An Ideal and a Role Model

by Srikanth

Definitions from Oxford Dictionary:

Ideal: A person or thing regarded as perfect. A standard of perfection; a principle to be aimed at.

Role model: A person looked to by others as an example to be imitated.

In the last class, Swamiji said, “Sri Ramakrishna is an ideal householder and an ideal monk,” i.e., Sri Ramakrishna shows what the goal of a monk or a householder is.  As Swamiji pointed out, the purpose of marriage is not physical pleasure, but it is a means to get over the sexual drag. Both Sri Ramakrishna and Sri Sarada Devi, being celibate, demonstrated how an ideal couple should live in the world. Sri Ramakrishna is also an ideal monk because he had tremendous renunciation besides having no employment for his own subsistence by relying entirely on what others provided to him. Swamiji brilliantly said contradictions exist between an imperfect monk and imperfect householder, where as perfect monk and perfect householder have a harmony which is found in Sri Ramakrishna’s life.

Thus Sri Ramakrishna is an ideal for anyone, i.e., a state of perfection to be achieved. However, is he a role model? A role model has a life like us, but his/her certain actions make him/her achieve the ideal thereby giving confidence to others that they could achieve the same too. Would life of Sri Ramakrishna evoke that confidence within you that you could achieve the goal from the state where you currently are? Bear in mind that if you treat him as an incarnation, then it gets harder to treat him as a role model as you create an impregnable wall between him and yourself by thinking that he and you are not the same.

Sri Ramakrishna never had a life of a regular householder or a monk. By the time he was young, he was already at such a state that his later life did not have to go through the stages of a regular householder, such as having children or being employed or renounce kin and kith like in a monk’s life. For many householders and monks, the state of a young Sri Ramakrishna is a work of a lifetime which undergoes a very different events/experiences from what Sri Ramakrishna had seen in his own life. So how will the householder or monk who has to tackle different events/experiences in life than what Sri Ramakrishna had seen in his own, be able to imitate or learn from Sri Ramakrishna whose life had nothing in common with those of regular people? We can say that at best Sri Ramakrishna as an ideal, would be a good validation point for a spiritual aspirant when the goal is achieved but he is not a role model who could be used/imitated to reach the ideal itself. For role models, we need to look at lives of saints whose life initially is like of normal persons but later get transformed into lives imbued with spirituality after a lot of struggle.

So for a spiritual aspirant, the incarnations are ideals where as the saints are the role models. Frankly speaking, when you are struggling, you get inspired more by role models than by ideals.

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Yoga of Play

by Chinmaya

As the sun set slowly on western bank of the Ganges, tiny waves of the river sparkled in its crimson rays. The crisp air was filled with dense chirps of countless birds, excited to fly homewards. On the eastern bank, sounds of bells and musical instruments in preparation for the evening vespers permeated the temple grounds of Dakshineshwar Kali. In a small room by the temple courtyard was seated Sri Ramakrishna, surrounded by a group of eager listeners, both young and old. The group was immersed in an intense discussion on the unique signs of an Avatar. Hardly were they aware of the events in the outer world. As Sri Ramakrishna spoke, a sublime smile flashed through his face illuminating the entire room. Silence interspersing the talks charged the room with ecstatic vibrations, filling the hearts of the listeners… which also included a young boy named Chinmaya. While talking, as the benign gaze of Ramakrishna fell upon Chinmaya, he felt a thrill of intense joy! And gradually his whole being merged in oneness with Sri Ramakrishna’s Divine Being.

Chinmaya experiences this bliss every evening, when after a long day’s work as a hi-tech professional, he sits for meditation in his small apartment room in the bustling city of New York. As he closes his eyes the entire scene gets vividly enacted, breaking through the limits of time and place . . . and the deep joy of that spiritual experience stays with him all the time. This practice of meditation is often called “Leela Dhyana” – meditation on the actions or ‘leela’ of a divine incarnation and imagining oneself in that divine company.


Every day as we interact with a myriad of names and forms, personalities and events, our awareness gets completely filled with those. And at the end of such a day’s experience, when we try to meditate on God, well, we know the extent of success we achieve.

Leela Dhyana gradually conditions our mind, allowing it to smoothly transition from events and personalities of the mundane realm towards those centered on an avatar, thus imbibing his living presence. The mind then naturally concentrates on that blissful Divine form and therein lies the efficacy of this technique. Over time it strengthens the mind, revealing greater mysteries of the spiritual realm. Experiences in the sense world correspondingly evolve, thus transforming one’s life and awareness.

The style in which M. wrote the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, giving vivid descriptions of each scene, was intended to help us in this practice of meditation. Vaishnava literature describes various stages of Leela Dhyana. In Vaishnava tradition special rules are laid out for advanced aspirants to practice more perfected stages of Leela Dhyana. However for a beginner, who is trying to concentrate the mind in accordance with Guru’s instructions, the aforesaid method itself could be a helpful aid.

This technique is also a form of Yoga; can we name it as the “Yoga of Play”? Your comments are welcome.

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PRAYER & Its Power

by Chinmaya

Climbing a flight of 200 stairs, as Surya reached the Shiva Temple at the peak of Mt. Bhupati, he reverentially stepped inside the shrine, kneeled down and with folded hands started chanting various prayer hymns to Lord Shiva. While chanting though, his mind felt ruffled; thoughts of his ailing mother at home and his ensuing Law exam kept him worried. Finishing the hymns, he started conversing with Lord Shiva, quite spontaneously and naturally, as if talking to an intimate acquaintance. He spoke about his mother’s illness and his exam, asking for Lord’s help. Very soon a deep sense of peace and assurance filled him… and he wondered – were those conversations indeed his prayers?

What is a prayer? Our inner concerns, feelings, desires when directed towards God usually gets called as prayers. Often this act of prayer is accompanied by gifts of flowers, fruits, wealth etc.

What makes us pray? Firstly, a firm conviction in God’s capacity to resolve our problems or satiate our desires plus a belief that God would “listen”.  Often this trust comes from “love” but could also be due to fear or influenced by social norms.

Generally speaking, prayers can be directed to anyone we consider capable of fulfilling our wants. As such, one ends up praying to spouse, boss, the town hall and so forth. It can take shape of demand also, as in case of a child’s prayer to his parents. But as one evolves, God is seen as most powerful and those requests get directed to God – as a superior authority, who transcends earthly limits. There can still be a sense of awe and associated fear of God. But as feelings evolve, fear gets replaced by love. That Almighty God is also my dear one, who cares for my welfare. The more we turn to God to fulfill desires, the more we remember Him, and our thoughts gets purer. Our desires evolve. Initially we may pray for money, job, good health… those desires evolve into want of peace, holy company, and eventually want of God alone!

Efficacy of prayer lies in the firm faith on its positive result. Even while praying to the unseen, unknown God, isn’t it amazing, that we still maintain that belief?

Prayers are an integral part of scriptures, although in Vedanta tradition it’s mostly found in dualist texts where God & I are separate. But is there no place of prayers beyond dualism? Let’s see what happens when we pray. It’s mainly a mental act. With prayer the mind becomes more and more focused on the object of desire, as prayer continues with sincerity, so does this mental focus and tuning. The mind attunes to everything that makes our fulfilled desire look ‘real’. As the mind thus changes, so does our awareness and so does our perception… eventually that very object of desire becomes a reality! Our prayers thus get answered by none else but our very act of praying. Such is the power of prayer. Then instead of using it for transitory desires, why not use it for That which brings permanent joy?

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Fortunately No God Around

By Seeker

In his Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna class (12/16/2014, Tuesday) class, Swamiji emphatically said, “We are more fortunate than the people around Sri Ramakrishna.” I cannot fathom the import of that statement. With great difficulty I imagine the form of Sri Ramakrishna in meditation. Many times this imagination may not be stable and attempts have to be made repeatedly to focus well so that the act of “seeing” Him becomes natural and uninterrupted. I wonder sometimes, when will this imagination be alive (i.e., the deity meditated upon responds to you continuously as any other person around you would do in your daily activity)? When will it happen? Some of you may imagine of His being alive much more concretely than I could do (as some of my fellow class-students revealed to me), nevertheless it is only a stronger imagination (although commendable).

In the midst of these struggles, if someone told me, all I have to do is to open my eyes and I will see Him, what more could I ask for? And the more wonderful surprise if I am told that I can not only see Him, but also talk to Him and even listen to Him! And furthermore, I am told that I can actually even serve Him by offering food or other essentials (if He accepts them)! After you have been told all that, you are also then told curtly, “You know what? You are actually more fortunate now by imagining Him. So forget this notion of actually seeing, listening to, talking to, serving Him.” How would that go with you?


The goal of some devotional schools in India who regard God with personal attributes (say, Vaishnava) is: sālokya (living in the same realm of God), sāmīpya (being near to God), sārūpya (having the same form of God), and sāyujya (merging with God). These four goals of spiritual life of a devotee have been mentioned above in the hierarchy of a better state of mind with the sālokya being the lowest while sāyujya being the highest state of all. Now someone can make great efforts to enter these different states of mind with no incarnation around, but by actually living with God who is in flesh and blood (incarnation), the first two states of sālokya and sāmīpya are automatically obtained with no effort! So aren’t the conditions more favorable if God is available in flesh and blood and thereby those physically around Him being more fortunate?

After Sri Ramakrishna’s passing away, Sri Sarada Devi along with many other disciples and devotees felt great pain and misery. At that point, if someone tells them that they are actually better off with Sri Ramakrishna being not in body anymore, would they agree? Would you agree?
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In defense of Dr. Sarkar

by Seeker
According to the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Girish Ghosh declares that even the feces of Sri Ramakrishna, whom he considered an incarnation, were very pure. To this, Dr. Sarkar replies that he is never bothered by the human feces and it is same to him whatever be its source. With his expertise in medicine, he could truly see it as just a material. We often categorize the objects into “pure” and “impure” and steadfastly hold on to this fictitious dichotomy. We ought to be aware of this demarcation as far as their utility is concerned, but without forgetting the substratum underlying this duality. Sometimes this compartmentalization takes a morbid turn of respecting a reverential person at the cost of hurting an ordinary person. It is also not uncommon amongst devotees to treat someone, who has not followed their own methods of devotion or does not cherish their ideals, as someone who needs to redeemed although this person may be more spiritually elevated than themselves due to his/her having followed a “secular” path sincerely. It could be argued that Dr. Sarkar, through his dedication in material research, had come to some state of equanimity that was perhaps absent in many other devotees, nevertheless he was and will be treated as a “kid” amongst the “adults” for having taken the unconventional path of science to reach that state. An illustration in Sri Ramakrishna’s life:


“Once a god intoxicated saint came to Kali temple. One day he did not get any food; and even though feeling hungry, he did not ask anybody for it; but seeing the dog eating the remnants of food thrown away in a corner after a feast, he, embracing the dog, said, “Brother, how is it that you eat alone without giving me a share?” So saying, he began to eat along with the dog. Having finished his meal in this strange company, the sage entered the temple of Mother Kali and prayed with such earnestness of devotion, it sent a thrill through the temple. After finishing his prayers, when he was going away, the Master (Sri Ramakrishna) asked his nephew Hriday, to talk with him.

When Hriday followed him for some distance, the sage turned around and said, “Why do you follow me?” Hriday replied, “Sir, give me some instruction”. The sage said, “When the water of this dirty ditch and the Holy Ganges yonder appear as one in your sight, and when the sound of the flageolet (musical instrument) and the noise of the crowd will have no distinction to your ear, then you will reach the state of true Knowledge. A Siddha (established in wisdom) roams in various disguises – as a child, as an unclean spirit, or even as a mad man.”
Swami Yogatmanandaji’s answers for the question, “Why did Sri Ramakrishna spend so much time with Dr. Sarkar?”, were: Sri Ramakrishna saw a potential for growth in him and if a famous person like Dr. Sarkar takes up spirituality, it will inspire other ordinary men to follow the same. While those could be very valid reasons, I think what He saw in Dr. Sarkar was sincerity and great hunger to transform. That is what, we, the “devotees”, need too.
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