Life Lessons from SWAMI VIVEKANANDA

SWAMI VIVEKANANDA, HIS CALL to the NATION

Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902) Indian Yogi, revolutionary thinker and Great disciple of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa introduced the distilled wisdom of Indian spiritual tradition especially Vedanta and Yoga to the Western world at historical Parliament of the World's Religions in Chicago (1893), advocating universal harmony and spiritual unity. Swamiji championed service to humanity as worship of God, and promoted Indian nationalism during colonial rule, leaving a legacy of self-confidence and spiritual wisdom.

Presenting here the essence of his teachings/life mantras from his Complete Works, compiled by revered disciples in the small book – Swami Vivekananda, His Call to the Nation. These thought capsules motivates readers to be strong, self-reliant and unveil the inner strength and face life’s challenges confidently.

“Give me a few men and women who are pure and selfless, and I shall shake the world.” - Swami Vivekananda

FAITH AND STRENGTH

He is an atheist who doesn't believe in himself. The old religions said that he was an atheist who does not believe in atheist who did not believe in God. The new religion says that he is an atheist who does not believe in himself. (II. 301)

 

The history of the world is the history of a few men who had faith in themselves. That faith calls out the divinity within. You can do anything. You fail only when you do not strive sufficiently to manifest infinite power. As soon as a man or a nation loses faith, death comes. (VIII. 228)

 

Faith, faith, faith in ourselves, faith, faith in God, this is the secret of greatness. If you have faith in all the three hundred and thirty millions of your mythological gods, and in all the gods which foreigners have now and again introduced into your midst, and still have no faith in yourselves, there is no salvation for you. (III. 190)

 

Never think there is anything impossible for the soul. It is the greatest heresy to think so. If there is sin, this is the only sin-to say that you are weak, or others are weak. (II. 308)

 

Whatever you think, that you will be. If you think yourselves weak, weak you will be; if you think yourselves strong, strong you will be. (III. 130)

 

Be free; hope for nothing from any one. I am sure if you look back upon your lives, you will find that you were always vainly trying to get help from others, which never came. All the help that has come was from within yourselves. (II. 324)

 

Never say, 'No'; never say, 'I cannot', for you are infinite. Even time and space are as nothing compared with your nature. You can do anything and everything, you are almighty. (II. 300)

 

Ye are the children of God, the sharers of immortal bliss, holy and perfect beings. Ye divinities on earth-sinners! It is a sin to call a man so; it is a standing libel on human nature. Come up, O lions, and shake off the delusion that you are sheep; you are souls immortal, spirits free, blest and eternal. (I. 11)

 

Never mind the struggles, the mistakes. I never heard a cow tell a lie, but it is only a cow-never a man. So never mind these ideal a thousand times; and if you fail a failures, these little backslidings; hold the thousand times make the attempt once more, (II. 152)

The remedy for weakness is not brooding over weakness, but thinking of strength. Teach men of the strength that is already within them. (II. 300)

 

If there is one word that you find coming like a bomb from the Upaniṣads, bursting like a bomb-shell upon masses of ignorance, it is the word, fearlessness. (III. 160)

 

If you look, you will find that I have never quoted anything but the Upaniṣads. And of the Upaniṣads, it is only that one idea strength. The quintessence of the Vedas and Vedānta and all lies in that one word. (VIII. 267)

 

Be strong, my young friends, that is my advice to you. You will be nearer to heaven through football than through the study of the Gitā. These are bold words, but I have to say them, for I love you. I know where the shoe pinches. I have gained a little experience. You will understand the Gitā better with your biceps, your muscles, a little stronger. (III. 242)

 

This is the one question I put to every man. Are you strong? Do you feel strength?-for I know it is truth alone that gives strength. Strength is the medicine for the world's disease. (II. 201)

 

This is the great fact: Strength is life; weakness is death. Strength is felicity, life eternal, immortal; weakness is constant strain and misery, weakness is death. (II. 3)

 

To succeed, you must have tremendous perseverance, tremendous will. "I will drink the ocean', says the persevering soul, 'at my will, mountains will crumble up.' Have that sort of energy, that sort of will; work hard, and you will reach the goal. (I. 178)

 

Men, men, these are wanted: everything else will be ready, but strong, vigorous, believing young men, sincere to the backbone, are wanted. A hundred such and the world becomes revolutionized. (III. 223-24)

In the Holy company of Swami Vivekananda

Concentration of mind – the Key

To me the very essence of education is concentration of mind, not the collection of facts....Ninety percent of thought force is wasted by the ordinary human being and therefore he is constantly committing blunders; the trained man or mind never makes a mistake.

Free! We cannot, for a moment, govern our own minds, nay, cannot hold our mind on a subject, focus it on a point to the exclusion of everything else for a moment! Yet we call ourselves free. Think of it!...The mind uncontrolled and unguided will drag us down, down, for ever – rend us – kill us; and mind controlled and guided will save us, free us.

 

Take up one idea. Make that one idea your life - think of it, dream of it, and live on that idea. Let the brain, muscles, nerves, every part of your body, be full of that idea, and just leave every other idea alone. This is the way to success…If we really want to be blessed and make others blessed, we must go deeper.

Education is not the amount of information that is put into your brain and runs riot there, undigested, all your life. We must have life-building, man-making, character-making assimilation of ideas. If you have assimilated five ideas and made them your life and character, you have more education than any man who has got by heart a whole library                                              (Source: Vivekananda, His Call to the Nation)  

With Swami Vivekananda, in the Hours of Meditation,

  Song of the Sanyasin Bold

 

Wake up the note! the song that had its birth

Far off, where worldly taint could never reach,

In mountain caves and glades of forest deep,

Whose calm no sigh for lust or wealth or fame

Could ever dare to break; where rolled the stream

Of knowledge, truth, and bliss that follows both.

Sing high that note, Sannyasin bold! Say–

“Om Tat Sat, Om!”

Strike off thy fetters! Bonds that bind thee down,

Of shining gold, or darker, baser ore;

Love-hate, good-bad and all the dual throng,

Know, slave is slave, caressed or whipped, not free;

For fetters, though of gold, are not less strong to bind;

Then off with them, Sannyasin bold! Say–

“Om Tat Sat, Om!”

Let darkness go; the will-o’-the-wisp that leads

With blinking light to pile more gloom on gloom.

This thirst for life, for ever quench; it drags

From birth to death, and death to birth, the soul.

He conquers all who conquers self. Know this

And never yield, Sannyasin bold! Say–

“Om Tat Sat, Om!”

“Who sows must reap,” they say, “and cause must bring

The sure effect; good, good; bad, bad; and none

Escape the law. But who so wears a form

Must wear the chain.” Too true; but far beyond

Both name and form is Atman, ever free.

Know thou art That, Sannyasin bold! Say–

“Om Tat Sat, Om! ”

They know not truth who dream such vacant dreams

As father, mother, children, wife, and friend.

The sexless Self! whose father He? whose child?

Whose friend, whose foe is He who is but One?

The Self is all in all, none else exists;

And thou art That, Sannyasin bold! Say–

“Om Tat Sat, Om!”

There is but One–The Free–The Knower–Self!

Without a name, without a form or stain.

In Him is Maya dreaming all this dream.

The witness, He appears as nature, soul.

Know thou art That, Sannyasin bold! Say–

“Om Tat Sat, Om!”

Where seekest thou? That freedom, friend, this world

Nor that can give. In books and temples vain

Thy search. Thine only is the hand that holds

The rope that drags thee on. Then cease lament,

Let go thy hold, Sannyasin bold! Say–

“Om Tat Sat, Om!”

Say, “Peace to all: From me no danger be

To aught that lives. In those that dwell on high.

In those that lowly creep, I am the Self in all!

All life both here and there, do I renounce,

All heavens and earths and hells, all hopes and fears.”

Thus cut thy bonds, Sannyasin bold! Say–

“Om Tat Sat, Om!”

Heed then no more how body lives or goes,

Its task is done. Let Karma float it down;

Let one put garlands on, another kick

This frame; say naught. No praise or blame can be

Where praiser praised, and blamer blamed are one.

Thus be thou calm, Sannyasin bold! Say–

“Om Tat Sat, Om!”

Truth never comes where lust and fame and greed

Of gain reside. No man who thinks of woman

As his wife can ever perfect be;

Nor he who owns the least of things, nor he

Whom anger chains, can ever pass thro’ Maya’s gates.

So, give these up, Sannyasin bold! Say–

“Om Tat Sat, Om!”

Have thou no home. What home can hold thee, friend?

The sky thy roof, the grass thy bed; and food

What chance may bring, well cooked or ill, judge not.

No food or drink can taint that noble Self

Which knows Itself. Like rolling river free

Thou ever be, Sannyasin bold! Say–

“Om Tat Sat, Om!”

Few only know the truth. The rest will hate

And laugh at thee, great one; but pay no heed.

Go thou, the free, from place to place, and help

Them out of darkness, Maya’s veil. Without

The fear of pain or search for pleasure, go

Beyond them both, Sannyasin bold! Say–

“Om Tat Sat, Om!”

Thus, day by day, till Karma’s powers spent

Release the soul for ever. No more is birth,

Nor I, nor thou, nor God, nor man. The “I”

Has All become, the All is “I” and Bliss.

Know thou art That, Sannyasin bold! Say–

“Om Tat Sat, Om!”

(CW. Vol.4, Page-392)