The Swami who personified confidence

Shivangi Singh Has anyone told You that You are God? Divinity is You. And the only sin is to think that You are weak, or others are weak. All the powers in this universe are Yours. Identify the God in You and then help others to be Gods! This is no lesson in blasphemy or narcissism; these are the thoughts of Swami Vivekananda, the man who personified dynamic positive energy! He was an extraordinary youth, regal in bearing, blessed with astonishing intellect and profound wisdom but there was certain restlessness in his spirit. He was considered an intellectual giant in his college. Foremost in every field, he was a born leader. But there were questions that troubled him continually. Was there a God? And if there was a God, what was He like? What is man’s relation with Him? These are the questions that trouble most of us; the difference is that we do not take the trouble to find the answers. He took the trouble. He discussed it with saints, philosophers and wise men, but none could satisfy his curiosity. Then, this educated and bright youth met an insignificant, illiterate man – Ramakrishna Paramhansa. He asked the same old question, “Have you seen God?” The instant answer from a smiling Ramakrishna was, "Yes, I see God, just as I see you here, only much intensely." He did not believe him at first and thought he was mad. What Ramakrishna said was completely in contrast to his western pattern of education. It shook his scientifically cultivated intellect. But something in the child-like simplicity of the man attracted him. He could not prevent himself from going to him again and again, and yet, again. Naren (as he was fondly called) never accepted things without verifying it thoroughly, so he tested Ramakrishna to the maximum. The master was patient, forgiving, humorous and full of love. He faced all the tests of this educated scholar and satisfied all his curiosity. Soon, he realized that Ramakrishna was an ocean of rare knowledge, not to be found in books. And within a span of five years, the restless, puzzled, impulsive youth Naren was transformed into the great mystic – Swami Vivekananda. Within the short life span of thirty-nine years (1863-1902), he achieved the unachievable. He left for posterity his classics – Jnana-Yoga, Bhakti-Yoga, Karma-Yoga, and Raja-Yoga, all of which are great treatises on Hindu philosophy. He established the Ramakrishna Mission, which is one of the most prominent religious organisations of modern India. It is devoted to the propagation of the Vedanta philosophy not only in India, but also in America and in other parts of the world. In addition to this, he delivered lectures, wrote inspiring letters and acted as spiritual guide to the multitudes who were thirsting for spiritual respite and peace. Rabindranath Tagore had once remarked, “If you want to know India, study Vivekananda. In him everything is positive and nothing negative”. Swamiji’s birthday on January 12th is observed as the National Youth Day. His lofty philosophy and ideals are timeless and very relevant for the youth across nations and generations. The late Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru said that “rooted in the past and full of pride of India’s heritage, Vivekanada was yet modern in his approach to life’s problems…He came as a tonic to the depressed and demoralized Hindu mind and gave it self-reliance and some roots in the past.” Motivating Anecdotes: The talented genius Even as a child, Swamiji was a great orator and a master story-teller. His words were as magnetic as his personality and when he spoke he commanded attention of everyone present. One day while in school, Naren was talking animatedly to his friends during a class recess. Meanwhile, the teacher entered the classroom and started teaching his subject. But the students were raptly listening to Naren`s story. When the teacher heard the whispers, he was annoyed. He asked each student what he had been lecturing on. None could answer except Naren. His mind could work simultaneously on two planes. While he had engaged one part of his mind in talking, he had kept the other half on the lesson. So when the teacher asked him that question, he answered correctly. The teacher then punished all the students except Naren but he also joined his friends and stood up. The teacher asked him to sit down. But Naren replied: `No sir, I must also stand up because it was I who was talking to them.` The tale of inspiration Swami Vivekananda was wandering in the Himalayas when he saw a thin old man standing at the foot of an upward slope. He was extremely exhausted and on seeing Swamiji, the man articulated his grief, `Oh, Swamiji, how to cross it; I cannot walk any more; my chest will break.` Swamiji listened to the old man patiently and then said, `Look down at your feet. The road that is under your feet is the road that you have passed over and is the same road that you see before you; it will soon be under your feet.` These words inspired the old man and he resumed his onward trek. The tale of love Swamiji talked about an incident: I had a friend who grew to be very fond of me. Once when we were sitting at the edge of a swimming pool, she filled the palm of her hand with a little water and held it before me, and said, "You see this water carefully contained on my hand? It symbolises Love”. This was how Vivekananda interpreted it: "As long as you keep your hand caringly open and allow it to remain there, it will always be there. However, if you attempt to close your fingers round it and try to posses it, it will spill through the first cracks it finds. This is the greatest mistake that people do when they meet love...they try to posses it, they demand, they expect and just like the water spilling out of your hand, Love will retrieve from you. For love is meant to be free, you cannot change its nature. If there are people you love, allow them to be free beings. It might sound simple, but it is a lesson that may take a lifetime to truly practice. It is the secret of true love. To truly practice it, you must sincerely feel no expectations from those who you love, and yet an unconditional caring." Great love for humanity During his days as a wandering mendicant, he reached Rajasthan. People flocked to him and asked many questions, Swamiji tirelessly answered them. Three days and three nights passed in this manner. Swamiji was so engrossed in talking about spiritual matters that he did not even stop to eat. Nobody thought of asking him for food. On the third day, a poor man came to him and lovingly said, “Swamiji, I have noticed that for three days you have been talking and talking. You have not taken even a drop of water! This has pained me very much.” Swamiji felt that God himself appeared before him in form of the poor man. He asked for food. The man was a cobbler by profession, he hesitated and said, “Swamiji, my heart yearns to give you some bread, but how can I? I have touched it. If you permit, I will bring you some coarse flour and dal and you can prepare them as you please!` With tears in his eyes, Swamiji said, “No, my child; give me the bread you have baked. I shall be happy to eat it.” The man hurriedly brought some food for him. Meanwhile, some upper caste people came and expressed their displeasure on seeing Swamiji enjoying the food of a low-born. Swamiji patiently heard them and then said, “You people made me talk without respite for the past three days, but you did not even care to inquire if I had taken any food and rest. You claim you are gentlemen and boast of your high caste; what is more shameful, you condemn this man for being of a low caste. Can you overlook the humanity he has just shown and despise him without feeling ashamed?” Face your fears to overcome them Once at Varanasi, as Swamiji was coming out of the temple of Mother Durga, he was surrounded by a large number of monkeys. They seemed to be threatening him and were ready to attack him. Swamiji started to run away. But the monkeys chased him. An ordinary man was seeing all this, he called out to Swamiji, `Stop! Face the brutes!` Swamiji stopped. He turned around and faced the monkeys. At once, they ran away. Many years later, Swamiji said, “If you ever feel afraid of anything, always turn round and face it. Never think of running away.” Swamiji always believed in taking lessons from every-day ordinary incidents. The power of concentration In America, Swamiji was watching some boys. They were standing on the bridge trying to shoot at egg-shells that were floating on the river, but they always missed the target. Swamiji had never ever used the gun. But he took the gun and aimed at the shells. He fired twelve times and every time he hit an egg-shell. The boys asked Swamiji, “Well Mister, how did you do it?” Swamiji said, “Whatever you are doing, put your whole mind on it. If you are shooting, your mind should be only on the target. Then you will never miss. If you are learning your lessons, think only of the lesson. In my country boys are taught to do this.” ‘Sisters and Brothers of America’ Swamiji took the world by storm when he delivered the message of his Master Shri Ramakrishna Paramhansa to the entire world through the portals of “Parliament of Religion” held in Chicago in 1893. He addressed his audience as ‘Sisters and Brothers of America’ that sent ripples of enthusiasm through the assembled Parliament. Later when asked about the incident, he stated that purity in mind, body and soul had given him such tremendous power to the statement. Here Swamiji lectured on universality of religious truths. He had learnt and realized that all religions were but different paths leading to the ‘Reality’. He expounded the doctrines of Vedanta philosophy, which harmonises all religious ideals and all forms of worship. He brought back the lost pride of Indians, which had been crushed, under the foreign rule. He proved to the western world the richness of spiritual philosophies in India. Thoughts that can change lives:

“The greatest religion is to be true to your own nature. Have faith in yourselves!”

“You cannot believe in God until you believe in yourself.”

“The first sign of your becoming religious is that you are becoming cheerful”

“It is a tremendous error to feel helpless. Do not seek help from anyone. We are our own help.”

“Never think there is anything impossible for the soul. It is the greatest hearsay to think so. If there is sin, this is the only sin – to say that you are weak, or others are weak.”

“You have to grow from the inside out. None can teach you, none can make you spiritual. There is no other teacher but your own soul.”

“We are what our thoughts have made us; so take care about what you think. Words are secondary. Thoughts live; they travel far.”

“Take up one idea. Make that one idea your life – think of it, dream of it, 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, that is way great spiritual giants are produced.”

“If you think about disaster, you will get it. Brood about death and you hasten your demise. Think positively and masterfully, with confidence and faith, and life becomes more secure, more fraught with action, richer in achievement and experience.”

“Infinite power of the spirit, brought to bear upon matter evolves material development, made to act upon thought evolves intellectuality, and made to act upon itself makes of man a God. First, let us be Gods, and then help other to be Gods. "Be and Make." Let this be our motto.”

“That man has reached immortality who is disturbed by nothing material.”

“India will be raised with the power of spirit with the flag of peace and not with the flag of destruction”.

"The spell of imitating the west is getting such a strong hold upon us that what is good or what is bad is no longer decided by reason, judgment, discrimination or reference to the Shastra. New India is saying that if we only adopt western ideas, western language, western manners, we shall be strong and powerful. Old India says, “Fools, the life blood of India is spirituality. By imitation, other’s ideas never become one’s own. Does the ass in lion’s skin become the lion?"