Raise An Opposing Wave
“When a big wave of anger has come into the mind, how are we to control that? Just by raising an opposing wave… When the idea of stealing comes, non-stealing should be thought of; when the idea of receiving gifts comes, replace it with a contrary thought.” — Swami Vivekananda Imagine that you visit a […]
You Are Part of the Whole
“As manifested beings we appear to be separate, but our reality is one, and the less we think of ourselves as separate from that One, the better for us. The more we think of ourselves as separate from the Whole, the more miserable we become.” — Swami Vivekananda Spend an hour on a hill, by […]
You Can’t Walk on Quicksand
“Avoid evil company because the scars of old wounds are in you, and evil company is just the thing that’s necessary to call them out. In the same way, good company will call out the good impressions that are in us, but which have become latent.” — Swami Vivekananda How do you feel around unhappy […]
Reading as a Proxy for Learning
“He whose book of the heart has been opened needs no other. Their only value is to create desire in us. They are merely experiences of others.” — Swami Vivekananda It’s easy to mistake reading about productivity for being productive, to assume that watching parenting videos makes one a great parent, or to consider oneself […]
Excessive Happiness Is Also Harmful
“Excessive mirth makes us unfit for serious thought. It fritters away energy of the mind in vain. The stronger the will, the less yielding [the mind is] to the sway of emotions. Excessive hilarity is quite as objectionable as too much of sad seriousness, and all realization is only possible when the mind is in […]
Thinking Evil Thoughts Is Also Violence
“The test of Ahimsa is the absence of jealousy. Any man may do a good deed or make a good gift on the spur of the moment or under the pressure of some kind of superstition or priestcraft; but the real lover of mankind is he who is jealous of none.” — Swami Vivekananda Your […]
The Only Karma Worth Working For
“Some Karma we have worked out already, some we are working out now in the present, and some are waiting to bear fruit in the future. The first kind is past and gone. The second we will have to work out, and it is only that which is waiting to bear fruit in the future […]
Empty Your Cup
“Which state is my individuality? When I was a baby sprawling on the floor trying to swallow my thumb? Was that the individuality I should be sorry to lose? Fifty years hence I shall look upon this present state and laugh, just as I [now] look upon the baby state. Which of these individualities shall […]
The Greatest Danger to Man
“There is one great danger in human nature, viz. that man never examines himself. He thinks he is quite as fit to be on the throne as the king. Even if he is, he must first show that he has done the duty of his own position; and then higher duties will come… No man […]
When You Argue, You Lose
“Do not argue… if one forces arguments upon you, be silent. Do not answer any argument but go away calmly, because arguments only disturb the mind. The only thing necessary is to train the intellect; what is the use of disturbing it for nothing.” — Swami Vivekananda Everyone is trying to win arguments, whether on […]