You see, as long as a man is under maya's spell, he is like a green coconut. When you scoop out the soft kernel from a green coconut, you cannot help scraping a little of the shell at the same time. But in the case of a ripe and dry coconut, the shell and kernel are separated from each other. When you shake the fruit you can feel the kernel rattling inside. The man who is freed from maya is like a ripe and dry coconut. He feels the soul to be separated from the body. They are no longer connected with each other
Reminiscence of Swami Turiyananda:
"Be a devotee, but don't be a fool!" One must be alert at all times. Sri Ramakrishna used to say: "Look at me! The Divine Mother has placed me in such a state that I can hardly keep clothes on my body, yet I am not forgetful." The Master told us, "He who is careless is foolish."
Sri Ramakrishna used to scold anyone who was careless. Carelessness is a defect of character. The Master was never slow in his actions, but at the same time he did not like to hurry or bustle.
To be a human being is to be alert, conscious. If one must lose consciousness, he should do so with full consciousness [in samadhi] like Sri Ramakrishna. The Master used to lose external consciousness in ecstasy when someone would sing a devotional song. But even a slight mistake in the music would cause him pain, bringing him back to ordinary consciousness.
"Be a devotee, but don't be a fool!" One must be alert at all times. Sri Ramakrishna used to say: "Look at me! The Divine Mother has placed me in such a state that I can hardly keep clothes on my body, yet I am not forgetful." The Master told us, "He who is careless is foolish."
Sri Ramakrishna used to scold anyone who was careless. Carelessness is a defect of character. The Master was never slow in his actions, but at the same time he did not like to hurry or bustle.
To be a human being is to be alert, conscious. If one must lose consciousness, he should do so with full consciousness [in samadhi] like Sri Ramakrishna. The Master used to lose external consciousness in ecstasy when someone would sing a devotional song. But even a slight mistake in the music would cause him pain, bringing him back to ordinary consciousness.
When the divine vision is attained, all appear equal;
and there remains no distinction of good and bad,
or of high and low...
Good and evil cannot bind him who has realized
the oneness of Nature and his own self with Brahman.
and there remains no distinction of good and bad,
or of high and low...
Good and evil cannot bind him who has realized
the oneness of Nature and his own self with Brahman.
Almost everyone is satisfied simply by seeing the garden. Only one or two look for its owner. People enjoy the beauty of the world ; they do not seek its owner.
God alone is real, all else is illusory, Magician alone is real, Magic is illusory.
God alone is real, all else is illusory, Magician alone is real, Magic is illusory.
After God-realization, one sees that God manifests Himself in all things. However, there is a greater degree of His manifestation in the human being. And He is manifested more in devotees endowed with the quality of sattva - people who have no desire at all to enjoy `lust and gold'.
SRI RAMAKRISHNA was sitting on the small couch in his room. Rakhal, M., and several other devotees were present. A special worship of Kali had been performed in the temple the previous night. In connexion with the worship a theatrical performance of the Vidyasundar had been staged in the natmandir. The Master had watched a part of it that morning. The actors came to his room to pay him their respects. The Master, in a happy mood, became engaged in conversation with a fair complexioned young man who had taken the part of Vidya and played his part very well.
MASTER (to the actor): "Your acting was very good. If a person excels in singing, music, dancing, or any other art, he can also quickly realize God provided he strives sincerely.
"Just as you practise much in order to sing, dance, and play on instruments, so one should practise the art of fixing the mind on God. One should practise regularly such disciplines as worship, japa, and meditation.
"Are you married? Any children?"
ACTOR: "Yes, sir. I had a girl who died. Another child has been born."
MASTER: "Ah! A death and a birth, and all so quickly! You are so young! There is a saying: 'My husband died just after our marriage. There are so many nights for me to weep!' You are no doubt realizing the nature of worldly happiness. The world is like a hog plum. The hog plum has only pit and skin, and after eating it you suffer from colic.
"You are an actor in the theatre. That's fine. But it is a very painful profession. You are young now; so you have a full, round face. Afterwards there will be hollows in your cheeks. Almost all actors become like that; they get hollow cheeks and big bellies. (Laughter.)
"Why did I stay to watch your performance? I found the rhythm, the music, and the melody all correct. Then the Divine Mother showed me that it was God alone who acted in the performance in the roles of the players."
ACTOR: "Sir, what is the difference between lust and desire?"
MASTER: "Lust is like the root of the tree, and desires are branches and twigs.
"One cannot completely get rid of the six passions: lust, anger, greed, and the like. Therefore one should direct them to God. If you must have desire and greed, then you should desire love of God and be greedy to attain Him. If you must be conceited and egotistic, then feel conceited and egotistic thinking that you are the servant of God, the child of God.
"A man cannot see God unless he gives his whole mind to Him. The mind is wasted on 'woman and gold'. Take your own case. You have children and are occupied with the theatre. The mind cannot he united with God on account of these different activities.
"As long as there is bhoga, there will be less of yoga. Furthermore, bhoga begets suffering. It is said in the Bhagavata that the Avadhuta chose a kite as one of his twenty-four gurus. The kite had a fish in its beak; so it was surrounded by a thousand crows. Whichever way it flew with the fish, the crows pursued it crying, 'Caw! Caw!' When all of a sudden the fish dropped from its beak, the crows flew after the fish, leaving the kite alone.
"The 'fish' is the object of enjoyment. The 'crows' are worries and anxiety. Worries and anxiety are inevitable with enjoyment. No sooner does one give up enjoyment than one finds peace.
"What is more, money itself becomes a source of trouble. Brothers may live happily, but they get into trouble when the property is divided. Dogs lick one another's bodies; they are perfectly friendly. But when the householder throws them a little food, they get into a scrap.
"Come here now and then. (Pointing to M. and the others) They come here on Sundays and other holidays."
ACTOR: "We have holidays for three months, during the rainy and harvest seasons. It is our good fortune to be able to visit you. On our way to Dakshineswar we heard of two persons — yourself and Jnanarnava."
MASTER: "Be on friendly terms with your brothers. It looks well. You must have noticed in your theatrical performance that if four singers sing each in a different way, the play is spoiled."
ACTOR: "Yes, sir. Many birds are trapped in a net; if they all fly together and drag the net in one direction, then many of them may be saved. But that doesn't happen if they try to fly in different directions.
"One also sees in a theatrical performance a person keeping a pitcher of water on his head and at the same time dancing about."
MASTER: "Live in the world but keep the pitcher steady on your head; that is to say, keep the mind firmly on God.
"I once said to the sepoys from the barracks: 'Do your duty in the world but remember that the "pestle of death" will some time smash your hand. Be alert about it.'
"In Kamarpukur I have seen the women of carpenter families making flattened rice with a husking-machine. One woman kicks the end of the wooden beam, and another woman, while nursing her baby, turns the paddy in the mortar dug in the earth. The second woman is always alert' lest the pestle of the machine should fall on her hand. With the other hand she fries the soaked paddy in a pan. Besides, she is talking with customers; she says: 'You owe us so much money. Please pay it before you go.' Likewise, do your different duties in the world, fixing your mind on God. But practice is necessary, and one should also be alert. Only in this way can one safeguard both — God and the world."
ACTOR: "Sir, what is the proof that the soul is separate from the body?"
MASTER: "Proof? God can be seen. By practising spiritual discipline one sees God, through His grace. The rishis directly realized the Self. One cannot know the truth about God through science. Science gives us information only about things perceived by the senses, as for instance: this material mixed with that material gives such and such a result, and that material mixed with this material gives such and such a result.
"For this reason a man cannot comprehend spiritual things with his ordinary intelligence. To understand them he must live in the company of holy persons. You learn to feel the pulse by living with a physician."
ACTOR: "Yes, sir. Now I understand."
MASTER: "You must practise tapasya. Only then can you attain the goal. It will avail you nothing even if you learn the texts of the scriptures by heart. You cannot become intoxicated by merely saying 'siddhi' over and over. You must swallow some.
"One cannot explain the vision of God to others. One cannot explain conjugal happiness to a child five years old."
ACTOR: "How does one realize the Atman?"
MASTER (to the actor): "You asked me about Self-realization. Longing is the means of realizing Atman. A man must strive to attain God with all his body, with all his mind, and with all his speech. Because of an excess of bile one gets jaundice. Then one sees everything as yellow; one perceives no colour but yellow. Among you actors, those who take only the roles of women acquire the nature of a woman; by thinking of woman your ways and thoughts become womanly. Just so, by thinking day and night of God one acquires the nature of God.
"The mind is like white linen just returned from the laundry. It takes on the colour you dip it in."
ACTOR : "But it must first be sent to the laundry."
MASTER: "Yes. First is the purification of the mind. Afterwards, if you direct the mind to the contemplation of God, it will be coloured by God-Consciousness. Again, if you direct the mind to worldly duties, such as the acting of a play, it will be coloured by worldliness."
MASTER (to the actor): "Your acting was very good. If a person excels in singing, music, dancing, or any other art, he can also quickly realize God provided he strives sincerely.
"Just as you practise much in order to sing, dance, and play on instruments, so one should practise the art of fixing the mind on God. One should practise regularly such disciplines as worship, japa, and meditation.
"Are you married? Any children?"
ACTOR: "Yes, sir. I had a girl who died. Another child has been born."
MASTER: "Ah! A death and a birth, and all so quickly! You are so young! There is a saying: 'My husband died just after our marriage. There are so many nights for me to weep!' You are no doubt realizing the nature of worldly happiness. The world is like a hog plum. The hog plum has only pit and skin, and after eating it you suffer from colic.
"You are an actor in the theatre. That's fine. But it is a very painful profession. You are young now; so you have a full, round face. Afterwards there will be hollows in your cheeks. Almost all actors become like that; they get hollow cheeks and big bellies. (Laughter.)
"Why did I stay to watch your performance? I found the rhythm, the music, and the melody all correct. Then the Divine Mother showed me that it was God alone who acted in the performance in the roles of the players."
ACTOR: "Sir, what is the difference between lust and desire?"
MASTER: "Lust is like the root of the tree, and desires are branches and twigs.
"One cannot completely get rid of the six passions: lust, anger, greed, and the like. Therefore one should direct them to God. If you must have desire and greed, then you should desire love of God and be greedy to attain Him. If you must be conceited and egotistic, then feel conceited and egotistic thinking that you are the servant of God, the child of God.
"A man cannot see God unless he gives his whole mind to Him. The mind is wasted on 'woman and gold'. Take your own case. You have children and are occupied with the theatre. The mind cannot he united with God on account of these different activities.
"As long as there is bhoga, there will be less of yoga. Furthermore, bhoga begets suffering. It is said in the Bhagavata that the Avadhuta chose a kite as one of his twenty-four gurus. The kite had a fish in its beak; so it was surrounded by a thousand crows. Whichever way it flew with the fish, the crows pursued it crying, 'Caw! Caw!' When all of a sudden the fish dropped from its beak, the crows flew after the fish, leaving the kite alone.
"The 'fish' is the object of enjoyment. The 'crows' are worries and anxiety. Worries and anxiety are inevitable with enjoyment. No sooner does one give up enjoyment than one finds peace.
"What is more, money itself becomes a source of trouble. Brothers may live happily, but they get into trouble when the property is divided. Dogs lick one another's bodies; they are perfectly friendly. But when the householder throws them a little food, they get into a scrap.
"Come here now and then. (Pointing to M. and the others) They come here on Sundays and other holidays."
ACTOR: "We have holidays for three months, during the rainy and harvest seasons. It is our good fortune to be able to visit you. On our way to Dakshineswar we heard of two persons — yourself and Jnanarnava."
MASTER: "Be on friendly terms with your brothers. It looks well. You must have noticed in your theatrical performance that if four singers sing each in a different way, the play is spoiled."
ACTOR: "Yes, sir. Many birds are trapped in a net; if they all fly together and drag the net in one direction, then many of them may be saved. But that doesn't happen if they try to fly in different directions.
"One also sees in a theatrical performance a person keeping a pitcher of water on his head and at the same time dancing about."
MASTER: "Live in the world but keep the pitcher steady on your head; that is to say, keep the mind firmly on God.
"I once said to the sepoys from the barracks: 'Do your duty in the world but remember that the "pestle of death" will some time smash your hand. Be alert about it.'
"In Kamarpukur I have seen the women of carpenter families making flattened rice with a husking-machine. One woman kicks the end of the wooden beam, and another woman, while nursing her baby, turns the paddy in the mortar dug in the earth. The second woman is always alert' lest the pestle of the machine should fall on her hand. With the other hand she fries the soaked paddy in a pan. Besides, she is talking with customers; she says: 'You owe us so much money. Please pay it before you go.' Likewise, do your different duties in the world, fixing your mind on God. But practice is necessary, and one should also be alert. Only in this way can one safeguard both — God and the world."
ACTOR: "Sir, what is the proof that the soul is separate from the body?"
MASTER: "Proof? God can be seen. By practising spiritual discipline one sees God, through His grace. The rishis directly realized the Self. One cannot know the truth about God through science. Science gives us information only about things perceived by the senses, as for instance: this material mixed with that material gives such and such a result, and that material mixed with this material gives such and such a result.
"For this reason a man cannot comprehend spiritual things with his ordinary intelligence. To understand them he must live in the company of holy persons. You learn to feel the pulse by living with a physician."
ACTOR: "Yes, sir. Now I understand."
MASTER: "You must practise tapasya. Only then can you attain the goal. It will avail you nothing even if you learn the texts of the scriptures by heart. You cannot become intoxicated by merely saying 'siddhi' over and over. You must swallow some.
"One cannot explain the vision of God to others. One cannot explain conjugal happiness to a child five years old."
ACTOR: "How does one realize the Atman?"
MASTER (to the actor): "You asked me about Self-realization. Longing is the means of realizing Atman. A man must strive to attain God with all his body, with all his mind, and with all his speech. Because of an excess of bile one gets jaundice. Then one sees everything as yellow; one perceives no colour but yellow. Among you actors, those who take only the roles of women acquire the nature of a woman; by thinking of woman your ways and thoughts become womanly. Just so, by thinking day and night of God one acquires the nature of God.
"The mind is like white linen just returned from the laundry. It takes on the colour you dip it in."
ACTOR : "But it must first be sent to the laundry."
MASTER: "Yes. First is the purification of the mind. Afterwards, if you direct the mind to the contemplation of God, it will be coloured by God-Consciousness. Again, if you direct the mind to worldly duties, such as the acting of a play, it will be coloured by worldliness."
Swami Turiyananda was very frank and truthful. But his candour in pointing out a person's defects often proved painful. One day he came across this verse of the Bhagavata: "Realizing the universe as one in the aspect of Purusha and prakriti, never praise or blame the action of others". Then he read the commentary on that verse: "If accidentally the teeth bite the tongue, hurt and cut it, do people take a piece of stone and break the teeth? No, because the teeth belong to the same person to whom the tongue belongs. Since the one Lord who is in me also resides in others, it is improper to find fault with them." This teaching made a deep impression on Swami Turiyananda; thereafter, he became gentler in correcting those in his charge.
When divine vision is attained, all appear equal; and there remains no distinction of good and bad, or of high and low.
All waters are brooded over by Nârâyana, but every kind of water is not fit for drink. Similarly, though it is true that the Almighty dwells in every place, yet every place is not fit to be visited by man. As one kind of water may be used for washing our feet, another may serve the purpose of ablution, and others may be drunk, and others again may not be touched at all; so there are different kinds of places. We may approach some, we can enter into the inside of others, others we must avoid, even at a distance.
What is prema (Love)? He who feels it, this intense and ecstatic love of God, not only forgets the world but forgets even the body, which is so dear to all.
On every side shine devotees, like stars around the moon;
Their Friend, the Lord All-merciful, joyously plays with them.
Behold! the gates of paradise today are open wide.
Their Friend, the Lord All-merciful, joyously plays with them.
Behold! the gates of paradise today are open wide.
It is not good to reason too much. First comes God, and then the world. Realize God first; then you will know all about His world. The thing is that one must love God. Through intense love one attains the vision of Him.
The Primal Power dwells in all bodies in the form of Kundalini. It is like a sleeping snake coiled up. ‘You have been fast asleep, coiled up in Your abode of muladhara.’ In the path of Bhakti Yoga, the kundalini awakens rapidly. One cannot realize God unless the kundalini wakes up. Sing with full concentration, in solitude, without the knowledge of others.
O Lord, O Compassionate One! What joy have I in this life
If my soul, like a bee, does not remain inebriated at Your lotus feet?
If my soul, like a bee, does not remain inebriated at Your lotus feet?
Knowledge can go to the outer gate. But love and devotion can enter the palace. The pure soul is unattached.
God can be felt and experienced only in the deepest silence. All noise must subside; then, His Voice can be heard clearly.
You and Yours’ comes from spiritual knowledge; the feeling of ‘I and mine’ is ignorance. Oh Lord, You are the doer, I am a non-doer – this is Knowledge. Oh Lord, all belongs to You – body, mind, home, family, the universe and its living beings – they are all Yours, nothing belongs to me. This feeling is Knowledge.
Through spiritual practices, one must make oneself fit to receive God's grace. All else He does out of His own mercy. Through constant thought of Him and meditation on Him, the mind and heart become purified; and to that pure mind a divine revelation occurs spontaneously and God's grace is realized.
Give up worldly matters completely. Talk of nothing else but God. When you come across worldly people, leave quietly. You have lived a worldly life for so long. You have seen that it is all hollow within, that the Lord is the only substance. Everything else is non-substance. The Lord is the only Reality, all else is ephemeral.
God can be realized only through love. You must yearn for the love of the Lord. Your devotion must be such that God seeks you.
The Master wanted to train Narendra [later known as Swami Vivekananda] in the teachings of the non-dualistic Vedānta philosophy. But Narendra, because of his Brāhmo upbringing, considered it wholly blasphemous to look on man as one with his Creator. One day at the temple garden he laughingly said to a friend: "How silly! This jug is God! This cup is God! Whatever we see is God! And we too are God! Nothing could be more absurd." Sri Ramakrishna came out of his room and gently touched him. Spellbound, he immediately perceived that everything in the world was indeed God. A new universe opened around him. Returning home in a dazed state, he found there too that the food, the plate, the eater himself, the people around him, were all God. When he walked in the street, he saw that the cabs, the horses, the streams of people, the buildings, were all Brahman. He could hardly go about his day's business. His parents became anxious about him and thought him ill. And when the intensity of the experience abated a little, he saw the world as a dream. Walking in the public square, he would strike his head against the iron railings to know whether they were real. It took him a number of days to recover his normal self. He had a foretaste of the great experiences yet to come and realized that the words of the Vedānta were true.
As long as one thinks that the Lord is somewhere `there’, one is ignorant. But when one thinks that God is definitely `here’, that is jnana.
Beings
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