A man had two sons. He sent them to a preceptor to study the scriptures and acquire the knowledge of Brahman. After a few years, they returned from the teacher’s house and bowed before their father who wanted to measure the depth of their knowledge of Brahman. He asked the elder son, “You have studied all the scriptures. Please tell me, what is the true nature of Brahman?” The boy began to explain in great detail about the nature of Brahman by quoting from various scriptures. The father did not say anything. Then, he asked the younger son the same question. But, the boy remained silent and stood with his eyes cast down. He did not utter a single word. The father was pleased and said to him, “My son, you have understood a little of Brahman. What is its true nature cannot be expressed in words.”
Once four friends who were walking together saw a place enclosed by wall which was quite high. They became eager to know what was inside. One of them climbed to the top of the wall. When he looked inside, he became speechless with wonder. He only cried, ‘Ah, Ah’ and jumped in. He could not give any information about what he saw. Then the others too did likewise and finally there was none who could tell what was inside.
Sri Ramakrishna used to narrate the above parables to explain the unfathomable and inexpressible nature of Brahman. He used to say that everything has become defiled except Brahman whose nature cannot be expressed in words. Brahman is so vast and infinite, the moment one tries to describe it, a limitation creeps in. Brahman which is described as boundless becomes limited. Hence, it is not possible to describe the nature of Brahman in words.