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Sri Ramakrishna: The ‘New Man’ of the Age – III 45
Advaitic teachers regard jñāna-mārga as the
only true highway to mukti, whereas the dualistic
teachers regard bhakti-mārga as the only
true pathway to mukti. The first attempt to reconcile
the two mārgas was made by Sri Krishna
in the Gita. But later Vedantic teachers interpreted
the Gita in such a way as to make the
scripture appear to support their own respective
views. The second great attempt to reconcile
jñāna-mārga and bhakti-mārga was made
by Sri Ramakrishna. From his own realization,
Sri Ramakrishna taught that at the highest
transcendent level jnana and bhakti lose their
distinctions and become one; the same happens
with the distinction between saguṇa and
nirguṇa. These distinctions are created by the
human mind at the lower level and have no
meaning at the highest transcendent level. Furthermore,
Sri Ramakrishna taught that through
divine grace even a bhakta who follows bhaktimārga
can have knowledge of Brahman as the
impersonal Absolute.
Sri Ramakrishna has spoken on this subject
several times. Once he said: ‘The path of knowledge
leads to Truth, as does the path that combines
knowledge and love. The path of love, too,
leads to this goal. The way of love is as true as the
way of knowledge. All paths ultimately lead to
the same Truth’ (104).
As regards the controversy about the nature
of Reality, attained through different paths, Sri
Ramakrishna said: ‘He who is called Brahman by
the jnanis is known as Atman by the yogis and
as Bhagavan by the bhaktas. The same brahmin
is called priest, when worshipping in the temple,
and cook, when preparing a meal in the kitchen.
… But the Reality is one and the same. The difference
is only in name. He who is Brahman is
verily the Atman, and again, He is Bhagavan’
(133–4). In another place Sri Ramakrishna said:
‘God has form and He is formless too. Further,
PB July 2011
He is beyond both form and formlessness. No
one can limit Him’ (192).
It is important to keep in mind the distinction
between mārga and yoga. All the four yogas
find application in both the mārgas. In bhaktimārga
the bhakta practises karma yoga; raja
yoga, in the form of meditation; jnana yoga, in
the form of discrimination between the Atman
and the world; and finally bhakti yoga. Similarly,
in jñāna-mārga the jnani also has his own karma
yoga, raja yoga, bhakti yoga, and jnana yoga.
But when it is stated that through any one
yoga it is possible to realize God and attain
mukti, then it should be understood that the
term ‘yoga’ is used in the sense of mārga. When,
for instance, Swami Vivekananda states that
karma yoga by itself can lead to mukti, here
‘karma yoga’ is used in the sense of karma-mārga.
One noteworthy point in Sri Ramakrishna’s
views on spiritual paths is that he never condemned
any path as wrong. Even about the
Kartabhaja sect, which followed certain immoral
practices in the name of sadhana, Sri Ramakrishna
said it was like entering a house by the
small door at the back of a house formerly used
by scavengers to enter the house. According to
him, any path, if sincerely followed, can lead ultimately
to the supreme Goal. The one thing he
insisted on was sincerity, āntarikatā.
Harmony of Spiritual Life and Social
Life · Sri Ramakrishna’s repeated references
to kāmini-kāñcan, woman and gold, as maya and
the main cause of bondage may give the impression
that he was against householder’s life and
social obligations. But the truth is that he fully
understood and approved the necessity of marriage
for most people and the importance of fulfilling
family obligations. He could have avoided
his own marriage if he had been against it. But
he not only gave his consent to it, he even chose
his bride. Apparently, he did so in order to set a
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