Master and Mahadev!!!

6 March 2016: night pronounced itself very prominently in the absence of the moon. It seemed like everything lay siege to the hot and humid condition with the air being hung in lifelessness. There was a tinge of mysticism though as if Mother Nature was taking a gallant bow to Lord Shiva in preparation for the glorious night of Maha Shivaratri which is commemorated around the globe.

As I went to bed my thoughts began circulating around the ideas presented by Swami Sumanasananda (President Ramakrishna Centre SA - Durban and Keynote Speaker) and Swami Tadbasananda (Vice President Ramakrishna Centre of SA – Phoenix) at the 180th birth anniversary of Sri Ramakrishna hosted by the Phoenix centre. Both Swamis exposed Sri Ramakrishna as the incarnation of harmony and the restorer of faith in God at a time that witnessed its colossal decline.

A great portion of our time and energy is spent on arguments and conflicts over religion and its practices which in my view should be kept personal and utilised as a personal path that helps one to reach one’s spiritual pursuits and goal in life. In my last article, I briefly commented on the conflict between religions and highlighted points from Swami Vivekananda’s speech at the World Parliament of Religions when He appealed to the Congress of religious leaders - that the gathering should herald the death of bigotry, fundamentalism, fanaticism, of all persecutions with the sword or pen, and of all uncharitable feelings between persons wending their way to the same goal.

These ideas are not bequeathed to a mind that is constricted to the shallow, narrow and parochial view of this world, but bestowed upon one who has tapped into the universal spiritual consciousness and has become the knower of Brahman. Sri Ramakrishna said that for one who is the knower of Brahman everything becomes known. In my limited understanding, I believe that it is impractical and useless to expect a harmony amongst religions when we amongst ourselves fail to realise and understand the non-duality or oneness within Hindu Dharma itself.

For many years, India had witnessed rivalry amongst the different dominations within Hinduism eg. the Saivites and the Vaishanavites. Heated debates and even lives were lost on account of whose God was the greatest. Of recent, I read an article on a Ramana Maharishi Forum where an incident was described. A satsangh turned into a heated exchange of words between a scholar and devotee when the scholar discussed a verse which cited Lord Shiva was the primordial God. The Lord Vishnu worshipper took offence and argued that Lord Vishnu was. Understanding where this argument may end up, the presenter eventually agreed with the devotee to restore the devotee’s sense of peace and calm.

When our key principle scriptures, the Vedas, in essence propound that there is only one God and that we appreciate the cosmic consciousness as per our faculties of understanding it then begs the question as to why we need to force our idea of God upon one another. We should develop the tolerance and patience to allow people to adore and glorify their chosen ideals without allowing it to affect us personally.

It was Sri Ramakrishna -the avatar of empirical erudition- that proved all paths are true and ultimately reach the same the goal. In this light, we can conclude that if on the macro level that is true then in the micro (within our own folds) it is true as well.

Giving credence to His words, that supreme consciousness that appeared in the form of Lord Krishna and declared in the Bhagavad Gita that “whenever there is a decline in righteousness and an incline unrighteous, from time to time I manifest myself for the protection of creation". At a time of rising religious intolerance and a massive shift in consciousness from the goal of life towards materialism and sensual gratification, Brahman appeared to humanity as Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa in the West Bengal town of Kamarpukur.

The following hymn penned by Swami Vivekananda about His Master is the most lucid and grand exposition on the advent of Sri Ramakrishna in my view. It extols the purpose and mission of this avatar in the most succinct and befitting manner.



Sthapakaya cha Dharmasya Sarvadharma Svaroopini

Avataraya Varishthraya, Ramakrishnaya te Namah



To the one who came to establish spirituality, the one who is the personification

of all faiths and religions, the one who the greatest embodiment of the divine,

to that Ramakrishna I offer my salutations.



If I had to put it to a staunch Shiva devotee that on the night of Shiva (Maha Shivaratri) I would worship my Master Sri Ramakrishna with deep devotion, He may take offence. His argument may centre on the fact that it is a night dedicated to Lord Shiva. When one reads Sri Ramakrishna the Great Master we find that details around His birth point to a dream by His father that Lord Narayana will take birth as his son. In this context some may call me insane, but is there a difference between Master and Mahadev. Mathematically, I was thought that 3 reasons where sufficient to prove theorems. I will therefore apply this principle to derive at a conclusion that Master and Mahadev are one:



1.      Mahadev was regarded as dirty and unkempt by his father-in–law. He was a great yogi and ascetic who paid no attention to his physical body and surroundings and was always in deep contemplation.

2.      Master was once asked to attend a Brahmo festival by Devendra but was warned to wear a cloth and shawl over his shoulder should someone say something unkind about his unkempt appearance.. Master who was always contemplating on God and entering into Samadhi had no consciousness of his body and appeared unkempt like Lord Shiva. At times he would walk in his room without his cloth while in deep contemplation.

A)     Mahadev will be found in deep meditation on cremation on burial grounds.

B)     Master meditated in the Panchavati which once was a burial ground.

1.      When the halahala poison emerged from the churning of the milky ocean, Lord Shiva swallowed the poison and held it in His throat for the benefit of creation. He was thereafter known as Neelakanta (blue-throat-one).

2.      Master suffered from throat cancer and once said it was this disease that will keep the genuine seekers to him and others to flee. We have thus seen how the direct disciples have been of great value to the creation through spiritual and relief work.

A)     Mahadeva believed in all paths as one and was all merciful, embracing and compassionate. Worshipped by all, He kept the company of sages, kings, ghouls and ghosts highlighting that all of creation comes from that same source and as per our understanding we will eventually reach our goal.

B)     Master was all-embracing, compassionate and was in the company of great scholars, Muslims, Christians and other faiths and did not discriminate against anyone and thought the ideal of universal harmony.

In my mind, there is no difference between Master and Mahadev. Their aims, purpose and lives reflect that one glorious truth that we are all wending our way towards. It is our duty on this glorious dark night to beseech upon Lord Shiva to give us enlightenment so that vast differences that appear to our shallow minds be removed so to perceive that one consciousness that dwells within each of us.

In the words of Master, the thousands of stars on a dark night disappear in the light of the rising sun. In the same way as we educate ourselves and have the realisation of ourselves… the light of wisdom will remove the ignorance and darkness that shows us differences.

May the grace of Master and Mahadev give us illumination to help us live in peace and harmony. I make a special prayer to relieve our country and province from the drought that we are currently gripped in.

With love and prayers always,

Yogan