A couple of days before Ramakrishna’s passing away, when the Master was in excruciating pain, a thought flashed across Narendra’s mind: “Well, now if you can declare that you are God, then only will I believe you are really God Himself.” Immediately the Master looked up towards Narendra and said distinctly: “O my Naren, are you still not convinced? He who in the past was born as Rama and Krishna is now living in this very body as Ramakrishna — but not from the standpoint of your Vedanta [which posits that each soul is potentially divine], but actually so.” (Source: God Lived with Them)