================== 12th January, 2015 ==================
" One day I found that my mind was soaring high in Samadhi along a luminous path. It soon transcended the stellar universe and entered the subtler region of ideas. As it ascended higher and higher I found on both sides of the way ideal forms of gods and goddesses. The mind then reached the outer limits of that region, where a luminous barrier separated the sphere of relative existence from that of the Absolute (The Supreme Brahman). Crossing that barrier, the mind entered the transcendental realm where no corporeal being was visible. Even the Devatas dared not peep into that sublime realm, but had to be content to keep their seats far below. The next moment I found Seven venerable sages seated there in Samadhi. It occurred to me that these sages must have surpassed not only men, but even the Devatas, in knowledge and holiness, in renunciation and love.
Lost in admiration, I was reflecting on their greatness, when I saw a fraction of that undifferentiated luminous region condense into the form of a divine child. The child came to one of the sages, tenderly clasped his neck with his lovely little arms, and, addressing him in a sweet voice, attempted to drag his mind down from the state of Samadhi. The magic touch roused the sage from his Super-Conscious state, and he fixed his unmoving, half open gaze upon that wonderful child. His beaming countenance showed that the child must have been the treasure of his heart. In great joy the strange child said to him, "I am going down. You too must go with me." The sage remained mute, but his tender look expressed his assent. As he kept gazing on the child, he was again immersed in Samadhi. I was surprised to find that a fragment of the sage's body and mind was descending on earth in the form of an effulgent ray of light. No sooner had I seen Naren than I recognized him to be that sage. "
(From The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Paramhamsa)
Sri Ramakrishna would often say that Vivekananda was the 'Amsa Avatara' or fractional incarnation of the foremost Sage among the seven great Sapta Rishis.
Swami Vivekananda was born at 6:33, a few minutes before sunrise, on Monday, January 12, 1863. It was the day of Makarasamkranti, when special worship is offered to the Ganga by millions of devotees. Thus the future Vivekananda first drew breath when the air above the sacred river not far from the house was reverberating with the prayers, worship, and religious music of thousands of Hindu men and women.
Before Vivekananda was born, his mother, like many other pious Hindu mothers, had observed religious vows, fasted, and prayed so that she might be blessed with a son who would do honour to the family. She requested a relative who was living in Varanasi to offer special worship to the Vireswara Siva of that holy place and seek His blessings; for Siva, the great god of renunciation, dominated her thought. One night she dreamt that this supreme Deity aroused Himself from His meditation and agreed to be born as her son. When she woke she was filled with joy.
The mother, Bhuvaneswari Devi, accepted the child as a boon from Vireswara Siva and named him Vireswara. The family, however, gave him the name of Narendranath Datta, calling him, for short, Narendra, or more endearingly, Naren.
One day, after His vision in Samadhi, Sri Ramakrishna saw the ray of light travelling in the sky from the city of Varanasi towards Calcutta when He was on the garden of Dakshineswar Kali Temple. He understood that the Rishi whom He saw in Samadhi has incarnated. Then He recognized Narendranath as that Sage meeting him for the first time.
" My ears are almost seared listening to the cheap talk of worldly people. Oh, how I have been yearning to unburden my mind to one who will understand my thought ! "
Then with folded hands he said : " Lord ! I know you are the ancient sage Nara — the Incarnation of Narayana — born on earth to remove the miseries of mankind. "
One day the Master, unable to speak even in a whisper, wrote on a piece of paper: 'Narendra will teach others.' The disciple demurred. Sri Ramakrishna replied: 'But you must. Your very bones will do it.' He further said that all the supernatural powers he had acquired would work through his beloved disciple. A short while before the curtain finally fell on Sri Ramakrishna's earthly life, the Master one day called Naren to his bedside. Gazing intently upon him, he passed into deep meditation. Naren felt that a subtle force, resembling an electric current, was entering his body. He gradually lost outer consciousness. After some time he regained knowledge of the physical world and found the Master weeping. Sri Ramakrishna said to him: 'O Naren, today I have given you everything I possess — now I am no more than a fakir, a penniless beggar. By the powers I have transmitted to you, you will accomplish great things in the world, and not until then will you return to the source whence you have come.'
" One day I found that my mind was soaring high in Samadhi along a luminous path. It soon transcended the stellar universe and entered the subtler region of ideas. As it ascended higher and higher I found on both sides of the way ideal forms of gods and goddesses. The mind then reached the outer limits of that region, where a luminous barrier separated the sphere of relative existence from that of the Absolute (The Supreme Brahman). Crossing that barrier, the mind entered the transcendental realm where no corporeal being was visible. Even the Devatas dared not peep into that sublime realm, but had to be content to keep their seats far below. The next moment I found Seven venerable sages seated there in Samadhi. It occurred to me that these sages must have surpassed not only men, but even the Devatas, in knowledge and holiness, in renunciation and love.
Lost in admiration, I was reflecting on their greatness, when I saw a fraction of that undifferentiated luminous region condense into the form of a divine child. The child came to one of the sages, tenderly clasped his neck with his lovely little arms, and, addressing him in a sweet voice, attempted to drag his mind down from the state of Samadhi. The magic touch roused the sage from his Super-Conscious state, and he fixed his unmoving, half open gaze upon that wonderful child. His beaming countenance showed that the child must have been the treasure of his heart. In great joy the strange child said to him, "I am going down. You too must go with me." The sage remained mute, but his tender look expressed his assent. As he kept gazing on the child, he was again immersed in Samadhi. I was surprised to find that a fragment of the sage's body and mind was descending on earth in the form of an effulgent ray of light. No sooner had I seen Naren than I recognized him to be that sage. "
(From The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Paramhamsa)
Sri Ramakrishna would often say that Vivekananda was the 'Amsa Avatara' or fractional incarnation of the foremost Sage among the seven great Sapta Rishis.
Swami Vivekananda was born at 6:33, a few minutes before sunrise, on Monday, January 12, 1863. It was the day of Makarasamkranti, when special worship is offered to the Ganga by millions of devotees. Thus the future Vivekananda first drew breath when the air above the sacred river not far from the house was reverberating with the prayers, worship, and religious music of thousands of Hindu men and women.
Before Vivekananda was born, his mother, like many other pious Hindu mothers, had observed religious vows, fasted, and prayed so that she might be blessed with a son who would do honour to the family. She requested a relative who was living in Varanasi to offer special worship to the Vireswara Siva of that holy place and seek His blessings; for Siva, the great god of renunciation, dominated her thought. One night she dreamt that this supreme Deity aroused Himself from His meditation and agreed to be born as her son. When she woke she was filled with joy.
The mother, Bhuvaneswari Devi, accepted the child as a boon from Vireswara Siva and named him Vireswara. The family, however, gave him the name of Narendranath Datta, calling him, for short, Narendra, or more endearingly, Naren.
One day, after His vision in Samadhi, Sri Ramakrishna saw the ray of light travelling in the sky from the city of Varanasi towards Calcutta when He was on the garden of Dakshineswar Kali Temple. He understood that the Rishi whom He saw in Samadhi has incarnated. Then He recognized Narendranath as that Sage meeting him for the first time.
" My ears are almost seared listening to the cheap talk of worldly people. Oh, how I have been yearning to unburden my mind to one who will understand my thought ! "
Then with folded hands he said : " Lord ! I know you are the ancient sage Nara — the Incarnation of Narayana — born on earth to remove the miseries of mankind. "
One day the Master, unable to speak even in a whisper, wrote on a piece of paper: 'Narendra will teach others.' The disciple demurred. Sri Ramakrishna replied: 'But you must. Your very bones will do it.' He further said that all the supernatural powers he had acquired would work through his beloved disciple. A short while before the curtain finally fell on Sri Ramakrishna's earthly life, the Master one day called Naren to his bedside. Gazing intently upon him, he passed into deep meditation. Naren felt that a subtle force, resembling an electric current, was entering his body. He gradually lost outer consciousness. After some time he regained knowledge of the physical world and found the Master weeping. Sri Ramakrishna said to him: 'O Naren, today I have given you everything I possess — now I am no more than a fakir, a penniless beggar. By the powers I have transmitted to you, you will accomplish great things in the world, and not until then will you return to the source whence you have come.'
No comments:
Post a Comment