From now on Sri Ramakrishna began to seek the company of
devotees
and holy men. He had gone through the storm and stress of spiritual
disciplines
and visions. Now he realized an inner calmness and appeared to
others as a normal person. But he could not bear the company of worldly
people or listen to their talk. Fortunately the holy atmosphere of
Dakshineswar
and the liberality of Mathur attracted monks and holy men from all
parts
of the country. Sadhus of all denominations — monists and dualists,
Vaishnavas
and Vedantists, Saktas and worshippers of Rama — flocked there in ever
increasing numbers. Ascetics and visionaries came to seek Sri
Ramakrishna's
advice. Vaishnavas had come during the period of his Vaishnava sadhana,
and Tantriks when he practised the disciplines of Tantra. Vedantists
began
to arrive after the departure of Totapuri. In the room of Sri
Ramakrishna,
who was then in bed with dysentery, the Vedantists engaged in
scriptural
discussions, and, forgetting his own physical suffering, he solved
their doubts
by referring directly to his own experiences. Many of the visitors were
genuine spiritual souls, the unseen pillars of Hinduism, and their
spiritual
lives were quickened in no small measure by the sage of Dakshineswar.
Sri
Ramakrishna in turn learnt from them anecdotes concerning the ways and
the conduct of holy men, which he subsequently narrated to his devotees
and
disciples. At his request Mathur provided him with large stores of
food-stuffs,
clothes, and so forth, for distribution among the wandering monks.
"Sri Ramakrishna had not read books, yet he possessed an encyclopedic
knowledge of religions and religious philosophies. This he acquired
from
his contacts with innumerable holy men and scholars. He had a unique
power of assimilation; through meditation he made this knowledge a part
of his being. Once, when he was asked by a disciple about the source of
his seemingly inexhaustible knowledge, he replied; "I have not read;
but I
have heard the learned. I have made a garland of their knowledge,
wearing
it round my neck, and I have given it as an offering at the feet of the
Mother."
Sri Ramakrishna used to say that when the flower blooms the bees come
to it for honey of their own accord. Now many souls began to visit
Dakshineswar to satisfy their spiritual hunger. He, the devotee and
aspirant,
became the Master. Gauri, the great scholar who had been one of the
first
to proclaim Sri Ramakrishna an Incarnation of God, paid the Master a
visit
in 1870 and with the Master's blessings renounced the world. Narayan
Shastri, another great pundit, who had mastered the six systems of
Hindu
philosophy and had been offered a lucrative post by the Maharaja of
Jaipur,
met the Master and recognized in him one who had realized in life those
ideals which he himself had encountered merely in books. Sri
Ramakrishna
initiated Narayan Shastri, at his earnest request, into the life of
sannyas.
Pundit Padmalochan, the court pundit of the Maharaja of Burdwan, well
known for his scholarship in both the Vedanta and the Nyaya systems of
philosophy, accepted the Master as an Incarnation of God.
Krishnakishore,
a Vedantist scholar, became devoted to the Master. And there arrived
Viswanath Upadhyaya, who was to become a favourite devotee; Sri
Ramakrishna
always addressed him as "Captain". He was a high officer of the
King of Nepal and had received the title of Colonel in recognition of
his
merit. A scholar of the Gita, the Bhagavata, and the Vedanta
philosophy,
he daily performed the worship of his Chosen Deity with great devotion.
"I have read the Vedas and the other scriptures", he said. "I have also
met a
good many monks and devotees in different places. But it is in Sri
Ramakrishna's presence that my spiritual yearnings have been fulfilled.
To me he
seems to be the embodiment of the truths of the scriptures."
The Knowledge of Brahman in nirvikalpa samadhi had convinced Sri
Ramakrishna that the gods of the different religions are but so many
readings
of the Absolute, and that the Ultimate Reality could never be expressed
by
human tongue. He understood that all religions lead their devotees by
differing
paths to one and the same goal. Now he became eager to explore
some of the alien religions; for with him understanding meant actual
experience.