Ramakrishna Paramhansa was born in a poor Brahmana family in Bengal in 1836. His father Kshudhiram and mother Chandra Devi were both pious souls. While on a pilgrimage to Gaya, his father had a strange dream wherein a radiant celestial being appeared and agreed to be born as his child.

In due course, the child was born and was named Gadadhar by his parents. Immediately after his birth, he exhibited behavioral symptoms that marked him out as spiritually precocious. Astrologers who consulted their almanacs predicted greatness for the child. However, the child's father died when he was barely seven years old. His elder brother Ramkumar had to substitute as the father figure for him in his youth.

At the age of seventeen, his elder brother Ram Kumar took him to Calcutta where he was running a pathshala (small school) for young children. His elder brother tried to educate him but he flatly refused to have anything to do with formal education that would not lead him closer towards God. Around the same time, an affluent woman called Rani Rashomoni built a magnificent temple dedicated to the goddess Kali at Dakshineshwara. Ram Kumar was appointed as the head-priest of the temple while Gadadhar was made his apprentice. It was during this time that Ramakrishna had a vision of the Divine Mother.One day when his pain of the separation from divine mother became unbearable for him, he lifted a sword kept in temple and decided to give away his life in her feet. He was so intoxicated in divine love that he found his life worthless without her mother. Suddenly Ma Kali appeared in front of him and took the sword away from him. From that day, his life changed forever. From that day, he used to have constant vision of Ma Kali. His spiritual ecstasy became a subject of debate and discussion throughout the intellectual circles of Calcutta. Elite intellectuals of Bengal like founder of Brhmo Samaj Keshav Chandra Sen, eminent educationist and social reformist Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, starting coming to the humble priest of Dakshineshwar Kali Temple. Many of his later disciples such as Vivekananda and Brahmananda also first began visiting him out of curiosity more than anything else and dedicated their whole lives when introduced with his divine soul.

When modern world is divided in various religions and sects, humanity is being crucified on the name of religion and god; teachings of Sri Ramkrishna Paramhans show us a path of religious tolerance and integrity. However, he was a devotee of Divine Mother Kali, by his heart and soul, he himself experienced not only other path of Sadhna within Hinduism, but Islam and Christianity also. During his Sadhna period, Myriad saints and holy men into other paths of God-realization also initiated Ramakrishna Paramhansa.Although, being a Bhaktimargi (path of devotion and surrender); he successfully practiced Vedanta - a doctrine that believed in a formless God devoid of all physical attributes - under the guidance of Sri Totapuri and Tantra ,under Bhairvi. He even realized God through the dedicated practice of Islam and Christianity before coming to the conclusion that all religions and religious denominations led one towards the same goal. This makes him probably the greatest saint of the modern era.

His union with Divinity was so profound and strong that he used to see the form of Divine mother in every creature of this world. He started experiencing that everything in this world is manifestation of god. At the last stage of his life when he was suffering from throat cancer and it was not possible anymore for him to swallow anything, his disciples requested him to ask Ma Kali to cure him. Nevertheless, his answer was negative. He said that I am eating through yours mouth .

Sri Ramkrishna never had formal education, but whatever he said was full of ancient wisdom, because his words were manifestation of his own spiritual experiences. Although, he had not completed his school education properly, his disciples were highly educated. Swami Vivekananda, who is one of his most famous disciples, his successor and great scholar, founded Ramkrishna Mission to spread his teachings and believes.