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

The Prayer of Saint Francis

Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace. 

Where there is hatred, let me sow love; 

Where there is injury, pardon; 

Where there is doubt, faith; 

\Where there is despair, hope; 

\Where there is darkness, light; 

Where there is sadness, joy. 

O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek 

To be consoled as to console, 

To be understood as to understand, 

To be loved as to love; 

For it is in giving that we receive; 

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned; 

It is in dying to self that we are born to eternal life. 

Attributed to Francis Bernadone, perhaps the most universally loved of Christian saints, who were born in Assisi, Italy, in 1181 or 1182. At the age of twenty two, after a sudden illness that brought him almost to the point of death, he left his home and inheritance to follow an injunction that he felt he received from Christ himself: "Francis, go and rebuild my Church." Three great Franciscan orders quickly grew around the monks, nuns, and lay disciples who responded to his joyful example of universal love and selfless service.

Courtesy: easwaran.org; Image: tinybuddha

Happy Janmashtami: Swami Vivekananda on Krishna

"This was the great work of Krishna: to clear our eyes and make us look with broader vision upon humanity in its march upward and onward. His was the first heart that was large enough to see truth in all, his the first lips that uttered beautiful words for each and all"

"In Krishna we find ... two ideas stand supreme in his message: The first is the harmony of different ideas; the second is non-attachment. A man can attain to perfection, the highest goal, sitting on a throne, commanding armies, working out big plans for nations. In fact, Krishna's great sermon was preached on the battlefield."

"Krishna talks of himself as God, as Christ does. He sees the Deity in himself. And he says, "None can go a day out of my path. All have to come to me. Whosoever wants to worship in whatsoever form, I give him faith in that form, and through that I meet him. ..."(Gita, IV. 12.) His heart is all for the masses."

Quotes from 'Krishna' a lecture of Swami Vivekananda recorded by Ida Ansell in shorthand (Delivered in California, on April 1, 1900)

A song loved by Sri Ramakrishna

Dwell, O mind, within yourself;
Enter no other's home.
If you but seek there, you will find
All you are searching for.
God, the true Philosopher's Stone,
Who answers every prayer,
Lies hidden deep within your heart,
The richest gem of all.
How many pearls and precious stones
Are scattered all about
The outer court that lies before
The chamber of your heart!

-The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna

Sister Nivedita: Kali the Mother

The stars are blotted out,
Clouds are covering clouds,
It is darkness, vibrant, sonant.
In the roaring whirling wind
Are the souls of a million lunatics,--
But loosed from the prison house,--
Wrenching trees by the roots,
Sweeping all from the path.
The sea has joined the fray,
And swirls up mountain-waves,
To reach the pitchy sky.
     Scattering plagues and sorrows,
     Dancing mad with joy,
     Come, Mother, Come!
For Terror is thy name,
Death is in Thy breath.
And every shaking step
Destroys a world for e’er.
Thou "Time" the All-Destroyer
     Then come, O Mother, Come!Who can misery love,
Dance in destruction's dance,
And hug the form of Death,
     To him the Mother comes.[This poem is a part of  the  book Kali the Mother, a collection of essays  by Sister Nivedita published in 1900. Influenced by the teachings of her master, Swami Vivekananda, she left her country Ireland, and devoted her life selflessly serving the poor of India and taking part in the Indian freedom stuggle. Let's salute the fiery selfless spirit of the great lady, who will continue to inspire the coming generations time to time!]

Ma Sarada: Love God Alone

"Always do your duty to others, but love you must give to God alone. Worldly love always brings in its wake untold misery."

"If you love any human being you will have to suffer for it. That person is blessed, indeed, who can love God alone. There is no suffering in loving God."

"Repeat the name of God always in the innermost core of your heart and in all sincerity take refuge in Sri Ramakrishna. Do not bother to know how your mind is reacting to things around. And do not waste time in calculating and worrying over whether or not you are progressing in the path of spirituality. It is egotism to judge progress for oneself. Have faith in the grace of your guru and God."

Source: Vedanta(dot)org