384 JULY - AUGUST 2015

Sri Sadasivendra Saraswati

Swami Ghanananda

From A Carmelite Cloister

Saint Therese Of The Child Jesus
 Divine Wisdom

Brahman Alone Is
(From the Vivekachudamani of Shankara)
I dwell within; I am without. I am before and be-
hind. I am in the South and I am in the North. I am above
and I am below.
The wave, the foam, the eddy and the bubble are all
essentially water. Similarly, the body and the ego are real-
ly nothing but pure consciousness. Everything is essen-
tially consciousness, purity and joy.
The entire universe of which we speak and think is
nothing but Brahman. Brahman dwells beyond the range
of maya. There is nothing else. Are jars, pots and vessels
distinct from the clay of which they are made? Man
drinks the wine of maya, becomes deluded and begins to
see things as separate from each other, so that he talks of
'you' and 'I'.
The Scripture says: ‘The Infinite is where one sees
nothing else, hears nothing else, knows nothing else.' In
the Infinite, the Scripture tells us, there is no duality —
hereby correcting our false idea that existence is mani-
fold.
I am Brahman, the Supreme, all-pervading like the
ether, stainless, indivisible, unbounded, unmoved, un-
changing. I have neither inside nor outside. I alone am. I
am one without a second. What else is there to be
known?

continued on the inside back cover

 384 JULY - AUGUST 2015

Contents

146 Editorial
Willpower

149 Sri Sadasivendra Saraswati

Swami Ghanananda

156 Meditation In Monism

Swami Ghanananda

163 An Introduction to Hindu Theology - 4

Swami Sunirmalananda

181 From A Carmelite Cloister

Saint Therese Of The Child Jesus

186 On Being Human

E. Raphael Marozzi, M.A.

190 Leaves from an Ashrama 50 :

The Sadhu as Vernal Influence
Swami Vidyatmananda

192 Programme

ISSN 1355 - 6436

 Editorial Willpower
(Continued from the last issue)

W illpower is the ability to make a conscious choice. It is closely

linked with self-improvement. All of us desire to improve in
life. But most of us fail due to lack of sufficient willpower.

Do I have willpower?
Willpower is inherent in every soul. Not only is will power
inherent in us we are, in fact, exercising it all the time though
unconsciously. We feel weak not because we have no willpower but
because we are scattering it in useless ways. A weak will is the proof
of willpower used negatively.
What we need is to set definite goals in our life and strive to attain
them slowly but surely. Willpower is like a muscle and can be
strengthened through daily exercise. However we must have patience
and perseverance. We are impatient and expect instantaneous results.
That is not going to happen. The Buddha used to say that he was born
hundreds of times before he achieved illumination. We too can
develop a strong will following definite steps.

How to develop willpower

Desire and willpower
.... grit. ... If a tortoise once tucks in its limbs, it won't put them out
again though you may cut it into four pieces. (Sri Ramakrishna)
Desire is the most important factor in developing the will. Desire
lies at the very root of will. Man’s will is proportionate to his desire.
“As is a man's desire, so is his will. And they say that a person consists of
desires. And as is his desire, so is his will; and as is his will, so is his deed;
and whatever deed he does, that he will reap.”
(Brihadaranyaka Upanishad)
Sri Ramakrishna attained success in whatever he had undertaken
within a short time, because he had immense power of concentration
and never allowed his mind to deviate from his cherished goal.
Whenever we have a dominating desire or purpose, that focuses our
vital energy and generates a strong driving-power; along with this the
willpower also becomes strong.

146
 The opposite of a strong will is impulsiveness. Impulsive people
are weak, feeble-minded and have no grit whatsoever; they are
swayed by innumerable desires and are incapable of concentrating .
When a person has no fixed ambition or goal, but moves according to
the impulse of the moment, his energy is not centralized and he is
incapable of any sustained act of will. This is pure weakness and
involves a waste of time and energy.

Goal and will power

If a man with an ideal makes a thousand mistakes, I am sure that the
man without an ideal makes fifty thousand. Therefore, it is better to have an
ideal. (Swami Vivekananda)
The first step towards developing a strong, resolute will is to have
a definite goal in life. When we study the lives of successful people we
find they all have well-defined goal in their lives. When we have
definite goals we find it easy to focus our energies and monitor the
results.
Willpower is invisible like electricity. Just like electricity it can be
experienced only through energy in the form of thoughts and actions.
Whenever our energy is focuses and carried forward to a fixed point,
we have a manifestation of will. Anyone who desires to increase his
will power must take up some specific exercises.
We must have a well-thought-out daily routine. We should fix a
definite time for rising and hold on to it resolutely, whatever may be
the circumstances. Daily spiritual practices like meditation, japa,
worship, attending satsangas, study of scriptures, and regular exercise
etc., will also become valuable exercises in increasing our willpower if
we perform them with regularity, without regard to our passing
feelings. We can also strengthen our willpower through less talking,
avoiding harmful habits like gossip, back-biting, etc. He who slackens
and acts according to his mood or circumstance advances little.
Willpower is needed to overcome old habits and develop new habits.
After all, spiritual life is all about creating new habits. A new habit is
difficult to form so long as we yield to the old tendencies. Any action
that we do can and must be converted into a spiritual practice.
Whoever is striving to develop his will should be constantly
watchful not to scatter or waste his energy; we do this by the gradual
elimination of all non-essential elements from our life.
147
Concentration and willpower
Concentration is the key to success in any field of life, secular or
spiritual. The degree of our success will depend on the degree of our
concentration. It is the power of concentration which makes the
difference between animal and man, and distinguishes one man from
another.
Willpower is closely associated with the power of concentration.
The more concentration the more is the power of will and vice versa.
The way to strengthen our willpower is to focus on whatever we are
doing at any given time. The role of concentration in spiritual
progress is unimaginable. Swami Vivekananda says:
The main difference between men and the animals is the difference in
their power of concentration. All success in any line of work is the result of
this. We see its results every day. ....The difference in their power of
concentration also constitutes the difference between man and man. Compare
the lowest with the highest man. The difference is in the degree of
concentration. This is the only difference.
However there are two types of concentration; passive and active.
We must be careful to distinguish between these two. Passive
concentration makes us slaves and leads us into more bondage. In
passive concentration we are forced to focus, whereas in active
concentration we choose our subject. What we need to develop is
active concentration. This alone can lead us to God. Swamiji says:
Everybody's mind becomes concentrated at times. ....We all concentrate
our minds upon those things we love. When we hear beautiful music, our
minds become fastened upon it, and we cannot take them away.....The great
trouble with such concentration is that we do not control the mind; it
controls us. Something outside of ourselves, as it were, draws the mind into
it and holds it as long as it chooses. ....On the ethical side there is danger in
the development of the power of concentration—the danger of concentrating
the mind upon an object and then being unable to detach it at will.
According to Swami Vivekananda the very essence of education is
to learn how to concentrate on a subject that we choose. An educated
man who has not learnt to focus his mind is literally illiterate. Swami
Vivekananda says: To me the very essence of education is concentration of
mind, not the collecting of facts. To control the mind, to place it where we
want it, requires special training.
148
Concentration v/s knowledge
Concentration is the only means of gaining knowledge, and
knowledge is its own reward. Swami Vivekananda says, “the world is
ready to give up its secrets, if we know how to knock, how to give the
necessary blow. The strength and force of the blow come through
concentration.” As knowledge is power, concentration is the source of
all power too. No progress, prosperity or advancement can be
attained in any sphere of life without practising concentration.
Concentration is the only means of attaining realization or Self-
knowledge. Spiritual progress is not possible without concentration.
“The well-resolved mind is single and one pointed”, teaches Sri Krishna.
Swami Vivekananda says, “Concentration of the powers of the mind is our
only instrument to help us see God “.
Concentration is that training of the mind by which we can
deliberately place our entire mind on a single object of our choice to
the exclusion of all other objects, and hold it there, and also withdraw
it at will. When the mind is really concentrated it loses all sense of
time and space.
The Buddha teaches : “If anything is to be done, let a man do it, let
him attack it vigorously!” The difference between a great man and a
small man is that a great man does a “small work“ in a great way and
a small man does a “great work “in a small way. What makes this
difference is nothing but the quality of concentration.
For the development of willpower we need two more
components: self-discipline and surrender to God. We will discuss
these two in our next issue.

(To be continued)
Swami Dayatmananda

What is the true meaning of the assertion that we should

depend on ourselves? Here self means the eternal Self. But even
dependence on the non-eternal self may lead gradually to the right
goal, as the individual self is really the eternal Self under delusion.

Swami Vivekananda

149
 Sri Sadasivendra Saraswati
Swami Ghanananda

K arur is a small railway town midway between Erode and

Trichy in Trichinopoly District, South India. Eight miles east
of Karur there stands a village called Nerur, with two rows of
Brahmin houses. A visitor to this village will be impressed with
its rural quietness and beauty, its green fields and running waters.
On the quietest and holiest spot in its vicinity can be seen a small
temple dedicated to Siva, with a flower-garden containing several
fine arati, tulasi, and other plants, untrimmed and unpruned by
any hand and allowed to grow in their natural luxuriance, the
tallest denizen of this garden being a big old vilwa tree. This
temple was built in memory of one of the greatest of South Indian
saints and sages—Sri Sadasivendra Saraswati—a remarkable Raja
Yogi, whose relics are humbly treasured under a mound of earth
below the tree.
Sadasiva was born of Brahmin parents in the beginning of the
eighteenth century, probably in or near Tiruvichanellore, a village
on the banks of the holy Cauvery.
Sadasiva was a brilliant scholar. The beauties of nature
amidst which he grew quickened his natural sensibilities. The
cultured and scholarly teachers under whom he studied enabled
him to make rapid and remarkable advance in his Sanskrit
learning, in the study of Vedanta, the Upanishads, logic and other
subjects taught in his days. Some of his class-fellows like
Ramabhadra Dikshitar, Sri Venkatesa and Gopalakrishna Sastri,
who themselves were famous dramatists, poets and Vedantins,
have borne testimony to his worth, the depth of his scholarship,
and the brilliance of his genius. He indelibly impressed them all
with the rare qualities of his head and heart. Sadasiva later
produced some precious works which are very helpful and
inspiring to students of Prasthanatraya (the three bases of

150
Hinduism; viz., the Upanishads, the Brahma-sutras and the Gita),
of Hindu Yoga and philosophy. Among them are Introduction to
the Twelve Upanishads, Yoga-sudhakara (a Commentary on the
Sutras of Patanjali), Atmavidya-vilasa, Siddhanta kalpavalli and
Advaita rasamanjari.
In accordance with the Hindu custom, Sadasiva was married
or rather betrothed when quite young.
Sadasiva left school when he was about to enter the threshold
of manhood, and returned to his parents.
Delicately sensitive are the world's greatest souls. A stray
blade of grass, a passing wind, and the meanest flower that blows
reveal to them a whole world of meaning and wisdom, and fill
them with "thoughts that do often lie too deep for tears." They
are endowed with the power
To see a World in a Grain of Sand,
And a Heaven in a Wild Flower:
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand,
And Eternity in an hour. (William Blake)
When Buddha's heart was touched by grief at the sight of a
bird struck by an arrow in his pleasure-garden, he ruminated over
the grief of the whole world and eventually made it his own.
When the boy Sankara learnt the truths of the Scriptures, his
desire to practise them in his life was roused and he became the
great teacher of humanity.
Before Sadasiva's return, his bride had attained age. His
mother was therefore celebrating the event in her own house in
the bride's honour. As the festivity involved more than the usual
labour and as his mother had many duties to perform on that day,
he could not be given his meal in time. This delay put him in mind
of the delay in the life of man in doing things of greater moment,
in acquiring knowledge and wisdom, in striving to live a life
worthy of the great Taskmaster's eye. Thought he within himself:
"If I get my meal late on account of the festivities in honour of my

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wife, how can I expect comfort and convenience in my life as a
householder. They say such a life is a great obstacle to
concentration on God and to spirituality."
The thought is father to the deed. Sadasiva left his home, his
dear mother and his girl-wife in quest of God. Spending his time
in pious and holy thoughts he felt the need for a spiritual guide
(Guru). Ere long however he fell in with a man of divine
realization called Paramasivendra Saraswati, and received his
initiation into the spiritual life from him. The guru and the
disciple loved each other, and the former taught all his methods
of spiritual practices. Sadasiva made great progress therein under
his personal guidance and supervision.
Well read in the Sastras and endowed with a quick
intelligence and memory as he was, Sadasiva proved an invincible
debater. Several men of learning were wont to visit his guru. He
used to cross swords with them in logic and Vedanta and other
subjects. Being highly versatile and brilliant, he would bear away
the palm. This was, however, a recurring source of discomfiture
to the defeated antagonists. In their wounded pride and egoism,
one day they complained to the guru about Sadasiva. Such
querulous words had more than once reached his ears. This time,
however, the guru could not put up with Sadasiva. In a tone of
impatience mixed with anger he said, looking at his disciple:
“Sadasiva! When are you going to hold your tongue from vain
talk?"
This was a strong home thrust at Sadasiva. He made up his
mind never more to open his mouth to speak. He would only live
the spiritual life. He would live in constant communion with God.
He took the vow of lifelong silence, received his guru's blessings
for the fruition of his spiritual efforts, and left the guru's place,
with the broad expanse of blue above for his roof and wide earth
below for his bed.

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 From the first day of his vow, Sadasiva lived a life of deep
and strenuous sadhana (religious practices) far away in forest
caves on the banks of the beautiful Amaravati and the sacred
Cauvery. His whole life was an almost uninterrupted process of
God-absorption.
Often Sadasiva would not rise from his state of God-union
for several months together. Once he was deeply meditating on
a sandbank in a dry part of the Cauvery river-bed, by the town
of Kodumudi. Soon he lost all body-consciousness and knew
neither this world nor any other. Days passed by, and the river
rose high in flood. Large uprooted trees and huge logs of wood
from the banks were rolled down by the lusty, impetuous current
which burst asunder the heap of sand on which Sadasiva was
sitting rapt in meditation. Those who saw this tried to save him,
but their efforts were in vain. He was taken to have perished
helplessly in the floods.
Three months later, when the floods had completely subsided
and the river-bed became dry again, and some of the inhabitants
of Kodumudi, who had gone to the river for a bath, were digging
for water in the dry sand, one of them saw his spade besmeared
with fresh blood. They were at a loss to know what it could mean.
They dug more but with caution and discovered the body of a
man in meditation posture. As he rose and looked around, the
people beheld him with awe and wonder. He then left the place
for another. It was Sadasiva.
Great mental and physical powers come to the yogi who is a
past master in concentration. Patanjali, the famous author of the
Yoga Sutras, bears testimony to this fact and also explains
psychologically how they can be attained. They are not
necessarily signs of God-realization, but are attained in the
striving for perfection by the yogi, who, however, paying no heed
to them, marches onward with singular strength of mind to his
goal of divinity.

153
 Sadasiva is said to have possessed such powers. On the day
on which the annual festival in the Sundareswara Temple in
Madurai was celebrated, when he was playing with some boys
of whom, he was very fond and to whom he would distribute
now and then sweets offered to him by some devotees, they all
besought him to take them to Madurai and enable them to
worship in the temple. At this, Sadasiva bade them mount on his
shoulders and close their eyes. The next moment they opened
their eyes, and to their surprise found themselves within the
temple of Sundareswara decorated with beautiful flowers of
various hues, perfumed with rich frankincense and crowded by
a host of devotees jostling each other to have a look at the deity
within. The boys worshipped Sundareswara and received prasad
from Sadasiva's own hands. In the morning Sadasiva is said to
have mysteriously taken them back and left them in their homes,
where they told their mothers what happened and gave them
what was left over of the prasad. This might have happened. Since
Raja Yogis possess extraordinary powers of movement from place
to place, as testified by Patanjali, who says:
"By making samyama on the objectivity and power of
illumination of the organs on egoism, the inherence of the gunas
in them and on their contributing to the experience of the soul,
comes the conquest of the organs." "From that comes to the body the
power of rapid movement like the mind, and power of the organs
independently of the body, and conquest of nature."
Sadasiva used to wander like the cast-off leaf which is blown
about hither and thither by the passing wind. Often he would so
lose body consciousness that he would roam about stark naked.
Once, in such a state of mind, he happened to pass by the harem
of the palace of a Nawab, who came of a royal family. In his anger
at seeing an unknown man nude near the apartments of his wives,
whom even the rays of the sun would not dare to approach, the
Nawab cut off one of the saint's hands. Feeling in no way
perturbed by this act, Sadasiva was moving on as if nothing had

154
happened. Struck with awe and surprise at this indifference of the
stranger, the Nawab watched him day and night, and served him
out of reverence. Sadasiva asked him why he was pursuing him like
a shadow, to which he replied: "Holy sir, I am overcome with grief
at having thoughtlessly severed your hand. What shall I do to
assuage your pain?" Sadasiva came to know of the injury of his hand
only at that time. Passing his other hand over where the severed one
had been, he became healed and a new hand sprang in the place of
the old. He used to pass many days and months in such deep
absorption that he completely forgot his body, and the whole world
was effaced from his mind.
Wonderful was the passing away of Sadasiva He went to the
village of Nerur, called together the brahmins of the place, and spoke
to them as follows: On the tenth day in the month of May-June, I
will, as usual, commune with God, and then give up this body and
be united with Him for ever. A Brahmin will arrive from Varanasi
at that time carrying a Sivalinga. A few cubits from where I shall sit
in meditation and renounce this cage of flesh and blood, erect a
temple and install the Sivalinga therein." The village folk accordingly
dug a trench and were awaiting the final hour. Sadasiva took his seat
inside the pit and just then they saw a Brahmin, who, they learnt on
enquiry, was coming from Banaras bearing a Sivalinga. Sadasiva's
words were fulfilled. His mind rose fervently in quiet but deep
prayer leaving the body behind. The temple that the villagers erected
at his bidding stands even to this day. The spot purified by his relics
breathes a holy atmosphere and is one of the most sacred and
inspiring places of pilgrimage. Many devotees and monks visit it
seeking the peace that passeth all understanding. Arrangements
were made by the Royal House of Pudukottah for daily worship,
annual celebrations and other functions in the temple, which are
done even today.
(Reprinted from Vedanta Kesari, April,1924-1925)

155
 Meditation In Monism
Swami Ghanananda

E very religion has four parts, namely, mythology and ritual,

philosophy and higher spiritual disciplines. Of all forms of
spiritual disciplines meditation is the highest. In it the approach
to the Divine goal is made directly by the soul of man, and he
ultimately realises the relationship between the soul and his
Maker, and experiences God as the highest Reality. The value of
meditation, therefore, is higher than that of ritual as a form of
practical spiritual discipline. In studying mythology and
philosophy and doing spiritual disciplines like ritual, the thought
of God is present in the mind of man. But in meditation this
thought becomes deepest and most intense until at last it
transcends itself when the highest illumination is attained.
I
Many sincere and honest people believe that if they sit down
to think of God they will be able to meditate and obtain the fruits
of meditation. They think, therefore, that they only need sufficient
time to do so. When they are young or in middle age they believe
that a day will come after many years of practice when they will
be free from the turmoil of work and be able to devote every day
to the thought of God: but such people generally find it extremely
hard to meditate in their old age in spite of proper guidance and
spiritual help. It goes to show that only when the mind has been
trained in the earlier years of life and has kept up the habit
through middle age, will it be able to meditate in the last years
of life.
When a man wants tries to meditate for a while, but finds in
a few minutes that all sorts of ideas alien to meditation rush into
his mind and carry it away from the path of meditation. This
shows that the mind requires training. We know that all forms of
training, whether physical for the growth and development of

156
the body, or mental, for the growth and development of the
intellect, heart or will, are the outcome of a science. Thus there is
the science of meditation, which began to be studied and
formulated even from most ancient times by the lndo-Aryans,
and which reached the highest excellence unsurpassed among
other peoples. Even in the days of the Brahmanas and Samhitas,
which preceded the age of the Upanishads—those expressions of
deepest meditativeness and spiritual experience—the performer
of ritual often passed into a state of communion with the Deity.
In the Upanishadic period this became deeper and was specially
cultivated by those who became the Seers of the Upanishads. The
science, therefore, grew and flourished, and though it was in the
hands of a few, it was kept alive. In the post-Vedic age we find
its greatest teacher, Sri Krishna, teaching his disciple, Arjuna, the
way of meditation; and in a subsequent period Kapila and
Patanjali developed and expounded the psychological and
psychic aspects of meditation. In the post-Buddhistic age Sankara,
Ramanuja, Madhva and others expounded the science of
meditation in their commentaries, each in his own way.
Whatever the path a man may find suitable for him to follow,
whether it be the path of devotion or that of knowledge, or the
path of right action or that of psychic control, meditation is the
most mature form of all spiritual practices. A man may hear the
teachings of the scriptures and philosophies. He tries to
understand and reflect on the truths so taught. But when he
practises, meditation forms an important part of his disciplines.
Again, when a man does all work in a spirit of dedication, his
mind slowly but steadily becomes filled with the thought of God
to whom he dedicates his work. His consciousness becomes so
deeply coloured in the long run, that meditation becomes natural
to him. This is true of devotional practices and also of the psychic
and psychological disciplines prescribed by Raja Yoga. Our
endeavours to live the spiritual life from the day we begin to have

157
an inkling of its nature till the day of Enlightenment, form a series
of concentric circles which contract more and more until the
Reality called God, which is their centre, is reached. In Vedanta,
meditation is compared to the uninterrupted flow of oil from one
vessel to another (Ramanuja).
Vedanta is studied and practised in three aspects, namely,
monistic, qualified-monistic and dualistic. In monistic Vedanta
the approach to meditation is similar to that in Sankhya except
that in Sankhya they speak of a plurality of souls: whereas in
monism the ultimate Reality is One. In Sankhya the practical
procedure consists in eliminating Prakriti and its modifications—
the body, mind and ego—and arriving at the spiritual
consciousness called the Purusha: whereas in Vedanta it consists
in denying the absolute existence of body, mind and ego, as well
as the universe, which are only relatively real, and arriving at the
One Absolute Reality called Brahman with which the Self of man,
the essence of his being, is identical.
II
Monistic meditation is meditation on the Absolute. As the
Absolute is beyond form and beyond attributes, this type of
meditation is the most difficult of all. It is not thinking of mere
formlessness such as vacant space, the blue sky or the shoreless
ocean. This does not constitute meditation on the Absolute. It is
only thinking of the "material infinity" called Mahakasa or the
universal space. A higher and subtler form of infinity is the mental
infinity called Chittakasa or the space of the mind from which
infinite thought-forms arise, as in the dream state. But the true
Absolute, the Infinite of monism, is the Spiritual Infinity or the
Infinity of the Spirit called Chidakasa, the Void beyond all forms
and attributes. This is the negation of everything conceivable or
expressible and is described in the words, "not this, nor that," of
the Upanishads. This is inconceivably higher than the infinity of
the universe and the infinity of the mind, for the universe and the

158
mind are both limited, but the Infinity of the Spirit, the Atman or
Brahman, is the true infinity, the true Absolute of monism.
From the above it must be clear that monistic meditation is
bound to prove difficult even in the case of those who have
arrived at an intellectual conviction of the identity of the Atman
or the Self in man with Brahman or the Oversoul.
Vedanta, therefore, prescribes four forms of preliminary
disciplines for monistic aspirants, without undergoing which
monistic seekers cannot successfully attempt their meditation.
The first and foremost of these is the constant discrimination
between the Real and the unreal. Day and night the aspirant is to
think of the enduring Real which abides and does not change and
which is, therefore, different from the passing real. He is to
discriminate constantly between the Absolute Reality and the
relative reality of the universe and its phenomena. Vedanta boldly
asserts that not only is the universe, with its myriad forms clothed
in myriad hues, ephemeral, but also the body of man and his mind
including his ego. This teaching is based on the experience of the
Seers.
Even this discrimination between the Real and the unreal is
sufficient to help the seeker in his monistic meditation and help
him realise the goal of monism. Man lives in this world, and
therefore with a view to protecting his mind from obstacles to the
practice of discrimination, three other forms of spiritual
disciplines are also enjoined. One of these consists in the practice
of the following six virtues:
(a) checking the mind from the pursuit of all objects except
hearing the Upanishads and other teachings of Vedanta;
(b) checking the organs of action and knowledge from all
objects except hearing the Upanishads and other teachings of
Vedanta;
(c) keeping the organs so restrained from drifting along their
old course to sense objects;

159
 (d) remaining unruffled by pleasure and pain, profit and loss,
prosperity and adversity, honour and dishonour, and other pairs
of opposites;
(e) constantly concentrating the mind on hearing the
Upanishads and other teachings of Vedanta and practising such
virtues as modesty, humility, devotion, purity and service to the
Guru;
(f) faith in God; faith in the Upanishads and other teachings
of Vedanta; faith in the Guru; and faith in one's capacity to realise
the Truth.
Practice of the above six virtues constitutes the second form
of preliminary disciplines.
A third form consists in the relinquishment of the desire for
the fruits of action in this world or in heaven, that supernatural
world where souls enjoy subtle pleasures and happiness. The
monist aims at knowledge and cares for nothing but knowledge.
Fourthly and finally the seeker is exhorted to create in himself
a divine discontent and a thirst for liberation from the thraldom
of body, mind and ego, as well as from nescience, by attaining
Illumination.
These disciplines prepare the mind for steadiness in daily
meditation on the Atman, the Pure Consciousness in man, and on
his identity with the Oversoul or Transcendental Consciousness.
III
In order to help its students in monistic meditation, Vedanta
gives an unchallenged and unchallengeable definition of the
Absolute Reality by declaring that It is That which remains
unaffected throughout all time—past, present and future. This
definition brings the conception of Reality right into the heart of
man, as we shall see presently.
With a view to ascertaining the nature of Reality or what It
is, the Seers of India first studied objective phenomena. They
noted that objects changed with lapse of time. They were once in
a subtle state and then changed into their present condition, and

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from this they will again change into a subtle state. What is true
of individual objects is also true of the universe as a whole. The
universe also was once in a subtle state from which it evolved
into its present condition, and it will again return to its subtle
state in the future. Thus what we see is not a permanent reality.
But we should remember that though it may change and change,
it never ceases to exist; in other words the notion of existence can
never be removed from our minds.
The ancient Seers further found that not only the objective
universe but also the observer who saw it changed from time to
time. His body and mind change with time. Nay, more, he is not
the same during the 24 hours of the day and night. During day
he is awake but enters into quite a different state when he sleeps
and begins to dream, and when he is in dreamless sleep he is in
yet another state which is different from his waking and dream
states. It must therefore be clear that not only do the objective
phenomena of the universe change, but there is a change also in
the subjective counterpart in man.
A study of matter in the objective universe eventually led
to the growth and development of science. A study of phenomena
as presented to the consciousness of man in the different states
of waking, dream and sleep, as well as the study of these three
states in relation to the Self of man, contributed to the growth and
development of monistic religion and philosophy.
An investigation into the three states of consciousness
known to man, viz., waking, dream and sleep, is one of the
characteristic features of Vedanta. Vedanta claims that no study
of man is complete unless a study of his personality in all three
states is attempted. As a result of such study we find that in the
waking state the universe appears as real, tangible, perceptible
to the five senses. In the dream state the universe becomes subtle
and attenuated. And in deep sleep man does not see anything,
does not know anything; the universe has entirely disappeared

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and he is not even aware that he is sleeping; but when he wakes
in the morning he remembers to have slept well or ill as the case
may be. Now every act of remembrance is an act of re-cognition.
This means that the cognition took place even in sleep without
man's knowledge. Who could this cogniser be?
The Upanishads declare that the cogniser in sleep is
Consciousness itself. It directly registers sleep without the help
of mind and ego, for these don't function in sleep—it registers the
fact of sleep just as at night the thermometer records the
temperature and the barometer the atmospheric pressure though
we are fast asleep.
Consciousness is present in our waking and dream states,
but it takes the help of the mind and the ego to perceive and know.
Mind and ego are its adjuncts in the waking and dream states. In
the waking state we are conscious of ourselves, our pleasures and
pains, joys and sorrows. We are conscious of these in the dream
state also, though the time, space and causation in the dream state
are of a standard different from that of the waking state. When I
am awake, my identity is felt as such and such. In dream I
perceive many things which are not seen in the waking state, and
the ego of waking has vanished and another ego has taken its
place; yet I know that another person does not dream for me; it
is I myself who dream and wake up again. In sleep nothing is
perceived and there is neither the ego of dream nor that of
waking; yet on waking we all feel and know intuitively the
identity of our personality in waking, dream and sleep. Extending
the study of consciousness to the period from our birth till old
age, we shall find that it was we that were born, it is we that are
now living, and it is we that will grow old and die.
This notion of the identity and continuity of human
personality can arise only when something exists as a background
of the stages of life and states of consciousness. This is Pure
Consciousness. It is behind the three states of waking, dream and

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dreamless sleep, or rather It has three modes of being, called
waking, dream and dreamless sleep, It is also behind all the stages
of life such as infancy, youth, middle age and old age. Nay, It has
been existing eternally throughout our past lives and will exist
throughout the future. It is the Atman or the Self, a fact
underlying all that is given by experience. "The Pure Consciousness
is that of which the personal consciousness, which is bound up with the
activities of body and mind and with which alone man is normally
acquainted, is a reflection in matter." Suppose somebody hits me,
then I become conscious of pain. This is a state of personal
consciousness and is a complex. From it, if I eliminate whatever
is contributed by the body and the mind, what remains is the
consciousness that accompanies all mental processes, which was
first differentiated by Plotinus among Western philosophers and
called the accompaniment—Parakolonthesis—of the mental
activities by the soul. This is the light of Consciousness which
manifests in both the mental and physical worlds. "It is the power
of pure intelligence which being unchangeable cannot become
the seat of perception, for this latter belongs to the mind." Thus
Pure Consciousness is separate from mental activity. It is not a
mere idea or abstraction but a Reality, indeed the greatest Reality
that man can attain.
This Pure Consciousness is called Purusha by the Sankhya
Philosophy and Atman by Vedanta. But for It, and Its illuminating
power, the power to manifest mental and bodily functions, such
functions would go on unconsciously and unknown. Unlike
matter, It is immutable, beginningless and endless, a steady
shadowless light that knows not any change. It is the immaterial
part of man; It is his immortal soul, his deathless Self, the core of
his being. Sankara says, " The Atman is jna, Eternal Consciousness,
because It is uncreate. Eternal Consciousness is the nature of the
Atman just as heat and light are of fire." The moment a seeker will
realise It, he will intuitively realise Its identity with the Oversoul,

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Brahman, just as when any scientist analyses a specimen of water
anywhere and finds it to be H2O, he intuitively concludes that
water everywhere and at all times is H2O.
In all the three states of waking, dream and dreamless sleep
the Atman is the witness. But our goal is to be the Atman with
nothing to witness—the Atman as It is, shining, in Its own glory
undimmed by its adjuncts.
What has been given above is what one can learn by
investigating the nature of the three states. The tearing off of the
veil of Prakriti with a view to realising the Atman and Its identity
with Brahman has to be attempted first by meditating on the
Atman and then on Its identity with Brahman, until eventually this
identity is realised. If this method is found difficult, one should
begin by meditating on God with attributes, and if necessary, on
God with form and attributes, and in due course follow the
monistic method.
In monism we have a method of meditation which does not
want us to accept any theological doctrine or dogma of any
particular religion. Its philosophy and its approach are like the
air and water, the gift of Mother Nature: they belong to everyone.
Monism accepts all paths and religions, yet rises above them
all.
(Reprinted from Vedanta For East And West, May-June, 1954)

Bear all evil and misery without one murmur of hurt, without
one thought of unhappiness, resistance, remedy, or retaliation.
That is true endurance; and that you must acquire. The reason
why a criminal is a criminal is not because he desires to be one,
but because he does not have his mind under control and is
therefore a slave to his own conscious and subconscious mind,
and to the minds of everybody else.

Swami Vivekananda

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 An Introduction to Hindu Theology - 4
Swami Sunirmalananda
(Continued from the last issue)

The Origins of Hindu Theology: the Vedas

T he Vedas are the result of the human search for truth. The
rishis (sages) existed since the time when human beings
began to live on this good earth. The truths they discovered
were preserved for posterity in Sanskrit by the process of verbal
communication, until writing came to help. How perfect was
their method of preservation! Here is an example: even today,
despite the passing of millennia, not a single letter can be
changed from the Vedas—so perfect is the recording. They had
developed several sciences to preserve knowledge in this way.
Their love for knowledge was not just academic curiosity or
the desire for degrees. Their purpose was attaining spiritual
knowledge, so their dedication to the pursuit of knowledge
was total. Of all their discoveries, the discovery of the nature
of God, of the individual, and of the universe are astounding—
as they understood that God is both personal and impersonal,
is both within and without, is beyond thought and speech, and
that He is the real we, we are the real He.
Thus, Hindu theology has at least a 10,000 year-long history.
Much of the sacred literature is lost—due to political upheavals
and other reasons. The Âryas sought the knowledge of God in
diverse ways. The recorded word, the Veda, is the result of this
search for Truth. Tattva-vichâra or enquiry into the nature of
God, and tattva-jnâna or the knowledge of God, are therefore
ancient subjects, far more ancient than any known to history.

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 Growth in Hindu Theological Studies
We have seen that the theology that was developed in
Aryavarta, the land of the Âryas, was ancient, methodical, and
living. We shall now see how the system grew. After the truths
of the Vedas were discovered, they were taught to future
generations. The attempts made at their preservation were
scientific and systematic. How did they do it? The revealed
truths were preserved in Sanskrit, the language which never
changes but grows. Further, several sciences were developed
to preserve the truths—meter (chandas), astronomy (jyotisha)
and so on. The style of memorisation was unique and
scientific.
Thus there was no chance of even a letter becoming lost
from a mantra. They were handed over from generation to
generation verbally. No effort was spared to preserve sacred
knowledge. These truths were subsequently compiled and
organized into four parts by Vyasa, a sage of extraordinary
attainments. Vyasa accomplished the stupendous task of
gathering together all the hymns of the Vedas from numerous
sources. He then classified them into four big groups. These
were the hymns (mantras), rituals (brâhmanas), meditations
(âranyakas), and contemplations (Upanishads). These Vedas are
the fundamental sources of all knowledge. Sages “saw” the
eternal truths in the form of cryptic mantras, left them for
posterity, and they were compiled into the existent Vedas. Also
called the shruti because they were ‘heard’, this Vedic
knowledge helped the ancient Aryans develop secular and
spiritual sciences—from seafaring through agriculture to
astronomy. Further down the centuries, this sacred knowledge
was given a book form. Thus we nowhave the four Vedas, each
with four parts, as books.

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 The Vedic sages dedicated their lives to the knowledge of
God, living principally in the cold regions of the Himalayas,.
Theological questions about the existence, the nature and the
meaning of God were asked repeatedly since the earliest times.

The Concept of God

The first and the most important point is, it is not possible
to understand Hindu Theology or the Hindu concept of God
from the Occidental viewpoint. Orientalists and Missionary
scholars have for centuries tried to superimpose their
understanding of the concept of God on Sanatana Dharma. But
they have failed. Since they have failed, they blame Sanatana
Dharma as a religion having millions of Gods, and so on. All
the Western concepts of “theisms” like mono, heno, poly, and
so on do not fit into the scheme of Hindu Theology. We must
understand this point as the vital aspect of Hindu Theology.
The first fundamental point that the student of Hindu
Theology has to understand is this: in Hinduism, there is only
One God. That One is the Absolute, Supreme Consciousness,
and so on. God is One. Without grasping this truth, it will be
difficult to follow the Hindu theological argument.
The second fundamental point of the theology of Sanatana
Dharma is, it is based on revealed scripture, the Veda. Just as
every sensible theologian of Christianity stresses the
importance of Revelation by God as the foundation of theology,
the Hindu too bases everything on the revealed Scripture—the
Veda. The Vedas are the sources of Sanatana Dharma or
Hinduism, and of all human knowledge. They are the pillars
upon which the whole of human knowledge of God stands.
They are the bases on which the whole of human knowledge
stands, for it is through the Vedas that we really come to know
what we are, what this universe is, and what God is.

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 We shall first of all trace the concept of God in Sanatana
Dharma from the Vedas. Apparently confusing, with numerous
gods and goddesses, numerous ideas and concepts—the
underlying current is that there is one supreme Being. The
Vedic idea of God is not clear until we come to the Upanishads.
However, since the early Mantra period, the call for one
Supreme Being is heard reverberating in the Vedas.
Continuing with the historical approach to Hindu
Theology, we shall show that seeking to know God, to
understand His works and His nature, had been the principal
occupation of thousands of Âryas since ancient times. The first
questions of the early seekers were, Who is God? What is our
relation to Him? How did He create this universe, and did it
do it?
First, about God. We have mentioned that each Veda is
divided into four broad groups: the prayer portion (Mantra),
the ceremonial portion (Brahmana), the sacrificial portion
(Aranyaka) and the meditation portion (Upanishad). The very
first verse of the Mantra part of the Rig Veda has the word deva,
God. A few hymns later, we have the mention of the mother of
Gods (Aditi).1 Aditi is said to be the mother of six, seven or
eight gods –as there are different numbers given in different
texts. These gods are: Indra, Vâyu, Brihaspati, Mitra, Agni,
Pûshan and Bhaga. There were some other gods and goddesses
too, like Soma, Prithvi, Maruts, and so on. Agni, the God of
Fire, played a pivotal role of being the messenger of the gods.
The Vedic sages repeatedly enquired about God, about whom
to adore in the verses ending with ‘kasmai devâya havishâ
vidhema? Which God shall we adore?’2 They also want to know
about the origin of the universe: ‘Ko dadarsha prathamam
jâyamânam? Who was the firstborn? Who has seen Him?’3 The
seeking for God, the desire to know His nature, the aspiration

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to understand His works—all these were the dominant virtues
of the Vedic peoples. Whether it is the Mantra part or the
Upanishad part, the human desire and aspiration to seek to
know and contact God is the one idea that runs throughout.
While in the initial stages the gods were more “material” or
powers ruling over different natural functions, the later stages
showed the profound truth of Consciousness being the centre
of attention. Apparently, this may mean that Sanatana Dharma
has many Gods. We shall come to this soon.
Second, about Creation. There are several great hymns
about creation and one of them is most significant, as it says
that creation is an endless process. “The Eternal Laws (Rta) and
Truth (Satya) were born of great heat of austerity (tapas). From
thence was Night born, and then the great wavy ocean. From
the bellowing, wavy ocean the Year (samvatsara) was born. This
Year is the limiter of day and night and the Lord of all who live.
The Sun and the Moon, the heavens and the earth, the space
and the higher regions were all created by the Lord then, as it
had been on the previous occasion.”4 Then there is the well-
known Nâsadiya hymn about creation, which says that in the
beginning there was neither Being nor non-Being. The Hindu
concept of creation is varied—from the idea that creation is
eternal, to the idea that creation is an illusion, there are several
concepts, to suit different minds.
The Upanishads deal only with Reality. In diverse ways,
they discuss God and His nature. God, according to the
Upanishads, is not the anthropomorphic “person” but the
Infinite, beginningless, endless, Supreme Consciousness.
Almost all the Upanishads begin with enquiry into the nature
of God. “Kim kâranam? Kutah sma jâtâh? Jîvâma kena?...What or
Who is the Cause? From where were we born? Why do we
live?...”5

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 After the Vedas, there came into existence many other
sciences and numerous works on religion and spirituality. We
had the laws for social life (smritis), the epic-histories (itihâsas),
the mythologies (purânas) and a host of other post-Vedic
literature. Of all the works of the later period, the Bhagavadgita
stands out as the most illuminating theological work. It is God’s
word itself. In all of these, there has been the constant quest for
God, the experiences of saints, the stories of their spiritual
struggles, and so on. The philosophical systems came later still.
These philosophical systems were based on the Vedas. Not that
newer philosophical systems were created, but the ideas were
there in the Vedas and were systematically stated with the
Vedas as the basis. Buddhism, Jainism and other systems too
came up—all dealing with the fundamental theological
questions. God with diverse names and forms and attributes
is the centre of this enormous fund of literature of the Aryans,
thereby that of ancient India and of Sanatana Dharma. Thus, a
long and steady search for God went on the soil of India for
answers to fundamental questions of life and existence and
continues today with renewed vigour. This renewed vigour
came from the advent of Sri Ramakrishna, Holy Mother, and
Swamiji. They renewed the vigour of theological studies
because the subcontinent had become cold and dry, owing to
political invasions. Truths had been forgotten and superstitions
had been substituted for spirituality. Sri Ramakrishna’s
spiritual practices renewed the enthusiasm for God-seeking.

Points to Remember
We have had a bird’s-eye view of the history of Hindu
Theology. A few points must be remembered before proceeding
further. For Christian theology, the Bible forms the basis, as it
is the study and interpretation, principally, of the Bible that

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forms the theology. For Hindu Theology, the Vedas are the
basis; the Vedas were revelations. Further, while the Vedas
themselves are the result of the sages’ search for God, their
interpretation and study too form parts of theology and
philosophy. So, while interpreting and understanding the Bible
leads to Christian Theology, the Vedas themselves are the
beginnings of Hindu Theology. This states the antiquity of
Hindu theology. It does not, however, mean that the Vedas
limit the progress and scope of theology. This is another
important point to note with regard to Hindu Theology. Sri
Ramakrishna says it best: “God is beyond the Vedas and their
injunctions. Can one realize Him by studying the scriptures, the
Vedas, and the Vedānta? (To Narendra) Do you understand this?
The Vedas give only a hint.” What does this mean? Did Sri
Ramakrishna mean that the Vedas were ineffective? Not so. He
says that God can never be limited by anything. He can do
anything, surpass anything, and can present Himself in any
form or any way. So Sri Ramakrishna remarked that his
experiences had gone beyond the Vedas and the Vedanta. This
gives ample scope to the human being and his search for God.
Secondly, about cultural transcendence. God reveals
Himself as the Veda, as knowledge. This knowledge is beyond
time, place, region and religion. It has no cultural bounds or
limits. Truth is universal. While the Christian Revelation is
attributed by someone to be for the Christian in faith, the Vedas
are for all. Sanatana Dharma and its truths are for all. There can
be no cultural limitations to Vedic knowledge.
Thirdly, about faith. Hindu Theology, unlike Christian,
does not begin with faith in God and the Scripture. The
aspirant, without knowing anything or without having faith in
anything also can search and seek God. It is not like “the Bible
and the Bible alone” approach in Hinduism. His sincerity

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would lead him to knowledge. Hindu Theology is essentially
mystical and not theoretical.
Fourthly, the Church. There is no central authority to negate
or validate the revelations or the thinking of theologians in
Hinduism, as it is in Catholicism in particular. Though there
have been some foolish Brahmins who tried to control
interpretations from time to time, their folly has always quickly
been made public. Independence, freedom from authoritative
control, and liberty of thought are the hallmarks of Hindu
theology. There are a few other important points but we shall
go over to the next topic.

The Methodology of Hindu Theology

Is a method necessary for theological studies? Stanford
Murrell writes: ‘Since there are various ways to build a system of
religious belief, it is good to remember that the procedure a person
decides to pursue will influence the final results.’6 So some method
is necessary. However, method should not control creativity.
Bernard Lonergan (1904-1984) holds one of the most important
places in Christian methodology now. His book, Method in
Theology (1972) is quoted widely. He says, “Method is not a set
of rules to be followed meticulously by a dolt. It is a framework for
collaborative creativity.’ Creativity is the word.7
What method should be followed for theological studies?
Christianity follows three methods: Inductive, Speculative and
Mystical. Basing their discussion on the Bible, they use these
methods to prove the existence of God, study God’s nature,
and so on. Of the three methods, the inductive method follows
the same inductive principles that are followed everywhere—
from examples or instances, going to generalisations. The law
is made in the end after seeing common elements in numerous
cases. The speculative method is based on assumptions from

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which generalisation follows. The mystical method is based on
experience. We shall discuss them in detail later.
Speaking the theological language, by and large Sanatana
Dharma too follows these methods for theoretical studies in a
general sense, as we shall soon see. But we must remember that
certain terms like ‘rational’ mean different things to different
people. To be rational for a dogmatic individual is to obey his
scripture implicitly. To be rational for an open-minded
individual is to be universal, ready to reject pet ideas when
found wrong, and be open to newer ideas. To be rational is to
be scientific in spirit. While for Sanatana Dharma, the third, the
mystical method (in a special sense, though), is most important
for God-knowledge, the other two are important too. Sanatana
dharma uses other methods too, like logic, for instance. All
these methods are used to know God, to prove His existence,
to understand His glories and to know the nature of the
universe as well as the living beings. Through these methods,
again, theology is developed as a consequence of the soul’s
search for God.
Why does Sanatana Dharma insist so much on experience
rather than on theorizing? Hinduism distinctly classifies all
knowledge into two groups: sensory (aparâ) and supra-sensory
(parâ). Supra-sensory knowledge means that which is beyond
the intellect and the mind. The mind is not the Spirit. The mind
too, for the Hindu theologian, is a sense, is limited, and is
material. The Spirit cannot be attained through the material,
though the mind is the greatest instrument for knowing God.
This difference between Sanatana Dharma and other faiths is
vital to our understanding of the importance of Hindu Theology.
Bernard Lonergan’s book, Method in Theology, speaking in
an abstruse and quite complex manner, principally deals with
sensory knowledge in speaking of method. Lonergan says: ‘Just

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as we move from the data of sense through inquiry, insight, reflection,
judgment, to statements about sensible things, so too we move from
the data of consciousness through inquiry, understanding, reflection,
judgment, to statements about conscious subjects and their
operations.’8 The consciousness that he speaks of is relative and
not the Consciousness which is supra-sensory. God is Supreme
Consciousness according to all the traditions of Hinduism. To
know Supreme Consciousness using the senses is impossible,
though all sages declare that our mind is the instrument to
reach the threshold of the Divine.9 Hinduism, though giving
intellectual knowledge of God its proper place, insists on its
limitations too. Through the intellect, one can interpret
scriptures, try to understand them, and have some vague idea
about God. Through the intellect and mind, one can love God
and serve Him. But to know Him in the real sense, one has to
go beyond the senses. The theologian studies the experiences
of saints and illumined seers. He analyses the records left
behind by them and forms an opinion. This is the beginning of
theology—the study of scripture and saints’ words.
Why so? For two important reasons. One, God is beyond
the mind and the senses. Two, all knowledge is inherent in the
Soul or Atman. The process of learning, according to Sanatana
Dharma, is from inside out and not from outside in. That is,
knowledge comes from within. It is inherent in the Self. So God
knowledge, which is inherent, is being “unveiled” by the soul,
through the process of removal of obstacles. For this, the soul
uses external suggestions.
Supra-sensory knowledge is spiritual. This spiritual
knowledge is what is implied in true Religion. All other
knowledge is secular. True spiritual knowledge, which is
inherent, is beyond the pale of the senses. So the theological
methods that the theologians speak of, call them transcendence

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or dialectic or whatever, cannot touch the fringes of this
supra-sensory knowledge through argument or rationalisation.
It is something beyond such methods. Yet, theology as a system
to study God’s nature is important because this helps us grow
in our aspiration to have God-experience. Studying theology
just for academic interest will not be complete at all as it does
not serve its purpose. Hindus knew it since the beginning.
This difference is important when we discuss Indian
theology. When we speak of mystical theology from the Hindu
context, it is purely spiritual, supra-intuitive (aparoksha),
experiential, sudden, and beyond thought and word.10 Many
sages have attained the highest since time immemorial, and
many, out of compassion, have carefully left records of their
experiences. These experiences are studied and theological
concepts are formed. We shall now take up the method of
Hindu Theology.
Before continuing, we shall briefly mention the road we
have already covered till now. We began with an introduction
to Theology, by defining it. We have then mentioned the history
of Western theology, beginning from Greece down to the
present times. We have touched the history of Hindu Theology
and have shown that it is ancient, and at least ten thousand
years old. Next we have discussed the method used to study
theology, and have shown that Sanatana Dharma classifies all
knowledge into two parts: secular and spiritual. Secular
knowledge is based on sense-experience and mental
movements. Spiritual knowledge is immediate and supra-
sensory.
How does one acquire sense-based knowledge? Indian
systems of philosophy have evolved a unique six-fold method
of knowledge.11 This is called the system of pramâna. Pramâ
means valid knowledge. That which brings us valid knowledge

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is pramâna. So pramâna is the method of knowledge. The object
that we are intending to know is called prameya-vastu. And we
who are the knowers of this knowledge are called pramatas.
Both knowledge of the senses and subtle knowledge are gained
by these six methods of knowledge. These are called Perception
(pratyaksha), Inference (anumâna), Verbal Testimony (shabda),
Supposition (arthâpatti), comparison (upamâna), and Non-
apprehension (anupalabdhi). This is a big subject in itself. All
valid knowledge that we have through our senses is received
by these six methods. There are philosophical discussions about
the number of methods, but on the whole, these are the six.
The next is supra-sensory knowledge (parâ vidyâ). God is
beyond the senses, the mind and the intellect. He or It cannot
be known through the senses—this is one of the fundamental
concepts of Hinduism. No amount of theorizing can take us to
God.12 All knowledge we derive from books reveal absolutely
nothing when compared to the direct experience of God.
What is the method to know the supra-sensory, or God? If
it is theoretical knowledge alone, there can be some well-known
methods. If it is direct experience (aparoksha anubhuti), then we
must follow a different path altogether.
In order to understand the methodology of Hindu theology,
we must study the well-known classification of Hindu sadhana
into the four paths: the paths of knowledge (jnana), devotion
(bhakti), contemplation (yoga) and selfless service (karma). It is
based on these four paths that the system of Hindu theology
has developed.
1.The Speculative Method (vichâra): What is the speculative
method in Christian theology? The speculative method frames
truths and laws based on thought. This method involves the
mind, naturally, and its thoughts. These thoughts, based on
experiences, create concepts. These concepts become principles.

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And these principles, after sufficient consideration, are
postulated as verified truths. No other form of external textual
influence is used here, ideally. The speculative method
branches out into two parts: rationalistic, which accepts only
the concepts created by the mind and reason, and dogmatic,
which accepts supernatural revelations to the mind. So the
speculative method of theology in Christian thought is a
rational approach to truths, without being influenced by any
other source. Though one wonders how this is possible, in view
of the fact that the Bible enters the arena even before the
theology student begins his studies, this is how it is presented.
Over to the Hindu speculative method now. Whether it is
to attain the Truth or to study scriptures related to Theology,
enquiry is the best method adopted by the Vedantist. The path
of knowledge indicates the method of speculation. It is called
vichâra. The process of vichâra is as follows: the scriptures,
especially the Vedas, are infallible. They tell us about the nature
of God. These scriptures are the fundamental sources of
knowledge. However, the very nature of Indian scriptures is
their openness to discussion. They themselves give ample scope
for argument, discussion, meditation and enquiry. All are
welcome to enquire and meditate on the truths that the
scriptures teach. The fundamental difference here is, there is
no need of faith in the scriptures as the first step to discussion.
According to the path of knowledge, shraddhâ or faith comes
later. Further, in order to understand the truths stated in these
scriptures, speculation is one of the processes. So, one form of
speculation is to enquire into the truths of the scriptures, and
thereby come to conclusions. In fact, it is through enquiry,
argument, and discussion that different systems of philosophy
have come into existence.

177
 The first form of enquiry, therefore, is to study the scripture
and discuss its meaning and significance. Suppose the Îsha
Upanishad says: ‘Îshâvâsyam idam sarvam, all this is enveloped
by God,’ 13 the student will think and discuss with his friends
about the nature of this envelopment. Each one can have a
different opinion about this.
The second form of speculation is for the faithful. Spiritual
seeking, according to some paths, begins with shraddhâ. The
seeker, who studies scriptures with faith, enquires into their
meanings, meditates on them, and progresses along the
spiritual path.
The third, higher, form of enquiry is to negate all that is not
the Reality until It is reached. This negation, popularly called
‘na iti, na iti’ or ‘neti neti—not this, not this’, is not mere
parrot-like repetition of words. But it is the growing conviction
that what we see and feel as real is in fact a systemic illusion.
This is done through the power of the mind and its strength of
enquiry.
The fourth form of enquiry is to positively affirm that “this
is the Reality”. Holding on to some idea of the Supreme Reality
mentally, the seeker affirms that It is real while the rest, though
apparently realistic, is not.
2. The Inductive Method: The second method of Christian
theology is the Inductive method. In the Inductive method,
principles are formulated based on facts collected carefully. It
is like the scientist formulating laws based on experiences, facts
and universality of truths.
We must study the Inductive method of Indian theology
with this background in mind. In Christianity, inductive
theologists study nature as the manifestation of God’s relation
to man. Whatever that may mean, in Aryan religions, especially
Sanatana Dharma, nature is seen in not one, but in diverse

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forms. Nature is illusory to some, while it is real to others.
Nature is independent to some, while She is the manifestation
of God’s glory, to others. Nature is inert but is the Creatrix to
some. Nature is, however, material to every school of thought.
Nature is called prakriti, maya, and so on according to the
interpretation. But to every school, nature is subservient or
subordinate to the Supreme Reality. 14 Nature is there to teach
the soul that she is finite and limited, and that God is
everything. Nature leads the soul to the doorstep of God. From
the ego to the body, everything is nature.
External nature, the world as we see it, is somewhat special.
Can these forces of nature lead us to the Divine? From the
earliest mantras of the Vedas, we can have some idea of the
Vedic seers’ struggle for knowledge. Ancient Aryans began
wondering at the marvels of nature. They understood that
behind the forces of nature, like thunder and rain, there are
controlling powers. These powers are “gods”, the shining ones,
who were beings like us on the earth and attained to such states.
These “gods” are not the Supreme Being, but are positions, as
Swami Vivekananda pointed out. These gods change. Through
the adoration of these gods, the ancient Vedic people attained
to worldly and otherworldly well-being.15 However, the soul
had to pierce through the veil of nature to attain to the Supreme.
Through the study of nature and its diverse manifestations,
then, the aspirant would understand that nature is limited,
material, and finite. Using this as the plank, he would go for the
Infinite. This is the inductive method—going from the multifarious
to the One.
3.The Mystical Method: According to Christian theology, the
Mystical method is a contrast to the speculative method. While the
speculative method considers only thought, the mystical considers
only feeling. It’s the question of the head in one and heart in another.

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 The Vedantic mysticism is not just feeling. It has various aspects.
Mystical experience according to Hinduism is not just an emotional
flicker or sensation. The whole personality is involved and the mystic
undergoes complete transformation. To say the least, his ego is
obliterated and he experiences supreme bliss. Hindu theology gives
prominence to this method.
We shall now go to Hindu Theology proper.
(To be continued)

Footnotes :
1. Rig Veda, 1.14.3
2. Rig Veda, 10.121
3. Rig Veda, 1.164.4
4. Rig Veda, 10.190
5. Shvetâshvatara Upanishad, 1.1
6. Stanford Murrell, An Introductory Study of Systematic
Theology, p.20
7. Lonergan, Bernard, Method in Theology, see Introduction
8. Lonergan, Bernard, Method in Theology, (Darton Long-
man and Todd, 1971) vol.12, p.9
9. Manasaivedam âptavyam, Katha Upanishad, 2.1.11
10. Shvetashvatara Upanishad, 1.3
11. See Swami Satprakashananda, Methods of Knowledge
(Kolkata: Advaita Ashrama), 1964
12. Naishâ tarkena matir âpaneya, Katha Upanishad, 1.2.9
13. Îsha Upanishad, 1
14. Ajo’pi san avyavâtmâ, bhûtânâm îshvaro’pi san.
Prakritm svâm adhishtâya sambhavâmi âtma-mâyayâ.
Bhagavadgita, 4.6
15. Parasparam bhâvayantah shreyah param-avâpsyatha.

180
 From A Carmelite Cloister
Letters From Saint Therese Of The Child Jesus
(Written to her sister Celine between the years 1888 and 1894, and
here given in part)

D o not let your weakness make you unhappy. When, in

the morning, we feel no courage or strength for the
practise of virtue, it is really a grace; it is the time ‘to lay the
axe to the root of the tree’- relying upon Jesus alone. If we fall,
an act of love will set all right . . . Love can do all things. The
most impossible tasks seem to it easy and sweet. You know
well that our Lord does not look so much at the greatness of
our actions, nor even at their difficulty as at the love with
which we do them. What, then, have we to fear?
The other day I came across this striking passage: "To be
resigned and to be united to the will of God are not the same;
there is the same difference between them as that which exists
between union and unity; in union there are still two, in unity
there is but one." Yes, let us be one with God even in this life;
and for this we should be more than resigned, we should
embrace the Cross with joy.
Do not think we can find love without suffering, for our
nature remains and must be taken into account; but it puts
great treasures within our reach . . . We should like to suffer
generously and nobly; we should like never to fall. What an
illusion! What does it matter to me if I fall at every moment!
In that way I realize my weakness and I gain thereby. My God,
Thou seest how little I am good for, when Thou dost carry me
in Thy arms; and if Thou leavest me alone, well, it is because
it pleases Thee to see me lie on the ground. Then why should
I be troubled?

181
 If you are willing to bear in peace the trial of not being
pleased with yourself, you will be offering the Divine Master
a home in your heart. It is true that you will suffer, because
you will be like a stranger to your own house; but do not be
afraid—the poorer you are, the more Jesus will love you. I
know that He is better pleased to see you stumbling in the
night upon a stony road, than walking in the full light of day
upon a path carpeted with flowers, because these flowers
might hinder your advance.
It seems to me that God has no need of years to perfect his
labour of love in a soul. One ray from His Heart can in an
instant make His flower blossom forth, never to fade . . . We
are His chosen lilies. He dwells as a King in our midst—He
lets us share the honours of His Royalty—His Divine Blood
bedews our petals—and His Thorns as they wound us spread
abroad the perfume of our love.
“Make haste to come down, for this day I must abide in thy
house." Jesus bids us come down. Where, then, must we go?
The Jews asked Him: "Master, where dwellest Thou?" And He
answered: "The foxes have holes and the birds of the air nests,
but the Son of Man hath not where to lay His Head." If we are
to be the dwelling-place of Jesus, we must come down even to
this—we must be so poor that we have not where to lay our
heads.
This grace of light has been given to me during my retreat.
Our Lord desires that we should receive Him into our hearts,
and no doubt they are empty of creatures. Alas! mine is not
empty of self; that is why He bids me come down. And I shall
come down even to the very ground, that Jesus may find
within my heart a resting-place for His Divine Head, and may
feel that there at least He is loved and understood.

182
 You tell me that my letters do good to you. I am indeed
glad, but I assure you that I am under no misapprehension:
Unless the Lord build the house, they labour in vain who build
it. The greatest eloquence cannot call forth a single act of love
without that grace which touches the heart.
Think of a beautiful peach with its delicate tint of rose, with
its flavour so sweet that no human skill could invent such
nectar. Tell me, Celine, is it for the peach's own sake that God
created that colour so fair to the eye, that velvety covering so
soft to the touch? Is it for itself that He made it so sweet? Nay,
it is for us; the only thing that is all its own and is essential to
its being, is the stone; it possesses nothing beyond.
Thus also it pleases Jesus to lavish His gifts on certain souls
in order to draw yet others to Himself; in His Mercy He
humbles them inwardly, and gently compels them to recognize
their nothingness and His Almighty Power . . . Dear little sister,
sweet echo of my soul, Therese is far from the heights of
fervour at this moment; but I am in this state of spiritual
dryness, unable to pray, or to practise virtue, I look for little
opportunities, for the smallest trifles, to please my Jesus; a
smile or a kind word, for instance, when I would wish to be
silent, or to show that I am bored. If no such occasion offer, I
try at least to say over and over again that I love Him. This is
not hard, and it keeps alive the fire in my heart. Even should
the fire of love seem dead, I would still throw my tiny straws
on the ashes, and I am confident it would light up again.
Dearest sister, I hardly know what I write; I let my pen
follow the dictates of my heart. You tell me that you feel your
weakness, but that is a grace. It is our Lord who sows the seeds
of distrust of self in your soul. Do not be afraid! If you do not
fail to give Him pleasure in small things, He will be obliged to
help you in great ones.

183
 The Apostles laboured long without Him; they toiled a
whole night and caught no fish. Their labours were not
inacceptable to Him, but He wished to prove that He is the
Giver of all things. So an act of humility was asked of the
Apostles, and our loving Lord called to them: " Children, have
you anything to eat?" St. Peter, avowing his helplessness, cried
out: "Lord, we have laboured all the night, and have taken
nothing." It is enough; the Heart of Jesus is touched . . Had the
Apostle caught some small fish, perhaps our Divine Master
would not have worked a miracle; but he had caught nothing,
and so, through the power and goodness of God, his nets were
soon filled with great fishes—such is our Lord's way. He gives
as God—with divine largesse—but he insists on humility of
heart.
This is perhaps the last time that I need to have recourse to
writing in order to talk to you, my dear little sister. God in His
goodness has granted my dearest wish. Come, and we will
suffer together . . . Then Jesus will take one of us, and the others
will remain in exile yet a little longer. Now, listen well to what
I am going to say : God will never, never separate us: and if I
die before you, do not think that I shall be far away—never
shall we have been more closely united. You must not be
grieved at my childish prophecy. I am not ill. I have an iron
constitution; but the Lord can break iron as if it were clay* . . .
I am so glad that you do not feel any particular attraction
at the thought of entering the Carmel. This is really a mark of
our Lord's favour, and shows that He looks for a gift from your
hands. He knows that it is so much sweeter to give than to
receive. What happiness to suffer for Him who loves us even
unto folly, and to pass for fools in the eyes of the world! We
judge others by ourselves, and, as the world will not hearken
to reason, it calls us unreasonable too . . .

184
 We are neither idlers nor spendthrifts. Our Divine Master
has taken our defence upon Himself. Remember the scene in
the house of Lazarus: Martha was serving, while Mary had no
thought of food, but only of how she could please her Beloved.
And she broke her alabaster box, and poured out upon her
Saviour's Head the precious spikenard, and the house was
filled with the odour of the ointment."
The Apostles murmured against Magdalen. This still
happens, for so do men murmur against us. Even some fervent
Catholics who think our ways are exaggerated, and that—with
Martha— we ought to wait upon Jesus, instead of pouring out
on Him the odorous ointment of our lives. Yet what does it
matter if these ointment-jars—our lives—be broken, since our
Lord is consoled, and the world in spite of itself is forced to
inhale the perfumes they give forth? It has much need of these
perfumes to purify the unwholesome air it breathes.
For a while only, good-bye, dearest sister. Your barque is
near to port. The breezes filling its sails are the zephyrs of
Love—breezes that speed more swiftly than the lightning-
flash. Good-bye! In a few days we shall be together within
these Carmel walls.

* She died three years later.

(Reprinted from Vedanta For East And West, May-June 1954)

Each time we suppress hatred, or a feeling of anger, it is

so much good energy stored up in our favour; that piece of
energy will be converted into the higher powers.

Swami Vivekananda

185
 On Being Human
E. Raphael Marozzi, M.A.

I n the teachings of Sri Ramakrishna we find the statement that

unless one has attained to love of God one has not yet become
a human being. Though one has a human body he may not yet
be at the human level of existence. We find a corresponding
thought in his statement that as long as one's prana or life-energy
moves only in the three lower chakras or psychic centres one lives
an animal life, and only when the prana reaches the fourth centre,
located in the heart area, does one begin to rise above animal
characteristics and develop a desire for a nobler life and love of
God. As long as the consciousness functions in the lower three
centres—that is, one at the base of the spine, one in the area of the
organ of generation, and one in the area of the navel—only the
material world, from the gross to the subtle, is experienced, and
even ideas relating to art, philosophy and religion are rooted in
the material world. When the consciousness rises to the fourth
psychic centre, corresponding to the area of the heart, the mind
begins to move away from the material world, a hankering for
the ideal develops, there is a de-emphasis on the body and
attenuation of ego.
This is as much as to say that before we can become spiritual
we must become human. And we are not yet human as long as
we are motivated by animal propensities. In comparing the
animal nature to the human, speaking in terms of gunas, it is seen
that animals are predominated by the guna of tamas. Tamas is that
Guna the characteristics of which are indolence, dullness,
darkness and ignorance, and manifests itself as hate, destruction,
killing and delusion. Therefore characteristics of violence, greed,
lust, and selfishness are the manifestation of tamas and properly
belong to the animal kingdom. The man who has tamas
predominant is classed as asurika or demon-like, and according

186
to the words of Sri Krishna in the Bhagavad-Gita is destined for a
set-back in the cycle of evolution. It is the qualities of tamas that
take the reincarnating soul downward because they are qualities
belonging to the animal and not to higher man.
‘Triple is this gate to hell, destructive of the self—lust, anger,
and greed.' Hence Sri Ramakrishna's constant warning to his
disciples against kamini-kanchana, lust and greed, and his setting
these forth as the great essentials to be renounced in order to lead
a spiritual life. Having given up the qualities which belong to the
animal and having become properly human, then love for God
and the spiritual life in general will come about as a natural
development. To try to be spiritual before having properly
attained the human level is an act of hypocrisy and only leads to
a confusion of values.
The ethical commandments of Jesus Christ on non-violence,
non-resistance of evil, non-greed, non-lust, control of speech,
non-hating, non-coveting, of not serving Mammon, loving
enemies, returning good for evil, and being perfect are stating in
different terms that man should conquer his animal propensities,
rid himself of tamas, and be worthy of his spiritual heritage as a
fully developed human being. He does not say in so many words,
"Be spiritual," but rather tells us to get rid of obstructions by
following a certain ethical code. Love of God and spiritual values
will follow as a natural consequence.
The Buddhist Scriptures enjoin the Eightfold Noble Path as
ethical rules of conduct to achieve the same end, preparedness
for spiritual living by overcoming past tendencies and habits. By
right views, right resolve, right speech, right conduct, right
livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration
the Buddhist devotee is taught to overcome ignorance (tamas) and
its consequences called variously the Wheel of Existence, the
Twelve Sources, and the Twelve Links which cause misery and
suffering and prevent the unfolding of spiritual consciousness.

187
 By being human, then, is here meant the state of unfoldment
in which the mind is prepared to receive spiritual light and which
is no longer disturbed or motivated by any quality belonging to
tamas or the sub-human category. This is spoken of in the yama
or first step of the eight limbs of Yoga by Patanjali in his
Yoga-Sutras. Before one can practice concentration and
meditation leading to the state of Yoga it is necessary to acquire
the moral virtues included under yama. These are: non-violence,
non-stealing, truthfulness, continence, and non-coveting. These
are to be practised so that there is no violation of them in thought,
word, or action; whether committed, caused, or approved;
whether slight, middling, or great; with whatever motive, be it
avarice, anger, or ignorance. Violation in any of these degrees
causes obstruction to spiritual life and drags the mind away from
the path of Yoga. The attainment of these virtues is considered
essential as a preparatory condition to spiritual life. Divine
consciousness or love for God cannot enter the mind which is
vitiated by gross animal passions, violence, greed, falsehood, and
avarice with all their attendant emotions of selfishness, envy,
jealousy, hate, attachment, aversion, anger, fear, desire, and so
on, which lead man to commit such acts " before high heaven as
make the angels weep," as we see in our daily papers.
Sri Ramakrishna has said: "When man rids himself entirely
of his love for lust and greed then he clearly perceives that the
body is one thing and the Self another." It is, in other words, the
presence of the lower emotions in our minds that finds our true
Self to the body and the material world, which results in egoism,
attachment, aversion, and fear of death which are obstructions to
spiritual knowledge.
Vedantic literature tells us of the fourfold qualifications of the
aspirant to spiritual life (given by Sadananda in his Vedantasara
and by Sankara in his Viveka-chudamani): (a) discrimination
between the Real and the unreal; (b) renunciation of objects of

188
enjoyment, since they are transitory and unreal; (c) control of
mind, control of senses. self-withdrawal, fortitude, concentration,
and faith; (d) and desire for liberation. Having attained these
qualities man is ready for the spiritual life. Until then he must
work at becoming properly human.
Sri Krishna in the Bhagavad-Gita enumerates those qualities
in man which fit him for spiritual aspiration: fearlessness, purity,
steadfastness, control of senses, study of the Scriptures, austerity,
uprightness, non-injury, truth, absence of anger, renunciation,
tranquillity. absence of calumny, compassion for all beings,
non-covetousness, gentleness. modesty, absence of fickleness,
boldness, forgiveness, fortitude, absence of hatred, and absence
of pride. These qualities arise from the sattva guna which is
stainless, luminous, free from evil, and makes one fit for the
divine state.
The qualities of the asurika or less-than-human state are also
enumerated: falsehood, impurity, hypocrisy, pride, arrogance,
delusion, lustfulness, greed, anger, maliciousness, cruelty, and
ignorance. These qualities arise from the guna of tamas which
causes retrogression into lower forms of life. Those who insist on
manifesting such animal qualities will be given the proper bodies
to express them adequately. Sankaracharya, great philosopher-
saint of India, states in his Viveka-chudamani that there are three
things which are very rare and due to the grace of God, namely:
a human birth, the longing for liberation, and the protecting care
of a perfected sage. The man who having obtained these does not
exert himself for liberation commits suicide as it were, for he kills
himself by clinging to things unreal. He further states, "What
greater fool is there than the man who having obtained a rare human
body neglects to achieve the real end of this life—that is, liberation?"

(Reprinted from Vedanta for East and West, March-April 1954)

189
 Leaves from an Ashrama 50 :
The Sadhu as Vernal Influence
Swami Vidyatmananda

G irish Chandra Ghosh at first would not believe that

any man—any other human being—could be
completely disinterested, could be concerned only with the
good of others. There must be some catch in Ramakrishna's
love. But in time, as we know, Girish became convinced of
the Master's impersonal concern, and grew to be a
disinterested well-wisher himself, and as such beloved by
many.
That this is a right and proper scheme of development
is supported by such an authority as Swami Vivekananda's
'The Vedanta in all its Phases'. Swamiji compares the sage,
or sadhu, to springtime 'which brings the leaves and
blossoms to various plants, but does not ask anything from
the plant, for its (springtime's) very nature is to do good,
and there it is.' Such, concludes Vivekananda, is the role of
the sadhu. Ramakrishna was a sadhu, and such Girish
became. And to become a sadhu is our objective as devotee.
Comparing the sadhu to springtime is apt. Springtime
is a mysterious force, nameless, unknown, unremarked,
whose presence brings forth abundance where all was
dormant before. Is it any wonder that every civilization
should designate the sweetest of its gods or goddesses as
the deity of springtime and fruition? Swamiji mentioned the
sadhu in the same breath with the season of verdant
flowering. We think of the sadhu as being a wandering holy
man in India. But if you look up the real meaning of the
word in the Sanskrit dictionary you will find how exact

190
Swamiji was, for the word sadhu means: well-disposed,
well-wishing, bounteous.
Thus in its truest sense, the sadhu is someone who does
something for nothing—unique in a world where relations
are at base self-seeking, relations which when tested reveal
a taint of self-interest. But with the sadhu, not so. He projects
an influence that is available to all and makes them bloom—
plants, animals, men, women, children. His delight is in the
good of the other.
Some time ago letters written by Swami Turiyananda
were often reproduced in issues of the Prabuddha Bharata.
Reading these letters, we see this sage as a vernal influence.
Many end with the closing phrase: 'Your well-wisher'. Yes,
that's what the sadhu is—one whose overriding impulse is
to see that those he contacts should develop, flower, bring
forth fruit. We are made to flourish by these well-wishers,
guaranteeing that new springtimes may appear perennially
to bless the earth.
As one of the greatest of such beings said long ago:
'Freely ye have received; freely give.'

Stand Up and Be Strong Stand up, be bold, be strong.

Take the whole responsibility on your own shoulders, and
know that you are the creator of your own destiny. All the
strength and succour you want is within yourselves.
Therefore, make your own future.

The sign of vigor, the sign of life, the sign of hope, the
sign of health, the sign of everything that is good, is
strength. As long as the body lives, there must be strength
in the body, strength in the mind, in the hand.

Swami Vivekananda

191
 Programme for July - August 2015
Sunday discourses begin
at the
Ramakrishna Vedanta Centre, Bourne End at 4:30 pm
Tel: 01628 526464 - www.vedantauk.com

No Talks

There will be no talks during the months

of July and August.

Strength is the medicine for the world's disease. Strength

is the medicine which the poor must have when tyrannized
over by the rich. Strength is the medicine that the ignorant
must have when oppressed by the learned; and it is the
medicine that sinners must have when tyrannized over by
other sinners; and nothing gives such strength as this idea of
monism. Nothing makes us so moral as this idea of monism.
Nothing makes us work so well at our best and highest as
when all the responsibility is thrown upon ourselves.

If the whole responsibility is thrown upon our own

shoulders, we shall be at our highest and best; and when we
have nobody to grope toward, no devil to lay our blame
upon, no Personal God to carry our burdens, when we are
alone responsible, then we shall rise to our highest and best.

Swami Vivekananda

192
 continued from the front cover

What more remains to be said? I am no other than

Brahman. Brahman is this universe and all things that
exist within it. The Scriptures declare that there is noth-
ing else but Brahman. Those who are illumined by the
knowledge 'I am Brahman' renounce their attachment to
this apparent universe. It is certain indeed that these il-
lumined ones live in constant union with Brahman, the
pure blissful consciousness, within their own souls.
Renounce all earthly hopes and physical pleasures
by ceasing to identify yourself with the gross body.
Next, you must cease also to identify yourself with the
subtle body. Realize that you are Brahman, whose form
is bliss eternal, whose glories the Scriptures declare.
Thus you may live in union with Brahman.

Vedanta
is a bi-monthly magazine published, since 1951, by the
Ramakrishna Vedanta Centre, Bourne End, Buckinghamshire
SL8 5LF, U.K.
Phone: (01628) 526464
www.vedantauk.com

Subscription rate for 6 issues: £9 or $17.50 post free.

Editor: Swami Dayatmananda

£1.50

There is no help for you outside of yourself; you

are the creator of the universe. Like the silkworm you
have built a cocoon around yourself. Who will save
you? Burst your own cocoon and come out as the
beautiful butterfly, as the free soul. Then alone you will
see Truth.
Struggle, struggle, was my motto for the last ten
years. Struggle, still say I. When it was all dark, I used
to say, struggle; when light is breaking in, I still say,
struggle.

Swami Vivekananda

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