Swami Vivekananda exhorted, ‘The abstract Advaita must become living—poetic—in everyday life; out of hopelessly intricate mythology must come concrete moral forms; and out of bewildering Yogi-ism must come the most scientific and practical psychology—and all this must be put in a form so that a child may grasp it.’
Deriving inspiration from Swamiji’s words, Swami Vimurtananda, had taken efforts to weave the eternal values into wonderful stories so that anyone would be able to imbibe them and enrich their personal and social lives.
The valuable teachings of Sri Ramakrishna, Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi, and Swami Vivekananda which are most relevant to the modern age are embodied in these short stories endowed with literary grace, cultural enrichment and spiritual wisdom, inspiring our hearts and instructing our minds.
Do you want to know who I am? I, the one who makes the whole world dance to my tunes!
The living beings of this world are mere dancing puppets and pliable putties in my hands! Beware of me!
I make a wayfarer into a monarch and a monarch into a pauper overnight! I make even the rich and famous stumble in the mud of self-deceit! I make the one who cannot even correctly write his name into a famous poet in no time! I trap and entice a handsome man and make him think of a mere ordinary-looking girl as the beauty queen of the world! And unceremoniously dump both of them by the roadside to a life of misery and penury!
I am known in the language of the scriptures as ‘anirvachaneeyam’— ‘the one who cannot be described by words’. I would sometimes, just for fun and entertainment, even shatter and destroy the self-esteem of the man and make him look like a fool in front of his wife!
Many are there who fear me and do hard penance to escape my influence on them! I enter into their minds secretly, make them arrogant, and allow them to imagine that they have succeeded in conquering me. I too snare such aspirants endlessly and they too stumble on the way, as they slog along in this journey of Life!
Are you still wondering who I am, whose net of deceit has spread all over the World Wide Web like a virus in the form and appearance of name, fame, passion, anger, attachment, ego and selfishness, to mention a few?
Even the great Shankaracharya, the mighty Saviour, understanding my hold on the world has sung my glory as ‘Agadita gatana padiyasi maya’—‘the one who makes even the impossible happen’… I am that ‘Almighty’, the all-powerful ‘Maya Shakti’, as you might have by now guessed!
This confused world continues to perceive me as only in the feminine garb! I was all along very self–confident and arrogant about my own power until I met a handsome and shrewd young man who eventually became more than a challenge to me, as history would vouch!
I have heard that his Guru had commented about him that even in the midst of the worldly ways of life in Calcutta, he was uniquely different, with his propensity to search for truth and remain in divine focus forever. He even said that this young man looked like a shining sword that was just unsheathed!
Well, can there be one who cannot be caught in the net of my vile tricks? Is it at all possible? I don’t think so! But then, paradoxically, everyone whom I have subdued till now happens to be a volunteer-victim! What pride can I claim in such an easy conquest? That is why I considered this young man as a worthy adversary of me. The world will know of my skills and fear me, only if I catch this one, known by the name ‘Narendra’, in my iron grip!
Naren was a charming young man. That was enough. I took up my mystical net and cast it on him.
One day Naren, as a college student, was singing. What a wonderful tenor and tone his voice had! His music was nectar even to my ears. I forgot myself for a moment and was drawn towards him. I went and stood in front of him that night as a young widow who had already lost her heart to him. He was singing in ecstasy and I stood there waiting in eager anticipation to confront him with my charms! But, is this possible?
His sudden act threw even me off guard! He fell at my feet and pleaded, ‘O young mother! Sorry, this is not fair.’ On hearing this, I ran away from there, ashamed and humiliated. No, I cannot accept defeat. I asked myself, ‘What if Naren, who is rich, suddenly becomes poor? Then he may fall into my trap!’
That too happened eventually. His father suddenly passed away with a lot of debts. Immediately poverty, problems, disappointments, penury—all encircled him.
For many years a wealthy woman had tried to marry Naren. I took this opportunity and got into her to work out my plan to capture him. I told him privately, ‘My beloved, please accept me with my wealth. Your problem will vanish and my desire too.’ My passionate pleading was of no avail. He quietly ran away from me.
Ah! Again I had to face defeat! ‘Do carnal pleasures look like spittle for Naren?’ I wondered.
What else could I do? He was after all a great scholar! I tried to catch him in the web of his ‘scholastic ego’ as he was well-versed in scriptures written in Hindi, Bengali, Sanskrit and English!
Normally, a little knowledge is enough to make a person gloat in his own self-importance. And this young man knew both the Eastern and Western philosophies inside out! Philosophy and Religion were his two eyes, while spirituality was like his third eye.
He proved to be a problem for me even there. Usually a learned one, forgetting his goal in life, will live like a donkey that carries its precious cargo of sandalwood on its back without even knowing its true value! But Naren, even after mastering philosophy, seemed to escape the perils of dry knowledge. He kept asking every holy man the question which was haunting him then, i.e., ‘Sir, have you seen God?’
What can I do if he keeps on asking this question? Where did he learn the art of converting his theoretical knowledge into experiential wisdom? Again, it was an insult for me and a spiritual victory for him!
Why am I not able to attract him? I consulted many of my friends too! Sceptically they exclaimed, ‘We cannot believe that you were able to even speak to a person like Naren, who is the recipient of grace of his Master, the great Paramahamsa.’
Some monks and learned pundits throw abuses at me, the all-powerful Maya Devi! But Sri Ramakrishna sang my glories, segregating my good qualities as ‘Vidya Maya’ and the others as ‘Avidya Maya’. As a consequence, he had given me a semblance of respect!
Moreover, I am now duty-bound to help the earnest spiritual aspirants. For those special few, who have understood this catholicity of Sri Ramakrishna, I have developed a soft corner. Hence I do not disturb them much.
All the same, I was then bent upon cornering Naren, more than ever before. ‘If I bestow special powers on him, he may come under my net,’ I thought.
To my surprise, one day Sri Ramakrishna asked Naren whether he wanted Siddhis, miraculous powers. ‘Naren, my boy, now you are caught,’ said my rejoicing mind, jumping in glee.
But why is he hesitating so much even to reply? His Guru repeated the question to him. Naren asked, ‘Gurudev, with these miraculous powers, can I realize God?’ His Guru replied, ‘No, these cannot show you God. However, these powers will help you when you work for the welfare of the world.’
I had mistakenly believed that, like anyone else, Naren too would crave for the ‘Ashta Maha Siddhis’, the great eight-fold miraculous powers, when they came to him easily.
But how wrong I was once again! Lo and behold! He replied, ‘Gurudev, first I would strive to realize God. If I get these “powers” before that, they may lead me off the goal, won’t they?’
Sri Ramakrishna smiled delightfully, feeling elated by the attitude of his chosen disciple.
And I began to fidget in embarrassment. Oh! Is it this Paramahamsa who stands in my way then? Is it his Guru-Power which is protecting Naren?
I heard that Sri Ramakrishna had throat cancer. Before the Paramahamsa passed away, he had instructed Naren, ‘I am leaving all the disciples with you. Take proper care of them.’
I immediately got a weapon to pursue my fight once again. I tried to inject into his mind the intoxication of the power of authority. I wanted him to say, ‘Henceforth, you all must obey my commands as you did of our Guru’,
or something like that.
But he started serving his brother-disciples like a mother. Thus he perennially remained beyond my iron-grip! I was distraught and dismayed, but would not give up! But he was his usual self, normal as always.
Time ripened for me. Since his guru passed away, the young man was all alone and I being a mighty invisible power was at last eyeing triumph in this perpetual game of shadow boxing!
As a wandering monk, Naren travelled the length and breadth of the motherland, with no foothold anywhere except in God; I also followed him to catch him on the wrong foot, just once to prove my power!
One day, I got him tired and quite worn-out, at a place called Limdi. A group of young revellers who were dancing in abandon to some romantic music, trying to see God in their own way through passionate gestures.
I just forgot to mention…. they were all already my slaves! I somehow managed to bring Naren in that sundry crowd. Hoodwinking Naren, I made them lock him up in a room. I got into the mind of the leader of that gang and planned to challenge the vow of Naren’s celibacy.
But Naren was quite equal to the challenge! Somehow, Naren very cleverly arranged to send a message to the Prince of the state and arranged to nab all the miscreants. Again a snub for me; yet I continued to plot.
When one roams around the land as a wandering monk, it is easy for anyone to be a saint. But when one is alone and no one else is looking, when the body and the mind crave for some comforts, if I just push him into a weak moment, won’t he succumb to my tricks?
When I thought of all these bountiful possibilities, I felt energized and a sprout of fresh hope of conquering my elusive prey engulfed me.
Amazed by the ‘spiritual glow’ that Naren radiated, kings would invite him to their palaces. Although a champion of the poor, he would accept their invitations.
You may ask why he would do that. It was only to persuade those defocused kings, who only revelled in ruling over their harems, to come out of their palaces and their self-imposed inertia and rule their states for bringing prosperity to the country.
The kings would offer cozy beds to Naren to sleep on. Young maids would fan him throughout night while he rested.
One such day, while he was sleeping, I decided to confront him as an attractive damsel with the same bow and arrow which Cupid, the Love-God, has used so many times successfully!
Alas! I could not believe myself. Looking at his serene face, I felt eager to serve him a little before pulling him down. So I fanned him a little. He slept peacefully. Being a bit tired, I too dozed off.
When I again hurriedly woke up, I found Naren sitting there in meditation! The divine path had opened in his heart. The valorous young man that I knew had transformed into the sage Vivekananda! I too, with a veiled feeling of deep reverence, quietly opened the door and departed.
What is this I am witnessing? I, who revels in confusing the minds of my victims, am myself apparently subdued and quietened in front of this man’s holiness and all my crookedness seem to fade away! But I did not have the courage to accept my defeat…excuse me, henceforth I shall call him with respect as Swami Vivekananda. I realized late that the ordinary weapons that I used are quite powerless against him.
The milk of kindness flowed from him. I felt that if I made him see the ignorance and pain of the people, his kind heart would melt and he would stop his wanderings to lead them to their salvation and emancipation. When he travelled to the nook and corner of his motherland, I followed him relentlessly waiting for my chance. But what he did at the end made me hopelessly mad!
At the tip of the land in Kanyakumari, sitting on a hard rock, with the blessings of Devi, Swami Vivekananda meditated on Mother India for three days, forbearing the biting cold, scorching sun, and the frothy waves of the sea, without food or water, all alone praying to Mother Shakti for the salvation of his people whom he felt were his own brothers and sisters. They included the poor, the deprived, and the hopeless multitude of India who lived in destitution without any hope or succour.
When he stood on that rock as an embodiment of his penance, virility, dispassion, and potent power, I felt side lined and insignificant like the unclean foam washed ashore by the relentless waves that showed no mercy for anyone. Oh God! Again this shame has befallen upon me!
I can hear your mocking voices. After all, my inefficiency has been exhibited in his case, only when he wanders in this ‘Yoga Bhumi’ of Bharat! But would he be safe from me elsewhere?
I decided then, to confront him in the ‘Bhoga Bhumi’ of the far West! That too happened! Only a few more days were left for the inauguration of the ‘World Parliament of Religions’ meet at Chicago. This Swami had no money with him and everyone was a stranger to him. They all drove him away and made him feel miserable.
When I spread my net, hoping to pull him down when everyone else was against him and he himself was almost down and out, even then he majestically held his ground, praying to his Master for guidance!
What a shame for me again! After his world famous Chicago address, I followed him with my mystical net called ‘fame and glory’, to catch him napping. I gathered a few young and lovely girls along with me.
I entered into the hands of all those young girls and tried to shake his hands. In my struggle to reach him, I could touch only the edge of his cloak that covered him. He stood there like a glowing fire ball, untouchable by me or anyone else, but spreading warmth to everyone around him!
That day, he was the hero of the world. The media built his reputation by publishing news about him. I tried to get onto him again by discharging my arrow called ‘fame and glory’ at him but found my efforts foiled.
Alas, that night, alone in his room, he was lying on the floor, crying and distraught, thinking of the woes of his motherland. I myself began to wonder whether there is any way in which I could help him stop crying thus.
I stood near his door, thinking for some time, remaining dormant and in hibernation for a longer time. But this uncomfortable feeling in me could not be put off—that a ‘beggar monk’ was challenging my might! I took up a new weapon. I made him wallow in money and rewards.
But then, he proved to be adept at saving whatever money he got for promoting the good of his motherland. I was perplexed, wondering whether I was getting tired or was elated that I was losing out to him. Well, who was he after all?
Both the ‘ruling’ British and the slave Indians praised him equally. Beautiful women and men called him ‘Guru’, ‘Baba’, etc.’ with respect and adulation. Only he could be a Father and a Guide to so many people at the young age of 30!
I waited with consternation. Honestly, I was not unhappy that I was losing, especially to him!
One day he was looking at himself in the mirror again and again. That was unusual! I jumped up in joy to trap him through his disciple Miss Waldo who was present there in the room. I made her wonder, ‘This man claims to be the personification of Atman. But I realize that he too has so much attraction and pride for his looks. I must reveal this to the world!’
He turned towards his disciple suddenly and said, ‘Waldo! It is so surprising, that I look at myself in the mirror again and again, but the moment I turn away, I can no more remember how I looked.’
I was taken aback. Could anything be more amazing than this?
I somewhat understood him only when Swami Akhandananda once said that ‘Vivekananda did not have any body–consciousness’, but had only ‘nation-consciousness’.
Bodily pleasure, money, poverty, rejection, adoration, world-fame and wisdom—all these worldly things were unable to catch him in the strong net which I had weaved for him… I was indeed feeling that I was getting old!
Finally, I threw at him the vilest of all the nets, called ‘disease’. My ego too felt ecstatic and overjoyed with the feeling that I won’t be vanquished that easily.
I had still many arrows in my quiver. Whatever disease he contracted, blood pressure, diabetes, nervous debility, he was impervious to it like his Master who was beyond his body-consciousness. He too would go into himself in meditation. Finally, in desperation, I targeted his eyes!
In the eyes that had shed tears for his motherland and fellow-beings, I occasionally made the blood to ooze out! He had, I know, unbearable pain!
But even at that moment of extreme pain, he joked with his brother monks and said, ‘I have now become like the one eyed Guru of the Asuras, the learned Sukrachcharya!’
I was silenced. I had no words to speak! Oh! Ignorant people, ‘Kastarati Mayam?’—‘Who crosses maya (delusion) and goes beyond?’ asks the Narada Bhakti Sutras. The same scripture gives the answer too: ‘Only he crosses the web of Maya, who is non-attached, devoid of the ego of “me” and “mine”, and serves the monks and holy men with devotion.’
Oh! People all over the world hold on to the ‘Practical Vedanta’ taught by this young man, Swami Vivekananda, whom I could not even touch, leave alone entrap! You too can thereby overcome the effect of my deceptive ways, if you acquire devotion and wisdom through proper means.
Do you know how I too would hold on to you and protect you when you hold fast to Swami Vivekananda and his ideals? My hold on you would be like that of a mother cat holding its kitten! Secure and safe!
Or else, beware, you too would be snared and cornered by me, as the rat that falls a prey to a cat!
Hold on to strength! ‘Strength is life; Weakness is death’, proclaims Swamiji! After all, it is in his strength that you are all strong!
Swami Vimurtananda
05 June, 2021
Ramakrishna Math, Thanjavur