GOSPEL OF RAMAKRISHNA
me, so it was impossible for me to go. (Turning to Mahima) But you are householders, you can have both this and that, both the world and the spiritual life. Mahima: Bhagavan, "this" cannot remain long. Ramakrishna: When I was practising renunciation, one day I went to the Ganges near the Panchavati and took up a handful of earth and a handful of coins; then I began to discriminate, saying that earth and gold are one and the same; earth is gold and gold is earth; and after realizing the sameness, I threw both into the river. I prayed to my Divine Mother, saying: "O Mother, I do not desire material wealth or earthly prosperity, but only that Thou dwell within my heart." When the mind renounces attachment to lust and wealth, it turns towards God and ultimately becomes attached to Him. Then that which was bound becomes free. To be turned away from God is bondage. The mind is like the needle of a scale and God is the central point of balance. When the weight of worldly attachment is in the heart, the scale drops to one side and the needle of the mind is deflected from the central point or God. The heavier the weight, the
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