Prabuddha Bharata May 2014

ISSN 0032-6178
R.N. 2585/57 REGISTERED Postal Registration No. Kol.RMS/096/201316

Published on 1 June 2014
9 770032 617002
PB
rabuddha
harata
or Awakened India
A monthly journal of the Ramakrishna Order

started by Swami Vivekananda in 1896
June 2014
Vol. 119, No. 6
` 10.00

If undelivered, return to: ADVAITA ASHRAMA, 5 Dehi Entally Road, Kolkata 700 014, India
ISSN 0032-6178
R.N. 2585/57 REGISTERED Postal Registration No. Kol.RMS/096/201316

Published on 1 May 2014
9 770032 617002
PB
rabuddha
harata
or Awakened India

May 2014

If undelivered, return to: ADVAITA ASHRAMA, 5 Dehi Entally Road, Kolkata 700 014, India
Vol. 119, No. 5

` 10.00
THE ROAD TO WISDOM

Swami Vivekananda on
Injuring Others
o injure another creates bondage and

hides the truth. Negative virtues are
not enough; we have to conquer Maya, and
then she will follow us. We only deserve
things when they cease to bind us. When the
bondage ceases, really and truly, all things
come to us. Only those who want nothing
are masters of nature.
Take refuge in some soul who has already
broken his bondage, and in time he will free
you through his mercy. Higher still is to take
refuge in the Lord (Ishvara), but it is the most
difficult; only once in a century can one be
found who has really done it. Feel nothing,
know nothing, do nothing, have nothing,
give up all to God, and say utterly, Thy will
be done. We only dream this bondage. Wake
up and let it go. Take refuge in God, only so
can we cross the desert of Maya. Let go thy
hold, Sannyasin bold, say, Om tat sat, Om!
It is our privilege to be allowed to be
charitable, for only so can we grow. The
poor man suffers that we may be helped;
let the giver kneel down and give thanks,
let the receiver stand up and permit. See the
Lord back of every being and give to Him.
When we cease to see evil, the world must
end for us, since to rid us of that mistake
is its only object. To think there is any
imperfection creates it. Thoughts of strength
and perfection alone can cure it. Do what

good you can, some evil will inhere in it; but
do all without regard to personal result, give
up all results to the Lord, then neither good
nor evil will affect you.
Doing work is not religion, but work done
rightly leads to freedom. In reality all pity is
darkness, because whom to pity? Can you
pity God? And is there anything else? Thank
God for giving you this world as a moral
gymnasium to help your development, but
never imagine you can help the world. Be
grateful to him who curses you, for he gives
you a mirror to show what cursing is, also
a chance to practise self-restraint; so bless
him and be glad. Without exercise, power
cannot come out; without the mirror, we
cannot see ourselves.
From The Complete Works of Swami
Vivekananda, (Kolkata: Advaita Ashrama, 2013),
7.7374.
Cover Art: Kalpataru, by Br Vishuddhachaitanya; Mixed Media.
Vol. 119, No. 5

May 2014
Managing Editor
Swami Tattwavidananda
Editor
Swami Satyamayananda
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Proofreading
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Tapas Jana
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rabuddha
harata
or Awakened India

Contents
Traditional Wisdom
315
This Month
316
Editorial: Maya at Its Best
317
Mahasamadhi of
Srimat Swami Gitanandaji Maharaj
319
Women Seer-saints of India and Their Songs

Dr Subhadra Desai
323
The Isha Upanishad in Gandhis Ahimsa

Joseph Nicholas
329
Sri Vidya Mantra: Unravelling the Cosmos

Niraj Kumar
332
The Struggle for Bhakti

Ajoy Kumar Bhattacharjee
339
Pilgrimage to Mount Kailash

Swami Damodarananda
342
The Many-splendoured Vivekanandas Vedanta

Dr M Sivaramkrishna
347
Eternal Words
Swami Adbhutananda
352
Reviews
357
Reports
360
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The Light of the Modern World
Swami Bhajanananda
Pages 268 | Price ` 100 Packing &

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According to Swami Vivekananda, With the birth

of Sri Ramakrishna the Golden Age has begun. But
today, for the generality of people, such an assertion may
appear preposterous, with no sign of such a beginning
visible anywhere. Who was Sri Ramakrishna? What was
the purpose of his advent? Did he bring about a silent
revolution, unseen on the surface?
This book skilfully deals with these issues, taking for
its subject the Avatarahood of Sri Ramakrishna and its
universal significance. In the course of his discussion the
author presents the different facets of an Avatara and the
universal relevance of his message. Many other spiritual
topics too are dealt with, all of which go into the making
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Please write to:

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Traditional
Wisdom
Wrt; std{; tg Jhtrtctut; >
Arise! Awake! And stop not till the goal is reached!
The Journey
May
Vol. , No.
rtUt;k :tg mbk Nhehk =er={gtrkK blmt mrtJug >

c{tuzwvul v{;hu; rJtlT m{tu;tkrm mJtorK CgtJntrl >>
Keeping steady the body that has its three parts erect, and withdrawing the
(sense) organs into the heart with the help of the mind, the enlightened
person should cross over all the terrible currents by means of the float that
Brahman is.
(Shvetashvatara Upanishad, 2.8)
rJttlmthr:go;w bl& v{d{nJtth& >

mtu~Jl& vthbtltur; ;rKtu& vhbk v=bTT >>
The man, however, who has as his charioteer a discerning intellect, and
who has under control the reins of the mind, attains the end of the road;
and that is the highest place of Vishnu.
(Katha Upanishad, 1.3.9)
nrh T nh;bwgr; =uJt rJJguNtlk J]MCk b;eltbTT >

c{mvblwbu=btdt=glk bt rJJterJotbJ >>
Like servants, the gods follow Hari who is the Lord of the Universe,
who leads all thoughts as the foremost leader, and who absorbs into
himself the universe at the time of dissolution (or who destroys the sins
of devotees). May this path to liberation taught in the Vedas having the
same form as Brahman open itself to me. Deprive not me of that. Strive
to secure it for me.
(Mahanarayana Upanishad, 49.1)
PB May 2014
315
This Month
Maya at Its Best helps us understand the worlds

real nature in the present age by destroying our
queer ideas about maya.
Bhakti is an easy and powerful path to God. Ajoy

Kumar Bhattacharjee, a retired engineer from
West Bengal, inspects The Struggle for Bhakti.
Mahasamadhi of Srimat Swami Gitanandaji

Maharaj, Vice President, Ramakrishna Math
and Mission.
In the recapitulation of his Pilgrimage to

Mount Kailash, Swami Damodarananda de
scribes the spiritual ex
perience he obtained by
the grace of Shiva. The
venerable senior swami
now lives a retired life
at Ramakrishna Math,
Ulsoor, Bengaluru.
Dr Subhadra Desai of Delhi shows how

Women Seer-saints of India and Their
Songs have influenced and enriched In
dian culture. The author, besides being a
Sanskrit scholar, is an accomplished Hin
dustani classical vocalist and a recipient of
many awards.
Mahatma Gandhi drew inspiration from many
worlds scriptures. Joseph Nicholas, engaged in
research studies on Vedanta philosophy at the
Kerala University, writes on The Isha Upanishad in Gandhis Ahimsa.
The philosophical doc
trine of the Sri Vidya
links the individual with
the cosmos at differ
ent levels. In Sri Vidya
Mantra: Unravelling the Cosmos Niraj
Kumar, president of the
Society of Asian Con
sciousness, New Delhi, speaks of its mysterious
power and relevance.
316
In the last part of The Manysplendoured Vivekanandas

Vedanta Dr M Sivaram
krishna, former Head at
the Department of Eng
lish, Osmania University,
Hyderabad, considers that
Vivekanandas Vedanta be
longs to all nations.
In the eighteenth part of Eternal Words Swami Adbhuta
nanda declares that in order
to become perfect Gods grace
is as necessary as the sadhakas
self-effort. The swamis words
are translated from Sat Katha,
published from Udbodhan Of
fice, Kolkata.
PB May 2014
EDITORIAL
Maya at Its Best
t is astounding to learn how much hu

mankind has achieved in the last few decades,
and this momentum shows no signs of slow
ing down. This age, with its novelty and pro
gress, has completely upset archaic predictions,
redefined many parameters, confused most pun
dits, erased old moralities, broken many records,
upended old institutions, remoulded individ
uals and societies, destroyed environments, le
gislated discord, made corruption and selfishness
acceptable, and even made sanity insanity and
vice versa. This list can go on, depending on what
and who you are. The world that is going for
wards turns around suddenly into a seemingly
retrograde movement. We are all familiar with
the feelings of hope and helplessness of what
we see around. Just as the progress of humanity
is multidimensional and cannot be enumerated
here, so also one cannot enumerate all the prob
lems during the retrograde movement. This is
maya at its best.
The human mind is a mass of contradiction,
and so are the body and the world outside. No
body has yet understood much about them,
and yet we are able to manipulate a few of these
things for present and future human needs. The
laws of karma are not just the straightforward
cause-effect or action-reaction operations. There
are unseen, individual and collective, dynam
ics that play a role in even a simple action. No
one can predict what a particular result will be.
Then there are those who wanting to live have to
die, and those who wanting to die have to live.
The elderly want to be and appear young; the
PB May 2014
young have habits and attitudes of the elderly.

Many women behave and work like men; men
are increasingly becoming like women. Taboos
are openly professed, knowledge shows ignor
ance, and virtue appears as vice. An honest per
son wants to do all that is right and is tricked
into doing wrong. An evil person sometimes
catches himself or herself doing good. Those
who criticize others faults find themselves doing
those very things they abhor. When things are
going right, there is invariably an undercurrent
of something going wrong. We now know that
everything, sacred or secular, has its bad and
dark side, including the individuals, societies,
cities, civilizations, religions, politics, and so on.
Lying and falsehood are now passed as truth or
half-truths; truth is stated to be mere facts that
can be interpreted in multiple ways. There is no
rest, real happiness, or peace in maya, yet people
keep looking for them. Love, the highest senti
ment of all life, is turning elusive, cheap, and cor
rupt. Everything contains within itself the seeds
of its own destruction. This is maya at its best.
Swami Vivekananda says: These tremendous
contradictions in our intellect, in our know
ledge, yea, in all the facts of our life face us on
all sides. Maya is the original contradiction: it is
she who not just makes the possible impossible
and vice versa, but makes all the contradictions
exist besides the real things. For ages we had
been sweeping the dark side under the carpet.
We spoke of the world as beautiful and sublime
through poetry and metaphors; we hid unpalat
able truths from children while presenting them
317
14
Prabuddha Bharata
with something else; we spun nice moral stories

to lull people into a false sense of optimism and
comfort. We hoped no one would notice the
fights, wars, pillaging, and destruction down
the ages. And to those who did, we embellished
these gruesome events with explanations of
heroism, nationalism, racial theories, religious
rights, and so on. We did not show the face of
humanity wearing godlike masks that hide cruel
natures. We did not show the pain, sorrow, an
guish, desperation, and futility of a life of strug
gles that ends with nothing worthwhile. In this
age we cannot, fortunately, hide such things any
more. Now is the time for the truth to come out
in bold relief. Swamiji says: We cannot hide a
carrion with roses; it is impossible. It would not
avail long; for soon the roses would fade, and
the carrion would be worse than ever before.
So with our lives. We may try to cover our old
and festering sores with cloths of gold, but there
comes a day when the cloth of gold is removed,
and the sore in all its ugliness is revealed. This
is maya at its best.
What, why, or who is this maya? Conven
tionally, it has been designated in the feminine
gender, spoken of as mahamaya, and wor
shipped as the Divine Mother. Maya is also de
scribed as a great wonder and indescribable.
Old Vedantins would call maya as that which
does not exist, unreal, magical, dreamlike, and
illusory. Whatever the designations and de
scriptions, this is where all contradictionsin
ternal, external, material, spiritual, individual,
and socialmeet. The next thing to understand
is that just as a silkworm is bound in its cocoon
and finally breaks free, so maya is the cocoon
for the jiva. In it the jiva, like the silkworm,
slowly develops the maturity, knowledge, and
strength to become free. And just like a cocoon
is absolutely necessary for the development
of the silkworm, so is maya necessary for our
318
development and ultimate freedom. For a long

time we have shied away from facing it, and the
result was bondage of all kinds. Ultimately we
shall find that maya was all through working to
free us by breaking our ideas of ourselves and
the world. The most important thing to under
stand is that maya is the power of Godit is
one with God. Bhagavan says in the Bhagavad
gita: Since this divine maya of mine, made up
of the gunassattva, rajas, and tamasis dif
ficult to cross over, those who take refuge in me
alone cross over this maya.
That this power of God is more manifested
in this age, implies that God itself is more
manifested in this age. This power of God
Godhas manifested as an avatara in the
form of Sri Ramakrishna. Tota Puri, Sri Rama
krishnas Advaita guru, achieved a first-hand ex
perience of this divine maya and exclaimed in
wonder: Kya daivi maya; what divine maya. He
saw the Divine Mother pervading and control
ling everything. Nothing or no one, including
a knower of Brahman, can do anything with
out her bidding. Tota Puri then understood
that Sri Ramakrishna held the key to every
thing and prayed to let him leave. It is very dif
ficult to cross unaided the ocean of maya, and
that is why an avatara comes to lead us back to
God. For only the exceptional few can say like
Swamiji: Black and thick are the folds of sin
ister fate. But I am the master. I raise my hand,
and lo, they vanish! All this is nonsense. And
fear? I am the Fear of fear, the Terror of ter
ror, I am the fearless secondless One, I am the
Rule of destiny, the Wiper-out of fact. Shri wah
Guru! Most of us need help to break free, and
God who though birthless, undecaying by na
ture, and the Lord of beings, takes an adorable
form to lead us back to our real infinite nature,
beyond all the terrible workings and effects of
the ultimately unreal maya.
P
PB May 2014
MAHASAMADHI OF
Srimat Swami Gitanandaji Maharaj
ith deep sorrow we announce the passing away of Srimat Swami Gitanandaji Maha
ran, vice president of the Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission, on 14 March 2014
at about 9.10 a.m. He was ninety.
PB May 2014
319
Revered Maharaj had been suffering from various

old-age ailments for the past few years. On 8 Feb
ruary he was admitted to the Ramakrishna Mis
sion Seva Pratishthan, Kolkata, with fever and
chest infection, which was diagnosed as pneumo
nia. He was kept in the intensive care unit under
expert medical care. On 16 February his condi
tion became critical and, despite the best medical
treatment, his life could not be saved.
Swami Gitanandaji was born on 17 April 1924
at Arial village, Tangipara, in the Vikrampur Par
ganas, District Dacca, in what is now Bangladesh.
His pre-monastic name was Vasudev Mukhopa
dhyaya. He was born in a pious Vaishnava family
that daily worshiped the shalagrama, symbol of
Vishnu. His father Sri Gourmohan Mukhopa
dhyaya and mother Sarajubala Devi had two sons
and three daughters; Vasudev was the third child.
The religious temperament at home shaped Vasu
devs inner life. His father being an employee of
the Indian Railways had to travel to various places
on duty; therefore, Vasudevs childhood was
spent partly in Parvatipur, Bangladesh, and partly
at Amingao, near Guwahati. Later he returned to
Parvatipur and completed his matriculation.
Although calm and quiet by nature Vasudev
was a daring boy. Once at Guwahati he swam
320
across the turbulent Brahmaputra. Later, as a

monk, he would swim across the Ganga at Belur
Math from one bank to the other. A keen intro
spective mind lay beyond this daring. He was
deeply influenced by the discussions on the
Ramayana, Mahabharata, and Bhagavata at
home. Imbued with a spiritual longing from an
early age, Vasudev determined that he would not
lead a worldly life.
He commenced studies in mathematics, phys
ics, and chemistry at the Scottish Church College
in 1943 in Calcuttamathematics had a special
attraction for him. In 1945 he passed the BSc with
distinction and enrolled for MSc at the Calcutta
University. During this time he came across the
Ramakrishna-Vivekananda literature. Vasudev
found a new meaning to life in the message of
Sri Ramakrishna, Sri Sarada Devi, and Swami
Vivekananda. The seeds of spirituality sown in his
childhood now sprouted into a deep aspiration.
While in Calcutta his family learnt that Vasu
dev had suddenly left without telling anyone. After
about a year they learnt that he had joined the
Ramakrishna Math at Madras as a brahmachari
on 17 May 1946. Revered Swami Kailashanandaji
was then the adhyaksha, head, under whose care
and loving ministration Vasudev started his mo
nastic life. He received mantra diksha, spiritual
initiation, from Revered Swami Virajanandaji
Maharaj, sixth president of the Order, at the Vi
sakhapatnam centre in 1947. Brahmachari Vasu
dev received brahmacharya vows in 1952 and was
given the name Brahmachari Ameyachaitanya.
Vasudev also served Revered Swami
Virajanandaji Maharaj for a brief period. He
was ordained a monk and given the name
Swami Gitananda in 1956 by Revered Swami
Sankaranandaji Maharaj, the seventh president.
During this period he served as the cashier at the
headquarters and also as secretary to Revered
Swami Sankaranandaji Maharaj.
PB May 2014
Mahasamadhi of Srimat Swami Gitanandaji Maharaj

From 1956 to 1961 he served as assistant at
Ramakrishna Mission Sevashrama, Varanasi.
Swami Gitanandaji was engaged in the work
of organizing the Centenary Celebrations of
Swami Vivekananda in Calcutta, 19615. In 1965
Gitanandaji was sent to the Kanpur centre. In
1969 he was again sent to Varanasi and later that
year became assistant secretary of Ranchi Sana
torium, where he later served as its head till 1972.
He drew unto himself common people of the lo
cality as well as the educated and respected, thus
connecting everyone to the centre and its welfare
activities. In March 1973 he was given charge
of the Varanasi Sevashrama, where he held that
post till 1974. In December 1973 he was elected
trustee of the Ramakrishna Math and a member
of the Governing Body of the Ramakrishna Mis
sion. In June 1974 Maharaj was appointed one
of the assistant secretaries of the Ramakrishna
Math and Ramakrishna Mission at Belur Math.
In April 1975 he was appointed treasurer of the
Order. He again became assistant secretary from
1 April 1985. He was released from the responsi
bilities of being the assistant secretary on 1 April
1995 and continued to stay in Belur Math.
On 1 April 2003 he was elected vice president
of the Ramakrishna Order, to which he initially
did not agree, but at the repeated requests of se
nior monks he finally yielded. He remained vice
president till the end of his mortal life. Though at
first he stayed at the Baghbazar Math, known as
Mayer-bari, he later accepted the post of adhyak
sha of the Ramakrishna Math, Yogodyan, Kankur
gachhi, which lasted till 30 August 2009.
As vice president of the Order he travelled
widely all over India. He initiated more than
45,000 spiritual aspirants. He also visited Rus
sia and Mauritius. He was immensely attracted
to all places of pilgrimage, though he had a spe
cial love for Varanasi and Vrindaban. Jayrambati
was another place of pilgrimage very dear to him.
PB May 2014
17
The way he did pranams to the Holy Mother

left an indelible mark in the minds of those who
witnessed it.
His discussions on the Bhagavata at Belur
Math was filled with divine fervour and went
far beyond the dry interpretations given by
learned pandits. The fruit of these lecture series
took the shape of an extraordinary book in Ben
gali: Bhagavat Katha. He also worked tirelessly
to give shape to another book: Sri Ramer Anu
dhyan. Another favourite topic of study for
Maharaj was the life of Sri Chaitanya.
Swami Gitanandaji functioned as the acharya
for brahmacharya and sannyasa ceremonies
every year from 1988 to 2008. His sixty-five
years of monastic life illustrated the ideals of the
Ramakrishna Order. His habit of working with
serenity while immersed in japa was a guiding
18
Prabuddha Bharata
example to everyone. Maharaj liked to work

without assistance and never gave any indication
about his personal needs. He was very punctual
and utilized every minute of his day.
He woke up very early and after bathing
would attend mangalarati. As long as he was
in good health, attending morning and even
ing arati was part of his daily routine. There
after he would sit for japa. After finishing his
breakfast, he would again get immersed in japa.
He would then commence his studies and reply
to letters from devotees. He greeted questions
from devotees smilingly and gave brief answers.
After noon prasad, when all had left, Maharaj
would take a stroll around the ashrama with the
japa-mala, rosary, in hand. Be it at Belur Math or
Yogodyan he was commonly seen walking about
in his room repeating the mantra. Owing to con
stant repetition the rudraksha beads of his rosary
had become smooth. In spite of his absorption
in japa, Swami Gitanandaji was alert about the
needs of the people around him.
During his early days, when he was working at
the headquarters, he would daily play volleyball
along with a few other monks. Revered Maharaj
was simple and affectionate towards all monks
and brahmacharis.
Once a devotee asked Maharaj: How many
times should I repeat the name of God? Maha
raj replied emphatically: It is not sufficient if you
repeat only 108 times. Now your samskaras are
strong. Times have also changed a lot; try at least
to repeat 1,008 times. If you get time repeat the
mantra 10,000 times.
When Revered Swami Gitanandaji Maharaj
entered mahasamadhi, he left behind memories
of a divine life for the benefit of aspirants and
devotees. Monks, brahmacharis, devotees, and
followers came to have a last darshan at Kankur
gachhi. In the evening of 14 March it was brought
to Belur Math and kept at the Cultural Centre.
322
The next day the body was brought to the Math

courtyard at 10 a.m. by monks and brahmacharis
and at noon was taken to all the temples. At the
Holy Mothers ghat the final rites prior to cre
mation were performed. His mortal frame was
taken to the residence of Srimat Swami Atmastha
nandaji Maharaj, the president of the Order, who
placed a garland around the neck. The body was
then brought to the samadhi ghat and consigned
to the flames. Belur Math, the venue of Maharajs
sadhana, was hushed and the flames engulfed his
mortal body and blazed upwards.
Revered Gitanandaji was unostentatious.
Keeping himself in the background, he placed be
fore humanity the ideal lives of Sri Ramakrishna,
Sri Sarada Devi, and Swami Vivekananda. His
whole life was a total consecration to their sangha.
To him all works were worship. Whoever ap
proached him received direction, guidance, and
inspiration. Wherever he went there was a sweet
atmosphere of peace. Once a group of sadhus
asked Maharaj about the method to be successful
in the life of sadhana; Maharaj replied: You only
need one thingGods name. Keep it with you
always. You may not see him, but you can be close
to him (through his name). There are many other
things in the books that may help some people,
but I dont know about these things. I just know
Gods name. This answer indeed summed up Re
vered Gitanandaji Maharajs remarkable life. P

Dr Subhadra Desai
n India, as elsewhere in the world, music

and literature have often converged since the
earliest times. In hymns, songs, and inton
ations India has inherited, through millennia,
a remarkable legacy in which exceptional litera
ture finds an inspiring voice. And this tradition
of the synthesis of literature and music that ger
minated in the Vedic Age has remained alive and
vibrant since then.
Seer-saint-poets of India such as Kabir, Sur
das, Tulasidas, Mirabai, Gorakhnath, and others
adopted music as a medium to express their
devotion as well as their realization of Truth.
In this tradition of saint-composers there was
a considerable presence of women who were
spiritual seekers, saint poetesses, ascetics, men
dicants, and devotees. They recorded their spir
itual experiences and realizations in the form of
songs, which not only bear the distinctive im
pression of their personal journeys but also illus
trate the social and cultural milieu of their times,
their achievements and failures. They were often
not only seers but spirited women who dared
to question parochial social structures of their
times and faced innumerable personal hardships
and challenges. Their single-minded devotion
and intense love for God transformed them into
spiritual heroines of their times.
Gods Brides
Spread across a vast expanse of space and time,
these women are unified in their unique lan
guage of love, truth, honesty, strength, and
empowerment. This spirit has lived on for cen
turies through oral singing traditions in their
PB May 2014
respective regions. These women belonged to

different regions in India and sang in their own
mother tongues: Tamil, Kannada, Telug u, Kash
miri, Rajasthani, Gujarati, Marathi, Hindi, and
others. Most of them were well known in their
own regions during their lifetime. Some of the
lyrical forms, composed by these women saints,
date back to more than a thousand years, while
some are a few centuries old. The songs portray
the divine love of the women seers as well as a
myriad of metaphors encapsulating their feel
ings regarding life. Some songs even articulate
spiritual wisdom of a high order, which are by
no means inferior to the compositions of other
saints in terms of substance or feeling.
The songs of these women seers are sung even
in the present times by musicians and lay people.
The nameless bearers of these traditionsmen
and women of different castes and classes, though
mostly of lower casteshave played a vital role
in preserving these songs, thereby champion
ing their authors. A feature that characterises
these songs, whether by better or lesser or un
known authors, is the popularity they continue
to enjoy among the common unsophisticated
people of the villages. The songs thus appear to
be, for the common folk, a well-suited oppor
tunity for a cultural activity of a higher order.
For instance, songs of women saints of Rajasthan
and Gujarat are largely sung by people belonging
to lower castes, even in present timesthey can
easily relate to these songs. A handful of songs of
women saints of Assam, Odisha, and Manipur in
the Vaishnava tradition, were collated from very
elderly traditional teachers of Assamese culture
323
20
Prabuddha Bharata
and then published in Odiya texts and Manipuri

sankirtanas respectively. These women were well
known during their lifetime, within their own
regions, andwith the exception of Sija Laioibi,
the Manipuri princess-saintthey were acknow
ledged as the first poetesses of their areas. Un
fortunately only a negligible amount of works
belonging to them can be traced today.
A remarkable phenomenon that has emerged
in the songs of Andal (ninth century, Tamil
Nadu), Akka Mahadevi (twelfth century, Kar
nataka), Mirabai (sixteenth century, Rajasthan),
Tarigonda Vengamamba (eighteenth century,
Andhra), and Sija Laioibi (eighteenth century,
Manipur) is the immense yearning to be united
with God as brides. These women are the best
examples of bridal mysticism, where a mystic
womanor manshuns all worldly bindings
and considers herself married to the Divine.
Andal was the first of the mystic brides among
all women saints. In a different space and time,
this aspect of devotion is exemplified by other
women saints such as Akka Mahadevi, Mirabai,
Vengamamba, Sija Laioibi, and others.
These women were the earliest poetesses of
India, whose feelings and experiences come to
us through songs. These are oral traditions that
have been preserved in the different genres of In
dian music, such as Sama Vedic, folk, and Hin
dustani and Carnatic classical music.1
Vedic Seer-poetesses
The first hymns ascribed to women seers of the
Vedic period are sung as Sama Veda hymns in the
earliest known musical tradition of India. This
is evident in the chanting-singing traditions of
Samagana prevalent today. The songs by seerpoetesses during the great bhakti movement of
the mediaeval period, in the local vernaculars,
are sung in the regional musical forms in their
respective regions to this day.
324
Brihaddevata (2.824) and Arshanukra

mani (10.1002), which are authoritative trea
tises on the Vedas, record twenty-seven women
seers of the Rig Vedathe first and earliest lit
erature in the worldwho have hymns attri
buted to them. Little is known about them, and
that mainly through traditional sources, but
the inclusion of their hymns in the two above-
mentioned treatises is significant for the pres
ent study, as these women are mentioned as
brahmavadinah, women seers who attained the
knowledge of Brahman, also called rishikas.
Reference to some of these rishikas is also
found in the Sama Veda Samhita, the earliest
literary document on Indian music, in which
the system of chanting or singing the Sama Veda
hymns in four, five, six, and even seven Vedic
svaras, musical notes, was formalized for the first
time in the history of Indian music.
Of the twenty-seven rishikas of the Rig Veda,
Vak, Godha, Indramatri, and Sarparajni have
hymns attributed to them in the Sama Veda Sam
hita. Scholars are divided in their opinion about
these women being real or mythical characters,
even though they are mentioned as women seers
in two authoritative Vedic treatises.
The hymns ascribed to the women seers of
the Vedic age were not only sung as Sama, along
with Sama hymns of other male rishis, but were
also documented in the notation system of the
Sama tradition. These Sama hymns are still sung
by samagas, experts in different living traditions,
which is enormously significant in the history of
Indian culture.
Bhakti Traditions
The mediaeval period in India produced many
saints of the bhakti type, beginning with the
Shaiva saints of the Tamil region in the sixth
century. Sixty-three Nayanmars and twelve Al
wars of the Tamil region were the earliest Shaiva
PB May 2014
image: brass statue / kapasi.com

and Vaishnava saints respectively, whose lives
and songs of love for God brought radical trans
formation in the religious life of India. For the
first time God was not an entity to be feared
or adored from a distance, but was now openly
loved as a master, child, playmate, friend, lover,
or father. The various traditions in which the
women seers-saints flourished are the following:
(i) Shaiva and Vaishnava traditions in the
Tamil region
(a) Shaiva tradition of Nayanmars
(b) Bhagavata tradition of Azhvars, or
Alwars
(ii) Shaiva and Vaishnava traditions in Kar
nataka and Andhra regions
(a) Virashaiva or Lingayat movement
(b) Haridasa tradition
(c) Vaishnava tradition
(iii) Vaishnava and other panths, sects, from
the Deccan or the region around Maharashtra
(a) Mahanubhava panth
(b) Varkari panth
(c) Ramdasi panth
(iv) Gujarat, Saurashtra region, and Rajasthan
(a) Vaishnava tradition
(b) Mahapanth or Nijara panth
(v) Shaiva tradition in Kashmir
(vi) Vaishnava traditions in eastern India, in
cluding Assam, Odisha, and Manipur.
Baul mendicants of Bengal of the past
and present have had women sadhakas but
no record exists of a woman Baul who ex
pressed her feelings and experiences through
her own songs. They are known to sing their
gurusMahajanssongs.
The iconic fifteenth-century saint-poetess
Mirabai, whose life and music assumed the pro
portions of an enduring legend in India for their
unique significance, is widely revered today as
one of the best exemplars of all consuming de
votion to a spiritual ideal and equal in stature
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21
with Indias greatest saints. She rejected societal

norms with defiance, leaving her marital home
to be united with her divine lover Sri Krishna.
Her life and music blurred distinctions between
worshipfulness and intense love. Today, after six
centuries, celebrated and admired for her role in
shaping both Indias spiritual and cultural life, her
songs are sung not only in the folk traditions of
Rajasthan and Gujarat but also by classical mu
sicians in both Hindustani and Carnatic genres.
Karaikkal Ammaiyar, literally the saintly
mother of Karaikkal, of the seventh century,
is one of the sixty-three great Nayanmar saints
of Tamil Nadu. She is the first saint poetess of
India. In one of her songs, Karaikkal Ammaiyar
describes herself as a pey, ghost, who dances in
the company of Shiva, in the cremation grounds
of Tiruvalankadu:
Earnest Brass Mirabai
325
22
Prabuddha Bharata
The female pey has
sagging breasts and bulging veins
hallowed eyes and bared teeth
ruddy down on her sunken belly
long canines
and lanky shins on knobby ankles;
she lingers, howling, at the cremation
ground.
Dancing here,
with effortless composure
as his matted locks radiate in all directions,
our father resides at Tiruvalankadu.2
In the month of Margazhi,

on an auspicious bright moon day,
bejeweled girls who would join us for the
bath come along.
Graceful girls of Ayarpadi cowherd clan,
sweet little ones!
Narayana, the son of Nandagopa is known
for his sharp spear and fierce deeds:
He is the darling child, lion cub of
the beautiful-eyed Yashoda.
Our dark-hued, lotus-eyed, radiant, moonfaced Lord alone will grant us our boons.
Girls come, assemble, and
win the worlds praise.
The other celebrated work of Andal is Nac

chiyar Tirumoli.
The Virashaiva or Lingayat movement and
the Vaishnava-Haridasa tradition in Karnataka
flourished from twelfth century onwards. The
Virashaivas visualized a society free from discrim
ination based on caste, creed, and wealth. Their
philosophy rejected the prevailing social, political,
and religious systems. The adherents of this faith
were also known as Lingayats, those who wear a
lingaShivas emblemon ones body.
Among the thirty-four Virashaiva women
vachana-kartris, composers of vachana,3 Akka
Mahadevi was the most eminent and radical
woman saint. She was a wandering mystic who
shunned all worldly ties to embrace Shiva as her
immortal husband. She lovingly addressed her
deity as Chenna Mallikarjuna in her vachanas.
She rejected the authority of the Vedas as well
as prescribed discriminations based on caste,
gender, and class. Her fearless expressions are
in the form of vachanas, numbering more than
a thousand, which contain spiritual wisdom of
the highest order and are sung even today.
PB May 2014
Andal - Polished South Indian Bronze / Lotus Sculpture
The Azhvars lived between the sixth and the

ninth centuries and were devotees of Vishnu.
They considered life in
the world as transient
Andal
and aimed to achieve
liberation through
divine union with
their God. The term
Azhvar means one
who is immersed in
divine love.
Andal, who
lived in the ninth
century, was the
sole woman among
the twelve Azhvar
saints and, like Mira,
was dedicated to
her Ishta Devata,
Chosen Deity, since
preadolescence. Her
collection of thirty
verses, Tiruppavai,
is a much loved sac
red literature in most
Tamil Hindu house
holds to this day.
In her first song
Andal sings of
her journey on a bright moon day in the month

of MargazhiDecember-Januaryto the abode
of her beloved deity:
In a vachana Akka Mahadevi recounts for her

friends her dream about Shiva, the bestower of
blessings, who comes to her for bhiksha, alms.
In Maharashtra, Mahanubhava, the Varkari
and Ramadasi panths grew during the period
between the twelfth to the eighteenth cen
turies. The Varkari panth, a living tradition
in present-day Maharashtra, was led by saints
belonging to diverse backgrounds such as the
heretic brahmanas, social outcastes, shudras,
the untouchable Mahars, and even devadasis.
Women leaders were common in this sect,
and saints of this tradition such as Muktabai,
Bahinabai, Janabai, Soyarabai, Nirmala, and
Kanhopatra were reputed to be immersed in
love for the Divine. Their songs, well known as
abhangs, were addressed to their favourite deity
VitthalaVishnuof Pandharpur.
In an abhang, Janabai sings in praise of
Pandharpur, the abode of her beloved deity
Pandharinath, or Vitthala, where devotees con
gregate to sing and dance intoxicated in divine
love. Janabai says: One who sings Gods name
from the heart is sure to find refuge in Him.
The Shaiva rebel saint Lalleshwari, or Lalded,
of the fourteenth century, is the most prominent
woman saint-poetess of Kashmir. She composed
in the vernacular language of the region, while the
language for scholarly writings prevalent during
her time was Sanskrit. The compositions of Lal
ded are known as lalvakh; they are full of imagery
and exceptionally poetic in nature. A few selected
vakhs of Lalleshwari are illustrated here:
With a rope of untwisted thread am I towing
a boat upon the ocean,
Where will my God hear?
Will He carry me over?
Like water in goblets of unbaked clay,
do I slowly waste away
My soul is in a dizzy whirl.
Fain would I reach my home?
PB May 2014
Statue of Akka Mahadevi at her birthplace, Udathadi
In time past we were,

in time future we shall be,
Throughout the ages we have been,
Forever the sun rises and sets,
Forever Shiva creates,
dissolves and creates again.
***
He from whose navel steadfastly
proceedeth in its upward course
The syllable Om, and naught but it,
And for whom the kumbhaka exercise
formeth
A bridge to the Brahma-randhra,
He beareth in his mind the one and only
mystic spell (manthar or mantra),
And of what benefit to him are thousand spells?
***
Thou alone art the heavens,
and Thou alone art the earth.
Thou alone art the day, the air, the night.
Thou alone art the meal-offering, sandal paste,
the flowers, the water of aspersion.
Thou alone art all that is.
What, therefore, can I offer thee.4
327
24
Prabuddha Bharata
The women saints from Gujarat and the Sau

rashtra region chiefly belonged to two religious
traditions, namely Vaishnava and Mahapanth,
or Nijara panth.
The spiritual precepts of the Mahapanth were
designed for practice by man and woman together
as husband and wife, or even otherwise. Close
secrecy was maintained around these tenets, and
only a practitioner had access to them. Practition
ers came from all walks of life and often belonged
to the lower strata of society. In several instances
women became the guru or the initiator. Refer
ences to women belonging to this panth such as
Toral, Liralbai, Lidalbai, Amarbai, and others are
traced back as early as the fourteenth century.
In one of her songs Liralbai, of the sixteenth
century, sings:
O Ram,
Who created this body?
Why did you make it so (transient)?
The moon, sun, the multitude of stars,
Hammer and sickle, shapes and designs,
All reside within me.
Why did you then make it so (transient)?
Orchards, trees, wind, and water,
Dwelling spaces, gardens,
my tree-beds and fruits,
even the reaper,
all are within,
Why did you then, make it so (transient)?
Lock and key (of my existence) dwell in me,
the opener is also present,
Ganga, Yamuna, the holy pilgrimages,
are all within,
Why did you then, make it so (transient)?
O tell me, my Ram,
why did you make this body so transient?
Liralbai seeks to know the Truth, O Ram.
Known as the Mirabai of Andhra Pradesh in

the eighteenth century, Tarigonda Vengamamba
was an ardent devotee of Lord Venkateshvara.
328
Like Mirabai, she believed she was wedded to

her divine Lover. In the course of her struggle
against the oppressive social order of her time,
she was drawn towards philosophy and yoga and
became a great yogini and poetess of her time.
These eminent seer-saints as Mirabai, Andal,
Akka Mahadevi, Lalded, and others paved the
way for a remarkable number of women spir
itual seekers, most of whom led ordinary lives
but inspired by their love for God achieved ex
ceptional heights in their spiritual lives. Most
of them, though unlettered, were not deterred
from singing to God in their simple vernacular
languages. Their compositions were not written
down for several centuries, but were carried for
wards till the present through the age-old oral
traditions of India.
The abiding influence of the songs of women
seers, albeit uneven and scattered across com
munities in present-day India, is evidence of the
deep impact they exercised in their own time.
For the literary and musical value of the songs
and their messages of transcendence, of sublime
surrender, or even of assertion of womens auton
omy, they constitute a priceless heritage to the
whole world.
P
Notes and References
1. Sama Vedic hymns ascribed to four women
seers of the Vedic age, and songs and lives of
about seventy-five women saint-poetesses of the
mediaeval period, which are sung even today,
have been traced by this author.
2. Translation by Karen Pechilis, Interpreting
Devotion (New York: Routledge, 2012), 188
Tiruvalankadu is about sixty kilometres from
Chennai (Madras).
3. Vachanas are prose texts in Kannada composed
by Virashaiva saints that evolved in the twelfth
century.
4. See George Grierson and Lionel Barnett, Lallavakyani, or The Wise Sayings of Lal Ded (London: Royal Society, 1920).
PB May 2014

Joseph Nicholas
ahatma Gandhi was much in

fluenced by world scriptures such as
the Bhagavadgita, the Bible, and the
Koran, as well the literature of Swami Viveka
nanda, Leo Tolstoy, David Thoreau, and so on.
However, the influence of the Gita, which says
that a yogi can be a contemplative or a person of
action, was profound on Gandhi. He dedicated
his life for its ethical and social implementation.
Like many contemporary Indian thinkers, Gan
dhi accepted the Vedantic understanding of God
as Satchidananda, Existence-ConsciousnessBliss. Apart from the Gita, another scripture that
inspired Mahatma Gandhi was the Isha Upani
shad. He says of the first mantra: Even if all the
Upanishads and all scriptures of Hinduism hap
pened all of a sudden to be reduced to ashes and
only this mantra were left intact in the memory
of Hindus, then Hinduism would live for ever.1
Deriving Morality from the Upanishads
The first mantra of the Isha Upanishad says:
Om. All thiswhatsoever moves on the earth
should be covered by the Lord. Protect (your
Self ) through that detachment. Do not covet
anybodys wealth.2 The concepts of this mantra
strengthened in Gandhi the urge to realize the ul
timate Reality through karma, bhakti, and jnana,
which were applied in a practical way for social
and moral action. Since he gave supreme import
ance to the ethical nature of ahimsa, non-violence,
this mantra became Gandhis method to root out
injustice in society. Gandhian ahimsa was to for
give and forget, not to hurt and covet what be
longs to others or ones enemy. Gandhi himself
PB May 2014
confessed that he practised ahimsa, thus making

him not a mere visionary but a practical idealist.
He added that non-violence is meant not just for
rishis and saints but also for the common people.
Ahimsa is a process of awakening the con
science of the oppressor to the fundamental good
ness and truth that resides in oneself as well as in
others. Gandhi says: Non-violence is a quality
of the heart. Whether there is violence or nonviolence in our actions can be judged only by
reference to the spirit behind them. Everyone,
therefore, who regards the observance of non-
violence, as a moral duty should guide his actions
by the principle stated above.3 This kind of ahimsa
is for the person who performs all actions as a ser
vice for the good of others, while dedicating the
actions to God. Speaking about ahimsa Gandhi
said: Work achieved through aggressive picketing
will be of doubtful worth; work achieved through
loving persuasive pressure will be lasting (45.274).
Therefore, in Gandhis view ahimsa, which to
him became a religion, is a potent force that must
begin with ones mental attitude. In it there is no
coercion. One has to be very careful about the
mind and its ability to remember. Ahimsa gives
one peace; violence brings one great distress and
anguish. This is coherent with what is said in the
Isha Upanishad: O Fire! O god! Knowing as thou
do all our deeds, lead us by the good path for the
enjoyment of the fruits of our deeds; remove from
us all crooked sins. We offer thee many words of
salutations.4 He said that if India accepts violence
to gain its independence, it will be unbearable and
unacceptable. India has a mission in the world
that has to be actualized by non-violence. My
329
A Passage to India,
by Siddhartha Ghosh
Vedantas Influence on Gandhi

The efforts of all spiritual as well as political and
social thinkers is said to have been the removal of
obstruction for the individual and society to grow.
Gandhi, being a political and social reformer, de
rived his principles from practical Vedanta. Every
sage or yogi generates actions from a deep sense of
conviction. Such actions naturally bring in moral
ity, goodness, austerity, unselfishness, and so on.
This happens more powerfully with the Vedantic
concept of oneness of all beings at a deeper level.
Such a conviction and its practical actions become
330
part of the persons character, and this is what hap

pened in the life of Gandhi, for whom ahimsa was
embedded in spirituality and not in mere philoso
phy. If we evaluate Gandhis actions it is evident
that they were the outcome of his mental courage
in the conviction of Vedantic teachings. The pre
cepts of the Isha Upanishad stimulated his inner
energy towards morality.
Vedanta initiated him not only to exercise
ahimsa but also to preach it as a model for soci
ety. Gandhi advised his followers to use ahimsa
in their daily public as well as private life. The
courage of a non-violent individual is much no
bler than the animal passion and violence that
the world has been drenched in for ages. To re
main calm under the greatest provocation, to
resist ones foes and yet cherish no hatred or ani
mosity towards them, to oppose brute force with
soul-forcethese are indeed actions of a higher
nature than mere bloodshed and fighting. Gan
dhi demonstrated this great soul-force not only
through his own life but also through thousands
of his followers. He saw ahimsa as the basic law
of our being that can be used as an effective prin
ciple for social action. A person who practises
PB May 2014
image: etching / ramakrishna mission institute of culture
life is dedicated to service of India through the

religion of non-violence.5
Gandhi advised the freedom fighters and pol
iticians that aggression could never bring about
the desired results. Economic and political in
dependence is the need of society, and that has
to be achieved through the acceptance of peace
and harmony with the enemy. He wanted to
fight against avidya, ignorance, through vidya,
knowledge. He insisted that all those who really
thirsted for political or any kind of independ
ence should have ahimsa as their norm (15).

ahimsa could be in consonance with truth, which
expressed itself in the desire for peace, justice,
order, freedom, and personal dignity.6
Gandhi reminds us that ahimsa is not a pol
icy for the seizure of power, but it is a way of
transforming relationships so as to bring about
a peaceful transfer of power, affected freely and
without compulsion by all concerned, because all
have come to recognize it as right (ibid.). Gan
dhi repeatedly says that the thirst for and power
of ahimsa comes from God, and so it is a com
mandment. Even though a person may not be
able to practise ahimsa perfectly, one has to make
continuous efforts and sacrifices for it. Ahimsa
is the force or power of God that realizes itself.7
Gandhi himself sheds light on this while speak
ing on its validity: An armed person naturally
relies upon arms. A person who is unarmed relies
upon the unseen power called God. That which
is unseen is not necessarily non-existent. God is
the force among all forces known and unknown.
Non-violence without reliance upon that force
is a poor stuff to be thrown in the dust (76.232).
Gandhi welcomed the youths of the world to
create a non-violent world order through ahimsa.
Hence an individual who wishes to follow the
Gandhian way of ahimsa should apply it as a
norm in every appropriate circumstance. Gandhi
himself applied ahimsa in every action of life
domestic, institutional, economic, and political.
He concluded that there is no single case in which
it failed. Moreover, while addressing an audience
Gandhi reminded people that religion is based on
ahimsa: It is love in its active form.8 It is a love
not only for our friends and neighbours but also
for those who may be our enemies. He insisted In
dians to accept ahimsa as their norm to serve so
ciety and the nation, disregarding enemy threats.
As humans we need to learn to live with
others, hence ahimsa becomes important for the
smooth running of society. Through this attitude
PB May 2014
27
one is filled with empathy for others. The Isha

Upanishad declares: He who perceives all beings
in the Self itself, and the Self in all beings, feels
no hatred by virtue of that (realization).9 In con
clusion, Gandhis acquaintance with this Upa
nishad stimulated him to adopt the method of
ethical and social actions for the development
of society. His philosophy of life is the one of
a satyagrahi, one who holds on to Truth. The
Isha Upanishad says: The face of Truth (Brah
man) is concealed by a golden vessel. Do thou,
O Sun, open it, so as to be seen by me who am
by nature truthful (or am the performer of right
ful actions) (15). Gandhi also fought for the
downtrodden; the Isha Upanishad further speaks
about the dying person saying: O mind, remem
berremember all that has been done (17).
Gandhi was essentially a deeply religious
person with an unshakable faith in God, who
is Truth. His philosophy, essentially spiritual,
should inspire each and every individual to
strive for real freedom in his or her moral and
social life. In this age of growing violence and
greed at all levels Gandhiji is an example and
guide to all those who work for a life inspired
by higher values.
P
Reference
1. The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi, 100
vols (New Delhi: Publications Divisions, Government of India, 1994), 100.335.
2. Isha Upanishad, 1.
3. The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi, 30.538.
5. Mahatma Gandhi, India of My Dreams (Delhi:
Rajpal and Sons, 2009), 14.
6. See Gandhi on Non-violence, ed. Thomas Merton
(New York, New Directions, 1965), 35.
7. See The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi,
27.144.
8. Mohandas Gandhi, Selected Writings of Maha
tma Gandhi (Boston: Dover, 2005), 77.
331

Niraj Kumar
he visible world is only a small part

of reality, which again is relative to an ob
server. Human beings experience only a
sliver20 Hz to 20,000 Hzof the vast world
of sounds. For bats and some other creatures it is
332
a different sonic universe. Recent explorations in

some branches of theoretical physics have led to
the formulation of the idea of a multiverse. More
over, many astrophysicists suggest that only about
five per cent of our universe comprises of visible
PB May 2014

matter. The rest is composed of dark energy and
dark matter, whose properties are elusive.
The human mind is unaware of many things
outside and inside the body. However, to an
introspective person, the universe appears to be
a graded existence from the gross to the subtle.
Sri Vidya is a subtle conception of tracing the
relationship between various levels of existence.
This vidya, science, structurally correlates the
microcosm and the macrocosm and establishes
a connection between the human body, the cos
mic body, and the geographical body.
The Science of Vibration
Indian philosophers posited the primacy of vk
or abda, sound, in their conception regarding
both inner and outer worlds. Vk is the creative
force of the universe. As the universe is in con
stant flux, each movement, big or small, produces
sound. This vk evolves in stages in the universe,
which is also reflected in the human body. The
sages observed internal sounds through deep
meditation and discovered the nature and place
of their origin. In its principal stage vk is called
par, absolute, and rests in the mldhra, root
receptacle. The second stage is madhyama, mid
dle, when it is still nebulous and unperceived.
The third is payanti, perceived, as thought, and
finally to the vaikhar, audible words we utter
and listen. The sadhaka has to follow the audible
sound to its root in thought, from there one has
to plunge into its nebulous stage and then to the
par. One thus travels from the relative and gross
to the subtle and to the causal to reach the nda,
primordial vibration, which is the path towards
the Godhead.
The nda corresponds to the ka, space,
the primordial element among the five mahbhtas, great elements. This is the vibration of
emptiness. Any mtra, phoneme, gets charged
with a bindu, point, which the tantras view as the
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29
fusion of Shiva and Shaktithe spandana, vi

bratory, principle. Ordinarily, a bindu takes half
the time taken for uttering a phoneme. But the
bindu also tapers into the subtler sound of nda,
which is equivalent to 1/16th of a phoneme. The
further subtle division of sound ends at the level
of unman, mind in extremely low vibration,
which corresponds to 1/512th of the time taken
to utter a mtra.
Since spara, touch, always produces sound,
the sages developed a paradigm for phonemic
emanation. The bja, seed, as vowels, are equated
with Shiva, and the vyajanas, consonants, as
yoni, womb, with Shakti. The vowels are bjas
since no compound word can be formed with
out them. The world evolves from a phonemic
emanation through a grosser condensation of
sound, and created through the three powers of
icch, desire, krya, action, and jnana, knowledge.
The great Kashmiri philosopher-mystic
Abhinavagupta gives a meticulous description
of phonemic emanation in his works Tantrasara
and Paratrishika-vivarana. In the infinite ka
operates the bimba, mirror-principle. The first
letter that emerges due to the inherent power
of svtantrya, freedom, from the praka
Shivais the vowel a. This is the anuttara, si
lent one. When a sees its reflection, it is filled
with nanda, joy, and emerges. It desires
more and then the third vowel e/i emerges.
This inheres as the icch-akti. Similarly, u
emerges with the inherent power of kriyakti. Now, the first three short vowelsa,
e, uhave the Sun principle and their cor
responding longer vowels, ee, have
the Soma, lunar, principle, as the latter three
rest on the former. When anuttara and nanda
vowels fuse through saghtta, friction, ae,
ai, ao, au emanate. These also correspond
to kriy-akti. When kriy-akti dissipates, all
the vowels enter back into anuttara as a bindu
333
30
Prabuddha Bharata
and form the vowel ag. The anuttara dissi

pates, visarga, into the bindu, and the vowel ah,
ends the cycle. While the anusvara as the
bindu represents the unity of Shiva and Shakti,
the visarga, represented as two dots :, signifies
the division of the ultimate Consciousness into
twoShiva and Shakti. This starts the eman
ation of the manifest universe in the form of
consonants, vyajanas.
Alphabets Corresponding to Creation
The consonants evolve in a pattern from the
kaha, guttural, to osthya, labials. These are the
five series of five alphabets, each forming a sep
arate group of spara vyajanas. These 25 conso
nants also represent the 25 tattvs, realities, of
the Samkhya philosophy. The five letters of the
ka-varga classka, kha, ga, gha, arepresent
the five mah-bhtas: pthiv, earth; p, water;
tejas, fire; vyu, wind; and ka, space, respect
ively. The next series ca-vargaca, cha, ja, jha,
astand for the five tanmtrs, subtle elem
ents, of gandha, smell; rasa, taste; rpa, sight;
spara, touch; and abda, sound. The next pentad
of a-vargaa, ha, a, ha, acorresponds
to the five karmendriyas, instruments of action
speech, hands, legs, and organs of evacuation
and generation. Thence comes the ta-vargata,
tha, da, dha, naseries corresponding to the five
janendriyas, organs of knowledgeeyes, ears,
skin, tongue, and nose. In the last pa-vargapa,
pha, ba, bha, mathe series stands for Purusha;
Prakriti; buddhi, intellect; ahamkra, ego; and
manas, mind. Even within a series, the letters are
arranged according to condensation. The fifth
element in the series corresponds to the ka
element and the first one to the pthiv element,
the second to water, the third to fire, and the
fourth to wind. Therefore, all the five series end
with nasal soundsa, a, a, na, maand are
termed as anunsikas.
334
One can find another pattern in how spara

consonants get subtler and subtler as they em
anate both laterally and vertically. The last spara
consonant is ma, and here ends the manifest uni
verse of touch. By employing Paninis pratyhra
technique1, the combination of the first spara
consonant ka and the last ma forms the word
kama. The touch produces nanda. The addition
of the vowel forms the word kma, mean
ing thereby the desire for touch in the material
universe. It is this word that lies at the heart of
the Sri Chakra, or Sri Yantra, which is the dia
gram representing Shiva and Shakti centred as
the primordial desire, the primal seed of mind.
The next series of consonants are antahstha,
comprising semivowels of the ya-varga series
ya, ra, la, va. Here the order of materiality is
reversed. La is the pthiv element, and thence
come the three alphabets and elements: va, p,
water; ra, agni, fire; and ya, vyu, wind. The al
phabets ya, ra, la, va also correspond to rga,
attachment; vidya, knowledge; kal, division;
and maya respectively. The last series of frica
tives, ma, are produced by friction. After the
three a, a, sa, the ha is the visarga. Here the
emanation of consonants ends. Ha is akin to the
two vowel visargas of and ah. These three
kinds of visarga produce nanda. In visarga, the
mtrik, syllable, rests, virma. Ha has space
as element, and this conjoins with the ya-varga
series to complete the pentad of letters.
The three letters a, a, sa also correspond
to uddha vidya, pure knowledge, Ishvara, and
Sadashiva in Abhinavaguptas scheme. Apart
from the eight series, there is the ninth series that
comprises a single compound letter: ka. This is
formed by the conjunction of two consonants:
ka, the first one, and a, the last one. By employ
ing the pratyhra technique, ka is the mani
festation of all the consonants from ka to a, or
the world of manifestation. The seed syllables of
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the mantras are derived from the proper under
standing of the mtrik.
Finally, the sages pinned the source of life to
pra. Breath is the carrier of pra. The sound
of breath was observed to open up a simple path
to the par-vk, supreme sound. The sound of
inhalation and exhalation, as sa and ha respect
ively, unlocked the secret of this phonemic
path. Sages eulogized the combination of the
two letters along with the nasal a, or ga, last
of the ka-varga, as the hasa, the swan of wis
dom, and its anadrome soham, I am That, pos
tulating the non-duality of jiva and Brahman,
the individual and cosmos. The tantras also em
phasize the conception of pra-akti circulat
ing through the mechanism of the sa and ha
sounds. Sa is the si, creation, bja, and ha is
the sahra, dissolution, bja. Sa represents the
state of the manifested universe, where balance
and harmony is established. This is also known
as the amta bja, seed of elixir. In ha the mani
fest phonemic universe finally dissolves. This
is the ultimate visarga. Hence ha is the seed
of dissolution. If sa is jiva, ha is Shiva, the ul
timate destroyer. The inhalation and exhala
tion cycle produces the continuous sound of
soham-hasa, That I am-I am That, or jiva is
Shiva. The Sri Vidya conceptualized a sequence
of the akaras, alphabets, employing these seed
syllables as the powerful Sri Mantra.
Fifteen-lettered Mantra
The pacada, fifteen-lettered, mantra has been
revealed by Acharya Shankara in the Saundarya
lahari: O Mother! The parts that combine to
form thy name (Mantra) are three groups of syl
lablesfirst, the group ka, e, , and la indicated
by the words Shiva, Shakti, Kama, and Kshiti;
second, the group ha, sa, ka, ha, and la denoted
by Ravi, Sitakirana, Smara, Hamsa, and Shakra;
and, third, the group sa, ka, and la, denoted by
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Para, Mara, and Hari, together with Hrllekha

(syllable Hrim) added at the end of each of the
three groups of syllables.2
The mantra has three kas, divisions: (i) ka,
e, , la; (ii) ha, sa, ka, ha, la; and (iii) sa, ka, la.
H is added at the end of each ka. The
first division is the vg-bhva, the second is the
kma-rja, and the last one is Shakti. These kas
correspond to the process of dissolution, main
tenance, and creation. Since the phoneme e, rep
resents the knowledge principle, the vg-bhva
has predominance of the subtle intellect and
stands for Maha Sarasvati, great goddess of wis
dom. The second division has the first letter sa,
meaning thereby wealth, and ka, for women and
other objects of desire, while ha means to go or
the attainment of these. According to Bhaskara
Rayas Varivasya-rahasya, the second division has
the preponderance of valour, wealth, women,
and fame, and hence the kma-rja also signi
fies Maha Lakshmi, great goddess of wealth. The
third division does not have any vowel or the let
ter ha, Shiva; hence it is known as the akti-ka
and signifies Maha Kali. The seed syllable h,
or hllekha, is attached in all three kas. H
is derived from the root h, which signifies de
struction of the entire universe. A subtle nda,
sound, emanates when and are pronounced
along with the bindu and its nava-nda, nine
sounds. H is also known as the nava-nda in
the Lalita Sahasranama.3
Thus, it is seen how the number nine emerges
as the predominant number in the cosmogony
and other formulations of the Sri Vidya. Three
kas also represent the three fires of time, sun,
and moon respectively. The first ka begins
from the mldhra and touches the anhata,
the second ka extends with the brilliance of
the sun from the anhata to the ja chakra, and
the third ka touches the lalta-madhya, mid
dle of the forehead, from the aja chakra. Thus
335
32
Prabuddha Bharata
a homologous relationship is drawn between the

subtle chakras within the human body and the
three divisions of the mantra.
The Varivasya-rahasya explains the mantras
first division in the following way:4 Ka signifies
kamevara, one who desires, and here it is Brah
man; the second letter e, signifies the genital
organ as it is triangular in shape; the third letter
is Shiva, who is immanent and all-sustaining.
La signifies the Earth, and h is maya. In the
second division, ha-sa-ka means smiling face,
since ka signifies the face and ha-sa is hsya,
laughter. The other half of the second division
is ka-ha-la. Ka is also the sun, ha is the moon,
and la is the eye. One who has the sun and the
moon as eyes is the ka-ha-la. The second div
ision would mean that Brahman is bliss with its
cid-rpa, form of Consciousness (verses 1379).
The third division sa-ka-la refers to jiva, as the
jiva has three states of consciousnesswak
ing, dream, and deep sleepand h is the
336
akti-bja. Therefore, the third ka will imply

that all is Brahman. This is the mah-vkyartha,
meaning of the great saying, as per Bhaskara
Raya (verses 1437).
The same text mentions about sixteen differ
ent meanings of Sri Vidya. The meaning of the
three kas is that Brahman is Shiva and also
Shakti, since the concordance exists between
Shiva and Shakti (verse 120). There are three
pairs of alphabets in the mantra if one counts
the h syllable as the mere appendix. While ka
and ha are the Shiva principles, la and sa are the
Shakti principles. The two vowels are S haktis.
Hllekha itself is the Para Brahman, as Shiva in
form of ha and Shakti in form of ra fuse and vi
brate unto the nava-nda of hkari-akti.
Another interpretation of the pacada man
tra is to connect the five Shakti triangles down
wards, which constitute the Sri Yantra with the
form of the five bhtas, elements. These bhtas
have a total of fifteen qualities: the earth element
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has the five qualities of smell, taste, sight, touch,
sound; the water element has the other four ex
cept the quality of smell; the fire element has the
other three except the quality of smell and taste;
the wind element has only touch and sound,
and the space element has only sound. These fif
teen kals, divisions, transform into time fac
tors known as tithi, days, which wax or wane
along with the Moon and are in fact digits of
the Moon. These fifteen form the fifteen-lettered
mantra which is the sound body of Goddess Lal
ita of the Sri Vidya. But it is the sixteenth digit
of the moon that is verily the moon. This oda,
sixteenth, syllable is very secret and not shared
beyond the kula, lineage.
New Revelations of the Mantras Import
While contemplating over the mantra for many
months I had a sudden flash of revelation. The
three divisions have a common pattern. H
is preceded by the pthiv tattva, earth element;
la in phonetic correspondence. Once we separ
ate la and h only nine letters are left, three in
the first ka, four in the second, and two in the
third. This is a nine-fold code hidden beneath the
fi
fteen-lettered pacadai. We have already seen
how h itself is a nine-fold sound, nava-nda
If one infers the meaning from the combination
of lapthiv bjaand hmya-bjathis
should give us the following meaning: from the
earth la to the ka ha the mya-bja pervades.
But what is this mya-bija? Ha is the ul
timate visarga of the phonemic emanation.
Ha is the ka principle. When the universe
dissolves each grosser element dissolves into
its subtler element. All bhtas finally dissolve
into ka, which is represented by ha, the last
consonant. Ra is the rhu that swallows ka.
H is the dissolution of the manifest universe,
which is nothing but a mere illusion, maya.
But the same seed also contains the power of
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33
creation in the form of topped with spandana,

vibratory power, of the bindu. Thus in each dis
solution the seed of creation remains intact and
the cyclic movement goes on. H is the con
densed potency of Shakti. Only this can express
itself in a new creation.
With this new interpretation we can decipher
the elegant wisdom of the pacada mantra
of the Sri Vidya. In the first kaka, e, , la,
hthe former three phonemes represent the
primordial powers of will, knowledge, and ac
tionicch-akti from kmarja-bja ka; jnaakti from bja e; and kriy-akti from bija . The
meaning of the ka will then be as follows: the
three powers of will, knowledge, and action per
vade everything from the earth to space and also
dissolve maya. In the second kaha, sa, ka, ha,
la, hha-sa is for hsya, the laughter or joy
principle, nanda. This nanda pervades from
ka to ha or across the manifest universe and ends
the illusion of maya. In the third kasa, ka,
la, hsa is the jiva and ka is Shiva. The verse
will mean thereby that there is absolute nonduality between jiva and Shiva, microcosm and
macrocosm, individual and cosmos, immanence
and transcendence. The realization of this nonduality dissolves maya.
Though the sixteenth letter is secret and eso
teric, the single phoneme appended with bindu
and -akti, will be the fourth or the turya stage
of the odaa, sixteenth, Sri Vidya mantra.
The Nine-fold Pattern in
the Human Perspective
There are various other nine-fold characteriza
tions. The three Shaktis, composed of the three
gunas and with three fires as her three eyes, is
of nine aspects, the graha-rpa, form of the
nine planets (verse 84). Time is divided into
nine parts ranging from ghatika, twenty-four
minutes, to abda, a year. The body is an island
337
34
Prabuddha Bharata
of nine gems, as per the Bhavana Upanishad,

comprising tvak, touch; roma, hair; and seven
dhtus, constituents.5 A body has nine orifices.
Interestingly, the human foetus grows in the
womb for nine months. Probably, the human
being that grows under the constraints of nonawareness, with the power of consciousness
slowly unfolding, explores the nine-fold pat
terns in the external and internal worlds. In
dian sages have factorized alphabets into nine
series, with ka as the last letter summing up all
the fifty alphabets. Corresponding to these fiftyone letters are fifty-one akti-phas, locations,
in the Indian geo-body spread across the sub
continent, which create an idea of a common
cultural space. The Sri Yantra, which generates
forty-three triangles through three levels of fur
cation caused by intersection of nine triangles,
has been held in awe by the sages and mystics
across the religious spectrum of the subcontin
ent. The Sri Vidya mantra and the Sri Yantra
have developed the most elaborate method to
connect time and space in a nested hierarchy
in an abstract diagram and code sequence. The
methodical system reveals to a sadhaka how
ultimately the whole universe throbs with the
three powers of will, knowledge, and action and
craves for more and more nanda, attaining in
the process the unity of all things. This scheme
highlights the interrelation of each element
with every other element and how division and
fusion, creation and dissolution, potency and
manifestation go together in the cosmos.
The powerful seed syllable g in the
odakar, sixteen syllables, is derived from
the word g. This corresponds to the sixteenth
digit of the moon also known as the digit of im
mortality. It is this connection of the number
sixteen with the eternal power of renewal that
the culture of the sixteen festivals; the sixteen
kinds of gra, erotic love; the sixteen kals,
338
arts, of proficiency; and so on became popular

in Indian culture. The word ga also denotes
two horns as well as a mountain peak. In Bud
dhist and Vedanta philosophies the concept of
the hares horns is often given as an example
of non-existence. The Sri Vidya is the highest
peak of sadhana, which also makes us realize
the fusion of existence and non-existence, cre
ation and dissolution, symbolized in the seed
syllable h. In Indian mythology Yama, god
of death, is represented with two horns. The Sri
Vidya, with its hidden seed-sound g, is the
antidote against the fear of the horned Yama.
The mantra is the ultimate code to further de
cipher the cosmic interrelationship. Sri Rama
krishna himself was a great adept in this science
after his initiation by the Bhairavi Brahmani.
He went through the entire process very quickly
astounding his guru. It was his grounding in
this vidya that allowed him to experince the
bliss of various spiritual paths. After attaining
the Advaita experience Sri Ramakrishna boldly
declared: Jiva is Shiva. This essential message
of Sri Ramakrishna was preached by Swami
Vivekananda all over the world.
P
Note and References
1. The comprehension of several letters or affixes
into one syllable are effected by combining the
first letter of a sutra with the final indicatory letter. For instance, a-a is the pratyhra of the
sutra a, e, u, a.
2. Saundarya Lahari of r ankarcrya, 32; trans.
Swami Tapasyananda (Madras: Ramakrishna
Math, 1987), 83.
3. Nrya ndarp nmarpa vivarjit;
hnkr hmat hdy heyopdeyavarjit
Acharya Shankara, Lalita Sahasranama, 70.
4. See Sri Bhaskara-Raya Makhin, Varivasya-
Rahasya, with his own commentary Prakasha,
trans. Pandit S Subrahmanya Sastri (Adyar:
Adyar Library, 1948), verses 601.
5. Bhavana Upanishad, 7.
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Ajoy Kumar Bhattacharjee
he longing in our hearts that trans

lates as attraction to objects, persons, or
places is termed love. It survives so long as it
satisfies our mental and physical needs as well as
our ego. There are innumerable explanations of
love, but whatever way we may explain or under
stand it, this noble sentiment makes us miserable
when it is selfish. Love towards worldly things
cannot be termed bhakti, however intense it may
be, because it is for transitory objects and under
instinctive compulsion. We search for bliss in
this world while being unaware that whatever
pleasure or joy we get is due to the reflection of
the light of divinity. When we become aware,
even intellectually, of this divinity, then only we
can truly enjoy the world. We slowly proceed by
moving from lower relative love to the finer and
supreme love for God. Even a little love for God
is bhakti, though we still have not completely
come out of desires for worldly wealth and hap
piness. The Bhagavadgita says: O Bharata, four
classes of people of virtuous deeds worship me;
the afflicted, the seeker of knowledge, the seeker
of wealth, and the person of knowledge.1
What Devotion Is
Sri Ramakrishna says:
God reveals Himself to a devotee who feels
drawn to Him by the combined force of these
three attractions: the attraction of worldly pos
sessions for the worldly man, the childs attrac
tion for its mother, and the husbands attraction
for the chaste wife. If one feels drawn to Him by
the combined force of these three attractions,
then through it one can attain Him.
PB May 2014
The point is, to love God even as the mother

loves her child, the chaste wife her husband,
and the worldly man his wealth. Add together
these three forces of love, these three powers of
attraction, and give it all to God. Then you will
certainly see Him.2
The great sage and supreme devotee Narada

defines bhakti as supreme love for God3 and
of the nature of immortality (3). Now, what
are the indications of a person who has attained
it? Narada says: One becomes perfect, immor
tal, and satisfied for ever (4). He also quotes
other definitions of bhakti given by sages: Ac
cording to the sage Vyasa, bhakti means attrac
tion to worship and so on (as prescribed by the
scriptures) (16); according to Garga (bhakti
is) attraction for the stories of Gods lila (17);
according to Shandilya, bhakti is devotion to
God as ones Self, and renouncing everything
antithetical to the path of bhakti (18). Finally,
Narada expresses his own view saying that love
is surrender of all activities to God and an ex
treme anguish if God is forgotten (19).
But is such a love possible? This question may
arise in our minds, so Narada asserts that indeed
there are such forms (of bhakti) (20). He gives
the example of the gopis. We also see this bhakti
in Sri Ramakrishnas life, who says: First, it [di
vine love] makes one forget the world. So intense
is ones love of God that one becomes uncon
scious of outer things. Chaitanya had this ec
static love; he took a wood for the sacred grove
of Vrindavan and the ocean for the dark waters
of the Jamuna. Second, one has no feeling of
my-ness toward the body, which is so dear to
339
Prabuddha Bharata
36
man. One wholly gets rid of the feeling that the

body is the soul.4
In the scriptures it is said that when a starv
ing person obtains food, each morsel gives him
strength, happiness, and takes away the pain of
hunger. Similarly, when someone starts loving
God three things simultaneously happen: ones
love for God increases, one becomes more and
more convinced of Gods existence, and the at
tachment towards worldly objects starts fading.
Generally, people have ekangi prema, what Sri
Ramakrishna describes as one-sided love. He
explains:
There are other kinds of love: sadharani, saman
jasa, and samartha. In the first, which is ordin
ary love, the lover seeks his own happiness; he
doesnt care whether the other person is happy
or not. That was Chandravalis attitude toward
Krishna. In the second, which is a compromise,
both seek each others happiness. This is a noble
kind of love. But the third is the highest of all.
Such a lover says to his beloved, Be happy your
self, whatever may happen to me. Radha had
this highest love. She was happy in Krishnas
happiness (766).
Bhakti, according to Swami Vivekananda,

also is of two types: the vaidhi, preparatory, and
the para, highest. In the first instance there is
the tendency to follow vidhis, rules, and after a
long time the rush of devotion that has slowly
gathered strength cannot be contained and
comes out into its higher form. This ordinary
ego that we have cannot love God, it can love
only itself. Moreover, it is very difficult to give
up such an ego; it fights and generally wins.
Therefore, Sri Ramakrishna teaches: I said to
Keshab, You must renounce your ego. Keshab
replied, If I do, how can I keep my organization
together? I said to him: How slow you are to
understand! I am not asking you to renounce
the ripe ego, the ego that makes a man feel he
340
is a servant of God or His devotee. Give up the

unripe ego, the ego that creates attachment to
woman and gold. The ego that makes a man
feel he is Gods servant, His child, is the ripe
ego. It doesnt harm one (790).
The Need to Struggle
It has been repeatedly taught by Sri Ramakrishna
that one must be sincere in ones sadhana. The
Gita gives us hope by declaring: Even if a per
son of very bad conduct worships me with onepointed devotion, he is to be considered verily
good; for he has resolved rightly. He soon be
comes possessed of a virtuous mind; he attains
everlasting peace. Do you proclaim boldly, O son
of Kunti, that my devotee does not get ruined.5
Sri Ramakrishna also says that if we take one step
towards God, God takes ten steps towards us.
We must be able to frequent good company
and avoid evil one, for the latter not only dis
turbs us but also puts doubts in our minds. Re
garding such people Sri Ramakrishna says: Well,
Keshab, I understand that your Calcutta babus
say that God does not exist. Is that true? A Cal
cutta babu wants to climb the stairs. He takes
one step, but before taking the next he cries out:
Oh, my side! My side! and drops down un
conscious. His relatives raise a hue and cry and
send for a doctor; but before the doctor arrives
the man is very likely dead. And people of such
stamina say, There is no God!6
An aspiring devotee should also be careful of
his food and other habits. There has to be a de
gree of control over ones body and mind. Simply
letting ones instincts and feelings take over is
closer to an animal existence. One has to strug
gle hard for bhakti, it does not come easily. There
is joy also in struggling, as Sri Ramakrishna says:
This is called bhajanananda, the bliss of de
votees in the worship of God. Worldly people
keep themselves engrossed in the joy of sensuous
PB May 2014

objects, of woman and gold. Through worship
devotees receive the grace of God, and then His
vision. Then they enjoy Brahmananda, the Bliss
of Brahman (497). The Gita also assures us thus:
O Partha, there is certainly no ruin for him here
or hereafter. For, no one engaged in good meets
with a deplorable end, my son.7
Sri Ramakrishna further says that as one
moves towards the east, the west falls behind.
As we start loving God sincerely, detachment
follows. Sri Ramakrishna also correctly asks us
to divert our worldly tendencies towards God.
Narada teaches: The attainment of devotion
is through the renunciation of objects of en
joyment and the attraction for them.8 Then, of
course, by continuously repeating Gods name
and singing his glories one can increase ones love
for God. Narada says that this sadhana or wor
ship should be continuous (36). But people bur
dened with many responsibilities cannot engage
in continuous repetition of Gods name. Hence
Sri Ramakrishna teaches us that while doing all
our duties a part of our mind should remember
God. He gives the example of a person with a
toothache, who goes about doing all works while
a greater part of the mind is on the pain.9 Sri
Ramakrishna also speaks about two classes of
yogis: the hidden and the known. Those who
have renounced the world are known yogis:
all recognize them. But the hidden yogis live
in the world. They are not known. They are like
the maidservant who performs her duties in the
house but whose mind is fixed on her children
in the country. They are also, as I have told you,
like the loose woman who performs her house
hold duties zealously but whose mind constantly
dwells on her lover (681).
After discussing various spiritual practices
the sage Narada declares that to achieve real
bhakti one requires the grace of a great soul.
Only a burning candle can light another. But
PB May 2014
37
it is difficult to recognize such a one. The only

indication is that a great soul has a boundless
love for all beings. Narada says that bhakti is at
tained mainly through the grace of great souls or
through a little grace of God.10 In todays world
it is difficult to seek for the grace of a great soul.
The grace of God, however, is always available.
Swami Vivekananda says:
The wind is blowing; those vessels whose sails
are unfurled catch it, and go forward on their
way, but those which have their sails furled do
not catch the wind. Is that the fault of the wind?
Is it the fault of the merciful Father, whose wind
of mercy is blowing without ceasing, day and
night, whose mercy knows no decay, is it His
fault that some of us are happy and some un
happy? We make our own destiny. His sun
shines for the weak as well as for the strong.
His wind blows for saint and sinner alike. He is
the Lord of all, the Father of all, merciful, and
impartial.11
Every soul feels love, but many a time it is

wasted on frivolous things and transitory ob
jects. We need to direct that love towards God,
who is of the nature of supreme love. This love
will then make us immortal.
P
References
1. Bhagavadgita, 7.16.
2. M, The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, trans. Swami
Nikhilananda (Chennai: Ramakrishna Math,
2002), 83.
3. Narada Bhakti Sutra, 2.
4. Gospel, 202.
6. Gospel, 1023.
9. See Gospel, 605.
11. The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda,
9 vols (Calcutta: Advaita Ashrama, 18, 1989;
9, 1997), 2.224.
341

Swami Damodarananda
(Continued from the previous issue )
ater the next day I started eastwards

and thus I was once again alone. I was told
to go only on the beaten tracks and not to
enter any side road. After covering some distance
alone I came across a brahmachari, wearing white
clothes, belonging to the Sikh religion. He had
also come to Tibet on a pilgrimage to Kailash. We
started travelling together. There were no horses,
no tents, and the land was all barren. Whatever
little food we had in the form of cheese, we ate,
but did not find any person on the way.
Towards Mount Kailash
Steadily we advanced through the Tibetan plat
eau till the sunlight disappeared. There was no
shelter to spend the night in. We had to spend
the night on the road itself. We separately spread
out sheets on the ground and on three sides ar
ranged stones about two feet high and covered
that with another sheet and weighted it down
with some more stones. Somehow we tried to
sleep in that makeshift tent, but we could not
because of the cold and howling winds. We
were lucky that no pack of wolves or wild dogs
342
attacked us at night. We were told that if such

packs attack, they eat humans too.
Getting up early we again started walking
eastwards towards our destination: the holy
Manasarovar and Kailash.
Once, when I was walking alone, I saw a Ti
betan shepherd with about two hundred sheep
and goats. I thought of obtaining food from
him to eat. I called out from a distance and he
heard me. His flock of sheep were all sleeping.
I cried out loudly: Khikhi (dogdog) in Ti
betan. These dogs accompany shepherds to pro
tect the sheep from packs of wolves. I wanted
him to control his big sheepdog. Suddenly the
big sheepdog ran towards me. I was helpless as
I did not have a stick. The dog attacked me and
as I fell, bit me on my thigh and ran away. My
clothes were torn and luckily the bite was not
deep. The dog must have been old with worn
out teeth. Here my firstaid kit and knowledge
of medicines helped for treating myself under
these adverse circumstances. Though I did not
have any untoward incident due to this dog bite,
later, when I returned to India, at our Kishanpur
PB May 2014

centre I had to take thirteen injections around
my stomach to counter the dogs bite.
Undeterred by the bite I continued my jour
ney towards my destination. The Sikh brah
machari who accompanied me in the beginning
disappeared somewhere along the way.
As I walked on a sunny day, I quickly became
very tired. Feeling very thirsty I stopped at a house
and asked for buttermilk. As I waited the owner
of the house went inside and brought out a leather
bag. It looked like the leather bag that is used for
carrying and distributing water in arid places.
The man shook the bag before opening it. As he
was opening it there was a hissing sound, like one
hears when aerated cold drink bottles are opened.
He poured the buttermilk into my drinking vessel.
I found in it many hairs of yak or goats floating on
the surface. I picked and threw them out. As I was
about to drink it, a rancid smell was coming out
of the buttermilk. Under normal circumstances
I would not have consumed such foul-smelling
buttermilk. But as I was very tired and thirsty, I
forced myself to drink it. I closed my nostrils with
my fingers and drank that without demur.
Here I was reminded of a Sanskrit saying at
tributed to sage Vishvamitra: Jivitam maranat
shreya, jivana dharmam avapnuyat; life is better
than death, because life leads to dharma.1 There
was an incident in the sages life when he was
travelling through a drought-ridden country
side. Vishvamitra searched in vain for food but
found nothing. Finally, he saw a pariahs house
and begged for food. The pariah did not have
anything but rotten meat, which was dishonour
able to offer to a sage, so he said that there was
no food in his house. Vishvamitra then stealth
ily broke into the pariahs house and found the
rotten meat. He ate it to satisfy his hunger and
thus live.
Slowly and steadily I was nearing the holy Ma
nasarovar. As evening approached I fortunately
PB May 2014
39
found a tent to spend the night. There were one

or two Indians in the tentperhaps they were
pilgrims. They too wanted to bathe in the holy
waters and proceed to Kailash.
The following morning, after our ablutions
and breakfast, we moved towards the lake. The
huge lake was located on the vast Tibetan Plateau
with the Himalayan ranges on the southern hori
zon. We soon arrived at the banks of the Mana
sarovar. The sun was very bright, which made the
weather warm. The water was crystal clear. Not
only did I take a holy dip but I swam as well. As
I swam, I saw two or three big fish, three or four
feet long, circling around me in a very friendly
way. Perhaps they were accustomed to do so with
other pilgrims as well in this clear warm water.
We saw thousands of water-birds of varying col
ours and sizes flying around and diving into the
lake to catch fish! Of course, in winter this huge
lake will be frozen, the birds will be gone, and the
fish survive beneath a thick layer of ice.
The holy bath and swim in the hot sun made
me feel very fresh. I continued walking towards
Kailash.
Jyoti-darshan of Kailash
I moved towards my destination under a beauti
ful golden sun. The sunrays over Mount Kailash
had turned the mountain into a huge mass of
reddish gold. As the sun rose higher, the colours
kept changing: first golden, then bright yellow
ish, and lastly silvery. The whole scene was en
chanting and difficult to describe in words. It is
still shining in my mind, whenever I happen to
think about that wondrously enchanting divine
darshan. Of the whole yatra, those few hours of
holinessfrom about 5 to 10 a.m.on a clear
bright sky, the jyoti, light, of reddish, yellowish,
and silvery white was the highest fulfilment of
my yatra. I was still, enraptured. There was no
mountain, only the divine jyoti mingling with
343
Prabuddha Bharata
40
universal space. Antarjyoti bahirjyoti pratyag

jyoti paratparah jyotir jyotih svayam jyoti atma
jyoti shivosmi aham; light inside, light outside,
light at the core within that is higher than the
highest, light of all lights and selfeffulgent, the
light that is the Atman, I am that Shiva.
Tibetans are also devoted to Kailash. Inter
mittently, some of them do shashtanga, or dan
davat, full prostrations, to the mount while
circumambulating the holy place.
On the first day I ventured out to do pradak
shina, circumambulation, of Mount Kailash,
when a heavy downpour began. Freezing water
coming from the northern icecapped mountains
of Tibet covered the pradakshina path, and a cold
biting wind began to blow. It was around 5 p.m.
when dark rainbearing clouds were hovering
above and the water level on the path increased
to waistdeep flowing at great speed, making it im
possible to proceed further. There was a hailstorm
as well, with big hailstones falling on my umbrella.

Due to the cold wind, water, and hail I was nearly
frozen. Only my chest felt warm. All the while I
was chanting within: Om Namah Shivaya Sri Ma
Ramakrishnaya Namah. I thought that if I was
going to have my final fall before death, it should
be with this holy mantra on my lips.
At this juncture I saw a sadhu laden with
some luggage, which he could not manage to
hold due to his tottering gait. I saw his belong
ings being swept away in the current. And a little
later I did not see the sadhu either; the forceful
current must have carried him away as an offer
ing to Shiva. For centuries many such untoward
incidents have taken place, causing death during
this arduous pilgrimage. It was the sheer grace
of God that I could face all those difficulties and
still survive. My feet became unsteady due to the
force of the freezing water, strong winds, and
weight of my meagre belongings. I was literally
Satellite view of Mount Kailash and Lakes Manasarovar (left) and Rakshastal (right)
Mount Kailash
Old Chiu Gompa perched on a hill with Mount Kailash behind
tottering and apprehensive of the end of my

earthly life, amidst these holy surroundings. I
kept chanting the mantra continuously so that if
my breath would stop, it would end with Gods
name. I slowly moved on with great difficulty as
I had to find some shelter for the night.
As I proceeded slowly, around 6.30 p.m. there
was a severe hailstorm. I thought my umbrella
would be torn due to hailstones of the size of
amalakis, myrobalans, constantly falling from
above. Fortunately nothing of that sort hap
pened. After about two hours of rain and hail
the downpour slowed and then stopped.
Night in a Buddhist Monastery
Around 7 p.m. I found, luckily, a Buddhist mon
astery on the way, which I approached with the
hope of finding shelter and food for the night. In
the dim light of the monastery I found that my
lower limbs had become white due to the con
stant walking in the freezing water for a couple
of hours or more. The upper layer of my skin
was white and deadened, and by the next day
PB May 2014
it peeled off and was replaced by a new layer of

skin. I had only a pair of canvas shoes.
The monastery was one big hall without sep
arate rooms. There were small holes in the walls
for ventilation. In the centre there was a fire
burning continuously. A big kettle was mounted
on a tripod stand, in which salted jungle tea was
constantly boiling for the inmates as well as the
guests. The upper portion of the monastery was
filled with black soot due to the constant burn
ing of firewood. Often this black soot would
turn into a sticky viscous glob and fall on the
blankets and clothes of the guests and resident
monks, though the locals did not worry much
about thiswhen one pulled at the glob from
the clothes it would stick to ones fingers.
The Lamas were happy to see an Indian
monk arriving at that odd hour and made me
feel welcome and happy. Their evening prayers
were going on with chanting accompanied by
the clanging of cymbals. I finished my supper
by eating cottage cheese given by them and the
chhatu powder with salt I had with me.
345
42
Prabuddha Bharata
It was strange to see lads five or ten years old,

as well as some older, admitted to the monastery.
There were more young children than adults in
monastic garbs. On enquiry it was revealed that
in Tibetan society there were more males than
females. One or two older boys of the family get
married and the younger ones go to a monastery.
No doubt the low number of females was the
reason of polyandry in this society.
I was exhausted from walking the whole day
and for those two hours in that cold and rain.
After supper I lay down, covered myself with
a blanket, and slept like a log. By divine grace
I found this only shelter around Kailash. Had
it not been for this, I should have been walk
ing around the sacred mountain throughout the
night in wet clothes. I cannot imagine the con
sequences, nor can you.
I got up early in the morning feeling fully
refreshed. Had hot salted tea, cottage cheese,
and yak butter for breakfast and started walk
ing again under the bright sun around Kailash.
By noon on the second day I had covered about
three-fourths of the distance of circumambula
tion. I reached Gauri-Kund to the east of the
mountain. I sprinkled a little holy water on my
head as the Gauri-Kund was filled from the gla
cier water, which melted into the kund, pond.
The Return Journey
On the way back to India I was led forwards by
some Indian tradesmen. The Hoti pass, which
is about 19,000 feet, is the shortest and steepest
way to cross over to India. One has to be a brave
heart to climb up the mountains for several kilo
metres. The tradesmen had other work to do so
they left me at this point, advising me to keep
climbing up and not stop even if I felt tired, for
I may sleep off forever in that cold.
On top of the mountain I saw huge vultures
sitting there and looking at me. It seems that
346
sometimes travellers, along with their animals,

are trapped for hours together by sudden snow
storms. They often freeze and die, and the vul
tures feed on their carcasses. I saw human hair
and skeletons of large and small animals scat
tered around. By the grace of Sri Guru Maha
raj the sky was clear with bright sunlight; I was
able to cross over safely. Then I climbed down
towards India.
I faced a test here. At some distance a Ti
betan armed with a gun was waiting to rob In
dian pilgrims of their valuables. Fortunately I
did not have anything worthwhile and I was
in a monks garb. He let me pass. Slowly, pro
ceeding with apprehension, I saw his tent house
where a woman was serving tea. I drank hot
tea and continued my journey. I halted for the
nights at chattis, located every ten to fifteen
kilometres. These chattis were lice-infested and
my clothes caught the lice too.
Thus, after a week or so, I finally reached
Badrinath, where I had a hot bath in the taptakunda. Due to the cold I had not bathed
for several weeks. The lice infestation in my
clothes and body was removed by the hot bath.
I washed my clothes and blankets too. I stayed
at Badrinath for some more time, doing tapasya
in a kutia till October 1952. Winter was fast ap
proaching, and as proper shelter and food ar
rangements were not met, I decided to descend
from the mountains. I walked down all the way
to Rishikesh and then to Haridwar to complete
my pilgrimage.
These experiences happened about sixty years
ago, yet after all this time they are fresh, vivid, in
spiring, and fortifying. This pilgrimage, which I
shared with you, drastically changed my inner
and outer life for the better.
P
Reference
1. Mahabharata, 12.139.61.
PB May 2014
The Many-splendoured
Vivekanandas Vedanta
Dr M Sivaramkrishna
(Continued from the previous issue)
ssessing the role of religion in other

areas is a risky job. Either religion is tot
ally ignored or it is irrationally used in
a fundamentalist way. Both extremes have been
tempered by Vivekananda when he asked the
question: Have you seen God?40the accent
is on you. Is it an experience you truly have? The
answer Sri Ramakrishna gave dissolved doubts
that fall into two categories: Yes, it is an au
thentic personal experience, anubhava, direct,
first-hand experience, not mere bhava, secondhand experience.
Retaining Religion as
the Core of all Agenda
The God question, as they call it now, was raised
by Vivekananda himself as early as his student
days. But then religion was also a total spectrum
of human existence. As J T F Jordens has tersely
put it: The reform he [Vivekananda] preached
passionately was to be evolutionary, inspired by
Hindu religious conviction that man is God,
reaching out to the root of all evils, the condi
tion of the poor.41 This campaign required the
correlation of various texts, thematic texts with
agenda covering the entire spectrum of human
existence, whose final end and purpose is to
achieve the unitive knowledge of the Godhead
(ibid.). Hence the plurality of areas and themes
that constitutes Vivekanandas works.
Vivekananda literature is incredibly inclusive,
wide-ranging, almost encyclopaedic. Few areas
PB May 2014
escape his attention. And, surprisingly, what

Derrida, the high-priest of postmodernist de
construction, tells us about a text applies, by and
large, to Vivekanandas plurality of texts. What I
call text, says Derrida, implies all its structures
called real, economic, historical, socio-
institutional, in short: all possible referents.42
This does not mean, Derrida cautions, that all
referents are suspended, denied or enclosed in a
book. It does mean that every referent and all
reality has the structure of a diffrantial trace
and that one cannot refer to this real except in
an interpretative experience. The latter neither
yields meaning nor assumes it except in a move
ment of diffrantial referring (ibid.). Derridas
views are certainly relevant hermeneutic tools
to explore Vivekanandas Complete Works as a
whole. But it is also necessary to look beyond
language as a sign to its inner sources and their
dynamic processes of manifestation.
So far cognizance has not been taken as one,
somewhat, persistent tendency. Scholars admit
that Swamijis advancement of interfaith har
mony is unquestionable, though subtly, the
scholars argue, he privileges Hinduism. The ar
guments used to depend heavily on construc
tion process, and in this case this process linked
to the diehard idea of Orient and Oriental
ism in the wake of Edward Said. Whatever the
efficacy and spread of these hypotheses, it is
somewhat sickening to argue that a faith is con
structed. Yes, deconstruction itself can construct
347
Parivrajaka, by Isha Mahammad
348
Vivekananda, Women Power,

and the Arts
These days we are talking about hard power
and soft power as tools to acquire the stature
of a superpower. Soft power includes cultural
heritage and its aggressive propagation as one
of its constituents. One would say that Shakti,
the Divine Feminine, has its glorious autono
mous manifestation in Sri Sarada Devi, the Holy
Mother. The most striking manifestation of the
power is the establishment of Sri Sarada Math,
with the Holy Mother as the eternal source of
PB May 2014
image: oil on c anvas / ramakrishna mission institute of culture
an argumentsuppose the argument advanced

has no chance of having a counter to such argu
ments in an atmosphere where there is explicit
or implicit hegemony in the diffusion of texts.
Some arguments go to the extent of saying that
it remains an anachronism to project the notion
of Hinduism as it is commonly understood into
precolonial Indian history. Before this unification
began under imperial rule and consolidated by
the Independence of 1947, it makes no sense to
talk of an Indian nation, nor of a religion called
Hinduism that might be taken to represent the
belief system of the Hindu people.43 It is unfair
to quote at random. But it is notions such as these
that create not only food to interested scholars
but also anguish to those who are told they are
no nation at all until the British came and that
they had no unified Hindu religion. It is as if the
people of India never knew how to eat or how to
do other related things! Thanks to the monopoly
that Western scholars enjoy in the worldwide dif
fusion of their texts, the voice of those who argue
against those pet notions can never be heard.
Anyway, what kind of Renaissance did

Vivekananda envisage? Certainly not the
one initiated by, they say, Isaac Newton, who
banished God from the centre, or Charles
Darwin, who dispensed with humans as the
evolutionary peak, or Sigmund Freud, whose
psyche arrived at the notion of infantile inse
curity of the child as responsible for project
ing a deity who gives security.
Therefore, should the awakening as initi
ated by Vivekananda be understood solely in
terms of the Western Renaissance paradigm
while scholars go on writing about the con
structions of Hinduism? The answer is yes,
they can. At least they, in this way, are noticing
Vivekananda, which was not the case a few
decades ago. Whether it is constructed or in
vented, Ramakrishna and Vivekananda have
neither restored nor renewed but practised the
tenets of the faith to show their validity. All the
three, the Newtonian, Darwinian, and Freudian
hypotheses are, surprisingly, inclusive of the basic
sutras of Ramakrishna-Vedanta: (i) The aim of
life is God-realization, (ii) mind is all, (iii) work is
means not an end, and (iv) as many faiths, so many
paths. The implications are beyond the purview of
this paper. These four sutras are central to the her
meneutics of Ramakrishna-Vivekananda-Vedanta.

strength. Moreover, this institution enjoys abso
lute autonomy. Swamiji himself declared: Our
right of interference is limited entirely to giving
education. Women must be put in a position to
solve their own problems in their own way. No
one can or ought to do this for them. And our
Indian women are as capable of it as any in the
world.44 The Sarada Order of nuns has its coun
terpart in the West too. And let us not forget
the fact that it is American women admirers of
Swamiji who did tremendous work in India to
stabilize the nascent Ramakrishna Order.
For the young there is the Ramakrishna Mis
sion Vivekananda University and other edu
cational centres. Perhaps one may also think
of initiating a plan for the establishment of a
Ma Sarada university for women; its potential,
considering the achievement of the various Sri
Sarada Math centres, is bound to be immense.
When a figure like Vivekananda appears,
almost all areas of human creativity are invig
orated. In this area there is a comprehensive
study of the aesthetics of Swamiji by Mohit
Chakravarti. This is a meticulously documented
and argued study. A comparable study is by Gwi
lym Beckerlegge, with focus on Swamiji and the
celebrated Raja Ravi Varma. This is a very help
ful exploration to understand Vivekanandas in
sights regarding the aesthetics of painting. This
area requires further full-length study.
In literature Swamijis poems have received
much academic attention, but the focus seems
to be only on the mystical dimension. As poetry
it needs much more intensive study. It is again
in American fiction that we find the impact of
Swamiji. Two instances deserve special mention.
J D Salinger, the celebrated author of the novel
Catcher in the Rye, used to be a frequent visitor
to the New York Vedanta Center when Swami
Nikhilananda was its head. Salinger felt the irre
sistible impact of the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna.45
PB May 2014
45
And the reference to Swamiji comes through the

fictional character called Seymour Glass, who de
scribes Swamiji as: One of the most exciting, ori
ginal and best-equipped giants of this century.
[Seymour later stated:] My personal sympathy for
him will never be exhausted as long as I live, mark
my words, I would easily give ten years of my life,
possibly more, if I could have shaken his hand or
at least had a brisk, respectful hello on some busy
street in Calcutta or elsewhere.46
Salinger, we learn, was also present at the
Birth Centenary Celebrations in the New York
Vedanta Center. U Thant, Secretary General
of the United Nations at that time, spoke on
Swamiji. And Salinger was positioned at the
foremost banquet table almost directly in front
of the podium. Now there is also the delightful
coincidence that Slawenski spoke recently on 29
July 2012 at the 150th birthday celebrations of
Swamiji. He told the audience
about Salingers visit to Thousand Island Park in
the early 1950s to attend Swami Nikhilanandas
seminar retreats at the Vivekananda Cottage,
and the love of the shrine at the Vivekananda
Cottage. The much beloved writer of Catcher
in the Rye and other works was able to subtly in
corporate many Vedantic ideas into his stories.
Mr Slawenski [himself ] was greatly moved by
his visit to Thousand Island Park and the warm
reception he received from the community. Not
surprisingly, after hearing his lecture many T I
Park neighbours visited Vivekananda Cottage
to experience the holy atmosphere.47
Finally, I would also like to mention the inter

esting comparative study of Herman Melvilles
Moby Dick and Swamijis ideas. This is a doc
toral work focusing on the quest for spirituality
with reference to the two outstanding celebri
ties, Herman Melville and Swami Vivekananda,
which needs to be extended to further studies of
such a comparative nature.48
349
46
Prabuddha Bharata
Swamijis Vedanta
Belongs to all Nations
It is time for assertion of Swamijis global signifi
cance without any self-consciousness. It is a new
awakening, the understanding of which tran
scends, but is inclusive of, all those existing tools
of renaissance, colonial hangovers, postmodern
ist deconstructionism, the apologetics of religion
for atheists, and so on. These are games we play
alongside irrefutable awareness of the eternal
divine play of the great Master and his Naren.
Language games are fascinating so long as we do
not fall into the traps they so enticingly set. They
should all be subordinated to intellectual levels,
relevant but inadequate.
In his magnificent pictorial biography of
Swamiji, Swami Chetanananda says: Human
consciousness, human nature, and the asser
tion for freedom are always the same: many
great thinkers of the world have dreamt of and
taught this essential unity. Vivekananda experi
enced that ancient Vedantic truth of unity in
diversity; as a result his life became the meet
ing point of the ancient and the modern, the
East and the West.49 This is an admitted fact
increasingly being extended to global relevance.
One such significant point is made by Andrew
Nicholson in a very balanced, recent study of
Hinduism: Contemporary Hinduism also con
tains universalizing, globalizing tendencies: the
global Hinduism of the heirs of Radha krishnan
[sic] and Vivekananda is one that understands
philosophical truths as a legacy that belongs to
all nations equally.50 The philosophy of Viveka
nanda, however, is holistic and not the product
of academic engagements.
It is this holistic hermeneutics that needs fo
cusing. The contemporary criseseconomic,
social, and politicalare as much a part as the
attempts to contain them. Vivekanandas phil
osophy of practical Vedanta is based on taming
350
excesses, not terminating totally the natural

phenomena of an iniquity. Limits to poverty
yes, but not total annihilation. It is inconceiv
able. This is a fact we cannot shy away from. It is
in identifying these aspects that we work out a
new hermeneutics of Vivekananda-Vedanta. The
basic tool seems to be darshan, perception, and
not just philosophy as love of wisdompercep
tion of the world as it is. The various celebrations
connected with the 150th birth anniversary of
this cyclonic monk could also be a tsunami
that engulfs the temporal misperceptions and
restores the timeless to the limitless shores of
human consciousness aspiring for and realizing
potential divinity.
P
References
40. Swami Vivekananda in the West: New Discoveries, 1.6.
41. J T F Jordens, Hindu Religion and Reform in
British India, A Cultural History of India, ed. A
L Basham (Delhi: Oxford, 2010), 378.
42. Quoted in Simon Critchley, The Ethics of Deconstruction: Derrida and Levinas (Delhi: Motilal
Banarsidass, 1999), 39.
43. Richard King, Orientalism and Religion: Postcolonial Theory, India and the Mystic East (New
York: Routledge, 2013), 107.
44. Complete Works, 5.22930.
45. See Kenneth Slawenski, J D Salinger: A Life
Raised High (Chennai: Tramquebar, 2011), 235
and 340.
46. Western Admirers of Ramakrishna and His Disciples, 6278.
47. Special Report, Celebrations at the Thousand
Island Park, Vedanta Kesari, 99/10 (October,
2012), 396.
48. Joseph Lordislaus, The Quest for Spirituality
in Herman Melville and Swami Vivekananda
(Bangalore: Asian Trading Corporation), 2001.
4
9. Swami Chetanananda, Vivekananda Meets East
and West: A Pictorial Biography (St Louis: Vedanta Society of St Louis, 2007), viii.
50. Andrew J Nicholson, Hinduism: Philosophy
and Identity in Indian Intellectual History (New
York: Columbia University, 2011), 204.
PB May 2014
47
ramakrishna mission institute of culture
Untitled, by Chandana Bangal
PB May 2014
351
Eternal Words
Swami Adbhutananda
Compiled by Swami Siddhananda; translated by Swami Sarvadevananda
(Continued from the previous issue)
ome special people are born with tre

mendous power; they are capable of leading
many people. They are born leaders. Again,
there are others who cannot even walk on their
own strength and who need help from others.
One can see that the leaders have exhibited such
levels of effort from their early childhood. This is
the rule of nature. From early childhood nature
supplies the tendency and power of work to those
who are destined to be leaders. This can be under
stood if we look at the lives of great people.
All sufferings come to an end when one
merges in God. All doubts are destroyed. But
that is not an easy matter. If by Gods grace, one
attains samadhi by performing sadhana, only by
that samadhi-yoga can one merge in God. Until
one can remain united with God in this undif
ferentiated state, suffering and doubt do not go.
If one meditates in an open space, the mind
becomes broad. Narrow-mindedness goes away.
A narrow-minded attitude creates obstacles on
the spiritual path. Where there is narrowness,
God does not manifest. He is open; he is infinite.
There is no narrowness in God. The Masters ad
vice was renounce the narrow-minded attitude.
A monk should not even smell a flower. Do
you know why this is said? This is said lest some
desire for sense enjoyment arise from smelling
the flower. Similarly, it is said that a brahmachari
should not gaze upon the effulgent charm of
the full moon at night. This has its meaning.
The reason is that the desire for sense enjoyment
arises and makes the mind restless. Some gurus
352
underwent such extensive hardship. Of course,

that is not the opinion of all. If one looks at
the beauty of creation, one is reminded of the
Creator. Moreover, one thinks how beautiful is
God! Intense desire arises in ones heart to see
him. The truth of the matter is this: what one
feels to be good, one tells everyone else to do the
same. This is human nature. Moreover, as is ones
attitude, so will be ones gain.
So long one holds a divisive attitude, so long
does factionalism remain. It wont go until the
attitude creating such divisions is destroyed. The
divisive attitude will not go until one attains
knowledge. Not ordinary knowledge, but the
absolute non-dual knowledge is required. That
divisive understanding is the strongest upadhi,
limiting adjunct. When this limitation is des
troyed, a person attains divine Consciousness.
When that Consciousness awakens, embodied
beings, the universe, and all else appear to be full
of Consciousness; all names and forms dissolve
in that one Consciousness. Who then remains to
fight against the different dogmas and doctrines?
One will then see that everything is true. All of
thisthe embodied beings and whatever else
exists in the worldis only the diverse manifest
ations of that one supreme Brahman. Everything
is true. How is it then that people say: Brah
man alone is real, the world is unreal? That is
for the convenience of spiritual practices. If that
concept is not posited, the mind will not give
up its attachment to sense objects nor rest in
Brahman. Then, is the statement false? No, it is
PB May 2014
Eternal Words
not. Brahman is more real in comparison to this
world and worldliness. This world is surely un
real as compared to the Truth.
When one realizes God there is only divine
bliss. What a bliss that is can never be expressed
in words! That is the subject of experience. It
is an ocean of joy. One who has discovered its
whereabouts is also filled with joy. What more
shall I say about that! Without sadhana this can
not be comprehended.
If one seeks sense enjoyment and happiness,
one cannot attain dharma. Those two things can
not stay together. Mental renunciation and ex
ternal enjoymentone may talk of thisbut it
is very difficult to put it into action. Such a life is
very rarely found. If one can succeed in that, let
him do so. Why will others object? Likewise, one
should not disturb those who cannot accomplish
that by putting the ideal before them. Does your
nature tally with everyone elses nature? Allow
everyone to move according to his or her own
nature. Let none create obstacles for others.
How many people will have the good fortune
to become intoxicated with God-consciousness?
People get intoxicated by smoking hemp and
drinking wine. So long as they drink, they get a
little joyjust that much. If but once they have
the good fortune to get intoxicated with Godconsciousness, their intoxication will never leave
them and their joy will never end. He who at
tains such intoxication will have no need of any
other kind of intoxication.
God is very near. He is nearer than the near.
But such is Gods maya that it seems he is far
away. As soon as God, by his grace, removes
maya, his manifestation will instantly surround
you; you will be able to see God inside and out
side of you. But it depends on his grace.
Where Rama is there is aram, comfort
peace. Where Rama is not, there is no comfort
at all. Where there is Rama there is no kama,
PB May 2014
49
desire. Where there is kama, there is no Rama.

Never are these two conjoined in one place, just
as sunlight and darkness cannot remain together.
Kama is a longing. Where there is overpowering
desire, there is no peace or tranquillity; Rama
also seems to be absent there. If you want Rama,
give up kama. As soon as you give up kama, you
will attain Rama.
God gave power to both Ravana and Vibhi
shana. But Ravana directed this power in the
wrong direction, which brought about his de
struction, whereas Vibhishana directed this
power in the right direction, which gave him
shelter in God and brought about his salvation.
Miscellaneous
One should do exactly as much as God has given
one the power to do; let one not put on a show
for others. It is bad to make a show for people.
God supplies much more power and capability
if one attempts to do his best.
Do devotees and monks grow on trees? They
are born among people. Do not lack enthusiasm;
be up and doing with your heart and soul.
It is better to have an unmarried life than a
worldly life. If at some point of time renunci
ation comes, the worldly person cannot easily
give up attachment for children and others and
get out, whereas an unmarried person can.
God becomes favourable to one as soon as
one develops the right understanding. If ones
understanding is mean, one falls out of Gods
favour. If one does not obey Gods dictates, one
will surely face a bad fate.
There is a power by which one can be happy
oneself and make others happy. This is divine
power. Moreover, that which brings misery to
oneself and to others is surely evil power.
Busy with lust and greed day and night how
will people understand dharma? Those who live
in this world earning money with much labour,
353
50
Prabuddha Bharata
doing charity and the like, offering worship,

performing other rituals to God, and discuss
ing topics about God are really praiseworthy.
They are the children of God. One who, living
a family life, can spend ones days remembering
and meditating on God is extremely worthy of
praise. However, it becomes very convenient for
one who performs all family duties if one thinks
that this world belongs to God alone.
He who wants God will also respect great
souls like Dattatreya, Buddha, Shankaracharya,
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, and others because they
are people of great wisdom, they attained the
vision of God. If one follows them and shows
them love and respect, ones jealousy and hatred
will go away, sufferings will be removed and one
Buddha, by Kalipada Ghosal
PB May 2014
image: watercolour (wash) / ramakrishna mission institute of culture
will be able to realize God. It will surely happen

to one who is ready. One who wants God cannot
but call upon him. Why will they call upon God
if they do not want God?
If you cannot educate yourself closely ob
serving the lives of people of great renunci
ation, then all of your studies and education
are utterly meaningless. It is very bad to live a
life that has no goal. It is extremely necessary
for a person to have some ideal or other. One
cannot prosper without any goal. One should
fix a target and then engage in that act with all
sincerity. Onces greatness is according to the
nobility of ones ideal.
People create doctrines and dogmas. God is
beyond all such opinions and views.
One needs to be honest by all means. It
doesnt matter in the least what spiritual discip
lines one observes.
The sentiments of those who follow right
eousness and want to see God will be totally dif
ferent. There is a class of people who will not
obey even if you tell them what is right; they
will instead follow their own fancy. They will suf
fer themselves and cause others to suffer as well.
Such persons are very tamasic.
It is a great sin to cause suffering to others. As
much as you can, by Gods grace, try to remove
their sufferings and give them peace.
How many people engage themselves in
studies with the idea that it will help them real
ize God? One who does so is indeed fortunate.
Others obtain education to achieve wealth and
prestige. This is the only motivation. That is why
such education is called money-earning educa
tion. One cannot realize God by such education.
A woman brought her dead son to Buddha
and requested him to bring the child back to
life. She had faith that Buddha could do so if he
wished. Hearing her words, Buddha said: You
will have to do one task: bring me some black
Eternal Words
sesame seeds in whose house no one has ever
died. If you bring those black sesame seeds, I shall
bring your son back to life. The woman went to
many homes, but everyone told her: Someone in
my family has died. Having thus gone to many
homes, she returned to Buddha and told him:
I could find not even one home where no one
died. Buddha then made her understand: Not
only your son has died; this happens in every
ones home! That woman could then understand
and she became a disciple of Buddha. As you
understand your own suffering, try to under
stand the sufferings of others as well. People suf
fer because they do not understand others pain.
Moreover, becoming aware of the suffering of
others, try to remove it. Try to do this in propor
tion to the power God has given you. Buddhas
heart cried for humanity. He renounced every
thing for that reason. Can you do that? But do
as much as you can and let there be no duplicity
in that. Serving people in this manner, one will
gradually be able to understand who God is.
Perform good deeds in order to bring welfare
to oneself. Holy company, seeing the holy images
of Goddo all these go in vain? To serve pa
tients, to feed and clothe the needythese are
indeed true dharma. Is there any greater dharma
than this?
The words of the guru are of primary import
ance. By doing sadhana in accordance with the
instructions of the guru, the truth will be re
vealed. The Gita contains the words of God; one
should study the Gita.
Right understanding is necessary. Devotion
and faith in God will surely arise in one who is
endowed with right understanding. How very
fortunate is the one who is free of doubts! If one
calls upon God in right earnestness, the spirit of
selflessness will surely come. If one performs hon
est work, that work will go on and on; but work
done by fraudulent means will never survive.
PB May 2014
51
Gods grace can be understood where there

is guilelessness. On account of ones crooked
thinking and lack of simplicity, one will suffer
and also cause others to suffer by giving twenty
meanings to one simple statement. God loves a
guileless person. As a result of japa and medita
tion people become simple.
How many people are living on alms; does
every one of them make progress? The sadhus
beg not merely out of a need to fill their stomachs
but for the sake of God-realization. There are
many great souls among the householders also.
It is a great sin to irritate even one person in
this world.
If one must be jealous, it is better to be jeal
ous of God. Why has he blessed such and such a
person and not me? This type of jealousy is good.
Who else is a pundit? One who, after com
pleting ones studies, engages in hymns and
praises, offers prayers, and tells ones sufferings
to God is a true pundit. One who has realized
God is a true pundit!
Who is fortunate? That devotee who is trying
to understand God.
What does it matter if people say someone is
great or small? They are surely great whom God
makes great.
Can jealousy exist where there is dharma?
Peace reigns there.
You will get peace by conversing with a per
son who is trying to realize God.
One who takes the vows of sannyasa in right
earnest will engender fearlessness in others; one
does not want the love of anyone else but God.
Draupadi had resolved to feed people. Sri
Krishna said: My dear, please feed that person.
Draupadi made great arrangements to do so.
Thereafter, as soon as the person sat to eat, the
sound of conchs and bells was heard. There was no
particular order in the way the person ate. He did
not eat one dish after another. Sometimes he was
355
52
Prabuddha Bharata
eating this, sometimes that. Seeing this, Draupadi

thought: this person is such that he does not even
know how to eat! As soon as she thought that, the
sounds of the conch and bell stopped. Then Sri
Krishna asked Draupadi: Could you tell me what
you were thinking? Why have the sounds of the
conchs and bells stopped? Then Draupadi related
her thoughts. Sri Krishna said: You have commit
ted a great injustice! Was his mind at all on eat
ing? His mind was on me! Draupadi learned a
great lesson: let your ego never come up!
It is essential for brothers to love each other.
If people stay together, arguments are inevitable.
It is very bad to harbour those resentments in
ones mind. The Master used to say: The anger
of good people is like a mark on water, meaning
that it lasts only for a moment.
Whether you recognize an avatara or not,
where will his divine qualities go? He is full of
bliss. He is the Master of this universe, Lord of
the three worlds. He has taken a human form.
Avataras are powerful beings. Being raised in a
pastoral family, Sri Krishna showed that there
is no harm even if God is born in a high or low
family. Oh, do not find any fault in that.
Take caution with these four: a sadhu, a king,
a river, and fire. It is impossible to predict their
mood from one moment to the next.
One should perform action without expect
ing any results. Miraculous powers come if one
performs action with desire. The Master hated
miraculous powers. Such is the evil of miracles
that it makes a person impure.
Few women attain to the highest knowledge.
We get entangled in maya at the end while going
to give instructions to them. Be careful! They
will make an exaggerated show of renunciation
if they have only one sixteenth of that in their
heart. There are many Savitris also. The [right
eous] husband is verily a womans guru. What is
the need of going to any other place?
356
Even Gods words may fail, but if one can be

like Bhishma, his words cannot fail. Sri Krishna
said: I will not hold any weapon. Yet for the
sake of Bhishma, he held a weapon, breaking
his own promise. Then, why was God bound
to Bhishma? This is because Bhishma was not
ungrateful. He was ready to give up his life for
the one from whom he used to get his meals.
One will support the person who feeds him.
Bhishma knew what Duryodhana was. Yet, he
even fought with the Pandavas taking Duryo
dhanas side since he ate his food.
The compassion of Sri Krishna is greater than
that of all the other avataras. In the court of Yu
dhisthira, the [dignitaries of ] the three worlds
were invited. In that court he forcefully said: I
am God. Obey me. That will bring good to you
all. At the same time Sri Krishna used to wash
the feet of the brahmanas. Again, he would say:
Obey me. I am God. Shishupal did not obey.
Instantly Sri Krishna destroyed him.
When good things happen, no one says any
thing; they will press you hard if anything bad
happens. This is the nature of people. My dear,
it is very difficult to give any suggestions for
their welfare! If something good comes, they
will be extremely happy and never come to see
you again. But if for any reason something bad
should happen, they instantly put all the blame
on you. That is why one needs to be cautious
when speaking to people. One should not sud
denly express any opinion. No one wants to
accept the blame on ones own shoulders. All
problems are solved if one takes responsibility
for the blame on ones own shoulders. But in no
way will people do that. They are always search
ing to find a way to place blame on someone
elses shoulders. If they cannot lay it on some
one elses shoulders, they will put the blame
on fate.
(To be continued)
PB May 2014
REVIEWS
For review in P rabuddha B harata,
publishers need to send two copies of their latest publications
Sri Sarada Devi:

The Holy Mother
Sumita Roy
Indus Source Books, PO Box: 6194,
Malabar Hill PO, Mumbai 400 006.
Website: www.indussource.com. 2013.
xl + 196 pp. ` 225.
ri Sarada Devi, though appearing simple, has

a profundity discernible only to a pure mind.
As in the case of all truly great people it was a
life lived wholly for others. Once, referring to
her own life, she remarked: I have created the
mould. Whoever so desires may cast their life into
it. What are the different facets of this mould? To
whom is the Holy Mother suggesting to mould
their lives according to hers? Was it for women
of her time who found themselves in more or less
the same domestic entanglements like hers? Or is
it for everyonemen and women of all times and
climesand in all walks of life? How can we pour
ourselves into that mould?
These and many such probing questions are
excellently dealt with in this book. Although a
biography, the narration does not follow a strict
chronological order. After giving a broad outline
of the Holy Mothers life, the sublime qualities
of her personality, both human and divine, are
brought before the reader in thematic chapters
with revealing captions.
The authors choice of this approach is novel,
since the Holy Mothers life can be said to defy
the influence of time and the force of external circumstances. From the time she took upon herself
the service of her God-intoxicated husband up
until her mahasamadhi, she lead a life of unselfish service, considering herself to be the mother
of every being. Perhaps this was the reason for
Sister Nivedita to characterize the Holy Mothers
life as one long stillness of prayer. Her life was
not eventful in the sense we usually understand
PB May 2014
that word. But it was full of events, each illuminating a tenderest heart keenly sensitive to the needs
and cries of all.
The author rightly points out that the Holy
Mothers life can be viewed as an exemplification
of spiritual values and also of life skills. Both these
dimensions, especially the latter, are illustrated
well in the book. The earnestness of the author in
gleaning from the Holy Mothers life the necessary correctives for the ills of modern society is
evident in almost every page.
The Holy Mother used to cover herself with a
veil before appearing in public. The present volume, with its lucid narration, uncovers the veil
around the Holy Mothers personality to reveal
many glimpses of the grandeur and sublimity of
her life. Both the author and the publisher deserve
commendation for this outstanding read.
Brahmachari Shantichaitanya
Ramakrishna Mission, Belur Math
Indian and Western

Philosophies:
Unity in Diversity
Fernando Tola and
Carmen Dragonetti
Motilal Banarsidass Publishers, 41 UA

Bunglow Road, Jawahar Nagar, Delhi
110 007. Website: www.mlbd.com.
2013. xxxi + 373 pp. ` 695.
he German philosopher Hegel had an irrational prejudice that led him to conclude that
philosophy was born only in Greece, while India
had no philosophy worth the name. The book
under review is a scholarly repudiation of Hegels
contention. The learned and amazing authors of
the book Fernando Tola, a Peruvian, and Carmen
Dragonetti, an Argentinian, deserve to be complimented for producing a book that, abounding in
copious quotations from authoritative treatises
357
54
Prabuddha Bharata
of various ancient, medieval, and modern philosophers, both Western and Eastern, disprove
H
egels thesis.
The first chapter, entitled Hegel: The Origin
of the Myth, deals with Hegels opinion of Greece,
his negative opinion regarding Indian philosophy,
his ethnocentric prejudices against India, his inadequate knowledge of Indian thought, and the
fallacy of his opinions, particularly with reference
to the Yoga system and Buddhism. It also contains
critical observations of three modern scholars
regarding Hegels paucity of knowledge about
India. The chapter points out the harm done by
Hegel to the fraternity of Western philosophers
by dismissing India as destitute of any claim to
philosophical knowledge. Such a warped opinion
forestalled any fruitful dialogue with the philosophy of ancient India that would have added to the
rich stock of global philosophical knowledge.
The second chapter, The Vedas: The Dawn of
Indian Philosophy, is the launching-pad of the
authors powerful and calibrated rejoinder to the
unfair and uncharitable estimate of Indian philosophy that many academicians in the West have
adopted. The section engages in a comparative
study of many key concepts in philosophy such
as theories of creation; the truth of Oneness; the
idea of ritam, cosmic order, as truth; and theories
of karma in the philosophical literature of Greece
and the West on the one hand, and India on the
other. The authors give several quotations from
the ancient treatises of India, Greece, and other
Western countries to show that India is not a whit
behind in the richness, plausibility, and profundity
of its theories of cosmogony, ontology, and action.
In the third chapter, captioned The Upaniads:
The Blooming of Indian Philosophy, the authors
focus on the rich corpus of Shruti to demonstrate
the fecundity of Indian philosophy vis--vis the
Greek and Western one. The concept of BrahmanAtman is elaborately analysed and the progressive evolution of its import over the ages is traced
in a scholarly manner. Similar trends of thought
in Greek philosophy and the evolution of their
Greek terms are shown with a number of citations
from Greek treatises. The views of Western philosophers such as Descartes, Leibniz, Spinoza, and
so forth on the concept of soul and Oversoul are
358
given in the philosophers own words for the benefit of contrasting them with the views of Indian
philosophers. The conceptions of consciousness as
developed by Buddhist thinkers like Vasubandhu
and Dharmakirti are studied in juxtaposition with
those of Fichte and Husserl. The views of the impossibility of consciousness, which is not a consciousness of , held by Buddhist thinkers and other
Western philosophers is dealt with too. The higher
altitudes of enquiry and depths of intuition of
Advaita philosophy can be appreciated only when
we understand the concepts of pure awareness
and objectless awareness that connote Brahman/
Atman. This single doctrine of Advaita is enough
to prove that Indian philosophy not only flourished in the past but was far ahead of the philosophies of Greece and the West in its boldness and
originality of quest. In this important chapter the
parallels of Indian and Western concepts in many
areas are highlighted. The Brahman of Indian philosophy vis--vis the anima mundi, universal soul,
of the West; the personal-impersonal concepts of
Brahman vis--vis Spinozas abstract-impersonal
notion of God; the triadic conceptions in the Upanishads and in Western speculations; the subject of
the correspondences and identifications between
the macrocosm and the microcosm as treated in
the Upanishads and Western treatisesall these
subjects are admirably handled with a wealth of
relevant quotations from authoritative sources.
In chapter four, entitled The Skhya System: A Pinnacle of Indian Rationalism, the key
concepts and theories of the classical Samkhya
system are compared with their counterparts in
Western systems: concepts of dualism, for example Purusha and Prakriti; the principle of ex
nihilo, notions of primordial matter; the concept
of the gunas, constituent elements, of matter; theories of evolution and involution; proofs of the
existence of pradhana in Samkhya and of God in
the West; the relation between matter and spirit;
the topics of jiva and the subtle body; theories of
transmigration and liberation; and atheism. The
concordance and divergence of ideas in all these
areas between Samkhya and Western systems are
analysed and presented with scholarly brilliance.
The rich diversity of philosophical reflections, of both India and the West, under the
PB May 2014
Reviews
overarching pattern of unity of themes and subjects has, over the ages, vastly enriched the global
treasury of philosophic wisdom. A perusal of the
book clearly indicates the magnitude of painstaking intellectual labour and research that has
gone into the making of this volume, which is virtually a shock therapy to Western academicians
slumbering in their cocoon of self-compliment
as well as blissful ignorance of and irrational antipathy to Indian philosophy.
An exhaustive Bibliography of fourteen pages
and an Index given at the end add to the value
of this unusual comparative study of philosophies, originally written in English, by two South
Americans.
N Hariharan
Madurai
55
In the second part Dr Kalupahana gives a detailed account of his research into the response
of some later Buddhist philosophers. These philosophers wanted to uphold the radical non-
substantialist position of early Buddhism to the
emerging absolutist and substantialist tendencies both inside and outside the Buddhist fold.
The author presents a scholarly study of absolutist tendencies present in authoritative ancient and
modern Buddhist texts and scholars.
The only shortcoming of the book is its relatively small fonts, making it difficult to read.
Otherwise the work offers a perceptive and extensive study to all students of philosophy and
religion who want insights into Buddhist philosophical thought.
Swami Purneshananda
Ramakrishna Mission, Belur Math
A History of Buddhist
Philosophy
David J Kalupahana
Motilal Banarsidass Publishers. 2011.

xvi + 304 pp. ` 695.
his book is the culmination of thirty years

of profound study and research by the wellknown author. It is an authoritative and expansive
introduction to the various traditional schools
of Buddhist philosophy, their historical development and relation to present-day Buddhism.
Although the present edition is a reprint of the
original work brought out in 1976, Dr Kalupahana has extensively recast and elaborated a major
section of it.
The first part of the book deals with various
aspects of early Buddhism, starting with a brief
glimpse into major philosophical trends during its
nascent days and then moving on to a brief lifesketch of Buddha. The following chapters give a
detailed study of the various epistemological, behavioural, psychological, and ontological aspects
of traditional Buddhist philosophy. The topics discussed are knowledge and understanding, experience and theory, language and communication,
human personality, object, the problem of suffering, freedom and happiness. A fresh chapter on
popular Buddhist practices and how they reflect
Buddhas teachings and philosophy is also included.
PB May 2014
Sakhya Saketa Kos.hah

(Volume 1)
Eds Dr V Kameswari,
Dr K S Balasubramanian,
and Dr T V Vasudeva
The Kuppuswami Sastri Research Institute, Mylapore, Chennai 600 004.
Website: www.ksrisanskrit.in. 2011.
xxiv + 264 pp. ` 200.
very language and literature has terms based

on numbers or association with numbers, like
three-cornered or five-star. Being a very rich language and having an equally rich literature, Sanskrit has innumerable such words. The present
book is the first volume of a compilation of such
Sanskrit words, which are classified according to
numbersone, two, three, and so forth. The present volume contains words based on numbers zero
to five. Relevant texts from which such words have
been extracted are also given. When a particular
word includes different types of a thing, all the
types are enumeratedfor instance, under the
word grantha panchakam, five texts, all the five
texts are listed. This is a wonderful work and another addition to the extraordinary productions of
the Kuppuswami Sastri Research Institute.
PB
359
Reports
Events at Cherrapunji
Commemoration of the 150th Birth

Anniversary of Swami Vivekananda
The following centres held various programmes
to commemorate the 150th birth anniversary
of Swami Vivekananda. Cherrapunji: A value
education programme for parents at Shella sub-
centre on 1 March 2014, in which 400 people
took part. A regional youth convention at Im
phal, Manipur, on 7 March, in which about 700
delegates took part. Sri Vinod Kumar Duggal,
governor of Manipur, inaugurated the conven
tion. The concluding programme of the statelevel youth conventions of Assam state was held
at Gauhati University on 14 and 15 March; it was
inaugurated by Sri Janaki Ballabh Patnaik, gov
ernor of Assam, and attended by about 1,200
delegates. The concluding programme of the
northeast regional youth conventions was held
at Gauhati University on 18 and 19 March; it
was inaugurated by Dr Mridul Hazarika, vice
chancellor of Gauhati University, and attended
by about 1,900 delegates. A value education
programme for professionals in healthcare and
education fields was conducted on 21 March.
About 350 delegates attended the programme.
Dehradun (Kishanpur): A music programme
on 22 and 23 March, attended by 400 people
on each day. Dinajpur (Bangladesh): A peace
rally on 5 March, in which nearly 4,000 people
joined. An interfaith meet on 5 March, attended
by about 800 people. A spiritual retreat on 6
March, in which 350 devotees took part. A sem
inar on value education for teachers on 7 March,
attended by 400 teachers. Special programmes
360
comprising worship, havan, and speeches were

organized at 13 places in 9 districts from 4 to 20
March; on an average 2,000 devotees attended
the programmes in each place. Cultural competi
tions for students, in which around 200 students
participated. Hyderabad: Youth conventions in
13 districts of Andhra Pradesh from January to
March, in which 10,470 youths took part. Institute of Culture, Kolkata: A music confer
ence on 1 and 2 March, in which leading vocalists
and instrumentalists from different music trad
itions of India such as Hindustani, Carnatic,
folk, and popular took part; about 1,000 people
attended the programme on both the days. A
students convention and cultural competi
tions on 23 March, in which 1,100 students took
part. Jaipur: A classical music programme and
a mono act performance from 18 to 20 March,
attended by about 3,000 people. Lucknow: A
state-level seminar on Religious Harmony on
8 and 9 March, in which 1,100 delegates partici
pated, and a classical music programme from 6 to
9 March, attended by about 1,000 people. Muzaffarpur: An interfaith dialogue on 23 Febru
ary, in which about 200 delegates participated.
A youth convention on 24 February, attended by
550 college students. A music programme on 24
February, attended by about 300 people. Narendrapur: 5 tribal conventions were held at 4
districts of West Bengal in November and De
cember 2013. Each convention comprised proces
sion, cultural competitions, seminar, exhibition
PB May 2014
Reports
on tribal and folk art, and narayana seva (feeding
poor people); in all, about 5,000 tribal people
took part in the conventions. A series of pro
grammes conducted at the ashrama premises
from 11 to 16 February 2014. The programmes
consisted of a procession in which 3,232 children
from 5 districts of West Bengal took part, cul
tural events including tribal dance, exhibitions,
seminars on Application of Agro Biotechnol
ogy and Preservation and Protection of Tribal
and Folk Culture, a quiz competition, a mela
and narayana seva. about 10,000 people visited
the mela each day. Pune: A classical music con
cert on 9 March, attended by about 400 people.
Puri Mission: A state-level devotees conven
tion on 8 and 9 March, in which 182 devotees
took part. Rajahmundry: A music programme
on 4 March, in which many musicians of re
pute gave performances; about 650 people at
tended the daylong programme. A state-level
seminar on Religious Harmony on 5 March, in
which around 750 people participated. Ranchi
Morabadi: The ashrama held the following pro
grammes to mark the conclusion of Swamijis
150th birth anniversary: Felicitation of a num
ber of organizations and educational institutions
on 25 February for their efforts in celebrating
Swamijis 150th birth anniversary; around 1,200
people attended the programme. A childrens
rally on 25 February, in which 300 children took
part. A district-level youth convention on 25 and
26 February, attended by 722 youths. A teach
ers conference on 26 February, attended by 48
teachers. Village fairs at three places from 27 Feb
ruary to 1 March; around 1,000 people visited
the fair in each place. Cultural programmes
from 26 February to 3 March, attended by about
1,000 people each day. A laser show on Swamiji
on 4 March, watched by 700 people. Salem: The
valedictory function of the two-year-long per
sonality development programme for college
PB May 2014
57
students on 1 March, attended by 50 students.

The valedictory function of the three-year-long
Vivekananda Swasthya Parisheva Prakalpa on 9
March, attended by 110 students and 5 teachers.
Swamijis Ancestral House, Kolkata: Re-enact
ment of the two lectures delivered by Swamiji in
Kolkata, at Shovabazar Rajbari on 28 February
1897 and at Star Theatre on 4 March 1897. The
re-enactments were held respectively at Shova
bazar Rajbari and the centres premises on 28
February and 14 March 2014 and were attended
by about 1,500 people. On the centres initiative
5 public meetings were held at different places
in and around Kolkata from 23 February to 19
March; in all, about 2,650 people attended the
programmes. Vadodara: A drama on Swamiji
on 5 March, watched by about 1,000 people.
Visakhapatnam: A youth convention on 28
February, in which 1,200 youth delegates took
part. Vrindaban: A seminar on Enhancement
of Values in Medical Profession in the Light of
Life and Teachings of Swami Vivekananda was
held for medical personnel on 23 March; nearly
400 delegates comprising doctors, nurses, and
paramedical staff participated in the seminar.
News from Branch Centres
Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama, Ranchi
Morabadi, held a central Kisan Mela (farmers
fair) from 10 to 12 February, visited by about
28,000 farmers and villagers.
Swami Suhitananda, General Secretary,
Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission,
inaugurated the newly constructed extension to
the monks quarters at Ramakrishna Mission
Ashrama, Guwahati, on 21 February.
Srimat Swami Atmasthanandaji Maharaj,
President, Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna
Mission, inaugurated Rasik Sadan (staff quar
ters) near the water treatment plant at Belur
Math on 28 March.
361
58
Prabuddha Bharata
Shilpayatana of Ramakrishna Mission

Saradapitha, Belur Math, has been converted
from a government-sponsored Industrial Train
ing Centre to a self-financing institution from
November 2013. On 23 February 2014 Srimat
Swami Smarananandaji Maharaj, Vice President,
Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission,
inaugurated the golden jubilee celebration of
the institution.
Swami Gautamananda, Adhyaksha, Rama
krishna Math, Chennai, inaugurated the newly
set-up physiotherapy unit at Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama, Bhopal, on 15 February.
Swami Suhitananda inaugurated the newly
constructed Vivekananda Bhavan, a three-storey
building for conducting medical and educa
tional activities, at Ramakrishna Mission Seva
Samiti, Karimganj, on 20 February.
Several distinguished persons including Dr
(Mrs) Shirin Sharmin Chowdhury, Speaker,
Parliament of Bangladesh; Mr Nurul Islam
Nahid, Education Minister; Mr Asaduzzaman
Noor, Cultural Minister; and Mrs Meher Afroz
Chumki, State Minister of Women and Chil
drens Affairs, spoke in the meetings organized
by Ramakrishna Math, Dhaka, as part of its
five-day-long Sri Ramakrishnas birthday cele
bration from 3 to 7 March.
In a function held at the Ramakrishna
Mission Institute of Culture, Kolkata, on 10
March, Srimat Swami Smarananandaji Maha
raj presented two awards of the Institute:
(i) Vivekananda Award, comprising one lakh
rupees and a citation, to Dr Narendra Kohli
for his six-volume Hindi novel based on the life
and teachings of Swamiji, and (ii) Vivekananda
Medal, comprising a gold medal, one lakh rupees,
and a citation, to Nishtha, an organization work
ing for womens empowerment in West Bengal.
Srimat Swami Smarananandaji Maharaj
consecrated the newly built Sri Ramakrishna
362
Temple, with a marble image of Sri Ramakrishna,

at Ramakrishna Mission, Jaipur, on 20 March,
the sacred birthday of Swami Yogananda. Swami
Smarananandaji, Swami Vagishananda, Swami
Gautamananda, and many other distinguished
persons addressed the public meetings. A pro
cession and many cultural programmes formed
part of the three-day function held from 18 to
20 March. In all, 240 monastics and about 3,000
devotees attended the celebration.
Relief
Economic Rehabilitation Limbdi centre
handed over 46 cows to needy people and Porbandar centre gave 11 sewing machines among economically backward women on 18 March.
Fire Relief In order to help 76 families
whose shops had been gutted by a fire Dinajpur
(Bangladesh) centre distributed from 20 January
to 13 February a wide range of merchandise to
them to restart their businesses.
Distress Relief The following centres distributed various items to needy people. Darjeeling: 71
pairs of shoes, 71 pairs of socks, and 47 bags from
22 January to 23 March; Jalpaiguri: 350 saris on
23 February and 23 March; Kothar: 300 saris, 148
adults garments, 344 childrens garments, and 12
bed sheets on 1 and 5 December.
Drought Relief Dinajpur centre set up a
tube-well in Amoir village of Dinajpur district.
Winter Relief The following centres distributed blankets to needy people. Aalo: 650, 24 Dec
to 23 Mar; Agartala: 400, 30 Nov to 28 Jan; Asansol: 925, 16 Nov to 13 Feb; Baranagar Mission:
150, 4 Nov to 19 Feb; Belgharia: 117, Feb and Mar;
Bhubaneshwar: 400, 23 Dec to 17 Jan; Chapra:
835, 3 Feb to 14 Mar; Contai: 450, 18 Nov; Darjeeling: 222, 22 Jan to 30 Mar; Delhi: 700, 9 Dec
to 4 Mar; Dinajpur (Bangladesh): 213, 7 Mar;
Gol Park: 570, 1 Nov to 30 Jan; Hatamuniguda:
150, 10 Feb; Jamshedpur: 300, 16 Nov to 20 Feb;
Kamarpukur: 500, 24 to 31 Jan; Kothar: 300, 1
and 5 Dec; Narottam Nagar: 290, Mar. Moreover,
Darjeeling centre distributed 71 jackets and 71
pairs of gloves among needy people from 22 January to 23 March.
P
PB May 2014
59
65

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ISSN 0032-6178

R.N. 2585/57 REGISTERED Postal Registration No. Kol.RMS/096/201316

A monthly journal of the Ramakrishna Order

R.N. 2585/57 REGISTERED Postal Registration No. Kol.RMS/096/201316

A monthly journal of the Ramakrishna Order

Vol. 119, No. 5

THE ROAD TO WISDOM

o injure another creates bondage and

and perfection alone can cure it. Do what

Cover Art: Kalpataru, by Br Vishuddhachaitanya; Mixed Media.

Vol. 119, No. 5

A monthly journal of the Ramakrishna Order

Editorial: Maya at Its Best

Women Seer-saints of India and Their Songs

The Isha Upanishad in Gandhis Ahimsa

Sri Vidya Mantra: Unravelling the Cosmos

The Struggle for Bhakti

Pilgrimage to Mount Kailash

The Many-splendoured Vivekanandas Vedanta

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The Light of the Modern World

Pages 268 | Price ` 100 Packing &

According to Swami Vivekananda, With the birth

Please write to:

rtUt;k :tg mbk Nhehk =er={gtrkK blmt mrtJug >

rJttlmthr:go;w bl& v{d{nJtth& >

nrh T nh;bwgr; =uJt rJJguNtlk J]MCk b;eltbTT >

Maya at Its Best helps us understand the worlds

Bhakti is an easy and powerful path to God. Ajoy

Mahasamadhi of Srimat Swami Gitanandaji

In the recapitulation of his Pilgrimage to

Dr Subhadra Desai of Delhi shows how

In the last part of The Manysplendoured Vivekanandas

Maya at Its Best

t is astounding to learn how much hu

young have habits and attitudes of the elderly.

with something else; we spun nice moral stories

development and ultimate freedom. For a long

Srimat Swami Gitanandaji Maharaj

Revered Maharaj had been suffering from various

across the turbulent Brahmaputra. Later, as a

Mahasamadhi of Srimat Swami Gitanandaji Maharaj

The way he did pranams to the Holy Mother

example to everyone. Maharaj liked to work

The next day the body was brought to the Math

Women Seer-saints of India and Their Songs