While listening to this dialogue between the Sannyasin and her mother-in-law, the wife wept bitterly and, addressing her parents, said: "For your sake, dear father and mother, I cannot make the sacrifice." In this way everyone found an excuse. Then the Sannyasin turned to the patient and said: "Do you see, no one here is ready to sacrifice his life for you. Do you understand now what I meant by saying that there was no depending on anybody?" When the disciple saw all this, he abandoned his so-called home and followed the Sannyasin, his Guru.

[Self-surrender and prayer.] Sri Ramakrishna continued: The Absolute Brahman cannot be known by reasoning. Be his servant and taking refuge with Him pray to Him with earnestness and sincerity. He will surely reveal Himself unto you. Book-learning or intellectual discussions cannot reveal the Divinity.

Thus saying the Blessed One sang:

THE GLORY OF THE DIVINE MOTHER

1. Who knoweth what is Kali (my Divine Mother)?
Even the Six Schools of Philosophy get not a glimpse of Her.

2. The Yogi ever meditateth upon Her at the Muladhara and the Sahasrara.
As the swans, male and female, commune with each other, so in this lotus (Lotus here is a symbol of Plexus) forest doth Kali commune with Her consort (Shiva).

3. Kali, the soul of Atmarama (Shiva), is as beloved as Sita is of Rama. The majesty of Kali, Shiva (Kala) alone can know, forsooth who else may know it?

4. For She giveth birth unto the universe; think how vast She is.
She dwelleth within all things as the will omnipotent.

5. The Psalmist (Prasad) [**] singeth: "Mortals

may laugh at the thought of swimming across the mighty ocean," and this my mind perceiveth, but my heart enfoldeth it not; yet it still aspireth to touch the moon.

The Blessed One, referring to this song, said: See how Ramaprasad describes that books and reasoning cannot reveal the Divine Mother. Faith is necessary.

[The omnipotence of faith.] Reason is weak. Faith is omnipotent. Reason cannot go far enough and must stop short of the goal. Faith will work wonders.

[The parable of a Brahmin priest and his boy.] There was a certain Brahmin priest who served in a household chapel. Once he went away leaving the charge of the service to his son. He told the boy to place the daily offering of food before the Deity and see that He ate it. The boy, following the instructions of his father, placed the offering before the image and silently waited. But the image neither spoke nor ate. The boy watched for a long tinge. He had firm faith that the Deity would come down from the altar, take the seat before the offering and eat it. Then he prayed: "O Lord, come and eat. It is