Ramakrishna and Radharaman Dev

Once, in the middle of the month of Vaisakh (a summer month), in the year 1289 of the Bengali calendar (1883 AD), a farmer came to Ramakrishna Paramahansa at the Dakshineswar Kali Temple, carrying the lifeless body of his son. The boy had died from the bite of a king cobra in the nearby jungle. The farmer, stricken with grief, earnestly prayed to Thakur Ramakrishna to do something for his son.
Ramakrishna gently reassured him, saying,

“Do not worry. Wait. He is coming—the one who will bring your son back to life.”

Thakur then instructed the farmer to place the boy’s body outside the temple door, cover it with a new cloth, and keep a bowl full of milk and a banana beside it.
Soon after, Sri Radharaman Charan Das Dev (Bade Baba) arrived with a large procession of devotees, immersed in ecstatic Nam Sankirtan—chanting:

Wearing a fine silk Punjabi (kurta) adorned with golden buttons, a stylish shoe on his foot, and holding a walking stick, Sri Radharaman Charan Das Dev looked strikingly unique. Yet, completely absorbed in chanting, he was oblivious to everything around him.

Thakur Ramakrishna leaped forward, garlanded him with flowers from Ma Kali, and embraced him. The two saints were overwhelmed with satvika bhava—tears, trembling, and horripilation—and fell unconscious.

Upon regaining awareness, Thakur said to Sri Radharaman Charan Das Dev, “He has kept me here at Dakshineswar… has He kept you at Nadiya?”—as if they had known each other forever.
After a while, Thakur said, “The one who sent you here has a purpose for you. Please fulfill it.”
Sri Radharaman Charan Das Dev replied, “You can do it too—why are you asking me?” Following this brief spiritual disagreement, Sri Radharaman Charan Das Dev resumed the Kirtan. The congregation was swept into divine ecstasy, dancing and laughing in rapturous joy. His fine clothes and golden buttons came loose and flew off, leaving him clad in only a humble kaupin.

Suddenly, a large king cobra emerged from the jungle.

It approached the boy’s body, gently touched his feet, then drank the milk and ate the banana. The snake then slithered away toward the western side of the forest.

Moments later, the farmer’s son opened his eyes.

The Kirtan reached a fever pitch. Thakur Ramakrishna stood aside, clapping and laughing like a child, exclaiming joyfully, “Jai Ma Dayamayee!”

— Charit Manjusha, Vol. 22, Shri Sheetal Das Baba Ji Maharaj.

About the Author

Paramanand

Administrator

Visit Website View All Posts