A charcoal painting of the Holy Mother by Swami Tadatmananda

“A Benediction” to Sister Nivedita

By Swami Vivekananda

The mother’s heart, the hero’s will,
The sweetness of the southern breeze,
The sacred charm and strength that dwell
On Aryan Altars, flaming, free;
All these be yours and many more
No ancient soul could dream before-
Be thou to India’s future son
The mistress, servant, friend in one.

Courtesy: RKM Darjeeling

Teachers' Day: Swamiji's Quote

A child teaches itself. But you can help it to go forward in its own way. What you can do, is not of the positive nature, but of the negative. You can take away the obstacles, but knowledge comes out of its own nature. Loosen the soil a little, so that it may come out easily. Put a hedge round it; see that it is not killed by anything, and there your work stops. You cannot do anything else. The rest is manifestation from within its own nature. - Swami Vivekananda

A parable by Sri Ramakrishna: The Stench of Worldliness

"Once a fishermans wife was a guest in a gardener's house. She was asked to sleep in a room full of flowers. But she couldn't get any sleep there. She was restless and began to fidget about. The gardener's wife asked her: 'Hello there! Why aren't you asleep?' 'Oh, I don't know', said the fishwife. 'There are flowers here. The smell keeps me awake. Can't you bring me my fish-basket?'. When she got her fish-basket, she sprinkled a little water in it, and taking the smell of the fish coming from it, she fell fast asleep."

Worldly people are like this fishermans wife. They are uneasy in the pure atmosphere that leads Godward and cannot do without the smell of worldy things. They do not want to smell the divine fragrance of meditation on God.

Courtesy: Ramakrishna Math Pune