Holy Mother By Swami Nikhilananda: 048 Wednesday 24-02-2016
24-02-2016 Wednesday
Holy Mother By Swami Nikhilananda: 047
Marriage and After – 12
Sri Ramakrishna was by no means a stern, pain-hugging ascetic. He often joked and made fun. Narrating a lighter incident of this period, Sarada once said: ‘The Master2 (2 Refers to Sri Ramakrishna. From now on this epithet will frequently be used with reference to him.) was suffering from stomach trouble. I was then quite young. During the early hours of the morning he would wake up and tell us women of the household what he would like to eat for his midday meal. I followed his directions. But one day I found I did not have a particular spice that he wanted the mixed lentil soup to be seasoned with. My sister-in-law3 (3 Sri Ramakrishna’s elder brother’s widow.) asked me to cook it without that spice. The Master heard her words and said, “How can that be? If you do not have the spice in the house, get it from the village shop. It is not proper to cook vegetables without the proper seasoning. I left behind the rice pudding and other rich dishes of the Dakshineswar temple and came here just to enjoy the flavor of that particular spice, and you want to deprive me of it. That can’t be!” My sister-in-law felt embarrassed and sent for the spice. He would say to me: “Season your lentil soup in such a way that it will make a hog grunt!”1 (1The allusion is to a certain way of seasoning. Strong spices are thrown into boiling fat in a deep pan and then the soup or stew is poured into it. This gives out a pungent smell and makes a noise which is heard from a distance. Sri Ramakrishna liked this kind of seasoning.)
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Holy Mother - Being the Life of Sri Sarada Devi Wife of Sri Ramakrishna And Helpmate in his Mission By Swami Nikhilananda p: 32 – 33
