Love is Everywhere
This song was inspired by a story from Shri Ramakrisna, the great 19th Century Indian saint. In his later years Ramakrsna was training his young monks in the ashram. Amongst them was Narendra, later to become Swami Vivekananda, the first Indian yogi to come to the West, who initiated into spiritual meditation, amongst others, Mark Twain and David Rockefeller.
One morning at the ashram, Ramakrsna called his young disciple and handed him a live chicken.
“Narendra, today I have a special task for you. Take this chicken into the forest, find a place where you are all alone and no-one is watching, and kill it.”
Narendra and the other disciples were shocked. They were vegetarians and Yogis don’t kill chickens because it is against their principle of ahim’sa or non-harming. But monk disciples also have to obey the instructions of their spiritual master without question, so Narendra took the chicken and headed off into the forest.
Time passed and the sun rose to noon and into the afternoon. The other disciples were wondering what was taking Narendra so long. After all, how long does it take to kill a chicken?
Finally, around sunset, Narendra reappeared and came before the master, the still living chicken in his hands.
Ramakrsna looked serious. “What happened? Why didn’t you carry out my instruction and kill the chicken?”
“I’m sorry, Master,” replied Narendra. “I tried to do as you said and went to a lonely place, but when I prepared to kill the chicken I felt these two eyes watching me. I couldn’t see anyone, but I felt that I was being observed. I went deeper into the forest, but the same thing happened. Wherever I went I felt that someone was watching me – I couldn’t find any place where I felt that I was alone.”
Ramakrsna was very happy. “Very good – you have realized that we are always being observed by the Supreme Being, Brahma. This is what I wanted you to understand.”
Narendra was also happy because his Guru was pleased with him, and the other disciples were happy because now the Guru was in a good mood he would go easy on them, but who do you think was the happiest of all?
The chicken!
So this story reminded me that I too am always being thought of by the Supreme Being. So in my song, I am imagining what that great entity, the creator of the universe and all of us, might say to me, if I were to listen very carefully.