Fwd: Inner significance of the Ramakrishna Mantra..

[SOMESH]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Prashanti Kandarpa

Date: Apr 1, 2006 6:30 AM
Subject: Inner significance of the Ramakrishna Mantra..
To: muktach...@gmail.com

      
  Dear Devotees,
  
  Since most of us in this list are initiated devotees of Sri Ramakrishna  and repeat his mantra in one way or the other, I find this article  giving deep guidance towards intensifying the thought process behind  the Ramakrishna Mantra which in turn should help us enter into the  personality of Sri Ramakrishna.
 
  In San francisco, we sing the Ramakrishna Gayatri which epitomizes what  we all seek to attain. This was written by Swami Trigunatitananda.
 
  Ramakrishnaya vidmahe Paramahamsaya dhimahi
  tanno brahma prachodayat.
 
  Approximate translation is:
 
  May we meditate on Sri Ramakrishna, enter and live in him
  May Brahman enlighten us.
 
  Jai Ramakrishna
  Vinay
 
    Ramakrishna:  His Name and the Science of Japa
      
 
 
      SWAMI   CHETANANANDA
      
      Ramakrishna  is a wonder in the religious world. Every day innumerable people  worldwide chant his name. Some are repeating his name as japa;  full of joy, some are talking and hearing about him; and some are trying to  know the person behind that name. Romain Rolland  concluded The Life of Rama­krishna  with this beautiful statement: 'The man himself was no more. His spirit  had departed to travel along the path of collective life in the veins  of humanity.'1
      
      Ramakrishna  abhorred name and fame and was reluctant to preach about himself. He was happy  just leading his divine life. Mano­mohan Mitra, an eyewitness, said: 'One day the Master was talking  to the devotees under the Panchavati. Meanwhile, Keshab Sen arrived with some of  his Brahmo followers. After various discussions, Keshab  said to the Master: "Sir, if you permit, I want to make your message  known to the public. It will definitely benefit people and bring peace  to the world." Rama­krishna replied in an ecstatic mood: "It is not the  right time to spread the message of this place [meaning his message]  through lecturing and newspapers. The power and ideas that are within  this body will automatically spread all over in the course of time.  Hundreds of Himalayas will not be able to suppress that power."'2
      
      Ramakrishna  is an immortal and unfading flower, full of beauty, colour,  fragrance, and nectar. People from remote places rushed to the temple garden of  Dakshineswar to sip the nectar that was Ramakrishna. Ashwini Datta  recorded his own experience: 'What I saw and received in those few days  [with the Master] has sweetened my whole life. That Elysian smile of  his, laden with nectar, I have locked up in the secret closet of my  memory. A thrill of joy passes through my heart when I think how a  grain of the bliss shed from that laughter has been sweetening the  lives of millions, even in distant America.'3
      
      Drinking  the nectar-like words of the Master, M, the recorder of The Gospel of Sri  Ramakrishna,  was absorbed in bliss. With great love and enthusiasm, M distributed  the Master's teachings among the devotees. His devotion for Sri  Ramakrishna was so great that it spread to those who heard him speak.  In an inspired mood, M tried to describe his Master. He said:
      
      'The  Master was like a five-year-old boy always running to meet his Mother.'
      
      'The  Master was like a beautiful flower whose nature was to bloom and spread its  fragrance.'
      
      'The  Master was like a bonfire from which other lamps were lighted.'
      
      'The  Master was like a celestial vina always absorbed in  singing the glory of the Divine Mother.'
      
      'The  Master was like a big fish joyfully swimming in calm, clear, blue waters, the  Ocean of Satchidananda.'
      
      'The  Master was like a bird that had lost its nest in a storm and then,  perched on the threshold of the Infinite, was joyfully moving between  the two realms, singing the glory of the Infinite.'4
      
      The Meaning of Ramakrishna's Name
      
      There  is an eternal relationship between a sound and its meaning. The meaning  is of two kinds: the literal meaning and its inner significance. The  word Ramakrishna  literally refers to an embodied man of that name, a son of Kshudiram and Chandramani, a  temple priest of Dakshineswar, and so on. The inner  significance of the word Ramakrishna is that this being is Satchidananda, ever-free God, and an avatara.  When one repeats this mantra and understands its meaning, one experiences the  power of the name and joy inside.
      
      Swami  Bhagavatananda, a famous and learned monk of Varanasi,  explained the profound meaning within Ramakrishna's name. He says:
      
      From  the ordinary standpoint, Ramakrishna is a mere name; but if one explores  deeply, one will find that it is full of mystery. For example: Ramante yoginah asmin iti ramah  [He who bestows delight upon the yogis is Rama]; Karshati  bhaktanam duhkham papam mano veti  kri÷íah  [He who absorbs and destroys the sin and suffering of the devotees, or  He who attracts the devotees' minds and dissolves them in His devotion,  is Krishna]. Rama and Krishna were born in their respective ages to  remove the sufferings of humanity. At present, they have been  manifested jointly in the form of Ramakrishna.
      
      There is mystery in the name Rama.  When Rama was born, his father, Dasharatha, asked the  sage Vasishtha to name his son. Vasishtha  said, 'The name of this child is Rama.' King Dasharatha  and his ministers said: 'That is a very short name. This child will  inherit the throne, so he should have a long, dignified name.' Vas­ishtha  said: 'O King, you do not know the glory and greatness of the name Rama.  Please listen: The letter ra of the name Rama  comes from the mantra Namo narayaíaya, which is the essence of the famous Vaishnava mantra. If you remove ra  from that mantra, it becomes Namo naya­naya, which means "salutations to the sensual  objects of the world" instead of "salutations to Lord Narayana".  Similarly, the letter ma of the name Rama is the quintessence of  the Shiva mantra Namah shivaya.  If ma is removed from this mantra, it becomes Na shivaya,  which means "everything is inauspicious" instead of "salutations to the  all-auspicious Shiva".' When
Vasishtha thus unveiled  the mystery of the name Rama, Dasharatha was  pleased. Rama is in the name Ramakrishna.
      
      The spiritual meaning of the  name Krishna is this: The root meaning of the word kri÷  is 'ever-existent Brahman', and na  is 'happiness' or 'bliss'. This sat, or existence, and ananda, or bliss, are the essence of Brahman.  That is the meaning of the word Krishna. If sat is removed from  Brahman, nothing can exist; and if ananda is  removed, we will not seek anything in this world. So the meaning of the word Krishna  is sat and ananda. Krishna is  also included in the name Ramakrishna. The greatness of this name is  beyond description.5
      
      Those  who are initiated repeat the name of their Chosen Deity, so it is  important for them to know the inner meaning of that name. It helps the  aspirant to be close to God. We try to unite with God through karma,  prayer, japa, and meditation. Our  spiritual practices become smooth and joyful if we have clear knowledge  of His real nature. Two days before his passing away, Ramakrishna said  to Vivekananda: 'He who was born as Rama and Krishna is now living in  this very body as Ramakrishna—not from the standpoint of your Vedanta,  but actually so.'
      
      Swami  Turiyananda commented on the above statement:
      
      The point stressed here is that the Advaita school of  Vedanta holds jiva  and Brahman to be one. Some take this to mean that everyone is equal to  Rama and Krishna, and that they [Rama and Krishna] have no distinctive  qualities. Lest Swamiji misunderstand the  saying, 'He who was Rama and Krishna is now Ramakrishna in this body,'  Sri Ramakri­shna qualified this statement with the words, 'not from the  standpoint of your Vedanta.' That is to say, the consciousness of Sri  Rama­krishna was the consciousness of Ishvara [God] and not of the  jiva. According to Advaita Ved­anta, the jiva  can attain the knowledge of his or her identity with Brahman by  removing his or her ignorance through spiritual practices culminating  in samadhi. Yet, despite all imaginable  efforts, the jiva can never become Ishvara. The One who is Ishvara  is eternally the Ishvara. Even when Ishvara assumes a human body and appears to be a jiva, that One remains the same Ishvara  and does not
become the jiva.6
      
      Name and Form
      
      According to Vedanta philosophy: Brahman is asti-bhati-priya (existence, consciousness, and  bliss) and the world is nama-rupa (name and  form). Brahman alone is real; It  exists in the past, present, and future. The world is made of name and  form and has no absolute reality. It is visible just as a mirage is  visible but in fact does not exist. If that is true, then one may say  that because Rama, Krishna, Ramakrishna, Shiva, and Kali have names and  forms, they must not be real. So is it meaningless to follow them? We  see in Ramakrishna's life that to attain nirvikalpa samadhi, he cut the  form of the Divine Mother Kali in two with the sword of knowledge.
      
      The  Vedanta scriptures say that it is true that name and form do not have  absolute reality; however, they have an apparent and pragmatic reality.  From the absolute standpoint, the guru, the disciple, the mantra, and  ignorance itself are not real; they do not really exist. But the unreal  guru through an unreal mantra can remove the unreal ignorance of the  unreal disciple. Similarly, an unreal doctor uses unreal medicine to  remove the unreal disease of the unreal patient. In fact, Brahman alone  exists and It has  become everything. As a snake It bites, and as a  doctor It cures. This is Its play.
      
      Name  and form cannot exist without Brahman. It is Brahman that has become  manifest as beings and the universe through space, time, and causation.  The non-dualist says: 'All this is verily Brahman'; 'All this—whatever  exists in this changing universe—is covered by the Lord.' The dualist  says: 'Wherever my eyes fall, there Krishna manifests.'
      
      We  live in the domain of name and form, which is maya.  We must cling to the name and form that will help us to transcend the realm of maya: Rama, Krishna, Buddha, Jesus, Rama­krishna, and other  avataras are the means by which we can reach Brahman,  which is devoid of name and form. Krishna says in the Gita:  'Verily, this divine maya of Mine,  consisting of the gunas, is hard to overcome. But  those who take refuge in Me alone shall cross over  this maya' ( 7.14). According to the Amritabindu Upanishad,  the Sound-Brahman is lower knowledge; after becoming an adept in this  lower knowledge, one attains the Supreme Brahman. Swami Shivananda  wrote: 'If a man repeats Ramakrishna's name and meditates on his form,  he can reach Ramakrishna's peaceful abode, which is beyond name and  form.'7
      
      Name and Form Are Identical
      
      Ramakrishna  said, 'The name and the person named are identical.' This statement is  very important from a philosophical standpoint. The word and its  meaning are always connected; so the name and the person who bears it  cannot be separated. Name first manifests as Om, the Sound-Brahman.  This is the first vibration of creation. Name, or sound, is  indestructible; sound evolves and dissolves like the waves of the  ocean. Name makes the Nameless visible. Swami Brahmananda  said: 'Have firm faith in God and in His name. Unite God with His name.  God dwells in the hearts of devotees as the mantra. … Repeat God's name  and listen to His praise. God and the name of God are identical. If you  get involved in this world without repeating His name, you will be lost  in a maze.'8
      
      When  we utter a man's name, his face manifests in our minds. When we call on Rama,  it is not Shyama  who responds. Likewise, if we call upon a particular deity, he or she  responds. Of course, one must call on the deity wholeheartedly:
      
      A  man sleeping in a room behind closed doors wakes up if anybody knocks  and calls out his name, and responds by opening the door. In the same  way, if anyone takes the name of God repeating His holy mantra, and  performs spiritual practices with simple faith and zealous devotion,  the Lord who dwells in all beings awakens and opens the door to the  temple in the aspirant's heart. He fulfils the aspirant's cherished  desire and reveals Himself in the form of the Chosen Deity.9
      
      The  devotional scriptures have glorified the greatness of God's name. According to the Chaitanya Charitamrita: 'Chant Krishna's name with steadfast  devotion because the Lord responds when He is called. Chaitanya joyfully said to Swarup  and Ramananda Ray that singing the Lord's name is the  supreme means to God-realization in this Kaliyuga.' Once a goswami said to Ramakrishna: 'Sir,  the chanting of God's name is enough. The scriptures emphasize the  sanctity of God's name for the Kaliyuga.'  Ramakrishna replied: 'Yes, there is no doubt about the sanctity of  God's name. But can a mere name achieve anything, without the yearning  love of the devotee behind it? 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?'10
      
      Some  say: We are ordinary human beings. We have not seen God. We do not know  His real nature, or even where He lives. How can we contact Him? The  sage Patanjali answers: Devotion to God leads to divine union,  or samadhi.  'The word that manifests God is Om.' 'The repetition of this [Om] and  meditating on its meaning [is the way].' The scriptures say: 'Without  making the mantra conscious, if a man repeats it a million times, he  will not get the result.' It will be the mere repetition of a word.
      
      Sadhana Awakens the  Mantra
      
      Many  people in this world repeat the name of Rama, Krishna, Kali, Jesus,  Allah, Ramakrishna, and other deities. One should strictly follow the guru's  instructions and practise japa  and meditation. After receiving initiation, some think that it is enough to  repeat the mantra a fixed number of times.
      
      The  Tantric scriptures prescribe many sadhanas  to make the mantra conscious. Rama­krishna and his disciples practised those disciplines. While worshipping the Divine  Mother, Ramakrishna would draw a line round himself while uttering the mantra ram,  and as he did so he would see a wall of fire surrounding him,  protecting him. Swami Vivekananda would see the mantra written in  golden letters. We, however, see darkness when we close our eyes to  repeat the mantra and meditate. Sometimes we feel depressed. If one  wants a taste of spirituality, one should first learn from the guru how  to awaken the mantra, and then faithfully practise the instructions given.
      
      Swami  Vivekananda says about awakening the mantra:
      
      The Mantra-Shastris  [upholders of the mantra theory] believe that some words have been  handed down through a succession of teachers and disciples, and [that]  the mere utterance of them will lead to some form of realisation. There  are two different meanings of the word Mantra-chaitanya. According to some, if you  practise the repetition of a certain Mantra, you will see the Ishta-Devata  who is the object or deity of that Mantra. But according to others, the  word means that if you practise the repetition of a certain Mantra  received from a Guru [who is] not competent, you will have to perform  certain ceremonies by which that Mantra will become Chetana  or living, and then its repetition will be successful. Different  Mantras, when they are thus 'living', show different signs, but the  general sign is that one will be able to repeat it for a long time  without feeling any strain and that his mind will very soon be  concentrated.11
      
      There  are many ways to awaken the mantra. All mantras are a combination of  letters. The combined letters make a word; each word has a meaning;  this meaning originates from the power of knowledge; and the power of  knowledge comes from the guru. When we have the knowledge of the  mantra, the object of the mantra becomes manifest in our minds. For  example: When we hear the word cow, we immediately visualize  the form of a cow. This knowledge of 'cow' came to us from our parents  or teachers who showed us a cow when we were children. During  initiation, the guru tells us our mantra and explains its meaning. But  our minds are so impure that we cannot understand if we hear it only  once. So we should hear, repeat, and remember the mantra again and  again; then only will it be awakened.
      
      The  awakening of the mantra is a difficult subject. Without sadhana,  one cannot understand the mystery of the mantra. It is not possible to  awaken the mantra by reading books or listening to lectures. Vijay  Krishna Goswami said:
      
      When  one unites the mantra, the guru, and the deity, the mantra awakens. The  mantra is a mystical sound. The guru is the giver of knowledge. And the  deity is the experience of that knowledge. The guru leads the disciple  from dark ignorance to luminous knowledge by means of the mantra.
      
      Here  is an example: Suppose I tell you that there is a ghost in that banyan  tree by the side of the road. After you hear this from me, you begin  thinking about the ghost. You also know the meaning of the word ghost:  a terrible, frightening spirit. One dark night you need to pass near  that tree on an errand. All of a sudden, you remember the story of the  ghost that I graphically described to you. As soon as you go under that  banyan tree, your hair stands on end, your throat becomes dry, and you  have terrible palpitations. As you look at the tree, a branch moves a  little in the wind, and you either cry out 'Ghost! Ghost!' or fall  unconscious. This is the experience of the ghost, which came from the  awakening of the 'ghost' mantra. The word ghost is like the  mantra; I am the guru who described that word to you; and your  experience that there is a ghost in that tree is the deity of that  ghost mantra.12
     

Strength is life, weakness is death.
- Swami Vivekananda
           
---------------------------------