Holy Mother By Swami Nikhilananda: 202 15-August-2016
15-08-2016 Monday
Holy Mother By Swami Nikhilananda: 202
Anguish and Reassurances – 26
On February 3, 1898, the present site of the Belur math, the permanent headquarters of the Ramakrishna Mission, on the banks of the Ganges, was purchased. One day Holy Mother was taken there to bless the place. She was received with great respect by the monks and the brahma-charis. Three Western disciples of Swami Vivekananda – Sister Nivedita, Mrs. Ole Bull, and Miss Josephine MacLeod – who lived in the neighbourhood, greeted the Mother and accompanied her as she inspected the new grounds. Holy Mother was exceedingly happy. ‘Now my children have a place to lay their heads,’ she said. ‘At last the Master has bestowed his grace upon them.’ It was about this time (1898) that Mrs. Bull persuaded Holy Mother to have two photographs taken. One of these pictures is now worshipped by her devotees everywhere. She said of it: ‘Yes, this is a good picture. But before it was taken I was a little stouter. The Yogen fell ill. Worrying about him day and night, I lost some weight. I was happy when he felt better, but very unhappy when he was worse. Often I wept for him. At first I refused to be photographed. But Sara [referring to Mrs. Ole Bull] pressed me and said: ‘I shall take the picture to America and worship it.” In the end I had to agree.
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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: 122
