Sri Ramakrishna’s Days in Dakshineswar -2
[Continued from the Previous issue]
At that time we slept on the floor of his room. Before going to sleep, the Master told us how to fall asleep. He would say that if we lay flat on our backs and visualize Mother in our hearts as we fell asleep, we would have spiritual dreams. He asked us to think about spiritual things as we fell asleep. During the summer we slept on the porch and were plagued by mosquitoes.
The Master saw Swami Brahmananda as Gopala (the boy Krishna). Occasionally he would send him home to visit his relatives at home, but as Swami Brahmananda. When he was not with him, the Master had great difficulty managing himself. One evening at 1:00 am, the Master came to the veranda where I was sleeping and asked, “Can you chant Gopala’s name to me! I sang for an hour. Some evenings when he had no one around, he called the night watchman to chant the name of Rama to him.What a love the Master had for the name of God.
We saw how little the Master slept. Every now and then he would only sleep an hour or half an hour at most.
Most of the time he was absorbed in samadhi and the rest of the time he was in spiritual moods.
These moods were very pronounced in the night.
He would repeat Mother or Hari’s name all night long. When we stayed with the Master in Dakshineswar, we were in awe. He hasn’t slept at all. Whenever we woke up, we heard him talking to the Divine Mother in a state of spiritual intoxication. He paced back and forth in the room, muttering unintelligibly. Sometimes he would wake us up in the middle of the night and say, “Hello, my dear boys! Have you come here to sleep? If you sleep all night, when shall we call on God?” As soon as we heard his voice, we quickly sat up and began to meditate.
Some days he would start with Kirtan ( devotional singing ) accompanied by drums and symbales , and we would go with him. Usually he sang only the names of God, occasionally improvising with words and sentences. Sometimes he danced in ecstasy.
Ah! How graceful was his dancing!
He would then be transformed beyond recognition. It. is unfortunately impossible to describe his unique spiritual rapture!
He had an unusual sweet voice, like we’ve never heard anywhere else.
The Kirtan would go on into the late hours. The Master’s ecstasy was infectious and enraptured everyone around him, and the constant repetition of the Lord’s name made the place a heaven on earth.
With what joy we passed our days with the Master!
We saw how on a day like this (Janmashtami, the birthday of Sri Krishna) the Master went into samadhi more often. Despite his efforts, he would not be able to control his spiritual zeal.
The natural tendency of his mind was to go high. By sheer force he would bring it to this earth plane. Divine Mother kept his mind at a lower level for the good of the world. Ah! What a view! He would be so beside himself with mental emotion that he could hardly speak. How great was his love for God!
Tears rolled down his cheeks like streams. We have never seen anyone else shed such tears of love and devotion.
Here and there in the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna we find short descriptions of that love.
Can it be described in any other way?! Only he who saw it can understand.
Spiritual emotion, samaddhi and similar experiences were daily occurrences for him.
Master Mahashaya ( M. ) could not attend every day. to be. He visits the Master in Dakshineswar or elsewhere on Saturday, Sunday or such a holiday and he tried to keep track of what was happening in the present moment. While descending from nirvikalpa samaddhi (transcendental experience), and still seeds under the influence, Sri Ramakrishna tried to describe that state, but he was never successful. Finally, he would say, “I’d love to tell you about it, but I can’t. Someone’s shutting my mouth.” It’s really indescribable. “Only he who has had the experience can understand it.”
One day a great musician came to Dakshineswar with the idea of entertaining Sri Ramakrushna. He was an accomplished musician and he sang beautifully. He started singing songs about Shiva, but after hearing only one or two songs, the Master became absorbed in samaddhi. His face turned red and he pulsed with a divine presence. In addition, his figure appeared larger than usual and his hair stood on end. How can I describe that sight? A long time passed and the Master still did not return to the normal energy level . As the singing continued, everyone was speechless with amazement. Never we had not seen the Master in such deep absorption, nor had we seen his form appear so great.
After some ride the Master suddenly exclaimed: “Oh! Oh! as if he were in agony within. With great difficulty he said: “Sing of the Mother. We understood what he wanted, and the singer was asked to sing from the Mother. As the songs continued, the Master slowly descended to the normal level. Later he said that his mind was immersed in deep samaddhi on that day and that. he’d had a hard time getting it down.
The Master did not like to stay long in nirvikalpa samaddhi. He had come for the good of the world, and if he stayed in the nirvikalpa state, he could not continue his work. Therefore, he wanted to maintain the attitude of a devotee in the company of devotees. Meditation on Shiva represents the nirvikalpa state. In that state there is neither creation nor the world of living entities.
The natural tendency of Sri Ramakrishna’s mind was to go to the nirvikalpa state so that he would harbor an insignificant desire to lower his mind. to fetch. Everything about him was unique!
Dagen in Dakshineswar -2

Mary Saaleman
is a Vedantist since three decades. Her life is Mother, Ramakrishna and Swamiji. She is a student of the lives of the Master, Mother and Swamiji and the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna.
is een vedantist sinds drie decennia. Haar leven is Moeder, Ramakrishna en Swamiji. Ze bestudeert de levens van de Meester, Moeder en Swamiji en het evangelie van Sri Ramakrishna.