September 21, 2015 Monday: Mother As I Saw Her (Being Reminiscences of Holy Mother Sarada Devi)
21-September-2015 (Monday)
Mother As I Saw Her – Second Part
Swami Saradeshananda
2. Advice to one complaining of Work
A disciple-son of the Mother was married and was earning his livelihood as a teacher in a village school. His earnings were just enough to provide the family with food and clothing. From his boyhood his interests were all directed towards spiritual life. Later as he came to know of Sri Ramakrishna and got the grace of the Mother, he had a great desire for spending the rest of his days in spiritual practice. So he gave up family life to become a Sadhu, and joined an Ashrama. In the Ashrama there were too many kinds of work to be done. Gradually he found the work assigned to him increasing. Every inmate there had to work day and night. So, how could he sit quiet and spend his time in Japa and Dhyana? After some time he completely lost his peace of mind. He had abandoned his life as a householder so that he could engage himself in spiritual practices undisturbed. But he found now that conditions in that Ashrama were even worse. One day he came to the Mother and narrated to her his tale of woe. Hearing everything, the Mother said, ‘Well, my child, it is like moving from the frying pan to the fire. It is not an Ashrama but a second household for you!” The Mother adviced him to bear everything patiently, always remembering the Master, “If you really have a passionate desire for spiritual practices,” she said, “the Master will arrange for the needed facilities at the right time.”
[Mother As I Saw Her (Being Reminiscences of Holy Mother Sarada Devi) – Swami Saradeshananda. Translated by Prof. J. N. Dey. Sri Ramakrishna Math, Mylapore Madras-600004: p 202 – 203]
