Collection of Thoughts from Hindu Mystics - Part III (standard:non fiction, 2989 words) [3/4] show all parts
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Collection of thoughts from Swami Vivekananda

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In conclusion, it is imperative that all these various yogas should be
carried out in practice; mere theories about them will not do any good. 
First we have to hear about them, and then we have to think about them. 
We have to reason the thoughts out, impress them on our minds, and we 
have to meditate on them, realize them, until at last they become our 
whole life. No longer will religion remain a bundle of ideas and 
theories, nor an intellectual assent; it will enter into our very self. 
By means of intellectual assent we may today subscribe to many foolish 
things, and change our minds altogether tomorrow. But true religion 
never changes. Religion is realization, not talk, nor doctrine, nor 
theories, however beautiful they may be. It is being and becoming, not 
hearing or acknowledging; it is the whole soul becoming changed into 
what it believes. That is religion. The conceptions of Vedanta should 
not be limited to the sanctuary of learned people, it should be 
discussed by all sections of the society, students in the schools, 
colleges and universities; fishermen, vegetable vendors, office 
workers, factory workers, healthcare workers, young and mature people. 

Vivekananda on Shrutis and Smritis 

In Shrutis, the eternal relations which deal with the nature of the
soul, and the God, and the relationship between soul and God are 
embodied. The idea is that the framework of the destiny and the goal of 
man have been all delineated in the Vedas (Shrutis). All the advice 
that is necessary to lead the soul to perfection has been completed in 
the Shrutis. The details have been left to be worked out in the Smritis 
and Puranas. Shrutis have many sages as recorders of the truth 
(original composers), but very little was known of their personalities, 
the dates but their best thoughts, their best discoveries were 
preserved in the sacred literature called Vedas. 

Smritis as embodied in the works of Manu, Yajnavalkya, and other writers
and also in the Puranas, down to the tantras. The personalities that 
wrote Smritis were in evidence. 

A peculiarity which we have to understand that Hindu religion (universal
religion) preaches an Impersonal Personal God. It preaches any amount 
of impersonal laws plus and any amount of personality, but the very 
fountain-head of our religion is in the Shrutis, the Vedas which are 
perfectly impersonal; the persons all come in the Smritis and Puranas , 
the great Avataras, Incarnations of God, Prophets, and so forth. It 
should be noted that except in Hindu (universal) religion, every other 
religion in the world depends on the life and teachings of the founder 
of the religion. For example, Christianity was built upon the life of 
Jesus Christ, Islam on the teachings of Mohammed, Buddhism on Buddha 
and Jainism on Jinas and so on. In Hinduism, Lord Krishna is not the 
authority of the Vedas, but the Vedas are the authority of Krishna 
himself. His greatest glory that he is the greatest preacher of the 
Vedas the ever existed. So with other Incarnations. 

Vivekananda on Superstitions 

In India, all sorts of little superstitions passing under the name of
religion. For some, every little superstition is a mandate of the 
Vedas. An atheist ranks above superstitious fool. We can make something 
out of an atheist, but if superstition enters, the brain is overtaken 
by blind beliefs. Avoid all mystery. There is no mystery in religion. 
Mystery mongering and superstitions are always signs of weakness and 
degradation. 

Vivekananda on Sages of India 

Shankaracharya was a great intellect but not known for his great heart.
His philosophic sect was about wonderful liberalism (Advaita). 
Shankaracharya to whom every Advaitavadin in the world owes allegiance. 
There is not a man who follows Shankara who will say that all the 
different sects of India are really different. 

Ramanuja was a sage with great heart. He felt for the downtrodden with
whom he sympathized. He took up the ceremonies and instituted new ones 
particularly for those that absolutely required. He opened door to the 
highest spiritual worship to the pariah. His highest contribution is 
opening door of spirituality to everyone. That was Ramanuja's work. 

Ramanuja's work rolled on and spread to the North and took up by Sage
Chaitanya particularly after Islam invaded India. Chaitanya was a 
professor of logic fighting but became a changed man and gave up his 
fighting and quarrels and became one of the greatest teachers of Bhakti 
the world has ever known – mad Chaitanya. His Bhakti rolled over the 
whole land of Bengal bringing solace to everyone. His love knew no 
bounds; the saint or the sinner, the Hindu or the Muslim, the pure or 
the impure, all share in his mercy. His sect is the refuge of the poor, 
the downtrodden, the outcast, the weak and those that have been 
rejected by the society. 

Great Madhava whose leadership was recognized even by the followers of
that only northern prophet whose power has felt all over the India 
Krishna Chaitanya. The influence of Chaitanya is all over India, 
wherever the Bhakti-Marga is known, there Chaitanya is appreciated. 
Shri Vallabhacharya recension is only a branch of the sect founded by 
Chaitanya. 

Patanjali, the father of yoga said “when man rejects all the superhuman
powers, then he attains the cloud of virtue. He sees God. Then he 
becomes God, and help other to become God.” 

Shankaracharya had a great head; Ramanuja and Chaitanya have great
heart. The embodiment of both the head and heart was Ramakrishna 
Paramahamsa. 

Paramahamsa found that the one idea in all religions is “not me,” but
“Thou,” and he who says “not me,” the Lord fills his heart. The less of 
this little “I” the more God there is in him (this reminds of Ramana 
Maharishi's re-discovery of same philosophy in a later time). 
Paramahamsa had the most wonderful faculty of carrying everything into 
practice which he thought was right. 

According to Paramahamsa, religion does not consist erecting temples or
building churches, or attending public worship. It is not to be found 
in books, or in words or in lectures, or in organizations. Religion 
consists in realization. As a fact, nothing will satisfy us until we 
know the truth for ourselves. However, it may be argued, or heard, only 
one thing will satisfy is our own realization and such experience is 
possible for everyone if will only try. The first ideal of this attempt 
to realize religion is that of renunciation. Darkness and light; 
enjoyment of world and enjoyment of God will never go together. If one 
word remains true in his saying, it is give up everything for the sake 
of the Lord. 

As per Ramakrishna, one eternal religion is applied to different planes
of existence, is applied to the opinion of various minds worldwide. 
There was never was my religion or yours, my national religion or your 
national religion, there never existed many religions, there is only 
the one. One infinite religion existed all through the eternity and 
will ever exist, and this religion is expressing itself in various 
countries and in various ways. Therefore, we shall respect all 
religions and we must accept them all. 

This is the message of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa to the modern world: Do
not care for doctrines, do not care for dogmas or sects or churches or 
temples, they count for little compared to the essence of existence in 
each man, which is spirituality, and the more this is developed in a 
man, the more powerful is he for good. Show by your lives that religion 
does not mean words or names or sects but that it means spiritual 
realization. Other teachers have taught religions which bear their 
names, but Paramahamsa made no claim for himself. He left other 
religions undisturbed because he realized that in realty they are all 
part and parcel of the one eternal religion. Ramakrishna got his 
sannyasashrama from Tota Puri. 

Vivekananda on the symbol OM 

Every idea in mind has a counterpart in a word; the word and the thought
are inseparable. So long as man has existed there have been words and 
language. What is the connection between an idea and a word? The 
thought may be the same in several languages of the world yet the 
language is different. We must have a word to express each thought, but 
these words need not necessarily have the same sound. The sounds vary, 
yet the relation between the sounds and the thoughts is a natural one. 
The connection between thoughts and sounds is good only if there is 
really if there is a real connection between the thing signified and 
the symbol; until then that symbol will never come into general use. A 
symbol is the manifestor of the thing signified, and if the thing 
signified has already an existence, and if, by experience , we know 
that the symbol has expressed that thing many times, then we are sure 
that there is a real relation between them (a long sentence requires 
reading several times to understand!.) 

There must be a natural connection between the symbol and thing
signified; then, when that symbol is pronounced, it recalls the thing 
signified. Hindu mystics say the manifesting word of God is OM. Why 
emphasize this word OM? There are hundreds of words for God. One 
thought is connected with a thousand words, and each one stands as a 
symbol for God. Very good. But there must be generalization among all 
these words, some substratum, some common ground of all these symbols, 
and that which is the common symbol will be the best, and really 
represent them all. In making a sound we use the larynx and the palate 
as sounding board. In pronouncing the word OM (AUM), the first letter A 
when pronounced no part of the tongue is used and when pronouncing M or 
UM, the lips are closed. In other words, in pronouncing the word OM or 
AUM, no part of tongue and palate is used. Thus, OM represents the 
whole phenomena of sound-producing. As such, it must be the natural 
symbol, the matrix of all the various sounds. It denotes the whole 
range and possibilities of all the words that can be made. All this 
could be speculative. And yet, all the religious ideas of the Vedas 
have gathered themselves around this word OM or AUM. The use of word 
GOD covers a limited function since people have to add an adjective to 
make it personal, impersonal or absolute. But the word OM signifies 
everything spiritual. 

Vivekananda on Gita 

Gita forms a part of the Mahabharata. The authorship of Mahabharata was
attributed to Veda-Vyasa. Since Vyasa was only a title, anyone who 
composed a new purana was known by the name Vyasa. Gita was not much 
known to the general public before Shankaracharya made it famous by 
writing his great commentary on it. Long before that, Bodhayana 
commented on Gita. If this could be proved, it establishes the 
antiquity of the Gita and the authorship of Vyasa. However, not a copy 
of Bodhayana Bhashya on Vedanta Sutras was ever found. 

It is said that Ramanuja compiled his Shri-Bhasya from a worm-eaten
manuscript of Bodhayana Bhashya which he happened to find. Since 
Bodhayana Bhashya on Vedanta Sutras was so much shrouded in 
uncertainty, it is simply useless to try to establish the existence of 
Bodhayana Bhashya on Gita. Some even infer that Shankaracharya was the 
author of the Gita, and it was he who foisted it into the body of 
Mahabharata. 

The Upanishads deal elaborately with Shraddha in many places, but hardly
mention Bhakti. In Gita, on the other hand, the subject of Bhakti is 
not only mentioned again and again, but in it, the innate spirit of 
Bhakti was attained its culmination. 

In conclusion, before the advent of a scripture named Gita, Jnana and
Bhakti yoga had their it's strong adherents, they all argued among 
themselves each claiming superiority for their own chosen path. It was 
the author (whom ever it may be) of Gita who for the first time tried 
to harmonize Jnana and Bhakti yoga. But only Ramakrishna Paramahamsa in 
19th century was fully successful in complete reconciliation of Jnana 
and Bhakti yoga in interpreting Gita. Also, Nishkama-Karma or work 
without a desire or attachment was special characteristics of the Gita. 


Vivekananda on his visit to America 

o Stayed three years in US. 

o American mind peculiarly susceptible to new ideas, nothing is rejected
because it is new. 

o Did not find anything new about religion in USA. 

o USA is always involved in perfecting of the social state. 

o With exception of the missionaries and church-women, the Americans are
most hospitable, kind hearted, generous and good natured people. 

On his visit to England 

o English churchmen belongs to the class of gentlemen. 

o The Englishman goes to practical work as soon as he believes in
something. 

o They have tremendous energy for practical work. 

On his visit to Japan 

o Never seen such a patriotic and artistic people as Japanese. 

o Japanese think that everything Hindu is great and believes that India
is a holy land. 

o Japanese Buddhism is entirely different from Sri Lanka Buddhism and is
more close to Hindu Vedanta. 

On Ideal Society of India 

Combination of the Greek mind represented by the external European
energy added to the Hindu spirituality would be the ideal society for 
India. 

On the role of Religion 

The religion has to do only with the Soul and has no business to
interfere in social matters. A big mistake of religion was to interfere 
in social matters. (This is a significant statement from Vivekananda 
made over one hundred years ago and it is so relevant to current 
situation where religious zealots take a stand on every social issue 
from abortion to many other issues.) 


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