Holy Mother’s Observations
[Numerous aspirants of different types would come to Mother Sarada Devi daily to seek Her blessings. Some of them became close disciples. Mother’s love and compassion for all of them knew no bounds. When a devotee visited Mother one day, she saw Mother encouraging sadhana, spiritual seeking, and prasing some of her associates.]
Mother Sri Sarada Devi had just returned from Benares. When I went on the 18h Magh, 1319 [31 January 1913] to see her, I found her engaged in worship. Soon, however, the worship was over; and by and by it became school time. Radhu was waiting, prepared to go to the Missionary School at Baghbazar. Golap-ma came and said to Mother: “The girl has grown enough. Why should she go to school now?’ On hearing her, Radhu began to cry. Mother replied : “I do not think she is so grown up. Knowledge of reading and writing and handicrafts is certainly beneficial. She can do good to herself and to her neighbours by this knowledge.”
Radhu happily went to school. Presently a lady came arrived a girl. The girl’s name was Durga Devi. The lady wanted to have her initiated by the Mother. When initiation was over, she said to Mother: “Durga is no ordinary girl. After reading the books about the Master, she cut her hair, dressed herself as a man and went away to Vaidyanath to practise tapasya. She went and sat down in a forest. The Guru of her mother happened to pass by. When he saw her, he asked her about her whereabouts, brought her to his place and then sent word to her father.”
Mother listened and then remarked encouraging words on the girl’s love of God. But other ladies present did not approve of this adventure of the girl. The lady said again: “She says to her husband, ‘You are not my husband, the Lord of the Universe alone is my husband.” Later on, in the course of conversation, Mother spoke highly of Gauri-ma and Durga Devi. She said: “Many take the name of the Lord after being slapped in the face by the world. But he or she alone is blessed, who can dedicate even in childhood his flower-like pure mind to the Lord. The girl (Durga Devi) is like an unsmelt flower. How finely Gauridasi has trained her up ! The girl’s brothers tried very hard to give her in marriage, and Gauridasi used to fly with her from place to place. At last she took her to Puri, made her exchange garlands with Jagannatha and made her a nun. She is a fine, pure girl and is also well educated. I am told she will also appear in a Sanskrit Examination.”
Mother dwelt also on the early life of Gauri-ma. Gauri Ma had to suffer not a little in her life. One night when I went to see Mother, she said in course of conversation ; “Listen, mother ! When the Lord first created humans, he made them almost absolutely of sattva guna. They were thus born with spiritual illumination and could easily feel the transitoriness of the world. They went out with the name of the Lord to practise tapasya and soon lost themselves in the transcendental state. The Lord found that the of the world could not be carried on with such men.’ Mother continued by reciting a Bengali poem which described how God next created men by mixing a preponderance of rajas and tamas with sattva. She added : “In those days, the village opera parties used to deal with these subjects. We have heard these things many times; but now they are scarce.” The conversation turned on to Sister Lakshmi.
Mother asked me if I knew her. “No, Mother, I do not,” I replied. “She lives at Dakshineswar; go and visit her. Have you been to Dakshineswar?” “Yes, Mother, many times. But I did not know that Lakshmi Didi lives there.” “Did you see the nahabat where I lived?’’ “I saw it from the outside.” “Go inside once. My whole household was within that small room. I had not seen a water-pipe before. When I first came to Calcutta and went into the bath room, I found the pipe hissing like a serpent. I was terribly frightened. I went to the women and said: ‘A serpent has come into the pipe— come and see, it is hissing.’ They laughed out and said : ‘Don’t you fear, it is not a serpent. There is always this sound before the water comes.’ I then began to laugh myself.’
With this Mother began to laugh, and how pure and unsophisticated her laugh was ! Mother said again : “Have you seen the Master’s festival at Belur?” “No, Mother,’ I answered. “Go there once. Go to see the festival of the Master.’’