Birthplaces of Shri Ramakrishna and Ma Sarada

Debi Mukherjee (India, 14/03/08)

Hinduism found place in the world religion when Swami Vivekananda (12^th January 1863 to 4^th July 1902) took the initiative by his famous address in the World Parliament of Religions held in Chicago, USA in the year 1893. Here, his first lecture, which started with this line "Sisters and Brothers of America," made the audience clap for two minutes just to the address. It was this speech that made him famous first in Chicago and then later everywhere else in America, including far-flung places such as Memphis, Boston, San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles and St. Louis.

One definitely wonders to ascertain as to who was the inspiration behind Vivekananda’s intense faith in Hinduism coupled with power of oratory to captivate the audience so as to make him one of the most famous and influential spiritual leaders of the philosophies of Vedanta and Yoga.

Guru (sanskrit word meaning : teacher) of Swami Vivekananda was Sri Ramakrishna (18^th February1836 -16^th August 1886) commonly addressed/referred to as “Thakur” meaning “Deity” or title of respect. He is also called Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa.

During our recent trip to Kolkata we had the privilege of visiting the birth place of Ramakrishna. His birth place was in a village called Kamarpukur in the district of Hooghly, West Bengal, India He was a Hindu religious teacher. His teachings emphasised God-realisation as the highest goal of life, love and devotion for God, the oneness of existence and the harmony of religions. He was considered an incarnation of God by many of his disciples, and is considered as such by many of his devotees till date.

For visiting Kamarpukur, one may catch a train from Kolkata (Howrah). The train is called Tarakeshwar local starting from Howrah and culminating at Tarakeshar. It is two and a half hour journey. One may also avail the facilities of Express bus service from Kolkata to Kamarpukur direct or road transport by hired or own vehicle.

The devotees and the monks of the Ramakishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission have built a beautiful temple of Thakur Sri Ramakrishna at Kamarpukur. A marble statue of Thakur is installed in the temple. Daily worship is carried out there in the morning and evening. Evening prayers and bhajan (devotional songs) are sung. One can have a look at the cottages where Sri Ramakrishna used to live. Lush green trees with blooming flowers coupled with silence being observed in the surroundings make the place an ideal site for meditation. Guest houses, a library, a dispensary and schools have also been set up by the temple authority.

Visit of thousands of devotees every year from various parts of the world to fulfil their spiritual aspirations have made this hamlet a place of pilgrimage. There are arrangement of lodging in a furnished room with attached bath. It is preferable to book in advance either by telephone or by sending a reply card so that accommodation is reserved. At a stretch one can stay for three days by paying nominal donation. Morning breakfast with tea at 6-30am, lunch at 11-30am, afternoon tea and dinner at 8-30pm are provided free of cost in the dining place.

Devotees are to offer prayer to the Almighty before and after partaking of meal as guided by a monk.

The essence of Ramakrishna’s teachings were the oneness of existence, the divinity of all living beings; the unity of God and the harmony of religions. He emphasized that the primal bondage in human life is “Kamini (lust concerning woman)” and “Kanchan (affinity towards gold and materialistic things in the world)”.

While visiting Kamarpukur, one also makes it a point to pay a visit to Jayrambati (3 miles to the north west of Kamarpukur) in Bankura district where Ramakrishna’s wife, Smt. Sarada Devi (22^nd December, 1853-20^th July 1920) was born. She is addressed as the “Holy Mother”. Knowing fully well that Ramakrishna was practising complete renunciation of all earthly ties for the sake of God-realization and living the life of a monk, she also never sought conjugal life. Thus Sarada Devi became Ramakrishna’s first disciple. He attempted to teach her everything he had learned from his various gurus. She is believed to have mastered every religious secret as quickly as Ramakrishna had. Impressed by her religious potential, he not only treated her as the Universal Mother Herself but also worshiped her. Later on Sarada Devi became a spiritual and intellectual leader in her own right. She served Ramakrishna and his disciples for many years. After demise of Ramakrishna, she continued to carry on his religious ministry serving as a guide and inspiration to the disciples.

The scenic beauty of Jayrambati temple complex is quite impressive. Apart from white marble statue of Sarada Ma with adjoining meditation hall, the guest house building with its greeneries, blooming flowers and a water tank with swimming ducks is worth seeing. The original hutments where Ma Sarada used to live have also been carefully kept and maintained in the vicinity.

In Jayrambati also the pilgrims could enjoy the facilities of boarding and lodging at least for three days on payment of donation by booking in advance. Tourists visiting for a day only may also enjoy the afternoon meal (prasadam) served at 11:45 am by booking the meal coupon in advance (by 10:30am).

Before concluding it will be worthwhile to share a few quotable quotes of these two spiritual leaders:

Sri Ramakrishna

“Jato mat, tato path” (Inherent meaning - More the number of religious ideas, more the number of means to achieve the divinity thereby emphasizing the harmony of religions)

Ma Sarada

“I tell you one thing. If you want peace of mind, do not find fault with others. Rather see your own faults. Learn to make the whole world your own. No one is a stranger, my child; the whole world is your own."