'Brothers and Sisters of America'
Which Indian can forget these famous words of Swami Vivekananda at the World's Parliament of Religions, Chicago on the 11th of September, 1893.
He went on to add that he is proud to belong to a nation which has sheltered the persecuted and the refugees of all religions and all nations of the Earth.
He said further,
'I will quote to you, brethren, a few lines from a hymn which I remember to have repeated by millions of human beings: 'As the different streams having their sources in different places all mingle their water in the sea, so, O Lord, the different paths which men take through different tendencies, various though they appear, crooked or straight, all lead to Thee.'
Sectarianism, bigotry, and its horrible descendant, fanaticism have long possessed this beautiful earth. They have filled the earth with violence, drenched it often and often with human blood, destroyed civilization, and sent whole nations to despair. Had it not been for these horrible demons, human society would be far more advanced than it is now.
But, his fervent hope that the bell that tolled that hour of the day to death-knell of all fanaticism, of all persecutions with the sword or with the pen, and of all uncharitable feelings between persons wending their way to the same goal - has not come true.
The following are the excerpts of Swami Vivekananda's speech delivered at Los Angeles, California, on Sunday, January 7, 1900
In the march of events, we notice the rise and fall, like the waves on the Ocean, generally looking at the rise , forgetting the fall. But both are necessary, and both are great. This is the nature of the Universe. Whether in the world of our thoughts, the world of our relations in society, or in spiritual affairs, the same movements of succession, of rises and falls, is going on. Hence great predominance in the march of events, the liberal ideas, are marshaled ahead, to sink down, to digest, as it were, to ruminate over the part - to adjust, to conserve, to gather strength once more for a rise and a bigger rise.
The history of Nations also has ever been like that. The great soul, the Messenger we are to study this afternoon is of Christ who came at a period of the history of his race which we may well designate as a great fall.
We find Jesus of Nazareth, in the first place, the true son of the Orient, intensely practical. The best commentary on the life of a great teacher is his own life. 'The foxes have holes, the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.' That is what Christ says as the only way to salvation; he lays down no other way. We have fondness for 'me and mine'. We want property, money, wealth. But Christ was a Soul! Nothing but a soul - just working a body for the good of humanity.
He had no other occupation in life, no other thought except that one, that he was a spirit. He was disembodied, unfettered, unbound spirit. He had found that every man and woman, whether Jew or Gentile, whether rich or poor, whether saint or sinner, was the embodiment of the same undying spirit as himself. He says, 'Think not that you are trampled upon and tyrannised over as if you were slaves, for within you is something that can never be tyrannised over, never be trampled upon, never be troubled, never be killed. You are all Sons of God, immortal spirit. 'Know', he declared, 'the Kingdom os Heaven is within you.' 'I and my Father are One.' That was what Jesus of Nazareth said.
He wanted to get hold of the world as it is, give it a push and drive it forward and onward until the whole world has reached to the effulgent Light of God.
Our scriptures say, 'These great children of Light, who manifest the Light themselves, who are Light themselves, they, being worshipped, become, as it were, one with us and we become one with them.'
'Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.' 'The Kingdom of Heaven is within you.'
Where goest thou to seek for the Kingdom of God, asks Jesus of Nazareth, when it is there within you? Cleanse the spirit covered over with the dust and dirt of ages, through your own actions, good and evil. It is already yours and yours by right. You are the heirs of immortality, sons of the Eternal Father.
A rich young man asked Jesus, 'Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?' And Jesus said unto him, 'One thing thou lackest; go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasures in heaven: and come, take up they cross, and follow Me.' This is one ideal he preaches, and this has been the ideal preached by all the great Prophets of the world: renunciation. What is meant by renunciation? That there is only one ideal in morality: unselfishness. Be selfless. The ideal is perfect unselfishness. When a man is struck on the right cheek, he turns the left also. When a man's coat is carried off, he gives away his cloak also.
Let us worship the ideal, and slowly struggle to reach the ideal, though may be, with faltering steps. It may be tomorrow, or it may be a thousand years hence; but that ideal has to be reached. For it is not only the end, but also the means. To be unselfish, perfectly selfless, is salvation itself; for the man within dies, and God alone remains.
Let us, therefore, find God not only in Jesus of Nazareth, but in all the great Ones that have preceded him, in all that came after him, and all that are yet to come. Our worship is unbounded and free. They are all manifestations of the same Infinite God. They are all pure and unselfish; they struggled and gave up their lives for us, poor human beings. They each and all suffer vicarious atonement for every one of us, and also for all that are to come hereafter.
Our salutations go to all the Past Prophets whose teachings and lives we have inherited, whatever might have been their race, clime or creed! Our salutations go to all those Godlike men and women who are working to help humanity, whatever be their birth, colour or race! Our salutations to those who are coming in the future - living Gods - to work unselfishly for our descendants.
That was the speech by Swami Vivekananda to introspect about religion by this mankind.
Text by Swami Vivekananda and written by:
Sethumadhavan venkatrao
Chennai
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