Dealing with cravings
[2nd President and Spiritual Head: the Ramakrishna Centre of South Africa]
DAILY READINGS
From Mother Radha's recordings of Swamiji
737
Swamiji continues giving advice to a householder on lust and cravings
The craving must come for you to keep refusing it. When the snake strikes at you it doesn't stop trying to bite you if you only hit it once. It strikes again and again unless you keep hitting it. Only when it knows it is going to fail does it give up.
But you mustn't be a slave to it. This is the most important thing. Do it as a dignified man – not as a slave scared to do something. You'll have to make your mind strong sooner or later.
Take smoking for example. I asked a girl who came to the ashram, 'How many do you smoke?' She said, 'Fifty a day.' I say, 'I will allow you to smoke only four a day. You can smoke four a day for up to six months.' But I knew that smoking four a day wouldn't last for six months because she would give it up before then. She would think to herself, 'My mind is clear now, not guilty. Swamiji said it is okay.' So the strength is given to her.
The main thing is you must not say, 'Oh, it is difficult. I can't leave it.' Then you are finished, you've lost. Just make up your mind: 'It is easy. I started this, it was not in me, it is a foreign thing, so I will throw it out.'
There are various ways people have controlled lust. But we must never see two birds in the act, never see animals in that act.
Visitor: But it is unavoidable . . .
Swamiji: It is not unavoidable if you know how to twist it. When Sri Ramakrishna saw a dog and a bitch uniting He went into samadhi [a state of spiritual super-consciousness]. It is written. Read it. That's the attitude. He turned it into Brahman uniting with the Atman. Do you see where his mind went? But we have a guilty conscience. We say, 'It's sinful,' because we are brought up like that.
1) Care should be taken by the reader to understand and take Swamiji's words in these postings, in context. Every teaching or instruction that he gave was specific to the people who were with Swamiji at the time. 2) Mouse-over the words highlighted in red in the posting for further explanation or links.
There are currently available, over 100 different CDs or DVDs with mp3 files, of Swamiji speaking. Please email timhoare@webmail.co.za to order. Click HERE for the second website on Swamiji's life and teachings.
Sri Ramakrishna Sri Sarada Devi Swami Vivekananda
Swami Nischalananda Swami Shivapadananda
The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna - read online
Reference websites – please mouse over the name and click to connect:
Ramakrishna Math and Mission Ramakrishna Centre of South Africa Ramakrishna Dham