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January 2019
Swami Subodhananda
The Vedanta Kesari
44
by Swami Chetanananda & Swami Vimohananda Published by Advaita Ashrama, 5, Dehi Entally Road, Kolkata - 700 014, 2016, paperback, pp.212, Rs.100. Swami Subodhananda, one of Sri Ramakrishna’s blessed direct disciples was lovingly known as Khoka Maharaj in the Ramakrishna Order. True to the word ‘Khoka’ which means a small boy, Swami Subodhananda had a childlike personality. The charm of this personality was enhanced by a deep spiritual wisdom and a generous heart. The present book details the life, teachings, reminiscences, and letters of Khoka Maharaj. The biographical narrative has been reproduced almost verbatim from Swami Chetanananda’s popular and authoritative book ‘God Lived with Them.’ Twentyone reminiscences of Khoka Maharaj by sannyasis and devotees have been translated from the Bengali book Swami Subodhanander Smritikatha, compiled and published by Udbodhan Office, Kolkata. Khoka Maharaj’s letters have been translated from the Bengali book Sri Sri Swami Subodhanander Jibani O Patra, published by Sonargaon Ramakrishna Math, Dhaka. The mark of a great saint is not in how he enthralls his audience with revolutionary spiritual ideas, but in the way he lives his life without any trace of ego. Such a great saint truly was our Khoka Maharaj, who could transform lives by the power of his compassion, love and childlike wisdom. Once when a woman disciple asked him if he could teach him Gayatri and other such disciplines, Khoka Maharaj humbly replied, ‘Mother, I don’t know all those things either. You see, I am a Khoka. I have given you what I have received from the Master, what I have known from my own experience, and what has kept me in a blissful state. Please control your mind and practice japa and meditation.’ The book is replete with numerous anecdotes reflecting Khoka Maharaj’s love and concern for devotees, and the miraculous ways in which he intervened to help his disciples progress on their
spiritual journey. Every other incident recorded in the book can be meditated upon to cultivate right spiritual attitude towards life and to develop faith in the Lord. One of the challenges that a sincere spiritual seeker faces is doubting his own sincerity of purpose. Once when Swami Subodhananda was asked what one must do if one has not firm faith in God or in the divine reality, his simple yet profound reply was, ‘Don’t stop calling on God even if He doesn’t show himself. If one already has firm faith, what else remains to be achieved?’ The book is a must-read for all devotees of Sri Ramakrishna and even for spiritual aspirants walking in different paths. _____________________ SWAMI SHANTIVRATANANDA, MYSURU
Caturyuga Calendar of Vaisvasvatha Manvantara (Puranic Chronicle) by R. Parthasarathy. Published by The Kuppuswami Sastri Research Institute, No.84, Thiru Vi.Ka. Road, Mylapore, Chennai – 600 004. 2015, hardbound, pp.212, Rs. 400. In this book under review the pre-historic conditions of Indian peninsula have been designed, developed and discussed from two perspectives: First, India as having an uninterrupted history for many yugas as a punya-bhumi, and the other, the Western historians’ conception of ‘non-originality as ‘Indian’ and that only foreign ideas flourished after 1500 B.C. To these Western scholars, the ‘Vedas are mere books of prayers, the epics are unsubstantiated stories and the puranas are books of fables’. Both the Western scholars and Indian historians who are against the above views intended to rewrite Indian history from the puranic sources ranging from 5000 years. In accordance to the great longing of Dr. N. Mahalingam, the present author has accomplished this assignment by writing this tremendous treatise. The work commences with the authentic source of the puranas as establishing the history of India especially from their translation to other languages as well as ascertaining the
