Sri Sarada Devi

Divine Mother Saradamani Devi, spiritual consort of Thakur Sri Ramakrishna, in her divine play, graced this world on December 22nd 1853. She was born in a humble Brahmin family in the idyllic village of Jayrambati, near Kamarpukur, in West Bengal. Born to the virtuous parents Ramachandra Mukhopadhyay and Shyamasundari Devi, the Holy Mother, Sarada Devi is the divine incarnation and personification of the Universal Mother on earth.

Sacred Union with the Master

Even as a child, Sarada Devi’s mind and heart were always surrendered to God. She served her family with love, performing all her household duties with a sense of devotion. She took care of the younger children in the family, looked after the cattle, and used to carry food to her father and others engaged in work in the field. Although she had no formal schooling, she  learnt the Bengali alphabet. At the age of 3, Ma Sarada first saw Thakur Sri Ramakrishna in a musical performance in Sihar, her maternal uncle’s place and she pointed at Thakur when at the end of the performance, the village women teasingly asked her whom amongst the boys present, she would like to marry. In September 1858, Sri Ramakrishna was brought home to Kamarpukur from Dakshineswar because his God-intoxicated stated was misinterpreted as madness. When his mother and elder brother started searching for a suitable bride, Thakur told them that they would find her in nearby Jayrambati in Ramachandra Mukhopadhyay’s house. In May 1859, Ma Sarada Devi at the age of 5 years and 5 months was united in marriage with Thakur Sri Ramakrishna of age 23 years and 3 months. However, the marriage remained unconsummated as it was the spiritual union of two incarnations on earth who took human forms to fulfill one divine mission. Despite early marriage, as was the custom in those days, Ma Sarada stayed back at home with her parents, while Sri Ramakrishna returned to Dakshineswar after about a year and half and immersed himself in the profound depths of spiritual Sadhana.

Pilgrimage to the Divine

The God-intoxicated state of Thakur Sri Ramakrishna was beyond comprehension of materialistic people in Dakshineswar. Reports of Sri Ramakrishna going mad kept circulating in Jayrambati, and Sarada resolved to go to Dakshineshwar and take care of him. In March 1872 (Falgun, 1272 Bengali calendar), at the age of 18 years and 3 months, Holy Mother accompanied by her father undertook the arduous journey of travelling 64 miles to be with Sri Ramakrishna in Dakshineshwar.

She felt relieved to find that Sri Ramakrishna, even in the state of being immersed in transcendental consciousness, received her with infinite affection. Although  he took care to organise all provisions for her care, he lamented that had Mathur Mohan Biswas been alive, he would have definitely taken care to serve her perfectly. From that time, Ma Sarada, apart from taking care of Thakur as his wife, became  his spiritual companion, learning from him the path of divine life while attending to her worldly responsibilities with utter divinity. On being questioned by Sri Ramakrishna, she replied without any reservation that she was not interested in a worldly life and would help him in his pursuit of the Absolute. A few days thereafter, while massaging her husband’s feet, Sarada wanted to know what he thought about her. In reply Ramakrishna said, “The divine Mother who is worshipped in the temple is verily the mother who has given birth to this body and who is now putting up in Nahabat, and again it is she who is massaging my feet at the present moment, verily, I look upon you as a representation of the blissful Mother in human flesh.” The Universal Motherhood became fully manifested in Ma Sarada Devi in her subsequent Sadhana (spiritual practice) in Dakshineswar while discharging all the time her worldly duties of taking care of Sri Ramakrishna, his mother Chandramani Devi and all others.

Divine Worship at Dakshineshwar

On the auspicious night of Phalaharini Kali Puja on 5th June 1872 (Wednesday 22nd Joistho 1279), Sri Ramakrishna, in his room in Dakshineswar, worshipped Ma Sarada Devi as Shodashi, the Mother of the Universe. When Sarada arrived for the worship, he had her take the special seat meant for the Divine Mother. During the ceremony, both reached a state of spiritual ecstacy.

Ma Sarada Devi was looked upon by Thakur Sri Ramakrishna as  special manifestation of Divine Mother of the universe and hence worshipped her ritualistically and awakened universal Motherhood noticeable in her since her birth.

From that moment on, the Holy Mother embraced all beings as her own children. She stayed in the small room of Nahabat in the ground floor. Her small, modest room, devoid of even the least basic amenities, was filled with divine grace, as she silently endured life’s hardships, serving the ever-growing number of devotees drawn to the Master. She performed all the family duties, due to which she had to shuttle between Jayrambati, Kamarpukur and Dakshineshwar during the period 1872-1884. In the year 1884, she finally came to live in Dakshineshwar.

A Mother to All Beings

During Sri Ramakrishna’s lifetime, Ma Sarada Devi almost kept herself hidden from the outside world. It is said that even the temple authorities were hardly aware of her presence in Dakshineswar. When Sri Ramakrishna was diagnosed with throat cancer and shifted to Shyampukur Bati on 2nd October 1885, Holy Mother also arrived there after a few days to look after the ailing Master. Near the exit to the roof in Shyampukur Bati was a small, covered, square space, where the Holy Mother stayed during the day and prepared the Master’s food. During her entire stay at Shyampukur Bati, Ma Sarada went out only once with Yogin-ma and Golap-ma to see wife of Balaram Basu who was not keeping well. On 11th December 1885, Holy Mother shifted with Sri Ramakrishna to Cossipore Udyanbati and took care of Thakur staying in the ground floor. Upon Sri Ramakrishna’s Mahasamadhi on 16th August 1886, she could not wear the widow’s garb, as she was told by Thakur and she distinctly felt his continued presence. To alleviate her pain of physical separation from Thakur Sri Ramakrishna, Balaram Basu requested her to undertake a pilgrimage to Kashi and Vrindavan where she spent 6 months. After her return, she stayed for a few days in Mastar Mahashay’s house and then at Balaram Basu’s house before shifting to Kamarpukur as was advised earlier by Sri Ramakrishna. Sri Sarada Devi stayed at Jayrambati till 1908 and came back finally to Calcutta. On 23rd May 1909,  Ma Sarada Devi entered ‘Mayer Bari’, built by the initiative of Swami Saradananda. In ‘Mayer Bari’, Ma Sarada Devi spent the remaining years of her divine play on earth.

Living the Divine Ideal

Holy Mother’s life was a perfect blend of divine illumination and simple, selfless service. Though venerated as the embodiment of the Divine Mother, she chose to live like an ordinary village woman – cooking, cleaning, and performing daily tasks with humility.

Though her life was marked by simplicity and personal trials, her love for every living being knew no bounds. She embraced everyone, from the devout to those burdened by wrong doings, offering everyone refuge in her divine heart. To all who took shelter in her, she was the eternal, universal Mother, showering love, compassion and divine wisdom.

Even the disciples of Swami Vivekananda from the West, who came to seek her blessings, were embraced as her own daughters, without any thought of the rigid norms of society. Her progressive spirit and support for Swamiji’s vision for India’s revival and the upliftment of women are a testament to her boundless wisdom and grace. Her love knew no boundaries, even toward those who brought her suffering. As Sister Nivedita observed, “Her life was one long stillness of prayer.” Indeed, Holy Mother was the living embodiment of peace, love, and divine motherhood.

Final Days and Eternal Legacy

Despite years of tireless service and personal sacrifice, Holy Mother’s health waned due to recurring illnesses. On July 21, 1920, she shed her mortal frame, leaving behind an eternal legacy of spiritual strength, love and divine motherhood.

Her life was a beacon of pure love, infinite compassion, and spiritual wisdom. Holy Mother stands as the ideal for all women, as Swami Vivekananda said, a symbol of spiritual awakening, and the epitome of womanhood in this modern age.

जननीं सारदां देवीं रामकृष्णं जगद्गुरुम्।

पादपद्मे तयोः श्रित्वा प्रणमामि मुहुर्मुहुः॥

Divine Mother Saradamani Devi, spiritual consort of Thakur Sri Ramakrishna, in her divine play, graced this world on December 22nd 1853. She was born in a humble Brahmin family in the idyllic village of Jayrambati, near Kamarpukur, in West Bengal. Born to the virtuous parents Ramachandra Mukhopadhyay and Shyamasundari Devi, the Holy Mother, Sarada Devi is the divine incarnation and personification of the Universal Mother on earth.

Sacred Union with the Master

Even as a child, Sarada Devi’s mind and heart were always surrendered to God. She served her family with love, performing all her household duties with a sense of devotion. She took care of the younger children in the family, looked after the cattle, and used to carry food to her father and others engaged in work in the field. Although she had no formal schooling, she  learnt the Bengali alphabet. At the age of 3, Ma Sarada first saw Thakur Sri Ramakrishna in a musical performance in Sihar, her maternal uncle’s place and she pointed at Thakur when at the end of the performance, the village women teasingly asked her whom amongst the boys present, she would like to marry. In September 1858, Sri Ramakrishna was brought home to Kamarpukur from Dakshineswar because his God-intoxicated stated was misinterpreted as madness. When his mother and elder brother started searching for a suitable bride, Thakur told them that they would find her in nearby Jayrambati in Ramachandra Mukhopadhyay’s house. In May 1859, Ma Sarada Devi at the age of 5 years and 5 months was united in marriage with Thakur Sri Ramakrishna of age 23 years and 3 months. However, the marriage remained unconsummated as it was the spiritual union of two incarnations on earth who took human forms to fulfill one divine mission. Despite early marriage, as was the custom in those days, Ma Sarada stayed back at home with her parents, while Sri Ramakrishna returned to Dakshineswar after about a year and half and immersed himself in the profound depths of spiritual Sadhana.

Pilgrimage to the Divine

The God-intoxicated state of Thakur Sri Ramakrishna was beyond comprehension of materialistic people in Dakshineswar. Reports of Sri Ramakrishna going mad kept circulating in Jayrambati, and Sarada resolved to go to Dakshineshwar and take care of him. In March 1872 (Falgun, 1272 Bengali calendar), at the age of 18 years and 3 months, Holy Mother accompanied by her father undertook the arduous journey of travelling 64 miles to be with Sri Ramakrishna in Dakshineshwar.

She felt relieved to find that Sri Ramakrishna, even in the state of being immersed in transcendental consciousness, received her with infinite affection. Although  he took care to organise all provisions for her care, he lamented that had Mathur Mohan Biswas been alive, he would have definitely taken care to serve her perfectly. From that time, Ma Sarada, apart from taking care of Thakur as his wife, became  his spiritual companion, learning from him the path of divine life while attending to her worldly responsibilities with utter divinity. On being questioned by Sri Ramakrishna, she replied without any reservation that she was not interested in a worldly life and would help him in his pursuit of the Absolute. A few days thereafter, while massaging her husband’s feet, Sarada wanted to know what he thought about her. In reply Ramakrishna said, “The divine Mother who is worshipped in the temple is verily the mother who has given birth to this body and who is now putting up in Nahabat, and again it is she who is massaging my feet at the present moment, verily, I look upon you as a representation of the blissful Mother in human flesh.” The Universal Motherhood became fully manifested in Ma Sarada Devi in her subsequent Sadhana (spiritual practice) in Dakshineswar while discharging all the time her worldly duties of taking care of Sri Ramakrishna, his mother Chandramani Devi and all others.

Divine Worship at Dakshineshwar

On the auspicious night of Phalaharini Kali Puja on 5th June 1872 (Wednesday 22nd Joistho 1279), Sri Ramakrishna, in his room in Dakshineswar, worshipped Ma Sarada Devi as Shodashi, the Mother of the Universe. When Sarada arrived for the worship, he had her take the special seat meant for the Divine Mother. During the ceremony, both reached a state of spiritual ecstacy.

Ma Sarada Devi was looked upon by Thakur Sri Ramakrishna as  special manifestation of Divine Mother of the universe and hence worshipped her ritualistically and awakened universal Motherhood noticeable in her since her birth.

From that moment on, the Holy Mother embraced all beings as her own children. She stayed in the small room of Nahabat in the ground floor. Her small, modest room, devoid of even the least basic amenities, was filled with divine grace, as she silently endured life’s hardships, serving the ever-growing number of devotees drawn to the Master. She performed all the family duties, due to which she had to shuttle between Jayrambati, Kamarpukur and Dakshineshwar during the period 1872-1884. In the year 1884, she finally came to live in Dakshineshwar.

A Mother to All Beings

During Sri Ramakrishna’s lifetime, Ma Sarada Devi almost kept herself hidden from the outside world. It is said that even the temple authorities were hardly aware of her presence in Dakshineswar. When Sri Ramakrishna was diagnosed with throat cancer and shifted to Shyampukur Bati on 2nd October 1885, Holy Mother also arrived there after a few days to look after the ailing Master. Near the exit to the roof in Shyampukur Bati was a small, covered, square space, where the Holy Mother stayed during the day and prepared the Master’s food. During her entire stay at Shyampukur Bati, Ma Sarada went out only once with Yogin-ma and Golap-ma to see wife of Balaram Basu who was not keeping well. On 11th December 1885, Holy Mother shifted with Sri Ramakrishna to Cossipore Udyanbati and took care of Thakur staying in the ground floor. Upon Sri Ramakrishna’s Mahasamadhi on 16th August 1886, she could not wear the widow’s garb, as she was told by Thakur and she distinctly felt his continued presence. To alleviate her pain of physical separation from Thakur Sri Ramakrishna, Balaram Basu requested her to undertake a pilgrimage to Kashi and Vrindavan where she spent 6 months. After her return, she stayed for a few days in Mastar Mahashay’s house and then at Balaram Basu’s house before shifting to Kamarpukur as was advised earlier by Sri Ramakrishna. Sri Sarada Devi stayed at Jayrambati till 1908 and came back finally to Calcutta. On 23rd May 1909,  Ma Sarada Devi entered ‘Mayer Bari’, built by the initiative of Swami Saradananda. In ‘Mayer Bari’, Ma Sarada Devi spent the remaining years of her divine play on earth.

Living the Divine Ideal

Holy Mother’s life was a perfect blend of divine illumination and simple, selfless service. Though venerated as the embodiment of the Divine Mother, she chose to live like an ordinary village woman – cooking, cleaning, and performing daily tasks with humility.

Though her life was marked by simplicity and personal trials, her love for every living being knew no bounds. She embraced everyone, from the devout to those burdened by wrong doings, offering everyone refuge in her divine heart. To all who took shelter in her, she was the eternal, universal Mother, showering love, compassion and divine wisdom.

Even the disciples of Swami Vivekananda from the West, who came to seek her blessings, were embraced as her own daughters, without any thought of the rigid norms of society. Her progressive spirit and support for Swamiji’s vision for India’s revival and the upliftment of women are a testament to her boundless wisdom and grace. Her love knew no boundaries, even toward those who brought her suffering. As Sister Nivedita observed, “Her life was one long stillness of prayer.” Indeed, Holy Mother was the living embodiment of peace, love, and divine motherhood.

Final Days and Eternal Legacy

Despite years of tireless service and personal sacrifice, Holy Mother’s health waned due to recurring illnesses. On July 21, 1920, she shed her mortal frame, leaving behind an eternal legacy of spiritual strength, love and divine motherhood.

Her life was a beacon of pure love, infinite compassion, and spiritual wisdom. Holy Mother stands as the ideal for all women, as Swami Vivekananda said, a symbol of spiritual awakening, and the epitome of womanhood in this modern age.

जननीं सारदां देवीं रामकृष्णं जगद्गुरुम्।

पादपद्मे तयोः श्रित्वा प्रणमामि मुहुर्मुहुः॥