindi laadna means to load, or put some load on something, for transportation) used to take place.

Ladana village is part of the large, vast battlefield where the great Mahabharata War is believed to have taken place. In the Mahabharata it is mentioned that there were four Yaksha temples guarding the areas and one of the temples of Yaksha (called Arantnuk Behar Yaksha) is located close to Ladana. Behar Yaksha temple is situated close to one of the famous Gurudwaras blessed by Guru Teg Bahadurji, the ninth Guru of Sikh tradition. The Behar Sahib Gurudwara also has a large school attached to it. Interestingly we were told that the school is situated on the state boundary between Haryana and Punjab.

The monastery at Ladana mentioned in Great Master is actually situated in two places—one inside the village, and another on its outskirts. The inside monastery is no longer existing and a Haryana government school has replaced it. Swami Alokananda’s article mainly refers to that monastery.

The one on the outskirts is very much there and is a part of an active and living tradition.

Popularly known as the Sidh Baba Rajpuriji Ka Dera, the monastery where Totapuriji lived and passed away (a Samadhi Mandir there indicates it) is a well-known place in the area.

As soon as one reaches the village, after crossing a large pond on the left, one finds an unfinished welcome arch of red-brick to the 70 acres land owned by the monastery. We met a few local residents. They sat on charpayee, the knitted cots, with a few of them smoking the hookah. They cordially offered us tea and drinking water which we accepted. A local young man (Jasbir) along with his companions took us around. His familiarity with the place

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An overview of temples at Baba Ladana Dera

and its history was truly remarkable and helpful.

Then we came near the Dera, as the monastery is called in Haryanavi and Punjabi. On the monastery land one sees sugarcane crop along with other crops. A simple village road of about 300 meters, with open space on either side takes one to the monastery establishment. A fairly big temple is in the centre, the place is surrounded by a few smaller temples, kitchen, some living quarters and an open courtyard. One could see a number of buffaloes in the rear part of the monastery.

As one enters the monastery, one sees a cluster of temple domes (called mandhi in Haryanvi) in the monastery. For the first timers, the domes may appear like mosques but the reason why they are so designed should be attributed to the long Muslim rule of the area. Most temples in Haryana

and surrounding areas are built on the same pattern.

The main temple is dedicated to Dhuni, the sacred fire maintained by Naga monks, and has a metal image of Baba Rajpuriji, the founder of the Dera, in an enclosure in front of the Dhuni. The Dhuni is kept burning, or rather smoldering, round the clock, with the help of cow-dung cakes. A number of metal trishuls, small and big, were pegged in various places in the sacred Dhuni. Monks and devotees offer their respect to the Dhuni and also offer agarbatis, incense sticks, sometimes light an earthen lamp. The ash from Dhuni is considered very sacred and is distributed as Prasad to devotees.

It appears that the temple is located over some mound of rock or is designed as such. One has to reach it by climbing the large spiral, marbled staircase. As one reaches the top of stair way, one sees a circular verandah

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with the Dhuni temple in the centre. One sees images of monks who headed the monastery, from Baba Rajapuriji to Totapuriji, and later ones, placed in small enclosures, with a grill and their names placed in front. One gets a panoramic view of the monastery from the various arches around the circular verandah.

Next to the main temple there is a temple dedicated to Totapuriji. There is a point to be considered here—a similar temple exists in Puri monastery (in Odisha) which is claimed as the place where Totapuriji passed away. As it is difficult to ascertain facts in this regard, we leave the issue to future research. The red-coloured temple structure of medium height

The sacred Jaal grove (above)

Entrance to Dhuni Mandir Steps inside the Dhuni Mandir

A monk offering water over some of the samadhis of earlier Mahantas of Dera

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The sacred Dhuni Image of Baba Rajpuriji Image of Totapuriji


has one Shivalinga type symbol inside where worship is offered daily.

As we went around the place, around 2 in the afternoon, a young monk (there were 4 or 5 monks in the Dera) came with some water and offerings and made a formal offering in the temple of Totapuriji and a number of smaller tomb-like structures in the front, where, we learnt later, the mortal remains of the monks who headed (mahantas) the Dera were buried (monks are only buried in this area). He sprinkled water on all samadhis. There are some other temples too, dedicated

to various holy men. One important temple is dedicated to divine mother—Hingalaj Devi. The original temple of Devi is located in Hingalaj in Balochistan, some 250 km from Karachi in Pakistan. Baba Rajpuriji is believed to have visited the temple and was devoted to Her. During the annual mela, it is believed, Hingalaj Devi visits the Dera and blesses the devotees.

There is a large tree, spread over like a bush, with a platform around it, under which it is believed that Baba Rajpuriji used to do Tapas. It is located right in front of the main

Monastery building An overview of the courtyard and kitchen

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temple and close to Totapuriji’s temple. Called Jaal, the tree is held holy by devotees, who tie sacred threads on its branches as a mark of their prayers and respect.

We learnt from Jasbir that according to Dera’s tradition, every year a large mela, a village fair, is held sometimes in the month of October/November (during Sharad Navratri celebrations) where thousands of people take part. Over ten thousand people took part last year. In the Dera, two days before Durga-ashtami, Puja, homa (havan or fire ritual) and paath (parayan) is performed by monks and Pandits. The devotees, who come from far and near villages, light diya, earthen lamp, near the dhuni as part of their respect to the sacred memory of the Baba Rajpuriji and other saints who lived in the Dera. The whole monastery is illumined by electric lamps and the place wears a festive look.

As part of the mela, people take bath in the pond attached to the Dera and milk, brought in large quantities by the devotees, is served. Free water distribution counters manned by devotees cater to the needs of the thirsty ones. Of course a number of pavement shops come up where the visitors can buy simple household goods, sweets (taken as Prasad) and toys displayed there.

During the Mela a Kushti, wrestling, contest is also organised wherein a number of young people take part and a large gathering of onlookers cheer them.

We visited the Dera’s kitchen courtyard. There were only 4-5 monks in the Dera. But there are a number of employees who work in the fields and they take noon meals in the Dera. Simple wood-fueled earthen chulas [cooking-fires] were used in the kitchen for cooking.

Devotees offering milk during the mela Devotees lighting the lamps near the Dhuni

The monastery pond

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Before the courtyard, in a big room, there were two kettle drums which are played whenever there is any puja in the Dera. A portrait of Baba Rajpuriji is kept on a makeshift altar there. We also saw large quantity of food grains stored there.

Later we visited the quarters (a concrete, modern single-storey building of recent construction) of the present Mahant of the Dera, who offered us seat and got some tea prepared. His name is Mahant Dudhpuriji, who succeeded his teacher Ompuriji in 2011. He talked with us for a while about the monastery and told us that originally they had a much larger land but during the British times, it was taken by the British government. He regretted the absence of records which he said were too badly preserved to be useful in any way. We learnt from him that a number of monks of Ramakrishna Order have visited

the Dera over the years. A picture of Sri Ramakrishna on plastic sheet hanging on the monastery wall seems to be a result of this.

We also saw the pond which is part of the Dera. It has concrete bund on all sides and bathing ghats which are used by the devotees. The cool, clean water of the pond added charm to the otherwise arid place.

Thus came to conclusion our short but quite stimulating pilgrimage to Ladana. We reflected over the great spiritual heritage of the Dera, about Sri Totapuriji and others in his lineage. But alas, such is the play of time—Kala—that now it is a merely a relic of the past. What is astonishing and touching is that the tradition and place have been kept alive by the simple village folks and devotees who revere it as a place of inspiration and holiness and visit it in good number daily or whenever an occasion arises.

Mela shops Kushti competition

An over view of the annual Mela

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Unpublished Letters of Swami Saradananda1

New Find

Nov. 10. 1910.Math. Belur. Howrah.

India.Dearest Grannie,2

Your kind letter of Oct.12. came at a time when we were extremely anxious about your physical conditions. I sent the same immediately to Dr.Bose to relieve his mind a little—for he too had been going through the same strain as myself.

The Sister Nivedita will be due in U.S.A. on Nov. 15th; so that she will be with you long before this reaches your hands. Kindly request her to drop just a line every mail informing us about your improvements. I have made the same request to the Sister Christine; but she might not be with you or change her plans and start for India, seeing you little better.

I am so glad you are with the Swananders[?]. I met Miss Siri and her mother while there. My very kind regards to them please.

Sm. Sarada Devi felt a great relief when I gave her your loving message; and so did Jogin Maa.

The Holy Mother sends her heart’s love to you and prays that you might soon recoup yourself. Jogin Maa too is always doing the same.

The Swami Brahmananda is away; else I am sure, he too had sent his kindest regards and blessings and prayers.

With my cordial regards and prayers for your speedy recovery, I remain with all gratefulness,

Always your affectionate boySaradananda

12, 13 Gopal Chander Mogi’s Lane.Calcutta. India.

Dec. 15. 10.Dearest Grannie,The Sister Nivedita’s letter of Nov. 16th about your condition of health has relieved my

mind to a certain extent. I pray that the improvement may continue and that you may be your former self in a short time.

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1. A direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna 2. Mrs. Sara Bull, an American disciple of Swami Vivekananda

Courtesy: Ramakrishna Museum, Belur Math

The Holy Mother has gone for a change at Kothar in Orissa. She is likely to stop there for 2 or 3 months. She inquired after you most lovingly before leaving and desired me to send her love and blessings to you when I write.

Jogin Maa could not go with the Holy Mother on account of her mother’s helpless condition of health. She always inquires after you and desires to send you her love and best prayers for your speedy recovery.

The Swami Brahmananda is at the Math now and kindly inquired after you while I was last there.

The Bank has informed me of the receipt of a remittance of £60 from the Cambridge trust Co. on Dec.12. last.

It is so kind of you to think of me in this way at this time of the sad state of your health. It really brought tears to my eyes to think of the unselfish love of my Dear Grannie. May Sri R. bless you and being you all that you desire!

At the same time dear Grannie, try not to get anxious over our affairs just at present, but try to get well first, as fast as you can. I am a Sannyasin and I must learn to curtail my wants sometime or other, and what would it matter if I get a few rupees and lose my precious Grannie? So please try to be in perfect rest until you get strong again, with the idea that you have no obligations to meet, nothing or nobody to look after—for a perfect rest hastens cure.

With my grateful love to you always, and sincere prayers and wishing to be remembered to all friends there, I am

Ever your’s affectionate boySaradananda

References

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If you are in doubt, pray to Him in this way: ‘O God, if you really exist, do such and such a thing for me that I may believe in you.’ Even such a prayer is helpful. Meditation and prayers, even when they do not bring any material gain, are conducive to immense spiritual good. It is through meditation and prayer that the mind is able to withdraw itself from gross sense objects and lift itself to a higher plane. Is this a small gain?

—Swami Saradananda


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News and Notes from Ramakrishna Math and Mission

The Order On The March

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New Ramakrishna Math Centres

Vedanta Society of Greater Houston, USA, has been made a branch centre of the Ramakrishna Math. Its address is: Vedanta Society of Greater Houston, 14809 Lindita Drive, Houston, Texas 77083, USA; phone no.: (281) 9887211; email id: <[email protected]>; website address: <www.houstonvedanta.org>.

A branch centre of the Ramakrishna Math has been started at Ramanathapuram (also known as Ramnad) where Swami Vivekananda had stayed on his return from the West in 1897. The address of the centre is: Ramakrishna Math, No. 1, Raja Aranmanai Mele Street, Ramanathapuram, Tamil Nadu 623 501; phone no.: 98849 88178; email id: <[email protected]>.

Celebration of the 150th Birth Anniversary of Sister Nivedita

Narottam Nagar centre conducted two special lectures on 23 and 25 May.Swamiji’s Ancestral House held a lecture on 20 May which was attended by 250 people.On 4 May, Vadodara centre held its inaugural programme to commemorate Sister Nivedita’s 150th

birth anniversary. Swami Gautamanandaji among others addressed the gathering.Visakhapatnam centre launched a written quiz competition on Sister Nivedita for school students on

1 May. Bhagini Nivedita, a Bengali film dubbed into Telugu, was also released on that day.

News of Branch Centres (in India)

The General Secretary inaugurated the newly constructed monks’ quarters, dining-hall and office building at Gourhati centre on 8 May.

The General Secretary inaugurated the renovated 4th and 5th floors of the old-age home at Barisha Math on 11 May.

The new physiotherapy unit setup at Ghatshila Ashrama’s dispensary was inaugurated on 11 May.Almora centre celebrated its centenary on 22 May. The General Secretary addressed the public

meeting held on this connection and also inaugurated the newly built monks’ quarters.Shyamla Tal centre held the concluding function of its centenary celebration on 26 and 27 May with

special worship, lectures and bhajans. The General Secretary, about 40 other monks, 80 devotees and 900 villagers attended the programme.

Eight students of the faculty of General & Adapted Physical Education and Yoga (GAPEY) of Vivekananda University’s centre on Coimbatore Mission campus participated in the 3rd National Youth Rural Games and Sports Archery Tournament organized by Youth Rural Games and Sports Federation


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of India on 10 May. They won 3 gold medals, 2 silver medals and 3 bronze medals, and also the overall national championship.

A Commendable Achievement

Sri Ramakrishna Math Vivekananda Centenary Girls’ Higher Secondary School, Mint, Chennai, started by Swami Ramakrishnananda, a direct disciple of Ramakrishna, has created a history in this academic year 2015-2016. For the first time in the past 54 years, the school achieved 100% pass in the Board Exams conducted for 10th std. Six students have scored more than 429 out of 500 and 30 students have scored above 400 marks. In the Higher Secondary level the pass is 99% with six students scoring more than 1095 marks out of 1200 and 19 students more than 1000.

Swachchha Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India Campaign)

Kamarpukur centre carried out its sixth cleanliness drive on 22 May in which 67 people, including monks, employees and volunteers, cleaned a market area and a few streets in and around Kamarpukur.

Mangaluru centre conducted four cleanliness drives in different areas of Mangaluru city in the month of May involving about 500 people.

Nagpur centre took out a rally in Dhantoli area on 6 April to create awareness about cleanliness. About 200 people, mostly children, took part in the rally. As a part of the rally, the children enacted a street play.

Values Education and Youth-related Programmes conducted by centres in India

Delhi centre conducted eight values education workshops for school principals and teachers from 3 to 25 May which were attended by 420 people in all.

Rajkot Ashrama held 19 values education programmes for school children from 4 January to 29 March. In all, 3758 students from 19 schools took part in these programmes. The centre also conducted two 2-day residential camps for the youth in January and February in which 100 students from 2 colleges participated.

Silchar centre conducted a two-day values orientation programme on 24 and 25 May in which 208 students and 60 teachers from 35 schools took part.

Relief Work

Drought Relief: In the wake of a drought-like situation in the states of Karnataka, Maharashtra and Telangana, the following centres conducted relief operations mentioned below:

Karnataka: Belagavi (Belgaum) centre distributed 32.58 lakh litres of drinking water among 77,200 people of 15 villages in Belagavi district from 28 April to 28 May.

Ponnampet centre distributed 30,000 litres of drinking water among 110 families of Halligattu Deva colony and Seetha colony in Kodagu district in the month of May.

Maharashtra: Aurangabad centre distributed 13.75 lakh litres of drinking water among 17,990 people of 20 villages in Aurangabad district from 1 to 23 May.

Pune centre distributed 25.62 lakh litres of drinking water among 17,695 people of 7 villages in Satara and Ahmednagar districts from 26 April to 19 May.


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Telangana: Hyderabad centre distributed 22.74 lakh litres of drinking water among 14,598 families of 12 villages in Ranga Reddy, Warangal and Karimnagar districts and in Adilabad town from 28 April to 25 May. Further, the centre excavated a well on a site about 1.5 km away from Adalpur village in Ranga Reddy district. Water is being pumped from this well and supplied to the village.

Cyclone Relief: (a) Andhra Pradesh: Visakhapatnam centre laid 10,000 metres of HDPE pipeline and installed 10 water tanks to facilitate supply of drinking water to 265 households of 10 villages in Visakhapatnam and Vijayanagaram districts affected by Hudhud Cyclone in October 2014.

(b) Fiji: Continuing its relief work among the people affected by Winston Cyclone , Fiji centre distributed 151 cartons of clothes, 9 cartons of food materials, 6 cartons of shoes, 102 hand tools, 7 cartons of utensils and 715 buckets in Rakiraki area in May. The centre also distributed 1889 packets of agricultural seeds in Rakiraki, Nadi and Ba areas and provided medical support to 1490 patients in May.

Fire Relief: Bihar: On 3 May, Katihar centre distributed 2125 kg rice, 552 kg muri (puffed rice), 490 kg chira (rice flakes), 85 kg sugar and 85 utensil sets (each set containing 2 plates, a tumbler, a cooking pot and a bucket) among 85 families affected by an accidental fire at Rampur-Mohanpur locality in Araria district.

Storm Relief: Assam: In the wake of a severe storm, Silchar centre supplied 863 tin sheets among 111 families of 17 villages in Barak Valley from 5 to 13 May.

Flood Rehabilitation: Tamil Nadu: Two toilets built by Chennai Students’ Home were handed over to two flood-affected families of Thathaimanji village in Thiruvallur district in May.

Distress Rehabilitation: Karnataka: Ponnampet centre constructed 3 public toilets at Halligattu Deva colony in Virajpet taluk of Kodagu district in February.

Economic Rehabilitation: Ponnampet centre distributed 11 sewing machines to poor and needy people on 22 March.


Pancha Panchakam By Mee. Rajagopalan and Dr. Ketu Ramachandrasekhar

Published by Giri Trad- ing Agency, Pvt. Ltd. E-mail: [email protected] 2015, paperback, pp.64, Rs.30.

J a g a d g u r u A d i Shankara is considered to have written, apart

from many commentaries and treatises, as many as 75 Stotras—hymns and

praises—in Sanskrit. Giri, the publishers and the two translators have chosen five panchakas or five-verse hymns viz., Manisha, Sadhana, Maya, Kashi and Matru, for this short but delightful book. Mee. Rajagopalan has written a general introduction to the book, Introduction to Manisha Panchakam and has translated and interpreted the Manisha Panchakam. Dr. Ramachandrasekhar has contributed to the other segments of this pentad.

A passage from the Preface about Adi Shankara’s compositions is worth quoting, since it applies also to the five hymns under review:

‘None equals Adi Shankara for the systematic, coherent and logical presentation of thoughts, making even the most complex ideas easier to comprehend, and the most profound wisdom as trivial knowledge. His mastery of poetry, deft handling of the language, forthright approach to the core of the matter, the brilliance of articulation and synthesis of purport are all unparalleled and even admired for the rigors of scientific scrutiny.’

The Introduction is aimed at giving a general idea of the Advaita Vedanta to the readers. The three means of knowledge, viz., pratyaksha or perceptual knowledge, anumana or inference and the agama or the scriptures in general and Vedas in particular are explained with stress on the last one. This is followed by an analysis of the Atma-tattva, which in ultimate analysis means identity of the

atman and paramatman. Maya is now rationally discussed and it is shown how though unreal, it appears as real. The Vedantic concept of creation is described in short. After a brief mention of moksha, begins an Introduction to Manisha Panchaka.

These five verses of ‘conclusive wisdom’ were composed by Shankara soon after the encounter with an Outcast Stranger in one of the narrow lanes of Kashi. The Stranger had asked some poignant questions when he was asked to move out of the way. These questions are given in three Sanskrit verses. The commentator has given the essence of the five verses in this Introduction.

The pattern/scheme of presentation of these five panchakas is as follows: First there is the original verse in Sanskrit, followed by its English transliteration, and meaning. There is a detailed interpretation of verses in Manisha Pamchakam. In Sadhana Panchakam the values mentioned are enumerated with short explanatory note for each value. For Maya Panchakam and Matru Panchakam the meaning of the verses are explanatory also. There are no separate explanations. Kashi Panchakam has an Introduction, as well as elaborate interpretation of each verse.

Manisha Panchakam is one of the most beautiful compositions of Shankaracharya, where in five verses he has conveyed the essence of Advaita Vedanta. Every verse ends with ‘esha manisha mama’ ie., ‘This is my determinate knowledge or conclusive wisdom’. The first verse analyses the jivatman and it is shown that it is none other than Brahman. In the second verse Brahman is analysed and it is declared that It alone appears as jivatman. In the next two verses the methods of acquiring Advaitic wisdom, viz. a clear intellect, serenely focused mind and the guidance of the guru are described. The fourth and the final verses further expand the knowledge already revealed in the first two verses. There is a detailed interpretation of each in which the learned commentator has taken great pains to explain many concepts associated with logical understanding of Advaita Vedanta like the five koshas, or sheaths,

Book ReviewsFor review in The VedanTa Kesari,

publishers need to send us two copies oF their latest publication.

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three shariras, the three bodies, the three states—waking, dream and deep sleep; Ishwara, Maya and its three aspects ie., Mula, sattvika and avidya; sat, chit, ananda and the various aspects of ananda like priyatva, vishayananda; prarabdha karma, etc.

It is said that when Shankaracharya decided to give up his mortal coil, the disciples asked for a parting advise. In response he composed the short treatise called Sadhana Panchaka in which 40 values are given as means to Self-realization. The translator has wisely enumerated them for each verse and has given them in bold letters for easy comprehension.

Acharya Shankara has described Maya at various places like his commentary on Kathopa- nishad, in Tattvabodha, Vivekachudamani, etc. He has summarized all his ideas in the five verses of Maya-Panchakam. Each verse ends with ‘Aghatitaghata- naapateeyasi maayaa’, ie. ‘Maya, the nescience, skillful in bringing forth the seemingly impossible things.’

To Shankara who had lived for a considerable time at Kashi, the city was a symbol of atmatattva, which he has expressed in Kashi-Panchakam. Its first three verses end with ‘Saa Kaashikaaham nija bodha-rupa’ meaning ‘I am the city Kashi whose true form is pure conscious awareness.’

Having embraced sannyasa at a very young age, Shankara did not live with his mother, but on intuitively learning of her impending death, he reached near her death bed. This little known Martu-Panchakam is the outpouring of his heart at that time. This panchakam is not found in some of the editions of Shankara-granthavalis—The Complete Works of Shankara.

The translation is good, though some editing would have reduced repetitions and provided greater precision. The translators have introduced an odd scheme or transliteration or ‘Guidelines to pronunciation’ in which they have made use of capital English letters for some Sanskrit letters.

Nonetheless, this English translation is welcome and non-Sanskrit knowing readers will be able to get an idea about Shankara’s five verses. It is commendable that Giri, a trading agency, has published this religious booklet. We do not know whether it has some other such publications. It can take up the remaining five panchakas of Shankarcacharya, viz. Minakshi Panchakam, Lalita Panchakam, Yati or Kaupin Panchakam, Advaita Pancharatnam and Hanumat-Pancharatnam.___________________ SWAMI BRAHMESHANANDA, VARANASI

The concePT of TaPas in Valmiki Ramayana By Anna Subramanian

Published by Sri Rama- krishna Math, Mylapore, Chennai - 600 004. E-mail: [email protected] 2015, paperback, pp.49 paperback, Pp iv + 59, Rs.20.

The booklet under review presents an illumi-

nating talk, delivered by an authority on Sanskrit scriptures, in Madras Sanskrit College in 1977, on the topic ‘The Concept of Tapas in Valmiki Ramayana’. Defining Tapas as ‘voluntary suffering in the performance of one’s duties’, the speaker studies the Tapas of as varied characters in the epic as Rama, Sita, Lakshmana, Bharata, Sumitra, Viswamitra, Sabari, Hanuman, Valmiki and even Maricha and Ravana. Tapas, like fire, is obviously a neutral force liable to be used for both noble and ignoble purposes. The quotations of Sanskrit slokas and their explanations by the speaker add richness to the lecture. The booklet is doubtless an absorbing read. ________________________________ N. HARIHARAN, MADURAI

enigmas in Valmiki Ramayana exPlained

By S.R.Krishna Murthy

Published by Suneethi Prakashan, No.7, 36th Main, Bhavani HBCS, Banagirinagar, BSK 3rd Stage, Bengaluru-560 085. E-mail: [email protected] 2015, paperback, pp 305, Rs 500.

The highly informative book by a learned author, under review, has 14 Chapters.

The Introduction (Chapter One) briefly recites the life-story of Valmiki and explains that Valmiki Ramayana is anchored in the Vedic philosophy. The different heads under which criticisms are levelled against the epic are catalogued.

The Second Chapter titled ‘Truth and Perception’ upholds the thesis of the epic that ‘unvarnished Truth is the bedrock of life’.


The Third Chapter titled ‘Texts and Emendations’ identifies slokas that are interpolations fit to be dismissed as un-Valmikian and even anti-Valmikian. Suggestions to impart Valmikian sense to certain slokas misinterpreted by critics are offered. Certain interpolations deviating from Valmikian ethos and beyond rehabilitation are recommended for complete expurgation.

Chapters Four to Twelve discuss the howlers, controversies and criticisms pertaining to various episodes. Misconceptions and misinterpretations of episodes are highlighted and solutions are offered to rid them of their un-Valmikian flavour. Scholars, both Indian and foreign, are lambasted for their superficial understanding and biased interpretations. Foreign scholars like Jacobi and Holtzmann who consider Balakanda and Uttarakanda as extrapolations are not only severely censured for their impudence but effectively silenced.

Chapter Thirteen shows how the Valmikian descriptions of the geographical terrain of Rama conform accurately to their present-day geographical features. The unfair criticisms of the scholars arising from their shallow understanding or deep-rooted prejudices that Valmiki is ignorant of geography are answered by judicious collation of facts and cogent reasoning.

Chapter Fourteen (the Final Chapter) reads a convincingly apt allegorical significance into the cognomens of characters, the flow of events and the finale of the epic tale.

The concluding note titled ‘Vedic Adhaar of Valmiki Ramayana’ reinforces the theory that the epic is only a grand dissertation on Vedic Philosophy.

The versatile author deserves praise for his research-oriented intellect, for his rigorous labour in collecting and presenting mind-boggling volume of facts and figures, for drawing parallels and examples from a whole spectrum of diverse sources, for utilising his proficiency in Sanskrit to good account, for his courage of conviction in crossing swords with the Colossuses of Ramayana scholarship and, above all, for his prodigious devotion to Valmiki, the Poet Non-pareil, and his missionary zeal in propagating his fame by ruthless demolition of the barrage of unfair criticisms by prejudiced and half-baked scholars.

The paper-back book, nicely designed and produced and with an exhaustive bibliography,

should interest readers with a penchant for literary criticism marked by serious research. ________________________________ N. HARIHARAN, MADURAI

Rambles in VedanTa

By BR Rajam Iyer

Publ ished by Moti la l Banarsidass Publishers Pvt Ltd, 41 UA Bungalow Road, Jawahar Nagar, Delhi 110 007. E-mail: [email protected] 2015, paperback, pp 864, Rs 595.

Among Swami Vive- kananda’s priceless gifts to

the Indian renaissance was his igniting the story-telling ability of ancient India in the English language. He saw the way in which English education was undermining Indian culture. The language was welcome but not Macaulay’s diabolic dream behind it. As a result, the ancient ways of an integral literature which presented the finest emotional tales layered with practical wisdom and idealism were getting forgotten day by day. Among the ways Swami Vivekananda sought to arrest the decay was to present Indian thoughts in English. He encouraged magazines like the Brahmavadin and Prabuddha Bharata for this purpose. As a result, two immortal lotuses bloomed for strengthening the Indian psyche: Sister Nivedita’s Cradle Tales of Hinduism and B.R. Rajam Iyer’s Rambles in Vedanta.

Prabuddha Bharata was launched in 1896 and proved that Vedanta was story-telling and story-telling was the Vedantin’s way. What are Upanishads but gentle stories of flowering souls? Can a modern tale outdo the ‘Begone Chandala’ story in teaching us how ‘faith is a power agent in the enlightenment of the heart’? Rajam Iyer (1872-1898) was the right young man for the editorial desk. He had ‘samathva’, to the nth degree. A treatise on ‘Hinduism and Religious Evolution’ moves to a brief tale, ‘Tit for Tat’ on rustic commonsense that borders on the spiritual; soon a stinging whiplash to those who sport their government titles like C.I.E. and Dewan Bahadur which they usually got ‘through the favour of Government gods’ that becomes the brief novel, Vasudeva Sastri. On sadhana, symbology, divine incarnations . . .

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Did you know Vedanta is the most seditious, ultra-radical concept and its literature criminal in character, set up against the Emperor of Emperors? He is Emperor Ego, of course! There is never a dull moment in this precious volume of explicatory essays which has plenty of tiny tales in ‘The Imitation of Vyasa’. Each one of the eight hundred and sixty-four pages is instructive and transformative. A bigger font would have made the book easier to read for the older generation and a greater delight to the young. Rambles in Vedanta is a classic from the pen of Iyer as is his Tamil novel Kamalambal Charithiram. A genius of the Indian Renaissance; also an ‘inheritor of unfulfilled renown’.___________________________ PREMA NANDAKUMAR, TRICHY

andal’s TiRuPPaVai and nammazhVaR’s andakola ViRuddhi By Vankeepuram Rajagopalan.

Available at ‘Chetana’, No.3 (N/5) Third Canal Cross Road, Gandhi Nagar, Adyar –600 020. Email not Given 2013, paperback, Pp.148+xi.Rs.210

‘Andal’ in Tamil means ‘the one who holds way over the hearts of people

and was the queen of their affections’. Andal (Goda Devi), as a little girl developed unparalleled devotion to God Sri Ranganatha of Srirangam and wished Him as her spouse. In Tiruppavai consisting of thirty hymns, she assumes herself to be a Gopi of Vrindavan and wakes up her companions for having a holy early morning dip in the Yamuna and observing Goddess Katyayini vrata called ‘pavai nonbu’ praying for a life-partner of their dreams.Hence the name ‘Tiruppavai’. ‘Tiru’ denotes ‘sri’, splendour, wealth etc., All the Gopis aspire to marry Lord Krishna.

Andal’s hymns bubble with fervid devotion. They are lyrics of great emotional intensity and have poetry of sweetness and light in them besides a rich dramatic element. Since the poetic diction is simple, it is easily memorised. During the month of Margasirsa, the Vaishnavaite temples reverberate with the chanting of Tiruppavai. These hymns have

a deeper esoteric significance also. The individual soul wakes up from its slumber of avidya, (ignorance) and wants to attain the Supreme. Anna Subramanian writes: ‘Andal typifies the highest aspiration of the human soul towards divinity. In recent times, the Holy Mother, Sarada Devi, the consort of Sri Ramakrishna embodied this ideal’.

Sri Rajagopalan has translated Tiruppavai in English in his own inimitable manner as he has done quite a few Vaishnavite ‘pasurams’ (hymns) earlier. His translation has the esoteric meaning also. For example, when he translates ‘seed’ (verse 6 ), he follows it up with the explanation ‘primal cause’. In the same way, ‘Devadhi devan’ in the verse 8, is translated ‘Supreme Purusha’. In verse 10 again, in his translation of ‘parai’, a recurring religious symbol, he translates it as ‘purushartha’ and adds in the foot-note, ‘righteous conduct, wealth, love and salvation’.

After reading his translation, the reader’s interest is stimulated to go to the original and assimilate the native flavour. For example, in verse 27, ‘enjoying delicacies of rice cooked in milk and flowing ghee that slips down the elbow free’ not only makes one’s mouth water but also makes one wonder how Andal has expressed this idea. The lion in verse 23 roars faithfully in translation also.

Sri Rajagopalan includes in this volume, a solitary composition of 17 lines, of Sri Nammalvar, ‘Andakola Viruddhi’ (‘In the Expansion of Aware- ness’) which speaks of the unity of existence.

In all the books of Sri Rajagopalan, ‘Select Suggestive Short Notes’ is a special feature providing exhaustive and informative notes on the deeper spiritual connotation of the respective ‘pasurams’ the books deal with.

It is however sad to note that a long list of misprints tarnishes the beauty of such a noble endeavour.____________________________ K.PANCHAPAGESAN, MUMBAI

yoga-TaRangini

By Jan K. Brzezinski

Published by Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Pvt Ltd, 41 UA Bungalow Road, Jawahar Nagar, Delhi 110 007. E-mail: [email protected] 2015, paperback, pp 351, Rs 600

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T h e r e a r e t w o standard textbooks on Yoga, which are used in many Yoga institutions. They are Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras and Swatmarama’s Hatha Yoga Pradipika. The former is unique in the sense that there is no other book of a similar type. On the other hand, there are innumerable

books on Hatha Yoga, each different from the other. Patanjali’s book is

a part of the Six Systems of Philosophy, and has a philosophical background. It is also sometimes called Raja Yoga or Indian System of Psychology. Hatha Yoga, on the other hand, has a tantric background, and lays a lot of stress on physical exercises.

Swatmarama places the relation between Raja Yoga and Hatha Yoga in the proper perspective. According to him, Hatha Yoga is a ladder at the top of which is Raja Yoga. Hatha Yoga’s only purpose is to prepare the yoga practitioner to launch out on his practice of Raja Yoga, whose end goal is Dhyana and Samadhi. This background helps us appreciate the book under review.

‘Yoga Tarangini’ is not the name of the original work. It is called ‘Goraksha Sataka’, attributed to Gorakhnath, one of the founders of Hatha Yoga. ‘Yoga Tarangini’ is the name of the commentary. It is not known who the commentator is. This book was fished out by Swami Veda Bharati, a disciple of Swami Rama of the Himalayan Institute, who in turn passed it on to his colleague Jan Brzezinski or Jagannatha Das for translation into English.

For a beginner, the safest way to study the book is to go through the original text and its commentary, with translation, forgetting all about the comments of the translator. These comments should be reserved for an advanced student, who is more familiar with the rest of the literature. Even though the original book is called Goraksha Sataka, it actually contains 202 slokas, and consists of two parts. Each part consists of 101 slokas. The first part covers Asana, Chakras, Nadis, and Shakti, Mudras, Omkara and part of Pranayama. The second part

covers the rest of Pranayama, Dharana, Dhyana and Samadhi.

The first part commences, after the usual prayers, with a description of Asana. Even though 84 of them are known, only two are important, Sidddhasana and Kamalasana or Padmasana. These are then described in detail. This is followed by Chakras. This is rather unusual, since in most books this comes at a later stage. The six chakras are described in detail. This is followed by the ten varieties of Prana, with their functions. Immediately follows the description of the awakening of the Kundalini, which is usually the last step before Samadhi. The five standard Mudras are then described. Omkara suddenly intervenes, which usually occurs at the time of Dharana and Dhyana. These are the contents of the first part.

The second part commences with Pranayama. Along with the description of Puraka, Rechaka and Kumbhaka, there is a prescription of the time duration for each of them for a full cycle. The author goes into very great detail here, as an indication of the importance he lays upon this step. Various types of Pratyahara are then presented with a tinge of Vamachara, to be ignored by a Brahamachari practitioner. The author then gives a few practical hints for Dharana, which are indeed very useful. The next section on Dhyana also contains many practical and useful hints. The nature of Samadhi is then described as to how at the stage the Yogi defies all natural laws and becomes invincible. The book concludes with a list of benefits that accrue to the Yogi with this practice. This in brief is the content of the book.

Beginners may find the book a hard nut to crack, but for advanced students it is full of useful and practical advices. Most people get attracted to such books, because they hold out the promise of yogic powers. But, Patanjali does not hold out any such promises. He is categorical in his statement that such yogic powers are obstacles in one’s path towards Samadhi and should be shunned. Even if a Yogi has reached almost the end of his sadhana, such powers may drag him back to square one and should be carefully avoided. Hence, the safest path is that of Patanjali’s Raja Yoga. It is therefore called the Right Royal Path. _______________________________ NVC SWAMY, BANGALORE


SRI RAMAKRISHNA SEVASHRAM(Regd. No. S/15296 of 1974) Vill. & P.O. B-Ramakrishnapur, PS.: Bishnupur, Dist-24 pgs. (S), West Bengal, Pin-743610 (A member Ashram of Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Bhava Prachar Parishad, South 24 Pgs. Dist, advised by Ramakrishna Math & Rama-

krishna Mission Belur Math, W.B.) Ph: 9674399608, 9433350418

Website: www.srks.org Regd. Off: 6, Baroda Thakur Lane, Kolkata-700 007

AN APPEALDear Sisters and Brothers,

‘Extension of Boys’ Home, betterment of the living condition of the inhabitants of the Ashram, construction of Temple of Sri Ramakrishna and a prayer Hall.’

We are grateful to many of you who extended their assistance for the betterment of our SEVASHRAM, which was set up in 1973 under the patronage of Swami Ramanandaji Maharaj (former Secretary Ramakrishna Mission Saradapith, Belur) and registered in 1974. As you know, ours is a philanthropic organisation, involved in—

1. Upbringing of 50 orphan boys and intend to increase to 150.

2. Helping nearly 200 destitue widows.3. Maintenance of Old Age Home for common men

& women.4. Renovation of a) The Primary School for Boys upto Class IV. b) Existing Charitable

Dispensary c) Guest House5. Vocational Training (Para Medical Training Course)We have already set up 18 Vivekananda Free Schools for the poor children in remote

villages in the Sundarban areas.About 1.5 k.m. from Dakshin Durgapur Rly. Station on Diamond Harbour line, near

Kolkata, the sevashram grew up on a 40 Bigha plot of land with all activities.Over the foundation stone, already consecrated by the most Revered Srimat Swami

Ranganathanandaji Maharaj, 13th President of the Ramakrishna Math and Mission, we intend to complete the construction of a Sri Ramakrishna Temple and A Prayer Hall to accommodate 500 devotees without any distinction of caste, creed and religion. For the aforesaid activities we need financial assistance of Rupees 1 Crore 5 lakhs. 'Service to man is service to God’ is, to our mind, the essence of Swami Vivekananda's teaching of practical Vedanta, and is our source of inspiration. Our religion is to serve humanity.

Arrangement for insertion of memory stone tablet at Rs. 10,000/- (15" x 15"), Rs. 20,000/- (18" x 18") and for insertion on the boundary wall of the temple Rs. 30,000/- (24" x 24") is available. Your valued assistance through A/c Payee Cheque/Demand Draft/M.O. in favour of Sri Ramakrishna Sevashram to our above registered office will be accepted with gratitude. Donations are exempted under 80G of IT Act and the same will be gracefully acknowledged with our official receipt.

Yours in the Lord, Biswanath Purkait

Secretary


A HUMBLE REQUESTNew Universal Meditation Hall, Educational and Cultural Complex at Chandigarh Ashrama

Dear devotees, well-wishers and friends,Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama at Chandigarh was started in 1955 in the aftermath of

India’s partition. Since then the Ashrama has been providing spiritual solace to seekers in search of peace, free mobile medical service, a Boys’ Hostel for college students, value education programs in schools and colleges, spread of inspirational and ennobling literature among the masses, etc.

Over the years, these activities have steadily increased and so also the number of devotees attending these programs as well as morning and evening prayers, and those coming for meditation, spiritual retreats/ satsangs. To meet the increasing needs for space, it has been decided to construct a new building having

a) A spacious Meditation Hall and Monks Quarters - Rs. 1.3 Crores (approx.)

b) Educational & Cultural Centre: Rs. 2.1 Crores (approx.)

Total cost of the project: Rs. 3.4 crores (approx.)Cheques/ Demand Drafts may be drawn in

favour of ‘RAMAKRISHNA MISSION ASHRAMA, CHANDIGARH’ and can be sent to the address given above. Contributions, from within India, can also be directly deposited in any of the following banks:

1) ICICI A/c No. – 001301029198, Branch – Sector 15-C, Chandigarh, IFSC – ICIC0002429

2) IDBI A/c No. – 003104000083216, Branch – Sector 8-C, Chandigarh, IFSC – IBKL0000003 (Kindly intimate us the details of the deposit, your address and phone number by e-mail on the same day)

Contributions to the Ramakrishna Mission are exempted from Income Tax u/s 80(G) of I.T. Act, 1961.

Yours in the service of Bhagavan Sri RamakrishnaSwami Satyeshananda, Secretary

Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama(A Branch of Ramakrishna Mission, Belur Math)

Sector 15-B, Madhya Marg, Chandigarh – 160015Tel: 0172-2549477 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.rkmachandigarh.org

Proposed Hall and Complex

Foundation Stone laying for the Universal Meditation Hall on 24.11.1985—by Swami

Gambhiranandaji, 11th President of the Ramakrishna Order

Construction in progress


RAMAKRISHNA MISSION, VIJAYAWADACity Centre: Gandhinagar, Vijayawada – 520 003| Phone: 0866-2570799

Ashrama: Sitanagaram, Tadepalli Mandal, Guntur District | Phone: 08645-272248Email: [email protected] | Website: www.rkmissionvijayawada.org

KRISHNA PUSHKAR MELA - 2016 (FROM 12 AUGUST TO 23 AUGUST 2016)

APPEALYou are aware about the various service activities being conducted by the Ramakrishna

Mission in the fields of education, medicine, culture, spirituality and also at the time of natural calamities.

Krishna Pushkaram, an important event occurs once in 12 years. Lakhs of pilgrims take a dip in the Holy River Krishna during the Mela. We fondly remember the great response received from both donors and beneficiaries, during Krishna Pushkar Mela 2004 rendered by the Mission. During Krishna Pushkaram Mela from 12th – 16th August, this year also Ramakrishna Mission, Vijayawada is organizing the following free services for the benefit of pilgrims at its premises at Sitanagaram Village, Guntur District (near the Prakasham Barrage) on the right bank of Krishna river:

Sl No.

ParticularsEstimated

cost for one day

Total for 12 days

(Rs.)

1 Milk for 2000 children per day @ Rs.17/- per head 34000 408000

2 Feeding 5000 pilgrims per day @ Rs.50/- per head 250000 3000000

3 Butter Milk for 10000 pilgrims per day @ Rs.4.55/- per head 45500 546000

4 Medical Camp - 200000

5 Cultural & Spiritual programmes - 300000

6Accommodation arrangements: Sheds, Toilets, Bathrooms, Cloak Room (Temporary)

- 500000

7 Water, Electricity & Washing - 200000

8Establishment & Miscellaneous (Printing and stationery, Office expenses)

- 300000

Estimated Total Cost Rs. 54,54,000/- - 5454000

We appeal to all philanthropists, well-wishers and admirers to help us in this noble cause. We request you to extend your helping hand to join us in this sacred endeavor.

Cheques/ Drafts may be drawn in favour of Ramakrishna Mission, Vijayawada and sent to the Secretary, Ramakrishna Mission, Gandhinagar, Vijayawada – 520 003, Krishna Dist., A.P., India. All donations are exempt from Income Tax Under section 80 G. You can also use online services to transfer donations to our a/c No.10442746439 with State Bank of India, Gandhinagar Branch, Vijayawada-3, IFSC Code No.SBIN0001208. In case of online transfers, we request you to inform us the transaction details immediately.

05 May 2016 Yours in the Lord’s ServiceSwami Sashikantananda

Secretary


Goddess Durga: The Divine Energy


NAVAJEEVAN BLIND RELIEF CENTRE

‘We can attain salvation through social work’ – Swami Vivekananda

K. Sridhar AcharyaFounder/ President

1. Navajeevan School & Hostel for Blind Children

– Tirupati, Parlekhimundi, Golamunda

2. Navajeevan Free Eye Hospital – Tirupati

3. Navajeevan Free Home for Aged – Tirupati, Rishikesh, Parlekhimundi and Chennai

4. Navajeevan Dumb & Deaf Home - Patapatnam

5. Navajeevan Sharanagati Vridhashram – Tirupati

6. Navajeevan Rural Medical Centres - Berhampur [Orissa]

7. Navajeevan Eye Care Centres - Serango & Kalahandi [Orissa]

8. Navajeevan Orphanage Children Homes – Tirupati, Parlehkimundi, Saluru, Golamunda, Berhampur, Pandukal, Vizag & Araku, Dundelmal

9. Navajeevan Atharvana Veda Pathasala - Tirupati

1. Sponsor one day Annadan to Blind Children and aged – Rs. 5000/-2. Sponsor 5 IOL Cataract Eye Operations – Rs. 7000/-3. Sponsor one blind child or Orphan child for one year – Rs. 6000/-4. Sponsor one poor aged person for one year – Rs. 5000/-5. Sponsor one free eye camp at Rural/Tribal area – Rs. 50000/-6. Vidyadan—Educational aid for one Child – Rs. 2000/-

(FREE HOME FOR THE BLIND, ORPHAN AND AGED)TIRUCHANOOR, TIRUPATI–517503. Ph : 0877-2239992, 9908537528 [Mob.]

E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.navajeevan.org

An Appeal37 Years of Service to Humanity 1979–2016

Donor devotees can send their contributions by cheque/DD/MO to the above address on the occasion of birthday, wedding day or any other special occasion and receive prasadam of Lord Balaji Venkateswara of Tirupati as blessings.Contributions to NAVAJEEVAN BLIND RELIEF CENTRE, Tirupati are eligible for Tax Relief U/S 80G of Income Tax Act.

Our Bank details for online transfer :Bank Name : Indian Bank , Gandhi Road Branch, Tirupati SB A/c No: 463789382, Account Holder : Navajeevan Blind Relief Centre, Branch Code: T036, IFSC code: IDIB000T036,

A Humble Request for Donation


55

Three things are necessary to make every man great, every nation great:i) Conviction of the powers of goodness.ii) Absence of jealousy and suspicioniii) Helping all who are trying to be good and do good —Swami Vivekananda

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Vol.103-7 The Vedanta Kesari (English Monthly) July 2016. Regd. with the Registrar of Newspapers for India under No.1084 / 1957. POSTAL

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—Swami Vivekananda

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