Thursday, April 17, 2008

Passages from the book, "The Life of Swami Vivekananda"

This is what Swami Vivekananda quoted to his brother disciples before leaving on a wandering journey as a monk...

"Go forward without a path!
Fearing nothing, caring for nothing,
Wander alone, like a rhinoceros!
Even as the lion, not trembling at noises,
Even as the wind, not caught in the net,
Even as the lotus leaf, unstained by the water,
Do thou wander alone, like a rhinoceros!"

~Dhammapada, The Buddhist Scriptures
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A worth reading passage from the book:

"Be like the snake of Shri Ramakrishna's parable. At first the terror of the village, the snake met a sadhu who spoke to him of his evil ways. The snake repented and the sadhu gave him a certain Mantra to meditate upon and advised him to practise non-violence. The snake retired to a solitary nook and did as he was told. It so happened that the sannyasi, in his wanderings, passed through this same village some time later. What was his surprise when he saw the snake half-dead, as the result of violent beatings and maltreatment! He asked the snake how he had come to such a pass. He was met with the reply that by following the religious life he [the snake] had become harmless, and that those who had formerly feared him now pelted him with stones and beat him mercilessly. Then the Guru said, "My child, I asked you not to harm anyone, but I did not forbid you to hiss." So, the snake did as he was bid, and ever afterwards, though he injured none, none dared injure him."

1 comment:

Saleel Pulekar said...

same as ...'BE LIKE A CHOCOLATE, FIRM AND SWEET...sri sri'