The Arrival
The Bhate House
16 October 1892
On 16th October 1892, at 6 am a knock was heard at the door of an eminent lawyer of the city, Sadashiv Balakrishnapant Bhate. The door opened and there stood a young monk, tall and regal, with large sparkling eyes and radiant countenance. He introduced himself and handed over a letter from Mr Bhate's friend, Mr Raosaheb Lakshman Rao Golvalkar, private secretary of the Kolhapur Maharaja.
Though intrigued, the Bhate family welcomed him. Soon Bhate realized the wonderful guest that he had with him. He was rather an unconventional sannyasi. But he realized that he was well grounded in Sanskrit, could even quote Panini's Ashtadhyayi. Bhate quickly realized that he had a great person in his midst and so he called all the important people so that they could debate with him.
He later took Swamiji to meet Haripada Mitra, who was sub divisional forest officer.
Mr. Sadashiv Bhate
Eminent lawyer of Belagavi
The Bhate House
Where Swamiji stayed 16–18 October 1892
Mr. Haripada Mitra
Sub-divisional Forest Officer
Haripada Mitra’s House
Where Swamiji stayed 19–27 October 1892
Conversations with Haripada Mitra
On Sannyasis and the Householder
Once Haripada asked him, “Why do sannyasis idle away their time? Why do they depend on the charity of others? Why don't they undertake some work beneficial to society?”
“Now, look here. You are earning this money with such struggle, of which, only a little portion will you spend on yourself; and some of it you spend on others who you think, are your own. But they neither acknowledge any gratefulness for what you do for them, nor are they satisfied with what they get. The balance you save like a mythological yaksha who never enjoys it. When you die, somebody else will enjoy it all; and perchance, he will abuse you for not having accumulated more. This is your condition. On the other hand, I do nothing. When I feel hungry, I let others know by gestures that I want food, and I eat whatever I get. Neither do I struggle nor do I save. Now, tell me, who among us is wiser, you or I?
Haripada later wrote: “I was astonished, for before this, nobody dared to talk like this so boldly and frankly.”
On Fault-Finding
Haripada was not pulling on well with his superiors at work. Any little remark from them would make him lose his balance. When he told Swamiji of his difficulty, the swami remarked:
“Why are you in service? Is it because for the salary you get? You are getting it regularly every month; so why should you be upset? Will you tell me whether apart from doing work for which you draw the salary, did you ever do anything just to please your superiors? You never did so, and yet you are angry with them that they are not satisfied with you. Is that wise on your part? Know it for certain that the ideas we entertain about others express themselves through our conduct. We see in the external world the same image that we carry in our hearts; nobody realizes how true the saying ‘The world is good when I am good’ is. From today try to get rid of the habit of finding fault with others, and you will find the extent you succeed in this, the attitudes and reactions of others also change accordingly.
The Visible Brahman
One day sometime in 1902, in Belur Math, Swamiji came down and sat on the canvas cot under the mango tree in the courtyard, facing west. The monks around him were busy with their activities. Suddenly Vivekananda's eyes became radiant. Surcharged with spiritual fervour, he said to a disciple:
“Where will you go to see Brahman? He is immanent in all Beings. Here, here is the visible Brahman! Shame on those who, neglecting the visible Brahman, set their minds on other things! Here is the visible Brahman before you as tangible as the fruit in one's hand! Can't you see? Here, here, here is Brahman!
These words struck people around him like an electric shock. For about fifteen minutes no one could move or function. At last, Vivekananda said to Premananda, “Now go to worship,” and all were released.
Swamiji explained this phenomenon on another occasion: “He who has realized Atman becomes a house of great power. From him as centre, and within a certain radius, emanates a spiritual force, and all those who come within this circle become animated with his ideas and are overwhelmed by them.”
A Tribute
“He stands merely as the Revealer, the Interpreter to India of the treasures that she herself possesses. The truths he preaches would have been as true, had he never been born. The difference would have lain in their difficulty of access, in their want of modern clearness and incisiveness of statement. Had he not lived, texts that today will carry the bread of life to thousands might have remained the obscure disputes of scholars. He taught with authority, and not as one of the Pundits.”
Sister Nivedita
Swamiji’s Photos in Belgaum
Sources: Reminiscences recorded by Prof. Ganesh Bhate (eldest son of Sri Sadashiv Bhate) and Sri Haripada Mitra. Published in “Reminiscences of Swami Vivekananda” by Advaita Ashrama, a publication centre of the Ramakrishna Order.