7/26/2016

RamakrishnaWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

Ramakrishna
FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

Forotheruses,seeRamakrishna(disambiguation).
RamakrishnaParamahamsa(Bengali:
)
RamkioPromhongo(helpinfo)18February183616
August1886),bornGadadharChatterjiorGadadhar

SriRamakrishnaParamahamsa

Chattopadhyay[1](Bengali:[GdadhorChopaddhae]),wasan
Indianmysticandyogiduringthe19thcentury.[2]
Ramakrishnawasgiventospiritualecstaciesfromayoungage,and
wasinfluencedbyseveralreligioustraditions,includingdevotion
towardthegoddessKali,TantraandVaishnavabhakti,[3]andAdvaita
Vedanta.
TheperceptionamongstBengalielitesofwhattheyconsideredhis
exemplarylife,ledtotheformationoftheRamakrishnaMissionby
hischiefdiscipleSwamiVivekananda,[4][5][6]whichacquired
worldwideinfluenceinthespreadofmodernHinduism.
Contents[hide]
RamakrishnaatDakshineswar

1 Earlylife
1.1 Birthandchildhood

Born

GadadharChattopadhyay
18February1836
Kamarpukur,Bengal
Presidency,BritishIndia
(nowinWestBengal,India)

Died

16August1886(aged50)
Calcutta,Bengal
Presidency,BritishIndia
(nowKolkata,West
Bengal,India)

Nationality

Indian

Spouse(s)

SaradaDevi

1.2 PriestatDakshineswarKaliTemple
1.3 Marriage
1.4 Religiouspracticesandteachers
1.4.1 Ramabhakti
1.4.2 BhairaviBrahmaniandTantra
1.4.3 VaishnavaBhakti
1.4.4 TotapuriandVedanta
1.4.5 IslamandChristianity
1.5 Popularisation
1.5.1 KeshabChandraSenandthe"NewDispensation"
1.5.2 Vivekananda
1.5.3 Otherdevoteesanddisciples
1.6 Lastdays
2 Teachings
2.1 TheGospelofSriRamakrishna
2.2 Styleofteaching
2.3 Godrealization
2.4 Metaphysics
2.5 Society
3 Receptionandlegacy
4 Viewsandstudies
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramakrishna

Titles/honours Paramahamsa
Founderof

RamakrishnaOrder

Guru

Totapuri

Philosophy

Advaita
Vedanta,Bhakti,Tantra

Notable
disciple(s)

Swami
Vivekanandaandothers

Quotation

Heisborninvainwho,having
attainedthehumanbirth,so
difficulttoget,doesnot
attempttorealiseGodinthis
verylife.
1/6

7/26/2016

RamakrishnaWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

Partofaserieson

4.1 Darhana

Advaita

4.1.1 BhaktiandTantra
4.1.2 TransformationintoneoVedantin
4.2 Psychoanalysisandsexuality
4.2.1 RomainRollandandthe"Oceanicfeeling"
4.2.2 Kali'sChild
5 Seealso
6 Notes
7 References
8 Sources

Origins

[show]

9 Furtherreading

Schools

[show]

10 Externallinks

Moksha

[show]

Teachings

[show]

Practices

[show]

Scriptures

[show]

Teachers

[show]

Earlylife

[ edit ]

Birthandchildhood

[ edit ]

MonasteriesandOrders

[show]

Ramakrishnawasbornon18February1836,inthevillage

Scholarship

[show]

ofKamarpukur,intheHooghlydistrictofWestBengal,intoavery

Categories

[show]

poor,pious,andorthodoxbrahminfamily.[7]Kamarpukurwas

VTE

untouchedbytheglamourofthecityandcontainedricefields,tall
palms,royalbanyans,afew

Partofaserieson

lakes,andtwocremation

Hinduphilosophy

grounds.Hisparentswere
KhudiramChattopadhyayand
ChandramaniDevi.According
tohisfollowers,Ramakrishna's
parentsexperienced
supernaturalincidentsand
visionsbeforehisbirth.
InGayahisfatherKhudiram
hadadreaminwhichLord

Orthodox
SamkhyaYogaNyayaVaisheshikaMimamsa
Vedanta
AdvaitaVedantaVishishtadvaitaDvaitaDvaitadvaitaAchintyaBhedaAbhedaBhedabheda

Gadadhara(aformofVishnu),
saidthathewouldbebornas
hisson.ChandramaniDeviis
saidtohavehadavisionoflight
enteringherwombfromShiva's
temple.[8][9]
AlthoughRamakrishna

Heterodox
Charvaka
Otherschools

[show]

Teachers(Acharyas)

[show]

Majortexts

[show]

Hinduism
OtherIndianphilosophies

attendedavillageschoolwith

VTE

someregularityfor12
years,[10]helaterrejectedthetraditionalschoolingsayingthathewasnotinterestedina"breadwinning
education".[11]Kamarpukur,beingatransitpointinwellestablishedpilgrimageroutestoPuri,broughthiminto
contactwithrenunciatesandholymen.[12]HebecamewellversedinthePuranas,theRamayana,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramakrishna

2/6

7/26/2016

RamakrishnaWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

theMahabharata,andtheBhagavataPurana,hearingthemfrom
wanderingmonksandtheKathaksaclassofmeninancientIndiawho
preachedandsangthePuras.Hecouldreadandwritein
Bengali.[10]WhiletheofficialbiographieswritethatthenameRamakrishna
wasgivenbyMathuraBiswaschiefpatronatDakshineswarKaliTemple,
ithasalsobeensuggestedthatthisnamewasgivenbyhisownparents.
Ramakrishnadescribeshisfirstspiritualecstasyattheageofsix:while
walkingalongthepaddyfields,aflockofwhitecranesflyingagainsta
Thesmallhouse
atKamarpukurwhereRamakrishna
lived(centre).Thefamilyshrineison
theleft,birthplacetempleontheright

backdropofdarkthundercloudscaughthisvision.Hereportedlybecame
soabsorbedbythisscenethathelostoutwardconsciousnessand
experiencedindescribablejoyinthatstate.[13][14]Ramakrishnareportedly
hadexperiencesofsimilarnatureafewothertimesinhischildhoodwhile
worshippingthegoddessVishalakshi,andportrayinggodShivainadrama

duringShivaratrifestival.Fromhis10thor11thyearon,thetrancesbecamecommon,andbythefinalyearsofhis
life,Ramakrishna'ssamdhiperiodsoccurredalmostdaily.[14]Earlyon,theseexperienceshavebeeninterpreted
asepilepticseizures,[15][16][17][18]aninterpretationwhichwasrejectedbyRamakrishnahimself.[17][note1]
Ramakrishna'sfatherdiedin1843,afterwhichfamilyresponsibilitiesfellonhiselderbrotherRamkumar.Thisloss
drewhimclosertohismother,andhespenthistimeinhouseholdactivitiesanddailyworshipofthehousehold
deitiesandbecamemoreinvolvedincontemplativeactivitiessuchasreadingthesacredepics.When
Ramakrishnawasinhisteens,thefamily'sfinancialpositionworsened.RamkumarstartedaSanskritschool
inCalcuttaandalsoservedasapriest.RamakrishnamovedtoCalcuttain1852withRamkumartoassistinthe
priestlywork.[20]

PriestatDakshineswarKaliTemple

[ edit ]

In1855RamkumarwasappointedasthepriestofDakshineswarKali
Temple,builtbyRaniRashmoniarichwomanofCalcuttawhobelonged
tothekaivartacommunity.[21]Ramakrishna,alongwithhisnephewHriday,
becameassistantstoRamkumar,withRamakrishnagiventhetaskof
decoratingthedeity.WhenRamkumardiedin1856,Ramakrishnatookhis
placeasthepriestoftheKalitemple.[22]
AfterRamkumar'sdeathRamakrishnabecamemorecontemplative.He
begantolookupontheimageofthegoddessKaliashismotherandthe
motheroftheuniverse.Ramakrishnareportedlyhadavisionofthe

DakshineswarKliTemple,where
Ramakrishnaspentamajorportionof
hisadultlife.

goddessKaliastheuniversalMother,whichhedescribedas"...houses,
doors,templesandeverythingelsevanishedaltogetherasiftherewas
nothinganywhere!AndwhatIsawwasaninfiniteshorelessseaoflightaseathatwasconsciousness.However
farandinwhateverdirectionIlooked,Isawshiningwaves,oneafteranother,comingtowardsme."[23]

Marriage

[ edit ]

RumorsspreadtoKamarpukurthatRamakrishnahadbecomeunstableasaresultofhisspiritualpracticesat
Dakshineswar.Ramakrishna'smotherandhiselderbrotherRameswardecidedtogetRamakrishnamarried,
thinkingthatmarriagewouldbeagoodsteadyinginfluenceuponhimbyforcinghimtoacceptresponsibilityand
tokeephisattentiononnormalaffairsratherthanhisspiritualpracticesandvisions.Ramakrishnahimself
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramakrishna

3/6

7/26/2016

RamakrishnaWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

mentionedthattheycouldfindthebrideatthehouseofRamchandra
MukherjeeinJayrambati,threemilestothenorthwestofKamarpukur.
Thefiveyearoldbride,SaradamaniMukhopadhyaya(laterknownas
SaradaDevi)wasfoundandthemarriagewasdulysolemnisedin1859.
Ramakrishnawas23atthispoint,buttheagedifferencewastypicalfor
19thcenturyruralBengal.[24]Theylaterspentthreemonthstogetherin
Kamarpukur.SaradaDeviwasfourteenwhileRamakrishnawasthirtytwo.
RamakrishnabecameaveryinfluentialfigureinSarada'slife,andshe
becameastrongfollowerofhisteachings.Afterthemarriage,Sarada
stayedatJayrambatiandjoinedRamakrishnainDakshineswarattheage
of18.[25]
Bythetimehisbridejoinedhim,Ramakrishnahadalreadyembracedthe
monasticlifeofasannyasiasaresult,themarriagewasnever
consummated.AsapriestRamakrishnaperformedtheritualceremony
theShodashiPujawhereSaradaDeviwasmadetositintheseatof

SaradaDevi(18531920),wifeand
spiritualcounterpartofRamakrishna

goddessKali,andworshipedastheDivinemother.[26]Ramakrishna
regardedSaradaastheDivineMotherinperson,addressingheras
theHolyMother,anditwasbythisnamethatshewasknowntoRamakrishna'sdisciples.SaradaDevioutlived
Ramakrishnaby34yearsandplayedanimportantroleinthenascentreligiousmovement.[27][28]
Ramakrishnahadaconstantdesiretodressandbehaveasawoman.[29]

Religiouspracticesandteachers

[ edit ]

AfterhismarriageRamakrishnareturnedtoCalcuttaandresumedthechargesofthetempleagain,andcontinued
hissadhana.Accordingtohisofficialbiographers,hecontinuedhissadhanaunderteachersofTantra,Vedanta
andVaishnava.
Ramabhakti [ edit ]
AtsomepointintheperiodbetweenhisvisionofKaliandhismarriage,Ramakrishnapractiseddsya
bhva,[note2]duringwhichheworshipedRamawiththeattitudeofHanuman,themonkeygod,whoisconsidered
tobetheidealdevoteeandservantofRama.AccordingtoRamakrishna,towardstheendofthissadhana,hehad
avisionofSita,theconsortofRama,mergingintohisbody.[31][33]
BhairaviBrahmaniandTantra [ edit ]
Seealso:Ramakrishna'sviewsonTantraSadhana
In1861,RamakrishnaacceptedBhairaviBrahmani,anorangerobed,middleagedfemaleascetic,asateacher.
ShecarriedwithhertheRaghuvirShila,astoneiconrepresentingRamandallVaishnavadeities.[3]Shewas
thoroughlyconversantwiththetextsofGaudiyaVaishnavismandpractisedTantra.[3]AccordingtotheBhairavi,
Ramakrishnawasexperiencingphenomenathataccompanymahabhava,thesupremeattitudeoflovingdevotion
towardsthedivine,[34]andquotingfromthebhaktishastras,shesaidthatotherreligiousfigures
likeRadhaandChaitanyahadsimilarexperiences.[35]
TheBhairaviinitiatedRamakrishnaintoTantra.TantrismfocusesontheworshipofshaktiandtheobjectofTantric
trainingistotranscendthebarriersbetweentheholyandunholyasameansofachievingliberationandtoseeall
aspectsofthenaturalworldasmanifestationsofthedivineshakti.[36][37]Underherguidance,Ramakrishnawent
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramakrishna

4/6

7/26/2016

RamakrishnaWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

throughsixtyfourmajortantricsadhanaswhichwerecompletedin1863.[38]Hebeganwithmantraritualssuch
asjapaandpurascaranaandmanyotherritualsdesignedtopurifythemindandestablishselfcontrol.Helater
proceededtowardstantricsadhanas,whichgenerallyincludeasetofheterodoxpracticescalledvamachara(left
handpath),whichutiliseasameansofliberation,activitieslikeeatingofparchedgrain,fishandmeatalongwith
drinkingofwineandsexualintercourse.[34]AccordingtoRamakrishnaandhisbiographers,Ramakrishnadidnot
directlyparticipateinthelasttwoofthoseactivities,allthatheneededwasasuggestionofthemtoproducethe
desiredresult.[34]Ramakrishnaacknowledgedthelefthandtantricpath,thoughithad"undesirablefeatures",as
oneofthe"validroadstoGodrealization",heconsistentlycautionedhisdevoteesanddisciplesagainst
associatingwithit.[39][40]TheBhairavialsotaughtRamakrishnathekumaripuja,aformofritualinwhichtheVirgin
Goddessisworshipedsymbolicallyintheformofayounggirl.UnderthetutelageoftheBhairavi,Ramakrishna
alsolearntKundaliniYoga.[34]TheBhairavi,withtheyogictechniquesandthetantraplayedanimportantpartin
theinitialspiritualdevelopmentofRamakrishna.[1][41]
VaishnavaBhakti [ edit ]
In1864,RamakrishnapractisedvtsalyabhvaunderaVaishnavaguruJatadhari.[42]Duringthisperiod,he
worshippedametalimageofRamll(Ramaasachild)intheattitudeofamother.AccordingtoRamakrishna,he
couldfeelthepresenceofchildRamaasalivingGodinthemetalimage.[43][44]
Ramakrishnalaterengagedinthepracticeofmadhurabhva,theattitudeoftheGopisandRadha
towardsKrishna.[31]Duringthepractiseofthisbhava,Ramakrishnadressedhimselfinwomen'sattireforseveral
daysandregardedhimselfasoneoftheGopisofVrindavan.AccordingtoSriRamakrishna,madhurabhavais
practisedtorootouttheideaofsex,whichisseenasanimpedimentinspirituallife.[45]AccordingtoRamakrishna,
towardstheendofthissadhana,heattainedsavikalpasamadhivisionandunionwithKrishna.[46]
RamakrishnavisitedNadia,thehomeofLordSriChaitanyaMahaprabhuandSriNityanandaPrabhu,the15th
centuryfoundersofBengaliGaudiyaVaishnavabhakti.AccordingtoRamakrishna,hehadanintensevisionoftwo
youngboysmergingintohisbody.[46]Earlier,afterhisvisionofKali,heissaidtohavecultivatedtheSantabhava
thechildattitudetowardsKali.[31]
TotapuriandVedanta [ edit ]
In1865,RamakrishnawasinitiatedintosannyasabyTotapuri,anitinerant
monkwhotrainedRamakrishnainAdvaitaVedanta,theHinduphilosophy
whichemphasisesnondualism.[47][48]
TotapurifirstguidedRamakrishnathroughtheritesofsannyasa
renunciationofalltiestotheworld.Thenheinstructedhimintheteaching
ofadvaitathat"Brahmanaloneisreal,andtheworldisillusoryIhaveno
separateexistenceIamthatBrahmanalone."[49]Undertheguidanceof
Totapuri,Ramakrishnareportedlyexperiencednirvikalpasamadhi,whichis
consideredtobethehigheststateinspiritualrealisation.[50]
TotapuristayedwithRamakrishnafornearlyelevenmonthsandinstructed
himfurtherintheteachingsofadvaita.Ramakrishnasaidthatthisperiod

ThePanchavatiandthehutwhere
Ramakrishnaperformed
hisadvaiticsadhana.Themudhuthas
beenreplacedbyabrickone.

ofnirvikalpasamadhicametoanendwhenhereceivedacommandfrom
theMotherKalito"remaininBhavamukhafortheenlightenmentofthepeople".Bhavamukhabeingastateof
existenceintermediatebetweensamdhiandnormalconsciousness.[51]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramakrishna

5/6

7/26/2016

RamakrishnaWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

IslamandChristianity [ edit ]
In1866,GovindaRoy,aHinduguruwhopractisedSufism,initiatedRamakrishnaintoIslam.Ramakrishnasaidthat
he"devoutlyrepeatedthenameofAllah,woreaclothliketheArabMuslims,saidtheirprayerfivetimesdaily,and
feltdisinclinedeventoseeimagesoftheHindugodsandgoddesses,muchlessworshipthemfortheHinduway
ofthinkinghaddisappearedaltogetherfrommymind."[52]AccordingtoRamakrishna,afterthreedaysofpractice
hehadavisionofa"radiantpersonagewithgravecountenanceandwhitebeardresemblingtheProphetand
mergingwithhisbody".[53]
Attheendof1873hestartedthepracticeofChristianity,whenhisdevoteeShambuCharanMallikreadtheBible
tohim.RamakrishnasaidthatforseveraldayshewasfilledwithChristianthoughtsandnolongerthoughtofgoing
totheKalitemple.RamakrishnadescribedavisioninwhichapictureoftheMadonnaandChildbecamealiveand
hehadavisioninwhichJesusmergedwithhisbody.Inhisownroomamongstotherdivinepictureswasoneof
Christ,andheburntincensebeforeitmorningandevening.TherewasalsoapictureshowingJesusChrist
savingStPeterfromdrowninginthewater.[46][54]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramakrishna

6/6