Quotes from Swami Vivekananda

Take risks in your life. If you succeed, you can lead, if you fail, you can guide.

Have you seen God? Have you seen the Atman? If you have not, what right have you to preach his Name—you walking in darkness trying to lead me into the same darkness—the blind leading the blind, and both falling into the ditch?

Come out into the universe of light. Everything in the universe is yours. Stretch out your arms and embrace it with love. If you ever felt you wanted to do that, you have felt God.

Forbearance is the highest expression of freedom.

The Vedanta recognises the reasoning power of man a good deal, although it says there is something higher than intellect; but the road lies through intellect.

Failure is not the worst thing in the world. The very worst is not to try.

The will is stronger than anything else. Everything must go down before the will, for that comes from God: a pure and strong will is omnipotent.

The Hindu religion does not consist in struggles and attempts to believe a certain doctrine or dogma, but in realising — not in believing, but in being and becoming.

the idea of supernatural being may rouse to a certain extent the power of action in man, But it also brings spiritual decay. It brings dependence; it brings fear; it brings superstition . It degenerates into a horrible belief in the natural weakness of man.there is no supernatural, says the Yogi, but there are in nature gross manifestations and subtle manifestations.

The only religion that ought to be taught is the religion of fearlessness. ... it is true that fear is the sure cause of degradation and sin. It is fear that brings misery, fear that brings death, fear that breeds evil. And what causes fear? - Ignorance of our own nature.

He was the first who dared to say, "Believe not because some old manuscripts are produced, believe not because it is your national belief, because you have been made to believe it from your childhood; but reason it all out, and after you have analysed it, then, if you find that it will do good to one and all, believe it, live up to it, and help others to live up to it.

The will is not free it is a phenomenon bound by cause and effect but there is something behind the will which is free

The history of the world is the history of a few men who had faith in themselves. That faith calls out the divinity within. You can do anything. You fail only when you do not strive sufficiently to manifest infinite power. As soon as a man or a nation loses faith, death comes.

Whatever exists is one. There cannot be many.

Love never comes until there is freedom

A man ought to live in this world like a lotus leaf, which grows in water but is never moistened by water; so a man ought to live in the world - his heart to God and his hands to work.

I remember, as a boy, hearing a Christian missionary preach to crowd in India. Among other sweet things he was telling them was, that if he gave a blow to their idol with his stick. what could it do? One of his hearers sharply answered, "If I abuse your God, what can He do?" "You would be punished," said the preacher, "when you die." "So my idol will punish you when you die," retorted the Hindu.

The world is a grand moral gymnasium wherein we have all to take exercise so as to become stronger and stronger spiritually.

In one span of life they lived the whole life of humanity

Truth never dreams.

they have no thought for anything else, never live a moment for any other idea

Be and Make. Be Bold.

It is better to be an outspoken atheist than a hypocrite.

A fool may buy all the books in the world, and they will be in his library; but he will be able to read only those that he deserves to; and this deserving is produced by Karma