Sri Ramakrishna once warned Adhar not to ride horseback, but Adhar did not take his words seriously. On 6 January 1885, Adhar went by horse to inspect the Manicktala Distillery. On his way home, at Shobhabazar Street, he fell from the horse, fracturing his left wrist. Tetanus quickly developed, and he completely lost his voice.
Bepin Behari Sen wrote: “My uncle fell from a horse, fracturing his left arm and incurring the fatal injuries from which he passed away eight days later. Once during these last days Sri Ramakrishna came to see him. The Master looked very pale that day. He stroked my uncle’s body and wept. By then my uncle had almost lost his voice, but when he saw the Master, tears rolled down his cheeks. The Master talked to him a little, but since I was so young I could not follow what was being said. I did observe, though, that my uncle’s face beamed with joy when he saw the Master. After a while the Master ate something and with a heavy heart left.”
Later Sri Ramakrishna told the devotees that the accident had occurred because Adhar had a vision of his Chosen Deity while riding the horse. Overwhelmed with joy, Adhar had lost control of the horse. (Similar incident happened in Sister Sudhira‘s life.) He passed away at 6:00 a.m. on Wednesday, 14 January 1885. When news of Adhar’s death reached the Master, he immediately went into samadhi. Regaining normal consciousness, he wept and said to the Divine Mother: “Mother, You asked me to stay in the world with the devotees, cherishing devotion. Now look, how much pain I have!” It is something to think about — that an Incarnation of God would cry for his devotee. It is said that out of grief Sri Ramakrishna remained in bed for three days, covering himself with a cloth. He also told the devotees: “One by one my parlours are closing. I see an end coming to my gatherings.” (Source: They Lived with God)
It is said in the Mahabharata: “Human life is not eternal, and moreover no one knows when all-devouring death will come. Therefore one should begin to practise religion when one is young.”1 Sri Ramakrishna knew that Adhar’s life would be short, so one day he said to him, “Do quickly whatever you want to do.”2 The Master implied that he should associate with holy people and strive to realize God. Adhar understood what the Master meant, and for six months he visited Sri Ramakrishna every evening after working at his office. For this he had to spend two and a half rupees every day for the carriage fare, and the trip took about an hour and a half each way. Sometimes he was so tired that he would fall asleep on the carpet in the Master’s room. A few people criticized Adhar for this, but the Master said to them: “What do you people know? This is the Divine Mother’s place. It is the abode of peace. Instead of engaging in worldly talk, he sleeps. That is all right. A little peace still comes to such people.” Before the main gate of the temple garden was closed at 10:00 p.m., the Master would wake Adhar up and send him home. (Source: They Lived with God)
—–
Knowing that Adhar’s life would be very short, Sri Ramakrishna took him to the northern veranda of his room and gave him some special advice. Adhar died twenty-one months later.
Master (to Adhar): “You are a deputy magistrate. Remember that you have obtained your position through the grace of God. Do not forget Him, but remember that all men must one day walk down the same path. We stay in the world only a couple of days.
“This world is our field of activity. We are born here to perform certain duties. People have their homes in the country but come to Calcutta to work.
“It is necessary to do a certain amount of work. This is a kind of discipline. But one must finish it speedily. While melting gold, the goldsmith uses everything — the bellows, the fan, and the pipe — so that he may have the hot fire he needs to melt the metal. After the melting is over, he relaxes and asks his attendant to prepare a smoke for him. All this time his face has been hot and perspiring; but now he can smoke.
“One must have stern determination; then alone is spiritual practice possible. One must make a firm resolve.”
“There is great power in the seed of God’s name. It destroys ignorance. A seed is tender, and the sprout soft; still it pierces the hard ground. The ground breaks and makes way for the sprout.”
“The mind becomes very much distracted if one lives long in the midst of ‘lust and gold.’ Therefore one must be very careful. Always keep your mind fixed on God. In the beginning you must struggle a little; later on you will enjoy your pension.” (Source: They Lived with God)