The Hindu View of Education
(Compiled for a Discourse by N.R. Srinivasan at Sri Ganesha Temple, Nashville, USA)
“A nation’s theories about education depend upon its theories about man. Its definition and understanding of education depend upon its definition and understanding of man. If we regard man as a physical entity, our approach to education would be of one kind; if we regard man as a mental being, our approach would be of a different kind. But if we regard man as a spiritual being, our educational formulations are bound to be different.
Only for the sake of clarity and analysis, we have set these definitions apart. In actual fact, they cannot be kept apart. For man is one and he is an amalgam of all the three elements. Therefore, no nation can build exclusively on one definition or even two. No one of these definitions could be neglected completely. But it is a question of emphasis and that emphasis lends its particular colour and turn to the whole educative effort.
According to the ancient Indian
seers, there is a greater Life beyond and behind this apparent life; there is a
larger World enveloping this apparent world. They saw that the life of the
senses and the mind is only a segment of a greater life of the Spirit. They
also saw that this larger life of the Spirit is also man’s true life, his true
home – anywhere else he feels a stranger. So these seers taught that man should
live in the spirit of this eternal and infinite life and claim his citizenship
of this larger Kingdom of Heaven. According to these seers, the purpose of
education is to make man aware of this larger life and to teach him how to
reach it:
Om Saha Naav[au]-Avatu | Saha Nau Bhunaktu | Saha Viiryam Karavaavahai | Tejasvi Naav[au]-Adhiitam-Astu Maa Vidvissaavahai | Om Shaantih Shaantih Shaantih //
Meaning:
Om, Together may we two Move (in our Studies, the Teacher and the
Student); Together may we two Relish (our Studies, the Teacher and the Student); Together
may we perform (our Studies) with Vigor (with
deep Concentration);May
what has been Studied by us be filled with the Brilliance (of Understanding, leading to Knowledge); May it Not give rise to Hostility (due to lack of Understanding); Om
Peace, Peace, Peace.
They taught: Give up egoistic life; give up narrow considerations and petty thoughts; give up hankering and desiring; develop fellow-feelings; enlarge your sympathies; widen your horizon. In short, shed your narrow “I”. That will open the gates of a deeper “I” where all powers and blessings and fulfilment reside.
These seers were not content in merely formulating a philosophy of education; they developed an appropriate practical discipline to achieve it. They developed what is generally denoted by the word “yoga”. Yoga teaches a practical method of going within and even looking out and of exploring new and larger life and worlds.
True, a time came in
Indian spirituality when Yoga was used for suppressing the life of the mind and
the body. But that was not its true and original aim. Self-absorption, though
it has its attractions, was a secondary aim, a means to an end, not the end
itself. A truer aim was self-unfoldment and self-expression, the expression of
our higher Self.
India’s education had two aims, both organically linked. One was to strengthen our body and mind, our nerves and vitality. If the Indian teaching on this subject is followed faithfully, it ensures full, vigorous, healthy and long life. Similarly, it ensures health and unimpaired senses and a mind with undiminished powers. According to the Hindu Psychology, a man’s mind and senses are powers of the soul.
Therefore, they should be strengthened, widened, deepened, purified. “May I see and hear clearly and abundantly”, is the repeated prayer in the, several Upanishads. Another variant of this prayer is: “May our eyes see the good, our ears hear the good.” To see and hear and desire better, purer, finer and deeper is the first aim of Indian education.
This means strengthening character, controlling desires and impulses, increasing powers of concentration and will. Not only this opens up our hidden powers, but this is even the basis of any fruitful life at all. If our senses and mind run their unbridled course, uninformed by any higher light, they will lead to self-destruction. But purified in the light of the soul, they become a blessing. This is also the teaching of the Greeks. According to Plato, there is a higher soul and a lower soul. The process of education consists in bringing the lower mind increasingly under the control of the higher.
There was yet another aim of Hindu learning to which we would make a barest reference here. The ancient seers would like to go to the principles of a thing, its source and foundation. They would not be satisfied with half-way houses. For example, in their system of education, their aim was not to seek or provide bits of information on random subjects, but to form and mold the mind itself which receives, processes and analyses all information. Similarly, in their search for knowledge, their aim was not just external half-knowledge about a stray subject.
The Hindu system of education had its higher aims, but it also included that aim which the modern education would like to achieve but which eludes it, namely, a restful mind. The ancient Indian education helped to conquer what are called the vikshepas of the mind, like inattention, distraction, confusion, perplexity, lassitude, restlessness. To-day even the brightest minds suffer from these infirmities. A man may be very bright and intelligent in certain ways; he may be capable of certain high achievements in certain directions; he may be a good engineer, a good chemist; but his mind remains diffused and scattered, distraught and crazed. The modern mind is restless, distracted, ill-at-ease, in conflict with itself. The whole modern culture tends to be sick at heart and sick in mind. In America, the psychiatrist is doing a roaring business. But modern education offers no cure for this sickness.
Therefore, they also founded their education on this vision. They taught for happiness, for integrity, for service. They taught harmony with oneself, harmony with our neighbors, and fellow-men, harmony with our environment. Modern education is based on another vision, the vision of man in conflict with himself, with his fellow-men, with his environment. Therefore, modern schools educate young men for competition and conflict.
This is inevitable in a society which is based on the creed of maximum personal consumption, and maximum exploitation of our fellow-men, exploitation of the animal world, exploitation of our mother-earth, and exploitation of the elements of Nature. It is a world in which no one has rights except man. No wonder when we sow such ample seeds of conflict and exploitation, we reap a rich harvest of pollution, of neurosis, of crime, of drugs and of insanity. The ancient educational thinking also emphasized the importance of a certain atmosphere in which alone any worthwhile education is possible. First, there must be a complete rapport between the teacher and the taught. “May we study together; May God protect us both! May we never spite each other”--that is the prayer of the teacher and the pupil with which several Upanishads open.
There must be an atmosphere of serious inquiry, of hankering for truth for its own sake, of affection, deference, service and respect. Hindus believed that without this environment, no higher education is possible. Hindus also believed that a serious student should observe simplicity, austerity, chastity and faith. Without these attributes, higher learning could not be imparted. Not that the teacher was withholding anything, but the capacity of the student seeking pleasure was badly impaired for receiving higher truth. In the PraSnopnishad, the sage-teacher tells the pupils who approach him for instruction in brahmavidyâ thus: “Dwell with me a year, with austerity, chastity and faith; then ask what question you will.”
The spirit of inquiry and the feeling of reverence tend to disappear from modern centers of learning. No doubt, a certain percentage of bright students still manage to do well in their learning, but their attainments remain only intellectual. Their deeper minds remain unprepared.
In the West, rightly famed for its scientific achievements, the atmosphere of learning is suffering a decline. In America, machines are replacing minds, computers are replacing teachers.
The best minds go not to teaching
but to research supported by big Corporations and the biggest Corporation of
all, the Government. In all this there is a certain utility and pragmatism, but
no deeper qualities of the mind come into the fore. The students imbibe a
certain measure of scientific knowledge and technical competence but lack a
broad humane culture. They remain uneducated in the right sense of the term.
The lack of the spirit of reverence has played havoc with the West’s educational institutions. To call these institutions centers of learning would be to stretch the meaning of the word. They are degenerating into sanctuaries of all kinds of excesses, drinking, drugs, promiscuity and riots. In New York, we are told, teachers teach under the protection of the police. Glass-panes, windows, light-equipment are broken which cost the State millions of dollars every year.
Now, we are told, the schools are built inside a blind, solid wall. In the higher centers of learning, in what are called Multiversities, things are no better. Corruption prevails amongst the professors and deans. The students are not for higher standards of learning, but for the right of free sex and free obscene speech. I do not want to emphasize these negative features, but we must become aware of what we want to import if our means permitted. We must develop our own system of education which is in harmony with our best thoughts.
There were also certain other characteristic features in the old Indian system of education of which we would like to make a passing reference. Those features are worthy of imitation by us even now. The old educational system was economical and democratic. It was open to all irrespective of caste, creed or sex. Pupils belonging to widely different conditions shared a common life under a common teacher. Princes rubbed shoulders with plebeians.
We all know the stories of Krishna and Sudama, and Drupad and Dronacharya of ancient times. But the same is true of times less distant past. Prof. Radhakumud Mukherjee in his Ancient Indian Education, quotes from the Jataka stories and other literary sources to bring out this point. He shows how the teachers at Taxila drew students from all over India. These students belonged to different conditions of life. Princes, nobles, merchants, tailors, all studied together. Education was open to all except perhaps to Chandalas.
There is a story in the Jataka according to which a prince of Benares leaves for Taxila with a “pair of one-soled sandals, a sunshade of leaves, and a thousand pieces of money as his teacher’s fees, of which not a single piece he could retain for his private use”. There is another story of a prince who took away some sweets from a vendor’s basket without paying for them. The matter was reported to the teacher. The teacher caused two lads to take the young fellow by the two hands and smote him thrice upon the back with a bamboo stick, bidding him take care not to do it again.
The democratic spirit in education continued to prevail till recently. I have seen an old account of a school of the last century in a village of Tamil Nadu by an official of the East India Company. It said that while the teacher was a Brahmin, the scholars belonged to all castes. But now a new stratification is coming, the one based on money. From the kind of school a boy attends, one could guess his father’s income. This is bound to happen in a country where education is becoming increasingly costly. Costs may not improve the quality of education, but they do keep the populace out and give education a class-character.
We have been discussing the
principles of old Hindu education as it existed in olden days and the vision
that supported those principles. I have no doubt that they throw a flood of
light on the problems of education of today.
If we kept those principles in mind while planning our education, we shall have a standard to follow, however we may deviate from it in practice. I believe that even if a little of these principles are put in practice that would raise our educational standards and improve the quality of our lives. Above all we should give up the barren path of imitation. We should develop our education according to our own historical development, experience and needs.
One can see the Indian tradition still in action in all neighboring countries wherever Indian influence went. Indian monks carried this tradition of scholarship and education where-ever they went. B.H. Chamberlain, in his Things Japanese (London, 1898), says: “All education was for centuries in Buddhist hands; Buddhism introduced art, introduced medicine, molded the folklore of the country, created its dramatic poetry, deeply influenced politics and every sphere of social and intellectual activity. In a word, Buddhism was the teacher under whose instruction the nation grew up.” A.S. Geden, while quoting the above passage, further adds that,” In a larger sense of these terms, Japan owes more educationally to Buddhist influence and instruction than perhaps any other nation, with the possible exception of the Burmese”.
It is the same story in other parts of Asia like Thailand. The Encyclopaedia Americana (1952) says: “Traditionally, Siamese boys have been educated in Buddhist monastries, and more than 77 per cent of the local public schools, and 23 per cent of the government schools, are located in monasteries.” In Thailand, literacy was pretty high compared to other countries in Asia.
Today, youth movements and student movements all the world over tend to stand for dissipation and distraction. They are governed by tendencies and impulses which are not always for the good. They are permanently in revolt and most of the time they are talking of their rights. The campuses are becoming places of turbulence, unrest and agitation.
We know what kind of influences are running riot in our country. Our youths are increasingly being seduced by alien ideologies, by ideologies of materialism, hedonism, nihilism, communism, disunity and division. Under their influence, many unsuspecting and idealist young men become strangers to their own good.
They become agents and allies of people who have their eyes on our country, who want to enslave us. In the past, these forces combined to divide our country. They are combining again and are set on an open war-path in a bid to annex what remains of a once united India.
A much talked subject these days is: “Educational Planning in a Developing Country”. I do not believe that the subject is happily worded. “Developing country” is a euphemism for a backward or “under-developed” country. In fact, till recently, countries of the East were called by this unadorned name. But now we are supposed to have arrived at a “take-off” stage and consequently we have been promoted from an under-developed country into a developing country. After this “break-through”, our cultural and educational leap is assured; henceforth, we shall leap with geometric progression till we land God knows where. Or, perhaps, this promotion is a concession to our sensitivity. We may be backward but we are also human. We could afford being flattered a little.
Nor does Planning always solve problems. On the other hand, many times it deepens them, particularly those connected with the deeper cultural life of the country. For the Planning Commission is West-oriented. It must be having on its staff and as its advisors hundreds of men fresh from the Harvard University. Our ruling elite sees in India nothing but backwardness and wants to solve all problems by wholesale import and imitation.
Today, India may be backward in certain material performances but it was never backward in philosophies, theories and speculation that concern the deeper aspects of man, his happiness, his self-discovery, his education. India’s literacy-ratio may be low today, but its education is still one of the highest. As Gandhiji pointed out, in a country where the Ramayana is recited by the low-lowliest, in the remotest corners, the incidence and the quality of its education must be very high indeed.
Planning India’s education is a vast and difficult subject. It is difficult even to describe where to begin. It could be regarded under various divisions and aspects – all legitimate aspects. All these divisions and sub-divisions have their specific problems and requirements and all perform specific needs. The vocational or technical education is important in a society where old educations are dying and new ones have yet to be acquired. Child Education is in itself a vast subject. Then there is the question of the education of the more gifted students in the more abstract and advanced learning and more sophisticated technologies.
A nation’s very life depends on the mastery of these new masters. A nation must also attend to the demands of a more liberal and humanistic education which more truly molds a nation in the long run. Education must also strengthen national consciousness and unity and prepare men for the rights and duties of citizenship. Then there is the economic side of education, like the question of allocation of funds to education as a whole and to its various departments.
Then there is the question of a lingua franca, the question of a medium of instruction, the question of appropriate text-books. All these are important questions and a nation is called upon to tackle them. My subject in this essay is: The Hindu View of Education. What has India thought about education? Is there a definition of education or are there certain principles of education which could be called Indian or which expressed the soul of India faithfully?
I believe that the question is not without a bearing on the
current controversies and problems of education. If we want to be the architect
of our true future, we must understand our past. It may be that while exploring
the past, we may come by some seed-ideas which are true for all times. If that
happens, those ideas may give us some direction and guidance in our current
educational planning”--By Ram Swarup
EDUCATION IN THE VISION OF SWAMI VIVEKANANDA
“A nation is advanced in proportion to education and intelligence spread
among the masses”--Vivekananda. In a Naturalistic view point, he emphasized that
real education is possible only through nature and natural propensities.
Swami Vivekananda
(1863 – 1902), a great thinker and reformer of India, embraces education, which
for him signifies ‘man-making’, as the very mission of his life. In this paper,
which purports to expound and analyze Vivekananda’s views on education, an
endeavor has been made to focus on the basic theme of his philosophy, viz. the
spiritual unity of the universe. Whether it concerns the goal or aim of
education, or its method of approach or its component parts, all his thoughts,
we shall observe, stem from this dormant theme of his philosophy which has its
moorings in Vedanta.
Vivekananda
realizes that mankind is passing through a crisis. The tremendous emphasis on
the scientific and mechanical ways of life is fast reducing man to the status
of a machine. Moral and religious values are being undermined. The fundamental
principles of civilization are being ignored. Conflicts of ideals, manners and
habits are pervading the atmosphere. Disregard for everything old is the
fashion of the day. Vivekananda seeks the solutions of all these social and
global evils through education. With this end in view, he feels the dire need
of awakening man to his spiritual Self wherein, he thinks, lies the very
purpose of education.
The Goal or Objective of Education
Vivekananda points
out that the defect of the present-day education is that it has no definite
goal to pursue. A sculptor has a clear idea about what he wants to shape out of
the marble block; similarly, a painter knows what he is going to paint. But a
teacher, he says, has no clear idea about the goal of his teaching. Swamiji
attempts to establish, through his words and deeds, that the end of all
education is man making. He prepares the scheme of this man-making education in
the light of his over-all philosophy of Vedanta. According to Vedanta, the
essence of man lies in his soul, which he possesses in addition to his body and
mind. In true with this philosophy, Swamiji defines education as ‘the
manifestation of the perfection already in man.’ The aim of education is to
manifest in our lives the perfection, which is the very nature of our inner
self. This perfection is the realization of the infinite power which resides in
everything and every-where-existence, consciousness and bliss (sat-chidananda). After understanding the
essential nature of this perfection, we should identify it with our inner self.
For achieving this, one will have to eliminate one’s ego, ignorance and all
other false identification, which stand in the way. Meditation, fortified by
moral purity and passion for truth, helps man to leave behind the body, the
senses, the ego and all other non-Self
elements, which are perishable. He thus realizes his immortal divine self,
which is of the nature of infinite existence, infinite knowledge and infinite
bliss.
At this stage, man
becomes aware of his self as identical with all other selves of the universe,
i.e. different selves as manifestations of the same self. Hence education, in
Vivekananda’s sense, enables one to comprehend one’s self within as the self
everywhere. The essential unity of the entire universe is realized through
education. Accordingly, man making for Swamiji stands for rousing mans to the
awareness of his true self. However, education thus signified does not point
towards the development of the soul in isolation from body and mind. We have to
remember that basis of Swamiji’s philosophy is Advaita which preaches unity in
diversity. Therefore, man making for him means a harmonious development of the
body, mind and soul.
In his scheme of
education, Swamiji lays great stress on physical health because a sound mind
resides in a sound body. He often quotes the Upanishadic dictum ‘nayamatma balahinena labhyah’;
i.e. the self cannot be realized by the physically weak. However,
along with physical culture, he harps on the need of paying special attention
to the culture of the mind. According to Swamiji, the mind of the students has
to be controlled and trained through meditation, concentration and practice of
ethical purity. All success in any line of work, he emphasizes, is the result
of the power of concentration. By way of illustration, he mentions that the
chemist in the laboratory concentrates all the powers of his mind and brings
them into one focus-the elements to be analyzed-and finds out their secrets.
Concentration, which necessarily implies detachment from other things,
constitutes a part of Brahmacharya, which is one of the guiding mottos of his
scheme of education. Brahmacharya, in a nutshell, stands for the practice of
self-control for securing harmony of the impulses. By his philosophy of
education, Swamiji thus brings it home that education is not a mere
accumulation of information but a comprehensive training for life. To quote
him: ‘Education is not the amount of information that is put into your brain
and runs riot there undigested, all your life.’ Education for him means
that process by which character is formed, strength of mind is increased, and
intellect is sharpened, as a result of which one can stand on one’s own feet.
Method or Procedure
Having analyzed the
goal or objective of education, the next question that naturally arises is
about the method of imparting education. Here again, we note the Vedantic foundation
of Swamiji’s theory. According to him, knowledge is inherent in every man’s
soul. What we mean when we say that a man ‘knows’ is only what he ‘discovers’
by taking the cover off his own soul. Consequently, he draws our attention to
the fact that the task of the teacher is only to help the child to manifest its
knowledge by removing the obstacles in its way. In his words: ‘Thus Vedanta
says that within man is all knowledge even in a boy it is so and it requires
only an awakening and that much is the work of a teacher.’ To drive his point
home, he refers to the growth of a plant. Just as in the case of a plant, one
cannot do anything more than supplying it with water, air and manure while it
grows from within its own nature, so is the case with a human child.
Vivekananda’s method of education resembles the heuristic method of the modern
educationists. In this system, the teacher invokes the spirit of inquiry in the
pupil who is supposed to find out things for himself under the bias-free
guidance of the teacher.
Swamiji lays a lot
of emphasis on the environment at home and school for the proper growth of the
child. The parents as well as the teachers should inspire the child by the way
they live their lives. Swamiji recommends the old institution of gurukula
(living with the preceptor) and similar systems for the purpose. In such
systems, the students can have the ideal character of the teacher constantly
before them, which serves as the role model to follow.
Although Swamiji is
of the opinion that mother tongue is the right medium for social or mass
education, he prescribes the learning of English and Sanskrit also. I did this in my education. While English is
necessary for mastering Western science and technology, Sanskrit leads one into
the depths of our vast store of classics. The implication is that if language
does not remain the privilege of a small class of people, social unity will
“March Forward Unhampered”.
Fields of Study
Vivekananda, in his
scheme of education, meticulously includes all those studies, which are
necessary for the all-around development of the body, mind and soul of the
individual. These studies can be brought under the broad heads of physical
culture, aesthetics, classics, language, religion, science and technology.
According to Swamiji, the culture values of the country should form an integral
part of the curriculum of education. The culture of India has its roots in her
spiritual values. The time-tested values are to be imbibed in the thoughts and
lives of the students through the study of the classics like Ramayana,
Mahabharata, Gita, Vedas and Upanishads. This will keep the perennial flow of
our spiritual values into the world culture.
Education,
according to Swamiji, remains incomplete without the teaching of aesthetics or
fine arts. He cites Japan as an example of how the combination of art and
utility can make a nation great.
Swamiji reiterates
that religion is the innermost core of education. However, by religion, he does
not mean any particular kind of it, but its essential character, which is the
realization of the divinity already in man. He reminds us time and again that
religion does not consist in dogmas or creeds or any set of rituals. To be
religious for him means leading life in such a way that we manifest our higher nature,
truth, goodness and beauty, in our thoughts, words and deeds. All impulses,
thoughts and actions which lead one towards this goal are naturally ennobling
and harmonizing, and are ethical and moral in the truest sense. It is in this
context that Swamiji’s idea of religion, as the basis of education should be
understood. We note that in his interpretation, religion and education share
the identity of purpose.
Why religion forms the very foundation of education becomes
clear in his following words: ‘In building up
character, in making for everything that is good and great, in bringing peace
to others, and peace to one’s own self, religion is the highest motive power,
and, therefore, ought to be studied from that standpoint. Swamiji believes that
if education with its religious core can invigorate man’s faith in his divine
nature and the infinite potentialities of the human soul, it is sure to help
man become strong, yet tolerant and sympathetic. It will also help man to
extend his love and good will beyond the communal, national and racial
barriers.
It is a
misinterpretation of Vivekananda’s philosophy of education to think that he has
overemphasized the role of spiritual development to the utter neglect of the
material side. Vivekananda, in his plan for the regeneration of India,
repeatedly presses the need for the eradication of poverty, unemployment and
ignorance. He says, We need technical education and all else which may develop
industries, so that men, instead of seeking for service, may earn enough to
provide for them-selves, and save something against a rainy day. He feels it
necessary that India should take from the Western nations all that is good in
their civilization. However, just like a person, every nation has its
individuality, which should not be destroyed. The individuality of India lies
in her spiritual culture. Hence in Swamiji’s view, for the development of a
balanced nation, we have to combine the dynamism and scientific attitude of the
West with the spirituality of our country. The entire educational program
should be so planned that it equips the youth to contribute to the material
progress of the country as well as to maintaining the supreme worth of India’s
spiritual heritage.
Another important
aspect of Swamiji’s scheme of education is women’s education. He realizes that
it if the women of our country get the right type of education, then they will
be able to solve their own problems in their own way. The main objective of his
scheme of female education is to make them strong, fear-less, and conscious of
their chastity and dignity. He observes that although men and women are equally
competent in academic matters, yet women have a special aptitude and competence
for studies relating to home and family. Hence he recommends the introduction
of subjects like sewing, nursing, domestic science, culinary art, etc. that were
not part of education at his time.
Conclusion
The exposition and analysis of Vivekananda’s scheme of education
brings to light its constructive, practical and comprehensive character. He
realizes that it is only through education that the uplift of masses is
possible. To refer to his own words: Traveling through many cities of Europe
and observing in them the comforts and education of even the poor people, there
was brought to my mind the state of our own poor people and I used to shed
tears. When made the difference? “Education” was the answer I got.’
He states it
emphatically that if society is to be reformed, education has to reach
everyone-high and low, because individuals are the very constituents of
society. The sense of dignity rises in man when he becomes conscious of his
inner spirit, and that is the very purpose of education. He strives to
harmonize the traditional values of India with the new values brought through
the progress of science and technology.
It is in the
transformation of man through moral and spiritual education that he finds the
solution for all social evils. Founding education on the firm ground of our own
philosophy and culture, he shows the best of remedies for today’s social and
global illness. Through his scheme of education, he tries to materialize the
moral and spiritual welfare and uplift of humanity, irrespective of caste,
creed, nationality or time. However, Swami Vivekananda’s scheme of education,
through which he wanted to build up a strong nation that will lead the world
towards peace and harmony, is still a far cry. It is high time that we give
serious thought to his philosophy of education and remembers his call to
every-body-‘Arise, awake, and stop not till the goal is reached.’
Prakriti is no less sacred than
Purusha--Vivekananda
12th
January 1863 was the day, Narendranath was born. Swamiji would have had the
same message if he was alive today, he would have used a different language but
am sure his tonality and his enthusiasm would have been the same. He propagated
Karma Yoga as the best Yoga for the youth. Today’s youth wants quick buck.
Vivekananda’s politics and economics are all to be found in his social
philosophy. And in this domain we encounter Vivekananda as the messenger of
modern materialism. Kant is the father of modern materialism for the west.
Vivekananda is the father of modern materialism for India. India, like Europe,
was in need of a man who could say with all honesty he could command that
Prakriti was no less sacred than Purusha and that the pursuit of material science
and material prosperity was as godly as that of the science and activities
bearing on the soul. Vivekananda had been a rationalist and a deist, though he
fancied that he was a theist. His early religious associations were with the
Brahmo-Samaj. Ramkrishna Paramahasa attracted; however; many members of the
Brahmo-Samaj by his great psychic powers and more particularly by his
passionate love of God. Real freedom is achieved not through war, but through
peace. War or renunciation or isolation has a place no doubt in the scheme of
life, but only a temporary place as a means to the attainment of the ultimate
end which is not perpetuation of the inevitable conflict of evolution. Freedom,
again, is one. Freedom from the domination of our passions and appetites is the
first step in the realization of the ideal. Freedom from the fear of
brother-man is the next step. Freedom from the domination of any external
authority must follow next. In this way from personal freedom, through social
freedom including political freedom, man must attain his real freedom. And when
he attains it, he realizes, finally, that he and his God are one. This is
really the message of his Master to the modern world. I think that Vivekananda
greatest service is the development in his teaching of the finest features of
Indian culture. Vivekananda said that there was the power of Brahman in every
man that Narayana (i.e. God) wanted to have our service through the poor.
Gospel showed the path of infinite freedom from man’s tiny egocentric self beyond
the limits of all selfishness. This was no sermon relating to a particular
ritual, nor was it a narrow injunction to be imposed upon one’s external life.
This naturally contained in it protest against untouchability-not because that
would make for political freedom, but because that would do away with the
humiliation of man-a curse which in fact puts to shame the self of us all.
Vivekananda’s gospel marked the awakening of man in his fullness and that is
why it inspired our youth to the diverse courses of liberation through work and
sacrifice.
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