In the Guru's words...
Kamal Kishore
God reveals Himself to a devotee who feels drawn to Him by the combined force of these three attractions
- The attraction of worldly possessions for the worldly man
- The child’s attraction for its mother, and
- The husband’s attraction for the chaste wife.
If one feels drawn to Him by the combined force of these three attractions, then through it one can attain Him.
(Source: The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa)
Kamal Kishore
Devotee: Is it possible to see God?
Master: Yes, certainly. Living in solitude now and then, repeating God’s name and singing His glories, and discrimination between the Real and unreal- these are the means to employ to see Him. Cry to the Lord with an intensely yearning heart and you will certainly see Him. People shed a whole jug of tears for wife and children. They swim in tears for money. But who weeps for God? Cry to Him with a real cry.
Kamal Kishore
The bliss of worship and communion with God is the true wine, the wine of the ecstatic love. The goal of human life is to love God. Bhakti is the one essential thing. To know God through Jnana and reasoning is extremely difficult. The one goal of life is to cultivate love for God, the love that the milkmaids, the milkmen and the cowherd boys of Vrindavan felt for Krishna. When Krishna went away to Mathura, the cow herds roamed about weeping bitterly because of their separation from Him.
Kamal Kishore
Master: A little spiritual discipline is necessary in order to know what lies within
Devotee: Is it necessary to practice discipline all through life?
Master: No; But one must be up and doing in the beginning. After that, one need not work hard. The helmsman stands up and clutches the rudder firmly as long as the boat is passing through waves, storms, high wind or around the curves of a river; but he relaxes after steering through them. As soon as the boat passes the curves and the helmsman feels a favorable wind, he sits comfortably and just touches the rudder. Next, he prepares to unfurl the sail and gets ready for a smoke. Likewise, the aspirant enjoys peace and calm after passing the waves and storms of 'woman and gold'
Note: When the Master (Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa) mentioned 'women and gold', He meant 'love and lust' and not the gender 'woman'
Kamal Kishore
To meditate you should withdraw within yourself or retire to a secluded corner or to the forest. Moreover, you should always discriminate between the Real and the unreal.
God alone is real, the Eternal Substance; all else is unreal, that is, impermanent. By discriminating thus, one should shake off impermanent objects from the mind.
You should practice discrimination. 'Woman and Gold' is impermanent. God is the only Eternal Substance. What does a man get with money? Food, clothes and a dwelling place- nothing more. You cannot realize God with its help. Therefore, money can never be the goal of life. That is the process of discrimination. Do you understand?