Master and Disciple

[barney 0]

Master and Disciple

 

According to Hindu tradition, the disciple must obey the Guru without question. However, the influence of Western thinking did not allow Narendra to accept this; he was determined to test for himself everything that Ramakrishna taught him. He felt it was wrong for someone to surrender freedom of judgement to another. After their third meeting, Narendra felt the Master’s superhuman spiritual power, but he was still somewhat sceptical. His scepticism made him one of the most reliable of all witnesses to Ramakrishna’s greatness. Later he said to a Western disciple: "Let none regret that they were difficult to convince. I fought my Master for six long years, with the result that I know every inch of the way."

 

The meeting of Narendra and Ramakrishna was an important event in the lives of both. It was like a meeting between the occident and the orient, the modern and the ancient. Ramakrishna tamed the rebellious Narendra with his infinite patience, love, and vigilance. The Master was fully convinced of Narendra’s divine nature and mission to the world. He could not bear the slightest criticism of Narendra and told devotees: "Let no one judge him hastily. People will never understand him fully."

 

Ramakrishna did not hesitate to praise Narendra’s greatness in the presence of one and all, which sometimes embarrassed Narendra. One day Keshab Sen and Vijaykrishna Goswami, who were leaders of the Brahmo Samaj, visited Dakshineshwar with a number of Brahmo devotees. Narendra was also present. The Master remarked: "If Keshab possesses one virtue which has made him world famous, Naren is endowed with eighteen such virtues. I have seen in Keshab and Vijay the divine light burning like a candle flame, but in Naren it shines with the radiance of the sun."

 

Narendra later vehemently protested to the Master: "Sir, people will think you are mad if you talk like that. Keshab is famous all over the world. Vijay is a saint. And I am an insignificant student. How can you speak of us in the same breath? Please, I beg you, never say such things again."

 

"I cannot help it," replied the Master. "Do you think these are my words? The Divine Mother showed me certain things about you, which I repeated. And she reveals to me nothing but the truth."

 

"How do you know it was Mother who told you?" Narendra objected. "All this may be fiction of your own brain. Science and philosophy prove that our senses often deceive us, especially when there is a desire in our minds to believe something. You are fond of me and you wish to see me great – that may be why you have these visions."

 

The Master was perplexed. He appealed to the Divine Mother for guidance, and was told: " Why do you care what he says? In a short time he will accept every word of yours as true."

 

Ramakrishna’s affection for Narendra astonished everyone. If Narendra could not come to Dakshineshwar for a long time, the Master cried for him or he went to see him in Calcutta. Ramakrishna knew that he would not live long in this world, so he was eager to train his foremost disciple as early as possible. One Sunday the Master went to visit him at the Brahmo Samaj Temple, where Narendra sang devotional songs during the evening service. When he arrived in the middle of the service, there was a commotion among the congregation to see the saint of Dakshineshwar. The preacher was annoyed and abruptly ended his sermon, and the ushers turned out all the gaslights in order to make people leave the building – a move which resulted in a chaotic stampede to the doors in the darkness.

 

Narendra was greatly pained by the Master’s humiliation. He managed to elbow his way to Ramakrishna’s side, then he led him out through a back door, got him into a carriage and rode with him to Dakshineshwar. Narendra reprimanded the Master, but Ramakrishna didn’t care a bit about the scolding or his humiliating experience with the Brahmos. Then Narendra told him severely: "It is written in the Puranas that King Bharata thought so much about his favourite deer that he himself became a deer after his death. If that’s true, you should beware of thinking about me!"

 

The Master was simple, much like a little boy. He took these words very seriously, because Narendra was a man of truth. Ramakrishna went to the temple and returned shortly, beaming with delight and exclaimed: "You rascal, I won’t listen to you anymore. Mother said that I love you because I see the Lord in you. The day I shall not see Him in you, I shall not be able to bear even the sight of you."

 

As a member of the Brahmo Samaj, Narendra was committed to the belief in a formless God with attributes, and he despised all image worship. His friend Rakhal (later, Swami Brahmananda) also became a member of the Brahmo Samaj, even though he was devotional by nature. Later, under Ramakrishna’s influence, Rakhal returned to the worship of God with form. When Narendra saw Rakhal bowing down before the images, he scolded his friend for breaking the Brahmo pledge. Rakhal was too soft natured to argue, but he was hurt and began to avoid Narendra. The Master intervened, saying to Narendra: "Please do not intimidate Rakhal. He is afraid of you. He now believes in God with form. How are you going to change him? Everyone cannot realise the formless aspect of God at the very beginning." That was enough: Narendra never interfered with Rakhal’s practice again.

 

Ramakrishna knew that Narendra’s mind was naturally inclined to the path of knowledge, so he initiated him into the teachings of nondualistic Vedanta. Sometimes he asked Narendra to read aloud passages from the Ashtavakra Samhita and other Vedanta treatises so that he could grasp the meaning of the Vedanta philosophy which teaches that Brahman is the ultimate Reality, existence- consciousness- bliss absolute. The individual soul is Brahman and nothing else. The world is shown to be nothing but name and form, all of which is apparent, not real, having only a relative existence.

 

In the beginning it was hard for Narendra to accept the non-dualistic view that "everything is really Brahman," because he was then a staunch follower of the Brahmo Samaj, which taught a theistic philosophy. He said to the Master: "It is blasphemous, for there is no difference between such philosophy and atheism. There is no greater sin in the world than to think of oneself as identical with the Creator. I am God, you are God, these created things are God – what can be more absurd! The sages who wrote such things must have been insane."

 

The Master didn’t mind Narendra’s outspokenness at all. He smiled and said: You may not accept the views of these seers. But how can you abuse them or limit God’s infinitude? Go on praying to the God of Truth and believe in any aspect of His that He reveals to you."

 

One day while chanting with Hazra at Dakshineshwar, Narendra ridiculed the Vedantic experience of oneness: "How can this be? This jug is God, this cup is God, and we too are God! Nothing can be more preposterous!" When the Master heard Narendra’s comment from his room, he came out and enquired: "Hello! What are you talking about?" Ramakrishna touched Narendra and went into samadhi. Later Narendra graphically described the effect of that touch:

 

"The magic touch of the Master that day immediately brought a wonderful change over my mind. I was stupefied to find that there was really nothing in the universe but God! I saw it quite clearly but kept silent, to see if the idea would last. But the impression did not abate in the course of the day. I returned home, but there too, everything I saw appeared to be Brahman. I sat down to take my meal, but found that everything – the food, the place, the person who served, and even myself – was nothing but That. I ate a morsel or two and sat still. I was startled by my mother’s words: ‘Why do you sit still? Finish your meal,’ and began to eat again. But all the while, whether eating or lying down, or going to college, I had the same experience and felt myself always in a sort of comatose state.

 

While walking in the streets, I noticed cabs plying, but I did not feel inclined to move out of the way. I felt that the cabs and myself were of one stuff. There was no sensation in my limbs, which, I thought, were getting paralyzed. I did not relish eating, and felt as if somebody else were eating. Sometimes I lay down during a meal, after a few minutes, got up and again began to eat. The result would be that on some days I would take too much, but it did not harm. My mother became alarmed and said that there must be something wrong with me. She was afraid that I might not live long. When the above state altered a little, the world began to appear to me as a dream. While walking in Cornwallis (now Azadhind Bag; gardens), I would strike my head against the iron railings to see if they were real or only a dream. This state of things continued for some days. When I became normal again, I realized that I must have had a glimpse of the Advaita (nondual) state. Then it struck me that the words of the scriptures were not false. Thenceforth I could not deny the conclusions of the Advaita philosophy."

 

One-day Ramakrishna’s whole attitude to Narendra suddenly seemed to change. The Master looked at him without the least sign of pleasure and remained silent. Narendra thought that the Master was in a spiritual mood. He waited for a while, and then went to the Veranda and began talking to Hazra. In the evening Narendra bowed down to the Master and left for Calcutta. On his next several visits, the Master’s mood towards Narendra did not change. He received him with the same apparent indifference. Ignored by the Master, he spent the days with Hazra and other disciples and returned home as usual. Finally, after more than a month, the Master asked Narendra,

 

"Why do you come here, when I don’t speak a single word to you?"

 

Narendra answered: "Do you think I come here just to have you speak to me? I love you. I want to see you. That’s why I come."

 

The Master was delighted.

 

"I was testing you to see if you would stop coming when you didn’t get love and attention. Only a spiritual aspirant of your quality could put up with so much neglect and indifference. Anyone else would have left me long ago."

 

Narendra was very bold and frank. He did not speak about people behind their backs. He took delight in criticizing the Master’s spiritual experiences as evidence of a lack of self-control. He would even make fun of his worship of Kali. "Why do you come here?" the Master once asked him, "if you do not accept Kali, my Mother?"

 

"Bah! Must I accept her," Narendra retorted, "simply because I come to see you? I come to you because I love you."

 

"All right," said the Master, "before long you will not only accept my blessed Mother, but weep while repeating her name."

 

As Ramakrishna tested Narendra in various ways before accepting him as a disciple, so did Narendra test Ramakrishna before he accepted him as a guru. Narendra heard that the Master’s renunciation was so absolute that he could not bear the touch of money. One day Narendra arrived at Dakshineshwar and found that the Master had gone to Calcutta. Suddenly he felt a desire to test the Master. He hid a Rupee under the Master’s mattress and waited for him. The Master returned, but no sooner had he touched the bed than he drew back in pain, as if stung by a scorpion. The Master called a temple attendant to examine the bed, and the Rupee was discovered. Narendra admitted that he had put the money there. The Master was not displeased at all. He said to Narendra: "You must test me as the money changers test their coins. You mustn’t accept me until you’ve tested me thoroughly."

 

On another occasion, the Master put Narendra to a difficult test. He said to him: "As a result of the austerities I have practised, I have possessed all the supernatural powers for a long time. I am thinking of asking the Mother to transfer them all to you. She has told me that you will be able to use them when necessary. What do you say?"

 

Narendra asked: "Will they help me to realize God?"

 

"No," said the Master, "they won’t help you to do that. But they might be very useful after you have realized God and when you start doing His work."

 

Narendra said: "Then let me realize God first. After that, it will be time enough to decide if I need them or not. If I accept them now, I may forget God, make selfish use of them, and thus come to grief."

 

The Master was greatly pleased to see Narendra’s single minded devotion.

 

Ramakrishna emphasized the practice of chastity to his young disciples, whom he considered to be future monks. He told Narendra that if a man maintains absolute chastity for twelve years, his mind becomes purified and open to the knowledge of God. When the Master heard that Narendra’s parents were arranging his marriage, he wept, holding the feet of the image of Kali. With tears in his eyes he prayed to the Divine Mother: "O Mother, please upset the whole thing! Don’t let Narendra be drowned." However, Narendra’s unwillingness forced his parents to cancel the marriage.

 

Continued below

 

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Continued (Part 3)

 

The Training of Narendra

 

Only a good student can be a good teacher. The Katha Upanishad says:

 

"Wonderful is the expounder (of the Atman or Soul) and rare the hearer; rarer indeed is the experiencer of Atman taught by an able preceptor." (1.2.7).

 

Ramakrishna was an avatar, an incarnation of God who came to the world to establish the eternal religion; he made Narendra a vehicle to carry out his mission. In the parable of the four blind men and the elephant, Ramakrishna recounted how each man touched a different part of the elephant, declared his partial understanding, and then they began to quarrel among themselves. But one with clear vision sees the whole elephant and does not quarrel. People with only partial realization form sects but those who have full realization cannot form sects. Ramakrishna therefore trained Narendra to have full realization and carry his message of the harmony of religions to the modern world.

 

On 5th March 1882, the Master asked Narendra: "How do you feel about it? Worldly people say all kinds of things about the spiritually minded. But look here! When an elephant moves along the street any number of curs and other small animals may bark and cry after it; but the elephant doesn’t even look back at them. If people speak ill of you, what will you think of them?"

 

Narendra replied: "I shall think that dogs are barking at me."

 

The Master smiled and said: "Oh no! You must not go that far, my child! God dwells in all beings. But you may be intimate only with good people; you must keep away from the evil-minded. God is even in the tiger, but you cannot embrace the tiger on that account. You may say, ‘Why run away from a tiger, which is also a manifestation of God? The answer to that is: Those who tell you to run away are also manifestations of God – and why shouldn’t you listen to them?"

 

On 19th August 1883, Ramakrishna went to the Veranda and saw Narendra talking to Hazra, who often indulged in dry philosophical discussions. Hazra would say that the world is unreal, like a dream: worship, food offerings to the Deity, and so forth, are only hellucinations of the mind. He would repeat: "I am He."

 

When the Master asked Narendra what they were talking about, Narendra replied with a smile: "Oh, we are discussing a great many things. They are rather too deep for others."

 

Ramakrishna replied: "But pure love and pure knowledge are one and the same thing. Both lead the aspirants to the same goal. The path of love is much easier."

 

On 25th June 1884, Ramakrishna advised his disciples to dive deep in God-consciousness and then sang a song:

 

"Dive deep, O mind, dive deep in the Ocean of God’s beauty. If you descend to the uttermost depths, there you will find the gem of love."

 

Then he continued: "One does not die if one sinks in this Ocean. This is the Ocean of immortality."

 

Once he said to Narendra: "God is the Ocean of Bliss. Tell me if you want to plunge into It. Just imagine there is some syrup in a cup and that you have become a fly. Now tell me where you will sit to sip the syrup?"

 

Narendra answered: "I will sit on the edge of the cup and stretch out my neck to drink, because I am sure to die if I go far into the cup."

 

Then Ramakruishna said to him: "But my child, this is the Ocean of Satchidananda. There is no fear of death in it. This is the Ocean of Immortality."

 

On 11th March 1885 M. recorded in the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna:

 

Many of his devotees were in (Ramakrishna’s) room. Narendra did not believe that God could incarnate Himself in a human body. But Girish (a devotee) differed with him; he had the burning faith that from time to time the Almighty Lord, through His inscrutable Power, assumes a human body and descends to earth to serve a divine purpose. The Master said to Girish: "I should like to hear you and Narendra argue in English." The discussion began; but they talked in Bengali.

 

Narendra: "God is Infinity. How is it possible for us to comprehend Him? He dwells in every human being. It is not the case that he manifests Himself through one person only."

 

Master (tenderly): "I quite agree with Narendra. God is everywhere. But then you must remember that there are different manifestations of His Power in different beings. At some places there is a manifestation of His Avidya-shakti (God’s power manifesting as ignorance), at others manifestation of His Vidya-shakti (God’s power manifesting as knowledge). Through different instruments God’s Power is manifest in different degrees, greater or smaller. Therefore all men are not equal."

 

Ram: "What is the use of these futile arguments?"

 

Master (sharply): "No! No! There is a meaning in all this."

 

Girish (to Narendra): "How do you know that God does not assume a human body?"

 

Narendra: "God is ‘beyond words or thought.’"

 

Master: "No, that is not true. He can be known by pure Buddhi (intellect), which is the same as the Pure Self. The seers of old directly perceived the Pure Self through their pure buddhi."

 

Girish (to Narendra): "Unless God Himself teaches men through His human Incarnation, who else will teach them spiritual mysteries?"

 

Narendra: "Why, God dwells in our own heart; He will certainly teach us from within the heart."

 

Master (tenderly): "Yes, yes. He will teach us as our Inner Guide…I clearly see that God is everything; He Himself has become all….I cannot utter a word unless I come down at least two steps from the plane of samadhi. Shankara’s non-dualistic explanation of Vedanta is true, and so is the qualified non-dualistic interpretation of Ramanuja."

 

Narendra: "What is non-qualified non-dualism?"

 

Master: "It is the theory of Ramanuja. According to this theory, Brahman, or the Absolute, is qualified by the universe and its living beings. These three – Brahman, the world, and living beings – together constitute One."

 

Narendra was sitting beside the Master. He touched Narendra’s body and said: As long as a man argues about God, he has not realized Him. The nearer you approach to God, the less you reason and argue. When you attain Him, then all sounds – all reasoning and disputing – come to an end. Then you go into Samadhi – into communion with God in silence."

 

 

 

[maadhav 0]

<< When you attain Him, then all sounds – all reasoning and disputing – come to an end. Then you go into Samadhi – into communion with God in silence." >>

 

one side point:

 

to learn to go into samadhi requires time

and a secure and peaceful place.

 

when danger is emminent -terrorism -

then it is not a good idea to sit down for samadhi.

one seated with closed eyes in padmasana is a very easy target for the terrorists.

 

also, knowing the fact that the terrorists terrorise in the vedic land, it becomes morala duty of the yogis to take action to make the devabhoomi free from the terrorism.

once done, then all can sit for samadhi.

 

could you agree?