The Three Gunas

Under the spell of God’s maya man forgets his true nature. He forgets that he is heir to the infinite glories of his Father. This divine maya is made up of three gunas.

Roles Reversed

The Story of Periaazhvaar

Pariprasna

Srimat Swami Tapasyananda Ji (1904 – 1991) was one of the Vice-Presidents of the Ramakrishna Order. His deeply convincing answers to devotees’ questions raised in spiritual retreats and in personal letters have been published in book form as Spiritual Quest: Questions & Answers. Pariprasna is a selection from this book.

Prankrishna Mukhopadhyay

This is the ninth story in the series on devotees who had a role in the divine play of Bhagawan Sri Ramakrishna.

Naren Worships Mother Ganga

A fictional narrative based on incidents from the childhood of Swami Vivekananda.

Arise! Awake!

The Katha Upanishad states, “Arise, awake, and learn by approaching the excellent ones. The wise ones describe that path to be as impassable as a razor’s edge, which when sharpened, is difficult to tread.”1

Never a Dull Moment

A fictional narrative based on incidents from the childhood of Swami Vivekananda.

The Order on the March

In response to a call from the NITI Aayog, Government of India, to observe Rashtriya Poshan Maah (National Nutrition Month), 55 of our ashrama centres spread over 21 states/ union territories conducted several programmes in the months of Septemper and October 2020.

Mother Compassionate and Divine

“Do you want to drag me down into Maya?” Sri Ramakrishna questioned his young wife Sarada Devi, soon after her arrival at Dakshineswar from Jayarambati in March 1872.

Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi

Mother is the incarnation of Bagala in the guise of Saraswati.

What is Worth Pursuing?

We pursue so many things in life — money, entertainment, health, job, house, car, companion, children, pets, education, skills, knowledge, etc.

Worshipping the Universal Consciousness

With reference to the religion of the Hindus, two criticisms are usually levelled: that it is idolatry, and that it advocates. Swami Vivekananda said that he too believed that Hindus were idolaters, and to pay the penalty for that he had to learn his lesson sitting at the feet of one who realised everything through idols. We address these two issues in this article.

The Royal Devotee

The Story of Kulashekhara Aazhvaar

Pariprasna

Srimat Swami Tapasyananda Ji (1904 – 1991) was one of the Vice-Presidents of the Ramakrishna Order. His deeply convincing answers to devotees’ questions raised in spiritual retreats and in personal letters have been published in book form as Spiritual Quest: Questions & Answers. Pariprasna is a selection from this book.

Swami Vivekananda's Contributions to Hinduism

Swami Vivekananda was a prince among sannyasis.

Reminiscences of Sargachhi

Swami Premeshananda (1884 – 1967) was a disciple of Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi. For over two decades he lived at Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama, Sargachhi, West Bengal. Under his inspiration countless people led a life of spirituality and service, and many young men and women entered into monastic life. His conversations – translated from Bengali and presented below – were noted by his attendant who is now Srimat Swami Suhitananda Ji, one of the VicePresidents of the Ramakrishna Order.

Kedarnath Chattopadhyay

This is the sixth story in the series on devotees who had a role in the divine play of Sri Ramakrishna.

Faith

A man in the world should practise discrimination and pray to God, ‘Give me faith and devotion.’ Once a person has faith he has achieved everything. There is nothing greater than faith.

Akka Mahadevi: Bhakta's Bhakti to Aikya Bhakti

Spiritual life is a graded journey towards realising the Truth. In Lingayatism, this graded path is referred to as Shatsthala, or the six stages of spiritual progression. This article attempts to understand this spiritual movement as revealed in Akka Mahadevi’s vacanas. The life and message of Akka Mahadevi were presented by the author in our July and August 2020 issues.

A Friend in Need

A fictional narrative based on incidents from the childhood of Swami Vivekananda.

The Importance Of Daily Schedule In Our Life

One of the powerful tools to have control over our lives is to learn how to control our time, because Time is Life. This article discusses the nature of our mind, the process of getting established in a daily schedule, and thus our self-development.

The Durga Puja

This article is from Studies from an Eastern Home, a posthumous publication carrying a collection of Sister Nivedita’s writings. Here, Sister Nivedita, one of the foremost disciples of Swami Vivekananda, outlines the different dimensions of Durga Puja and the coupling of the Divine Mother’s worship with the worship of the Motherland.

The Royal Devotee

The Story of Kulashekhara Aazhvaar

Sattvika Shraddha

Shraddha is a complex term which signifiesगुरु्दिष्वेिान्वाक्ेषुयवश्वासः, ‘faith in the words of the guru and scriptures’1 and सयभि््ह्ा वस्ू्लभ््े, ‘by which the Truth is comprehended’.2 It is simply translated into English as ‘faith’ for want of a better word.

Pariprasna

Srimat Swami Tapasyananda Ji (1904 – 1991) was one of the Vice-Presidents of the Ramakrishna Order. His deeply convincing answers to devotees’ questions raised in spiritual retreats and in personal letters have been published in book form as Spiritual Quest: Questions & Answers. Pariprasna is a selection from this book.

First Durga Puja at Belur Math

The Durga Puja, and the associated Kumari Puja of Belur Math and also of the other ashrams of the Ramakrishna Order have become a great cultural and spiritual heritage of our country. Every year lakhs of people come to the Math to witness the worship, pray to the Mother and fill their lives with Her Grace, which gets specially manifested in this worship. This article describes how the first Durga Puja in image was celebrated under the guidance of Swami Vivekananda. Originally published in the Oct 1989 issue of The Vedanta Kesari, the article is reproduced here with a little editing and abridgment.

Reminiscences of Sargachhi

Swami Premeshananda (1884 – 1967) was a disciple of Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi. For over two decades he lived at Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama, Sargachhi, West Bengal. Under his inspiration countless people led a life of spirituality and service, and many young men and women entered into monastic life. His conversations – translated from Bengali and presented below – were noted by his attendant who is now Srimat Swami Suhitananda Ji, one of the VicePresidents of the Ramakrishna Order.

Mahendranath Gupta

This is the fifth story in the series on devotees who had a role in the divine play of Sri Ramakrishna. ्मेवयैष वृणु्े ्ेन लभ्ः It is attained by him alone whom It chooses (Kathopanishad. 1.2:23)

Assimilating the Human Possibilities Vision

The Human Possibilities Vision, gifted to us by Swami Vivekananda calls upon every person to unfold his or her full potential as a person, and thereby be fulfilled. How do we help millions of ’vision-hungry’ people recognise and assimilate this life-affirming message of Vedanta?

An Unusual Punishment

A fictional narrative based on incidents from the childhood of Swami Vivekananda.