The enclosed post has been excerpted from Swami Chetanananda’s beautiful write-up on the Holy Mother Sarada Ma. It showcases the lessons we can learn from the way Mother conducted herself through frustrating life events. Swami Chetanananda is a monk with the Ramakrishna Mission who has written many beautiful books. You can download and read Swami Chetanananda’s full essay on the Holy Mother here.
Sarada Ma’s life was full of numerous problems. She suffered from poverty, disease and bereavement; was treated poorly by her relatives; and endured the madness of her sister-in-law, her niece Radhu, and some devotees.
It is really amazing how she dealt with those problems calmly with love and compassion, patience and perseverance. We must learn from her how to solve human problems.
Adjust to Circumstances, Don’t Become Dejected & Frustrated
We have so much friction and misunderstandings among ourselves that we lose peace of mind, and we sometimes suffer from fear and anxiety. Most of our problems develop due to a lack of communication and faith in each other. We can solve many of our problems through frankness, humility, and making accommodations to fit the circumstances.
Sri Ramakrishna taught the Holy Mother: “Please adjust according to time, place, and person.” Concerning interpersonal relationships, the Master told Hriday: “You must bear with me and I must bear with you; then everything will go well. Otherwise we shall have to summon the manager to make up our differences.”
The Mother learned this beautiful trait from the Master. Her unselfishness, love, sweetness, and modesty conquered peoples’ minds immediately. Swami Ishanananda told us this marvellous story concerning the Mother’s presence of mind, strong common sense, and ability to adjust according to time and situation.
It was winter 1919. The Holy Mother went from Calcutta to Vishnupur by train and then by six bullock carts to Koalpara. On the way we stopped at Jaipur [8 miles from Vishnupur] and began to cook near a roadside inn. The cook began to prepare dal. The Mother was happy to see the arrangements for cooking. The Mother washed her hands and feet in the nearby pond and then helped by cutting vegetables.
Most of the cooking was done when the cook broke the earthen rice pot while removing the extra foamy water. The cooked rice was scattered on the ground. What to do? We were in a dilemma. We thought that if we bought another pot and cooked more rice, it would be too late to reach Koalpara, and moreover the road was not safe. We still had to cross another 14 miles.
The Mother was not upset at all. She slowly removed the foamy part with a straw ladle and collected the rice from the top. She then washed her hands, took out the Master’s (Sri Ramakrishna’s) picture from her tin box and placed it on its corner. She took a sal leaf, put some rice, dal, and vegetables on it, and then placed it in front of the Master. With folded hands she prayed: “Master, you have arranged this food for us today. Please eat it now quickly while it is warm.”
Observing the Mother’s unconventional behaviour, we began to laugh. The Mother then told us: “Look, one should act and adjust according to time. Now all of you sit down and I shall serve the food.” The Mother’s women companions and we sat on the ground.
She scooped rice with a wooden ladle from the top of the heap and put it on our leaf plates one after another, then added other dishes. She also took food in the same way and began to eat, extending her legs. She commented: “The food is delicious.” We hurriedly finished our lunch, packed the luggage and resumed our journey.
Moral: For a happy life adjustments too are necessary. Things will not always go our way. Rather than becoming dejected, frustrated and angry, we must learn to calmly adjust.
