Ramakrishna — The Harmony of All Religions
Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa (1836-1886) demonstrated through personal practice that all spiritual paths lead to the same realization — and that the highest Advaita is compatible with the most intense devotional love.
Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa (1836-1886) is one of the most remarkable figures in the history of religion — a Bengali temple priest who practiced every spiritual path available to him (Hindu tantric, Vaishnava bhakti, Shakta, Advaita, Christian, and Islamic) and confirmed through direct personal experience that each led to the same ultimate reality. His most famous experience: he practiced the Advaita teaching 'Brahma Satyam, Jagat Mithya' under his teacher Totapuri and attained Nirvikalpa Samadhi (the final dissolution of all distinction into pure consciousness) — yet continued to love the Divine Mother Kali with the most intense personal devotion. His life demonstrated the compatibility of Nirguna (formless, non-dual) and Saguna (personal, devotional) approaches to Brahman — a compatibility that had been theorized by Shankara but rarely embodied with such completeness. His teachings were transmitted by Swami Vivekananda and remain a unique testimony to the practical harmony of diverse spiritual approaches.
All religions are true. God can be reached by different paths, as a city can be reached by different roads.
Religious studies scholar Huston Smith's 'The World's Religions' — which argues that the great spiritual traditions are diverse paths to the same ultimate reality — was profoundly influenced by Ramakrishna's experiential demonstration that multiple traditions can be practiced and validated by the same individual.
Gospel of Ramakrishna