It seems that there are very few who will "enter the Kingdom of Heaven". The Bible states that it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle. I don't know about you, but I feel I have a long way to go, but I will make my statement here, that if Mother will watch over me, I will keep on trying.
Paritosh,
I came across this entry on the net last night and I thought it appropos. It was from a speech by a man named Lex Hixon whom I don't know anything about.
'This is what my teacher, Swami Nikhilananda, told me about the direct disciples. They explained to him: “We didn’t think Sri Ramakrishna was an avatar when we were with him. We were having a beautiful time. Only later, when we entered into strong sadhana and tapasya, when we spent months and years alone in constant mantrajapa, then we began to realize who the Master is.”'
I think it it also a matter of deepening experience. We are, for example, blessed to hear of and be attracted to, a great soul or incarnation who others have identified. But even in our limited experience, our understanding of and relationship with Mother or Swamiji, for example, changes with time.
So it must be with the direct disciples who, if you think about it, typically do not fully recognize the significance of their Master as the time they are together. Consider the disciples of Jesus. They are drawn to the person and taught by them, but even the significance of what they were taught is often not understood until long afterward...if at all. Swamiji, while intensely drawn to Sri Ramakrishna continued to doubt his Master until the very end of Ramakrishna's life, and his understanding of the commission given him by Ramakrishna took root and flowered through time. And it was Swamiji that his Master considered the epitome of a disciple.
Ultimately, it is Shiv's original message that abides. Whether one is a direct disciple or not, the key to deepening understanding and relationship with a great soul is our "thinking of them" .
Is this so different from what we do to understand ordinary life? Not really. Only the results can be infinitely greater!
I can only agree with what Jayanti says... as we develop spiritually will we evolve in our understanding. It takes time and patience but most of all it requires the Grace of the Lord to progress in spiritual life. It is not an easy task but then nothing worth achieving is easy. However, with Mother as our center of inspiration all IS possible.
The understanding of the Mother changes with the duration of association with the Ramakrishna Movement. Read these details in http://www.saradacenter.org/Questionnaire/Article.doc
