Swami Ramakrishnananda mentioned an incident that happened shortly before Gopal-ma met Sri Ramakrishna:
One day she was cooking as usual, but the fire would not burn, the wood was heavy with moisture, and there was an adverse wind which blew the smoke into her eyes. Finally when the bit of rice and curry was done and she was about to pour it out on the leaf, the same adverse wind blew away the leaf. Then she began to scold God for making everything so bad for Gopala. As she was talking, a little boy brought back the leaf, held it out flat on the ground until she had put the food on it and then disappeared. She began to feed her Gopala; but suddenly she began to ask herself who that little boy was and she realized that it was Gopala himself. From that moment she became mad. All day and night she kept crying, “Where is my Gopala? Where is my Gopala?” She could not sleep or eat. Only at night would she prepare a little food for Gopala, and everyone thought that she had really become mad.
By the 1880s Sri Ramakrishna’s name had begun to spread. It was in the fall of 1884 that Gopal-ma first went to Dakshineswar, along with Manomohini and another woman, to seek an audience with the holy man. As Kamarhati and Dakshineswar are both on the Ganges, they went the three miles by boat. Sri Ramakrishna received them cordially, gave them some advice on devotion, and sang a few songs. He asked them to come again, and graciously, in turn, Manomohini invited Sri Ramakrishna to visit her temple garden at Kamarhati. He accepted the invitation.
Only a jeweller understands the value of a jewel. Sri Ramakrishna recognized the spiritual magnitude of both Gopal-ma and Manomohini, and, praising them in his sweet manner, he said: “Ah!What a beautiful expression on their faces! They are floating in the ocean of bliss and devotion. Their eyes are soaked with divine love.” On another occasion Sri Ramakrishna commented about Gopal-ma, “During Krishna’s incarnation she was a fruit-seller of Vrindaban, and she would feed Gopala the sweet fruits.”
After her first visit, Gopal-ma felt an irresistible attraction for Sri Ramakrishna, and she noticed a change in her life. Off and on she would think about Sri Ramakrishna, “He is a nice man and a real devotee.”6 She decided to see him again soon.
A few days later, while she was practising japa, her desire to see him became so intense that she immediately left for Dakshineswar by herself. It is an ancient custom that one should not visit God or a holy person empty-handed, so on her way she bought two pennies’ worth of stale sweets, which was all that she could afford. She was confident that he would not eat them, since so many people brought better offerings every day. But no sooner had she arrived at Dakshineswar than Sri Ramakrishna said: “Oh, you have come! Give me what you have brought for me.” She was embarrassed, but she reluctantly handed over the stale sweets to him. Like a hungry boy he began eating them with great relish and said to her: “Why do you spend money for sweets? Prepare some sweet coconut balls, and when you visit this place bring one or two of them with you. Or you may bring a little of the ordinary dishes which you cook yourself. I want to eat your cooking.”
That day Sri Ramakrishna did not talk about God or religion. He only inquired about this food or that food. As Gopal-ma later related: I thought:
“What a strange monk. He talks only about food. I am a poor widow. Where shall I get so many delicacies for him? Enough! I shall not come back again.” But as soon as I crossed the gate of the Dakshineswar garden, I felt he was, as it were, pulling me back. I could not proceed further. I had a hard time persuading the mind, and at last I returned to Kamarhati.
A few days later she came to Dakshineswar on foot, carrying some ordinary curry that she had cooked for Sri Ramakrishna. He relished it and said: “What a delicacy! It is like nectar.” Tears rolled down Gopal-ma’s cheeks. She thought the Master appreciated her humble offering only because she was poor.
During the next three or four months Gopal-ma visited Dakshineswar several times, always carrying some plain food for the Master. Invariably he asked her to bring some new food on her next visit. Sometimes she would think in disgust: “O Gopala, is this the outcome of my prayer? You have brought me to a holy man who only asks for food. I shall not come back again.” But as soon as she returned to Kamarhati, she would again feel that irresistible attraction, and her mind would long to see the Master.
At the invitation of Manomohini, Sri Ramakrishna went to visit the temple garden of Kamarhati. He attended the worship service of Radha Krishna and sang many devotional songs. Manomohini and others there were very impressed as they witnessed the Master’s ecstasy during the kirtan. After taking some prasad he returned to Dakshineswar. (Source: They Lived with God)