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Ramakrishna Vivekananda Divinity School, Ramakrishna Math, Pune (2026)

04/10/2026

≈³ ᵐᶦⁿ. ʳᵉᵃᵈ
Secret of knowledge -> work -> success

We have but one method of acquiring knowledge. From the lowest man to the highest Yogi, all have to use the same method; and that method is what is called concentration. The chemist who works in his laboratory concentrates all the powers of his mind, brings them into one focus, and throws them on the elements; and the elements stand analysed, and thus his knowledge comes. The astronomer has also concentrated the powers of his mind and brought them into one focus; and he throws them on to objects through his telescope; and stars and systems roll forward and give up their secrets to him. So it is in every case — with the professor in his chair, the student with his book — with every man who is working to know. You are hearing me, and if my words interest you, your mind will become concentrated on them; and then suppose a clock strikes, you will not hear it, on account of this concentration; and the more you are able to concentrate your mind, the better you will understand me; and the more I concentrate my love and powers, the better I shall be able to give expression to what I want to convey to you. The more this power of concentration, the more knowledge is acquired, because this is the one and only method of acquiring knowledge. Even the lowest shoeblack, if he gives more concentration, will black shoes better; the cook with concentration will cook a meal all the better.

In making money, or in worshipping God, or in doing anything, the stronger the power of concentration, the better will that thing be done. This is the one call, the one knock, which opens the gates of nature, and lets out floods of light. This, the power of concentration, is the only key to the treasure-house of knowledge.

~Swami Vivekananda
Complete Works / Volume 2 / Practical Vedanta and other lectures / The Ideal of a Universal Religion

03/10/2026

≈³ ᵐᶦⁿ. ʳᵉᵃᵈ
Secret of work / success

One of the greatest lessons I have learnt in my life is to pay as much attention to the means of work as to its end. He was a great man from whom I learnt it, and his own life was a practical demonstration of this great principle I have been always learning great lessons from that one principle, and it appears to me that all the secret of success is there; to pay as much attention to the means as to the end.

Our great defect in life is that we are so much drawn to the ideal, the goal is so much more enchanting, so much more alluring, so much bigger in our mental horizon, that we lose sight of the details altogether.

But whenever failure comes, if we analyse it critically, in ninety-nine per cent of cases we shall find that it was because we did not pay attention to the means. Proper attention to the finishing, strengthening, of the means is what we need. With the means all right, the end must come. We forget that it is the cause that produces the effect; the effect cannot come by itself; and unless the causes are exact, proper, and powerful, the effect will not be produced. Once the ideal is chosen and the means determined, we may almost let go the ideal, because we are sure it will be there, when the means are perfected. When the cause is there, there is no more difficulty about the effect, the effect is bound to come. If we take care of the cause, the effect will take care of itself. The realization of the ideal is the effect. The means are the cause: attention to the means, therefore, is the great secret of life. We also read this in the Gita and learn that we have to work, constantly work with all our power; to put our whole mind in the work, whatever it be, that we are doing. At the same time, we must not be attached. That is to say, we must not be drawn away from the work by anything else; still, we must be able to quit the work whenever we like.

~Swami Vivekananda
Complete Works / Volume 2 / Work and its Secret

[Swami Vivekananda Work Secret Karma Yoga Gita]

02/10/2026

≈³ ᵐᶦⁿ. ʳᵉᵃᵈ
Reminiscences of Swami Vivekananda by Manmatha Nath Ganguli:

Here are a few incidents that I heard from Swamiji [Vivekananda] which have been referred to by others. But I give the details as I heard.

Swamiji said, "Then I used to beg my food from door to door in the Himalayas. Most of the time I spent in spiritual practices which were rigorous; and the food that was available was very coarse, and often that too was insufficient to appease the hunger.

One day I thought that my life was useless. These hill people are very poor themselves. They cannot feed their own children and family properly. Yet they try to save a little for me. Then what is the use of such a life? I stopped going out for food. Two days thus passed without any food. Whenever I was thirsty I drank the water of the streams using my palms as a cup. Then I entered a deep jungle. There I meditated sitting on a piece of stone.

My eyes were open, and suddenly I was aware of the presence of a striped tiger of a large size. It looked at me with its shining eyes. I thought, 'At long last I shall find peace and this animal its food. It is enough that this body will be of some service to this creature.'

I shut my eyes and waited for it, but a few seconds passed and I was not attacked. So, I opened my eyes and saw it receding in the forest. I was sorry for it and then smiled, for I knew it was the Master [Sri Ramakrishna] who was saving me till his work be done."

~Reminiscences of Swami Vivekananda by Manmatha Nath Ganguli

[Swami Vivekananda Vedanta Philosophy Wisdom Fearless]

01/10/2026

Reminiscences of Swami Vivekananda by K. Sundarama Iyer:

The Swami [Vivekananda] once made a spirited attack on the extravagant claims put forth by science on men's allegiance.

"If religion has its superstitions," the Swami remarked, "science has its superstitions too." Both the mechanical and evolutionary theories are, on examination, found inadequate and unsatisfying and still there are large numbers of men who speak of the entire universe as an open secret.

Agnosticism has also bulked large in men's esteem, but has only betrayed its ignorance and arrogance by ignoring the laws and truths of the Indian science of thought-control.

Western psychology has miserably failed to cope with the superconscious aspects and laws of human nature.

Where European science has stopped short, Indian psychology comes in and explains, illustrates and teaches how to render real and practical laws appertaining to higher states of existence and experience.

Religion alone — and especially the religion of the Indian sages — can understand the subtle and secret working of the human mind and conquer its unspiritual cravings so as to realize the one Existence and comprehend all else as its limitation and manifestation when under the bo***ge of matter.

Another subject on which the Swami spoke was the distinction between the world of gross matter (laukika) and the world of fine matter (alaukika).

The Swami explained how both kept man within the bo***ge of the senses, and only he who rose superior to both could attain to the freedom which is the aim of all life and raise himself above the petty vanities of the world, whether of men or gods.

~Reminiscences of Swami Vivekananda

[Swami Vivekananda Vedanta Philosophy Wisdom Science]

30/09/2026

≈² ᵐᶦⁿ. ʳᵉᵃᵈ
Ay, let every man and woman and child, without respect of caste or birth, weakness or strength, hear and learn that behind the strong and the weak, behind the high and the low, behind every one, there is that Infinite Soul, assuring the infinite possibility and the infinite capacity of all to become great and good.

Let us proclaim to every soul: उत्तिष्ठत जाग्रत प्राप्य वरान्निबोधत — Arise, awake, and stop not till the goal is reached. Arise, awake! Awake from this hypnotism of weakness. None is really weak; the soul is infinite, omnipotent, and omniscient.

Stand up, assert yourself, proclaim the God within you, do not deny Him! Too much of inactivity, too much of weakness, too much of hypnotism has been and is upon our race.

O ye modern Hindus, de-hypnotise yourselves. The way to do that is found in your own sacred books.

Teach yourselves, teach every one his real nature, call upon the sleeping soul and see how it awakes. Power will come, glory will come, goodness will come, purity will come, and everything that is excellent will come when this sleeping soul is roused to self-conscious activity.

~Swami Vivekananda
Complete Works / Volume 3 / Lectures from Colombo to Almora/The Mission Of The Vedanta
(𝑂𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑜𝑐𝑐𝑎𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑖𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝐾𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑎𝑘𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑚, 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑆𝑤𝑎𝑚𝑖𝑗𝑖 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑙𝑜𝑤𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑑𝑑𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑏𝑦 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝐻𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑢 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑦)

[Swami Vivekananda Vedanta Philosophy Wisdom Atman Dehypnotize]

29/09/2026

≈³ ᵐᶦⁿ. ʳᵉᵃᵈ
The Vedanta says, there must come a time when we shall look back and laugh at the ideals which make us afraid of giving up our individuality. Each one of us wants to keep this body for an indefinite time, thinking we shall be very happy, but there will come a time when we shall laugh at this idea. Now, if such be the truth, we are in a state of hopeless contradiction — neither existence nor non-existence, neither misery nor happiness, but a mixture of them. What, then, is the use of Vedanta and all other philosophies and religions?

And, above all, what is the use of doing good work? This is a question that comes to the mind. If it is true that you cannot do good without doing evil, and whenever you try to create happiness there will always be misery, people will ask you, "What is the use of doing good?" The answer is in the first place, that we must work for lessening misery, for that is the only way to make ourselves happy. Every one of us finds it out sooner or later in our lives. The bright ones find it out a little earlier, and the dull ones a little later. The dull ones pay very dearly for the discovery and the bright ones less dearly. In the second place, we must do our part, because that is the only way of getting out of this life of contradiction. Both the forces of good and evil will keep the universe alive for us, until we awake from our dreams and give up this building of mud pies. That lesson we shall have to learn, and it will take a long, long time to learn it.

~Swami Vivekananda
Complete-Works / Volume 2 / Jnana-Yoga / MAYA AND ILLUSION
(Delivered in London)

[Swami Vivekananda Vedanta Philosophy Wisdom Brahman]

28/09/2026

Why are Baburam (Swami Premananda) and Yogen (Swami Yogananda) suffering so much? It is owing to their negative, their self-abasing spirit. Tell them to brush aside their illness by mental strength, and in an hour it will disappear!

I the Atman smitten with disease! Off with it! Tell them to meditate for an hour at a stretch, "I am the Atman, how can I be affected by disease!" — and everything will vanish. Think all of you that you are the infinitely powerful Atman, and see what strength comes out. . . . Self-depreciation! What is it for? I am the child of the Infinite, the all-powerful Divine Mother. What means disease, or fear, or want to me? Stamp out the negative spirit as if it were a pestilence, and it will conduce to your welfare in every way. No negative, all positive, affirmative. I am, God is, everything is in me. I will manifest health, purity, knowledge, whatever I want.

Well, these foreign people could grasp my teachings, and you are suffering from illness owing to your negative spirit! Who says you are ill — what is disease to you? Brush it aside! वीर्यमसि वीर्यं मयि धेहि, बलमसि बलं मयि धेहि, ओजोऽसि ओजो मयि धेहि, सहोऽसि सही मयि धेहि — Thou art Energy, impart energy unto me. Thou art Strength, impart strength unto me. Thou art Spirituality, impart spirituality unto me. Thou art Fortitude, impart fortitude unto me!" The ceremony of steadying the seat (Âsana-pratishthâ) that you perform every day when you sit down to worship the Lord — "आत्मानमच्छिद्रं भावयेत् — One must think of oneself as strong and invulnerable," and so forth — what does it all mean? Say, "Everything is in me, and I can manifest it at will." Repeat to yourself that such and such are Atman, that they are infinite, and how can they have any disease? Repeat this an hour or so, on a few successive days, and all disease and trouble will vanish into nought.

~Swami Vivekananda
Complete Works / Volume 6 / Epistles – Second Series / XLVII Brother disciples / XLVII Brother disciples

[Swami Vivekananda Atman Divine Mother Shakti Vedanta Philosophy Wisdom ]

26/09/2026

This infinite power of the spirit (Atman), 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 others to be Gods. "Be and make." Let this be our motto.

~Swami Vivekananda
CWSV/Vol 4/Writings: Prose/Reply to the Madras address

[Swami Vivekananda Vedanta Philosophy Wisdom Meditation]

25/09/2026

≈ 3 ᴍɪɴ. ʀᴇᴀᴅ

In reply to the question, what is civilisation, Swamiji said that day: "The more advanced a society or nation is in spirituality, the more is that society or nation civilised. No nation can be said to have become civilised only because it has succeeded in increasing the comforts of material life by bringing into use lots of machinery and things of that sort. The present-day civilization of the West is multiplying day by day only the wants and distresses of men.

On the other hand, the ancient Indian civilisation by showing people the way to spiritual advancement, doubtless succeeded, if not in removing once for all, at least in lessening, in a great measure, the material needs of men. In the present age, it is to bring into coalition both these civilisations that Bhagavan Shri Ramakrishna was born. In this age, as on the one hand people have to be intensely practical, so on the other hand they have to acquire deep spiritual knowledge."

Swamiji made us clearly understand that day that from such interaction of the Indian civilization with that of the West would dawn on the world a new era. In the course of dilating upon this, he happened to remark in one place, "Well, another thing. People there in the West think that the more a man is religious, the more demure he must be in his outward bearing — no word about anything else from his lips! As the priests in the West would on the one hand be struck with wonder at my liberal religious discourses, they would be as much puzzled on the other hand when they found me, after such discourses, talking frivolities with my friends. Sometimes they would speak out to my face: 'Swami, you are a priest, you should not be joking and laughing in this way like ordinary men. Such levity does not look well in you.' To which I would reply, 'We are children of bliss, why should we look morose and sombre?' But I doubt if they could rightly catch the drift of my words."

~Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda/ Volume 6 / Conversations and Dialogues/III
(Translated from Bengali )
(From the Diary of a Disciple Sharatchandra Chakravarty)

[Swami Vivekananda Indian Civilization Vedanta Philosophy ]

24/09/2026

When you study the civilisation of India, you find that it has died and revived several times; this is its peculiarity. Most races rise once and then decline for ever. There are two kinds of people: those, who grow continually, and those, whose growth comes to an end. The peaceful nations, India and China, fall down, yet rise again, but the others, once they go down, do not come up - they die. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall enjoy the earth.

~Swami Vivekananda
CWSV/Vol 8/Lectures And Discourses/Buddha's Message To The World

[Swami Vivekananda Revive Indian Civilization Bhartiya Sanskriti Sabhyata Vedanta Philosophy Wisdom Indian History

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