Listen to a 60 second rendition of the Gayatri MantraFor more information about the meaning of this Sacred Mantra
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DAILY RAMAKRISHNA SUTRAS for April 2008
DAILY RAMAKRISHNA SUTRAS for May 2008
DAILY RAMAKRISHNA SUTRAS for June 2008
DAILY RAMAKRISHNA SUTRAS for January 2008
20 Quotes on the REALIZATION OF BRAHMAN - GOD
19 Quotes on KALI, THE DIVINE MOTHER - MAHASHAKTI
7 Quotes on KNOWLEDGE
6 Quotes on WORK
6 Quotes on SIN
6 Quotes on TRUTH
5 Quotes on PHYSICIANS - MEDICINE
4 Quotes on MAyA (attachment) & DaYA (compassion)
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 186
Friday 1/2/08
The Master Said:
"One should not reason too much; it is enough if one loves
the Lotus Feet of the Mother. Too much reasoning throws
the mind into confusion. You get clear water if you drink
from the surface of a pool. Put your hand deeper and stir
the water, and it becomes muddy.
Therefore pray to God for devotion."
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 186
Saturday 2/2/08
The Master Said:
"Yes, surely one can see God. One can see both aspects of God -
God with form and without form. One can see God with form, the
Embodiment of Spirit. Again, God can be directly perceived in a
man with a tangible form. Seeing an Incarnation of God is the
same as seeing God Himself. God is born on earth as man in every age."
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~
Sunday 3/2/08
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna p.243
The Master Said:
"There are two schools of thought: the VedAnta and the PurAna.
According to the VedAnta this world is a 'framework of illusion',
that is to say, it is all illusory, like a dream.
But according to the PurAna, the books of devotion,
God Himself has become the twenty-four cosmic principles.
Worship God both within and without."
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 189
Monday 4/2/08
The Master Said:
"People worship God according to their tastes and temperaments.
The mother cooks the same fish differently for her children,
that each one may have what suits his stomach. For some she cooks
the rich dish of Pilau. Bot not all the children can digest it.
For those with weak stomachs she prepares soup. Some, again, like
fried fish or pickled fish. It depends on one's taste."
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 189
Tuesday 5/2/08
The Master Said:
"In the PurAna it is said that it was if a hundred suns were shining
when RAma entered the court. Why, then, weren't the courtiers burnt up?
It was because the brilliance of RAma was not like that of a material object.
As the lotus blooms when the sun rises, so the lotus of the heart of the
people assembled in the court burst into blossom."
om tat sat
~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 189
Wednesday 6/2/08
The Master Said:
"Ordinary people do not recognize the advent of an Incarnation of God.
He comes in secret. Only a few of His intimate disciples can recognize Him.
That RAma was both Brahman Absolute and a perfect Incarnation
of God in human form was known only to twelve rishis.
The other sages said to Him,
'RAma, we know you only as Dasaratha's son'."
om tat sat
~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 189
Thursday 7/2/08
The Master Said:
"Can everyone comprehend Brahman, the Indivisible
Existence-Knowledge-Biss Absolute? He alone has attained perfect love
of God who, having reached the Absolute, keeps himself in the realm of
the Relative in order to enjoy the Divine LeelA. A man can describe
the ways and activities of Queen Victoria if he has previously visited
her in England. Only then will his description of the Queen be correct."
om tat sat
~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 190
Friday 8/2/08
The Master Said:
"One should feel great restlessness of soul for the vision of God.
Suppose a man repeats the name of God mechanically, while his mind
is absorbed in 'woman and gold'. Can he achieve anything?
Mere muttering of magic words doesn't cure the pain of a spider
or scorpion sting. One must also apply the smoke of burning cow-dung"
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 191
Saturday 9/2/08
The Master Said:
through all religions. The Vaishnavaas will realize God, so will the Shaktas,
the Vedantists, and the Brahmos. The MussalmAns and Christians
will realize Him too. All will certainly realize God
if they are earnest and sincere."
om tat sat
~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 191
Sunday 10/2/08
The Master Said:
"Some people indulge in quarrels, saying, 'One cannot attain anything
unless one worships our Krishna', or, 'Nothing can be gained without
the worship of KAlee, our Divine Mother', or, One cannot be saved
without accepting the Christian religion.' This is pure dogmatism.
The dogmatist says, 'My religion alone is true, and the other
religions are false.' This is a bad attitude.
God can be reached by different paths."
om tat sat
~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 192
Monday 11/2/08
The Master Said:
"You may ask, 'How is it possible for these boys, born of worldly
parents and living among the worldly-minded, to develop such knowledge
and devotion?' It can be explained. If a pea falls into a heap of dung,
it germinates into a pea-plant none the less. The peas that grow
on that plant serve many useful purposes. Because it was sown in dung,
will it produce another kind of plant?"
om tat sat
~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 195
Tuesday 12/2/08
The Master Said:
"No lie of any sort is good. A false garb, even though a holy one,
is not good. If the outer garb does not correspond to the inner thought,
it gradually brings ruin. Uttering false words or doing false deeds,
one gradually loses all fear. Far better is the white cloth
of the householder. Attachment to worldliness,
occasional lapses from the ideal,
and an outer garb of gerruA - how dreadful!"
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 196
Wednesday 13/2/08
The Master Said:
"Ordinary people practice spiritual discipline and cultivate devotion to God;
but they also become attached to 'woman and gold'. They are like flies,
which sit on a flower or a sweetmeat and light on filth as well.
But the ever-perfect are like bees, which only light on flowers and sip the honey.
The ever perfect drink only the Nectar of Divine Bliss. They are never inclined
to worldly pleasures."
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna p.87
Thursday 14/2/08
"If a man has faith in God,
then even if he has comitted the most heinous sins
- such as killing a cow, a brAhmin, or a woman -
he will certainly be saved through his faith.
Let him say to God, 'O Lord,
I will not repeat such an action',
and he need not be afraid of anything."
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna p.111
Friday 15/2/08
"God can be realized through all paths. All religions are true.
The important thing is to reach the roof. You can reach it by stone stairs
or by wooden stairs or by bamboo steps or by a rope.
You can also climb up by a bamboo pole."
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna p.1024
Saturday 16/2/08
The Master was asked: "How can I realise God".
Thakur responded with: "You see, He is constantly attracting us,
as a magnet attracts iron. But the iron cannot come to the magnet
if it is covered in dirt.
When the dirt is washed away, the iron is instantly drawn to the magnet.
Weep for God and the tears wlll wash away the dirt from your mind.
Look here. Only repeating the word 'siddhi' will not produce intoxication.
You must actually get some hemp, rub it in water, and then drink the solution...."
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna p.234
Sunday 17/2/08
The Master Said:
"But you must remember, unless one is guileless and broad-minded,
one cannot have such faith. Bony people, the hollow-eyed,
the cross-eyed - people with physical traits like those cannot easily acquire faith.
What can a man do if there are evil omens on all sides?"
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 186
Monday 18/2/08
The Master Said:
One cannot be spiritual as long as one has shame, hatred or fear.
Great will be the joy today
[the devotees were celebrating Thakurji's birthday]
But those fools who will not sing or dance, mad with God's name,
will never attain God. How can one feel any shame or fear when
the names of God are sung? Now, sing all of you."
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna p.288
Tuesday 19/2/08
The Master Said:
"Rama said, 'brother, go beyond both knowledge and ignorance.'
He who has knowledge has ignorance also.
If a thorn has entered your foot,
get another thorn and with its help take out the first;
then throw away the second also."
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna p.288
Wednesday 20/2/08
The Master Said:
'Should one throw away both knowledge and ignorance?'
"Yes. That is why one should acquire *vijnAna.
You see, he who is aware of light is also aware of darkness.
He who is aware of happiness is also aware of suffering.
He who is aware of virtue is also aware of vice.
He who is aware of good is also aware of evil.
He who is aware of holiness is also aware of unholiness.
He who is aware of 'I' is also aware of 'you'."
*vijnAna=Special knowledge of the Absolute
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna p.379
Thursday 21/2/08
The Master Said:
"it is God alone who has planted in man's mind
what the *Englishman calls free will.
People who have not realized God would become engaged
in more and more sinful actions
if God had not planted in them the notion of free will.
Sin would have increased if God
had not made the sinner feel that he is responsible."
*Englishman=western thought
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna p. 712
Friday 22/2/08
The Master Said:
In response to a question from Mahima about
'something holding us back' from spiritual progress
"Why? Cut the reins. Cut them with the sword
of God's name. 'The shackles of kAla,
time, are cut by kAli's name.'"
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna p.312
Saturday 23/2/08
The Master Said:
"It is said that truthfulness alone constitutes
the spiritual discipline of the Kaliyuga.
If a man clings tenaciously to truth
he ultimately realizes God."
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna p.379
Sunday 24/2/08
The Master Said:
"God can be realized when a man acquires sattva.
Householders engage in philanthropic work, such as charity,
mostly with a motive. That is not good.
Yet it is very difficult to leave motives out of one's actions."
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna p.782
Monday 25/2/08
The Master Said:
"One time I gave up fish. At first I suffered from it;
afterwards it didin't bother me much.
If someone burns up a bird's nest,
the bird flies about it; it takes shelter in the sky.
If a man truly realizes that the body and the world are unreal,
then his soul attains samAdhi."
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 205
Tuesday 26/2/08
The Master Said:
"In some people spiritual conciousness has already been awakened;
but they have special marks. They do not enjoy hearing or talking
about anything but God. They are like the chAtak bird, which prays
for rain-water though the seven oceans, the Ganges, the JamunA,
and the rivers near it are all filled with water. It won't drink
anything but rain-water, even though its throat is burning with thirst."
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 206
Wednesday 27/2/08
The Master Said:
"They are indeed bound souls who constantly dwell with 'woman and gold'
and do not think of God even for a moment. How can you expect noble deeds
of them? They are like mangoes pecked by a crow, which may not be offered
to the Deity in the temple, and which even men hesitate to eat.
Bound souls, worldly people are like silk-worms. The worms can cut through
their cocoons if they want, but having woven the cocoons themselves,
they are too much attached to leave them. And so they die there."
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 208
Thursday 28/2/08
The Master Said:
"Worldly people have no grit. If they succeed in an undertaking,
it is all right, but if they don't succeed, it scarcely bothers them at all.
When they need water they begin to dig a well. But as soon as they strike
a stone they give up digging there and begin at another place.
Perhaps they come to a bed of sand. Finding nothing but sand, they give up
that place too. How can they succeed in getting water unless they dig
persistently where they started?"
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 190
Friday 29/2/08
The Master said:
"Suppose a man becomes pure by chanting the holy name of God,
but immediately afterwards commits many sins. He has no strength of mind.
He doesn't take a vow not to repeat his sins.
A bath in the Ganges undoubtedly absolves one of all sins;
but what does that avail? They say that the sins perch on the trees
along the banks of the Ganges. No sooner does the man come back
from the holy waters than the old sins jump on his shoulders from the trees.
The same old sins take possesion of him again. He is hardly out of the water
before they fall upon him.
Therefore I say, chant the name of God, and with it pray to Him
that you may have love for Him. Pray to God that your attachment
to such transitory things as wealth, name, and creature comforts
may become less and less every day"
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 331
Bonus Sutra
The Master said:
"The Vedantists do not accept hathayoga. There is also rAjayoga.
RAjayoga describes how to achieve union with God through the mind -
by means of discrimination and bhakti. This yoga is good.
Hathayoga is not good. The life of man in the Kaliyuga
is dependendent on food."
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~~
Excerpted from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Page 344
Bonus Sutra
The Master said:
"The first stage is that of the beginner. He studies and hears.
Second is the stage of the struggling aspirant. He prays to God,
meditates on Him, and sings His name and glories.
The third stage is that of the perfect soul. He has seen God,
realized Him directly and immediately
in his inner consciousness. Last is the stage
of the supremely perfect, like Chaitanya.
Such a devotee establishes a definite relationship with God,
looking on Him as his Son or Beloved."
om tat sat
~~~~~~~om shanthi om~~~~~~~
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DAILY RAMAKRISHNA SUTRAS for April 2008
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