[The world as a dream.] Sri Ramakrishna: The followers of Advaita Vedanta maintain that creation, preservation, and dissolution, the individual ego, the external world, all these are manifestations of the Eternal Energy (Sakti). They also say that when these are properly analyzed, they appear as dreams, that the Absolute Brahman alone is the Reality, and all else is unreal. Even eternal Energy (Sakti) is like a dream, unreal; but you may analyze and discriminate

[The realm the Divine Energy.] of thousands of times, you cannot transcend the realm of Divine Energy (Sakti) unless you have reached the highest state of Samadhi, superconsciousness. The very thoughts like: "I am meditating," "I am thinking on the Absolute," are within the realm of Sakti. They are the manifested powers of that Eternal Energy. Therefore the Absolute Brahman and the Eternal Energy are inseparable and one. The existence of one implies that of the other; as fire and its burning power. If you admit the existence of fire, how can you deny its burning power? [Relation between Brahman and Sakti.] No one can think of fire without thinking of its burning power. Again, the power of burning cannot be conceived as separate from fire. In the same manner, we cannot think of the rays of the sun, without thinking of the sun himself. Again, we cannot think of the sun without thinking of his rays. Therefore, no one can think of Brahman as apart from Sakti, or Sakti as separate from Brahman. Likewise, no one can conceive of the phenomenal as independent of the Absolute, or of the Absolute as apart from the phenomenal. The same Eternal Energy, the Mother of all phenomena, is creating, preserving, and

destroying everything. She is called Kali, the Divine Mother. Kali is Brahman, Brahman is Kali, one and the same Being. I call Him Brahman when He is absolutely inactive; that is, when He neither creates, nor preserves, nor destroys phenomena; but when He performs all such actions, I call Him Kali, the Eternal Energy, the Divine Mother. They are one and the same Being, the difference is in name and form, just as the same substance water is called by different names in different languages, such as jal, aqua, pani, etc. [One God has many names.] Yes, the Being is the same, only the names are different under different aspects--like the same sub- stance expressed in different languages, such as jal, water and pani. A tank may have four Ghats (landing-places with steps). The Hindus drink at one Ghat and call it jal; the Mohammedans drink at another and call it pani; while the English who drink at a third call it water. Similarly, God is One, only His names are different. Some call Him by the name of Allah, some God, some Brahman, others Kali, others again Rama, Hari, Jesus, Buddha.

Keshab, smiling: Please tell us once more, Revered Sir, in what different ways Kali, the