Guest guest Posted August 30, 1999 Report Share Posted August 30, 1999 ~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~ Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna p.379 Tuesday, 31/8/99 The Master Said: " God can be realized when a man acquires sattva. Householders engage in philanthropic work, such as charity, mostly with a motive. That is not good. Yet it is very difficult to leave motives out of one's actions. " om tat sat ____________ Hari Om! dr. shah said: it is a well known fact that Sri Ramakrishna was never addicted to any drug during his life time. _____________________________ Comment: Although it is true that Sri Ramakrishna was probably not 'addicted to any drug', He was, however, surrounded by people who were. The taking of Opium or Ganja, prevalent in South Asia, creates a receptive, 'still' mood, as you know. Also, spiritual vulnerability is heightened. Thakur absorbed these.pleasant vibrations from those around Him and returned the same vibrations back to them a thousand fold. We are all mirrors of each other. ________ dr. shah said: Moreover, he never suffered from depression any time. ________ Comment: Surely, you must remember the terrible time that Thakur went through, on account of Hriday's torment ? He was ready to jump into the Ganga ! There are many other instances, of the Master's [very human] feelings of depression and anxiety, mentioned in the Gospel. Why is Sri Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsadeva so much loved today? For precisely the reason stated above: " He was/is 'very human'. That is precisely the message 'M' wishes to convey to us, in the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna. ___________ anurag said: Desire to mate is a feeling like any other feellings. n we shouldn't give extraa weightage to desire to mate. ___________ comment: The desire to mate is the most powerful of all ! Sri Ramakrishna said on many occasions, that we must take this powerful driving force, and turn it into 'lust for God' ___________ Kathi said: Karen, I do have a poor sense of humour, I agree (apologies ). Most of the time I compose my e-mails at work and I am usually under stress. ____________ comment: Our prayers are with you. May your stress be reduced. om shanthi om ____ 123India - India's Premier Search Engine Get your Free Email Account at http://www.123india.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 30, 1999 Report Share Posted August 30, 1999 omtatsat wrote: <<< Why is Sri Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsadeva so much loved today? For precisely the reason stated above: " He was/is 'very human'. That is precisely the message 'M' wishes to convey to us, in the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna. >>> Dear friend, Sri Thakur is loved today because he has made religion easy; not our daily routine! Although he takes care of everyone's emotional and financial concerns as well. But to be satisfied with that would be to be happy with the 'lollipop' offered by the Mother and not Her Grace! dr c s shah ==================== > > <omtatsat > > Hari Om! > > dr. shah said: it is a well known fact that Sri Ramakrishna was > never addicted to any drug during his life time. > _____________________________ > > Comment: Although it is true that Sri Ramakrishna was probably > not 'addicted to any drug', > He was, however, surrounded by people who were. > > The taking of Opium or Ganja, prevalent in South Asia, > creates a receptive, 'still' mood, as you know. > > Also, spiritual vulnerability is heightened. > > Thakur absorbed these.pleasant vibrations from those around Him > and returned the same vibrations back to them a thousand fold. > > We are all mirrors of each other. > > ________ > > dr. shah said: Moreover, he never suffered from depression > any time. > ________ > > Comment: Surely, you must remember the terrible time that > Thakur went through, on account of Hriday's torment ? > He was ready to jump into the Ganga ! > > There are many other instances, of the Master's [very human] feelings > of depression and anxiety, mentioned in the Gospel. > > Why is Sri Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsadeva so much loved today? > For precisely the reason stated above: " He was/is 'very human'. > That is precisely the message 'M' wishes to convey to us, in the > Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna. > ___________ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 31, 1999 Report Share Posted August 31, 1999 Tom (omtatsat is you, Tom, right??) I really appreciate your many comments in this letter. I would like to add my thoughts to the ones below. Namaste, karen omtatsat wrote: > ________ > > dr. shah said: Moreover, he never suffered from depression > any time. > ________ > > [Tom's] Comment: Surely, you must remember the terrible time that > Thakur went through, on account of Hriday's torment ? > He was ready to jump into the Ganga ! > > There are many other instances, of the Master's [very human] feelings > of depression and anxiety, mentioned in the Gospel. > > Why is Sri Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsadeva so much loved today? > For precisely the reason stated above: " He was/is 'very human'. > That is precisely the message 'M' wishes to convey to us, in the > Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna. > karen's comment: one of the things i like best about the Master and Holy Mother is their human-ness. in, my eyes, it does not take away from their greatness. same for Swami V. i don't want a plastic saint; i want someone who can bleed like me! otherwise, how can i possibly follow them? i would spend my whole life saying 'ah i am but a worm who can never hope to attain such heights!' but the message of the Master (i feel) is that we *can " attain those heights -- yes even with our quirks! tom, might we add the time that the Master grabbed the sword in the Kali temple and was going to kill himself because he could not see Mother (pls correct if i got this story wrong -- memory from a long time ago.) This may have been from the " Sri Ramakrishna, the Great Master " book from India, not sure. speaking of depression, i would also like to add that more is understood about the physical (chemical) nature of brain chemistry today, and of 'mental' illness in general. Like any illness, it poses a challenge and may make spiritual life more difficult, but i cannot agree that it is incompatable with spiritual life or would somehow indicate that the person with the illness had a personal weakness. > ___________ > > anurag said: > > Desire to mate is a feeling like any other feellings. > n we shouldn't give extraa weightage to desire to mate. > ___________ > > [tom's] comment: > > The desire to mate is the most powerful of all ! > Sri Ramakrishna said on many occasions, that we must take this > powerful driving force, and turn it into 'lust for God' > ___________ > karen's comment: i think it is pretty much understood in yogic philosophy that spiritual energy [kundalini] IS sexual energy transmuted into a more subtle or 'higher' form. So as the Master said, it is 'lust' -- but of a pure sort. thus, the focus on abstinence or celibacy -- not because sex is " bad " , but because the aspirant wishes to purify and use that energy on a higher or more subtle plane. A couple of illustrations along those lines: one is the famous experience of St. Theresa of Avila, who in ecstasy experienced an angel plunging a sword into her heart. Bernini's sculpture of this event shows her half-fainted and reclining while a bright shining angelic youth is about the plunge in the spear. And her mien is one of perfect abandonment -- not only that, but the mien of one in the throes of a love act. You can see a stunning photo of the sculpture on the following web page: http://209.132.4.118/art/bernini/teresa.jpg.html and then there is St. John of the Cross's poem Living Flame of Love. It is a love poem AND a mystical treatise of the highest sort. One of my favorite lines: Oh Living Flame of Love That tenderly woundest my soul in its deepest centre, Perfect me now if it be Thy will, Break the web of this sweet encounter! However, this does not mean that i disagree with anurag -- who says " we shouldn't give extraa weightage to desire to mate " . this kind of discipline and attitude helps the kundalini energy go to other levels. Namaste to all, -- Karen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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