Belur Math , the temple and headquarters of the Ramakrishna Mission, is situated on the banks of the Hooghly River, not far from Dakshineshwar Village. The main temple is a beautiful structure, surrounded by twelve smaller ones. The shrine is a peaceful and quiet sanctuary, located at the edge of the teeming city's slums. Baba and the men made obeisance in the room used by Ramakrishna for his Universal work. In another room, they viewed the statue of Kali , which Ramakrishna worshiped, and the relics associated with the Perfect Master's life (such as his sandals).1 They also viewed the rooms used by Vivekananda and Ramakrishna's other disciples.
While returning, Baba noticed a humble Hindu temple and went inside. Here a sincere devotee had lovingly kept Ramakrishna's large photograph in perfect condition. Baba greeted him, and after an inquiry, gave the man some advice about his meditations.
They then returned to their hotel, and left Calcutta at 7:30 the same evening for the long journey to Hardwar, situated in the foothills of the Himalayas. They arrived two days later on 14 August.
The scapegoat for the Master's abuses and teasing had been Baily. But since he had departed, Padri became Baba's target. At each station, Baba would tell Padri to get down and find out if there was anywhere to have tea or a meal. If he could not find any, he was to ask the stationmaster why there was not a restaurant. Even if there were a restaurant at the station, Baba would tell Padri to ask the stationmaster to explain why there was no restaurant car attached to the train. If they had already eaten lunch and had tea at the previous station, Baba would still insist that Padri make these awkward inquiries.
Padri once became so annoyed, he thought: "To hell with this! I don't want God or anything else! I'm leaving!" But all the money and tickets were with him — tied to a white belt around his waist — so he reasoned to himself that he could not just walk away. Sighing, he reluctantly returned to their compartment and faced Baba, who started goading him again.
They arrived in Hardwar on a Thursday which was doubly auspicious, as it was the day of the guru and there was a full moon. They went to a Hindu dharamshala, but no rooms were available. They managed to persuade the manager to allow them to occupy a portion of the verandah.
Footnotes
- 1.Kali is the mother-goddess of the universe.