C) Contributions to Hinduism by Ramakrishna

Background

• Raised in a Vaishnavite family- became a temple priest
• Pursued a type of bhakti, where he became infatuated with Kali as the divine mother
• So transformed by his spiritual experiences that instead of being a conventional husband, he worhsipped his wife as an incarnation of Kali, and she served him in the temple

The influence of mystical experiences on his thought

• Mysticism is the search for contact with the divine (e.g. through intense meditation, fasting)
• Ramakrishna was a mystic- dedicated his life to achieving unity with the divine
• His closeness to the goddess Kali soon reached a stage where he was aware of the divine nature permeating the physical
• An advaita guru, Tota Puri, helped Ramakrishna go beyond the dualistic mysticism that he had so far experienced to an experience of pure monism (no difference between observer/ observed)
• Ramakrishna regularly reached the state of samadhi- a state of intense concentration achieved through meditation

Development of Advaita

• Ramakrishna believed in the essential unity of man and God. He believed in one eternal and undivided being (who was perfect knowledge and bliss)
• He explained God could be both impersonal and personal, both saguna…