Darkness of Mind

 

Great Cause

 

Signs of God-vision

TRAILOKYA: What are the signs of a householder having attained Knowledge?" 

MASTER: "His tears will flow, and the hair on his body will stand on end. No sooner does he hear the sweet name of God than the hair on his body stands on end from sheer delight, and tears roll down his cheeks. "A man cannot get rid of body-consciousness as long as he is attached to worldly things and loves 'woman and gold'. As he becomes less and less attached to worldly things, he approaches nearer and nearer to the Knowledge of Self. He also becomes less and less conscious of his body. He attains Self-Knowledge when his worldly attachment totally disappears. Then he realizes that body and soul are two separate things. It is very difficult to separate with a knife the kernel of a coconut from the shell before the milk inside has dried up. When the milk dries up, the kernel rattles inside the shell. At that time it loosens itself from the shell. Then the fruit is called a dry coconut. 

The sign of a man's having realized God is that he has become like a dry coconut. He has become utterly free from the consciousness that he is the body. He does not feel happy or unhappy with the happiness or unhappiness of the body. He does not seek the comforts of the body. He roams about in the world as a jivanmukta, one liberated in life.” 

- Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, P 629 (19 October 1884)

What happens After Death

 

Efficacy of Bhakti-yoga

 

Lingasharira

The  Mārwāri  devotees  from  Burrabazar  entered  the  room  and  saluted  the  Master.  

He began to praise them. 

MASTER (to the devotees):"Ah! They are real devotees of God. They visit temples, sing hymns to God, and eat prasad. And the gentleman whom they have made their priest this year is learned in the Bhagavata." 

MĀRWĀRI DEVOTEE: "Who is this 'I' that says, 'O Lord, I am Thy servant?' " 

MASTER: "This is the lingasarira, or embodied soul. It consists of manas, buddhi, chitta, and Ahamkāra." 

DEVOTEE: "Who is the embodied soul?"

MASTER: "It is the Ātman bound by the eight fetters. And what is the chitta? It is the 'I-consciousness' that says, 'Aha!'"  

- Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, P 583 (02 October 1884)

Ajnana

 

Pure Mind

 

Planes of Mind

Man, looking outward, sees the gross; at that time his mind dwells in the annamayakosha, the gross body. Next is the subtle body. Functioning through the subtle body, the mind dwells in the manomayakosha and the vijnanamayakosha. Next is the causal body. Functioning through the causal body the mind enjoys bliss; it dwells in the Ānandamaykosha. This corresponds to the semi-conscious state experienced by Chaitanya. Last of all, the mind loses itself in the Great Cause. It disappears. It merges in the Great Cause. What one experiences after that cannot be described in words. In his inmost state of consciousness, Chaitanya enjoyed this experience. 

Do you know what this state is like? Dayananda described it by saying, 'Come into the inner apartments and shut the door. Anyone and everyone cannot enter that part of the house.   

I used to meditate on the flame of a light. I thought of the red part as gross, the white part inside the red as subtle, and the stick-like black part, which is the innermost of all, as the causal.  

- Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, P 604 (11 October 1884)

Pure Heart

 

Chaitanya - Love incarnate

 

Catholicity

 

Chaitanya's Exalted State

Chaitanya experienced three states of mind. First, the conscious state, when his mind dwelt on the gross and the subtle. Second, the semi-conscious state, when his mind entered the causal body and was absorbed in the bliss of divine intoxication. Third, the inmost state, when his mind was merged in the Great Cause. 

This agrees very well with the five koshas, or 'sheaths', described in the Vedānta. The gross body corresponds to the annamayakosha and the pranamayakosha, the subtle body to the manomayakosha and the vijnanamayakosha, and the causal body to the Ānandamayakosha.   The Mahakarana, the Great Cause, is beyond the five sheaths. When Chaitanya's mind merged in That, he would go into samādhi. This is called the nirvikalpa or jada samādhi.

While conscious of the outer world, Chaitanya sang the name of God; while in the state of partial consciousness, he danced with the devotees; and while in the inmost state of consciousness, he remained absorbed in samādhi. 

- Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, P 330 (9 December 1883)

United with God

 

O Mother

The devotees begin to sing hymns, one of them leading and the rest following in chorus. 

Girish sings: 

Who is this Woman with the thick black hair, 

Shining amidst the assembly of the gods? 

Who is She, whose feet are like crimson lotuses 

Planted on Śiva's chest? 

Who is She, whose toe-nails shine like the full moon, 

Whose legs burn with the brightness of the sun?

Who is She, who now speaks soft and smiles on us, 

And now fills all the quarters of the sky 

With shouts of terrible laughter? 

  

Again: 

O Mother, Saviour of the helpless, Thou the Slayer of sin! 

In Thee do the three Gunās dwell-sattva, rajas, and tamas; 

Thou dost create the world;  

Thou dost sustain it and destroy it; 

Binding Thyself with attributes, Thou yet transcendest them; 

For Thou, O Mother, art the All. . . . 

  

Behari sings: 

O Syama, Thou who dost sit upon a corpse! 

I beg Thee, hear my heart's most fervent prayer: 

As my last breath forsakes this mortal flesh, 

Reveal Thyself within my heart! 

Then, in my mind, from forest and from grove 

I shall gather Thee red hibiscus flowers, 

And, scenting them with the sandal-paste of Love, 

Shall lay them at Thy Lotus Feet. 

  

M. sings with the other devotees: 

O Mother, all is done after Thine own sweet will; 

Thou art in truth self-willed, Redeemer of mankind! 

Thou workest Thine own work; men only call it theirs. . .  

  

They sing again: 

All things are possible, O Mother, through Thy grace; 

Obstacles mountain high Thou makest to melt away.  

Thou Home of Bliss! To all Thou givest peace and joy; 

Why then should I be made to suffer fruitlessly,  

Brooding on the success or failure of my deeds? 

  

And again: 

O Mother, ever blissful as Thou art, 

Do not deprive Thy worthless child of bliss! 

My mind knows nothing but Thy Lotus Feet.  

The King of Death scowls at me terribly; 

Tell me, Mother, what shall I say to him? . . . 

  

They conclude: 

In dense darkness, O Mother, Thy formless beauty sparkles;  

Therefore the yogis meditate in a dark mountain cave. .  

- Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, P 928-29 (31 October 1885)

Duty toward Mother

Is a mother to be trifled with? Before becoming a sannyasi Chaitanyadeva worked hard to persuade his mother to let him renounce home. Mother Sachi said that she would kill Keshab Bharati [Chaitanya’s monastic guru]. Chaitanyadeva did his utmost to persuade her. He said: 'Mother, I shall not renounce home if you won't let me. But if you compel me to lead a householder's life, I shall die. And, mother, even if I go away as a sannyasi, you will be able to see me whenever you desire. I shall stay near you. I shall see you every now and then.' Only when Chaitanya explained it to her thus did she give her permission. Nārada could not go to the forest to practise austerity as long as his mother was alive. He had to take care of her. After her death he went away to realize God.  

- Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, P 573 (29 September 1884)

Inscrutability of God's ways