True Teacher

The true teacher is one who can throw his whole force into the tendency of the taught. Without real sympathy we can never teach well. Give up the notion that man is a responsible being, only the perfect man is responsible. The ignorant have drunk deep of the cup of delusion and are not sane. You, who know, must have infinite patience with these. Have nothing but love for them and find out the disease that has made them see the world in a wrong light, then help them to cure it and see aright. 

Remember always that only the free have free will; all the rest are in bondage and are not responsible for what they do. Will as will is bound. The water when melting on the top of the Himalayas is free, but becoming the river, it is bound by the banks; yet the original impetus carries it to the sea, and it regains its freedom. The first is the “fall of man”, the second is the “resurrection”. Not one atom can rest until it finds its freedom.

Some imaginations help to break the bondages of the rest. The whole universe is an imagination but one set of imagination will cure another set. Those which tell us that there is sin and sorrow and death in the world are terrible; but other set which says ever “I am holy, there is God, there is no pain”, these are good and help to break the bondages of others. The highest imagination that can break all the links of the chain is that of personal God. (VII, 99)

Swamiji sometimes used the example of a small container containing a very long coiled spring, to illustrate man’s innate desire for freedom.

 On October 2nd, as we celebrate the birth day of Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of our Nation, who, following the ideals of Truth, non violence and renunciation helped our nation to break the bondage of slavery, let us remember how he acknowledged the inspiring power of Swamiji’s life and message. The words quoted above throw light into the life of Mahatma Gandhi as well. To quote Gandhiji’s words about Swamiji “I have gone through his works very thoroughly, and after having gone through them, the love that I had for my country became a thousand fold. I ask you young men, not to go away empty handed without imbibing something of the spirit of the place where Swami Vivekananda lived and died.” 

Ignorance breeds Unhappiness

Dear Miss Noble,

One idea that I see clear as daylight is that misery is caused by ignorance and nothing else. Who will give the world light? Sacrifice in the past has been the Law, it will be, alas, for ages to come. The earth’s bravest and best will have to sacrifice themselves for the good of many, for the welfare of all. Buddhas by the hundred are necessary with eternal love and pity.

Yours affectionately,

Vivekananada(VII, 501)

Not only the ‘ Sri Ramakrishna family’ but the whole of India accepted Sister Nivedita as Swamiji’s dear daughter. Her role in our freedom movement is written in golden letters. Born in Ireland she grew up as a British citizen, became Swamiji’s disciple and transformed herself totally by integrating into her character and behaviour all that is truly Indian. She raised her voice against the authorities for justice towards India and Indians. When we think of Swamiji we can’t but remember this wonderful Guru Shishya ideal. Her mortal remains were put to rest in Dehradoon. But her soul continues to inspire thousands of Niveditas in India even today. 

Who is a true Jnani, and who is a true Bhakta?

Q.- Who is a true Jnani, and who is a true Bhakta?

A.- The true Jnani is he who  has the deepest love within his  heart and at the same time is a practical seer of Advaita in his outward relations.And the true Bhakta (lover) is he who, realising his own soul as identified with the universal Soul, and thus possessed of the true Jnana within, feels  for and loves everyone. Of Jnana and Bhakti he who advocates one and denounces the other cannot be either a Jnani or a  Bhakta but he is a thief and a cheat.

Q.-Why should a man serve Ishvara?

A.-If  you once admit that there is such a thing as Ishwara (God), you have numberlessoccasionsto serve Him.Service of the Lordmeans according to all the scriptural  authorities, remembrance (Smarana). If you believe in the existence of God, you will be reminded of Him at every step of your life. (V, 318)

Clarifying the difference between a jnani and a bhakta Swamiji further adds that karma means either service to humanity or preaching. To real preaching, no doubt, none has the right except the Siddhapurusha. But to service every one has the right and not only so, but every one is under obligation to serve others, so long as he is accepting service from others. 

Being and Becoming.

        Vedas teach that the soul is divine, only held in the bondage of matter; perfection will be reached when this bond will burst, and the word they use for it is therefore, Mukti — freedom, freedom from the bonds of imperfection, freedom from death and misery.

And this bondage can only fall off through the mercy of God, and this mercy comes on the pure. So purity is the condition of His mercy. How does that mercy act? He reveals Himself to the pure heart; the pure and the stainless see God, yea, even in this life; then and then only all the crookedness of the heart is made straight. Then all doubt ceases. He is no more the freak of a terrible law of causation. This is the very centre, the very vital conception of Hinduism. The Hindu does not want to live upon words and theories. If there are existences beyond the ordinary sensuous existence, he wants to come face to face with them. 

        If there is a soul in him which is not matter, if there is an all-merciful  universal Soul, he will go to Him direct. He must see Him, and that alone can destroy all doubts. So the best proof a Hindu sage gives about the soul, about God, is: “I have seen the soul; I have seen God.” And that is the only condition of perfection. The Hindu religion does not consist in struggles and attempts to believe a certain doctrine or dogma, but in realising — not in believing, but in being and becoming. (I, 12-13)

As different from other religions, God’s grace reveals itself  by making the seeker’s mind more and more pure so that the light of the Self within shines better and better. It lifts human mind to a universal level, eradicating dualistic ideas and feelings,opening up doors to the realisation of Self.  God’s grace hastens this process of progress towards spiritual perfection. God’s grace is never meant for acquiring material benefits.   

A few Pearls of ‘ Brahmananda’

.......Hence, when you call Shri Ramakrishna an Incarnation and in the same breath plead your ignorance unhesitatingly, I say, “You are false to the backbone!” If Ramakrishna Paramahamsa be true, you also are true. But you must show it. ... In you all, there is tremendous power. The atheist has nothing but rubbish in him. Those who are believers are heroes. They will manifest tremendous power. The world will be swept before them. “Sympathy and help to the poor”; “Man is God, he is Nârâyana”; “In Atman there is no distinction of male or female, of Brahmin or Kshatriya, and the like”; “All is Narayana from the Creator down to a clump of grass.” The worm is less manifested, the Creator more manifested. Every action that helps a being manifest its divine nature more and more is good, every action that retards it is evil.

The only way of getting our divine nature manifested is by helping others to do the same.

If there is inequality in nature, still there must be equal chance for all — or if greater for some and for some less — the weaker should be given more chance than the strong.

  All expansion is life, all contraction is death. All love is expansion all selfishness is contraction. Love is therefore the only law of life. He who loves lives, he who is selfish is dying. Therefore love for love’s sake, because it is the only law of life, just as you breathe to live. This is the secret of selfless love, selfless action and the rest. ...  (VI, 318 – 320)

Way to Blessedness

What is this Self? We have seen that It is even beyond the intellect. We learn from the same Upanishad that this Self is eternal and omnipresent, that you and I and all of us are omnipresent beings, and that the Self is changeless. Now this omnipresent Being can be only one. There cannot be two beings who are equally omnipresent — how could that be? There cannot be two beings who are infinite, and the result is, there is really only one Self, and you, I, and the whole universe are but one, appearing as many. 

“As the one fire entering into the world manifests itself in various ways, even so that one Self, the Self of all, manifests Itself in every form.” But the question is: If this Self is perfect and pure, and the One Being of the universe, what becomes of It when It goes into the impure body, the wicked body, the good body, and so on? How can It remain perfect? “The one sun is the cause of vision in every eye, yet it is not touched by the defects in the eyes of any.” If a man has jaundice he sees everything as yellow; the cause of his vision is the sun, but his seeing everything as yellow does not touch the sun. Even so this One Being, though the Self of every one, is not touched by the purities or impurities outside. “In this world where everything is evanescent, he who knows Him who never changes, in this world of insentience, he who knows the one sentient Being, in this world of many, he who knows this One and sees Him in his own soul, unto him belongs eternal bliss, to none else, to none else. 

        There the sun shines not, nor the stars, nor the lightning flashes, what to speak of fire? He shining, everything shines; through His light everything becomes effulgent. When all the desires that trouble the heart cease, then the mortal becomes immortal, and here one attains Brahman. When all the crookedness of the heart  disappears, when all its knots are cut asunder, then alone the mortal becomes immortal. This is the way. May this study bless us; may it maintain us; may it give us strength, may it become energy in us; may we not hate each other; peace unto all!” (II, 411- 412)

        Which other culture or religion can claim a better universal and unifying vision?  It is this Vedic Vision that has sustained the dynamism and relevance of our spiritual heritage. It is this vision that has been handed over from generation to generation through the uniquely Indian Guru Shishya Tradition and has provided the unique fragrance to the Indian culture which is sought out by the discerning people all over the world.

Every Hindu born in this Punyabhumi, in spite of his being ignorant of the great Hindu traditions, is aware of at least  one thing, that is, within him lies the imperishable Atman which is one with everything in the universe. 

What is That, knowing which everything is known.

You must remember the one theme that runs through all the Vedas: “Just as by the knowledge of one lump of clay we know all the clay that is in the universe, so what is that, knowing which we know everything else?” This, expressed more or less clearly, is the theme of all human knowledge. It is the finding of a unity towards which we are all going. Every action of our lives — the most material, the grossest as well as the finest, the highest, the most spiritual — is alike tending towards this one ideal, the finding of unity. 

        A man is single. He marries. Apparently it may be a selfish act, but at the same time, the impulsion, the motive power, is to find that unity. He has children, he has friends, he loves his country, he loves the world, and ends by loving the whole universe. Irresistibly we are impelled towards that perfection which consists in finding the unity, killing this little self and making ourselves broader and broader. This is the goal, the end towards which the universe is rushing. Every atom is trying to go and join itself to the next atom. Atoms after atoms combine, making huge balls, the earths, the suns, the moons, the stars, the planets. They in their turn, are trying to rush towards each other, and at last, we know that the whole universe, mental and material, will be fused into one. (VI, 4- 5) 

   Swamiji explains further clarifying the above statement.

“The process that is going on in the cosmos on a large scale, is the same as that going on in the microcosm on a smaller scale. Just as this universe has its existence in separation, in distinction, and all the while is rushing towards unity, non-separation, so in our little worlds each soul is born, as it were, cut off from the rest of the world. The more ignorant, the more unenlightened the soul, the more it thinks that it is separate from the rest of the universe. The more ignorant the person, the more he thinks, he will die or will be born, and so forth — ideas that are an expression of this separateness.” (VI, 5)