9 February :
9 Feb 1897 : At Madras - The Work Before Us - we must give up the idea that we are the people in the world and that though we have
much to teach others, we must be ready to learn from anybody who can
teach us. We must go out, said the Swami. “The first manifest effect of
life is expansion. You must expand if you want to live. The moment you
have ceased to expand, death is upon you, danger
is ahead. I went to America and Europe, to which you so kindly allude; I
have to, because that is the first sign of revival of national life,
expansion. This reviving national life, expanding inside, threw me off,
and thousands will be thrown off that way.” “Once more,” declared Swami
Vivekananda, “the world must be conquered by India . . . .
Spirituality must conquer .. The whole of the western world is on a
volcano, which may burst tomorrow, go to pieces tomorrow . . . . We must
go out, we must conquer the world through our spirituality and
philosophy. There is no other alternative, we must do it, or die. The
only condition of national life, of awakened and vigorous national life,
is the conquest of the world by Indian thought.”
My Plan of
Campaign - my plan is to start institutions in India, to train our young
men as preachers of the truths of our scriptures, in India and outside
India. Men, men these are wanted: everything else will be ready, but
strong, vigorous, believing young men, sincere to the backbone are
wanted. A hundred such and the world becomes revolutionized. . Let them
hear of the Atman — that even the lowest of the low have Atman within,
which never dies and never is born — of Him whom the sword cannot
pierce, nor the fire burn, nor the air dry — immortal, without beginning
or end, the all pure, omnipotent, and omnipresent Atman. Let them have faith in themselves. .What we want is strength, so believe in yourselves. What we want is muscles of iron and nerves of steel. We have wept long enough. No more weeping, but stand on your feet and be men. It is a man making religion that we want. It is man making theories that we want. It is man making education all round that we want. . . .”
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