This lecture was delivered on August 31, 2019 as part of the Labor Day Vedanta Retreat held in the Olema Vedanta Retreat.-Holy mother Sri Sarada Devi is the embodiment of motherhood. Because she was a nun, her motherly regard was able to transcend all national, cultural, religious, and racial boundaries and reached the transcendental spiritual dimension. Because she was more than a conventional ‘acharya’ and a conventional mystic, her spiritual insight and spiritual experiences were far greater. Yet she preferred to modestly hide her extraordinary spiritual power. Every person who came to her felt that she was not only embodiment of divine motherhood but also felt as if they were in the presence of their own biological mother.-“Matri devo bhava” is an instruction which means: Let your mother be “deva” (God) to you. ‘Deva’ is one who answers our prayers, sits in our heart, is effulgent, kindles the light within us and lives in the celestial world. Mother has all the same attributes – she is the first and eternal teacher.-According to Manu, an ‘acharya’ (teacher) deserves ten times the respect given to an ‘upadhyaya’ (guest teacher). A father deserves 100 times the respect given to an ‘acharya.’ A mother deserves 1000 times the respect given to a father.-Holy Mother played a crucial role as a head of the Ramakrishna monastic order and had a unique synthesis of spirituality and insight into human affairs. Even luminaries such as Swami Vivekananda sought her advice and blessings. Swamiji’s story of invoking Mother Saraswati before his Chicago lecture is discussed.-Holy Mother had spiritual common sense. With enlightenment, she developed unique insights into the nature of things and gained direct understanding of many problems related to our practical spiritual life.-Holy Mother: “How many are there who can meditate and practice ‘japa’ all the time? At first they very earnestly practice these disciplines, but their brains become heated in the long run by sitting constantly on their prayer rugs. They become very vain. They also suffer from mental worries by reflecting on different things. It is much better to work than to allow the mind to roam at large. For when the mind gets a free scope to wander, it creates much confusion. My Naren thought of these things and wisely founded institutions where people would do disinterested work.”-When a beginner tries to meditate, the mind does not always co-operate. Mind does not co-operate due to certain past ‘samskaras’ that are not conducive to spiritual life. This friction can be reduced by increasing the balance of positive ‘samskaras’. Though one cannot directly control the mind, one can, to some extent, consciously do physical work for a good cause and this will divert our mind towards positive channels to generate spiritual energy, increase the balance of positive ‘samskaras,’ reduce mental conflicts and evolve in spiritual life.-Work can be physical in nature, such as cleaning a temple, or it can be more subtle in nature such as reading a good book.-Starting with noble work done with a selfish motive is better than doing nothing. One can then evolve towards doing selfless work.-A beginner has less freedom at the mental level, and encounters conflicts. However, he has more freedom at the physical level and should start his spiritual life with physical activities. Physical energy, especially for noble purposes, has a purifying effect on the mental system and generates ever higher aspirations.-‘Karma’ is not the final goal of life. If one feels an inner contentment after completing work, that means the work has had purifying effect on the mind. If that contentment is absent, then it is just perfectionism at the empirical level. ‘Karma’ is not the goal, it is just the beginning stage.-Holy Mother: ‘Asanas’ are meant to keep the body fit. However, if practiced too much, they may attract the mind towards the body. Work and physical fitness should not become the goal. She advised disciples to keep this in mind and act accordingly.-Any practice to generate nervous energy without being established in ‘yamas’ and ‘niyamas’ can be disastrous. Yamas and niyamas prepare us for proper utilization of our resources.-Sometimes Holy Mother enquired about the families of monks and emphasized the importance of human relations. She showed natural affection towards monks and their families. Looking after family obligations is very important in spiritual life. Sankaracharya and Sri Ramakrishna’s relationships with their mothers are discussed.Holy Mother: ‘Karma’ counters the effect of past bad deeds. Good actions can reduce the intensity of what we are destined to suffer.-Three types of karmas are discussed: ‘sanchita karma,’ which are yet to manifest; ‘prarabhda karma,’ which have started manifesting; and ‘agami karma,’ which are yet to come.-The theory of karma is not pre-destination. ‘...
