Enclosed here are short excerpts from the words and writings of Ramakrishna Paramhansa, and Swami Vivekananda. These short excerpts are explanations on subjects as diverse as : How were the Upanishads written? Should we limit ourselves to the scriptural texts or go beyond? Why do we worship the Mother form or the female form of energy? When do societies move towards vegetarianism, what prompts them to make this move? What distinguishes a prophet from a scientist?The greatness of Buddhism!
The exact same thoughts and message on the same subjects is echoed in the extensive Literature penned by Pandit Shriram Sharma Acharya.
Quoted
text:
Ramakrishna Paramhansa on the short shortsightedness of placing a premium on wealth and social position:
"Some
people are proud of their wealth, their fame and social position,but these
pride things are transitory. None can take them away with them after death.It
is not good to be proud of wealth.You may say "I am wealthy",but then
there are millionaires, multi-millionaires, and so on.
In
the evening fireflies think that they are lighting the world; but when the
stars begin to shine, their pride is subdued.The stars in turn think they are
lighting the world,but when the moon shines the stars are put to shame. The
moon too believes that her light illumines everything;but lo! the dawn appears
and the rising sun effaces the light of the moon; If wealthy people thought of
these things, the would no longer be proud of their wealth."
(Source and Credits :" The Gospel Of Ramakrishna" by Swami
Abhedananda (a direct disciple of Ramakrishna Paramhansa).
Swami Vivekananda on the Limited Value
of chanting Gods name without a corresponding internal change in the self:
There is a vast
difference between saying "food, food" and eating it, between saying
"water, water" and drinking it. So by merely repeating the words
"God, God" we cannot hope to attain realisation. We must strive and
practise.
(Source and Credits : http://cwsv.belurmath.org/volume_7/vol_7_frame.htm)
Swami Vivekananda on
why many religions of the world worship the "Divine Mother" or the Female form of energy:
Mother
is the first manifestation of power and is considered a higher idea than
father. With the name of Mother comes the idea of Shakti, Divine Energy and
Omnipotence, just as the baby believes its mother to be all-powerful, able to
do anything. The Divine Mother is the Kundalini ("coiled up" power)
sleeping in us; without worshipping Her we can never know ourselves.
All-merciful, all-powerful, omnipresent are attributes of Divine Mother. She is
the sum total of the energy in the universe. Every manifestation of power in
the universe is "Mother". She is life, She is intelligence, She is
Love. She is in the universe yet separate from it. She is a person and can be
seen and known (as Shri Ramakrishna saw and knew Her). Established in the idea
of Mother, we can do anything. She quickly answers prayer.
She
can show; Herself to us in any form at any moment. Divine Mother can have form
(Rupa) and name (Nâma) or name without form; and as we worship Her in these
various aspects we can rise to pure Being, having neither form nor name.
The sum total of all the cells in an
organism is one person; so each soul is like one cell and the sum of them is
God, and beyond that is the Absolute. The sea calm is the Absolute; the same
sea in waves is Divine Mother. She is time, space, and causation. God is Mother
and has two natures, the conditioned and the unconditioned. As the former, She
is God, nature, and soul (man). As the latter, She is unknown and unknowable.
Out of the Unconditioned came the trinity — God, nature, and soul, the triangle
of existence. This is the Vishishtâdvaitist idea.
A bit of Mother, a drop, was
Krishna, another was Buddha, another was Christ. The worship of even one spark
of Mother in our earthly mother leads to greatness. Worship Her if you want
love and wisdom.
(Source and credits : http://cwsv.belurmath.org/volume_7/vol_7_frame.htm
)
Swami Vivekananda explaining that as Societies progress( move away from military power to intellectual power, they move towards vegetarianism)
The
meat-eating animal, like the lion, gives one blow and subsides, but the patient
bullock goes on all day, eating and sleeping as it walks. The "live
Yankee" cannot compete with the rice-eating Chinese coolie. While military
power dominates, meat-eating still prevails; but with the advance of science,
fighting will grow less, and then the vegetarians will come in.
(Source and credits : http://cwsv.belurmath.org/volume_7/vol_7_frame.htm)
Swami Vivekananda explaining The
Upanishads and how they were written ?( As algebraical symbols):
Vyasa's
philosophy is par excellence that of the Upanishads. He wrote in Sutra form,
that is, in brief algebraical symbols without nominative or verb. This caused
so much ambiguity that out of the Sutras came dualism, mono-dualism, and monism
or "roaring Vedanta"; and all the great commentators in these
different schools were at times "conscious liars" in order to make
the texts suit their philosophy.
The
Upanishads contain very little history of the doings of any man, but nearly all
other scriptures are largely personal histories. The Vedas deal almost entirely
with philosophy. Religion without philosophy runs into superstition; philosophy
without religion becomes dry atheism.
Vishishta-advaita
is qualified Advaita (monism). Its expounder was Râmânuja. He says, "Out
of the ocean of milk of the Vedas, Vyasa has churned this butter of philosophy,
the better to help mankind." He says again, "All virtues and all
qualities belong to Brahman, Lord of the universe. He is the greatest Purusha.
Madhva is a through-going dualist or Dvaitist. He claims that even women might
study the Vedas. He quotes chiefly from the Purânas. He says that Brahman means
Vishnu, not Shiva at all, because there is no salvation except through Vishnu.
(Source and credits : http://cwsv.belurmath.org/volume_7/vol_7_frame.htm)
Swami Vivekananda on what distinguishes The Prophet from The
Scientist:
Knowledge
can never be created, it can only be discovered; and every man who makes a
great discovery is inspired. Only, when it is a spiritual truth he brings, we
call him a prophet; and when it is on the physical plane, we call him a
scientific man, and we attribute more importance to the former, although the
source of all truth is one.
(Source and credits: http://cwsv.belurmath.org/volume_7/vol_7_frame.htm)
Swami Vivekananda on Vedanta
Philosphy: How it asks you not to be limited by whats written in the books. It prompts you to
self experience and self realise.
"The
ancient Hindus were wonderful scholars, veritable living encyclopaedias. They
said, "Knowledge in books and money in other people's hands is like no
knowledge and no money at all."
(Source and credits: http://cwsv.belurmath.org/volume_7/vol_7_frame.htm)
Swami Vivekananda on
the greatness of Buddha and Buddhism:
Buddhism,
one of the most philosophical religions in the world, spread all through the
populace, the common people of India. What a wonderful culture there must have
been among the Aryans twenty-five hundred years ago, to be able to grasp ideas!
Buddha
was the only great Indian philosopher who would not recognise caste, and not
one of his followers remains in India. All the other philosophers pandered more
or less to social prejudices; no matter how high they soared, still a bit of
the vulture remained in them. As my Master used to say, "The vulture soars
high out of sight in the sky, but his eye is ever on a bit of carrion on the
earth."
(Source and credits: http://cwsv.belurmath.org/volume_7/vol_7_frame.htm)
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