rain lodged in the upturned skull. He said to himself: "Now I have the water in the skull under the right constellation." Then he prayed earnestly: "Grant, Lord, that the rest may also come." In a short time he discovered a toad not far from the skull, and he prayed again. Then from the grass sprang a cobra to snatch the toad, but at that moment the toad jumped over the skull and the venom of the cobra fell into it. With overwhelming gratitude the anxious father cried out: "Lord, by Thy Grace all impossible things are possible. Now I know that my son's life will be saved." Therefore I say, if you have true faith and earnest longing, you will get everything by the Grace of the Lord. [Non-attachment necessary.] God cannot be obtained so long as the mind is not absolutely free from all worldly attachment. A true sage is one who cannot hoard anything for himself. There is a saying: "A fowl of the air and a true sage do not gather stores; they do not keep anything for the morrow." As regards myself, I cannot keep anything even for my personal needs. I cannot put away any object, even a clove, for the future. At one time I thought of going to Benares, but afterwards I discovered that I had to carry clothes and take money with

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

greater is the deflection. Why does a child cry after its birth? It thinks, as it were: "I was enjoying Divine Communion, but now I have lost it. Where have I come and where is my God, where is my God?" For you (to Mahima) the renunciation should be in the mind only. You should remain in the world, but unattached to it.

Mahima: Revered Sir, can the world exist for the mind which is fixed on God?