DISCOURSES

(Some of the notes of conversations with Sri Sri Thakur Anukulchandra picked
up & collected by Shri Prafulla Kumar Das. Published in book form “Discourses”
by © Satsang, Deogher).

October 5, 1939

The darkness of the night set in. Sri Sri thakur was seated on a chowki in the
Ashram courtyard by the river bank, and some people of the ashram were with
Him. Gopalda came. Thakur said to him, "The Manu-Samhita starts with a
description of the beginning of the cosmic cycle, and there is some real sense
in that. By understanding things in the order in which they appear one can get
a proper understanding of them. Chalar Sathi (Life's Companion) starts with the
creation of the universe. I did not make any great plans for it that way; it
turned out that way of itself. Unless we are acquainted with the elementals,
our knowledge is only of bits and pieces, and we don't come to a full
understanding. What big scientists our ancient seers were none today
understands. A great ascetic like Mahadev, for example, was responsible for a
great many medical formulas. People today generally have a distorted picture
of saints. But the real saints were very active and practical. In how many ways
they served the society!"

In the course of His talking, Thakur said, "I do not see another normal man
around like Ramakrishna." Later in the night prayer and meditation were
discussed. Thakur said, "These things don't fit in well unless one has a normal
life. A posed or `got-up' life will never do, I have never obtained anything by
going through gymnastics for it. I would do things when I felt like it. I never
saw Sarkar Saheb. That is why my mother was everything to me. Whatever I
would do would be to gain credit with her. If fancy so pleased me I would begin
repeating Name in the dead of night. I always had a strong urge to do things
swiftly Once I walked three miles from Khoksa in 22 minutes. My activity
became intense, and I enjoyed my work all the more. I would do Kirtan. I n the
period of trance consciousness would be lost. But I do not attach any
importance to that. At other times I was always conscious. When I grasped a
thermometer one day, the temperature went up to 110 degrees. Water
sprinkled on my body would evaporate. Such things happened. Visions like
those I discussed with you before would come.

"People do not understand the meaning of God. They go on with queer ideas in
their heads and do all sorts of peculiar things. That's why they don't get
anywhere. Those who get the association of the great really get fulfillment.
What cannot be understood by ascetic practices can be understood by them,
seen by them, normally. And this again cannot happen unless one leads a
normal life.

October 9, 1939
In the evening a gentleman from Calcutta came and desired to know how to
make progress in business. Sri Sri Thakur said, "Yajan (self-exaltation), Yaajan
(the exaltation of others), and Ishtabhriti (the maintenance of one's Ideal) are
the foremost duties of man. One must exert oneself for one's becoming, and at
the same time convince the environment to do the same. Man cannot get by,
ignoring his environment. That is why it is to a man's interest to serve his
environment. At every turn Yaajan and service are required. Say, for example,
you have a cycle shop. You start thinking how to supply everyone with a cycle.
Perhaps you think to supply even a poor man by letting him pay in installments.
You do Yaajan with him about how convenient it would be for him to have a
cycle. When he goes in for a cycle and enjoys its advantages, he will express a
heartfelt gratitude for what you have done, saying, "Such and such a man has
considered my financial position and has made it possible for me to have this
cycle. Had he not given me special consideration, I would never have had it. He
made it very easy for me." Hearing his words, many pour into your shop, and
thus your business begins to thrive. If instead of this you had looked for greater
profits by cheating him, he would probably have detected it and said to others,
"Look out, don't go ever to that man's shop. He is a cheat." If you have a
thousand customers and you get a very small profit from each of them which
they know about, is that not better than taking a greater profit from a
hundred? The Sanskrit word for business comes from a root meaning, "That
which truly saves from death." "But whatever you do, have love for your Ideal
at the root of it. Passions then remain in your control. Serviceable attitude
arises. Work becomes flawless. Whoever comes in contact with you sticks to
you like glue, enchanted with your Ideal-fulfilling service and attitude. Human
wealth increases. And progress becomes inevitable. Man becomes eligible for
good out of this attachment for Ideal. That is why Guru is called man's Supreme
Good. Only by following him can man have good."

October 11, 1939

It was about ten o'clock in the morning. Sri Sri Thakur was seated on snow-
white bedding, his feet bare, a thick sacred thread hanging from his shoulder.
He was talking about this and that with Gopal da, smiling. Haripada da,
Kalidasima and others now and again gave him tobacco, water and betel nut.
Thakur caught sigh of dentist examining Bhushnima's teeth by the side of the
temple stairs. The dentist was dressed in European fashion. Thakur
commented, "When the boys of our country finish their studies and become
professionals like doctors, pleaders, or barristers, they put on sahib clothing.
This seems to me very insulting. Our Bharadwaj may be a big physician but
principally he is a Ritwik (a guardian in the society). All of his activities come
out with that as their ground. Whatever he becomes, he cannot give up his
characteristic headgear and sash." Thakur turned to Gopalda. "If you turn out
to be a big shot and still wear your Ritwik's dress though surrounded by
bodyguards and attendants got up in tight fitting suits, how grand you will look!
When a man stands clad in snow-white vest shirt and wrapper, he looks like an
angel."

October 12, 1939

Sushilda was back in ashram today after collecting information on memories of
previous births. He described his findings in detail to Sri Sri Thakur's great
enjoyment. At one time he said, "I examined the horoscope of two such persons
(those who could remember their previous births), and I found that both had
been born in the same astral combinations as they had previously died in!" Sri
Sri Thakur and Gopalda jumped up simultaneously. They shouted joyously, "Is it
so, really ! The very thing we guessed !" Sri Sri Thakur said, "Gopal, now you
must look into this thing thoroughly, I said so a long time ago. After all is said
and done, we have not been able to discover the key to memory-continuity.
The question remains, how is it possible to remember incidents of previous
births ? This is the only problem in the world. And it doesn't seem to be
something unsurmountable. If one can find the trick, the thing is done. If man
achieves this, what he does not know. As long as the conscious entity remains,
it is not difficult to invade the beyond." To Sushilda he said, "Tomorrow please
start writing letters to all the people concerned. Try to find the book,
Buddhistic Meditation." (This book is supposed to contain a method of reviving
memories of previous births). Sushilda mentioned a sadhu who lives only on
leaves. Thakur said, "We make such fuss about our food ! How easily this great
problem can be met !" Thakur seemed to be in a state of great excitement
today. Again and again he was calling for Sushilda, hearing the story about
previous births over and over again and making others listen too. In the evening
Sushilda described in detail the reappearance of Papaji in a human body after
his death. Thakur said, "That would seem to be nothing else than the
ectoplasmic body." I asked Sri Sri Thakur, "Is it a fact that you remember your
previous life?" Thakur answered, "I don't know whether it is just imagination or
not, but it seems as though I clearly remember my Grandma and myself are
sailing on a river in a boat, and that there are lot of turtles all around. I asked
Grandma about it, but she brushed it aside. I also seem to remember that I
once lived at the foot of a hill. I used to sit on a rock. A rivulet flowing
eastward was before me. Pretty, red paths ran through the wood. I had a wife.
She loved me very much. It seems to me she would know me even now if I went
there. About this present life I remember I was born in a room. A very dim lamp
was burning. Mother said it was so. Many things occur to me, and they all seem
real. Things flash in the mind. I did not discuss them before ; now I occasionally
give them out."When every one went away, I asked what an ectoplasmic body
is. Sri Sri Thakur said, "It is the one beyond the germ plasmic body. When steam
begins to condense into vapor, it becomes just visible to us. The ectoplasmic
body is like that. It is nothing more than a condensation of very fine matter."I
said, "Swamiji is said to have seen Thakur Ramakrishna many times after his
death."Thakur said, "Thakur said, "Swamiji may have seen, or someone else
may have seen, but what use is it unless everyone in the environment can see
him in a normal way? Personally I don't like anything that isn't concrete. I do
not feel comfortable unless I can realize things along with my environment by
means of some instrument or other. That is probably why it seems that
philosophy, religion, science and art have all merged into one another in my
thinking."When I asked Thakur to speak about some particular vision, he said, "I
was going along the Cossipore Road one day. There were heavenly lights all
round, Gods and goddesses were singing. I remembered a couple of lines of the
music for a long time. I told others about it. Now I can remember only recall
the word, `Swagatam' (welcome). I got into a cane forest one day while
walking along the road. Beside myself, I walked on and on. I walked straight on
without seeing the course of the road. I came back to my senses when someone
else pointed out my condition. Many a time even now I have a feeling that it is
I that has become a certain tree." I had heard that the marks of a whip were
once found on the back of Sri Sri Thakur when he saw a horse being whipped.
When I asked about this, he said, "We feel pain when we see a man stumbling.
This is something like that. Imagination is so strong that without physical
stimulus nerves become irritated. As in night pollution, one has a feeling that
sexual intercourse is going on, but actually it is not. Still semen is
discharged.""Those who follow Swastyayani (the five observances for well
being) find that talismans made from flowers used in the Swastyayani
ceremony are potent in bringing about desired results," I said.On hearing this,
Thakur said, "They are in a position, probably, to give others a vital
push."Satyada is unwell. At night Sri Sri Thakur said to Birenda, "Can you find
out a medicine for Satya? I want it to be an absolutely infallible one." One
remembers in this connection that all the medicines of the Satsang Chemical
Works originated in just such an active sympathy and serviceable attitude. Why
only medicines ? All the centres of activity have come into being by keeping in
sight the material needs of some individual or other. Centering itself on the
dominating problems of individual lives and progressing by the intrepid onward
march of a loving soul, a nation-wide programme of unique movement comes
into being.

October 13, 1939

This morning Sri Sri Thakur said, "If we are strong on our principle, we won't
have to yield to our environment. Instead, our environment yields to us. If we
have an urge to do what has to be done, and then actually to do it, and if it is
necessary to deal with the environment in that work, the environment too gets
enthused. Those who are incapable soon drop of their own accord. Biruda and I
went walking one day. After a while Biruda got tired and sat down. I went on
ahead without waiting for him. Seeing there was nothing else to do, he got up
and walked. "Say, for instance, someone goes out on a particular piece of
business. Circumstances may force him to start on a `bad' day. He finally gets
the work done but only after many trials and tribulations. Why should this be ?
It is to be understood in such a case that the man has some disorder in motor-
sensory co-ordination fulfilling to his principle or in his immediate motor-
sensory co-ordination. Due to this in co-ordination, the influence of the
environment did not allow he fulfillment of some previous intention then and
there. Then, as a result of this un fulfillment, a blundering twist formed in his
brain, and this twist went on to create chaos and disorder when he set about
the later intention. "Once the Deputy Superintendent of Police in Kustia called
me aside and said, `I cannot allow every Tom, Dick, and Harry to come to you,'
He threatened me in many ways. But I said, `I cannot stop anyone from
coming, and it is not proper on your part to talk like that.' Later on, he would
himself come to see me at least once, if not twice, every day. So it goes. "In
the beginning many spies would come and take down notes of the talks and
conversations we had. We made a box, and we would beg money from
passengers on the river steamers, We helped many people from that fund ; we
even helped a number of the spies. Then those that we tried to help would be
after us. I understood them all, but I gave to them anyway." "That would be
doing them a disservice." I protested. Sri Sri Thakur said, "It is my idea that if I
don't look after them, they will not live. When a sick person takes a forbidden
food, does he do so understanding what will result ? It is his disease that
inclines him to it. It is the same with the spies. My attitude is : let them live
first of all. The way to gradual correction lies open if one lives. Who can
become good being finished ? All hope is gone then."We talked of many things
after this. In the course of the conversation Sri Sri Thakur said, "When I used to
repeat Name, Lord Krishna would come and play on the flute. My ears would be
filled with enchanting music. I would see Sri Krishna as one of my own age. But
his complexion is not dark at all. It is almost like grass turned pale when
covered up for a few days. I have seen Mother Kali many times. At first sight
she would seem just like my mother. No difference at all. That is, perhaps, the
reason why my attachment to my mother increased so. Once I went to
Dakshineswar and felt very thirsty. A man supplied water to many but I was left
out. I felt very unhappy and cross, I went over to Sri Ramakrishna's room.
Things looked so familiar ! But that may not mean much. It may be due to my
having heard things before hand. Then I went and slept in the Panchboti grove.
I saw Mother Kali coming. Dark, yet how soothing was her beauty ! She came
and put my head on her knees. At her touch I was beside myself. I could not
resist her wishes. I had to do whatever she said. She said in an endearing tone,
`You asked for food when others were present. How could I give you then ?
Darling, take these.' I saw luchi, borphi, sandesh on a plate bright and golden.
She fed me, I ate all and with great relish. When I had finished—drinking water
and all---someone called me. I got up and found my hunger and thirsts were
gone. I walked till ten that night but felt no hunger. I heard that such things
should not be told : so I did not tell them before."

October 17, 1939

Jatinda asked, "What should a student organization be like ?" Sri Sri Thakur
answered, "One should meet a necessity as it arises in the course of work. A
thing is best built that way." The subjects of Hitler and Mussolini came up. Sri
Sri Thakur said, "Without a Guru a man's balance does not stand. Sivaji, though
a ruler, presented his dominion to Ramdas and ran it in trust for him. He was as
afraid of Ramdas as a child of a bogey. But his fear was due to his unflinching
love. That is why he could remain steady in the midst of the greatest dangers.
He never got so much as a scratch. Mussolini can disobey the king if he likes,
but he does not." About Hitler, Sri Sri Thakur said, "Attachment for mother is
not all. One must have a fulfilling centre. A man may be small, insignificant,
but if his attachment for a superior stands, he will rise. A man may be lowering
his eyes today, but who knows what heights he will reach tomorrow ?"
Explaining why Ramachandra killed Shambuik. Sri Sri Thakur said, "Shambuik
was breaking the Varnasram and disrupting the society. Acquiring the qualities
of a Brahmin may be an Ideal for all of us, but we must not ignore the duties
that go with our own inherited traits. One must evolve brahminical qualities
with work that fits with one's inherited instincts. Our great seer, Janaka, did
not give up the work of a protector of the state. A businessman cannot acquire
brahminical qualities by ignoring activities that are instinctive to him. If he
tries that, the society disintegrates. How can a merchant qualify to know God
if he does not even know his own business ? Whatever one may do, one should
do it standing on one's hereditary instincts. Then the society stays right. The
Prati-Ritwiks (social worker) that are being recruited from among the business
and administrator classes should work with this in mind ! Aryans lay more stress
on inborn instincts than on acquired characteristics. Instincts are automatic,
like the action of the heart at the present time. This action may not have been
so once ; we might have had to impart it deliberately. But now the heart goes
on whether we pay attention to it or not. A quality that is automatic like that is
called an instinct. A particular action is converted into an instinct by repetition
through generations. The tempering of steel that is done by hand by the
blacksmiths of Ujirpur is an example. It is unparalleled even today. They are
supposed to be able to make pistols even ! An instinct doesn't die off in a
thousand years. If we can gather ourselves up today in chromosomic clusters,
there is no telling how much we can achieve. We have everything in our blood.
Super selective, interclass marriage and common Ideal are the two cementing
factors in the society. How mistaken we are when we try to cry down one great
man and establish another ! We thereby create sectarianism. That is how the
nation gets disintegrated into lumps. We must be concentric on the present one
who fulfills all the past, and stand on Yajan, Yaajan and Ishtabhriti. We must all
observe these things ourselves and make others follow them. What a great
thing can be achieved by Yaajan ! How much time would it take to build a
nation if a thousand Ritwiks went to difference villages of Bengal doing Yaajan
and groups went out to the difference provinces doing the same ? They talk of
unemployment ! Our Dipankar was an inhabitant of Bajrajogini (eastern
Bengal). What great things he achieved with Yaajan ! There are so many pure
Aryans among the Bengalis. When there were attacks in other sections, Aryans
flew into this corner. The life and blood of these people is not a common place
thing, we don't have the least idea of what we have, and Kestoda has collected
some facts. One becomes amazed to hear them. It would be difficult to surpass
this race if it were once united." Kestoda of Chandan Nagar asked, "What will
my work be ?" Sri Sri Thakur said, "What is to be done is all laid out. `Let us kill
the enemy in any way' !" I asked, "By `what is to be done' you mean Ideal's
interest and His establishment, do you not ?" Sri Sri Thakur said, "Yes, that is
the compass for all voyages in the world. Our movements have to be directed
by it. Nothing else need be mentioned. His interest and establishment are like
the two poles, North and South. Merely the interest of Ideal will not do. You
may perhaps steal a million rupees and serve the interest of Ideal that way, but
seeing that people will say, `That man is a Guru of thieves.' That may fulfill the
interest of Ideal but will not help in His establishment. One has to keep an eye
on this too. If one has to go to prostitute's house for the interest and
establishment of Ideal, one can be in possession of good. Sin is that which
makes us fall off from our support. Sin has no other meaning than this." Thakur
then added, "If Kestoda decides that he will not allow five hundred people to
fall off, tries heart and soul for their good, serves them with all his might, and
these five hundred in turn each give a crumb for his sake, then Kestoda's bowl
will be filled. And then, in addition to meeting his own needs, he can maintain
many others." I asked, "Normal renunciation comes as a final phase of following
the four-fold path. Can one attain this stage of sainthood without going through
the whole process ?" Sri Sri Thakur answered, "A sadhu or saint is one who can
carry things through to their completion. The word `sadhu' originates from a
word that means `to acieve'. What sort of saint is he who does not take
responsibility and do his duty ? The work and responsibility of one who is
surrendered to good increases more." Sri Sri Thakur said in another connection,
"We do not come across Aryans in their true colors anymore. That is why we
don't appreciate their nature. If it blossoms once more, then only will we
understand their real grandeur. Let alone a Brahmin ! We don't even meet a
pure and ideal Baishya. Could we be in such a miserable condition if the
Baishyas were all right ? When the Baishyas forgot their Ideal and Culture and
joined hands with their foreign brothers-in-trade, the ruin of the nation
began." Sri Sri Thakur asked Kestoda to find two mechanics proficient in
molding, electroplating, milling, turning etc. He went on in a tone of regret,
"Shortage, of men is our only difficulty. How much we could have achieved here
if we had men in the right places ! The instruments in the laboratory are being
wasted for lack of men. If we get proper men for the workshop, we can provide
for the food of a thousand people. And we want people that will not accept any
salary but will take the responsibility of all undertakings, maintain the workers
and remain happy accepting the minimum for them. People outside may tempt
them with money ; they will not be tempted. It is extremely difficult for an
expert, however big he may be, to be successful if money be his real aim and
not the building of an institution. Then again, one must have a good
temperament. These are people of different mentalities here. A man must have
tenacity to stick."

October 18, 1939

In the evening a new visitor said to Thakur, "However much we exert ourselves,
everything depends on luck. Someone is not able to achieve anything even
after a lot of trouble; while someone else comes out successful after just a
little effort."

Sri Sri Thakur said, "But luck depends on doing. It is to be understood that one
who is not able to achieve is disordered in his doing. Fate (the unforeseen)
means the effect of our actions that pervades the environment and gets
scattered beyond our sight. No orderliness comes into a man's activity, no
harmony sprouts, individuality doesn't grow, and the individual doesn't get
integrated if there be no principle. The complexes alone guide the man.
Complexes are complicated and entangling. That is why they are called
complexes. Once entangled in one, a man is not able to see anything outside it.
It turns out to be his universe. There is no connection between one of them
and another. A man remains imprisoned in whatever he enters into. So many
people work such a great deal. But a peasant boy turns out to be minister all of
a sudden. How does he do it? At the root of this there is attraction or
inclination toward a desired one. Attachment is everything. I cannot claim that
you won't be able to find a single great man in this world without active
attachment to a superior beloved, but there are very few such. We read history
but we miss the glowing point in a man's life."

The visitor said, "Why should I depend on someone? I can do it all myself."

Sri Sri Thakur replied. "Man's very existence depends on others. I used to say to
myself, 'I am He; I am He' for a while, but that doesn't seem to fit in well with
human nature. By that process everything seems to recoil back on oneself. I
can utter, 'I am He' only when I am able to see all others to be the same as He.
An 'I am He' and 'All others are just nothing' attitude does not get anyone
anywhere. I like 'I am Thine'. If there is somebody as Thou, and if there is a
tension due to an urge of fulfilling him, our sensitiveness and receptivity
increase. We grow as a result of this; otherwise we go down and down under
the weight of complexes and ego. In other words there is libido in man. This
libido wants to get attached. A man who becomes active due to attachment of
this libido to superior (mother, Guru and so on) is bound to rise. The Gita says,
'There is no intelligence or becoming for one who is not attached, no peace for
one who has no becoming, and no enjoyment for one who does not have peace.'
Perhaps in another place it says, ‘Attachment is the technique of achievement.'
Is that not so? It is the sum and substance. The word ‘Thakur’ means one who
knocks. Our complexes are in conflict with him. Adjustment results out of this
conflict if there is attachment."

Visitor : "I understand the love for mother of Hitler and Mussolini, but we don't
see any love for Guru in their cases."

Sri Sri Thakur : "A deep love for mother is sure to hurl you forward. Then comes
love for Guru. One needs a Guru because he can guide at every stage, and we
grow bigger day by day in our loving pursuit of him. If there be love for Guru or
mother, motor-sensory co-ordination is inevitable."

Regarding Lord Krishna, the visitor said, "I can at best call him a superman. I
cannot look upon him as God. After all, he was a human being."

Sri Sri Thakur answered, "But I don't understand God without man, and even if
there be one, what have I to do with him? He does not even procure me so
much as a piece of pie. When we speak of God, we understand a man in whom
the virtues (wealth, strength, fame, beauty, knowledge, and detachment) are
alive. We cannot conceive of Rabindranath's poetic ability without
Rabindranath. We come to think of Rabindranath first and his poetic ability
after. We think of a kind man when we speak of kindness. Where can kindness
exist without a kind one? And how on earth can we feel it?"

October 19, 1939

The room was full in the morning. Kestoda from Chandan Nagar said, "why is
mourning observed after somebody expires ? What is the reason for different
mourning periods for different classes ?" Sri Sri Thakur : "Usually one feels
extremely depressed after the death of dear one. Mourning is observed for this
reason. The duration of the mourning has been fixed according to the time
needed by persons of different classes for the recovery of their minds." Kestoda
asked, "Why is the head shaved ?" Thakur : "Shaving has a physiological effect.
Perhaps the brain is better able to absorb ultraviolet rays thereby." Kestoda ;
"What is the utility of penance ?" Thakur : "Penance is a physio-psychical
treatment. One has to eat specified foods having a medicinal effect. The
nerves that have been impaired get invigorated." Jatinda : "what is that
significance of `mundan'--- shaving the head ?" Thakur : "The Sanskrit word
`mundan' means surrender, surrender of the being." In the course of
conversation Thakur said, "We are struck dumb by the achievements of Japan
and Russia, but there was a time when people from other countries were struck
dumb at our achievement. The Bipros used to carry on research ; month after
month new models of machines would come out. They would invent a great
many things in their laboratories. They would act as the dynamic moving men
of their society. After them the Kshatriyas would work in a somewhat grosser
way. They would save the society from wounds. The Baishyas would look after
the material needs of the people. The Brahmins made a habit of the hygienic
rules. Hygienic rules are those which uphold existence. As, for example,
washing after urination, not putting one's fingers in one's mouth, washing hands
after blowing the nose, etc. From a hygienic standpoint these things are
absolutely essential." Concerning the sacred thread ceremony Thakur said, "The
meaning of induction is `to be led into.' One is led neat the Guru. The
ceremony is an acceptance of our heritage. Without this ceremony we might
totally forget that we have a connection with the great seers and souls of the
past. For the most part we live like foreigners in our own land. The Muslims get
a recess for their prayers, but we Hindus ? Nothing ! And it is our own entire
fault. If someone requests leave for prayer, someone else will say, `No, I will
continue working.' What a fall is there ! We can not unite. "God puts such
interesting instance before my eyes. I was coming from Narayangunj once.
There a Muslim girl's shawl came in contact with the body of constable. What a
beating they gave the constable ! From twenty to twenty-five people used him
as a football practically kicked him to death. It was the full-fledged British
regime then. The Indian ministry, as now constituted, did not exist. Against this
instance, the next morning I saw, while getting of the steamer at Goalundo, a
sub-deputy traveling with his wife. Somebody in the crowd squeezed her
breast, whereupon everyone said, "Serves him right---going about with his wife
dressed to kill !' I thought, `If somebody commits a mistake should he not be
pardoned ? Is it necessary to humiliate him in this fashion ?' Walking behind the
gentleman, I heard him say to his wife when they were out of earshot, `Why
did not you shout in that crowd ? Why shout ?' Such in the condition we are in !
"On another occasion I saw a woman in Poradah Station enter the lavatory when
a man followed her. He was about to corner her and take advantage of her. But
he was chased and fled away into the fields. The lady trembled for half an hour
afterwards. But later in the same day I saw in Bindel a woman wearing a saree
in the south Indian fashion. This lady, who might have been a Maharastrian, was
thrashing a man with her sandals. The man ran away. Nobody could understand
the reason behind it all. The fault might have been splashing water on her
while washing. This Maratha set once upon a time were like us, Shivaji came
and built them up." In the evening Sri Sri Thakur said, "There is a type of man
who likes girl very much but doesn't have the courage to approach her. He is
afraid ; nevertheless he feels need for her and cannot give up longing for her.
Such a man wants to eliminate his want through someone else. He poses as
though he loves one whom he does not love and likes that which he does not
like. This type of man lives in a world of contradictions. He meets with
frustration in one place, so goes to another, starts loving someone there as
mother or sister, gets intimate, but in the bottom of his heart there lies a
crocked ness. In this way his libido gets all fouled up, like a bunch of threads,
and becomes distorted, People of this kind understand everything upside down,
If someone says, `Don't jump from there', they are not able to take the
statement at face value. They will take it as an insult. They may come to like
something a lot, but will maintain that they dislike it and oppose it vigorously.
It is difficult to reform people with such characteristics. They are very mild and
act sophisticated. But they are full of insincerity. It is difficult for these people
to recuperate. There is another type, the damaged type ; Bilwamangal and
Girish Ghosh for example. They go absolutely wild over something and forget
everything else. They lead a debauched life. But a boat with a hole in it, once
the hole is plugged up, becomes as good as new and carries a load of 500
maunds. That is the way it is with them. If one is able to plug up that single
hole and get him attached to a superior person, he turns out normal. A person
damaged is really much better than a distorted one. "When a man talks about
his inability to cope with the burden of his family, talks about wants, ailments,
sufferings, insubordination in his children, etc., one can understand that he has
some underlying obsession. That is why he is not able to adjust things. This is
called Maya. Maya limits us, drags our life into a narrow enclosure. It is the
play of the complexes. We call them complexes because they are dead-end
streets for us. When a man is within one, he does not get the way forward. In
reality there is no sorrow but senility and death. Everything else in the world
seems to say, `Here ! Accept us ! Nourish yourself through us.' Everything
comes to serve us if we have a principle. All becomes food. We need not get
upset come what may. We can utilize all for our life and growth!"

One of the brothers raised the question of service to country and environment.
Sri Sri Thakur said, "Good or evil, whatever we may do, nothing gets integrated
without a principle. When C.R. Das turned out to be leader, another eminent
leader of Bengal felt hurt. He came to me and said, `The country does not
want me. I have done such a lot for the country too.' I replied, "This is bound to
be. After all, you did not do these things to fulfill anybody." He could not
understand at first, but he did so before he died. If we make a move to do
somebody a good turn and expect something in return, the person with whom
we are dealing becomes rigid and thinks, `You give me three pice with the
expectation of getting back five. That cat is not going to jump.' It will always
turn out this way as long as one works for self-interest and self-establishment.
If, however, it is all done for the interest and establishment of your Ideal,
people get attached to your Ideal and to you as well. You are likely then to say,
"Dear brother, I give you whatever I can and I don't want anything back from
you. I was once in the condition that you are in now. I am now able to see all
by His mercy. I have tasted pay dirt.' A man automatically becomes grateful by
this kind of service. If he does not become good by this means right off, he
eventually becomes so by repeated service and help towards Ideal. Things are a
bit different with those who are born ungrateful but they too yield in time. It is
nature's law. You may be helping your wife with the cooking, in looking after
the children, etc., and yet not have manliness and principle. Then your wife
will get the upper hand. She will play with you, not worry about you at all and
not listen to what you say. But if, on the other hand, you say, `There are
dozens like you. If you don't try to make my parents happy and don't serve
them, you are nothing to me', you will see she will in no time go on the right
path of her own accord. If one is served according to the complexes, they both
are ruined. But if the services are done to fulfill someone, all are able to
acquire good." Jatinda asked, "How can I decide on seeing a man whether or
not he is fit to by my guide ? How can faith come ?" Thakur said, "Is it possible
to understand at first sight ? There are very few who can. But one can
understand if one keeps company with due attention. By association grows
respect. From respect comes clarity of vision. Clarity of vision leads to faith.
Faith results in unjudging acceptance. From this grows love and from love self-
surrender. Association leads one to regard ; by regard the tendency to see
defects goes away. The temptation to see good and evil disappears. As a matter
of fact one can't see evil. Belief and faith come. With faith we become
question less, and our heart is filled with happiness. Out of this is born love and
attachment. Love develops into total surrender where we don't understand
anything but our object of love." About adherence Thakur remarked, "The best
is passion-pervading attachment. The complex that does not fulfill my Ideal
means nothing to me then, and about that which fulfills my Ideal in some form
or other I have no question or scruple. I must achieve it somehow. There is
another type : Passion Compromising. `I follow my Ideal insofar as he falls in
line with my complexes.' The worst type is the passionate. Here we sacrifice
the interest of our Ideal and want to utilize him for the fulfillment of our
complexes. We say, `Oh, Lord ! I respect you so and I hail you and I weep for
you night and day. Lord, if you will just arrange my marriage with girl, then you
are Lord indeed ! Then I shall make many offerings' !" After this Kestoda,
Bholanathda and others arrived from Calcutta. Thakur had been inquiring about
Kestoda all day long. How jubilant he was to see him ! He said in an endearing
tone, "I thought you must have got lost." At this he, Kestoda and others present
burst out laughing. Bholanathda spoke of the pain in his foot. Sri Sri Thakur said
in a tumult of joy. What you have been able to do with your lame foot is
superhuman. I could not dream of it !" All the pain that Bholanathda had
seemed to get washed off in a flush. His eyes shone in an abundance of joy.
Such is the magic of Thakur's touch.

October 20, 1939

It was night time and Sri Sri Thakur was sitting on a chowki placed on the river-
embankment facing east. Jatinda, Kestoda of Chandannagore, Amar-bhai and
others were present.

Sri Sri Thakur : "Each of the Aryan customs is the result of extensive
experiment. What a extremely scientific race these people have been! The
more I think about it, the lower my head bows, out of regard for them. Each of
their recommendations for living has a hygienic effect. One should not eat food
offered by a person who’s personal and family characteristics are not known.
For the sake of a healthy body it is essential to be particular about this.
Nobody knows what type of disease a man can have. A man may be immune
himself but another person may be affected by taking food from him. One
should not take food offered even by a Vipra who is lacking in a good way of
living. One must not use somebody else's bed. Nor is it proper to share a bed
with someone else. One should not put on somebody else's clothes. I have
known of cases where people have got gonorrhea by putting on the clothes of a
gonorrhea patient. The other day people took food in a group along with the
sweepers, but is there any account of how many diseases they have carried
away with them? Unity gets impaired even between two brothers brought up
together from childhood. Things would have been very simple indeed if unity
was to be established by dining together on one or two occasions! Eating cow-
dung helps to revive the mental and physical state. Cow-dung is used in the
swabbing of floors. We may look on it as nonsense, but there are very few
things that have such bacteria-phage qualities as cow-dung. There is an
element in cow-dung that kills bacteria. Just think too of of the beneficial
effect of sacrificial fire. Clarified butter is burned in the fire - the atmosphere
gets, ionized by this. This is extremely beneficial to health. When inhaled, it
increases longevity. A sacrificial fire used to be lighted every day in an Aryan
home. What a holy atmosphere would play around the house! And what a
healthy thing was the custom of hyper-gamy!"

October 21, 1939

Sri Sri Thakur was sitting on Khepuda's verandah this morning. Many mothers
and brothers were standing around.

Sri Sri Thakur : "Jaajan ( talking about Ideal with others) means nothing more
than explaining to a man how he may conduct his daily life and elating him in
such a manner that he becomes actively interested in Ideal. Talks about Thakur
can come later. If you start with the preaching 'Nothing will come of anything
without Thakur', what can that mean to him, however true it is for you?
Whatever you do, you must proceed through his problems. The building
becomes strong if you will start with that foundation stone. Don't you see how
strong a house is if iron reinforcements are put in its foundation ? One must
start with a man from where he is and what he is interested in. He will be
interested in your Ideal as he develops interest in you."

Manmathada asked, "What sort of jaajan should women do ?"

Sri Sri Thakur said, "Women are different from men. They have to maintain
their own Distinctive quality. After all, women cannot go about in different
places and do jaajan like you. Kll their progress lies through systematic love
service in their family environment. If, instead,, hey go about like so-called
'progressive' women, they lose their distinctiveness."
About Swastyayani Thakur said, "One can start Swastyayani (an instrument of
well being) with the same approach one uses with one's daily bread. After one
has begun, one can start planning how one can do it every day."

November 14, 1939

Sri Sri Thakur was resting on his bed after supper, as he talked to Kesto-da. "It
seems to me that the sperm that is responsible for a new life stays on even
after death. It does not get destroyed. It stays on and is called sometimes,
ectoplasmic body. It is so fine that it doesn't get burned in fire. If this is true
for man, it is also true for plants, bricks, wood and all other things. That is why
man can put on clothes even after death and eat fruits if he so likes."

In the morning Sri Sri Thakur was sitting on a bench in the northern courtyard
of his mother's house. He was discussing various subjects with Bhabataran-da of
Sinthee. Kesto-da and Khepu-da were also present. Sri Sri Thakur asked me to
read out some mottoes. I was reading out a motto on character-building of
children.

Thakur went on to explain, "The father may be asking his boys to bow down at
the feet of his superiors, but is not doing that himself. This is very bad. The
request means something only when the father does so first. Then again, the
father may not give due appreciation to the mother of his children. Or may be
the mother doesn't speak of the father's good qualities. This is very harmful.
Regard cannot grow. And if the parents quarrel in the presence of the children,
it is even worse. Dire consequences follow."

After a while Sri Sri Thakur spoke: "This money business. I do not think it so
important. If someone gives me something, I do not become happy out of
getting that thing. But I enjoy the fact that the urge of giving is benefiting the
giver. When I am receiving, I think I can meet the wants of many and I give
away accordingly. I have no attachment for it or inclination toward it. You are
all my real wealth. My nature is such that if someone feels even a little bit
sick, I feel that I am in a state of loss and I feel depressed. Then again, man's
relations with me revolve about his mishaps. Nobody comes up with a piece of
good news, or news of success. They all come when they're in a tight corner.
Someone might be praying, 'Thakur, I have purchased this lottery ticket.
Whatever I get over five thousand is entirely yours. I won't keep a farthing
more than five thousand.' He may get fifty thousand, and I won't see him for
the dust. He'll come back again only when he has wrought perfect ruin on
himself with that money and has become a pauper again. At that time I cannot
tell him, `As you have sowed, so that you have reaped'. I become pained at the
sight of sufferings, and all I want to do is take care of him. I forget all his
faults."

November 16, 1939

Satyada was telling Sri Sri Thakur that a man in Calcutta had taken Istobhriti
money from many on the pretence of wanting to purchase a hookka ( smoking
pipe ) for him. Thakur said, "Why should people give their Istobhriti money to
him ? It is their misdoing. It is nice to trust, but it's not so nice to be a foot. I
have indicated clearly where one should send Istobhriti money. Why should
anyone accept a contrary version from another man ? Everybody should know
that as soon as the moths come around a light, lizards come too."

December 7, 1939.
Himaitpur (Pabna)

It was afternoon. Thakur was talking with a kirtan singer, Bahuballav Goswami
by name.

Thakur said, "Some seed falls on rocks, some among brambles, and some on
good ground. It is the same libido at work. Everything depends on where it
strikes and gets set. Once it gets properly set on a Sat-Guru, the job is done."

Pointing to one of us, Thakur said, "You with your sarcastic remarks. If you
could use them for the sake of Ideal, you would be pouring honey into people's
ears. Some weep out of repentance. If they could do it for Ideal, they would
flood many, to put it mildly. There is no need to curb passion and anger ;
rather, the greater they wax the better. All that is necessary is to regulate--
them for Ideal's use. If they are obliterated, with what can one do the work of
Ideal ? And religion too has its acid test here. 'I worship daily, I love God ; yet
my skill and agility are not what they should be. I am not enjoying an
abundance of life.' What is this ? If I fall into such a plight, I must know that
there is something radically wrong with me. Whether one is looking for wealth
or not, wealth is bound to embrace one who walks in the path of Ideal. Wealth
that has service for its foundation is proof that a man is leading a genuinely
religious life. That is why it has been said in Chaitanya Charitamrita :

'Wealth and light pervade this world entire, For love that's void of riches I have
not least desire.'

But one who loves his Ideal in order to attain a certain position or level, or for
the sake of gaining wealth, does not get anywhere. It is even , said, 'The desire
for liberation is the worst of all obsessions.' Everything settles down if one's
fancy falls upon Ideal. Love for his sake sprouts in Jaajan. All spheres of the
brain become active in Jaajan. Knots and obsessions built around petty desires
gradually work loose."

After a long discussion Thakur concluded, "There used to be a Bharadwaj

University, Basistha University, Shandilya University, etc. These will have to he
built up again for the revival of culture". Sri Sri Thakur talked a long time to
Goswami in this mood.

Afterwards Goswaini came to us and said, "I am a religious instructor to

thousands. Narrating sacred literature is my profession. I have seen tots of holy
men and pandits. But it is for the first time that today I have understood the
real import of Dharma, and I know I shall not get again such a guide in my
effort for becoming. So I have decided to take initiation this very day. I have
been misinterpreting many things. Now I shall have the chance to correct
them."
Sri Sri Thakur was sitting on a cane stool under a thatched shed. Kesto-da,
Gopald-a and others were standing by. All of a sudden Sri Sri Thakur's teacher
came. Thakur stood up out of reverence and called for a chair. The tutor took
the chair brought by Gopal-da, after which Sri Sri Thakur took his seat.

In the course of conversation Thakur said, "I used to meditate excessively.

Meditation without activity led to some strange insensitiveness. It was as
though I could feel no sensation, good or bad, happy or sorrowful. The tremor
of life that had been mine left me, I became something like solid. That was a
veritable hell. Then I began to put my mind to work, and then my original
condition returned. Children who do not take any interest in domestic affairs,
or who are otherwise not actively engaged suffer also an impairment of
receptivity for studies in their brains. Those who have the urge to give
something to their parents are bound to rise. In those who do not do anything
for their parents and family but go about doing things for neighbors some
abnormality has crept in. And over-zealous, excessive sympathy for women
speaks of mere sexual throbbing."

Sri Sri Thakur asked me, "Did you do . Swastyayani yesterday ?" I answered,
"Yes." Thakur said of me to someone standing by, "He is unable to collect
oblations. He is quite incapable of it".

Kestoda said, "Eight fetters fall off in begging."

Sri Sri Thakur : "It is very true. Collecting oblations for the Ideal builds and
expands a man from within."

January 27, 1940

Sri Sri Thakur was sitting on a cane stool. It was morning. Kesto-da was reading
out couplets written in folk style as dictated by Thakur. Jogesh-da, Jogen-da,
Biren-da and others were standing near.

Discussing the subject matter of one of the couplets, Thakur said, "Man should
tell his wife after marriage, 'Look here. To look after my parents, my brothers
and sisters and all the family is your whole and sole business. I do not look for
anything for myself from you.' It is always better to look after one's own
necessities. But parents must be served -, you yourself should serve them and
have others do so. If, instead of this, out of compassion for your wife you say,
'Poor girl! Physically quite incapable of it .' What inconsiderate parents!' You are
ruined—turned into sheep. Just think of the number of donkeys that pare the
vegetables for their wives, look after the children and run errands to please
them! Have they any personality ? If the wife gets the slightest cough, the
husband is stopped dead in his tracks and cries, 'I'm done for!' At this groaning
and moaning the wife understands, 'I've got this bird right where I want him.' In
such a situation, instead of caving in, a husband should say, 'You can't lie down
on the job just for a little cough. You've got my parents to look after.' This sets
the woman right. She thinks, 'Well, here's a tough nut'. Of course, if she is
really sick, that is a different matter. Then one may take up the service with
one's own hands. If the wife lays obstructions in the way of one's Ideal, it's no
use arguing or explaining. Keep firm on your path. This flattens her. Gradually
she stops her twitching and squirming—like a goat after sacrifice."
"Whatever I may say, the fundamental thing remains : see to the fulfillment of
your Ideal. All disorders will vanish if you are Ideal-centric. Man gets wife-
centric, lost in the labyrinth of narrow, blind, passionate interests. The
economic problem, disease, litigation, turmoil—these all result from it. One for
whom I am the only interest, one who does for me, gets good everywhere.
Have I not offered several lakhs of rupees to people? Not one of these
accepting has progressed. They've all gone down."

January 27, 1940.

Himaitpur (Pabna)

Sri Sri Thakur was sitting in the Philanthropy Office. It was about ten o'clock in
the morning. I was discussing supreme consciousness (Samadhi) with Kesto-da.

Thakur overheard our talk and said, "Samadhi is that peculiar condition which
follows integrated solution. This condition, leads a man to thinking he is
completely absorbed during it. But that is not the case. When one arrives after
much thinking at a complete solution, of a problem, one gets a feeling of
unfathomable bliss ; one talks of absorption because one is in ecstasy. Samadhi
can take place in a number of ways. One man gets it when absorbed in
thoughts of his wife. Another by thinking of money etc. Phenomena have
different phases. Supreme consciousness, a result of an impression of perfect
knowledge, appears when all the phases of a universe pertaining to a particular
subject reveal themselves to the perception and intellect."

"That is why it is often said that a storehouse of knowledge opens up through

Samadhi. Mere intellectual solution cannot be called Samadhi. One must feel it
with sensation, with being ; for which again it must be meaningful to one's
Ideal. This .Samadhi or integrated solution is followed by activity. You work out
the solution obtained. Nothing in you drops off in this. You may be accustomed
to visit a prostitute, to throw away pencils after using, to read and write, to
serve people, to steal berries and eat them. If so, they will all remain. But they
will remain with meaning. Whatever you know in this universe must be known
as an instrument for fulfilling the interests of your Ideal. The urge to fulfill will
itself open up the doors of unlimited action, unlimited knowledge and
unlimited ability. Man invariably has the seed of knowledge latent in him. He
comes to know whatever he is associated with. How do I talk on so many
subjects ? It is all based on realized facts. And whatever I say, and however I
may say it, I am talking about essentially the same thing. Lord Ramkrishna said,
'I am not giving you all the knowledge now.' He kept things a little closed. I am
disclosing them with all clarity and this cannot be appreciated by others unless
they get in touch with you. You are going to be the saviours of mankind. Those
of you who are actively working with me, you are the future gurus and saviours
of humanity.”
February 4, 1940
Sree Sree Thakur pointed to one of us sitting around him in the afternoon and
said, "I have been telling him that whenever I feel inclined towards a man I
cannot rest until I am able to make him up to my liking. I like him to come up
to that standard by any means, whether by thrashing, beating or whatever. One
who is not able to stand that can do nothing but fail. How cruel Ramdas Swami
was to Shivaji. People were surprised to see the amount of beating Shivaji had
to take. But Shivaji bore the punishment head bowed. One must have such a
grit that one does not rest until all are restored to the right path by constant
stinging, may death come by it or the highest peak of glory."

February 5, 1940
Kestoda, Ramda, Saratda, Haripadada, Umada, Khagenda and others were
sitting in Sree Sree Thakur's room. Sree Sree Thakur did a little bit of mental
figuring and said:
"It is not at all difficult for the Ritwiks and Adhwaryyus to draw a benefaction
of two to four hundred rupees a month. It may turn out so that all good people
will be attracted to this. Efficient people will no longer be available for
salaried jobs. The work of a yaajak is much more profitable and respectable
from all standpoints than that of a sub-deputy Magistrate. Each Ritwik should
have his-own staff of doctors, engineers, agriculturists, industrial experts,
scientists etc. A particular area is perhaps suffering from drought."

"That should put a bee in the bonnet of the Ritwik. His gang should
immediately take to research. This group should render service to man in all
possible ways ; inward, outward and at all levels. One also has the task of
controlling the fund set aside for the service of environment. A total of 15,000
rupees per annum is likely to be collected in a thana where 10,000 people are
daily offering. Istobhriti. If that fund is utilized for the benefit of that area,
one need not fawn for favour."

"On one occasion a canal is dug, electricity is perhaps installed on another, a

school is built, industry is developed and so on. People cry themselves hoarse
for independence, but if one moves on like this, independence will come
without a movement for it. People will spontaneously understand what is good
for them, what is advantageous to them. Each individual has the whole world
to gain and nothing to lose from an arrangement and organization of service
directed toward the benefit of mankind and for the fulfillment of the interest
at all ; even a madman understands when something good is done to him."

"That is why I cannot understand how any person can have conflict with us.
People used to starve and carry on some movement by going to prison. Try to
think for a while the difference between such a movement inaugurated by the
inflicting of suffering on oneself and the type I suggest. The leaders are not
able to understand this simple thing, Try to appreciate them what a path the
Aryans used to tread ! That is why the scriptures have stressed Istobhriti in so
many ways. I also assert that there can be no more honourable professions than
those of Ritwik, Adhwaryyu and Yaajak. Each penny is given out by man's
cordial urge. How sacred it is ! It has no comparison with the money earned by
service. Juice from the date palm is a kind of liquid; so is urine. How different
they are intrinsically ihough they look so much alike !"

"And in this setup you are not slave to anyone. You are under obligation to
none. You are just children of the Lord. That is why the gift from me to you is
better than the donation taken directly from the oblate. Under the latter
arrangement some amount of obligation sets in. One has to serve their whims
to a certain extent, and it sometimes becomes an impediment against going all
out for the work of the Lord. Jajan, Jaajanr Istobhriti and Swastyayani ; this is
all that the work amounts to- There is nothing else to be done. As long as the
path is, as far as the eyes, go, this is the way to move on."

February 7, 1940

In the afternoon Thakur talked with Maulavi Sahib. "Rasul on many occasions
stressed past Prophets and those that were to follow. He went so far as to say
that it was not possible to name the host of Prophets that were to follow. One
who tries to make a distinction among the messengers, making one small and
another big, is a kafir ( unbeliever ). There may be five children born of the
same father. Don't you think that you belittle the father by ignoring the others
and giving regard to only one of them ? If you arc not able to discover the
grandfather in the grandson, you have not seen the grandfather at all."

"Grandfather exists in the grandson as the former prophet exists in the present
one. It is the annotations that do us mischief $ they twist all that is straight. It
is not difficult to believe that there is no difference in the essential facts. All
the trouble starts from the artistry of interpretation. There is a group who
accept Khoda ( God ) but not the Rasuls. What an absurd position to take !
There are many who make difference between Hazrat Rasul, Hazrat Jesus and
Hazrat Buddha. A greater mistake cannot be made."

Maulavi Sahib listened to all with reverence and said, "All that you say is
absolutely right."

June 24, 1940

Kestoda and others were discussing war with Thakur who was reclining on a
pillow atop a chowki (wooden bed) outside at evening. Suddenly Thakur spoke
up, "If we can follow the laws of existence properly, if we can fulfill Dharma,
the Uphold, in all walks of life, and if there is no deviation in this move, then
this Uphold radiating a living light at every step of the way will be responsible
for a world-rescue. And this is most normal -, there is nothing Utopian about
it."

July 3,1940

Akshoy da, Kesto da and many others were sitting inside Thakur's room in the
morning.

Sree Sree Thakur: "Better type of men are required to build up an organization.
Active and sincere men of strong commonsense are suitable for organization
work; only they. A feeling for the collective interest dies out in the character of
an individual belonging to a passion-abiding, mean, self-seeking and enslaved
people. That is why an organization cannot grow in such an atmosphere.
Therefore it is now necessary to nurture the instinct for organization in every
individual. Suppose someone treats you badly, immediately there should be
someone ready to put pressure on him. This is called organization. Everyone
should feel for everyone else. Each one should stick to his own job and at the
same time help the other fellow."

"One should develop this feeling: if anyone is affected I am also affected. He

will not leave his post and crave to be someone else out of inferiority. He will
make things smooth for others by discharging his own duties with dignity. We
have to be like this body system; the eye remains the eye; it does not desire to
be the ear. Neither does the ear want to be the eye. Just imagine the trouble
that would come if they did. Each part helps all other parts. Each goes about
its own work and knows that a contravention of this law will weaken it along
with the entire body system and cause eventual death. It has to be automatic
to the same degree in an organization; only then can it be called an
organization. And this will sprout forth naturally wherever there is unity,
discipline and love for a common Ideal."

July 15, 1940

On the topic of distortion of the teachings of great men in the hands of

interpreters Sree Sree Thakur said jokingly, "Perhaps these couplets of mine
will turn out to be very popular. May be they will be included in the school
curriculum. So many commentaries will be afloat i If I am born again, I will
have to read them. Perhaps I will not be able to understand the notes. Perhaps,
the teachers will beat me to the point of death. Am I writing these for this
purpose?"

August 21, 1940

On the subject of whether or not work for Ideal absolves one from sufferings
caused by past deeds Sree Sree Thakur said:
"That you will immediately reap all good fruits when you embark on right
action—that is not the idea. The effect of wrong action is bound to appear
first. Every action gets its effect. Nothing can stop it. But man can manipulate
the situation arising out of the action and can so utilize it for the benefit of the
Ideal that it cannot give rise to anything but good. The bad thing will come but
will not he able to do harm. Take for instance Naren da. He burned his hands
and feet in the bus that caught on fire. But he undertook such actions even in
this situation that the environment was charmed. Without paying the least
heed to his own burns, he started helping out others. He started elating them
even in that crisis. He was able to create an atmosphere wherein those who
were less injured forgot their own pains and started following Naren da's
instructions. This is how he could utilize such a serious accident for winning
over his environment. This is how an adverse situation can be transformed."

Nafar da is very unwell. Sree Sree Thakur spoke to him while sitting in the
Philanthropy Office.

''There is some complex or other at the root of all illnesses. A man gets
overpowered by the passion and moves accordingly; then follows the disease. If
you don't search there and do not lay your hands on that, wherever and
however you may seek, whatever may be the quantity of medicine
administered, nothing is of any avail. Lawgiver is one of the names of God. One
cannot manage without abiding by the laws. Man submits to the life-denying
laws of passion but does not go by the laws of life and happiness. That is why
suffering becomes inevitable."

April 26,1941
Sree Sree Thakur came out for a walk after the storm. Some of us went with
him. A little ahead, Thakur came across a fallen bel tree in revered Bor da's
compound. Pained at the sight, he said, "Many sentiments are associated with
this bel tree ( bilva tree or Wood Apple - Aegle marmelos). There used to be a
Durga Festival held here under this tree; the goddess used to be invoked. It was
planted by my great grand-mother."

November 24, 1941

There is a carnival of merriment around Thakur these days in the early hours of
the morning. Mothers and brother all gather around Thakur's tent, while he is
still lying on his bed. Usually Induda, Bimalda, Ishadada, Panchananda, Birenda,
Kshitishda, Saratda, Sailenda, Devida, Pyarida, Haripadada and other brothers
along with Kalidasima, Saroijinima, my own mother and others present. These
morning sittings have continued for a couple of months in this way. By the
middle of November Kestoda, Chunida, Ratneswarda, Kedarda, Nibaranda,
Motida, Tarakda, Jogeshda, Kironda, Birenda, Jogenda Ashuda and others
started coming back to the ashram. They also gather around. Sweet talks
ensue. Sri Sri Thakur sometimes talks while sitting up, sometimes smoking and
reclining on a pillow, his face smiling and beaming with happiness and bliss. His
voice is sometimes flooded with sympathy, replete with a tune of affection and
intimacy, sometimes rich and resounding. A touch of the infinite is in his look,
suggestions various thoughts are in the movement of his brows, an unfurling of
deeper thoughts and emotions in the graceful movement of his beautiful body.
On the sandy river beach of the Padma in the fading of misty winter evening
there appears anew the historic days of past Rishis in their forest abode. The
unparalleled sweetness of these nights can be felt only by those who have
materially enjoyed them. This morning Sri Sri Thakur was saying as though to
himself, "In God there is wealth and mastery, in the way of fulfilling whom an
individual's knowledge in any particular aspect fulfils his knowledge in all
others, thereby turning out meaningful in attaining final fulfillment. This is the
relationship between man and God. Man can discover God in another real man
through a process similar to the above, as Arjuna found in Sri Krishna and as
Hanuman in Sri Ramachandra and as Vivekananda in Sri Ramkrishna. In the urge
for the desired one, in holding him as the goal, all that is in him attains to a
state harmony ; each quality fulfills the next and gets integrated and
consolidated. One gets welded on to the next. This happens when all qualities
are utilized for the felt necessity of establishing the Ideal. Such a pursuit goes
to converge all the passions, explain and adjust them into a harmonious
cosmos. Then is man automatically raised to a state of abundance. Then also is
God all in all for him."

June 4, 1941

I went to Sree Sree Thakur just before nightfall. In the course of a discussion he
said, " Study Anatomy, Physiology, Physics, Chemistry, Biology and Geology. With
a primary knowledge in these things you can work efficiently."

June 20, 1941

In the evening Chuni da, Biren da, Kiron da, Rajen da and many others were
present.

Sree Sree Thakur spoke of many things. " Mere qualifications will not do. One
has to see whether they are adjusted or not. He is an 'underman' if he is not
profitable, beautiful and productive. It is to be seen whether or not a man can
sacrifice any of his passions for the sake of his principle, and if he does so,
whether or not he suffers a mental conflict. Mere words do not indicate any-
thing. One has to observe the character, a man's ways and activities. Birds of a
feather flock together. One doesn't have to introduce one opium smoker to
another. A person in whose habit and character smoking has not set cannot,
however, instinctively recognise another like himself. It is possible to judge a
man by the way he lights up a hukka. The skill of acquisition is a great test. Any
man can give out of his own coffers, but his real work is shown when he
collects this money. In what time he makes the collection, how he gets it,
whether he bluffs or not ; all these go to show his capacity. One has to take
from men in such a way that they are elated to give. One has to win the mind.
If I want to take revenge on someone, I start thinking how I shall win him, I
pursued an offended playmate for twelve years, praised him before his face
and behind his back, roused a feeling of remorse, and smoothed things over
once again."

July 7,1941

Dhiren da was sitting with Thakur. Some couplets were read out to him at
Thakur's request.

Expanding on the thought of one, Thakur said, " We don't have to worry when
the mind goes down. Wherever the mind may be, its state is bound to change
as one manipulates acts and words. This can be done in a flash. It is quite
within our control."

I read next the couplet:

" Put in action for the Lord

The zest for sex enjoyment
And you will taste through that
The sugar of attachment."

Sree Sree Thakur added, "If you have a feeling of uneasiness in carrying out
work for your Ideal, it is to be understood that some passion in you is left
unwilling and uninterested. Real -union has not taken place. And really, I used
to have a feeling of intoxication as in passion—the eyes of passion grow—the
engine, a tree in a particular place ; I used to enjoy as though with hungry eyes
all around. What a feeling it was ! But it all disappeared when my mother
passed away. I have seen a Vaishnav lady and I have seen a Sadhu like this, but I
have not seen any other of their like. The Vaishnav lady used to say, 'He ! He !.'
She used to fondle me very much, used to have trance at times ; so normal it
was too, swoon-like. It was not after the dramatic style. A hundred people
would weep when she wept, laugh when she laughed, would run after her when
she ran. Sometimes she would play hide and seek at a tree as though she had
been able to locate someone. She would give up taking food if she understood
that I was unfed up to that time. The Sadhu would not eat anything without
feeding me first. Neither would he allow anyone else to eat anything. He would
take a pice or two according to his need from the money others would give
him. The rest he left behind ; children would pick it up. What a look he had in
his eyes, the day he left the place ; My whole heart flooded. He said, 'My
child ! We shall meet again'."

November 22, 1941

Early this morning Thakur said, "Treating illnesses by uttering Name has been
done on many occasions. It is better to/keep a record of these. It cannot be
effective if there is a doubtful or sarcastic attitude in yourself.or in your
immediate environment. An effulging shower of vital force occurs if one
repeats the Name while touching the patient without any question of success or
failure in mind. Illness gets cured through an increased curative force. There
has not been any record of even an infection spreading through this process. It
is better to make an observation on these points."

November 23, 1941

The day had hardly dawned. Sree Sree Thakur was just awake and was sitting
on his bedstead. Teachers of Tapovan were present. Someone asked, " Children
do not feel the necessity of reading the books that are thrust on them in their
student life ; they do not get any interest in them. What is the way out of this
difficulty?"

Sree Sree Thakur : "If the education is imparted through work and play, this
situation cannot arise. Perhaps you make a Railway Train with the boys and say,
I'll give it a start. Just blow the whistle and wave the green flag.' The boys will
unconsciously learn a lot through this kind of play. They will acquire the
knowledge of many things with zeal from books if they feel the need of
knowing the process of making things. They will not have to struggle hard to
remember them. They do not forget a word when they read novels, but they do
not remember a single event in the Battle of Trafalgar. This problem disappears
if it is presented to them in the right way. The teacher has to go on inventing
various activities and games of novel type. There is a feeling pf intoxication
infused in the students then. Theoretical studies should follow only when one
vas a stand on the practical work. If the student is unsuccessful, the teacher is
responsible. One has to find out the distinctive interest in each by watching
him in his field work. One has to observe the type of activity and the type of
story each one is interested in. ' One of my students is not able to make
progress'. This means that I have not been able to enter through his door of
interest."

Panchananda : "Does merit have no place then ?"

Sree Sree Thakur : "Merit-ferit and all else depends on the attachment of a
student for mother and teacher. One has to create a furtherance of the original
attachment. The headmaster may perhaps say, 'What a love Panchananda has
for you all t How intimate he is with you `What a light shines through his dark
skin when he teaches ! I wonder how on earth he can do it. Is he a man or an
angel ? I for one, an old man, have a fervent desire to sit with you on the same
bench and have lessons from him. Your teacher does such a lot for you all. You
should rather give him something before you eat,' To create an auto-initiative
urge for giving is a matter of great importance. When the student comes to
offer something to the teacher, the teacher can say, 'As you have a desire to
give me, so I have one to whom unless I give something my heart does not rest
at ease. Come, let us go and give this to Thakur'. He will perhaps say, 'Keep
something aside for yourself. And you the teacher reply, 'No, let us go. My
happiness lies in making the offering to him only. And we will give something to
the headmaster also.' What an urge will be created in the child \ His attention
is immediately drawn to Thakur. The teachers should parise each other. They
should be homely- intimate and loving in their attitude, but at the same time
there should be an honourable distance. The greatest harm is done when
someone goes to preach something which lie does not carry out himself. The
students thereby get a chance of making disrespectful criticism. The work is
achieved if beneficial habit, behaviour and eagerness are normally transmitted
through your own bearing."

November 24, 1941

There is a carnival of merriment around Thakur these days in the early hours of
the morning. Mothers and brother all gather around Thakur’s tent, while he is
still lying on his bed. Usually Induda, Bimalda, Ishadada, Panchananda, Birenda,
Kshitishda, Saratda, Sailenda, Devida, Pyarida, Haripadada and other brothers
along with Kalidasima, Saroijinima, my own mother and others present. These
morning sittings have continued for a couple of months in this way. By the
middle of November Kestoda, Chunida, Ratneswarda, Kedarda, Nibaranda,
Motida, Tarakda, Jogeshda, Kironda, Birenda, Jogenda Ashuda and others
started coming back to the ashram. They also gather around. Sweet talks
ensue. Sri Sri Thakur sometimes talks while sitting up, sometimes smoking and
reclining on a pillow, his face smiling and beaming with happiness and bliss. His
voice is sometimes flooded with sympathy, replete with a tune of affection and
intimacy, sometimes rich and resounding. A touch of the infinite is in his look,
suggestions various thoughts are in the movement of his brows, an unfurling of
deeper thoughts and emotions in the graceful movement of his beautiful body.
On the sandy river beach of the Padma in the fading of misty winter evening
there appears anew the historic days of past Rishis in their forest abode. The
unparalleled sweetness of these nights can be felt only by those who have
materially enjoyed them.
This morning Sri Sri Thakur was saying as though to himself, “In God there is
wealth and mastery, in the way of fulfilling whom an individual’s knowledge in
any particular aspect fulfils his knowledge in all others, thereby turning out
meaningful in attaining final fulfillment. This is the relationship between man
and God. Man can discover God in another real man through a process similar
to the above, as Arjuna found in Sri Krishna and as Hanuman in Sri
Ramachandra and as Vivekananda in Sri Ramkrishna. In the urge for the desired
one, in holding him as the goal, all that is in him attains to a state harmony ;
each quality fulfills the next and gets integrated and consolidated. One gets
welded on to the next. This happens when all qualities are utilized for the felt
necessity of establishing the Ideal. Such a pursuit goes to converge all the
passions, explain and adjust them into a harmonious cosmos. Then is man
automatically raised to a state of abundance. Then also is God all in all for
him.”

November 25, 1941

I asked, “You have expressed a desire to introduce agriculture, carpentry,

smithy, wicker-work, tailoring, weaving, masonry, etc. as compulsory subjects
in education. If we do not take up these lines as professionals of life, what is
the use of learning so many things ?”
Sri Sri Thakur : If one i“s accustomed to carry out these fundamental activities
with ease and with electric speed, one will not have to be unemployed. You
can give a start to any allied activity. No one will be able to cheat you in these
matters either. And then again, if you are in the know of so many activities,
whether you are a pleader or otherwise, you will be able to carry on your
professions finely and successfully. Confidence will grow in you. Motor-Sensory
co-ordination and training for productive activity will lead you on to success. If
all activities are well within your grasp and ability, you will not be puzzled in
facing any situation whatsoever. The fine nerves of the nation have become as
though benumbed by long disuse of the motor nerves.”

November 30, 1941

Sri Sri Thakur said to the mothers and brothers present. “All the harm has set
in due to discrepancy in eugenic relations. If the attachment of the wife for the
husband be not wisely conscious ; or, in other words, if she does not have her
eyes wide open, the child’s physical health may be good. It will be dull in
comparison. And then the physical movement follows suit. All the tricks you
have are limited by what you were made of in the tummy of your mother. The
shuttle moves night and day but always on the same track.”
Someone said after other talk, “After all, to be big is nothing but hardship,
suffering and complete absence of rest for both body and mind.”
Sri Sri Thakur : “The mental and physical expansion that takes place through
these toilings, the sensitivity that grows in the nerves, the fatigue layers that
are passed in stages, the expansion of consciousness that take place : these are
his real rest and comfort.”

December 2, 1941

“Exactly what is meant by individual distinctiveness ?“

Sri Sri Thakur : “The element that goes to make a man different from others is
his distinctiveness. The innate quality and heredity play a great part in this. To
these two are added the four complexes : Oedipus, narcissus, homosexual and
heterosexual. Though all these complexes are present in each, one of them is
prominent. You can understand the distinctiveness by watching the three
factors at play. A man becomes elated if he is dealt with according to his
distinctiveness. He is likely to respond to an expression of the right type, ‘Oh,
how beautiful ! What a nice man he is ! How nicely he has put it’ !”

December 3, 1941
Saratda : “What is to be done in the case of a man who goes on saying, ’I am
doing what ever He is making me do !”
Sri Sri Thakur : “All that is hypocrisy. You may say in such a case, ‘Whether He
makes you act or someone else, do you not desire such and such things ? If you
say that He is making you do it, then, after all, He has become you and
whatever you (He) will do will bring a corresponding result on you (Him) due to
divine law.”
“if all are His creation, then wherefrom did sin come ?”
Sri Sri Thakur : “If a man turns his face from the source, passion overpower
him. Man, though born out of his Father, has a liberty to disown Him.”

December 4, 1941

Question : “You have asked us to take up the work of Ideal even though in
family wants, and again you have said, ‘Those who are a failure in the affairs of
the world are blinded in their spiritual eyes too.’ Where is the synthesis of
these two utterances ?”
Sri Sri Thakur : “If you devote yourself heart and soul for your Ideal, your
family as well centers around it. Though there may be wants and complaints
and a struggling period for a few days, this cannot last long if one can carry out
the work of Ideal, or if one is sufficiently interested in establishing Ideal.
Integration and consolidation gradually set in in the family. Everyone gets
active for the Ideal and for one another. Take for example, how an excess urge
flows in every member of the family overflow with abundance. They all remain
eager for the fulfillment of Ideal’s wishes at every moment. They remain
prepared before-hand for whatever may be his needs. If one is all set for Ideal,
the family too under him gets in tip-top condition. For example, somebody
might require tem rupees for his own family, but if he has to raise five more
rupees for his Ideal, then he has to move with an urge of fifteen rupees. He has
to collect that anyhow because he cannot rest content without feeding or
giving to his Ideal. And for this gift to his Ideal and for his Ideal’s establishment
he has no maintain his own life. The whole income then turns out as though for
Ideal. Ten rupees is within fifteen ; that is why he is never in a state of want.
You are, after all, showered with affluence through this urge for giving to
Ideal.”

December 6, 1941
As the topic of democracy was raised, Thakur said, “Look at this body system of
ours. Every organ is helping every other. As deficiency sets in in a certain
organ, others go to work to make it up. Each one’s existence depends on the
others, and all organs, separately and jointly, are trying constantly to nourish
the brain, the best organ, the representative of the whole as it were. The brain
is doing Guru’s work. The brain is giving the impulse and is guiding everyone.
This is essential also for the structure of a real society. Without this no
organization can grow. It crumbles away. Try to understand what is right : vox
populi vox dei ; or vox expletory, vox dei. Wailing out of suffering creates an
atmosphere ; this incantation grabs a good pair of brains, the soul of the
saviour there comes down, a zygote lying amidst placenta and chord begins to
grow. To use the mythological expressions, Narayana is lying in the sea of
nectar, Lakshmi is stroking his feet, he becomes awake on the day of his birth,
and the ting lings of his greatness become evident from that very day. Such a
man is the life and brain of the Nation.”

DISCOURSES
(From Second Part)
Sri Sri Thakur’s Conversation with Two Leaders of Assam Compiled and Translated by Shri
Prafulla Kumar Das, M.A., (Prati-Ritwik)

Introduction
It is Christmas time. At home they are decorating a tree, hanging on it bulbs of
bright colors, silver tinsels and lights. Under the tree go gifts, wrapped in fancy
paper. Doors are closed. If any one wants to peep in at the tree, he does so
through the keyhole in the door, unless, of course, he wants to come in and
help with the tree. Then all doors are open.

When, on August 4, 1945, Shri Bordoloi came to Sri Sri Thakur at Pabna in
Bengal, Thakur gave him a glimpse, through as many keyholes as he would
peep, of the tree he was decorating. Thakur found him and his companion, Shri
Choudhury, very receptive. That is why the conversation that then took place
has seemed to Prafullada a comprehensive outline of Thakur’s Ideology. And
Prafullada has chosen it of all Thakur’s conversations for translations into
English. In it Sri Sri Thakur gives his meanings of religion, renunciation, non-
violence, caste, education, eugenic improvement, national integration,
leadership and living Ideal. In it he suggests solution for the tribal problem of
Assam, the Hindi-Muslim question, and the wide-spread social disorder and
tenant-zaminder relations. In each case, he touches only what he thinks is the
nerve of the problem ; details are omitted. He refers many times to India’s
glowing past and eagerly pleads for reforms along lines laid down by wise
forefathers. And throughout he makes his personal appeal, his invitation to
love. Shri Bordoloi can come in and help him decorate the tree.

Prafullada reports that the two visitors from Assam were greatly elated, even
surcharged with divine feeling.
Now it is five years later, and Christmas time. Shri Bordoloi, twice premier of
Assam, has passed away. The reforms and suggestions have not been tried—not
even the Bentley-Wilcocks plan so urgently put forward by Sri Sri Thakur. Shri
Bordoloi did begin his university in Assam, and it is running ; but he called it
‘Gauhati University’, not ‘Basistha University’. He looked at the tree through
the keyhole but did not knock on the door and drink of the juice that makes it
ever green. And yet his conversation with Thakur remains a keyhole for any
others who would peep in at Thakur’s tree.

Satsang Camp, E.J. Spencer

Deoghar, S.P.
December 21, 1950.
♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦

Shri Gopinath Bordoloi, Ex-Chief Minister of Assam, and the Hon. Rohini Kumar
Choudhury came to Central Satsang, Pabna from Calcutta by Assam Mail today.
They put up at Pramathda’s house. They went there, took rest for a while, and
then they went to Thakur. Thakur was seated on a bedstead near the
embankment of the River Padma. It was the rainy season, and the water was
flowing past the embankment with a soft and sonorous splashing sound. They
came and took their seats on chairs beside Sri Sri Thakur. I came after they did
; so I don’t know what conversation took place before I came. It was night time
of the dark fortnight.
Thakur said, “It is not convenient to talk if the face is not visible.” So the light
was put on. Kestoda, Panchananda, Chakrapanida, Pramathda’s, I and others
were present. Shri Bordoloi raised topics on Dharma and Politics.

Thakur said, “Dharma is such a thing that nothing other than Dharma can be
Dharma ; so it is called a science. The cuckoo of England, of the Sahara, or of
any place utters the cry ‘coo,’ if it is a cuckoo at all. Dharma is everywhere
one and the same, and Dharma is all. You will find in the Philosophy of Sri
Krishna that He has spoken of all-inclusive Dharma alone. He has not spoken
separately of politics, as something divorced from Dharma. Politics is an
integral part of Dharma. Politics normally evolves where there arises a big
crystallized community of people centering around Dharma and its living
embodiment. Then the slogan becomes spontaneous, ‘We take shelter of
Buddha, we take shelter of Dharma, we take shelter of holy organization.’ In
this way Dharma naturally includes Politics.”

Then came the theme of non-violence. Thakur paused and then replied
emphatically,”Non-violence necessarily presupposes violence to violence. You
cannot establish non-violence by allowing violence to remain unhampered and
undisturbed. To be non-violent to violence is to nurture violence by
indulgence.”
Shri Bordoloi brought up the problem of tribes in Assam. He referred especially
to their separatist tendencies. Sri Sri Thakur said, “We must spread among
them through the channel of Dharma ; we must serve them, we must build
institution for them suiting their needs and give them power befitting their
ability. Then they will feel us as their own and will try with us to make the
entire society powerful.”

Thakur went on spontaneously, “there are two aspects in Dharma ; one divine ;
the other, discrete. That which is divine is eternal, universal and invariable ;
there is no change in it. But the discrete changes according to time, place and
circumstance. For example, it is necessary to take many chillies in one’s diet in
Madras. But taking so many chillies here will bring dysentery. There are some
cold places where the smoking of hemp (ganja) may be needed for one’s health
; so there is Dharma to smoke hemp. But it will not hold good everywhere. In
emergencies there is also the provision for taking beef ; but if out of lust we
introduce it everywhere---indiscriminately—then Dharma or scripture cannot be
blamed for the mischief. If we disregard moral law, nature will have its own
reaction. Do we care to obey scripture ? Say, for example, there is definite
mention in the Koran that the blood and flesh of creatures do not reach Allah,
but in actual practice just the opposite thing is observed in the name of
Dharma. There can be no difference among true Hindus, true Muslims and true
Christians. If there is difference, there is no Dharma. At least, some deviation
or disorder has crept in somewhere. This is the plain fact I know ; I am not a
learned man.”

Kestoda asked, “Where is the solution of all these problems ?”

Sri Sri Thakur replied, “The solution which brings solution of everything and
fulfills every aspect of life is the real solution. Today taxes are bring imposed
on people in so many forms, but if the system of offering to deity and
dedicating properties to selfless, benevolent Brahmins—once in vogue—be again
introduced with new impetus, lots of things can be organized on the strength of
that fund. How long does it take to get back the golden age of India ? Push it
and organize it effectively. It is a tremendous thing, the loving offer of heart
out of gratitude. Those who give and the whole country receiving the benefit
thereof grow simultaneously. It is a materialized fact. Just do and have. Oh!
Sabyasachi, merely be an instrument ! Whatever we do, we must achieve
evolving integration towards the Ideal on the basis of the nurture of individual
instincts. Ideal means a practical man who has realized the truth in flesh and
blood. The realized men whose very being habitually pulsates with the impulse
of doing good to humanity is verily the man who can be our Ideal. It is really
interesting to note that there were many, many seers in our country, but every
one of them used to recognize and revere all the others in perfect amity, as if
all of them combined represented one man. In those days every community
locked to the interest of every other community, every man was the interest of
every other man, and every institution was the interest of all other institutions
; and the magnificent result achieved thereby can be learned from the reports
of Magasthenes and others. When this integration was broken, it spelled
disaster for the country.”

Shri Bordoloi said, “We shall build a University at Gauhati in Assam.”

Sri Sri Thakur said, “Do ; do it immediately, Name it Basistha University. What
is the good, giving it the name, ‘Gauhati University’ ? Propagate our ancient
ideas and Ideals with all their glory. External conquest is no conquest at all ; it
is cultural conquest that brings fundamental errors, and eugenic dislocation
also invites them. Adjust these two sides and organize agriculture, irrigation
and agricultural industry. Moreover, you are to make the whole nation an
integrated mass, where every community is for every other community, every
party is for every other party, every province is for every other province. I say,
there is no need of hatred. Any bacteria may enter your body, but if you
increase your vital power, they will not be able to affect you. I do not
understand the significance of ill-will towards British. I always think in terms of
augmentation of our own powers. I also told to Dasda (Late C.R. Das). Also, we
should not lose sight of the fact that mere pacts can do no good, and
compromise of principle is highly injurious. We should also effectively infuse
the idea in society that there should be no question of Hindu, Muslims,
Buddhist or Christian. The basic point to be remembered is ‘vox expletory, vox
dei’ ; that is, we should accept the message of an all-fulfilling capable person
as the voice of God, to whatever community be may belong. If you begin in
right earnest, you can accomplish everything in no time.”

Someone asked, “Under the present circumstances, how can things be done
immediately?”

Sri Sri Thakur said, “Yes ! You can have it done right now, but you will have to
work hard for it. Deer never enter the mouth of a sleeping lion.”

Shri Bordoloi said, “If we can achieve success on a small scale, it is not difficult
to expand it extensively.”
“Yes ! You are very right. If a zygote is formed, it can be evolved into a full-
fledged body. If a nucleus takes proper shape, there is no worry ; it will cover
the whole country, like the bamboo mat of Sultan Sahib.”

Sri Sri Thakur went on speaking with an emotional fervour. “There are three
things : Ideal, Individual and Environment. And again : Yajan (religious
practice), Yaajan (religious propagation) and Ishtabhriti (love offer to Ideal).
Each individual will have to observe Yajan, Yaajan and Ishtabhriti with active
attention to Ideal and environment. His individuality, with all its special
characteristics, will sprout through it. And again, there is also the statement in
the Gita, “Those who propagate me will also attain to me’ ; Yaajan is such a
thing that God can be had only through it. Real automatically brings Yajan and
Ishtabhriti. There is no need to fear. We have fallen a bit. That does not matter
much. Even now our instinct, the immortal necklace of germ cells within us, is
all right. Everything will be right if we can push on with alert eyes.”
Kestoda asked, “How is it that in spite of much effort we are not getting the
desired results ?”
Thakur answered, “How is that ? We have made practically no endeavour. Why
not analyze the origin, programme and maneuvers of leaders of so called
movements ? They have not yet been able to discover the eternal India. They
have no acquaintance with basic problems. They are inviting more dangerous
and deadly issues out of their mishandling and bungling of problems which are
more supposed than real.”

While describing the characteristic features of Aryan India, Thakur said, “We
had such a nice adjustment then that the best of every Varna (class) were
always normally determined and they constantly loomed large in the eyes of
the people, being in the focus of public attention, and the best among them
used to be president. The premier, with his cabinet, was elected out of an auto
election of nature. There was never a dearth of right men in the right places ;
the next best man was always ready ; and the criterion of his excellence was
experience, ability and service. The more a man did for people, the more
demonstrated ability a man had to his credit and the greater he was thought.
Those who demonstrated their ability in small spheres were given higher and
better scope. Even now we should give chances to efficient administrators of
union boards to enter district boards and still higher spheres of responsibility.
We should keep intact the specialty of every Varna ; otherwise men of specific
traits become wanting. A man cannot attain to Brahminhood (realization of
God) if he abandons the normal representatives of men. They might be called
‘Basisthas’. There were not one or two Basisthas ; there were many. Basistha
means a perfect controller of passions and people.

“Our society was so ordained that there was no dearth of Basisthas. Shambuk
caused disruption in Varnasram, which is the regulator of progress. He was
creating disorder in society by bewildering people and diverting them from the
right path. But the Gita says, “We should not create confusion among the
ignorant who are attached to the fruits of work’. So such a severe punishment
(beheading) was prescribed for Shambuk. We listen to the arguments of one
group alone, and so the fault of Shambuk does not appear before us, but the
scripture says that the main function of the king is to maintain Varnasram. This
is such a primary thing.”
Sri Sri Thakur paused for while, and then began, “Attachment to superior
beloved is the fundamental thing. If one moves forward with attachment to a
superior beloved, combined with active service ; Dharma, Wealth, fulfillment
of desires and liberation must embrace him. How many wealthy men are there
in the world like Sri Krishna, Lord Buddha, Lord Christ, Mohammed, Sri
Chaitanya, or Sri Ramakrishna ? This is the only way to blessedness is this life
and life hereafter. Leadership is a mockery without this attachment to superior
beloved. If there is no concrete living Ideal before a man, beyond his
complexes, then his own complexes do not do not become revealed to him. If
the leader is not led, he will dig his own ditch of ruin, and will also lead others
thereto. You know the fate of Daksha (efficient) Prajapati. And so it is evident
that efficient can also be the cause of downfall if there is no controlling agent
in the shape of Ideal. A man may be extraordinary gifted, but if he has no Ideal
he will create chaos. Take, for example, the case of Hitler. If Mahadev
(divinity) is sacrificed, if a mission is launched divorced from good, then
connected therewith meet destruction. Know it for certain that Stalin has
succeeded only because he has stood on Lenin. There is a continuity of
allegiance from Marx and Lenin down to Stalin. There is a term ‘fallen’. The
word does not mean fallen from the sky or ground. A man who has no Ideal is
fallen.”

Kestoda then asked, “By Ideal many men mean an idea alone. What is the real
significance of ‘Ideal’ ?”

Sri Sri Thakur : “If ‘Ideal’ doesn’t mean anything more then an idea, then
everything turns into mere idea. Ideal means an embodied Ideal. Without
embodied Ideal there is no conflict. The word ‘Thakur’ means a man who
knocks. Suppose you have decided to go east. He will say, ‘That will not do ;
you have to go west’. In this way in our normal life he creates conflict in us
with our complexes. The complexes can be recognized as complexes through
our attachment for him, and thus they gradually become adjusted, and it is
thus that a man grows. There is no limit as to how far a man can progress
through attachment for Ideal. See, for example, the case of Shivaji. Ordinarily,
he has no better than a commoner. Yet he vanquished the Moguls out of a
maddening love for Ramdas. But Rana Pratap could not achieve anything due to
his egoistic ambition. His whole plan was upset. We must determine as to how
a life glows out, and from what particular glowing point. We should impart
proper training to children from their very infancy. The father should see that
the child actively serves the mother, and the mother must see that the child
serves the father. Suppose a boy gives a tomato to his mother. The mother
should take it and ask, “Won’t you give one to your father ?” Then the boy will
very probably say, ‘You mean Papa-Papa. Yes ! I must give him’, and will run to
get one. The mother should talk to her boy about the glorious traits of his
father, and the father also should talk to him about his mother. The parents
should narrate before the children the glories of their forefathers in such a way
that they are puffed up and exalted with a sublime admiration for them. And
for the sake of example they should acquaint them with the life and
achievements of national heroes in a lucid and lively fashion. This will give rise
to so many Humans who will be able to hold the sun in their armpits. But we
move in such a way that the seed of disobedience and disintegration is sown
among them. Parents themselves do not have active adherence to superior.
What can be expected under the circumstances ? It is not seldom that they ask
their children to bow down before Thakur ; whereas they themselves do not do
so. Many inconsistencies like that are deeply rooted in them. If the parents
behave themselves well, the special characteristics of children normally unfurl.
Character-building becomes solid. Otherwise, the libidoic urge becomes upset,
and as a result they become so many thieves and robbers.

“Our society then had mastery over another branch of knowledge too. It knew
how to make marriage fruitful. Marriage is to be reformed in that way. If the
best and ablest among males have two or three wives, there will be plenty of
powerful men in the society and the birth of inferiors will be minimized. Also,
there will be more men to lead them. So it is said that Anulom, or hypergamy,
(union of female with male of superior heredity) promotes life and growth. This
is consistent with science too. We see the fruitful application of this principle
in the animal and plant world. We consult the genealogy and pedigree of cows,
horses or dogs. We try to improve their species in all possible ways, but we do
not care to think as to how better individuals will be born. Again, the tribal
problem you were speaking about can be easily solved by just absorbing them
in the society through the Anulom system of marriage. You know of Ghatotkach
and Babrubahan ; that this system of marriage was once in vogue can be
inferred from that. Have you looked around the whole country ? Say, how many
men are there who may be called men in the true sense of the term ? Where
are men of the ‘helmsman’ type ? One Rabindranath has disappeared, but do
you find another genius of similar type in that field ? Or is there anybody who
can approach him in excellence ? ‘An excellent wife can be had even from a
bad family.’ The support of Anulom is to be found everywhere. The tree is of
the seed, not of the soil. The soil is to be prepared according to the seed ; this
much. A mango tree cannot be had from the seed of a jackfruit. So we must
properly utilize the excellent seeds. In Anulom marriage the issue becomes
spirited and ardent, as were Vyas, Basistha, Bidur, Narad. But too much
difference is bad. Anyway, newer blood is always necessary. Otherwise, the
children gradually become dwarf, dull and weak in body and mind.”

Chakrapanida asked, “Is there any connection between Physiology and

Psychology ?”
Thakur : “Yes ! Certainly there is co-ordination. Suppose you severely beat a
boy while teaching him. After two days you will find that he will normally feel
sleepy in your class. Again, there are cases where men have turned out to be
saints in the course of playing the role of saints. Many become angry in the
course of feigning anger.”

After this, Shri Choudhury said, “We have brought him (pointing to Shri
Bordoloi) here to show the place.”

Thakur : “Yes, I am feeling very happy. If it were an occasion in my previous

days, I would have rolled about in the dust, taking him in my arms.”

Shri Choudhury : “If he is in the know of everything here, he may be very

helpful.”

Thakur : “Yes, out help means mutual help.”

Then Shri Bordoloi told Sri Sri Thakur as to what arrangements would be made
for economic, cultural and practical training in the new University of Assam.
With regard to cultural side, he said, “Of course, the fundamental trend of
culture can be imparted and infused by Mahtamaji or people like you.”

Thakur : “Our workers will also establish a College here ; we want your help. It
is not right to say it at this premature stage, but I keenly wish that a University
would evolve here in the course of time. I have thought that it should bear the
name “Shandilya University”. Of course, if you live long, and that in a
progressive and Ideal-centric manner, then verily I say everything will
materialize.”

Shri Bordoloi : “We have not received proper education in schools and
colleges.”

Thakur : “You were not educated then ; you have been educated in the
practical field. You must so arrange things that students may obtain that
training, which you received in the practical field, from the very beginning of
their careers.”

There followed some talk about the Government Agricultural Department of

Assam. Sri Sri Thakur said, “Secure 25,000 men, owing 1000 bighas of land, who
will be ready to dedicate 2½ kathas per bigha for social service. And you must
implement the irrigation plan given by Wilcocks and Bentley—whether I live or
die. This will improve climate, production and all that. It is to be done not in
Bengal alone but in all the provinces, and the sooner you can do it the better.
If you can give shape to it within my life-time, the whole country will be
flooded with achievements and acquisitions.”

After this, Sri Bordoloi and Shri Choudhury took leave with faces beaming and
spirits soaring. When they had gone, Thakur said, “I have been able to talk
quite a lot because of their receptive mood.” Then he asked us with childlike
simplicity, “Have I said anything inconsistent ? Will they be angry ?”

The next morning, Sunday, August 5, 1945, Thakur was waiting on the verandah
of Matrimandir. Shri Bordoloi and Shri Choudhury came. By and by many others
gathered there. When I came, I heard Sri Sri Thakur saying, “If the eugenic
aspect is ignored in any movement, the movement becomes futile. What a
beautiful arrangement this Varnasram is ! Varna, which is popularly known as
caste, means pedigree ; it indicates how much the breeding capacity, or
instinct, of a particular individual is developed. A son of good family may be
bad but it will not take much time for him to be good if he gets proper nurture.
If there is no anomalous interpolation, it is not unlikely that a man of rich
heredity, though without any apparent brilliance, will be the father of a great
man. It may seem to be something like a lotus growing in a heap of cowdung,
but the basic point is : though the acquisition of the man might not be
satisfactory, yet his inherent capacity for breeding superior types is intact. If
marriage is not properly reformed, there comes to be a dearth of men of
varied, specialized instincts and rich possibilities, and the number of the
inefficient increases. The more demand there is for girls in the lower strata of
society due to the practice of Anulom marriage the better. Then the men of
those strata create a demand for girls in still lower strata ; and thus the
circumference of society widens in an evolving manner—assimilating and
improving the lower in and towards the higher. Our forefathers were seers ;
they experimented with these things. Move in that direction and see what
happens. You will go on growing.”

The Hindu-Muslim problem was mentioned. Thakur said, “I want balance and
integration. I want a state of things where nobody can ruin or hamper anybody
else, where everyone will stick to his principle and unfold his special
characteristics---and help others do so. I do not wish anyone to be deprived of
his real glory and dignity, It is proper to assert it. If devotion to Ideal is weak,
there peeps the idea of so-called ‘compromise’ ; that is, compromise with
Ideal, as if there is something wrong in Dharma. But true unity cannot be
effected in this way ; rather, it impairs the interest of all. There is an
obnoxious habit of showing generously by sacrificing principle, lending
countenance to dirty deeds out of weakness. This sort of generosity sells out
the being at the demand of complex. It is never right to tolerate baneful
actions directed against culture, life and society. It endangers public safety. If a
militia is to be formed in the country or martial spirit is to be roused among
people, it must be done with a view to stabilizing and consolidating Dharma,
culture and public welfare. So I speak of Kristiprahari (defenders of culture) or
Dharma-Goonda (defenders of Dharma). They will eat, drink, and go about
cheerfully, effectively checking and resisting all tyranny, injustice, improper
conduct and irreligious acts. Such an atmosphere is to be created that it
becomes impossible for men to move in a way injurious to themselves and
others. We may do things that lead us to death, but not one of us wants to die.
Take the case of Hindus. In spite of their learning and talent they are today
disintegrated and weak due to their aversion to follow a common Ideal. But we
do not really want to remain weak. We want to be strong. But we are going in
just the opposite direction. We must stop this once and for all. Our defect is
incalculable. We all go on in this way, blaming each other, No one is looking at
his own fault or correcting himself. It is as though we were all in the company
of drunkards, yelling at one another, ‘Stop ! Stop !’ But what is good, seeing
faults and blaming others ? All trouble stops if we just begin with our own
doings.

Someone spoke of renunciation. Sri Sri Thakur said, “Renunciations is not for
the sake of renunciation. The main point is life and growth. Nature has so
ordained it that if we want to eat again we are to first expel what we have
already eaten. So man can easily conquer all attractions that stand in the way
of enjoyments that cater to life and growth. No ego of renunciation haunts him
there.”

Bharatda explained to Shri Bordoloi his researches on Aryan culture. While they
were talking Thakur looked affectionately at Shri Bordoloi and said, “It is easy
to be a king, but very difficult to be a leader. A man cannot be a leader if he
has not perfect control over his passions and complexes. It is easy to be a
Governor, but difficult to be a teacher.”

Some writings of Thakur were read aloud. When Kestoda was reading ‘The
Message’, in connection with the word ‘religion’ that appeared there, Thakur
said, “Religion and Dharma are not the same thing. Religion means to be born
again, to approach the Guru and bind oneself with him through initiation.”

Then there arose the topic of Russia and economic emancipation. Shri Bordoloi
said of Russia, “They are creating a Ravanic Civilization—as if man has no need
of attachment or allegiance to a higher entry, but he himself were all in all.”
Thakur : “If it is so, there has their seed of decay and ruin.”

There was some talk of Government. In this connection Thakur said, “I think
the more the zaminders are empowered the better. If the right types of
zaminders are given administrative power, they will be able to bring about
better integration. I like the system of Zamindary Government. In the
management of the zamindary there should be representatives of the
zaminders and representatives of the tenants. The representatives will
endeavour in a combined way so that through their nurture and service every
tenant may grow to be efficient, successful and affluent. The zaminder will
look to the interest of the subject and the subject will look to the interest of
the zaminder so that the zaminder nourished and enlivened by the subject,
may serve him well. The zaminder will make himself responsible for whatever
poverty the subject experiences, and will be determined to remove it. Thus, if
the zaminders stand behind people as their efficient, sympathetic, beloved
guardians, regulating and safeguarding their progress ; and if in emergencies
they have the right to chastise and subdue their perversities in order to
advance their interests, it is certain that everyone will profit in the long run.
And if the well-motivated zaminders remain there between the people and
Government, they will be able to stand a good deal of the shocks and blows
from both sides. Thus everybody will be benefited ; for the zaminders will
absorb shocks and thereby avert disasters which result from the explosive
pressure of Government on people and the people’s whimsical push against the
Government.”

Shri Bordoloi and Shri Choudhury were listening with rapt attention and were
nodding their respectful assent. Thakur was speaking in an inspired mood—
putting his very soul into his words. There was talk of the democratic method
of work in relation to the formation of the University in Assam. Shri Sri Thakur
said, “Why be anxious about the opinion of one and all ? How much do they
(the voters) know about their own welfare ? What is the extent of their vision
and conception ? The fundamental thing is to have a principal, an Ideal. If you
have keen urge and attachment for him, it will glow in and through your
thoughts, feelings, acts, looks, movements etc. Integrated personality will
grow out of this concentric tenor of life, and this personality evolves into the
demo-personality that knows how to fulfill all. And this does undistortedly. So
many movements are going on in the West and in this country. I say, try the
movement that our revered grandfathers and forefathers had. We people
always consider and appreciate ideas indented from outside, but we never care
to think of our own rich heritage.”
Sri Sri Thakur was speaking with great feeling. The exuberance of his emotion
animated his whole being and all present were deeply moved. Shri Bordoloi,
Shri Choudhury and all others were left in a contemplative mood. We sat silent,
surcharged with a divine feeling. After some minutes Shri Bordoloi and Shri
Choudhury bowed down before Thakur and took leave of him. Thakur asked
them to come again when convenient, and they agreed.