In the external world, the action of these opposite forces is expressing itself as attraction and repulsion, or as centripetal and centrifugal forces. The intensest love that humanity has ever known has come from religion, and the most diabolical hatred that humanity has known has also come from religion. Vivekananda says that there is no universal philosophy. As soon as I try to calm my thoughts and concentrate my mind upon any one object of knowledge, thousands of undesired impulses rush into the brain, thousands of thoughts rush into the mind and disturb it. People find that it is almost impossible to mitigate the fury of the struggle of life, to tone down the tremendous nervous tension that is in man. What I want to propagate is a religion that will be equally acceptable to all minds; it must be equally philosophic, equally emotional, equally mystic, and equally conducive to action. First, there is the active man, the worker; he wants to work, and there is tremendous energy in his muscles and his nerves. In society we see so many different natures. The element of universal religion would consist in recognizing that there may be various and different ways of approach to the religious objects and it gives perfect liberty to the individual in this regard. What is matter? Just as we have recognised unity by our very nature, so we must also recognise variation. Again, there are philosophers who talk of the wisdom of India and the East and use big psychological terms, fifty syllables long, but if an ordinary man like me goes to them and says, “Can you tell me anything to make me spiritual?”, the first thing they would do would be to smile and say, “Oh, you are too far below us in your reason. God is like that water filling these different vessels, and in each vessel the vision of God comes in the form of the vessel. Break not, pull not anything down, but build. by Swami Vivekananda. First we have to hear about them, then we have to think about them. Do not exhibit that unworthy derisive smile, and say, “They are fools; let them have it.” Not so; the greatest men I have seen in my life, the most wonderfully developed in spirituality, have all come through the discipline of these rituals. They say that the Christian sacrament, the killing of a man and the eating of his flesh and the drinking of his blood to get the good qualities of that man, is cannibalism. That which is acted upon by force. So even in ritual there is no universal symbol, which can command general recognition and acceptance. This world is too full of blustering talk. True, Swami Vivekananda advocated 'universal acceptance' with mutual respect. Hundreds of attempts have been made in India, in Alexandria, in Europe, in China, in Japan, in Tibet, and lastly in America, to formulate a harmonious religious creed, to make all religions come together in love. For Vivekananda, religion should be universal in spirit and it should be maintained. We have all been hearing from childhood of such things as love, peace, charity, equality, and universal brotherhood; but they have become to us mere words without meaning, words which we repeat like parrots, and it has become quite natural for us to do so. Vivekananda says that religion is the highest plane of human thought and life. By recognising the natural necessity of variation. But it plays an ambivalent role in our lives and society. What at last truly remains is God Himself. Do you mean to say they are wrong? 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. Yet He is One. In these consists the ritual. Though its core business is to build, sustain and promote peace and love throughout the globe, it can by deviation But in all human beings are to be found, in a more or less developed condition, the germs of all these three instruments of knowledge. The plant grows of itself. It is a lecture by Swami Vivekananda, delivered in America. It teaches them that love itself is the highest recompense of love — that God Himself is love. He loves to think of the beautiful, to enjoy the aesthetic side of nature, and adore Love and the God of Love. There is then the Bhakti-Yoga for the man of emotional nature, the lover. Suppose the amount of heat in this room, the tendency of which is towards equal and perfect diffusion, gets that kind of diffusion, then for all practical purposes that heat will cease to be. Religion, instead of being regarded as universal power, has come to be described as ‘our nation’s religion’, ‘our father’s religion’ etc. The phallus symbol is certainly a sexual symbol, but gradually that aspect of it has been forgotten, and it stands now as a symbol of the Creator. It becomes “my father’s religion”, “our nation’s religion”, “our country’s religion”, and so forth. Swami Vivekananda’s Vision Of Universal Religion And The West. It stands for a holy thing, and that is all they want to know. We all hear about universal brotherhood, and how societies stand up especially to preach this. The photographs of each stage will be seen to be different from those of the other stages; in fact, when he gets back, he brings with him so many photographs of so many different suns, as it would appear; and yet we know that the same sun was photographed by the man at the different stages of his progress. Will it ever come? Not even all the sciences will satisfy him; at the best, they only bring this little world before him. This happens because of repulsion. Where then is any universality? by Ram Madhav - Jan 12, 2017 01:34 AM. The history of the world is a standing witness to this fact. We cannot help it. The first is instinct, which you find most highly developed in animals; this is the lowest instrument of knowledge. Some people say that religion or spiritual ideas are dying out, but it is not true. This is the nature of the lover, the emotional man. This is what the Bhakti-Yoga teaches. When you come to man, you see it is largely developed into reason. All recognized religions have these three elements. The higher the object of any religion and the finer its organisation, the more remarkable are its activities. This is what some of the savage tribes do; if a man is brave, they kill him and eat his heart, because they think that it will give them the qualities of courage and bravery possessed by that man. What can we do then? Your duty is to afford opportunities and to remove obstacles. This must always be. All such stories, to whatever religion they may belong, are really mythological, mixed up occasionally, it may be with, a little history. One sect has one particular form of ritual and thinks that that is holy, while the rituals of another sect are simply arrant superstition. I do not hold myself worthy to sit at their feet, and for me to criticise them! The third part is the ritual. We are attracted by one, we are repelled by another. Again, if we expect that there will be one universal mythology, that is also impossible; it cannot be. Differentiation. If I am sure of anything, it is of this humanity which is common to us all. The element of universal religion would consist in recognizing that there may be various and different ways of approach to the religious objects and it gives perfect liberty to the individual in this regard. Swami Vivekananda placed before the audience the age-old tradition of acceptance of all religions to be true. Some lay more stress on one, some on another. He wants to love God, he relies upon and uses all sorts of rituals, flowers, incense, beautiful buildings, forms and all such things. In the article title, we have followed the standard spelling “Hazrat Muhammad” (see the spelling in the Wikipedia article, … Wherever there is love, it is He. But as soon as you say, “My friend, that is all right, but I want something stronger than this — a little reason and philosophy; I want to understand things step by step and more rationally”, they say, “Get out”; and they not only ask you to get out but would send you to the other place, if they could. Spelling note: In most of the works of Swami Vivekananda, including the Complete Works, the spelling “Mohammed” has been used. This is the mystical mind. The Jews think that if an image be made in the form of a box, or a chest, with an angel on either side, then it may be placed in the Holy of Holies; it is sacred to Jehovah; but if the image be made in the form of a beautiful man or woman, they say, “This is a horrible idol; break it down! Now, we all shout like these drunken men,” Universal brotherhood! That is religion. "THE IDEAL OF UNIVERSAL RELIGION" (Vivekananda in Indian Newspapers, pp. Answer – Religion, according to Vivekananda, does not consist in subscribing to particular creed or faith but in spiritual realization. How to check it and bring the mind under control is the whole subject of study in Raja-Yoga. It is this difference, this differentiation, this losing of the balance between us, which is the very soul of our progress, the soul of all our thought. He thinks that this world is a vain show. Now in the first place, instinct is an inadequate instrument; to animals, the sphere of action is very limited, and within that limit instinct acts. And in religion we find that the workings of these two forces-attraction and repulsion have been most marked. Things which reason cannot get at are brought to light by inspiration; and they do not contradict reason. Wherever the heart expands, He is there manifested. What certain religions claims as historical truth is only mythological, and in all world religions various combinations of mythology and history are treated as sacred literature, and dogmas are based on them. The phallus symbol is certainly a sexual symbol, but gradually that aspect of it has been forgotten, and it stands now as a symbol of the creator. Therefore help, if you can; but do not destroy. Those nations which have this as their symbol never think of it as the phallus; it is just a symbol. Write a short note on Vivekananda’s views on Universal Religion and Internationalism. We lastly come to the Jnana-Yogi, the philosopher, the thinker, he who wants to go beyond the visible. There must be a science for this kind of life too. Reasoning. All in the context of Vivekananda.... Before we proceed to Vivekananda’s concept of universal religion it is necessary to know something about his concept of religion. All of us, from the lowest worm that crawls under our feet to the highest beings to whom we look up with wonder and awe — all are manifestations of the same Lord. That is the philosopher. This world, this universe which our senses feel, or our mind thinks, is but one atom, so to say, of the Infinite, projected on to the plane of consciousness; and within that narrow limit, defined by the network of consciousness, works our reason, and not beyond. Karma-Yoga explains this secret and teaches where and how to work, how to employ to the greatest advantage the largest part of our energies in the work that is before us. Religion has both negative and positive role in society. These forces can be seen as love and hatred, or as good and evil. 'Vivekananda's Idea Of Universal Religion' by Swami Yogatmananda on Sunday, January 15, 2017 ... Vivekananda's Practical Vedanta, Swami Sarvapriyananda - Duration: 52:58. To the Christians the phallus is horrible, and to the Hindus the Christian sacrament is horrible. This disease of fanaticism is one of the most dangerous of all diseases. Are we all equal in our brains, in our powers, in our bodies? What can an external teacher do? The divinity within must be brought be brought to one’s perpetual level. The Hindu believes that God is manifested in the cow. After a time the lower bird eats an exceptionally bitter fruit and gets disgustful and looks up and sees the other bird, that wondrous one of golden plumage, who eats neither sweet nor bitter fruit, who is neither happy nor miserable, but calm, Self-centred, and sees nothing beyond his Self. If professors from the colleges come, scientific men and physicists, they will court reason. There will be a point beyond which they will think they cannot go, without breaking with reason. At the same time, in manifestation, these differences must always remain. To conclude, Vivekananda was probably the first Indian thinker in modern times to advocate altruism and service for the poor as a core value of religion. He who seeks it through mysticism is called the Râja-Yogi. His heart becomes open again to divine light; thus gradually he approaches God, and as he gets nearer and nearer, he finds his old self melting away. THE IDEAL OF A UNIVERSAL RELIGION. Swami Vivekananda knew that religions of the world differ from each other. The Hindus say that the Christians sacrament, the killing of a man and eating of his flesh and the drinking of his blood to get the good qualities of that man is cannibalism. A plant grows. Only the lunatic. The lower bird was, as it were, only the substantial-looking shadow, the reflection of the higher; he himself was in essence the upper bird all the time. A thorough generalisation of them is impossible, but for our practical purpose it is sufficient to have them characterised into four classes. ... What is the meaning of this universal dissatisfaction? Again there is bloody violence in the name of religion. The one watchword for universal religion, according to Vivekananda is ‘acceptance’, it is not just tolerance. The lower bird longs for this condition but soon forgets it, and again begins to eat the fruits. He was the disciple of the 19th-century Indian mystic Ramakrishna. We are attracted by one, we are repelled by another.”[4] In religion also these two forces have been playing vital role. Again according to Vivekananda there is no universal mythology accepted by all religions. Copyright 2012 - 2017 Avada | All Rights Reserved | Powered by, CHAPTER V – THE CONTROL OF PSYCHIC PRANA, CHAPTER I – KARMA IN ITS EFFECT ON CHARACTER, CHAPTER II – EACH IS GREAT IN HIS OWN PLACE, CHAPTER V – WE HELP OURSELVES, NOT THE WORLD, CHAPTER VI – NON-ATTACHMENT IS COMPLETE SELF-ABNEGATION, Conversations and Dialogues (Recorded by Disciples – Translated), Writings: Prose and Poems – Original and Translated, Writings: Prose and Poems(Original and Translated). Such a state of things can never come into existence; if it ever did, the world would be destroyed, because variety is the first principle of life. Is there one universal philosophy? Case study of zimbabwe. Many times in our lives we find that without any reason whatsoever we are, as it were, attracted towards certain persons; at other times, similarly, we are repelled by others. Human Being - Life - Character - Education - Society - Ethics - Mind - God - Self - Religion - Work - Devotion - Knowledge - Meditation - Yoga - Freedom - Oneness - Truth India Home > Sayings / Quotes of Swami Vivekananda > Religion Which Religion is True? So far we see that it is hard to find any universal features in regard to religion, and yet we know that they exist. Unity in variety is the plan of the universe. On the left, Vivekananda … We must learn that the same thing can be viewed from a hundred different standpoints, and vet be the same thing. Even such a devout Christians as Sir John Lubbock admits this, and says that the origin of this Christian symbol is in this savage idea. Take, for instance, the very basis of our perception, matter and force. They simply show you the door. What comes of it? Religion has both negative and positive role in society. This is what some of the savage tribes do; if a man is brave, they kill him and eat his heart, because they think that it will give them the qualities of courage and bravery possessed by that man. Let me take two points for illustration, the phallus symbol and the sacrament of the Christians. 2, p-43. The Christians, of course, do not admit this view of its origin; and what it may imply never comes to their mind. With the same vigour, he resisted and rejected conversions and attacked the … And this must also be remembered that one instrument is a development of the other, and therefore does not contradict it. But so far, all the plans of religious harmony that have been tried, while proposing to take in all the various views of religion, have, in practice, tried to bind them all down to a few doctrines, and so have produced more new sects, fighting, struggling, and pushing against each other. The man who seeks after this kind of union is called a Yogi. It tells man that he is essentially divine. Recognise this. All these radii converge to the same centre. HOW IT MUST EMBRACE DIFFERENT TYPES OF MINDS AND METHODS. And in religion we find that the workings of these two forces-attraction and repulsion have been most marked. What is my plan? If religion is self-realization, then it has nothing to do with dogmas, rituals, creeds etc. This is the one call, the one knock, which opens the gates of nature, and lets out floods of light. In these consists the ritual. Christians talk of universal brotherhood; but anyone who is not a Christian must go to that place where he will be eternally barbecued. We must not wish that all of us should think alike. In India, taking wine is considered very bad. We have to reason the thoughts out, impress them on our minds, and we have to meditate on them, realise them, until at last they become our whole life. Universalism practiced by many of the so-called religions is only a form of intolerant religious imperialism. Suppose a man standing on the earth looks at the sun when it rises in the morning; he sees a big ball. In the present state of our body we are so much distracted, and the mind is frittering away its energies upon a hundred sorts of things. That universal existence is God, the ultimate Unity in the universe. For Vivekananda, religion should be universal in spirit and it should be maintained. Is there any mythological similarity, is there any mythological harmony, any universal mythology accepted by all religions? His soul wants to go beyond all that into the very heart of being, by seeing Reality as It is; by realising It, by being It, by becoming one with that Universal Being. There God is experienced and known directly in the depths of the human soul. We find then that if by the idea of a universal religion it is meant that one set of doctrines should be believed in by all mankind it is wholly impossible. That plan alone is practical, which does not destroy the individuality of any man in religion and at the same time shows him a point of union with all others. Swami Vivekananda’s Concept of Universal Religion and its application to Global City and Modern Cyber Society. Then there is the emotional man who loves the sublime and the beautiful to an excessive degree. Such things deter mankind from working; and it spoils a good portion of the work and energy of mankind, this fear of pain and misery. All sects that have attempted to worship God without any form or ceremony have crushed without mercy everything that is beautiful and sublime in religion. From the above discussion it has been understood that that according to Vivekananda there is no universally accepted philosophy, mythology or rituals. He then becomes a good server to humanity. Each religion brings out its own doctrines and insists upon them as being the only true ones. One fact I must tell you. This means that self-realization is religion. We have but one method of acquiring knowledge. It is because freedom is every man’s goal. Here is a black man, there is a white man; but all are men, all belong to one humanity. Your rationalist seems to them to be like the fool who, when he saw a beautiful statue, wanted to break it to find out of what material it was made. The old man does not contradict the child, but fulfils the child. Great souls, who first felt these great ideas in their hearts, manufactured these words; and at that time many understood their meaning. HOW IT MUST EMBRACE DIFFERENT TYPES OF MINDS AND METHODS. In 2012 a three-day world conference was organized to commemorate 150th birth anniversary of Vivekananda. Christians say that to believe so is mere mythology, and not history, that it is superstition. Certainly not. Now first of all let me take up Râja-Yoga. And, as the shouting increased, the uncle woke up, came into the room, and discovered the whole thing. It is the abstractions of philosophy concretised in the more or less imaginary lives of men and supernatural beings. How is it possible then to have a universal form of religion? We should be all alike, as the Egyptian mummies in a museum, looking at each other without a thought to think. Next come the rituals. Now and then comes a heavy blow to the soul. “Wherever there is any love, it is He, the Lord is present there.” Where the husband kisses the wife, He is there in the kiss; where the mother kisses the child, He is there in the kiss; where friends clasp hands, He, the Lord, is present as the God of Love. He wishes “if there is ever to be a universal religion, it must be one which will have no location in place or time; which will be infinite like the God it will preach, and whose sun will shine upon the followers of Krishna and of Christ, on saints and sinners alike; which will not be Brahminic or Buddhistic, Christian or Mohammedan, but the sum total of all these and still have infinite space for development; which in its catholicity will embrace in its infinite arms, and find a place for, every human being, from the lowest groveling savage not far removed from the brute, to the highest man towering by the virtues of his head and heart almost above humanity, making society stand in awe of him and doubt his human nature.”[2] He again says “It will be a religion which will have no place for prosecution or intolerance in its policy, which will recognize divinity in every man and woman, and whose whole scope, whose whole force, will be created in aiding humanity to realize its own true divine nature.”[3] This was the religion Vivekananda represented at the Parliament. Greenhouse essay topics universal religion on vivekananda swami and Essay how to write a good malayalam essay, how do you write an introduction for a descriptive essay hook for capital punishment essay easy essay of my hobby. We. Yet out of the midst of this din and turmoil, this strife and struggle, this hatred and jealousy of religions and sects, there have arisen, from time to time, potent voices, drowning all this noise — making themselves heard from pole to pole, as it were — proclaiming peace and harmony. Now the question is ‘Is it possible to eliminate these forces of hatred and destruction from religion and make it a power of universal love?’ Vivekananda points out the fact that for long people have been speaking of universal love and brotherhood, but in the hands of ignorant and selfish men these expressions have become a mere play upon words. What is religion – Swami Vivekananda. This eating of fruits, sweet and bitter, this lower, little bird, weeping and happy by turns, was a vain chimera, a dream: all along, the real bird was there above, calm and silent, glorious and majestic, beyond grief, beyond sorrow. It is evident that in society there are many persons who seem to be born for some sort of activity or other, whose minds cannot be concentrated on the plane of thought alone, and who have but one idea, concretised in work, visible and tangible. wisdomlib - the greatest source of ancient and modern knowledge; Like what you read? This is still more concrete, and is made up of forms and ceremonies, various physical attitudes, flowers and incense, and many other things that appeal to the senses. Religion had generated both intense love and diabolical hatred. We are all human beings; but some are men, and some are women. Everyone who has only one or two of these elements of character, I consider “one-sided”; and this world is almost full of such “one-sided” men, with knowledge of that one road only in which they move; and anything else is dangerous and horrible to them. We are apt to criticise everything in the world: without sufficient warrant. Swami Vivekananda, September 1893, Chicago. He seeks it ever, his whole life is a struggle after it. Essay on sikhism religion universal and vivekananda on swami religion Essay higher education doctoral dissertation. He knows that he is giving, and does not ask for anything in return and, therefore, he eludes the grasp of misery. We find in all beings three sorts of instruments of knowledge. How do I know how these ideas act upon the human minds which of them I am to accept and which to reject? Now, if it is so difficult to bring harmony and peace to the physical plane of life — the external, gross, and outward side of it — then a thousand times more difficult is it to bring peace and harmony to rule over the internal nature of man. All the wickedness of human nature is roused by it. But a man from another race or creed sees in it nothing but the phallus, and begins to condemn it; yet at the same time he may be doing something which to the so-called phallic worshippers appears most horrible.