When Sri Ramakrishna was passing through the cyclone of spiritual practices his family who thought that he had gone crazy decided that marriage would bring his mind back to the day to day world. Accordingly, in 1859 at the age of 23 he was married to Saradamani Devi who was from the neighboring village of Jayrambati.

Sarada Devi was born on December 22, 1853 to humble and pious parents. She was the eldest of 7 children. She was as sweet natured, humble, and gentle, as all but one of her brothers and sisters were quarrelsome and difficult. As a girl she was hard working and diligent; in addition to her household tasks, when she could, she went with her younger siblings to school. In this way she learned to read and write.

After marrying Sarada Devi, Sri Ramakrishna again dove into his spiritual practices. Eight years after their marriage, he returned to his native village to became acquainted with his wife. In the time honored Indian tradition, he instructed her in spiritual and secular matters; he tutored her in both meditation, prayer, and the moral virtues necessary to lead a religious life, and in simple houselhold matters. The sum and substance of his teachings was that one should act in accordance with person, time, place and circumstances. Then after a short period of teaching, he returned to Dakeshineswar to continue his spiritual disciplines.

Four years later, Sarada Devi came to Dakeshineswar to live with her husband. He asked her if she had come to drag him back down worldly life. No,she said, she was there to help him acheive his spiritual mission. At Dakeshineswar, since Sri Ramakrishna slept so little, it disturbed Sarada Devi; out of his concern for her well-being, he asked her to live in a small room in the music tower a few meters from his room. Here she lived quietly during most of the rest of Sri Ramakrishna's life serving him and attending diligently to her own spiritual practices.

After the passing away of Sri Ramakrishna in August of 1886 Sarada Devi, went on a long pilgrimage to Vrindavan and then returned to take up residence in her native village. From this point until her death in 1920 she divided her time between Jayrambati and Calcutta. The direct disciples of Sri Ramakrishna looked up to her as if to the Master himself; even Swami Vivekananda, the one appointed by Sri Ramakrishna himself as the leader of the monastic disciples, looked up to her for advice and counsel. Before he left India to embark upon his world mission, he wrote to her to ask her permission.

Always the model of sweetness and mercy, she was looked up to and worshipped by all of the disciples of Sri Ramakrishna who addressed her as the Holy Mother. In the 34 years between the death of Sri Ramakrishna and her own passing away, she gave spiritual succour to untold numbers of seekers who made the pilgrimage to her native village(not an easy trek in those days) just to be able to spend a few days in her holy company. On July 21, 1920 she passed away in Calcutta.