Sri Ramakrishna and temple worship

Hare Krishna ! Dear Bhaktas ,

Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa attained self realization through
Temple-worship . Having started as an ordinary Poojari of a Kali-temple
in Calcutta , Gadadharan through constant worship, attained the
blessings of Kali-Mata and became famous as Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa
. He said once :

" During night time , you can see many stars in the sky . But when
Sun rises , you can not see those stars . Just because of this , can you
say that there are no stars during day time ? . Likewise, during your
ignorant times, you say ` There is no God '. God is both
formless and with form . Only God can say what He is ! . We can see the
God with form . We can also touch God like a close friend " .

An ordinary Poojari Gadadhara becoming Paramahamsa proves beyond any
doubt , the effectiveness of Temple worship . Deity-worship easily
fetched him , Kali-Mata's divine grace . Ramakrishna always sought
Kali-Mata's permission before undertaking any task.

The famous Advaita-Vedanti , Sri Totapuri who had attained
*Nirvikalpa-samadhi* , ridiculed Ramakrishna's ardent faith in
Deity-worship . Totapuri advised him :

"Ramakrishna , your life's objective must be *Advaita Vedanta
darshan* . I will teach you about it's principles " .

Ramakrishna replied politely :

" Let me ask Kali-Mataji. If I receive Her permission , I will come
back to learn Vedanta".

After this discussion , Ramakrishna went straight to Kail-temple and
prayed for Devi's advice . Kali-Mata gave him permission . He
returned to Sri Toalapuri and said :

" Kali-Mataji has given me permission to learn Vedanta from you .
"

Sri Tolapuri asked Ramakrishna to withdraw mind from all external
objects and merge it with *Atman* ( soul) * . Though he tried to do so
, Ramakrishna could not liberate his mind from the *aura* of Kali-Devi
. When he informed about this , Tolapuri asked him to focus the mind
beyond the personal form of Kali-devi.

Ramakrishna tried very hard . But his mind attained oneness with the
personal form of Kali-Mata and he attained *Samadhi* . Tolapuri left the
deeply meditating Ramakrishna in that room and went outside . He
returned after (3) days . When he opened the door , the sight in front
amazed Toalpuri . Ramakrishna was remaining unmoved in that same
position and was still in meditation even after three days ! He thought
aloud :

"What *Nirvikalpasamadhi* I have attained after (40) years of
intense *Sadhana* , is achieved by Ramakrishna within a few hours " !!!

At first , Tolapuri could no believe his eyes . Gradually , he brought
back Ramakrishna from spiritual bliss to worldly life . Ramakrishna
slowly opened his eyes and smiled at the awe-struck Tolapuri .

Sri Tolapuri who had never before stayed at any place more than (3)
days, resided (11) months with Ramakrishna in the Kali-temple . It
brought a great mental transformation in him . Before, he had rejected
Ramakrishna's faith in Deity-worship as utter superstition . But,
now he is convinced that the *sannidyam* ( presence) of Kali-devi is
not an illusion. Both *Nirguna Brahman* and *Saguna Brahman* are two
*BhAvAs* of the same ParaBrahman . Thus Sri Toalapuri and Ramakrishna
became mutual Guru-Sishyas .

Conclusion

Many Hindus are extremely proud of their Hindu-birth and qualifications
; and are self-styled *Jeevan-MuktAs* . However, they don't even
lead a Vedic way of life ! .

Very few *Jeevan-MuktAs* have existed in recent times . Ramana
Maharishi is one . When His body was dying withCancer, His disciples
begged Him to cure Himself for the sake of His devotees. Sri Ramana who
was least bothered about anything worldly, replied "Why are you so
attached to this body ? Let it go ."

Ordinary Hindus like us who can't tolerate even a minor headache ,
should be realistic . Bhakti-yoga is the path suitable for us .
Bhagavan Sri Krishna advises us in Geeta 12.5 - 7 :

" Those who worship the un-manifested (Impersonal Brahman) ,
experience great difficulty because it is very troublesome for the
embodied being to attain the formless .
But, those who worship Me as *Saguna Brahman* , surrendering all
actions to Me ; setting Me as their supreme goal, and meditating on Me
with single minded devotion; easily attain Me ".

Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya !!!

knr

--
If God brings you to it, He will bring you through it.
Happy moments, praise God.
Difficult moments, seek God.
Quiet moments, worship God.
Painful moments, trust God.

 Every moment, thank God