Therefore they regarded Vivekananda's activities in the West as out of harmony with
the Master's teachings. One of them said bluntly to the Swami, 'You did not preach our
Master in America; you only preached yourself.' The Swami retorted with equal
bluntness, 'Let people understand me first; then they will understand Sri Ramakrishna.'
On one occasion Swami Vivekananda felt that some of these brother disciples wanted
to create a narrow sect in the name of Ramakrishna and turn the Ramakrishna Math
into a cult of the Temple, where the religious activities would centre around devotional
music, worship, and prayer alone. His words burst upon them like a bomb-shell. He
asked them how they knew that his ideas were not in keeping with those of Sri
Ramakrishna. 'Do you want,' he said, 'to shut Sri Ramakrishna, the embodiment of
infinite ideas, within your own limits? I shall break these limits and scatter his ideas
broadcast all over the world. He never enjoined me to introduce his worship and the
like.'
Had it not been demonstrated to Vivekananda time and again that Sri Ramakrishna was
behind him in all his actions? He knew that through the Master's grace alone he had
come out triumphant from all ordeals, whether in the wilderness of India or in the busy
streets of Chicago.
'Sri Ramakrishna,' the Swami continued, 'is far greater than the disciples understand
him to be. He is the embodiment of infinite spiritual ideas capable of development in
infinite ways....One glance of his gracious eyes can create a hundred thousand
Vivekanandas at this instant. If he chooses now, instead, to work through me, making
me his instrument, I can only bow to his will.'
Vivekananda took great care lest sentimentalism and narrowness in one form or
another should creep in, for he detested these from the bottom of his heart.
But things came to a climax one day at Balaram's house in Calcutta, when Swami
Yogananda, a brother disciple whom Sri Ramakrishna had pointed out as belonging to
his 'inner circle' of devotees, said that the Master had emphasized bhakti alone for
spiritual seekers and that philanthropic activities, organizations, homes of service for
the public good, and patriotic work were the Swami's own peculiar ideas, the result of
his Western education and travel in Europe and America.
The Swami at first retorted to his brother with a sort of rough humour. He said: 'What
do you know? You are an ignorant man....What do you understand of religion? You are
only good at praying with folded hands: "O Lord! how beautiful is Your nose! How
sweet are Your eyes!" and all such nonsense....And you think your salvation is secured
and Sri Ramakrishna will come at the final hour and take you by the hand to the
highest heaven! Study, public preaching, and doing humanitarian works are, according
to you, maya, because he said to someone, "Seek and find God first; doing good to the
world is a presumption!" As if God is such an easy thing to be achieved! As if He is
such a fool as to make Himself a plaything in the hands of an imbecile!
'You think you have understood Sri Ramakrishna better than myself! You think jnana