Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi Complete ... - BrahminVoice.org

Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi
I. There was king with a devoted queen. She was a devotee of Sri
Rama and yearned that her husband should similarly be a devotee.
One night she found that the king mumbled something in his sleep.
She kept her ears close to his lips and heard the word ‘Rama’ repeated
continually as in japa. She was delighted and the next day ordered the
minister to hold a feast. The king having partaken of the feast asked
his wife for an explanation. She related the whole occurrence and
said that the feast was in gratitude to God for the fulfilment of her
long cherished wish. The king was however annoyed that his devotion
should have been found out. Some say that having thus betrayed God
he considered himself unworthy of God and so committed suicide. It
means that one should not openly display one’s piety. We may take
it that the king told the queen not to make a fuss over his piety and
they then lived happily together.
II. THONDARADIPODI (Bhaktanghrirenu) ALWAR: One who
delights in the dust of the feet of devotees. A devotee (of this name)
was keeping a plot of land in which he grew tulasi, the sacred basil,
made garlands of it, and supplied the same to the God in the temple.
He remained a bachelor and was respected for his life and conduct.
One day two sisters, who lived by prostitution, walked near the garden
and sat under a tree. One of them said, “How disgusting is my life that
I soil my body and mind every day. This man’s life is most desirable.”
The other replied, “How do you know his mind? Maybe he is not
as good as he appears to be. The bodily functions may be forcibly
controlled and the mind may be revelling in riotous thoughts. One
cannot control one’s vasanas as easily as the physical frame.”
The former said, “The actions are only the indices of the mind. His
life shows his mind to be pure.”
The other said, “Not necessarily. His mind has not been proved as yet.”
The first challenged her to prove his mind. She accepted. The second
desired to be left alone with only a shred of garment in which to clothe
herself. The first sister returned home, leaving the other alone with
flimsy clothing. As the latter continued to remain under the tree, she
appeared penitent and humble. The saint noticed her and approached
her after some time. He asked what had happened to her that she
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