Dr. Abdul Wajij : (a Muslim devotee of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa). - “I was born at Satkhira in the Khulna district of East Bengal. After I finished school I worked for some time at Chuadanga and then moved to Calcutta. I studied homeopathy under Dr. Mahendralal Sarkar and worked as a physician in his charitable dispensary. There I heard about Sri Ramakrishna, the great saint of Dakshineswar, who accepted all religions to be true, and I learned that Ram Babu was his main disciple.
All along I had believed that truth exists in all religions and that it is important to read all the scriptures of the world. Though I am a Muslim and Islam is my religion, I have no animosity towards people of other faiths. I wanted to visit Sri Ramakrishna, but I decided to make an appointment with Ram Babu first and go with him.
I was then living in Beliaghata, in the eastern part of Calcutta. Just at that time I contracted dysentery and was unable to go to work for four or five days. I decided that as soon as I felt better I would meet Ram Babu and go to Dakshineswar.
I usually slept late in the morning, but one day I got up very early and heard the whistle of a nearby jute mill. It was 4:30 in the morning and there was a light rain. As it was a Sunday, I decided that I would go to Dakshineswar that day with Ram Babu. My stomach was also better. My friend Abbas Ali (who is now the deputy magistrate at Pheni Bazar in Syllet) came with me, and after a long search we located Ram Babu’s house. As soon as we informed Ram Babu of our intention, he expressed his happiness and we left for Dakshineswar.
When we arrived, Sri Ramakrishna was not in his room. He had gone to the pine grove to answer the call of nature. We waited for him at the Panchavati. When Sri Ramakrishna came there Ram Babu bowed down to him. We decided not to bow down as, according to our religious tradition, we are not supposed to bow down to anyone other than Allah. We were, however, willing to pay proper respect to him. But as soon as he came near he bowed down to us. We were puzzled and were compelled to bow down to him.
Sri Ramakrishna then took us to his room and spread a carpet for us to sit on. He sat on another carpet and began talking to us. As we sat there, I started thinking: “We heard that he is a holy man. Then why has he kept us at a distance? Has he given us a separate carpet, because we are Muslims and he a Hindu brahmin?” This doubt did not last long, however. While talking about God, Sri Ramakrishna became so intoxicated that he gradually came closer and closer until at last he was sitting on our carpet. This holy man’s affectionate behaviour gave us immense joy.
While we were travelling to Dakshineswar, I had thought of three questions to ask him. But I was amazed to find that there was no need to ask him those questions. He answered all three of them in a convincing manner during his conversation. One of the questions was: “Is it possible to practise yoga while living as a householder?” In the course of conversation he said: “If one enters the family life after practising spiritual disciplines, there is less chance for one to fall from the spiritual path. But it is extremely difficult to make spiritual progress while entangled in family life. If you live in a room full of soot, your body will be a little soiled, however clever you may be. Similarly, if you practise spiritual disciplines while living a householder life, a little attachment will remain somewhere”.
Earlier Ram Babu had told us that Sri Ramakrishna’s throat was paining him, so we did not want to disturb him with too many questions. But he talked of his own accord in such an ecstatic mood that it removed all misgivings from our minds and filled our hearts with joy. When Sri Ramakrishna had finished speaking, Ram Babu introduced me to him as a doctor. Sri Ramakrishna looked at me and said: "Very well. Why don’t you cure me of the pain in my throat?”
I replied: "Sir, if you give me the power I can try. Otherwise I would not be capable of curing the disease of someone like you”.
Sri Ramakrishna fed us some sweets. As we said good-bye, he told me: “Come here three more times". We could not make any more trips to Dakshineswar to see him, however. We were afraid that if we were too drawn towards the spiritual life, we would have to renounce the world.
Our holy Koran mentions some signs of a prophet. We noticed those signs in Sri Ramakrishna. After seeing and listening to him, we believed that he was a prophet. I still had some attachment to lust and gold, so I did not dare visit him again at Dakshineswar.
I did see Sri Ramakrishna once more, however this time at Ram Babu’s house. Amrita, Dr. Sarkar’s son, accompanied me there. When we arrived, we saw Sri Ramakrishna dancing and singing kirtan with a group of people. As he danced, he went into Samadhi. I had never before seen such a thing. I asked Amrita what was going on, and he explained that it was Samadhi.
When the kirtan was over we bowed down to Sri Ramakrishna. He smiled at us and inquired about our welfare. Then he asked me: "Why didn’t you visit me again? Try to come now and then”. Spiritual talk went on for a while, and there was also more devotional singing. After that we enjoyed a nice feast at Ram Babu’s house and then went home. I never saw Sri Ramakrishna again, as I had to move to different cities to earn money.”
Dr. Abdul Wajij
(Dr. Abdul Wajij was a Muslim devotee of Ramakrishna. Originally from East Bengal (now Bangladesh), he studied medicine in Calcutta and later worked for the Noakhali Municipality as a doctor. He met the Master in 1885 through Ram Chandra Datta.
On Sunday, 7 August 1898, Dr. Wajij came to see Ram Chandra Datta at the Kankurgachi Yogodyana. Ram was delighted to see his old friend, and the devotees received him cordially. Before going to the shrine, the doctor removed his shoes and socks, and then he bowed down three times to the image of Ramakrishna; tears came to his eyes as he remembered the Master. At the devotees’ request Dr. Wajij shared his reminiscences of Ramakrishna.)
(Swami Chetanananda “How to Live With God: In the Company of Ramakrishna”, Advaita Ashrama 2008, Ch. 44 “Dr. Abdul Wajij”, pp. 505-7).
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