Publisher’s Note
By the grace of Sri Ramakrishna we present to English-speaking readers the third volume of Sri Sri Ramakrishna Kathamrita. Volume I was published in 2001 and Volume II in 2002. In this five volume series, we attempt to translate the original Bengali edition as published by M., which is currently published by the Kathamrita Bhawan, Calcutta.
In the Kathamrita the blissful nectar of Thakur's words is available through the prism of M.’s totally devoted and pure mind. What he observed of Thakur and heard from his holy lips, he recorded in his daily diary that very day. A strong need has been felt by English-speaking readers for an authentic and verbatim translation of M.’s original work. Therefore, we have retained whatever was in M.’s original Bengali text in the belief that it is of paramount importance that the original bhava (flavour) of the God-man is conveyed to the readers.
Before you dive deep into the Kathamrita, a look at its publishing history may be of interest. The five volumes of Kathamrita in Bengali by M. saw the light of day in the years 1902, 1904, 1908, 1910 and 1932. Reading all five volumes, one sees the development of the mind: from intellectual to intellectual-spiritual, from intellectual-spiritual to spiritual-intellectual and from spiritual-intellectual to pure spiritual, and then the practical pure spiritual state. In the first volume of the Kathamrita, we find profound truths explained with the help of illustrations as guide to intellectual reasoning. For example, the tortoise moves about in water, but do you know where its mind abides? Rub your hands with oil before you break the jackfruit, etc. In Volume II of the Kathamrita, the highest Truth is explained by an intellect that is soaked in Spirit. In Part III, Sri Ramakrishna is found expounding sublime truths from a totally spiritual perspective. In Volume IV a practical spirit shows the way to bring the injunctions into practice and how to internalize the Word. Volume V additionally contains an index of characters and songs of all the five volumes. The five volumes of the Kathamrita, then, are five steps leading us from the gross to Mahakarana (the Great Cause).
In Volume III, Sri Ramakrishna teaches the devotees to fix the mind on God while leading a family life. He teaches his devotees what real cleverness is. He says in Section VI of this volume: ‘Sä cäturé cäturé – the skill which enables one to attain God is the real skill.’ Real cleverness is to remember God in the midst of the objectionable environment of worldly life. This is called pure intellect, or khasa buddhi. It is described in the following hymn:
Among nights, the night of the full moon is the best, as the moon’s rays are brightest at this time.
Among women, sati (devoted chaste wife) is the best.
Divine sweetness liberates, whereas worldly sweetness enslaves; so divine sweetness is better.
That intellect is the best by which life is led in such a way that one attains God-realization.
One must think of God with seventy-five percent of one’s mind and do all other work with the rest. Thereby one is able to live in peace and joy in ‘this burning cauldron’ and, in the end, attain Eternal Bliss.
Smt. Ishwar Devi Gupta, who left her mortal frame on Buddha Purnima, 26 May 2002, remains the driving spirit behind the translation and publication of these volumes of the Kathamrita, both English and Hindi. It was her strong desire that an English version of the five volumes be published. Sri Dharm Pal Gupta, maintaining the same spirit of faithful translation, prepared the original draft of the English version, with the assistance of a few devout devotees.
May our readers, friends and associates attain supreme bliss and peace by reading this book – this is our heartfelt prayer at the feet of the Lord.
Ma Sarada’s 152nd Birth Anniversary
Monday, 3 January, 2005Publisher