Sri Ramakrishna was born on Feb 18, 1836 in West Bengal. From the childhood, he was yearning for the vision of God and neglected his studies; he sat with wandering monks and was associated with pilgrims. He observed that the aim of all secular knowledge was mere material advancement and resolved to devote totally to the pursuit of spiritual knowledge which would ensure eternal peace. He became a priest of the Kali temple in Calcutta and started worship of God and took the duties of the temple with great zeal and enthusiasm. Gradually his worship developed into burning desire to have a direct vision of the Divine Mother. He prayed, day and night, meditated seriously for the vision of the Divine Mother. Finally, he had the vision of God. Ramakrishna started practicing hard spiritual practices in various paths of Hinduism, Christianity and Islam. He was married to Sri Sarada Devi. Sri Ramakrishna literally worshipped her as the Divine Mother. He guided men and women of all walks of like and of different religions, to whomever came to him with earnestness to learn about life, spiritualism and God. He trained a group of young men to carry the spiritual message he had realized. These young men formed Ramakrishna math. He passed away on the 16th August, 1886.
Sayings of Sri Ramakrishna:
The tree laden with fruits always bends low. If u wish to be great, be lowly and meek.
- Be not a traitor to ur thoughts. Be sincere; act according to ur thoughts; and u shall surely succeed. Pray with a sincere and simple heart and ur prayers will be heard.
- One can ascend to the top of a house by means of a ladder or a bamboo or a staircase or a rope or a lift; so too, diverse are the ways of approaching God and each religion in the world shows one of the ways.
- He who has faith has all, and he who lacks it lacks all.
- As one thinks, so does one become.
- Truthfulness is the Tapasya (austerity) for the dark (present) age.
- Knowledge leads to unity; ignorance to diversity.
- Long must u struggle in the water before u learn to swim; similarly, many a struggle must u pass through before u can hope to swim on the ocean of Divine Bliss.
- Pray to Him in any way u will. He is sure to hear u, for He hears even the footfall of an ant.
- Remain always strong and steadfast in ur own faith, but eschew all bigotry and intolerance.
- When the fruit grows out of the flower, the petals drop off themselves. So, when the divinity in u increases, the weaknesses of ur human nature will all vanish of their own accord.
- God is in all men, but all men are not God, that is the reason why they suffer.
- A truly religious man should think that other religions also are paths leading to truth. We should always maintain an attitude of respect towards other religion.
- Indulgence in futile talks and criticism concerning others only distracts the mind and make one forgetful of the contemplation of the self or God.
- God looks at the working of one’s mind. He does not take into account what in particular a person is doing, or where he is lying. He recognizes the motive alone.
- He wants Him finds Him. Go and verify it in ur own life. Try for three days, try with genuine zeal, and u r sure to succeed. He finds God quickest, whose concentration and yearning are strongest.
- The darkness of centuries is dispersed as soon as a light is brought into a room. The accumulated sins of countless lives vanish by a single glance of God.
- It is the nature of a child to soil itself with dirt and mud, but the mother does not allow it to remain dirty always. Similarly, it is the nature of the man to commit sin, doubly sure is that the Lord devises methods for his redemption.
- Because you cannot find God in the days of your ignorance, say not that there is no God.
- In whatever name or form u worship God, u will realize Him.
- First gain God and then gain Wealth.
- That knowledge which purifies the mind and heart alone is true knowledge.
- The nearer u come to God, the less u r disposed to questioning and reasoning.
- The sacred books tell us only the way to God, i.e, of the means for the realization of God. That way being known, the next step is to work one’s way to the goal. Realization is the goal.
- The soul that has tasted the sweetness of Divine bliss finds no happiness in the vulgar pleasures of the world.
- The spiritually-minded belong to a caste of their own, beyond all social conventions.
- A boat may stay in water, but water should not stay in the boat. An aspirant may live in the world, but the world should not live within him.
- So long as the heart of man is directed towards God, he cannot be lost in the ocean of worldliness.
- Forgiveness is the true nature of the ascetic.
- The companionship of the holy and the wise is one of the main elements of spiritual progress.
- Knowingly or unknowingly, consciously or unconsciously, in whatever state of mind, a man utters God’s name, he acquires the merit of such utterances.
- Be not like the frog in the well. The frog in the well knows nothing bigger and grander than its well. So are all bigots. They do not see anything better than their own creed.
- Eat to your satisfaction in the day, but let your meal at night be light and small in quantity.
- Disease is the tax which the soul pays for the use of the body, as the tenant pays house-rent for the use of the house.
Extract from the books published by Ramakrishna Math. For more information, knowledge and spiritual guidance, visit Sri Ramakrishna math in ur place or visit www.sriramakrishnamath.org; and send ur doubts and queries to srkmath@vsnl.com
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