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TheVedanta Kesari
THE LION OF VEDANTA

A Cultural and Spiritual Monthly of the Ramakrishna Order since 1914

Ramakrishna Mission,
Port Blair

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India's Timeless Wisdom

Editor: Swami Atmashraddhananda Managing Editor: Swami Gautamananda

Printed and published by Swami Asutoshananda on behalf of Sri Ramakrishna Math
A P R I L 2 0 1 4
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e
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Sri Ramakrishna Printing Press, No.31 Ramakrishna Math Road, Mylapore,
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The Vedanta Kesari

VOL. 101, No. 4

ISSN 0042-2983

101

st

Year

of

Publication

A CULTURAL AND SPIRITUAL MONTHLY OF THE RAMAKRISHNA ORDER

Started at the instance of Swami Vivekananda in 1895 as Brahmavdin,

it assumed the name The Vedanta Kesari in 1914.
For free edition on the Web, please visit: www.chennaimath.org

CONTENTS
APRIL 2014

Vedic Prayers

125

Editorial
Waking Up

126

Articles
Holy Mothers Panchatapathe Austerity of Five-fires:

A Mythological Perspective
Swami Sunirmalananda
What Do the Upanishads Teach Us?
Dan A. Chekki
The Value of Brahmacharya
Swami Tathagatananda
The Spiritual Universe of Sri Ramacharitamanas:

As Seen through Its Two Invocatory Verses
A.P.N. Pankaj
It Fills My Heart with Joy Unspeakable
B. Hrudayakumari
Compilation
This is Business Integrity
Swami Vivekananda

131
135
138

142
149
144

New Find
Unpublished Letters of Swami Saradananda

154

Special Report
Restoration and Renovation of Vivekananda Illam
156
The Order on the March 158
Book Review 161
Feature
Simhvalokanam (Renaissance of the Spirit)
Cover Story: Page 4

130

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The Vedanta Kesari

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N Cover Story N
Ramakrishna Mission, Port Blair
Started in 1961 by a group of devotees, the Andaman Centre of
Ramakrishna Mission was sanctified in 1965 by the visits of Swami
Ranganathananda (later, the 13th President of Ramakrishna Math
and Mission) and in 1986 by Swami Tapasyananda (Vice President
of the Ramakrishna Math and Mission). The Centre was formally
affiliated to Belur Math on 16th December 1992 and was named
Ramakrishna Mission, Port Blair, Andamans. The Centre's activities
include an Orphanage / Destitute Home with 60 boys, a Vocational
Centre, besides observation of birthdays of the Holy Trio and other
festivals. The temple featured on the cover page was consecrated
in October 2012 by Swami Vagishananda, a senior Trustee of the
Ramakrishna Math. o

T he V edanta K esari P atrons S cheme

We invite our readers to join as patrons of the magazine. They can do
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for the Patrons' Scheme. (This scheme is valid in India only).
PATRONS
DONORS
683. Swami Omananda Saraswati, New Delhi
Mr. Shashank Yashwantrao,
684. Ms. Sudha Ravi, Chennai

Mumbai
Rs. 2000
685. Dr. Gopesh Dwivedi, Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh M/s. Sai Surya Medical Trust,
Chennai
Rs.20000

The Vedanta Kesari Library Scheme

SL.NO. NAMES OF SPONSORS

5754. Dr. Triveni Shekaraiah, U.K.

5755.
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5756.
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AWARDEE INSTITUTIONS

Civil Hospital, Shillong, Meghalaya State - 793 012

Old Age Welfare Centre, Miyapur, Hyderabad - 500 138
Guild of Service, New Delhi - 110 016
Sandhya, Nethaji Nagar, New Delhi - 110 023
Senior Citizen Home, Kailash Colony, New Delhi - 110 048
Karuna Bharathi, Khojjillipet, Machilipatnam - 521 001
Aid the Aged, J.P. Nagar, Bangalore - 560 078
The Bangalore Friend-in-need Society, C.H.Road, Bangalore - 560 051
C.B.R. and Welfare Society, Banashankari II Stage, Bangalore - 560 070
HR and NI Trust, Jayalakshmipuram, Mysore - 570 012
To be continued . . .

The Vedanta Kesari

VOL. 101, No. 4, APRIL 2014 ISSN 0042-2983

E ACH

SOUL IS POTENTIALLY DIVINE.

T HE GOAL IS TO MANIFEST THE DIVINITY WITHIN.

5

Vedic Prayers

Tr. by Swami Sarvananda

B
A man may have never entered a church or a mosque, nor performed any
ceremony, but if he feels God within himself and is thereby lifted above the vanities
of the world, that man is a holy man, a saint, call him what you will. As soon as a
man stands up and says he is right or his church is right, and all others are wrong,
he is himself all wrong. He does not know that upon the proof of all the others
depends the proof of his own. Love and charity for the whole human race, that is
the test of true religiousness. I do not mean the sentimental statement that all men
are brothers, but that one must feel the oneness of human life.
Swami Vivekananda, CW, 1: 325

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Editorial

Waking Up
Sleeping and Waking
How much time does it take to wake up?
Just a moment. Or a few seconds, at the most.
This is true of one who is asleep, and is about
to wake up.
Or if one is asleep and needs to be
awakened, in normal conditions, he can be
awakened by calling up his name, or by
making loud sound (using an alarm clock or
some noise) or by a gentle nudge. For those
who are deeply asleep, a deafening sound or
powerful nudging may be needed.
This is true of those who are asleep and
are either about to complete their sleep or need
to be awakened because they have to start their
day or there is some urgency such as catching
the train or putting off a fire that has broken
out and so on. Waking up is understandable
then.
But we cannot wake up someone who
pretends to be asleep. One who is awake, but
is not willing to leave the bed and start his
day, you cannot wake him up. Nor, however,
is he sleeping. He is awake in one sense
but is sleeping in another sense. Attached
to the comforts of lying on the bed, lazy and
indecisive, he refuses to give up his sleep and
wake up. You just either smile at him or pity
him and leave him to his fate. His time has not
come.
The Spiritual Perspective
From the sleeping-waking up at the
physical plane, let us shift to sleeping-waking
up at mental and spiritual planes. Of course,
being awakened, in the psychological sense,
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often refers to be aware of something. One

may be awakened, for instance, about political
issues or latest advancements in science or
music or cooking or filing taxes. It simply
means being interested, aware or willing.
But the mental plane is not limited to
this. Being aware at this level should be further
extended to moral and spiritual planes. A
spiritually awakened personwhat are his or
her characteristics? The Bhagavad Gita says,1
That which is night to all beings, in that the selfcontrolled man wakes. That in which all beings
wake, is night to the Self-seeing Muni.

Explains Swami Vivekananda,

Where it is dark night for the [sense-bound]
world, the self controlled [man] is awake. It
is daylight for him. . . . And where the world
is awake, the sage sleeps. Where is the world
awake? In the senses. People want to eat and
drink and have children, and then they die a
dogs death. . . . They are always awake for the
senses. Even their religion is just for that. They
invent a God to help them, to give them more
women, more money, more childrennever a
God to help them become more godlike! Where
the whole world is awake, the sage sleeps. But
where the ignorant are asleep, there the sage
keeps awakein the world of light where
man looks upon himself not as a bird, not as
an animal, not as a body, but as infinite spirit,
deathless, immortal.
There, where the ignorant are asleep, and
do not have time, nor intellect, nor power to
understand, there the sage is awake. That is
daylight for him.2

Commenting on this verse, observes a

monk-scholar:3

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The consciousness of the man of [Self] realisation

is so full of God that he cannot see anything
apart from Him. The ignorant man, on the other
hand, lives in the world of plurality alone and
God is a non-entity to him.

Night and day referred to here are the

states of mind. Day, full of light, is indicative
of knowledge. Knowledge and light are
of course synonymous. Night, devoid of
sunlight, is indicative of ignorance. Darkness
and ignorance are synonymous. Knowledge
means seeing of Divinity, or the Divine
Substancecalled by different names such as
Brahman, Atman or Bhagavan or Almighty
and so onbehind the world of names and
forms. It is like being aware of the identity of
a personlet us call him Somnathwho is
acting in a play. Though he may be playing the
role of a businessman or an officer or criminal
and so on, essentially he is neither of them.
He is just Somnath, different from the role that
he plays. Brahman, formless and nameless,
free from all conditions and limitations, is
the underlying reality behind the multiplicity
and diversity of existence. Sri Ramakrishna
said, To see One is Knowledge; to see many
is ignorance.
Further Dimensions
At another level, being awake means to
be aware of the ultimate goal of life which is
Self-realisation. To realise the Selfwhich is as
good as realising the Brahman for they are not
two entities but two ways of calling the same
Realityis the goal of human life. In animal
life, Nature largely controls the life. Food,
sleep, procreation, aging, deathNature does
everything for the animals. In human life also
Nature plays a vital role, but manincluding
womanhas been blessed with a superior
faculty of reasoning, making choices, and this
is what reveals the real purpose of existence to
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himto return from the world of multiplicity

to the state of Being One. The gift of a human
birth is a golden opportunity which one can ill
afford to lose. Rightly does Swamiji say,
Man is man so long as he is struggling to rise
above nature, and this nature is both internal
and external. Not only does it comprise the
laws that govern the particles of matter outside
us and in our bodies, but also the more subtle
nature within, which is, in fact, the motive power
governing the external. It is good and very
grand to conquer external nature, but grander
still to conquer our internal nature. It is grand
and good to know the laws that govern the stars
and planets; it is infinitely grander and better
to know the laws that govern the passions, the
feelings, the will, of mankind. This conquering
of the inner man, understanding the secrets of
the subtle workings that are within the human
mind, and knowing its wonderful secrets, belong
entirely to religion.4

To be awakened, therefore, means to be

aware of the spiritual destination of life, the
ultimate goal of life. How does this happen,
this awakening to the spiritual reality of life?
It is difficult to explain it but we cannot rest
until we find some answer to our query. The
Bhagavad Gita says,5
At the end of many births, the man of wisdom
takes refuge in Me, realising that all this is
Vasudeva (the innermost Self). Very rare is that
great soul.

For such an awakened person, God alone

is real (all this is Vasudeva), worthy of all
efforts and time. He becomes God-centred,
nay, God-minded. Swamiji clarifies:

~ 127 ~

When man has been sufficiently buffeted by the

world, he awakes to a desire for freedom; and
searching for means of escape from the dreary
round of earthly existence, he seeks knowledge,
learns what he really is, and is free. . . He does
good, because it is his nature, not because any
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fancied duty commands it. This does not apply to

those who are still in the bondage of the senses.
Only for him, who has transcended the lower self,
is this freedom. He stands on his own soul, obeys
no law; he is free and perfect. He has undone the
old superstitions and got out of the wheel. . . .

looked like a forest of human heads. Sri

Ramakrishna replied,
The feeling of the Divine is awakened in me
when I see a great crowd of people. Had I seen
that meeting, I should have been overwhelmed
with spiritual fervour.9

Or, as Sri Ramakrishna remarked,

Fully awakened souls are beyond virtue
and vice. They realize that it is God who
does everything... Those whose spiritual
consciousness has been awakened never make
a false step. They do not have to reason in order
to shun evil. They are so full of love of God
that whatever action they undertake is a good
action. They are fully conscious that they are not
the doers of their actions, but mere servants of
God.6

Being Ever-awake
In practical terms, to be awakened means
to be honest to oneself and being alert about
all thoughts that come to us. It simply means
making no excuses and being alert. Says one
of the eminent monks of Ramakrishna Order:
Be as wide-awake and as fully conscious as
possible, always, under all circumstances, so as
not to take in bad impressions either through the
eye, or through the ear. And if you do take them
in, root them out immediately. Use your utmost
discrimination regarding the company you
allow yourself to be in and the things you allow
yourself to hear and read. . . There are people
who have no sense of impurity; the more they
commit wrong the more they become callous.
All their moral sensitiveness is destroyed. They
have no sense of shame. But a true aspirant is
highly sensitive to the moral sense. Vyasa in his
commentary on Patanjalis Yoga Sutras compares
the mind of a yogi to the eye-ball. Just as the
cornea reacts immediately to even a speck of
dust that falls on it, so the mind of a Yogi reacts
strongly to the slightest thing that causes sorrow.
Without such a sensitive and alert mind spiritual
life is likely to end up in a disastrous failure.
Purity of mind is inseparable from spiritual life.
If you see people pretending to be spiritual while
leading impure lives, keep away from them.10

To a person who has reached this state,

even a slightest suggestion of divinity may
awaken in him a higher mood. Once Sri
Ramakrishna, for instance, went to the Calcutta
Zoological Gardens. Later he said,
I was taken to the Zoological Garden. I went
into samadhi at the sight of the lion, for the
carrier of the Mother awakened in my mind the
consciousness of the Mother Herself. In that state
who could see the other animals? I had to return
home after seeing only the lion.7

He further said,
An imitation custard-apple reminds one of the
real fruit. Once, while going along a road, a
devotee of Krishna noticed some babla-trees.
Instantly his mind was thrown into ecstasy. He
remembered that the wood of babla-trees was
used for the handles of the spades that the garden
of the temple of Syamasundar was dug with. The
trees instantly reminded him of Krishna.8

Sri Ramakrishna was so full of spiritual

fervour that even a so-called secular thing
could awaken spiritual feelings in him. Once
a devotee described to him the Convocation of
Calcutta University, saying that the meeting
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Being awakened, thus, includes striving

to reach that stateby being oriented to
spiritual lifethrough spiritual practices
such as meditation, prayer, Japa, service, selfanalysis and so on. To be spiritually awake is
to be aware of the means that lead to spiritual
illumination. Buddha advised his disciples,

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Be a lamp unto yourselfi.e., with the light

of discernment and sincerity, guide your mind
on the right path. Be alert! Ever!
Awakening the Inner Potential
In his powerful speeches, conversations
and letters, Swami Vivekananda, the great
awakener of souls, gave a rousing call to one
and all to wake up. He said,
Awake, awake, great ones! The world is burning
with misery. Can you sleep? Let us call and call
till the sleeping gods awake, till the god within
answers to the call. What more is in life? What
greater work?11
Go and preach to all, Arise, awake, sleep no
more; within each of you there is the power to
remove all wants and all miseries. Believe this,
and that power will be manifested.12

Here is a vivid account of being awake to

ones inner potential in Swamijis own words,
In New York I used to observe the Irish colonists
comedowntrodden, haggard-looking, destitute
of all possessions at home, penniless, and
wooden-headedwith their only belongings,
a stick and a bundle of rags hanging at the end
of it, fright in their steps, alarm in their eyes.
A different spectacle in six monthsthe man
walks upright, his attire is changed! In his eyes
and steps there is no more sign of fright. What is
the cause? Our Vedanta says that that Irishman
was kept surrounded by contempt in his own
countrythe whole of nature was telling him
with one voice, Pat, you have no more hope,
you are born a slave and will remain so. Having
been thus told from his birth, Pat believed in it
and hypnotised himself that he was very low,
and the Brahman in him shrank away. While
no sooner had he landed in America than he

heard the shout going up on all sides, Pat, you

are a man as we are. It is man who has done all,
a man like you and me can do everything: have
courage! Pat raised his head and saw that it was
so, the Brahman within woke up. Nature herself
spoke, as it were, Arise, awake, and stop not till
the goal is reached.13

The last line, the oft-quoted call of

Swamiji (Arise, awake,. . .), is from the
Kathopanishad (I.iii.13). The original verse,
however, has a slightly different meaning,
though it was Swamijis genius to provide
a contemporary connotation to it: Arise,
awake, and learn by approaching the excellent
ones. The wise ones describe that path to be
as difficult to tread as walking on the razor
edge.
Like a compassionate mother, says Adi
Shankara in his commentary on this verse,
the Shruti [the Upanishads, the essence of human
wisdom] are nudging the sleeping soul from
its endless sleep of ignorance and tells man to
approach those wise men who have known the
Self and seek the way to Self-realisation from
them. Indeed the path of seeking the Self is
extremely challenging and exacting like walking
the sharpened edge of a blade or razor. Be up
and doing.

Conclusion
Indeed, being awake is what makes a
man. Sri Ramakrishna would often remind,
making pun on the Bengali word for man,
manushmaan hunsh: the man who is
awakened. Man is man when he is awakened,
is aware of his divine potential and ever
engaged in seeking to manifest it. o

References
1. The Bhagavad Gita, 2: 69 2. CW, 1.465
3. Bhagavad Gita, tran. Swami Swarupananda, Advaita Ashrama,
p.69
4. CW, 2.65
5. The Bhagavad Gita, 7.19
6. Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, p.201
7. Ibid, p.391
8. Ibid, p.546
9. Ibid,p.200
10. Meditation and Spiritual Life, Swami Yatiswarananda,
p.172, 174
11. CW, 7.501
12. CW, 6:454
13. CW, 4:483
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Simhvalokanam
From the Archives of The Vedanta Kesari
(March, 1923-24, Pp. 907 - 908)

Renaissance of the Spirit

BY PROF. T.L. VASWANI

Between the nations there is a Bond made before history began. The Bond of
Humanity. A great Indian Teacher of our days spoke of Family of Nations. Not a League
of Big Nations to dominate inferior races! Not a Corporation of capital states! But a
Brotherhood of the Nations.
Nationality itself developes its rich meaning when it moves in an atmosphere of
Humanity. And Civilisation cannot survive except in the measure, the war of the nations
gives way to some comradeship for the service of the one Human Family.
The basis of such comradeship? Not economic exploitation. Not political pacts. Not
even intellectual appreciation. But something deeper. Something Spiritual. The vision of the
Spiritual, of Unity, of the nations as sons of the One Humanity is not in the political activities
and agitations of today. The Vision is wandering!
The vision was in the heart of Krishna, of Buddha, of Jesus. Krishna was wounded with
an arrow. The Doctrine of Buddha was exiled out of the land of his birth. Jesus was crucified.
Voices of the Vision have been heard, witnesses to the Vision have appeared, from time to
time in East and West. But the Vision is wandering. . .
And loves test is abnegation. Many say they love India. How many have the aspiration
to abandon pleasure, money, honors, egoism in the service of India? There is a little Greek
story of Demeter. Her lovely daughter Persephone is stolen by Pluto, the god of wealth; and
the mother wanders in anguish in search of her girl. Many meetings, many speeches in our
country! But the mother wanders in anguish. Many are the hearts stolen by Pluto or some
other half-god of ambition, pride or hate. O, for the Great Spirit of Love to come again to this
broken, bleeding world, to lift patriotism out of regionalism, and religion out of sectarianism,
and the nations and races out of hate and strife.
India will re-arise but not without the vision of her rishis and sages,the vision of the
One Self in all nations, all races, all religions. For twenty years and more have I lived in that
faith. To plunge in passion and hate, is to forget that beyond the Nations is the God of all.
And His Kingdom cometh not with violence. o

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Holy Mothers Panchatapa

the Austerity of Five-fires
A Mythological Perspective
SWAMI SUNIRMALANANDA

The Significance of Panchatapa

Students of Holy Mother Sarada Devis
life know that she performed the week-long
Panchatapathe austerity of five fires
sometimes in 1893 at the garden house
in Belur. Was this highly demanding act
of penance just one of the many ordinary
incidents in her life? Surely not. In a way, it
is an epoch-making incident, at least from
the mythological viewpoint. Let us try to
understand it.
Being self-effacing by nature, Holy
Mother downplayed everything in her own
life, and presented herself as the most ordinary
person in the world. She would explain away
all extraordinary events and incidents in her
life as mere trivialities. Yet, the world knows
how important every single event was.
Consider, for instance, this little incident;
Holy Mother would bathe in the Ganga early
morning, at 3 am. Once it was dark and she
accidentally put her foot on a crocodile; the
crocodile jumped into the river. Ramakrishna
heard this and said that she should carry
a lamp. For the student of mythology, it is
not a trivial incident, for it is known that
Mother Ganga has as vehicle (vhana), the
crocodile (makara). It is also known that the
crocodiles form is a combination of the forms
of several animals, and that the crocodile is
o
T h e

an ancient symbol of significance in several

cultures. Holy Mother is looked upon as the
Divine Mother by all her devotees and the
river Ganga is called a goddess, a form of
Divine Mother. Do we not see a connection
between the crocodiles appearance? Thus,
all events in Holy Mothers life have a deep
significance including the five-fire austerity
which she performed. We will try to study its
meaning from the mythological and mystical
viewpoints.
The Act of Panchatapa
In 1893 [incidentally in the same year,
Swami Vivekananda spoke at the Parliament
of Religion in Chicago], Holy Mother
performed this five-fire austerity, known as
Panchatapa. Panchatapa is sitting amidst
pancha-tpa (five scalding fires). Here are her
own words about this:
Sometime after the passing away of the Master,
I began to see the vision of a bearded Sannyasin
who asked me to perform Panchatapa. In the
beginning I didnt pay much attention to it. I
hardly knew what Panchatapa was. But the
Sannyasin gradually put pressure on me. So I
asked Yogin about Panchatapa, and she said,
Very good, Mother, I shall also perform it.
Arrangements were made for Panchatapa. I was
then living in Nilambar Babus house [at Belur].

The author is the Assistant Minister of Centre Vedantique, Geneva, Switzerland.

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12

Blazing fires of dried cow-dung were lighted on

four sides, and there was the intense heat of the
sun above. After my morning bath I approached
the fires and saw them burning brightly. I was
seized with much fear. I wondered how I would
be able to enter the area and remain seated
there until sunset. But repeating the name of the
Master, I entered the area and the fires seemed
to have lost their heat. I practised this discipline
for seven days. But, my child, it made my
complexion dark like black ash. After this I didnt
see that figure of the Sannyasin again.1

Says, one of Holy Mothers biographers

further:
Years later, when a devotee asked her about the
need of it, she said: Yes, it is necessary. Parvati,
the Divine Mother, practiced the austerity to
obtain Siva as Her husband. Then, to make light
of the whole thing, she added: I performed this
austerity more or less for show; otherwise people
would say: What is extraordinary about her?
She eats, sleeps, and moves about like ordinary
people. This is, you know, a kind of vow which
women love to observe. Yes, they often observe
such religious vows. When an intimate disciple
wanted to know the real reason for her going
through this ordeal, she said: My child, I went
Nilambar Mukherjees
Garden House in Belur

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through it for the sake of all of you. Can you

practice austerities? This is why I had to do it. 2

Importance of Mythology
Let us, however, try to unravel the
significance of this event from the perspective
of mythology. But first know about mythology
itself and its importance in understanding the
events in a spiritual persons life.
The word myth comes from the Greek
mythos meaning divinely inspired. Myth
means a narrativea story, either long or
short. Myths are almost always sacred, being
connected to religion. Indian Puranas, Roman
stories, and stories from the Old Testament are
mythological narratives. Mythology has two
meanings: a collection of sacred stories and the
study of myths. Just as ritual and philosophy
are important for any religion, mythology too
is important. In fact, according to scholars
studying mythology, especially William Smith,
myth and ritual are deeply interconnected. A
ritual has a mythological connotation and vice
versa.
All cultures have their mythologies.
For a religion to survive, continue, and
spread amongst the masses, mythology
is imperative. We have all grown up with
mythological stories ringing in our ears,
filling our imaginations, and inspiring our
religious pursuit. Most of us take them at their
face value, some think of their philosophical
significance and a few go deeper to discover
what these stories have to do on different
aspects of life and living. While they say that
since philosophy is terse, ritual is complex and
mysticism is beyond our reach, mythology
is always considered near and dear to the
heart. However, not many of us are aware
that interpretation is necessary to discover
the hidden significance of stories. Sometimes,
great truths are hidden behind simple stories.

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Interpretation of mythology is itself

an engaging subject now. There have been
mythologists since quite some time
of whom Carl Jung, Lvi-Strauss, Joseph
Campbell and a few others are well known.
There have been several scholars who have
identified the different important functions
of mythology. Of them, Joseph Campbell
identifies four functions3: the metaphysical,
cosmological, sociological and pedagogical.
The metaphysical function of mythology
is to make us, common people, comprehend
the incomprehensible through simple stories.
Its cosmological function is to give some sort
of science to the science-less times of the world.
The sociological function of mythology is to
give credence to right social behaviour. The
pedagogical function of mythology is to give
the individual the right method of living to
attain higher goals.
A fifth function of mythology, which
Campbell does not mention, is the religious
function in its highest sense. Religion in its
true sense should harmonize and unite, and
mythology, especially its comparative aspect,
does that.
Meaning of Mothers Austerity
It was 1893. Holy Mother Sri Sarada
Devi was staying at the Nilambar Mukherjees
Garden House in Belur. There, she performed
Panchatapa for seven days, sitting amidst fires
from dawn to dusk. Golap Ma,
her companion, too sat with her.
Two points about the seven-day
duration.
One, the intensity. The
intensity of aspiration and seeking
of a mere mortal and that of an
Avatar are worlds apart. So, what
the Divine Mother accomplishes
in seven days is beyond the
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imagination of mortals. Swami Vivekananda

says that an incarnation lives a million lives in
just one life:
Take the whole of the animal creation, man and
the lower animals, as one whole. There is an end
towards which the whole is moving. Let us call
it perfection. Some men and women are born
who anticipate the whole progress of mankind.
Instead of waiting and being reborn over and
over again for ages until the whole human race
has attained to that perfection, they, as it were,
rush through them in a few short years of their
life.4

Two, the genesis story. From the Christian perspective, as narrated in the Old
Testament, God made the world in six days
and on the seventh day God ended his work
which he had made; and he rested on the
seventh day from all his work which he had
made.5 So, if God could make the world in
seven days, Holy Mother could change the
world, could usher in a New Age, the Satya
Yuga, in seven days! Indeed, Mother did bring
a change in the history, but silent like the
gentle dew. Here is how.
Dakshas Horse Sacrifice
The Puranas and the Mahabharata (see
Shanti ParvaMokshadharma, chapters 287
and 289) narrate the story of a horse sacrifice
that Daksha performed in a beautiful, rich and
excellent place.6

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The open terrace of the first floor of the

Nilambar Mukherjees Garden House
where Holy Mother is believed to have
done Panchatapa
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Horse sacrifices are performed to

conquer the world. Daksha invited everyone
to his sacrifice, but intentionally forgot his
own daughter, Um, and son-in-law, Shiva.
And that, despite Sage Dadhichis warning.
Daksha disliked Shiva or Rudra. He would
say that he knew several Rudras but not this
Maheshwara Rudra. 7 Dakshas daughter,
Dakshayani or Um, came to know about her
fathers horse sacrifice, and was extremely sad
(ativa duhkhamutpannam)8 that her husband was
not invited to it.
According to Mahabharata, Um expressed her sorrow before Shiva and Shiva
explained to her that non-contemplatives
cannot understand him. Yet, Ums intense
sadness awakened annoyance in him too.9 And
he created an extremely strong personality,
Virabhadra, from his mouth. Shiva told
Virabhadra of extraordinary capabilities to
go to Dakshas empire, and destroy Dakshas
sacrifice. From the Divine Mothers feelings
was born Bhadrakali, she sought Ums
permission to go to the sacrifice. Virabhadra
and Bhadrakali went to the city where the
sacrifice was taking place and destroyed it.10
According to another, sadder, version
from the Puranas like the Vyu Purana,
Um herself went to the sacrificial hall and
demanded from her father why he had
humiliated his son-in-law that way. When
Daksha replied arrogantly, insulted Um
and even insulted Ums husband; Um was

deeply hurt. Unable to tolerate the humiliation

anymore, Um jumped into the sacrificial fire
and thus the sacrifice was destroyed.
The Mahabharata version, though, has a
happy ending. Daksha realised his folly and
prayed fervently to Shiva. Shiva appeared
before him in all splendour. Daksha sang
a great hymn in Shivas praise. Shiva was
pleased and blessed Daksha and granted him
all the boons worth a thousand horse sacrifices.
What if one sacrifice was destroyed, Daksha
got everything he needed. Shiva also restored
all the items of sacrifice which Daksha wanted
to be restored. Further, Shiva assured Daksha
that Daksha should never be sad (daksha
daksha na kartavyo manyuh vighnam imam
prati11). Shiva then says something important:
O Daksha, your sacrifices in earlier epochs too
had to be destroyed in a similar fashion.12
This is important. In the cyclical view of
existence that Hinduism believes in, in every
epoch, Shiva has destroyed Dakshas efforts
at world conquest. Why? Shiva explains:
The gods and demons have extracted their
own types of religions from the Vedas. They
struggle hard to attain happiness. But I have
given to the world the path of liberation from
fetters, which is opposed to the usual duties
of caste and status of life.13 The long and
short of this mythological story is that Daksha
was about to conquer the world on several
occasions and Shiva stopped it.
(To be continued. . .)

References
1. The Gospel of Holy Mother, p. 319
2. Swami Nikhilananda, Holy Mother, page 118
3. Campbell, Joseph. Creative Mythology, Penguin: 1991
4 CW, 2: 18
5 Genesis, 2.2.3
6 Daksho nma mahbhge prajnm patir-uttamah

Hayamedhena yajate tatra yanti divoukasah.
Mahbhrata, Shnti Parva, 274.23
7 Nham vedmi maheshvaram, 289.19
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8
9
10
11
12
13

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Shnti Parva, 289.29

Devyh manyu-vyapohrtham hato dakshasya
vai kratuh. Shnti Parva, 290.31
Complete Works, vol. 2, pp. 18-9
Shnti Parva, 290.190
Aham yajna-haras-tubhyam drishtam etat purtanam.
Shnti Parva 290.190
Varnshrama-kritaih dharmaih viparitam kvachitsamam. Shnti Parva 290.193
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What Do the Upanishads Teach Us?

DAN A. CHEKKI

The Upanishads
OM. May Brahman protect us, May
he guide us, May he give
us strength and right
understanding, May love
and harmony be with
us all. OM . . . Peace!
Peace! Peace!

This peace
chant is typical
of how the Upanishads begin. The
Upanishads are the
oldest and most
important scriptures
of Hinduism. They have
represented the human
spirit and also constituted the
vital source of the philosophy, religion, and
life of India for over three thousand years. The
Upanishads strive towards the divine; help us
rise above our daily worldly existence; reveal
the splendours of the invisible spiritual power;
and have inspired generations of thinkers with
vision and comfort.
Says German philosopher Schopenhauer,
In the whole world, there is no study so
beneficial and so elevating as that of the
Upanishads. It has been the solace of my lifeit
will be the solace of my death.

These sacred scriptures have influenced

Greek philosophy, Judaism, and early Christianity, and have made a major impact

on the minds of many eminent poets and

philosophers, mystics and scholars around the
world.
Let us have a brief overview of the
major spiritual thoughts that were presented
by various saints and sages to their pupils
between 800 and 500 B.C.
Discovering the Reality Within
The word Upanishad literally means
sitting near the teacher. The teacher imparts
divine revelations about the true nature of
reality underlying the superficial multiplicity
of phenomena, and the knowledge of the
Divine, and who offers insights into eternal
truths. The main aim and theme of the
Upanishads is to explore the mystery and
riddle of this complex universe.
The Upanishadic philosophers reflect
upon the human body composed of bone,
skin, flesh and blood and so forth as being
afflicted with desire, anger, fear, envy and
so on, coupled with thirst, hunger, disease, sorrow and death. The sages teach
us about the inadequacy of the intellect in
understanding the eternal and the infinite.
They came to the realization that underlying
this changing phenomenal world, there is
only one permanent ultimate reality called
Brahman that is identical with the essential
reality in the human personality, namely the
Atmansoul or the Self.
Through introspection and intuition, they
recognized the eternal soul within themselves

o Dan A. Chekki is Professor Emeritus of Sociology, University of Winnipeg, Canada

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as being beyond the ephemeral body, mind

or the individual ego, but the formless being
within themselves as Atman, the individual
soul.
Brahman is the universal soul, the one
all-pervading, all-embracing, underlying
intangible essence of the worldthe Absolute
Reality. (This Brahman is distinct from
Brahmaa member of the Hindu trinity
of gods (Brahma, Visnu, Siva), and from
Brahmana or Brahmina member of the
priestly caste.)
What is the Nature of the Self?
The Upanishads tell us that Atman, the
individual soul, and Brahman, the universal
soul, are one. When a person realizes this
fact, he/she becomes one with Brahman,
transcending joy and sorrow and life and death,
and attains supreme bliss and immortality.
The individual soul (Atman) is deluded
by forgetfulness and ignorance (Avidya) and
is bewildered by a persons ego, desires and
emotions as well as the entanglements of this
world. How can this spiritual realization of
ones identity with Brahman, the Supreme
Reality, be attained?
The Upanishads provide codes of conduct as prerequisites toward the spiritual path
of a persons union with God. The seekers are
expected to follow right action; be truthful in
thought, word and deed; practice austerity and
self-control; study the scriptures; engage in
prayer and meditation (yoga); practice charity,
humility, and compassion; and show love and
respect for parents, teachers, and guests; and
so forth.
The spiritual discourses, presented
in verse and dialogue format, reveal the
individuals longing for release or liberation
(moksha) from the cycle of births and deaths,
as well as the personal desire for a union
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with God, just as flowing rivers disappear

in the sea, losing their name and form. This
monistic theology, this mystic immortality,
has dominated Hindu thought from sage
Yajnavalkya to Vivekananda, Tagore and
Gandhi.
Brahmanthe Supreme Reality
The Upanishads describe Brahman, the
Supreme Reality, in myriad ways.
Brahman is unmanifest
to the senses and is
beyond all thought,
infinite in form, God
omnipotent, allpervading, infinite
wisdom, and the
supreme bliss.
Brahman is eternal,
beyond knowledge,
primal energy, both
visible and invisible,
and both with form and
formless. Brahman is the
creator, controller and soul of
the universe, incomprehensible, imperishable,
beyond description, and all that can be said of
Brahman is, not this, not this (neti, neti).
Brahman is gender neutral, fills the
whole universe and dwells in the core of the
human heart. Brahman is also knowledge,
wisdom, action, goodness supreme and truth,
and is smaller than the smallest, greater than
the greatest, the source of all life, and the one
Light that gives light to all. Whatever exists
in the universehumans, animals, plants,
stars and galaxiesare all dependent on the
primal energy of Brahman, the changeless
reality. Food is Brahman; life breath (prana)
is Brahman; vibration/sound is Brahman; the
syllable OM is Brahman. Brahman controls the
cosmic process, and so on and so on.

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Teachings through Parables

In an effort to convey the invisible
and yet powerful nature of Brahman, the
Upanishads use imagery and parables. For
instance:
The teacher asks the pupil:
Bring a fruit of the banyan tree;
Here is one, Sir;
Break it;
I have broken it, Sir;
What do you see?
Very tiny seeds, Sir;
Break one;
I have broken it, Sir;
Now what do you see?
Nothing, Sir.
What you do not perceive is the essence,
and from that finest essence this mighty
banyan tree thus arises. That essence is the
soul of all that is. That is the true Reality. That
is the Self (Atman), and you are that Self (tat
tvam asi).
In another context, the father tells his son:
Put this salt in a glass of water and come
back later.
The son did as he was told.
Taste the water from the top, the middle,
and the bottom. How does it taste?
It tastes salty at the top, the middle and
the bottom.
You cannot perceive salt in water.
Likewise, you dont perceive the One Reality
which exists in your own body, but it is truly
there. That subtle essencethat is Reality! That
is the Soul! And you are that.
A pupil asks sage Yajnavalkya, How
many Gods are there?
The sage initially responds, There are
three thousand and three.
The same question is asked several
times. The final answer: There is only one

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God, without a second. Many gods and

goddesses of the Hindu pantheon are only
myriad manifestations of the Supreme Reality,
Brahman.
Once a pupil asked his teacher, What is
Brahman?
The teacher did not respond.
Pupil: What is Brahman?
There was still no response.
Pupil: What is Brahman?
Again there was no response.
The pupil became impatient and
annoyed, and then asked the same question.
The teacher smiled and said, I answered
your question three times, but you did not
comprehend. Brahman is Silence.
All-pervading Divinitythe Essence of
Existence
The world originates from Brahman and
returns to Brahman. God is law as well as love.
If we disobey Brahmans laws, we suffer. In
truth, a person becomes good by doing good
deeds and evil by doing evil deeds.
The Upanishads adopt a spiritual view
and insist on the importance of an ethical
life, and they emphasize the practice of moral
virtues in preparation for God-realization
and experiencing the ecstasy of divine union.
The Atman, Brahman, and their synthesis,
is the essence of the Upanishads. The nature
of the Supreme Reality, Brahman, provides
the basis for the reality of personality in God
and human beings. This world is intimately
connected with the Divine Reality.
The purpose of the cosmic evolution is
to reveal the Spirit underlying it. To put in
the well-known Upanishad prayer: Lead us
from the unreal to the real, Lead us from darkness to light, Lead us from death to immortality. o

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The Value of Brahmacharya

SWAMI TATHAGATANANDA
Brahmacharya should be like a burning fire
within the veins! Swami Vivekananda1

The etymological meaning of the ancient

spirit and practice of Brahmacharya is a
course of conduct that keeps the mind on
Brahman or God. From this arises the specific
means of a sincere search after Brahman,
which is to follow certain spiritual principles
and control all the organs of sense until a
complete state of perfect chastity in thought,
word and deed, at all times and in all
conditions, is attained. Only then can one be
called a true Brahmacharin.
Not everyone is fit for complete Brahmacharya. When Jesus spoke to the hypocritical
Pharisees and condemned their practices of
divorce and adultery, Jesus disciples told
Him that it is good to abstain from marriage
altogether. Christ replied:
All men cannot receive this saying, save they to
whom it is given. For there are some eunuchs,
which were so born from their mothers womb;
and there are some eunuchs, which were made
eunuchs of men; and there be eunuchs, which
have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom
of heavens sake. He that is able to receive it, let
him receive it.2

The Purpose And Goal of Brahmacharya

The chief purpose of Brahmacharya is
to develop ones inner spiritual capability.
The goal of Brahmacharya is to dwell in

all-pervading God by attaining spiritual

realization. The call of the Divine itself
comes through Brahmacharya. Although we
can thrive in the world without observing
continence, worldly living deprives us of this
particular grace. The practice of Brahmacharya
is vital for the nourishment and vigor of the
brain. Only a strong, cool brain can withstand
the rigors of deep meditation. Each person is
potentially divine, though the manifestation
of divinity differs. In every society, there are
various classes of people; the discipline of
Brahmacharya is absolutely necessary only for
the serious and sincere aspirant struggling for
a pure divine life.
The Benefits of Brahmacharya
Whenever human or natural energy
is restrained, be it emotional, intellectual,
psychological or physical, a great amount of
power is stored up which can be utilized in
various ways. Scientists, inventors, artists,
scholars, philosophers, and other creative
personalities rely on this scientific, natural
principle. Similarly, Brahmacharya transforms
the procreative energy into pure, spiritual
energy or Ojas, which dwells in the pure mind.
This incomparable benefit surpasses all other
gains.
Swami Vivekananda says, The chaste
brain has tremendous energy and gigantic
will-power.3

The author is a senior monk of the Ramakrishna Order, and the Head of Vedanta Society, New York. His
books include The Journey of the Upanishads to the West, and Light from the Orient, among others. o
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The Spiritual Energy of Ojas

Ojas is the holy distinction of a true
spiritual teacher. It is the unambiguous
signpost of those holy personalities whose
sweetness inexplicably attracts us. Swamiji
says:
The yogis claim that of all the energies that are
in the human body the highest is what they call
Ojas. Now this Ojas is stored up in the brain,
and the more Ojas is in a mans head, the more
powerful he is, the more intellectual, the more
spiritually strong. One man may speak beautiful
language and beautiful thoughts, but they do
not impress people; another man speaks neither
beautiful language nor beautiful thoughts, yet
his words charm. Every movement of his is
powerful. That is the power of Ojas.4

The power of continence is the greatest

power for those who wish to realize God. One
must be absolutely established in chastity in
thought, word and deed; the heart and mind
must be pure. Swamijis further emphasizes
Brahmacharya:
Now in every man there is more or less of this
Ojas stored up. All the forces that are working
in the body in their highest become Ojas. . . The
Yogis say that part of the human energy which is
expressed as sex energy, in sexual thought, when
checked and controlled, easily becomes changed
into Ojas, and as the Muladhara guides these,
the Yogi pays particular attention to that center.
He tries to take up all his sexual energy and
convert it into Ojas. It is only the chaste man or
woman who can make the Ojas rise and store it
in the brain; that is why chastity has always been
considered the highest virtue. A man feels that if
he is unchaste, spirituality goes away; he loses
mental vigor and moral stamina. That is why in
all the religious orders in the world which have
produced spiritual giants you will always find
absolute chastity insisted upon. That is why the
monks came into existence, giving up marriage.
There must be perfect chastity in thought, word,
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and deed; without it, the practice of Raja-Yoga is

dangerous, and may lead to insanity. If people
practice Raja-Yoga and at the same time lead
an impure life, how can they expect to become
Yogis?5

Swamiji calls attention to the need for the

ancient ideal of Brahmacharya in the modern
education of students:
The old institution of living with the Guru and
such systems of imparting education are needed.
What we want is Western science coupled with
Vedanta, Brahmacharya as the guiding motto,
and Shraddha and also faith in oneself.6

Millions of householders, earnestly

cultivating some sort of deep abiding faith
in God, struggle daily to develop spiritually
and to achieve a meaningful, peaceful life.
Spiritual fulfillment comes when we have an
intimate relationship with God. Therefore,
at a particular stage of family life, couples
should sublimate their worldly intimacy by
withdrawing from worldly life and focusing
their minds to develop spiritual intimacy with
God. When this commitment is demonstrated,
continence is recommended. Sri Ramakrishna
exalts householder couples who restrain the
productive urge and look upon each other as
a brother or sister after bringing one or two
children into the world. He tells some devotees
to chant the name of the Lord to combat the
forces of impure thoughts and keep the mind
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St. Paul admonishes Christians, I say

therefore to the unmarried and widows, it is
good for them if they abide even as I. But if
they cannot contain let them marry for it is
better to marry than to burn.7 In Modern Man
in Search of a Soul, Jung suggests that after the
age of thirty-five or forty, we should turn from
worldly to cultural development, that is, the
inner life of spirit. Continence is not for yogis
alone. It is for all people who want to lead a
healthy and happy life. For spiritual seekers,
however, it is most important.
The Current Crisis of Sensate Disorder
A greatly diminished spiritual consciousness on a broad scale causes sexual
anarchy, which is a conspicuous crisis
today. This sensate disorder, expressed
as the dominant desire of satisfying the
cravings of the senses, dissipates the vital
moral and intellectual energies of entire
societies. Harvard Universitys late Chairman
of Sociology, Pitirim A. Sorokin (18891968), called it the Sex Revolution. Though
unarmed, this silent pervasive revolt has
successfully enlisted billions of people
worldwide, with devastating results. The
breakdown of the family, which is the
core of civilization, impaired physical and
mental health, and loss of creativity make
this insurgency no less significant than other
revolutions.
In his book, Sane Sex Order, Dr. Sorokin
addresses the insidious effects of television
broadcasting, on which, scant regulations and
restrictions are imposed:
So far, almost the only important achievement
of this new instrument of communication
(television) has consisted in bringing into
millions of our homes erotically charged,
alcoholic atmosphere of nightclubs, ugly
commercials and endless murder and sex plays.8
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Further, in his book, Dr. Sorokin points

out the historical basis for the cultural benefits
of restricting sexual freedom:
Civilized societies, which have most strictly
limited sexual freedom, have developed the
highest culture. In the whole of human history
not a single case is found in which a society has
been able to advance to the Rationalistic Culture
without its women being born and reared in
a rigidly enforced pattern of faithfulness to
one man. Further, there is no example of a
community, which has retained its high position
on the culture scale after less rigorous sexual
customs have replaced more restricting ones.9

Shocking statistics point to the disintegration of society in Britain and the

United States. In Britain, 150,000 children
under the age of sixteen are affected yearly
by the divorce of their parents. The number
of unwed mothers in Britain quadrupled to
360,000 between 1971 and 1989. The rate of
infant births to couples out of wedlock in
Britain jumped from 12% in 1980 to 28% in
1990 and to more than 30% in 2000. Nearly a
fifth (19%) of all British families has only one
parent. In the United States, the real epidemic
of children bearing children is a public health
crisis that should alarm people more than any
avian or swine flu epidemic. The divorce rate
in America has more than doubled and more
than two fifths of American children live with
one parent during part of their childhood or
youth.10
A sensate culture perishes before the
broader social benefits generated by an
individuals practice of continence. Sri Ramakrishna and Swami Vivekananda are the
foremost modern exemplars of such practice
of continence. Commemorating Ramakrishnas
birth anniversary, Dr. Sorokin lectured
in Boston on April 4, 1957, and made the
following observation:

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A successful growth of Shri Ramakrishna and of

the Vedanta movements in the West is one of the
many symptoms of two basic processes, which
are going on at the present time in the human
universe. One of these changes is the epochal
shift of the creative center of mankind from
Europe to the larger area of the Pacific-Atlantic,
while the other consists in a double process of
continued decay of sensate culture and society
and of the emergence and growth of the new
Integral or Ideationalsocio-cultural order.11

The higher and essential spiritual

dimension of the body-mind complex cannot
be ignored if we want to develop a healthy
mind and body. The pursuit of the spiritual
goal of life invariably requires control of
the mind and strong motivation. A better
scheme of living is called for to develop in
a normal healthy way that is governed by
moral integrity, which dignifies life. The lower
impulses simply mask our predominant urge
for happiness. Swami Vivekananda says:

Happiness, we see, is what everyone is seeking;

but the majority seeks it in things which are
evanescent and not real. No happiness was
ever found in the senses. There never was a
person who found happiness in the senses or in
enjoyment of the senses. Happiness is found only
in the Spirit. Therefore, the highest utility for
mankind is to find this happiness in the Spirit.12

Brahmacharya ensures the mental and

physical purity required to fulfill the spiritual
goal of life. Physically and mentally proficient
people who wish to pursue a spiritual goal,
must for this purpose, sublimate their energy,
by seriously considering the impact of
thought. Adi Shankaracharya says that our
thoughts and cogitations are a tremendous
force in our lives. Purity in thought, word and
deed protects us from the ravages of impure
thoughts associated with a sensate culture.
Spiritual life requires us to control and harness
energy for the sole spiritual purpose of God
realization.
(To be Continued. . .)

References
Sister Nivedita, The Master as I Saw Him (Calcutta:
Udbodhan Office, 12th ed., 1977), p. 268.
2 The Holy Bible, King James Version (Garden City
Publishing Co., Inc., 1940), St. Matthew, 19: 11-12.
3 The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda (Calcutta:
Advaita Ashrama), I: 170. [Hereafter CW.]
4 Ibid, I: 169.
5 Ibid, I: 169-170.
6 Ibid, V: 366 (seventh ed.).
7 I Corinthians, 7: 8-9.
8 Pitirim A. Sorokin, Sane Sex Order (Mumbai:
1

Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, 1970), p. 27.

9 Ibid (1961 ed.), p. 38.
10 M. H. King and C. M. Elliott, The Diseases of
Gods: Some Newer Threats to Health, Oxford
Text Book of Medicine, 3rd ed., Oxford University
Press, p. 36. Cit. from The Vedanta Kesari, June
2000, p. 10-11.
11 World Thinkers on Ramakrishna-Vivekananda, Swami
Lokeswarananda, ed. (Gol Park, 1983), p. 11. Quote
from Prabuddha Bharata, Sept. 1957, p. 377.
12 C. W., II: 83.

Perfect continence is the sole condition of success in spiritual life, but it is difficult,
even impossible, to practice absolute purity without love and faith in God. The word is full
of temptations which arouse passions; every day you will see ninety-nine percent of the
people rushing in mad pursuit after sensual pleasures. Your mind is in constant danger
of becoming contaminated; therefore, you must engage your mind in thinking good
thoughts, studying good books, and discussing uplifting subjects. You must spend your
time in worship of God, in service to holy men, and in contemplation. This is the only way
to mould your character.
Swami Brahmananda
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The Spiritual Universe of

Sri Ramacharitamanas
As Seen through Its Two Invocatory Verses
A.P.N. PANKAJ

(Continued from the previous issue. . .)

The Mundaka Upanishad speaks of two
kinds of knowledge, the Para and Apara, the
higher and the lower.
Vedas, phonetics, rituals, grammar,
etymology, metrics and astrology (and, by
implication, all the modern day sciences and
subjects of scholastic interest), are all included
by it in the Apara. That, it says, by which the
undecaying is realized, is Para, the higher
knowledge. 38
In the subsequent mantras, it substitutes
Apara and Para with Avidya and Brahmavidya
respectively and repeats, more or less, what
Kathopanishad says. It then goes on to say that
even when as a result of performing sacrifices
etc., these persons go to enjoy the pleasures of
heaven, they have to return to this world or
even the lower ones. 39
In the Chandogya Upanishad (VII.1),
there is a dialogue between Narada and
Sanatkumara, where Narada admits that
in spite of having mastered a wide range
of sciences, he yet grieved and requests
Sanatkumara to equip him with the knowledge
which would enable him to cross over to the
other shore of Samsara or transmigratory
existence.
Sri Krishna says,

The knowers of the Vedas, purified from

sins worshipping me with sacrifices they
experience celestial enjoyments of the gods in
heaven (and) when their virtue is exhausted,
they enter the mortal world they go and come.
(Gita IX. 20, 21)

So while the range of avidya, by no

means is small and reaches one to brahmabhuvana, the abode of Brahma, it does not lead
to the bliss of eternity. The gifts of avidyathe

o The author is a devotee from Chandigarh and is known for his scholarly and insightful writings on spiritual matters.
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23

Preyaseven if they happen to be available

to Indra are, according to Nachiketa, alpam,
insignificant and shvobhavah, transient, lasting
till tomorrow.
Sita as Paramesvari / Sarveshvari40 is
Sarvashreyaskari. She is the dispenser of all
that is Shreya, highest and the ultimate good.
While those in the range of avidya, seeking her
blessings for preya (pleasant but transitory)
are so blessed, these few who choose shreya,
cross over the ocean of transience or; if they
so choose, are blessed with Ramabhakti. In a
significant observation, Tulasi refers to Sitas
blessing of Hanuman. Pleased with him, Sita
blesses him with perennial youth, immortality
and treasure of virtues (ajara amara ganamudhi
suta hohi), but Hanuman shows no reaction.
Then Sita says,
Karahun bahuta raghunayaka chohu
May RaghunayakaSri Ramalove you
abundantly.

Now, Tulasi adds,

Karahun kripa prabhu asa sunikana
Nirbhara prema magana hanumana

As soon as Hanuman heard, may the

Lord be graceful, he became ecstatic with
love and said,
Aba kritakritya bhayaun main mata
Asisa tava amogha bikhyata
Now am I gratified, Mother; your blessings, it is
well-known, never fails. 41

It may be added that for Tulasi, as for

Hanuman, there is no greater Shreya than
becoming a recipient of Ramas grace. A
Bhaktas salvation lies not in the so-called
final liberation or the Buddhistic Nirvana but
in Ramakripa, grace or benevolence of Rama.
When Hanuman is so blessed by Sita, he
knows for certain that he had achieved it.
Let us not forget that Sita grants such
a boon because of her essential union
with Rama, notwithstanding their rolerelated separation. Sita and Rama have to
be meditated upon as one Indivisible couple
and worshipped as ONEekam advitiyam
abhinna, samprikta, as speech and meaning, as
water and current.
(To be continued )

References
38. Mundaka Upanishad I. 1. 4-5

39. Ibid, I. 1.8

40. VP 40 ka (footnote)

41. Manasa, V. 17; 2-3

Sri Rama is the Paramatman and Sita is the Jivatman. Each mans or womans body is
the Lanka. The Jivatman which is enclosed in the body or captured in the island of Lanka,
always desires to be in affinity with the Paramatman or Sri Rama.
But the Rakshasas would not allow it. The Rakshasas represented certain traits
of character. For instance, Vibhishana represents Sattva Guna; Ravana, Rajas; and
Kumbhakarna, Tamas. Sattva Guna means goodness, purity, truthfulness, wisdom and
unselfishness. Rajas means lust, anger, greed, jealousy and passions. Tamas means
darkness, stupor, avarice, malice and its concomitants. These Gunas imprison and prevent
Sita or Jivatman, which is in the body or Lanka, from joining Paramatman, or Rama.
The Jivatman Sita thus imprisoned and trying to unite with her Lord, receives a visit
from Hanuman, the Guru or divine teacher. The divine teacher shows her the Lords
ring, which is Brahma-Jnana, the supreme wisdom of the identity of the Jivatman and
Paramatman. This truth destroys all illusions. Thus Sita finds the way to be at one with Sri
Rama, or, in other words, the Jivatman finds itself one with the Paramatman.
Swami Vivekananda, CW, 5:415
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Compilation

This is Business Integrity

SWAMI VIVEKANANDA

Though a man of intense renunciation and personal integrity, Swami Vivekananda was also a
pragmatic organizer. While he set in motion the world-wide Ramakrishna Movement, he also gave
many practical instructions about its smooth conduct. He laid down certain profound principles
while handling day-to-day works of the organization, especially while dealing with money. He called
it business integrity. One finds many references to it in his life and letters a study of which may be
a source of inspiration and guidance to those who are engaged in voluntary work. Swamiji insisted
on transparency in all financial dealings and in some of his letters gives details of expenditure he
incurred. He emphasized on maintaining proper account of all public donations and never mixing up
things under any pretext.
This representative compilation from his nine-volume Complete Works gives a glimpse of this
aspect of his personality and teachings. It is remarkable that Swamiji spoke of these matters more than
a century back at a time when one hardly considered these aspects of financial dealings important or
necessary. While Swamiji declined every offer of money while he moved as a wandering monk, he was
meticulous and insisted on accountability and transparency. This underlies the fact of his deep and
clear understanding of matters related to money transactions.
Be Financially Transparent
The work [of the organization] is going
on beautifully, I am very glad to say. . . . I will
give you one advice however. All combined
efforts in India sink under the weight of one
iniquitywe have not yet developed strict
business principles. Business is business, in
the highest sense, and no friendshipor as the
Hindu proverb says, eye-shameshould be
there. One should keep the clearest account of
everything in ones chargeand never, never
apply the funds intended for one thing to any
other use whatsoevereven if one starves the
next moment. This is business integrity.1
Whenever I write to you about accounts,
you feel that I have no confidence in you.
. . . My great anxiety is this: the work has
somehow been started, but it should go on
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25

and progress even when we are not here;

such thoughts worry me day and night. Any
amount of theoretical knowledge one may
have; but unless one does the thing actually,
nothing is learnt. I refer repeatedly to election,
accounts, and discussion so that everybody
may be prepared to shoulder the work. If one
man dies, anotherwhy another only, ten if
necessaryshould be ready to take it up.2
I think it desirable to give you special
directions about certain matters. . . .
(1) To all those who collect money and
send it to the Math . . . the acknowledgment
of the amounts will be issued from the Math.
(2) The acknowledgment must be in
duplicate, one for the sender, and one for filing
in the Math.
(3) There must be a big register in which
all the names and addresses of the donors will
be entered.
(4) Accounts, accurate to the last pie,
must be kept of the amounts that are donated
to the [Belur] Math Fund, and fully accurate
accounts should be obtained from Sarada
[Swami Trigunatitananda] and others to
whom money is given. For lack of accurate
account-keeping . . . see that I am not accused
as a cheat. These accounts should afterwards
be published.
(5) Immediately go and register a will
under lawyers advice to the effect that in case
you and I die then Hari [Swami Turiyananda]
and Sharat [Swami Saradananda] will succeed
to all that there is in our Math.3
Before dying, I want to see that what
I have established as a result of my lifelong
struggle is put in a more or less running
condition. Consult the Committee in every
detail regarding money matters. Get the
signatures of the Committee for every item
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of expenditure. Otherwise you also will be in

for a bad name. This much is customary that
people want some time or other an account of
their donations. It is very wrong not to have it
ready at every turn. . . . By such lethargy in the
beginning, people finally become cheats. Make
a committee of all those who are in the Math,
and no expenditure will be made which is not
countersigned by themnone at all! I want
work, I want vigourno matter who lives or
dies. What are death and life to a Sannyasin?4
Keep as a fund for some permanent work
the balance of the money left after the famine
relief. Do not spend that money for any other
purpose, and after giving the full accounts of
the famine work, note down thus, So much
balance is left for some other good work. . .5
Is the money in the Bengal Bank, or have
you kept it elsewhere? Be very careful about
money matters; keep detailed accounts, and
regarding money know for certain that one
cannot rely even on ones own father.6
Some Personal Instructions
In a few days I leave for America. Send
an account to Mrs. Bull as to how much was
spent on purchase of land, how much on
buildings, how much on maintenance etc.7
We should hold an annual meeting of
the Ramakrishna Mission, and also one for
the Math. In both the meetings the accounts of
famine relief must be submitted, and the report
of the famine relief must be published. Keep all
this ready.8
Please pay 100 Rs. to Sister Nivedita
immediately for plague work and credit it to a
separate plague account.9

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. . . As for the accounts and the disposal

of the Rs. 30,000, do just what you please.
I have given over the management to you,
the Master will show you what is best to do.
The money is Rs. 35,000; the Rs. 5,000, for
building the cottage on the Ganga, I wrote
to Saradananda not to use just now. I have
already taken Rs. 5,000 of that money. I am not
going to take more. I had paid back Rs. 2,000
or more of that Rs. 5,000 in India. But it seems,
Brahmananda, wanting to show as much of
the Rs. 35,000 intact as he could, drew upon
my Rs. 2,000; so I owe them Rs. 5,000 still on
that score.10
The gentleman from Madras who donated Rs. 1,500 for famine relief wants an account
of how exactly the money was expended. Send
him such an account.11
[From a letter]12
. . . has supplied him with everything he
asked forand he asks me also to send you the
accounts. This, on the other page. . .
[Enclosed accounts list]
4th February 1902. Rs 100

Rs. As. P.
Train hire from Gaya to Benares 20
4
0
Cab hire
5
0
0
Tel message
2
0
0
Refreshment Room (Morning)
1
8
0
Cooly hire Gaya
0
10
0
Tobacco etc.
0
5
0
Refreshment Room (Evening)
2
0
3
Cooly hire (at Benares)
1
1
0
Cab hire at Benares
1
10
0
---------------------Total
34
6
3
----------------------

[From a letter]13
P.S. Keep this Dandi [a simple palanquin]
till I come and pay the coolies (2) 4 Rs., 2 annas
each.
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Coolie Tara
[Accounts List]
[Illegible word] 20
Dandi
26
Coolies 16
2 hrs.
Coolies 4
2 hrs. at

4 as. per hr.
Dandi 26
3 hrs. at 6

as. per hr.
4 extra
1 hr. at 4

as. per hr.
2 ponies
2 hrs. at 12

as. per hr.
1 pony
1 hr. at 12

as. per hr.

2 Dandis
3 hrs.


[Illegible]

=8 Rs.

-- as.

=2

34

=1

=3

12

=0
2
---------------------50 2
[Illegible]
---------------------52
0
8
[0]
---------------------60 [0]

Bed chairs
4
Luggage 25
Dandi 26
----------- 55

55 all inclusive
Two horses
1st stage12 miles
Batacooti
Phahalgaon [Pahalgam] next stage

Will you kindly order 100 photographs

from Harrison, and send them over to
India to Ramdayal Chakravarty, c/o Swami
Ramakrishnananda, Varahanagar Math,
Alambazar, Calcutta? I will pay for it when I
come to Chicago.14
Shashi [Ramakrishnananda] himself
should handle the entire amount of 100 rupees
which the Raja of Ramnad is donating (every
month); he should send a detailed account of
the monthly income and expenditure to the
Mathotherwise there wont be any check.

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Advise him to spend as little as necessary on

Thakurs worship, for the money is [primarily]
for propagation of Truth.15
On receipt of this letter you send me
a clear account of all the income and the
expenses of the Brahmavadin so that I may
judge from it what best can be done.16
I am writing to the Maharaja of Khetri
to instruct his Bombay agent to look after the
booking of your passage. If this sum of Rs.
150/- is not sufficient for your outfit, get the
remainder from Rakhal. I shall send him the
amount afterwards. Keep another Rs. 50/for pocket expensestake it fromRakhal; I
shall pay back later. I have not up to now got
any acknowledgement of the amount I sent to
Chuni Babu. . .17
I had enough to pay all my expenses
here [America]; and since I am living with
Mrs. Bull, there is no expense. She is a rich
and highly cultured lady. She has given me
$500 for my work or anything I like. As I am
not going west very soon, I will have a bank
account here in Boston.18
I am thinking of drawing all my money
from the Chicago bank to New York. Will you
kindly ascertain the exact total amount I have
in Chicago so that I may draw it out at once
and deposit it in some New York bank?19
. . . will collect subscriptions and
donations from here and send them to the
Math to meet expenses. Send him regular
receipts.20
The classes are going on with a boom;
almost every day I have one, and they are
packed full. But no moneyexcept they
maintain themselves. I charge no fees, except
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as the members contribute to the rent etc.

voluntarily.21
I am going to send the greater part of the
money I have got to India and then money will
come faster. I have always found that the faster
I spend, the faster it comes. Nature abhors a
vacuum.22
The accounts were not submitted before,
as the work is not yet finished; and I thought
of submitting to my donor a complete account
when the whole thing was finished. The work
was begun only last year, as we had to wait for
funds a long time, and my method is never to
ask but wait for voluntary help.23
Ask Brahmananda to write this to
everyone in relief-workthey must not be
allowed to spend money to no good. We want
the greatest possible good work permanent
from the least outlay.24
Ramakrishnananda came a few weeks
before I came away, and the first thing he did
was to lay down at my feet 400 Rs. he had
collected in so many years of hard work!!! It
was the first time such a thing has happened
in my life. I can scarcely suppress my tears.
Oh, Mother!! Mother! There is not all gratitude,
all love, all manliness dead!!! And, dear child,
one is enoughone seed is enough to reforest
the world.
Well, that money is in deposit in the
Math. I never mean to touch a penny of that.
When I asked Ramakrishnananda to give that
money to his people, he replied he did not care
a hang to give to anybody except me and was
only sorry he could scrape that little in four
years! Well, if I pass away, see that 400 Rs. is
paid backevery rupee to him. Lord bless you
and Ramakrishnananda.25

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Remember the Ideal

Money, life, friends, and relatives, and
the love of men and myself if one wants to
enter into work fully assured beforehand of all
theseif one has to be so much ridden with
fear, then one will get just what Gurudeva
[Sri Ramakrishna] used to say, The crow
thinks itself very clever but . . . well, he

will get that. After all, what is the purpose

behind all thesemoney and wealth, Maths
and institutions, preaching and lecturing?
There is only one purpose in the whole of
lifeeducation. Otherwise what is the use of
men and women, land and wealth? So loss
of money, or loss of anything elseI cannot
bother about, and I will not.26 o

References
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

CW, 5:114
CW, 8,456
CW, 8, 433-34
CW, 8, 469
CW, 8:439
CW, 8:439

7. CW, 8.468
8. CW, 8.449-50
9. CW, 9.113
10. CW, 8.496
11. CW, 8. 419

12.
13.
14.
15.
16.

CW, 9.177
CW,9:105-106
CW, 9.47
CW, 9.98
CW, 5.111

17.
18.
19.
20.
21.

CW, 5.353
CW, 9. 44
CW, 9.57
CW, 8. 436
CW, 9.57

22. CW, 9.44

23. CW, 8::479
24. CW, 7.509
25. CW, 9.181
26. CW, 8:431

My Grandmother and Swamiji

My memories are simply of him as a guest in our homeof a great personality who is
still vivid to me! His brilliant eyes, his charming voice with the lilt of a slight well-bred Irish
brogue, his warm smile! He told me enchanting stories of India, of monkeys and peacocks,
and flights of bright green parrots, of banyan trees and masses of flowers, and markets
piled with all colours of fruits and vegetables. . . . I used to rush up to him when he came
into the house and cry, Tell me another story, Swami, and climb into his lap. . . . He was
always wonderful to me! Yetbecause a child is sensitiveI can remember times when
I would run into his room and suddenly know he did not want to be disturbedwhen he
was in meditation. He asked me many questions about what I learned in school and made
me show him my school-books and pointed out India to me on the mapit was pink, I
recalland told me about his country. He seemed sad that little Indian girls did not have,
in general, the chance to have as good an education as we American children. . . . My
grandmother was president of the Women's Hospital at home and he visited it with lively
interest and asked for all the figures in infant mortality, etc.
When he [Swami Vivekananda] began to give lectures, people offered him money
for the work he hoped to do in India. He had no purse. So he used to tie it up in a
handkerchief and bring it backlike a proud little boy!pour it into my grandmother's
lap to keep for him. She made him learn the different coins and to stack them up neatly
and count them.
Once he said to my grandmother that he had had the greatest temptation of his life in
America. She [my grandmother] liked to tease him a bit and said, 'Who is she, Swami?' He
burst out laughing and said, 'Oh, it is not a lady, it is Organization!' He explained how the
followers of Ramakrishna had all gone out alone and when they reached a village, would
just quietly sit under a tree and wait for those in trouble to come to consult them. But in
the States he saw how much could be accomplished by organizing work. . .
Cornelia Conger, Life of Swami Vivekananda, 1.444
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It Fills My Heart with Joy Unspeakable

B. HRUDAYAKUMARI

An analysis of Swami Vivekanandas Response to the Welcome given to the Delegates at the
Parliament of Religions, Chicago on 11 September 1893. B. Hrudayakumari, a former Professor of
English from Kerala, acknowledges her indebtedness to I.A. Richards for the method of close analysis
followed in this article.
1893 appears so far away, but not Swami
Vivekananda.
Swamiji continues to be a contemporary
presence not only to devotees but to every
Indian concerned with the ups and downs
of Indias national life. His writings and the
transcripts of his speeches have the qualities
special to great compositionsnobility of
language and the humanism that transcends
temporal boundaries. At the core of his
humanism is faith. He is a patriot but more
than that a Sannyasin who ably exemplified
the grand monastic ideal of love, renunciation,
purity and universality.
An Immortal Speech
In India, even now, 125 years after
the Chicago event, we still speak of the
Chicago Speech with a thrill in our hearts.
There is something in it that evokes feelings
of pride and admiration and touches even
deeper chords in the heart. May be it is the
genuineness of the voice transcending the
merely intellectual.
A great man speaks, and the occasion
brings out his greatness through his voice,
the expressions on his face, his choice of
words, the quality of his thoughts and the
basic emotion in his heart which is the wellspring and uniting force of all these other
elements.
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The Chicago Speech is a very short

one, taking less than ten minutes of normal
reading. In fact it is not much of a speech on
a topic, but a courteous expression of thanks
for the welcome given and a well-needed selfintroduction. The self-introduction naturally
includes a brief reference to what the speaker
represents.
The audience, though well-educated,
knew little of India or the Hindu religion,
though what is called Orientalism had
begun in the eighteenth century and made
considerable advance. Except to a cultured
few, India was, to the public of the West, the
land of mystery, and her religion a mass of
superstitions and barbarous practices. An
Indian Sannyasin at Chicago was perhaps as
strange as a Martian descending on the earth
would be today.
Setting the Stage
The World Parliament of Religions was
part of a grand scale eventcalled World
Columbian Expositionorganized to celebrate
the 400 years of the discovery of America. It
had two parts: one a big exhibition-cum-sales
of the products of all nations, and the other
a series of conferences to discuss themes
important to all mankind. The Parliament
of Religions was one of these conferences,
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The Inauguration
were to be invited to speak. The intention
On the first day of the meeting, as the
was to create better understanding among
clock showed 10 am, the new Liberty Bell of
religions [though there was an undercurrent
the conference hall tolled ten times in honour
of Christian superiority in the organisers
of the ten religions represented. The chief
thinking], and also to give a wider perspective
organizers and the delegates walked in twos
to the American public. It was hoped that such
slowly through the aisle and ascended the
exchange of ideas would help the cause of
platform while the nearly five thousand strong
universal peace and harmony.
audience rose, and stood earnestlywatching
This idea of bringing the representatives
in solemn silence.
of different religions to the same platform had
The meeting began with a choir singing
many enthusiastic supporters and some strong
a
few
hymns, followed by the chanting
opponents too. Some of the leaders of the
of the Lords Prayer in which everybody
Catholic Church and of the different Protestant
joined. Then came the speeches of welcome
sects vehemently opposed the idea of giving
pagan religions the same status
as the one and only True Religion.
But the organizers went ahead with
their plans and ten religions were
represented on the dais when the
Parliament opened on September 11,
1893 to a majestic start befitting the
host country.
Swami Vivekananda had reached Chicago a month before the
Parliament. He stayed for some days
there, then moved to another town,
and later went back to Chicago.
He had two problems at first, one
Swami Vivekananda in the Parliament of Religions
being the unruly behaviour he
and the replies of the delegates. Many of
was sometimes exposed to on the streets of
the delegates spoke impressively and were
Chicago, and the other the anxiety caused
warmly applauded. Though the chairman
by not having enough money. Neither he
invited Swami Vivekananda a few times to
nor the supportersRaja of Khetri, Alasinga
speak his reply was always No, not Yet.
Perumal of Chennai and other devoteesof
In the afternoon session the chairman
his travel had had any idea of what it would
insisted that the Swami should speak and he
cost for his stay in America. His purse, heavy
agreed. He had no written speech. He bowed
at first, was rapidly getting lighter and he
his head in prayer for a few moments, then
didnt know what to do. Luckily, generous
raised his head and looked at the audience.
American hospitality came to his aid. Of those
Then his clear voice rang out, Sisters and
who befriended him one may be specially
Brothers of America. Before he could utter the
mentioned hereMrs.George W.Hale (Belle
next word, the entire audience stood up as one
Hale), angelic in her kindness.
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man, and sent up a deafening applause. It took

some minutes before silence was restored.
Why did he address them as Sisters and
Brothers and why were they so moved? A
change from the usual Ladies and Gentlemen
must have been striking, but that alone is
not enough to explain their whole-hearted
and unusual response. It must have been
the combined effect of the nobility of his
personality, the quality of his voice, and the
warmth and intimacy of the address, sisters
and brothers.
We dont know whether the Swami was
surprised, because Bhaiyo and Beheno
are the most common forms of address in
India, though perhaps not in a public meeting
particularly if the speeches happened to
be in English. Vivekananda chose Sisters
and Brothers, most probably not under the
pressure of an Indian habit but because of a
fervent feeling of oneness inspired partly by
the greatness of the occasion and what he had
seen of the nobility of the audience and partly
by his deep philosophy of universality. A
knower of Brahman, to Swamiji, universality
and inclusiveness was a natural way of looking
at the world.
He was young at that time, just 30. His
photographs taken then show a majestic
looking young man, with a noble face
and large expressive eyes. His voice must
have been clear and strong; his bearing
self-confident, his posture and gestures
a blending of courtesy and confidence.
These are conjectures, not very relevant to
understanding what he said but not irrelevant
to apprehending the response of his audience.
The impressiveness of his appearance and of
the tone of his speech must have played a part
in winning the hearts of the audience.
The tone of a writing or a speech is not an
unimportant clue to its meaning. Explication,
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appeal, persuasion, contempta host of such

motives and emotions can be suggested by the
tone of the composition. Nuances of the tone
often require careful listening. The Chicago
speech being very short there is no scope in it
for a variety of tones. The dominant note is one
of fervour, impassioned sincerity, pervaded by
self-confidence. There is assertiveness in that
confidence, both in the words and the tone.
This assertiveness may be partly due to what
the speaker consciously or unconsciously felt
as necessary for emphasizing his ideas, partly
it has a trace of combativeness, most probably
provoked by the incomprehension ofand
the resultant hostility toHinduism had to
encounter both at home and elsewhere.
Understanding An Extraordinary Speech
In the content of the speech what impresses
most is the directness and compactness of
what he has to say. He thanks his hosts for the
welcome given, places his credentials before
them, and gives a message most pertinent to
the occasion. This message embodies cardinal
principles of Hinduism.
His mind must have worked on this
theme consciously and unconsciously in
the preceding days. But it is so short and so
fervent and was an extempore speech. What
is surprising is that it is so well-structured,
though not a rehearsed composition at all.
The speech continues with the words, It
fills my heart with joy unspeakable to rise in
response to .the warm and cordial welcome
you have given us. Even in this one sentence
the reader can feel the warmth of welcome
given, the sincerity so spontaneously and
abundantly offered. fills and unspeakable
are superlative terms which occurred to
him in the joy of his heart. The prose order
of the words unspeakable joy is altered to
joy unspeakable, the poetic transfer of the

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adjective to follow the noun suggesting an

unusual intensity of emotion. And to make
a minor point the phrase is indicative of the
Swamis sensitive awareness of the nuances of
the English language.
The three sentences that follow has each
the same beginning. I thank you in the name
of . . . Apart from the repetition of the thank
you, being an indication of the emotion in his
heart, it is interesting that he first thanks the
American audience in the name of, the most
ancient order of monks in the world, then in
the name of the most ancient of all religions,
the mother of all religions, and finally in the
name of millions and millions of Hindus
of all classes and sects. In the three tiers of
what he represents the importance of each is
made clear, and the past and the present are
also brought together. An unbroken tradition
extending over thousands of years becomes
manifest. The religion and the order of
Sannyasin are very, very old, but the millions
and millions of contemporary Hindus are both
the past and the present mingled into one. And
he represents this life, this tradition and these
followers too.
When Swamijis says, I thank you in the
name (of these) he is presenting his credentials
and there must have been a ringing note of
pride in his voice, not because he thinks he is
great, but because he is privileged to represent
something far greater than what could be
comprehended in an individuals reach. In
turn now it is we who feel a rapturous pride
because we understand that here is someone
equal to his task of representing India and her
religion, someone who has the magnificence
of the Rishis of old, and can command the
attention of the present world.
The next point he raises is that tolerance
of, or more than that, the acceptance of all
faiths as true is a cardinal tenet of Hinduism.
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It is not just a matter of belief; it is a practical

and practised principle of conduct. He points
out two major historical examples of how
India had in the past sheltered and fostered
refugees of other faiths, the purest remnant of
the Israelites at a time their holy temple was
shattered to pieces by Roman tyranny, and
also the remnant of the grand Zoroastrian
nation. To show why this universalism
was possible he quotes a verse [from Shivamahimna-stotra] which millions of Hindus
repeat every day,
As the different streams having their sources in
different places all mingle their water in the sea,
so, Oh Lord, the different paths which men take
through different tendencies, various though
they appear, crooked or straight, all lead to
Thee.

The next and concluding part of the

speech begins with an apt and graceful
compliment to the Parliament of Religions
one of the most august assemblies ever held.
It goes on to observe that it is a vindication
of the doctrine preached in the Gita (7.11),
Whosoever comes to Me, in whatsoever
form, I reach him; all men are struggling
through paths which in the end lead to Me.
This is followed by a summing up in three
short sentences of the horrors that fanaticism
has wrought in history. Those sentences are
a combination of lament, description, and
condemnation. The description is that of the
horrors of fanatical violence;
They [sectarianism, bigotry and fanaticism]
have long possessed this beautiful earth. They
have filled the earth with violence, drenched it
often and often with human blood, destroyed
civilization, and sent whole nations to despair.

His dwelling on the effects of intolerance

and bigotry, however brief, is an unsparing
pointer to the traumatic set-backs of history.
Destroyed civilization and sent whole

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nations to despair are words that sum up a

continual tragic phenomenon in history, and
the perpetrators of this tragedy are unerringly
identified. . . Their time is come he declares,
and the cause of his optimism is pointed out,
I fervently hope that the bell that tolled this
morning in honour of this convention may be the
death-knell of all fanaticism, of all persecutions
with the sword or with the pen, and of all
uncharitable feelings between persons wending
their way to the same goal.

There is no means of knowing whether

the above sentence was the product of that
moments inspiration or a well-thought-out
one. But it is a remarkable expression. There
is a grading within the sentence leading from
the physical, through the mental to something
more emotionalphysical persecution with
the sword, mental persecution with the pen
on thoughts, beliefs, customs, etc., and lastly
the more refined and more lasting persecution
wrought by uncharitable feelings, something
working like sticky, spreading poison. All
these have to go because the perpetrators and
victims of all these evils are persons wending
their way to the same goal. There is irony in
this statement, irony inevitable to one who
sees the foolishness of it all, also pity, and
more than pity, the hope of transcending such
follies. Hope wings up because the bell that
tolled that morning rang out the message of
understanding and acceptance, sanity and
reason.
The word uncharitable used in that
sentence points to the need for its opposite,
charitablenessa word standing for sanity,
gentleness, and generosity of mind and of
action. Uncharitable is the most proper word
in its context mainly because it brings to mind
charity, so essential to persons wending

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their way to the same goal. The long path of

spiritual evolution and the careful treading
along that path, and the goal that welcomes
everybody can be visualized as we read this
concluding sentence and take in the vision and
the poetry of it.
A Timeless Fascination
It is only natural that this speech
continues to fascinate readers. The personality
of the speakerlarge-hearted, brave and
courteousis clear in it. And what he
represents is also clearthe waking up of the
people of India to their spiritual self-awareness
and dignity and their stepping into a new
era in history. His words also welcome in all
earnestness the initiative of the conference that
holds out the hope for the future. This speech
at the Parliament of Religions is a perfect
example of the man and the moment being
ideally matched.
Swami Vivekananda was born with a
mission, the mission of pulling out India from
the mist of self-forgetfulness and slavery and
also of establishing a vital connection between
India and the world. Vast themes are opened
up in this speech, not only the tolerance and
acceptance that all religions must claim as an
inherent right, but also the discovery of new
topics of spiritual and social importance, and
an unending exploration of the essence or
spirit. There is something more, the delight,
the pride, the refreshing and energising thrill
that the sight of a great man gives.
Blowing through a shankhaa conchis
customary throughout India to announce
a major event or to welcome an auspicious
happening. Swamijis Chicago speech is a
Shankhanadamthe Voice of History validated
by Destiny. o

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New Find

Unpublished Letters of
Swami Saradananda1
July 24 1902
Math. Belur. Howrah.
India.
Dearest Granny
Your kind letter of July 2nd and enclosed the cheque for 75
or Rs 1125 has reached me last mail. I thank you very much for the
same.
My last will tell how the dear Swami entered into life eternal, without
any struggle or pain and no doubt in a state of Samadhi, as did the Master.
There is nothing to regret in it except that we, who had been joined by Sri
R.[Ramakrishna] should misunderstand each other in the least as we did during the last year
and a half of his (Swamiji) life! However if there is any way to make it up may Sri R. give me
the light & strength to do it even at the sacrifice of my own life and may I have your blessings
for the same! It will take a month or two more to readjust things here and then I will go over to
the West via Japan or Europe as will then seem best. I thank you so much for sending me the
passage money for I feel myself free now to move whenever I am free.
I have helped Brahmananda in adjusting the dear Swamis personal accounts and
according to his last wishes the balance of Rs 3700 worth of Govt security papers and Rs900 in
cash will be made over to his mother as soon as possible.
Miss C. Greenstidals passage of Rs 750 which you left with the Swami is not included in
the amount above and has been kept with Brahmananda.
You know perhaps the Swami used to send Rs 50 per month to his mother after the Raja
of Khetris death. The balance left in the accounts will not fetch Rs.50 as interest and if the
balance itself is expended at Rs 50 per month, it will keep her for seven years only. So we have
thought it best to write to Mrs.Sevier to inquire whether she can pay the passage of Miss C.G.
In that case the amount of Rs 750 which you left will be given over to the mother. I do not know
whether you will approve this or not but we have done it that the old lady might not feel any
want in her last days.
I am sending the cousin Rs 50 each month & will continue to do the same unless you
advise otherwise. I have not seen her after this sad event but from reports of those who have
done so, I gather she is feeling the separation bitterly. I am reminded of Miss C.G. in this
connection and I can well feel what she is suffering too. I am glad she is with Mrs.Sevier. She
can be in no better hands at this time except if she were with you.
Mohin, Swamis brother, has come from Kashmir, after hearing the news. He was
planning then for Central Asia again. He seems to have improved every way and has learnt to
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stand on his own feet. He is going to publish his books on Sociology & on what he has gathered
in his travels soon. He was telling me the other day he will look after his mother & family
henceforth, but that his youngest brother is running wild. He asked me also of the possibility
of giving his brother an education in America by writing to you or Mrs.Leggett or any of the
numerous friends of the Swami. I told him I will inquire if any one will be willing to bear the cost.
The youngest brother will study medicine if it can be arranged. I am writing you this to know
what you think of it & if you approve of the plan to write to Mrs Leggette or any one whom you
think best, when Olea is well.
I am anxious to know whether the voyage has been agreeable or not to Mrs.Vaughan. I hope
she will improve rapidly now that she is in Norway. Tender my kindest regards to her and do
not forget my flowers and love to dear Edwina and Mr.Bull please.
My family is at Benares now & well. I am sure they would like to send in their cordial
greetings & best wishes to you & Olea.
My friend sends her hearts love to you & prays that Mrs.Vaughan might be herself again
soon.
Nivedita is working at her plans earnestly. Brahmananda & I have told her the best way
(in our opinion) to pursue her plans. She has announced in the papers that her work is quite
independent of the sanction of the Math. It is drawing criticisms from all sides but it cannot be
helped, the Math must confine itself strictly to religious & philanthropic work, as it has been
doing up to date.
Turiyananda is expected here in a few days. He has wired from Rangoon. I will be freer
when he arrives.
My love & blessings to you as ever dear Granny & wish I were with you in Norway to be
of any help to you or Mrs.Vaughan.
Yours Affectionately
Saradananda.
P.S. Swami Brahmananda & all the rest of the Math send their thanks to you for the telegram
& their kindest regards.
The trustees of the Math have determined to build a temple on the site where Swamijis
body has been cremated & a rest house in connection with it for Sadhus who visit the Math every
now & then. The money will be collected amongst his friends.
Yours,
S.

References
1. A direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna

2. Mrs. Sara Bull

Courtesy: Ramakrishna Museum, Belur Math

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Special Report

Restoration and Renovation

of Vivekananda Illam
Devotees and admirers of Ramakrishna
Movement are well aware of Vivekananda
Illam (house in Tamil), earlier known as Ice
House or Castle Kernan, as an important place
for the Ramakrishna Movement in South India.
Swami Vivekananda stayed here for nine
historic days after he returned from the West
in 1897 and was accorded a royal welcome.
Vivekananda Illam now houses a Permanent
Exhibition on Indian Culture and Swamijis
Life, maintained by the Chennai Math and is
a source of inspiration to thousands of people
who visit it every year.
Vivekananda Illam came under the
administration of Sri Ramakrishna Math,
Chennai, in 1997. Extensive repairs and
restoration of the old structure were taken up
before it was opened to public in 1999. The
170 year old building (built in 1842; circular
verandas added in 1890s), however, needs
repair and restoration on a regular basis.
Besides daily upkeep and maintenance of the
building, there is always a need to strengthen
and repair the structure. Keeping in view its
age and the attendant problems, a number
of steps to restore, repair and renovate the
existing structure have been taken in the last
few years, especially between August 2013 and
April 2014.
Some salient features of the restoration
and renovation are:
1. Strengthening of the original Ice House
structure (cylindrical-shaped, vertical structure
which forms the core of the buildingwhere
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ice used to be stored) by replacing three

wooden beams and some rafters with new
ones. Lime mortar, a mixture of treated lime,
jaggery and Haritiki (Chebulic Myrobalan;
in Tamil, Kadukkaai), have been used, along
with the tree-glue as bonding material for
plastering the old walls which were having
lime plastering. For this a grinding-unit and
a carpentry unit were set up in the rear side
where a number of workers lived and worked
for about six months to complete the work.
2. Removal of the additional mud walls
and bricks around the Ice House and replastering the walls, restoring circular shape of
the original Ice House. Cracks in many walls
were stitched using stainless steel rods and
granite bed-blocks.
3. Installing a lift in the rear portion of
the building without affecting the structure in
any way; the lift, meant for old and physically
challenged visitors, can carry 5 people.
4. Thorough water-proofing of all floors
which had become leaky and weak. This aims

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at protecting the structure and the paintings

in the art-gallery section. The water-proof clay
tiles on the roof were also laid.
5. Re-laying with granite the floor in
the basement including the interior steps
connecting various rooms. In many places, the
steps had to be re-laid to rectify the varying
heights and uneven surfaces.
6. Fresh wooden support to windows and
doors in the Ice House structure.
7. To protect the building from the
vibration caused by the heavy traffic movement on the Marina Beach Road (called
Kamarajar Salai), a random rubble pit has been
added next to building.
8. The room where Swami Vivekananda
stayed, now used for meditation, has been
repaired and renovated. The floor has been
re-laid with clay tiles and has a new wooden
altar adorned with Swamijis well-known
meditation picturewith two oil lamps on
either sides. The removal of wooden roof
above the room has added to it a sense of
spaciousnessfilling the place with awe
enhanced by the royal dome.
9. Under Process: Replacing of the wooden
floor on the third storey and reconstruction
of top terrace of the building with Madras
Terrace (as it was earlier) with a few skylights
to make the place brighter.
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The restoration work has been done with

a grant of rupees one crore by the Government
of India. The restoration work was done under
the expert consultation and supervision of Sri
Ravindra Gundu Rao of RGA Associates based
in Mysore. Jeernodhar Pvt. Ltd, a firm based
in Mumbai and having expertise in handling
such works, executed the delicate restoration work. The work is still under progress
and is likely to be completed in two months.
Earlier, in 2010-2012, the circular
verandas were repaired. The western side of
the building was thoroughly repaired and replastered. This had been necessitated by the
appearance of vertical and deep crack in the
wall.
Vivekananda Cultural Centre
The new building on the front land
leased out by the Government of Tamilnadu,
wherein to conduct classes for Yogasanas,
Vedic chanting, meditation and other activities,
is nearing completion. Built through the
generous grant of rupees two crores from the
Government of Tamilnadu, the Vivekananda
Cultural Centre is likely to be commissioned
in a few months time. The two-storey
building will have class rooms, a 4-D Theatre,
book-sales counter and other provisions for
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The Order on the March

Ramakrishna Math and MissionNews and Notes

Commemoration of the 150th Birth Anniversary of Swami Vivekananda

The following centres held various programmes to commemorate
the 150th birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda. (Main
programmes conducted by them are mentioned against their names.)
Asansol: A two-day state-level seminar on Unity in Diversity on
15 and 16 February which was attended by about 1100 people.
Bhopal: A spiritual retreat on 15 February in which nearly 150
devotees took part.
A state-level youth convention on 16 February which was attended
by about 700 youths.
Chandigarh: A symposium on Swami VivekanandaFriend,
Philosopher and Guide on 9 February which was attended by about
300 people.
Chennai Students Home: Classical music concerts at three places
in Chennai from 31 January to 2 February which were attended by
about 2400 people.
Chennai Vidyapith : A
special programme comprising
speeches and cultural events on
7 January which was attended
by about 4000 people; Cultural
competitions from 27 January to
4 February in which around 1000
college students participated.
Cherrapunji: A regional
youth convention at Aizawl,
Mizoram, on 19 February
in which 525 delegates took
part. The General Secretary
presided over the convention; a
value education programme for
Function at Chandigarh Ashrama
parents on 22 February which was
attended by 515 delegates. Dr K K Paul, Governor of Meghalaya, participated as the chief guest in the
programme which was presided over by the General Secretary.
Coimbatore Math: A public meeting on 22 February which was attended by 460 persons, mostly
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youths.
Delhi: A two-day workshop on 31 January and 1 February for the 65 students who could reach
the final round of the written quiz competition in which about 60,000 students from 160 schools had
participated; a classical dance performance by children on 31 January which was attended by nearly 500
people; a public meeting comprising speeches by eminent persons and classical instrumental music on 1
February in which more than 800 people took part.
Gadadhar Ashrama, Kolkata: Special lectures on Swamiji at the Ashrama on 6 and 19 February and
at two schools in Bankura on 10 February which were attended by many devotees and students.
Institute of Culture, Kolkata: A two-day national seminar on Swami Vivekanandas Vision of Future
Society on 25 and 26 February. The inaugural session was attended by 250 people and the academic
sessions by 107 delegates.
Kadapa: A workshop on value education from 7 to 9 February in which 104 teachers participated.
Kalady: A youth rally on 13 January in which around 1600 students and teachers took part; cultural
competitions from 20 to 24 January in which 160 students from 25 institutions in Ernakulam district
participated; the concluding function of Swamijis 150th birth anniversary celebration on 5 February
which was attended by about 500 people.
Madurai: Value education programme for parents at five places from 25 January to 15 February in
which altogether 675 parents took part; a special function on 2 February 2014 to mark Swamijis arrival
at Madurai on 2 February 1897 on his triumphant return from the West. About 600 people attended the
programme.
Medinipur: A youth convention on 23 January in which around 600 youths took part.
Nagpur: A zonal youth convention on 19 February at a college in Amravati which was attended by
nearly 5000 youths.
Narottam Nagar: A special programme comprising a speech and cultural events on 23 February which
was attended by about 550 people.
Raipur: In collaboration with Hind Swaraj Shodhpith, the centre conducted a seminar on Swami
Vivekananda and Mahatma Gandhi on 8 February which was inaugurated by Sri Shekhar Dutt, Governor
of Chhattisgarh, and attended by nearly 500 people; a seminar on Religious Harmony on 9 and 10
February which was inaugurated by Dr Raman Singh, Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh, and attended by
about 500 people.
Rajkot: A two-day seminar on Unity in Diversity in India on 6 and 7 February, and a three-day music
programme from 6 to 8 February in which eminent vocal and instrumental artistes of Indian classical
music gave their performances. In all, around 3500 people attended the programmes; national level
cultural competitions on 22 and 23 February in which nearly 1200 youths from various parts of the
country participated.
Ranchi Morabadi: Seminars on Rural and Tribal Development Based on the Teachings of Swami
Vivekananda and Scientific Agriculture for Empowering India on 11 and 12 February in which altogether
732 people participated.
Ranchi Sanatorium: A football tournament for rural youths from 22 December to 12 January in which
16 teams participated; a hockey tournament on 9 February in which 16 teams from 16 villages around
Ranchi participated.
Salem: The concluding function of Swamijis 150th birth anniversary celebration on 9
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February in which about 770 people,

comprising mostly students from 14
educational institutions, participated;
a value education programme
on 21 February at a college in
Neikkarapatty, Salem district, which
was attended by 103 youths.
Sarisha: Youth conventions on 14
and 15 February in which altogether
about 2000 youths took part.
Shillong: A meeting on 21
February which was attended by
about 400 people, mostly youths.
The General Secretary addressed the
gathering.
Swamijis Ancestral House,
Kolkata: On the centres initiative,
nine public meetings were held
at different places in and around
Kolkata from 21 January to 20
February. In all, about 4700 people
attended the programmes.
A special talk on Swamiji on 23
January at the Ashrama which was
attended by 800 people.
A five-day classical music programme, named Dhrupad Mahotsav, from 11 to 15 February in
which renowned vocalists and
instrumentalists gave performances.
The General Secretary inaugurated
the programme which was attended
by about 800 people on each day.

Value Education programme in Salem

The programme at Shillong

Camps Held
On the occasion of Magh Mela, Allahabad centre organized a medical camp, discourses, devotional
singing and an exhibition depicting the lives and teachings of Sri Ramakrishna, Holy Mother and Swamiji
at Triveni Sangam from 13 January to 14 February. In all, 12,685 patients were treated at the medical
camp and nearly 90,000 people visited the exhibition.
Ranchi Morabadi Ashrama held a central kisan mela (farmers fair) from 10 to 12 February which
was visited by about 28,000 farmers and villagers. o

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Book Review
For review in The Vedanta Kesari,

publishers need to send us two copies of their latest publication.

Swami Vivekananda the Man of Letters by Prof. Dr. K. Subrahmanyam.

Published by Swami Vivekananda Yoga Prakashana (SVYP), #19, Eknath Bhavan, Gavipuram Circle, Kempagowda
Nagar, Bangalore 560 019. Email: svyasa@svyasa.org. 2011, paperback, pp.515, Rs.350.
The author of this book, Dr Subrahmanyam,
is a well-known scholar and an authority on Swami
Vivekananda. He has published many books
and articles on this perennially interesting and
inexhaustible subject.
Swami Vivekananda, the Man of
Letters is an exhaustive study on eight
literary aspects of Swamiji, divided as
such for the benefit of readers.
The first of these chapters
is Swami Vivekanandas place in
English. The chapter begins with
a very interesting and informative
historical background of the place of
English writing in India, beginning
with the 18th century. Writers both of
creative as well as pragmatic brilliance
are discussed and the place of prose
in literature examined. It is a wellacknowledged fact that in times of
political upheaval, prose styles come
into their own, since discussion and debates are rife.
From the nineteenth century India in general, and
Bengal in particular, produced thinkers and writers
who questioned the rationale behind prevalent
thinking. Dr Subrahmanyam has discussed the
contribution made by, among others, Raja Ram
Mohan Roy, M G Ranade, Ganganath Jha, and, of
course, Sri Aurobindo. He points out that Indian
thinkers were able to express themselves in English
as naturally as they did in their own languages
and it is against this backdrop that he views
Swamijis writing. The author argues that Swami
Vivekananda was able to rouse the minds and
hearts of his listeners through his masterly use of
English as a vehicle for his brilliant versatility and
his free-ranging observations which reveal the man
who wrote the words. This chapter brings out this
fact quite forcefully.
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However, this is not where it ends.

Swamijis genius was more than just the aridity
of the intellectual. The second and third chapters
examine Swamijis works as the poetic
and sociological exemplars they
are. How do the two seemingly
conflicting attributes exist in perfect
harmony in Swamijis work? The
answer lies in his own genius, it is
true: he is able to bring opposing
things together and show their
connections in all his writings.
It is true that poesy lies in all his
workhis prose has the qualities
one usually associates with poetry:
rhythm, lofty thought, humanism,
spirituality and perfect control over
the medium. Says the book, His
prose, thus, is highly poetic. His
prose, however, is both philosophic
and spiritual, (p. 80, Swami Vivekananda, the Man of
Letters). Through his analysis of Swamijis poems,
the author shows how Swamijis poetry is both a
means of self-expression as well as a message to
the world.
Nor should his Sanskrit compositions be
forgotten, for in them, he has created spiritual
expressions of the highest order. In the chapter
titled Swami Vivekanandas Sociological outpourings, Dr Subrahmanyam has highlighted some
of Swamijis most fundamental reasons for writing.
Swamiji was not an ordinary fanatical religionist
championing the cause of Hinduism (p. 125, ibid),
but Dr Subrahmanyam speaks of Swamijis genius
at looking at problems with a view to finding
solutions, rather than a pessimistic cataloguing of
miserable circumstances. Indeed, his words are
characterized by ringing optimism, clarion calls to
awaken the masses. Swamiji touched on all aspects

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of society and in his times, the position of the lower

castes, the downtrodden and the oppressedand
we can include women in this listwas far from
ideal. His writings reveal the desperate speed with
which he wanted to see improvement. This chapter
gives a logical analysis of Swamijis criticism of
Indian society and the ills inflicting it. Of course,
Swamiji always understood that there was no
perfect society: the imperfections of the human
condition ensure this.
In the next two chapters, the book describes
Swamijis religious and philosophical works and
his letters and pen pictures. In writing about
Swamijis religious and philosophical essays, Dr
Subrahmanyam says that behind Swamis writings
there exists a combination of Adi Shankaras
intellect and the Buddhas compassion. In that lies
its universal appeal. As for his pen pictures, surely
the most moving is the one about his Master. In
his letters, we engage with the voice of one who
is completely involved with his mission and so
become poetic prayers. The letters of Vivekananda
are, according to the author, a veritable treasure of
wisdom, poetry and philosophy, (p. 312, ibid).
The last three chapters deal with Swamijis
narrative art, rhetoric and style and, finally, his
literary profile. In his examination of Swamijis
narrative art, the author considers the many indigenous fables, stories, legends and myths that Swamiji
uses in order to illustrate and drive home his point
to his audience. He has used incidents from the
Ramayana, the Mahabharata, and of course the
Bhagavad Gita. In so doing, he made his readers
and listeners even more involved with the subject
in a way that clarified their doubts. His western
listeners were completely taken with his powers of
rhetoric, all the more so because they knew it was
not mere rhetoric. It was used to serve his purpose:
sarcastic at times, direct and powerful at others, he
was able to engage his listeners in ways that they
had not imagined possible.
The very last chapter, Swami Vivekanandas
Literary Profile, pulls the whole book together and
the author examines the influence Swamiji has had
and continues to have. Stalwarts such as Romain
Rolland, Sri Aurobindo, and Nehru have written
about the electric effect his words have had on them.
This particular trait exists not only in his essays, but
also his letters and his oratory, which fired people
to change their lives.
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Dr Subrahmanyams mastery over his subject

is at all times evident as is his great love and respect
for his subject. He brings out Swami Vivekananda
in his totality as a creative genius, as being of the
greatest value for the general reader. The style of
writing is easy and the most difficult concepts have
been expressed such that every reader will find
himself engaged and absorbed by what he reads.
The book is very well produced and the
good news is that each of the chapters is available
separately in the form of booklets, thereby making
reading it very easy and practical. Even in the book
itself, each chapter is an entity by itself and can be
read on its own. There are a few typographic errors
which do not detract from the books essential
excellence and can be put right in the next edition.
___________________________PREMA RAGHUNATH, CHENNAI

Mother of Mayavati
By Amrita M Salm, Ph.D.
Published
by
Advaita Ashrama,
Mayavati, Champavat,
Uttarakhand.2012,
Hardbound, pp.399 +
xxiii, Rs.25
Appropriately
dedicated to Swami
Vivekananda for bringing
the message of Vedanta to
the West, Mother of Mayavati
conveys to us a very traditional Indian
concept of sahadharmachari, exemplified by Sita.
As 1896 opened, the West was getting awakened
to the Vivekananda phenomenon, the message of
Advaita and the discipline of yoga. In London, a
middle-aged couple, Captain Henry Sevier and
Charlotte Sevier, attend a lecture by the Indian
monk who had been in the news since the Chicago
Parliament of Religions. The Captain had served in
the British Indian Army for five years and this was
an added interest. And then?
The philosophy the swami expounded, the
oneness of existence, known as Advaita Vedanta,
so attracted them that within a short time their lives
changed dramatically. They lost all interest in a
comfortable, cultured social life without a spiritual
focus; now they wanted to experience the very
depths of their souls.

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Typical products of the Victorian Age, wellendowed with worldly riches, loved by family
and friends, the Seviers could have simply faded
away peacefully in their immediate society.
Instead, they were drawn into the magic circle of
the Ramakrishna-Vivekananda movement which
would make them founders of an institution in the
Himalayan range that has endured to this day as a
beacon of Jnana Yoga.
The British couple were drawn to Swami
Vivekananda because he was not only a philosopher
but carried a clear, practical view of the work to be
done. He was not giving them an alternate ideology;
they were not being uprooted from their religion
to a new set of dogmas and rituals. This was allencompassing Advaita: the philosopher was not cut
off from the worker, nor was he isolated from the
devotee. The global view taken by Hinduism reveals
each one of us travelling by different paths to
reach the same Goal. The Seviers were very happy
and took Swami Vivekananda with them on a
continental tour. It was when travelling in the Alps
that he told the Seviers how he would love a retreat
for the devotees and monks of the Ramakrishna
Order in the Himalayas.
The Captain and Charlotte accompanied
Swami Vivekananda when he returned to India
in 1897. Presently, they were in the Himalayas to
fix a suitable location for what would become the
Advaita Ashrama. Amrita Salm progresses with
her story step by step, sculpting as it were a noble
Grecian statue in marble. Life in India could not
have been easy or comfortable for Charlotte. After
Captain Sevier passed away things must have
looked bleak. But she was a brave soul according
to Swami Vivekananda. She was clear about what
she wanted to do. She should give a local habitation
and name to the vision of Swami Vivekananda. The
Advaita Ashrama at Mayavati and the Vivekananda
Ashrama at Shyamla Tal were her creations. She
struggled on bravely and succeeded in initiating
work that has endured to this day.
Though we had known about Mrs. Sevier as
a gem-like disciple of Swami Vivekananda, Amrita
M. Salms conscientiously researched work brings
before us a figure who injects in us idealism, faith,
firmness, compassion and peace. Mother of Mayavati
is meant for careful study and meditation. Apart
from Mrs. Sevier, there are also other disciples
of the Movement and Pitaji Sevier himself who
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appear before us as inspirations. Then, there are

the valuable appendices including the letters
and articles written by Mrs. Sevier. Her attention
to detail when recording her travels in Egypt is
marvellous. She was passionate about giving Indian
women a good education and empower them,
decrying the manner in which they were drugged
with the sedative of ignorance. Mrs. Sevier could
be humorous too: The Secrets of a Purse and The
Parrot and the Letter, for instance. Or the arresting
Overheard in a Garden: An Allegory which
effortlessly teaches a lesson in religious amity. Each
plant has its own way of worshipping the Sun.
With this knowledge, all of them in the garden
adore the Sun.
Reading Mother of Mayavati itself is a holy,
inspirational pilgrimage.
___________________________ PREMA NANDAKUMAR, TRICHY

Panchajanyam Beckons
By V. Partha sarathy
Published by Divya
Prema foundation 1A,
SRINIVAS, 30, Maharaja
surya rao road Alwarpet,
Chennai - 600018. 2013,
Paperback, Pp.13. Rs.100.
Panchajanyam Beckons
is a laudable attempt to
present the quintessence
of Bhagavad Gita for the younger
generation of today, who have no time to read a
book of 700 verses. Parthasarthy, the author of the
book, with great enthusiasm and commitment has
focused on fifteen shlokas (verses).
He divides them into four groups. Group 1
has 2 verses (Ch.13 Kshetra Kshetrajna Yoga: shloka
22, Ch.3 Karma Yoga:15), which deal with how the
world is a play of the Supreme Cosmic Soul and
it is established in activity. Group 2 has 5 shlokas
(Ch.18 Moksha Sannyasa Yoga: shloka 45,46, and
47, Ch.2 Sankhya Yoga:47, Ch.9 Rajavidya Raja
Guhya Yoga:27), which deal with right action that
can bring us close to God. Group 3 consists of 3
slokas (Ch.6 Dhyana Yoga: sloka 7, Ch.5 Sannyasa
Yoga:18, Ch.6 Dhyana Yoga:47), which define the
state of perfection of realized souls as all their
actions are dedicated to God and they maintain
equanimity in all situations. Group 4 presents 5

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slokas (Ch.9 Raja Vidya Raja Guhya Yoga: Sloka 22,

Ch.18 Moksha Sannyasa Yoga:61, 62, 65, 66) which
discuss how God has immense love for man and
asks him to surrender to Him in order to be saved
from this wheel of life and death. The result of this
dialogue is positive as Arjuna emerges from his
depression to face the Kaurava army with courage
and confidence.
Further, to reinforce the message of the Gita,
the author identifies ten statements of Sri Krishna
from various chapters, and presents them as Ten
Commandments, reminiscent of what Christianity
offers. The approach of the author is to present a
shloka in Sanskrit, then a transliteration in English,
followed by meanings of the words from Sanskrit
to English, then a commentary on the shloka by
various commentators. The book contains attractive
pictures of Sri Krishna and Arjuna in the battle field
of Kurukshetra. It is a garland of shlokas of the
Bhagavad Gita.
A commendable production.
_____________________________ N. EAKAMBARAM, CHENNAI.

Adhyatma-Ramayanam
Published by Shastra
Dharma Prachar Sabha,91,
Chowringhee Road,
Kolkata 7000 020,
E-mail: sdps_us@yahoo.
com, 2012, Hardback
pp.453, Rs.250
The Adhyatma
Ramayanam is one of
the several Ramayanams
born out of Valmikis
Adi Kavya. Here Rama is
depicted as an Incarnation unlike in
Valmiki who portrays Him as an epitome of
human excellences. Sri Ramakrishna alludes to
it while speaking to Mahimacharan. He refers to
Bharadwajas recognition of Rama as the Eternal
Self who has assumed human form with the help of
Maya. And Sita is the Maya Shakti. Sri Ramakrishna
once told Naren that after he experienced Samadhi,
he craved to hear only about God and he would
go in search of places where sacred books like the
Adhyatma Ramayana were read or recited.
The Adhyatma Ramayanam, being part of
Brahmanda Puranam, is presumed to have been
written by Veda Vyasa. The teaching of the Text
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is that Bhakti and Jnana are not only reconcilable

but go hand in hand. In terms of volume, it is only
one-sixth of the source. It is said that Tulasidas
was inspired by Adhyatma Ramayana to write his
Ramacharit Manasa.
There are a number of deviations from the
original. Rama is born as a little Mahavishnu.
Rishis shower adulatory hymns on Rama on His
Divinity. It is only illusory Sita that is abducted
by Ravana and the real Sita is entrusted to FireGod. Ravana cultivates vidwesha bhakti [devotion
by confrontation] to attain liberation quickly. It is
Shabari who tells Rama first about the whereabouts
of Sita.Ramagita in Uttara Kandam is packed with
Advaitic content. Ravana is warned about his end
by Kala Nemi. All this is not in Valmiki.
Swami Harshananda in his scholarly and
informative Foreword to the book says: In the
orthodox circles of Rama devotees, the Adhyatma
Ramayanam is considered to be a mantra shastra,
a sacred book, each stanza of which is revered as a
mantra[a mystic syllable] and devoutly repeated in
a ceremonial way.
Shastra Dharma Prachara Sabha of
Kolkata has brought out such a holy book in a
beautiful format with a colorful picture of Rama
Pattabhishekam on the jacket, a picture of Sita and
Hanuman in the Ashoka Vana inside the front cover
and the repetition of the mantra, Sri Rama Jaya
Rama Jaya Jaya Rama in miniscule script inside
the back cover. The Sabha was founded 76 years
ago during the Raj to fight against materialism and
mindless Westernization and propagate Sanatana
Dharma in India and abroad. Truth is a global
English weekly mouthpiece of the Sabha wherein
the book under review was serialized from 2007 to
2012. Now, it has come in book-form. At the end Sri
Rama Stotram is added for recitation.
Translation can be literal or free. The recent
trend for religious books is preference of accuracy
to readability. The translator(s) in this case have
been loyal to the original as it is a mantra shastra.
By and large, the target language is impeccable.
But the reviewer is constrained to find instances of
grammatical and syntactical errors, wrong words,
unconventional expressions.
The print and the paper are of a superior
quality. Sanskrit script could have been a little
bolder to facilitate easier reading.
_______________________ K.PANCHAPAGESAN, BANGALORE

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December 2012 issue of the Vedanta

Kesari now available in book form

Indian Culture
Its Timeless Appeal and Ageless Charm
The core philosophy of Indian Culture a nd its significance in modern times

A must for all students and

admirers of Indian Culture

Indian culture is one of the most

ancient and diverse cultures in the world.
What is more, it is a living culture, not
tucked away in museums and dusty
volumes but a living force in the daily and
social lives of millions of Indians, in India
and abroad. Despite these ennobling truths,
it is also a fact that much needs to be done
to preserve and cultivate Indian culture
especially amongst youth. Dwelling on
various aspects of our cultural heritage and
the grand philosophy, this volume tries to
bring together the scholarly and everyday
approach to Indian culture. This aims at
promoting understanding of Indian culture
in a simple and easy-to-read style, without
losing its serious and profound dimensions.

The whole book printed in four-colours

Hard bound, Pages. x + 374
Price: Rs. 275/- + Postage: Rs.30/-for single copy.
Published by
Sri Ramakrishna Math,
Mylapore, Chennai - 600 004
Email: mail@chennaimath.org

Request for VPP not accepted

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Ramakrishna Mission Sevashrama

(A branch centre of Ramakrishna Mission, P.O. Belur Math. Distt. Howrah, W.B. 711 202)
Swami Vivekananda Path, P.O. Bela, Muzaffarpur843 116, Bihar,
Phone: 0621-2272127, 2272963
E-mail: rkm.muzaffarpur@gmail.com Website: www.rkmmuzaffarpur.org

Appeal On the Occasion of 150th Birth Anniversary of

Swami Vivekananda

Eye, ENT, Dental Clinic cum Diagnostic Centre

Present Infrastructure: Oldest Eye Infirmary in North Bihar established in 1947,

General dispensary, Dental, Homeopathy, X-Ray, Pathology;
Our Vision:

A new Medical Building with Specialty in Eye, ENT and

Dental care, Various OPD Sections, Well equipped Clinical
Lab., R & D Section, Modern Diagnostic, Para medical Training.

First Phase Requirement: 13000 Sq. ft. Construction of Medical Building, Gl.Fl.

remaining workRs.20 Lakh, Recovery Unit70 Lakh,

Diagnostic Unit60 Lakh, Doctors / Staff Qrs.60 Lakh,

Equipments: Rs.65 Lakh, Permanent Fund: Rs. 1 Crore
Work in Progress:
Finishing work of Gr. Fl. and construction of Recovery Unit is in
progress

Work in Progress

Surgery in O.T.

Post Care

Dear Friends,
Your contribution towards up-coming eye, e n t, dental care project for a place like
Muzaffarpur where backlog in blindness eradication is very large and health infrastructure is
very poor will be palpably a real homage to Swami Vivekananda whose heart bled for poor
humanity. Donors will find here a right place to perpetuate memories and sentiments of their
near and dear ones.
With Prayers to Holy Trinity for you and all yours,
Swami Bhavatmananda
Secretary
Any contribution made in favour of Ramakrishna Mission Sevashrama,
Muzaffarpur. is exempted from Income Tax u/s 80G of IT Act 1961.
Details of the Project may be had from our office.

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GoaBlessed by His
Sacred Touch
Swami Vivekananda travelled the length and breadth of
India during his Parivrajak-days. Motivated by an inner urge
to explore and imbibe the varying colours of India and her
timeless culture, and inspired by a deep monastic passion to
visit various Tirthas that dot Indias sacred geography, Swamiji
went around the country. During these travels, he visited Goa
in 1892 and spent some days in this ancient part of India
seeing most of its sacred places, interacting with many people
in Goa, both eminent and commoners. This booklet provides
an overview of this visit, bringing together the scattered facts
and information, along with multicolour pictures.

Published by Sri Ramakrishna Math, Mylapore, Chennai - 600 004

Email: mail@chennaimath.org

Pages 72. Price: Rs. 20/- + Postage: Rs.20/-for single copy.

No request for VPP entertained

New Release

Nectar of Supreme Knowledge

Yoga Vasistha Sara
Translated by Swami Sarvadevananda

Yoga Vasistha is one of the most revered texts of Indian

spiritual tradition. By showing the ever-changing nature of
appearance through fables and spell-binding tales, the text brings
us closer to an appreciation of the consciousness that observes
and witnesses all things.
This volume is the English translation of Yoga Vasistha Sara
by Swami Dhireshananda (a renowned scholar and a disciple
of Swami Shivananda)the Bengali translation of the original
Sanskrit, with commentary. The English translation is by Swami
Sarvadevananda, head of Vedanta Society, Hollywood, USA.
Published by Sri Ramakrishna Math, Mylapore, Chennai - 600 004
Email: mail@chennaimath.org

Hardbound, Pages 362, Price: Rs.200/-Postage: Rs.30/-for single copy.

No request for VPP entertained

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TEACHERS & WARDENS VACANCIES

IN ARUNACHAL PRADESH
If you are a graduate and you have a calibre to teach and zeal to serve India,
grab this unique opportunity:
Vivekananda Kendra Vidyalayas (VKVs) in Arunachal Pradesh are awaiting your services
33 English medium co-educational schools affiliated to CBSE, Excellent performance,
Emphasis on Value & Spiritual Education, Ample scope for Personal & Professional
Development of teachers.
Eligibility for Teachers: Graduates and Post Graduates in English, Hindi, Sanskrit, Physics,
Chemistry, Mathematics, Biology, History, Geography, Economics, Commerce, Computer
Science, Library Science, Physical Education. B.Ed. preferred.
Eligibility for Wardens: Minimum Graduation degree in any subject; Good
communication skills in English; Past experience in school hostel administration & former
military background preferred.
To apply, Courier/Email Resume within 10 days to:
The Secretary, VKVs Arunachal Pradesh Trust, Riverside, P.O. Box 104, Near S.P. Office,
Dibrugarh 786001, Assam. Ph: (0373) 2324320. Email: hr@vkvapt.org (Applications by Email
accepted). Download Application Form / Apply Online, through our website http://vkvapt.org/
join-us/as-a-teacher

The Ramakrishna Mission

Institute of Culture
Gol Park, Kolkata - 700 029

DEBESH KAMAL SCHOLARSHIP 2014

Candidates going abroad for higher studies may apply by
15 April 2014 downloading Forms & Rules from our website :
www.sriramakrishna.org. or send a self-addressed envelope with
stamp of Rs.5/-

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NAVAJEEVAN BLIND RELIEF CENTRE

(FREE HOME FOR THE BLIND, ORPHAN AND AGED)
TIRUCHANOOR, TIRUPATI - 517503. Ph : 0877-2239992, 9908537528 [Mob.]
E-mail: sreenavajeevan@gmail.com Website: www.navajeevan.org

An Appeal
35 Years of Service to Humanity 1979 - 2014
1. Navajeevan School & Hostel for Blind Children
2. Navajeevan Free Eye Hospital

3. Navajeevan Free Home for Aged


4. Navajeevan Annaksetram
-
5. Navajeevan Sharanagati Vridhashram

6. Navajeevan Rural Medical Centres
-
7. Navajeevan Eye Care Centres
-
8. Navajeevan Orphanage Children Homes

Tirupati, Parlekhimundi, Golamunda

Tirupati
Tirupati, Rishikesh,
Parlekhimundi and Chennai
Kothapeta / Rishikesh
Tirupati
Berhampur [Orissa]
Serango & Kalahandi [Orissa]
Tirupati, Parlehkimundi,
Saluru, Golamunda,
Berhampur, Pandukal, Vizag & Araku

A Humble Request for Donation

1. Sponsor one day Annadan to Blind Children and aged

Rs. 5000/-

3. Sponsor one blind child or Orphan child for one year

Rs. 6000/-

2. Sponsor 5 IOL Cataract Eye Operations

4. Sponsor one poor aged person for one year

5. Sponsor one free eye camp at Rural/Tribal area

6. VidyadanEducational aid for one Child

Rs. 7000/

Rs. 5000/-

Rs. 2000/-

Rs. 50000/-

Donor devotees can send their contributions by cheque/DD/MO to the above address
on the occasion of birthday, wedding day or any other special occasion and receive prasadam of
Lord Balaji Venkateswara of Tirupati as blessings.

Contributions to NAVAJEEVAN BLIND RELIEF CENTRE, Tirupati are eligible for Tax
Relief U/S 80G of Income Tax Act.
Our Bank details for online transfer :
Bank Name : Indian Bank , Gandhi Road Branch, Tirupati SB A/c No: 463789382, Account Holder : Navajeevan Blind Relief Centre, Branch Code: T036,
IFSC code: IDIB000T036,

We can attain salvation through social work

Swami Vivekananda
K. Sridhar Acharya
Founder/ President

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Hold fast to the truth. Be

pure-hearted. The purer you
become the more will your
mind be absorbed in God.
Swami Brahmananda

The marble image of Swami

Brahmananda, the spiritual
son of Sri Ramakrishna and
the first President of the
Ramakrishna Orderon his
birthday celebrations
T h e
V edan
in Swami Brahmananda's
Samadhi Mandir, Belur Math

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Vol.101-4 The Vedanta Kesari (English Monthly) April 2014. Regd. with
the Registrar of Newspapers for India under No.1084 / 57. POSTAL
REGISTRATION NUMBER:TN / CH (C) /190 / 12-14. LICENCED TO POST
WITHOUT PREPAYMENT TN/PMG(CCR)/WPP-259 / 2012-14
Date of Publication: 24th of every month

Teach yourselves, teach everyone his/her real nature,

call upon the sleeping soul and see how it awakes.
Power will come, glory will come, goodness will come,
purity will come, and everything that is excellent will
come, when this sleeping soul is roused to self-conscious activity.
Swami Vivekananda

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Contact:
P R I L 2 www.chennaimath.org
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T h e Sri
V Ramakrishna
e d a n t a K eMath,
s a r i Chennai.
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